Hello everyone! It has been awhile. I'm really sorry for being so late. I'll try to be earlier next chapter, but honestly I was really stumped with this chapter. I'm trying to introduce a new concept that is IN the FF15 universe. We know it from the movie, but I had a hard time trying to explain it. Master Ley is an obvious person if you read any Chinese Light Novels or manhua (I think I spelt that right). And I took the magic concept from that story to put it in here, because I think it fits best with what we know of the FF15 universe and things like Elemancy and stuff. This chapters a bit shorter, sorry, but I've been really busy. Had a family member pass away a couple months ago and had to deal with that, then I had finals and other tests, then Zelda BoTW and now playing Persona 5.

SPEAKING OF PERSONA 5, I fucking love that game. Honestly thinking about starting a story of it. I love all the characters in it especially all the females. I had such a hard time picking my SO in the game, but I went with Ann if anyone is wondering. It was stuck between her, Makoto and Hifumi. Ugh it was terrible. In most animes I fall for the girls that act like those three the most.

So honestly speaking might start a Persona 5 fanfiction any time now.It'll be a ProtagxHarem? Maybe Idk not sure yet still working on the idea of it and my NG +. I'm not abandoning this fic, but I don't remember where I said it exactly, either Ch 1 ANs or in my bio, but I write cause I want to write. I love you all as fans, but you don't want to read something I feel forced to write. I want it to be good and fun to read, if I'm forcing myself to write a story and trying to force it through to get o you then it won't be fun for either of us. Well anyway thanks for all the patients.

Noctis: So, you're finally uploading this.

EP: Yep.

Noctis: You've had it on your computer for months...

EP: WELL, EXCUSEEEEE ME PRINCESS. I wanted to edit it a bit, and honestly I'm not sure how much I like it.

Noctis: *Shrugs* Well I hope every one else does.

EP: Well speaking of that, hey friends that actually read my Author's notes, let me know if you like this concept of Magic in the story, if not I'll working on fixing it.

Noctis: and off that note, I'd like to say Expresso Patronum does not own anything except some OCs and stuff yeah.

EP: Nice one.

Noctis was a bit disappointed as he sat down for breakfast. His dad was busy with work so it was only him and his mom today. He figured that going to the library would be his best choice today instead of waiting for his dad to be free.

"Noct, is every thing all right?" His mother asked with concern in her voice. Noctis mentally shook his head becoming aware of his surroundings.

"Yeah, why do you ask mom?"

"You have been staring at your empty bowl for a couple of minutes. Is there something on your mind?"

"Actually, yes." He said looking up at his mother with a serious look on his face. "What do you know about magic?"

She gave him a curious look, "do you want to be more specific?"

"Magic, you know, not like card tricks, but casting spells. The only thing I know is that it exists, but it is rare."

"Well yes, it does exist." She stated. "Do you plan on trying to learn it?" She asked curiously.

He nodded in response.

"Noctis, I hope you don't get your hopes up too much, saying that it is 'rare' is putting it very lightly." She stated. "I do not know how factual this is, but when I was younger your grandfather searched the whole country for magic users and apparently only five were found in all of Lucis."

He was a bit taken aback he knew it was rare, but to find only five in the population of millions was rather ridiculous. "I won't get my hopes up, I just want to learn about it."

"Well, I will tell you what I know." She said as their maids cleaned the table in front of them. "There are two things you need to learn about before you can make sense of why mages are important and are so rare."

He nodded in acknowledgement.

"The first one is rather quick, since not much is known about it in present day. The Great War of Old, where the Astral Ifrit betrayed the Six Astrals and wiped out Solheim, back then Solheim was a collection of the four Kingdoms we know now. This event caused a lot of the magic tomes and mages themselves to be lost in the ashes of Ifrit's fire."

"Do you understand so far?" She asked raising an eyebrow as his mom remembered that she was still talking to a young child.

"Yeah, I understand mom." He replied.

"Centuries ago, before even the kingdom of Lucis was created magic users were a common sight. But many things happened, to cause a large number of them to disappear. Have you read up on the first Crystal war yet?" She asked.

He shook his head; although he did lie to his parents not too long ago about having been reading a lot. While he knew what occurred, he never really cared for his schooling that much in his past life, only to get a good grade at most. And he didn't want his parents to think of him as a genius, while he could definitely show off that he was smart he still wanted to go to school and meet Prompto.

"The first war was only the start of it. That is when the Eos lost its first crystal. It was probably the most violent war, if you didn't already know this. Mages were drafted and forced to fight, unlike common soldiers." She stated her pretty face taking a disgusted expression. "Every country back then fought one another with the power of their countries' mages. This incident caused a lot of fear and smaller countries without strong mages lived under the protection of larger ones. There were two outcomes from this, hierarchical societies and a raise in the status of mages."

"While slavery is banned in all four of the great Kingdoms now, it was not back then. Many of the small villages and towns were practically slaves to the larger kingdoms. Mages, even mages from slave villages, were automatically raised to Dukedom, and depending on their strength they could be even more." She explained.

"Why were mages so important?" He asked, he could guess, but he wanted to show her he was listening and to hear a definite answer.

"The power of mages far surpassed that of a regular person. One mage had the firepower of a 100 soldiers. Even a weak mage could still take on several soldiers at by themselves. A mage could do the job of several doctors; while they are more limited in how they heal a person they still did a very good job especially in times of war. And a very powerful mage could defend a kingdom by themselves, even one as vast as Lucis. They can wipe out a whole army by themselves. That's why mages are held so high in status. If one of those strong mages were to exist now, even your father would not oppose him and the amount of political power he would hold would probably be greater than his just cause of the amount of devastation they could cause."

"So no one that strong exists not?" He asked curiously.

"Not to anyone's knowledge, if they do then no one knows about it. But it is possible, while it has not been proven in a long time it is rumored that mages that strong can live until they are centuries old."

That, he never knew. "Do you know what happened with those mages grandfather found?" He asked curiously maybe one of them could help him learn magic.

"To my knowledge, they are part of your father's Kingsglaive."

"The only one I know of is named Crowe, she's the only female in your father's Glaives. Except she was not found by your grandfather, she was discovered by your father, she's only a couple of years older than you, but I've heard out of the few mages in the Glaives she's the strongest."

He nodded. He remembered her from his past life, he met her once, by coincidence, but he never actually talked to her. "So what are the requirements to become a mage?" He asked curiously.

She shrugged her shoulders. "There are several tests your grandfather did. One of them tests your affinity with mana. But the mages that came to your grandfather came by on their own accord and showed off their ability they themselves discovered."

"Crowe was found by accident, as well, while your father was out for work on the outskirts." She added.

Noctis nodded. It made sense. It seemed like there was no reason to not come forward as a mage from what his mother told him it seemed like there was no downfall to it.

"From what you're saying mom, it seems like there's only good things that come from being considered a mage. Is there really no negative consequence?"

His mom shook her head. "It depends what you consider a negative consequence. While, yes the benefits seem to be extraordinary, the negatives of it are no laughing matter. If you want to earn the benefits of being a mage of a nation, you must affiliate yourself with that nation. If you were not the Prince, but a commoner, but also a mage you would have to swear yourself to the King. While if you did not want to, but chose to stay neutral Lucis as well as many others will consider you a possible threat especially depending on your strength in magic."

Noctis was a bit shocked, but he didn't try to show it outwardly. "I see." He answered. Maybe it wasn't as pretty as he thought it was, if anything it was the opposite. If one was found as a mage than they were practically forced to join a side. Especially in this day in age where the number of mages and the level of them were low considering what his mother said.

"Thanks for this mom, I appreciate it."

"It's nothing, love." She replied sweetly. "Now you have training soon, why don't you go rest up until then? Maybe get some reading in, I need to meet up with your father after his business. We will be both be at dinner tonight."

"Okay, bye mom." He said as he hopped out of his chair giving his mom a quick wave goodbye as he made his way to the royal archives.

Other than strength itself, becoming a mage had no benefits for him. He was already the Crown Prince of Lucis with that considered he would not have to swear his loyalty to Lucis. The only thing he could think of was his might bring light to himself too early on. Ardyn didn't make a move on Lucis years from now, considering his father was still in his prime and the 'True King' has yet to be revealed to Ardyn. Even if he was found to be a mage by all of Eos, that means nothing to Ardyn, but it would cause him to be cautious. He would have to be careful about revealing his strength.

Noctis nodded curtly to the Glaives guarding the library and entered the royal archives after shaking off his thoughts. He was getting ahead of himself. While he knew he had an obvious affinity with mana, there was still no way of knowing if he could use magic.

In his past life he had only been here a few times when he was older after his mom passed away. He and Prompto would spend their time here studying. Well it was mostly Prompto just copying his homework.

Noctis walked up to the 'royal librarian,' as Prompto liked to call him, but really he was one of the top Glaives assigned to protect the more important doctrines in the archives. He was a relative of Ignis, and much like Ignis he was intelligent. His main role was to watch for intruders, but since the possibility was highly unlikely considering the amount one would have to do to invade the library, he also took up the responsibilities similar to that of a librarian, which is why Prompto called him such.

"Your highness," Ignis's relative said saluting respectfully. "How may I be of service?"

Noctis saluted him back, respectfully causing the older man to relax slightly. It was his first time talking to him afterall, understandable. "I was wondering if there is a section of books for magic."

Ignis's relative didn't ask any questions as he looked over the database on the monitor in front of him. "There's nothing like that in the main section, if you take the stairs up it should be up there. Your grandfather had those set and archived up there, only Glaives and others with permission from your father may be up there."

Noctis nodded and thanked the Glaive before heading to the stairs. He felt an odd sensation in the back of his head as he continued walking up the stairs. It felt like he had no control over his thoughts as random things seemingly popped into his head. Each step from the one before it, he shook it off, but as he climbed up it was getting harder. As he climbed near the top, the random thoughts and suggestions that were in his head turned into urges, part of him wanted to go to the bathroom, and another part of him wanted to just go back downstairs and rest. His eyes wandered back down to the librarian, whom seemed perfectly fine. He remembered Glaives could come up here, did they ever feel this too? He wondered if it was some sort test.

Noctis gritted his teeth as he continued to climb the stairs before finally reaching the top. The pressure he felt on his mind finally seemed to release him. That was when Noctis noticed him. How did he not see him earlier?

At the top of the steps there was a man that leaned over the railing with a worn book in his hand.

Who was he? The man turned to look at Noctis. Noctis did not recognize him. He didn't wear the uniform like the other Glaives, but instead he wore a blue colored robe, loose fitted white pants and a worn and raggedly looking cloak. The man had shoulder length chestnut colored hair that was relatively straight, but stuck out in different directions and honestly reminded him of his own if he happened to grown it out that long.

The man gave him a look, his lips curling in a smirk. "Impressive," he said. The older man's eyes looked over as if observing him. Noctis tried to use his ⟨⟨Scan⟩⟩ ability, but there was no read on the man, not even question marks. The man closed his book and started to walk towards him. Signals blared in Noctis's head to run, but he found that he couldn't move a single step. Before he knew it the man was in front of him, two fingers pointing at Noctis's forehead. Noctis watched, as they came closer to him, his eyes closed tightly in fear. The fingers touched his forehead and all the tension and pressure he felt on the trudge up here disappeared.

"Better?" The unknown man asked as Noctis looked up at him questioningly. He was strong, that much Noctis knew, but part of Noctis knew he was not an enemy, he knew that he could have easily been killed right there.

Noctis nodded. The man turned around and walked to long table that sat in the middle of the floor. "Come, I mean you no harm." Noctis scurried up to the table and sat across from the unknown man.

Silence overtook the two for a while. He was waiting. "W-what was that earlier?" He said mentally slapping himself for stuttering.

"Define earlier," he said his eyes still observing Noctis.

"The stairs," Noctis replied.

"It's a defensive aura that keeps people away. It feeds your brain suggestions at first and the closer you get the more it affects you." He explained simply. "It's much more complex, but that is the basis of it. I would have never thought a child like you would get through it."

"Is that why you said it was impressive?" The man nodded in response.

"Is this a defense my grandfather set up, or was it-" The look the man gave Noctis told him every thing and he quickly ended his question. "So that was- magic?" Noctis asked, biting his lip. He knew this was a dangerous question. His mother just told him there were no powerful mages that still existed to her knowledge. The explanation the unknown man gave him could have been that exact reason. If this man was really as strong as Noctis assumed, seeing as how the ⟨⟨Anima System⟩⟩ had no read on him, this could go south very quickly.

The man seemed to ponder for a minute, before answering, "yes."

"I won't tell anyone." Noctis replied seriously. The fact that his mother had no knowledge of this man said a lot. Noctis could only assume that his father didn't even know of his existence.

The man smirked in response. "I know."

"Can you- tell me more?"

"Care to be more specific?"

"About magic, I want to learn."

The man kept a nonchalant expression, but his tone told Noctis otherwise. "Why?"

Noctis looked around. He knew he had to answer correctly. Noctis had the feeling that of this man wanted to, he could disappear and he would never find him again no matter how hard he tried. The truth, that was what Noctis decided to tell him. He was a mage, if any one would believe him he would. He was sure of it. Noctis looked around to make sure no one else was around to here; otherwise they'd think he was some crazy Prince.

"No one else can hear you, how do you think I was up here unnoticed?" The man answered, causing Noctis to relax slightly.

And then Noctis told him. He told him about the future, his past life, Anima, everything. The man said nothing as Noctis divulged all of his secrets. Once he finished talking, the two of them sat in silence.

The silence made Noctis fidgety. Yeah, maybe his story was crazy even for a magician.

"Honestly, your story is a bit farfetched." The man finally answered.

Noctis looked down in response, disappointed.

"But, who am I to say that." He said his expression changing again. "I'm sure if I told you every thing about myself you would think the same thing." The man passed the book he was reading earlier across the tabletop. "You asked the man downstairs for this earlier. I looked it over, while the information is basic, it is mostly correct." He claimed.

Noctis took the worn book and opened it. The pages were worn and old, and the writing was something he knew he definitely never learned, but each word seemed to appear in his mind.

"It's a translation spell." The man said as if reading his mind. "You are destined for great things. I could already tell that much when I first saw you make it up those steps. No one else here has been able to make it that far, and I've watched as they have tried." He said. "I will tell you now, that I have no affiliation with your kingdom of Lucis or any other for that matter, but I like you, so I will help you out a bit."

"Thank you-" Noctis said not sure how to address the man.

The man pondered for a moment, "Ley, you may call me Ley."

"Thank you, Master Ley." Noctis said he wasn't sure why he called the other man Master, but it felt right in a way.

He nodded in response, not saying anything about the title that Noctis added. "Once you finish that, and learn more about magic, come find me again and we will discuss more." He said as he got up from the table.

"How do I find you again, Master Ley?" He asked curiously.

"Just come back up these steps. Do not worry about the stairs anymore they won't cause you anymore problems."

"So you really think I can learn magic?"

"If I didn't think you could I wouldn't waste my time." He answered bluntly. "I am sure you have a lot of questions, and in due time they will be answered, but for now get going. Come back when you are ready to learn more about magic." He said.

The Lucian salute would mean nothing to Ley, so Noctis instead bowed respectfully. When Noctis lifted his head Ley was already gone. A childlike excitement filled Noctis's body as he rushed down back down the stairs. He let the librarian make note of what book he was taking before rushing back to his room. He hadn't been this excited in what seemed like forever even in his past life Noctis never remembered being this excited for anything.

Noctis closed his bedroom door, taking a look at the digital clock that sat on the desk inside his bedroom. He still had several hours before his training with the others. He took a seat at his desk and opened the book.

The first section seemed to explain what magic was. The book explained that Magic was the ability to perceive, form and change mana. The practitioners of magic were called magus, or mages, or magicians. He assumed that the different titles were based on where one came from. Noctis was sure there was more to it than that, but Ley did say that this book explained the basics. He continued to read, his interest growing as he continued. The book does not out right explain what mana is, but it did claim that mana existed everywhere, but the ability to perceive mana was what determined a mage. He was not sure what it felt like for others, since even in his past life he could at least determine his own mana. The kings of Lucis had the ability to use mana in certain ways, but he wondered what the difference was between using items like the ⟨⟨Ring of Lucii⟩⟩ or ⟨⟨Warp-Strikes⟩⟩ compared to real magic. He made a mental note to ask Master Ley about that next time.

Different magic drew from an elemental aspect. While they could all learn magic from each affinity, most had an element or elements they had an easier time learning. There were four main elemental affinities, fire, water, wind and earth. He pondered for a moment. ⟨⟨Elemancy⟩⟩ and the ability to draw from elemental veins found around the Eos was most likely a physical representation for this idea. A ⟨⟨fire vein⟩⟩ was obvious, but a ⟨⟨lightning vein⟩⟩ and an ⟨⟨ice vein⟩⟩ were more obscure, they were most likely mixtures of two of the affinities like fire and air. The book also claimed there were four main elements, so he could also assume there were others too, his mom confirmed there was magic that could heal, so maybe that was considered a different affinity.

Continuing with the section it explained that mages were ranked by number. A ranked one magician was the weakest and a rank nine magician was the strongest. Noctis doubted that that was where the ranking ended since it is explained that one is a ranked one magician by being able to perceive their own mana. Since Noctis was considered a Rank One mage, he highly doubted that Master Ley would only be considered a Rank Nine mage. Their difference in strength far exceeded a scale of one to nine this much Noctis could tell for certain.

He skimmed through the book and it talked briefly on what a higher ranked magus could do, but mostly explained the first four rankings. A rank one magus is able to perceive their own mana and mana in their surroundings. They had the ability to draw a minute amount of mana from their strongest elemental affinity. A rank two magus had the ability to draw more mana and to form a physical representation of this mana. So, he wondered what he was considered if he considered ⟨⟨Elemancy⟩⟩ and ⟨⟨Magic Flasks⟩⟩ he could be considered at least a rank four, as it is explained that a rank four is able to start mixing the different elements. It didn't say it in the book, but from his past life he knew that he didn't need to draw mana in from his surroundings to use the mana he had innately, and that his own mana would replenish over time. But when he was out of mana it had rather severe headaches and fatigue.

Noctis understood that the Lucian royal bloodline was special, but to what extent? From the ideas of this book, it made it seem like he was a borderline mages even before he understood any of this in his past life. In some ways he was a mage, being able to use mana, being able to materialize armaments, and drawing out power from elemental veins.

All this information just made him question every thing he knew about his family. What exactly were his ancestors?

Noctis took a look at his desktop clock, and sighed as he bookmarked his current progress in the book and hid in in his desk drawer. He'd rather not have to answer questions for the time being.

He had so many questions he needed answers to, but for now he needed to get ready to meet the others.

"Ignis, Gladio, what's up?" Noctis asked nonchalantly as he entered the training room where the two older boys were already waiting for him.

"Your highness," they both replied saluting to him as he came towards them.

The way they addressed him irked him. Well what could he expect, the Ignis and Gladio he knew knew him for years and these two that he's with have only know him for a day.

"Please, you two, just call me Noctis, or Noct. At least while we're training. I'd like it if we could all be friends if it's at least only here." Noctis admitted while rubbing the back of his neck.

The two other boys looked at one another, Gladio had a surprised look on his face, and Ignis, if he was surprised, retained an expressionless face.

"Sure, I'm all right with that Noct." Gladio finally said after a moment. "I'm a bit surprised honestly." He said with a sheepish expression. "You're nothing like I expected you to be."

Noctis raised a brow. "And what did you expect me to be like?" Well, really he already knew from their past life what Gladio's first impression of him was, but he might as well address the elephant in the room now.

"Well, you're only five, and you talk similar to Iggy over here, which means you're a lot smarter than I was giving you credit for before we met. So with this and additionally with you being a prince. I didn't think you'd be so…" he said as he pondered for a minute trying to find the right word.

"Humble," Ignis said finish his friend's sentence.

"Yeah, what he said!" Gladio said laughing as he patted Ignis on the back.

"However, with that being said, Prince Noctis, Gladio, in terms of us being friends or not, in the eye of the public as well as in other official settings we must dismiss that fact for that time being." Ignis said seriously.

"Oh lighten up, it'll be awhile before we fall into that situation. We're still only in training anyway, it'll be several years before we ever go anywhere that could be an 'official' event regarding Prince Noctis." Gladio said as he wrapped his arms around the twos shoulders.

Ignis gave the two a slight smile.

"Glad to see you three getting along." Gladio's father said from behind them.

The three of them turned and saluted, and he saluted back.

"Now, let's get to training. Today may be a bit more uncomfortable, so bare with it." He explained. "Today you'll be using weapons you are not comfortable with."

Gladio opened his mouth to say something, "no, you may not use an axe instead of a greatsword, they're practically the same thing." He said already knowing what Gladio was going to ask.

"Gladio, you are using dual daggers, Ignis you're using a greatsword and Prince Noctis…" Clarus pondered. "I still don't know much about your skill, but no swords, its obvious you are obviously adept with swords seeing as how you were able to hold off Gladio yesterday, so I'll let you decide what to use."

'Well this is a problem' Noctis thought. While he did have a greater mastery with swords than other weapons in his usual arsenal, he was fairly adept with other weapons too from his past life. However, he's only had one day of training. A mastery of one weapon probably made him seem to be a prodigy in the eyes of others, but if he showed how well versed he was in other weapons too many questions may be raised. "Yesterday, was most likely a fluke," Noctis said sheepishly running his hand through his hair. "I'm sure if we sparred again Gladio would kick my royal butt." He added. "Beginner's luck, I mean that was the first time I've ever held a sword."

Clarus gave him a skeptical look, as well as the other two, not fully believing his story. Damn, he had to watch himself more carefully from here on in. There was too many things he already showed. It was too late to dumb him self down to the intelligence of a four year old, and most likely too late to suddenly start sucking at using a sword, but if this worked than it'd be beneficial.

"That may be true, but I'm still going to say, for today, no swords." Clarus said. Noctis nodded in response. "But before we start with weapons, we must…" He grinned at the three of them, "run."

The memories of their run yesterday caused Noctis to grimace slightly. While the ⟨⟨Anima System⟩⟩ allowed his body to heal after a good nights rest, he was sure the other two still felt a bit of yesterday's work out. "Don't worry, it won't be like yesterday's." Clarus said causing the three, even the stoic Ignis, to sigh in relief.

"It'll be four laps, you need some time to practice with your weapons afterall!" Clarus exclaimed with a cruel laugh. "Now go! I expect all of you to be back in an hour and a half."

While four laps was significantly less than the ten they ran the other day, it was still a grueling workout. Noctis wiped away the sweat pouring out of his forehead as the three of them stopped in front of the castle where a maid standing with a tray of cups of water stood waiting for them. Much like the other day his personal maids would take shifts to bring them water so they don't faint due to dehydration on their long runs.

"Prince Noctis," The maid bowed as the three stopped for a drink of water. Noctis raised a brow in response. "When would you like to bathe tonight, so I may have it prepared for you?"

"Prepare it as we finish training, I would like to rest for awhile before." Noctis said affirmatively placing his now empty glass on the tray, the other two following suit. The young brunette maid nodded in response bowing and returning inside.

Gladio whistled. "You know, I can't help but envy you." He said throwing his arm around Noctis's shoulder. The prince looked at him curiously.

"You'll understand when you're older." He said with a grin on his face. "Cute young maids helping you bathe." He groaned. "Now the more I think about it the more I envy you."

Noctis blushed slightly. While yes he was technically still a child, he had the mind of a grown adult. In his past life he loved Luna, but that didn't mean he never appreciated another attractive woman. If Gladio ever discovered what he thought of Iris as the two grew older. Noctis inwardly shivered at the thought, although it did seem like Gladio didn't mind the two of them getting together.

"Gladio, you aren't that much older than me, but you say it like you already have experience." Noctis said in response as the three made their way back to their training room.

"I may only be a couple of years older than you, but that doesn't mean I haven't learned to appreciate women yet." He said with a laugh.

"Yes, we all know you're an odd child Gladio." Ignis teased with a smirk. Noctis nodded in agreement.

"Hey! That's not something I want to hear from either of you." The two gave him a curious look in response.

"If Ignis is considered a genius, than I don't even know what you could be called Noct. You're probably just as smart as Iggy, but your skill with a sword makes you even more odd. And don't you say it was beginner's luck none of us believed you when you tried that earlier." He said exasperated animatedly throwing his arms in the air as he talked.

"Just because we're smarter than you doesn't make us odd," Noctis said putting his hands on the back on his neck. "Some people say in a group of friends, there's always an odd one, but if you can't find the odd one it's probably because you are the odd one."

Ignis chuckled as Gladio gave him an irritated look. "Prince Noctis is correct in his assessment, Noctis and I are more alike, so it does make you odd when compared to us."

"I hate you two." Gladio retorted causing the other two to laugh.

The rest of training was a simple sparing session between Ignis and Gladio. Noctis watched every now and then, but Noctis's session consisted of him practicing with a small training gun. While he knew how to use one, he was never a sharpshooter like Prompto, and it was better he learn it now in the presence of a trainer than having it discovered it later that he somehow knew how to use a gun.

The weight of the gun was realistic from what he could remember, but the kickback from it was significantly less making it easier to use. The bullets obviously weren't real, or he was sure his mom would kill him before Ardyn even had a chance if somehow came to know of this.

It was the logical choice since he could 'miss' his target on purpose as opposed to him naturally remembering his form while using other weapons on instinct. He also made sure to ask Clarus for pointers and the older man was glad to help even though Noctis was definitely better at aiming than Clarus was, but as of right now he made sure to not show too much prowress with it.

Once the training session was over Noctis headed for his room after saying his goodbyes to the others. He stretched out his legs as he walked trying to shake off the fatigue from the long exercise.

Noctis wanted to go back to reading, but his maid was likely to come in soon to let him know his bath was ready, so he opted out of it and decided to crash on the floor on his room, not wanting to get his bed sheets dirty. He sat up from his position on the floor and closed his eyes; remember what the book told him. He knew how to control his inner mana, but it claimed that a level one magne was able to draw in mana from his surroundings.

Noctis relaxed remembering the process from the other night. He could feel his own mana moving throughout his body, it felt significantly different today than the day before. He wondered if that was simply because he discovered it and put it to use instead of letting it sit stagnant. He had yet to learn how to draw mana in from the outside, so he made due with playing around with his inner mana. He moved it throughout his body, much like he did the other day willing his mana to move to his arms and legs.

A knock on the door broke his concentration. "Enter," Noctis called, seeing the same maid from earlier enter his room.

"Your highness, your bath is ready for you." She said as she bowed.

"Thank you, I'll be out in a minute." He said. She nodded and bowed before leaving, closing the door behind her. Noctis got up from his spot on the floor and stretched himself out again before heading out the door.

She stood there waiting patiently for him, "your change of clothes are already prepared for you, your highness." She said following as he lead the way to the washroom. He said nothing in response as he entered the changing room. He stripped himself of his clothing placing it in a nearby hamper a bit more self conscious he was nude in front of the young maid.

She said nothing as the two made their way through the next set of doors and Noctis sat on the stool in front of the showerhead. The maid came forward taking it in her hands and turning on the water. The two waited for the water to warm up. Noctis took this time to ⟨⟨Scan⟩⟩ the maid in front of him, not wanting to find some of the more private information that his ⟨⟨Examine⟩⟩ skill somehow discovered. Her name was Felicia and apparently she was a couple of levels above him. He wondered if he was considered strong for his level. Well, that was obvious with some of the stat boosts he received from Anima. He took in her features as she stood beside him testing the warmth of the water; she had long light brown hair that she tied into a ponytail and her hair framed her slender face well. Like Gladio said earlier, she was quite pretty.

"May I ask you a question?" Noctis asked curiously as she started to scrub his back.

"Of course, your highness, as long as it is within my ability to answer." Surprise was evident in her voice, an obvious reaction since their relationship up til now hardly had any form of conversation especially something since it seemed personal.

"Why do you work here?"

She stopped scrubbing his back for a moment, pondering his question. "May I speak honestly, your highness?"

"I would feel insulted if you did not." He replied.

"My family has been in service to the Caelum family for a long time, I am just following in the steps I know. The benefits are quite good as well. Great housing, food, and education to boot."

"I see, thank you for your honesty."

"Why the question, you highness, if I may ask?"

"I simply thought that before a woman saw me naked, I would know her just a bit better." He answered jokingly causing her to giggle.

"There's no need for that your highness, I'm only doing my duty."

He shrugged, "if you don't mind when we're alone you can call me by name, if that doesn't bother you." He said his speech becoming more informal. "Formalities bother me, so I ask you only use it when it is needed."

"If it pleases you, Noctis." She said rather fondly.

"It does." He replied curtly.

"You know, for someone so young I didn't think you would be so charming." She giggled. "It is obvious that you're different than most children your age; you talk almost as if you're someone my age."

He laughed loudly, while panicking a bit inwardly. "Do I look like someone your age?" He joked.

She pinched his cheek, "Nope, you're much cuter." This caused him to blush slightly. While he knew he was popular in his past life, he knew it was mainly because he was a prince, but it was a bit different being flirted with when he knew she had no ulterior motive.

"I hope you don't find this rude, but how old are you exactly?" Yeah he knew he could look at his information himself, but there were certain things he didn't want to accidently see.

"You know you're not supposed to ask a woman for her age, Noctis." She said with a small 'hmph' following.

"Sorry," he replied, his eyes closed as she washed his hair.

"I only kid, Noctis, I just turned 10 not too long ago."

"10? You don't find this situation embarrassing? I thought women were- you know shy about all of this. At least from what I read in books." He added, trying not to be suspicious.

"What kind of books are they letting you read, Noctis?" She giggled. "I never said it wasn't embarrassing at first, but it got easier. When you grow older I am sure you won't have me doing this for you, for obvious reasons." She said teasingly.

Noctis closed his eyes as she washed the shampoo out of his hair and replacing it with conditioner.

"Well, I don't look forward to that time. I'll miss having a cute girl with me in here." He said, a bit out of character.

"Then when I'm gone, you'll just have to wait til you get married."

Noctis felt his face heat up as he imagined his older self and Lunafreya in this situation. He coughed loudly to himself trying his best to shake off his perverse imagination.

"You definitely don't act your age, Prince Noctis although that isn't a bad thing." She said casually as she massaged the conditioner in his hair. "Not too long ago, you seemed like a normal four year old, not considering your status of course, but it seemed like you simply changed over night. If someone heard that I was conversing, so casually with you they would think I went crazy or something. You were always very reserved and quiet, but it is nice to see your come out of your shell a bit. I've heard from the Head Maid that even their majesties are surprised by your change in behavior."

Noctis cringed slightly, he knew he was acting out of character, but to hear her confirm it like that kind of brought him to reality. He had many regrets in his past life, and one of them was not getting to know the people sworn to protect him and care for him in the past. He acted cold and distant especially after the death of his mother. After the attack on Insomnia, every one including her died doing their duty. In his past life he couldn't remember ever talking to her unless he needed too, nor could he even remember her name. Hell, he wouldn't even know it now if not for the ⟨⟨Anima System⟩⟩.

Noctis clenched his fist; he was going to do his best to protect every body, including her. He quickly shrugged off his current emotions and smiled, "I don't know what came over me, honestly, I just felt like I needed to change and accept my duty as Prince." He said honestly.

She washed the conditioner out of his hair. "That's a large responsibility to bear, Noctis, at any age nevertheless at the age of four," her voice was soft trying to sound soothing. "Never forget your have people here at the castle who live to serve you, if you ever need help do not be afraid to ask." She turned off the showerhead and Noctis looked up at her as she pet his head. "And as your attendant if you ever need anything, no matter how small, I will do my best to help you along the way." She said with a sweet smile. "Now go ahead and head to the bath, its nice and warm, I will be back when it is dinner time or if you call." She said, as she stood from headed for the door to leave.

"Thanks-" Noctis said earnestly his eyes look up to her name.

"Felicia," His personal maid said, assuming he didn't know her name.

"Thank you, Felicia," He said giving her a genuine smile.

She shot him a heartwarming smile and left, leaving him alone as he entered the nearby bath to soak.

Noctis closed his eyes and lay back in the water. He's only been back for a couple of days and so much has already happened. Meeting Master Ley was a coincidence and if it wasn't for the ⟨⟨Anima System⟩⟩ he most likely would have missed him again. This was an opportunity he couldn't miss for obvious reasons. One of his strengths in his past life was the use of his ancestors ⟨⟨Royal Arms⟩⟩, but he could only have access to them if he was considered King of Lucis. While his title as ⟨⟨True King⟩⟩ was obtained before his adventure started, there was one thing he knew he couldn't get around. The use of ⟨⟨Royal Arms⟩⟩ will only be enabled if he lets his father die.

Hi friends, made it to the end did ya? I hope you all liked it. I'm sorry bout the long wait again. Introducing the topic of magic was hard for me. I read a lot of manga, light novels and manhuas for a concept that I really liked and I went with this one. i hope you all liked it as well. Let me know what you think!

Leave a fave, follow, review or whatever. Your opinions matter, while I know that I shouldn't write basely to make y'all happy I won't disregard any of your comments. No reviewer comments in this one, but yeah. I self-edited it so there are probably a lot of mistakes still left, but hey I tried. Love you all ^.^