Saved By The Mad Duke
Chapter 53: The First Lesson

Chapter 53: The First Lesson

Ahspid rested his chin on his left palm, fixing his bright purple eyes on Aideen’s confused face.

When Tillian proclaimed that the princess’s lessons would finally commence, it seemed that the magus himself was either uninformed about such a rapid change of plans and had not managed to prepare on time, or simply did not want to teach at all.

After all, he had a very whimsical nature, as Bella "kindly" put it into words each time his name was mentioned.

It had been quite a few minutes since the princess was brought to the reading room by Safie and left alone with the peculiar mage. However, the man remained silent, observing her with a soaring curiosity that hung in the air.

As the oppressive silence became increasingly unbearable, Aideen released a long sigh and finally inquired,

"Excuse me, Lord Ahspid, when are we going to begin our lesson? His Grace told me that my education is starting today. Don’t you think it is unreasonable to waste our time like this?"

The mage raised his neatly shaped eyebrows and unglued his chin from his hand, stretching his reddish lips into a somewhat sly grin. In a mocking tone, he replied,

"Oh really? His Grace told you that? Well, I am very happy that His Grace can just throw orders around like this in his castle, but this is not the way I work, My Lady. You see, I need to get in the mood first; otherwise, I will be completely useless."

Aideen could not help but shoot the man a disapproving glare, her thin eyebrows furrowed.

"What a waste of time..."

"Oh? I did not expect you to be so eager to learn, Your Highness! I must admit, that is quite admirable of you. Why such a hurry, if I may ask?"

"Weren’t you the one who was restless before? You were complaining in this very same room that our lessons could only commence after His Grace’s return, and now you are the one who is stalling for time!"

The princess pouted her lips for a few moments, then took a long, deep breath as if to calm down and collect her thoughts, and added,

"I am eager to learn... I have never learned anything in my entire life. All the knowledge I possess comes from the occasional reading sessions with my nanny and my discreet listening to the royal siblings’ conversations while I was hiding either in the library or the royal gardens outside the palace. If a miracle makes me see one day, I will not even be able to read or write because I have never learned how. This opportunity... This chance... I really want to take it and do whatever I can to succeed. This is why. This is precisely why I am so eager. No! I am desperate, Lord Ahspid. I am desperate to learn."

The magus continued to observe Aideen’s beautiful but somewhat sad face in complete silence.

Reluctantly, something resonated within him as an emotional response to her confession. Perhaps it was the cherished memories he managed to suppress a while ago, or maybe it was the woman’s sincerity with which she approached the matter.

Or maybe it was just the way the princess reminded him of her – the same passion and determination hidden deeply underneath a thick layer of insecurities and mistreatment.

’But she is not her... She is only the one who will help me bring her back. I need her just as much as she needs me.’

Releasing a long, defeated sigh, Ahspid shook his head and proclaimed loudly,

"Very well, Your Highness. I cannot be expected to refuse to impart knowledge to someone who is ’desperate’ to learn. I am not a monster, after all."

Rising to his feet, the mage demonstratively cleared his throat and began a slow stroll around the desk, commencing their first lesson.

"Whenever you dive into a new field of study, Your Highness, it is best to start with a little historical introduction, if I may call it that. So... As you know, we live in a world where two ’magical’ forces exist side by side: magic, which is the innate ability one has to be born with; and alchemy – an acquired skill, one that can be learned but still requires talent. It can be obtained through a lot of hard work and particular ’sacrifices’ the person has to make when using it."

Aideen nodded, already in possession of such knowledge.

"Yes. His Highness Prince Valon Ruan is an alchemist; he has been studying alchemy ever since he turned six years old."

"That is correct," Ahspid nodded too and continued, "And, as I have already told you, My Lady, you are the descendant of the blood union between a powerful magus Navia and a Snow Dragon Utar. This would have made your innate magical ability so potent that you could be the strongest mage in the entire world!"

"Me? The strongest?"

The princess could not believe her ears; her perplexed expression betrayed the doubt that had resurfaced inside her heart. Savoring such an adorable reaction, Ahspid released a soft chuckle and offered a further explanation,

"You would have been, Your Highness, but it has been a while since the blood of Utar ran through the veins of your people; it is quite diluted at this point. In addition, do not forget that the powers of dragons were sealed by Navia herself."

"I do not understand..."

Aideen lowered her eyes and started slowly fidgeting with the long loose sleeve of her dress, contemplating her teacher’s words. The more he tried to explain, the more confused she was becoming.

"If I barely have any dragon blood in me and my abilities are sealed, how can I use magic then?"

Ahspid could not help but laugh again.

"This is precisely why I was asked to be your teacher, My Lady, and not somebody else. I will help you break the seal that was put on your innate powers!"

"What? One can do that?"

The mage flopped into his chair and shrugged his shoulders,

"I don’t know if one can do that, but I certainly can."

"Unbelievable..."

The princess fixed her eyes on the space in front of her, still processing the man’s words. Then, she suddenly turned to Ahspid and leaned over the table, her eyes wide in a blend of excitement and concern,

"But what does that mean, Lord Ahspid? What kind of powers will I have once the seal is broken? And how will we break it in the first place?!"

"Too many questions at once!"

The magus answered with a sigh, then leaned against the back of his chair and adjusted the rings on each of his fingers one by one, as if allowing himself a few moments to come up with a simple explanation.

Unfortunately, he had none.

"I will teach you to use mana but I cannot tell you which powers you will awaken, Your Highness. After all, nobody has ever seen a Snow Dragon before. Even in your mother’s homeland, the Kingdom of Utar, the story of the Snow Dragons is regarded as nothing more than a mere legend, a children’s bedtime story if you please. But there are still people who believe it to be true. And I am one of them."

Aideen remained silent, utterly lost in more mystery that was dawned on her by her strange teacher.

Now she found it even more bizarre. In Geraldion, nobody ever talked either about Utar or the Snow Dragons before, and the first time she heard such a legend was thanks to Ahspid.

Why him? If other kingdoms considered it a mere "founding legend," why did Ahspid believe it? Did it mean that Duke Valentine believed it too? When she agreed to learn magic to help Tillian, she never imagined that the real goal of her lessons would be to awaken her true innate powers instead.

The powers of a dragon.

What would they be? What would it mean for her? For Utar? For the rest of the world?

Truthfully, she was scared to find out because once she did, there would be no way back.

Still, there was one question she knew she could get a proper answer to.

With another deep inhale to soothe her frantic thoughts, Aideen lowered her voice and asked in a somewhat secretive manner,

"So what makes you believe that the legend is true, Lord Ahspid? Why do you think it is I who can awaken these powers and not somebody else?"

Ahspid placed his left elbow on the desk again and rested his chin on his hand, assuming the very same position he started his lesson in. He mulled over his answer for a few seconds, then tapped the fingers of the right hand on the surface of the desk, and finally replied,

"His Grace Duke Valentine... He found it. He found the body of the sleeping founding dragon in one of the hidden caves of The North. He found Utar. And that dragon has your eyes, Your Highness."