Title: The Mage and the Prince

Genre: Fantasy, Adventure

Theme: Friendship, Hope
Characters: Edith, William, Ro and The King

The Mage and the Prince

Deep in the hidden depths of the forest, a girl by the name of Edith lived
there all alone. Far away from the empire, where no ordinary being could
reach that easily. Edith is always full of curiosity and has an unquenchable
thirst for knowledge, yet sometimes her curiosity leads her to nothing but
trouble. Most of the time, she immerses herself in collecting and reading
books. She also has the ability to use powerful spells and different kinds of
magic.

On the other hand, inside the main castle of the empire, a boy by the name
of William lives there as the first son of the King and the heir to the throne.
Unlike Edith, William does not have any skill or talent when it comes to
using magic. Even so, William is free-spirited. He loves magic more than
anything. Yet the King forbids him to have such an interest. Now that
William has come of age, his debut in society is to be held inside the palace,
where the next heir to the throne will be formally introduced to every citizen
all across the land.

Hours before the occasion started, the King asked for the Prince to meet him
inside a private room. Behind one of their conversations, the King took a sip
of his tea and said,

"I expect you to face your responsibilities from now on, young man." He
sighed, "Get going," he added.

And so, the King walked out of the room soon after. Later on, after hearing
his father’s words, William just brushed it all off and sneaked inside one of
the servant's rooms.
"Well, unfortunately, I think my duty revolves around magic", William
uttered to himself as he tried to escape through a servant's room on a
window sill.

On his first attempt, he managed to get out by jumping out of the window,
which was only a few meters from the ground. He had a few scratches on
his body after making that jump, but they were nothing compared to the
feeling that he had felt after seeing the ray of sunshine outside of the castle
once again.

Along the way was the forest. Just seeing the forest right before his eyes
gave him a feeling of freedom and excitement. William, of course, isn’t just
the type of Prince who would act without a plan.

"Now that I’m out here again for the fourth time, I know I won’t fail this
time," he said.
"And I know the Golems are out there patrolling again." He then opened his
bag, filled with magic potions. No one knows how he got those in the first
place. He then picked up a potion filled with black goo.

He then started drinking the potion. A few moments later, he started

shrinking in size, and black feathers started to grow out of his body, turning
him into a crow.

"This is good enough. I’m guessing I only have a few hours until this runs
out. I should better take flight while I still can," and so William flapped his
wings and started to fly.

"Being a bird isn't so bad…" he said.

"Since I could just fly all my problems away," he added and laughed.

He managed to pass through a group of golems surrounding the borders of

the Empire without any struggle. William felt free, free from the weighing
duties that were given to him with a life that he never wanted. William flew
to his heart’s content.

Moments later, he began to think about what might lie ahead. "I wonder
how far the academy is from here," he said. "I wanna learn magic there
someday," he added.
About an hour of flying, William started getting tired. He decided to land
under an old oak tree.

"Okay, I think it's time to turn back," he said.

He then tried to recite a spell to undo the effect of the potion, but after a few
tries, nothing happened.

"Huh? Why am I not turning back to normal?” He felt confused.

"Oh well, it seems that I have made a blunder," he said.
William was silent for a while.
"At this point, I’m probably stuck in this form for now," he sighed.

"I’m quite tired, I’ll just take a quick nap here and wait for the effect to pass
or perhaps find some local mage to help me" he said.
William then sat down under the oak tree to take a nap on the soft grass on
the ground.

Just a couple miles ahead in the forest we see a girl with dark red hair and
vivid green eyes, wearing a long purple cloak and is heading towards the
direction where the Prince is. Along with her is her companion named Ro, a
powerful entity that is her own familiar. A familiar that is one with her life.
Moreover, Ro is a white seven-tailed fox with red crimson eyes. Ro was
given the ability to use Edith’s power and release that power much stronger.
Furthermore, Ro has the natural ability to read someone’s emotions.

"Sorry, we still have to walk Ro," Edith said.

"Well, if you hadn’t used too much teleportation magic, then your mana
wouldn’t be so drained by now," Ro said.

"At least we could enjoy the sound of the leaves rustling in the trees and the
beautiful scenery of this forest," she said.

"That doesn’t change the fact that we still have to walk for hours until we
reach the empire," Ro said as he rolled his eyes.

Edith just laughed at his response. Some time later, both Edith and Ro
continued walking for hours until they stumbled upon an old oak tree.
"Is that a crow?" Ro pointed with his paw to where the crow was.

Edith glanced at the crow that was lying down on the grass.

That is not an ordinary crow, she thought.

"Ro," she said.

"What?" he asked.

"Go hide for a second," she said.

Ro was silent for a moment, thinking about the situation.

"Alright," He said. Ro then transported himself to Edith’s necklace and

disappeared without a trace.

Edith was curious. She knew it wasn’t a crow. She wants to know why such
a being is disguising itself. She slowly walked towards the old oak tree,
slowly approaching the crow. She tried inspecting the bird by observing it
carefully. As she was observing, she sensed a faint hint of magic coming
from the crow.

"This is.. some strong potion, a shape-shifting one to be exact. This might be
a human," she muttered to herself.

A few minutes later, the crow woke up. Edith got startled as it opened its
eyes and looked right through her.

She noticed the crow looking agitated and confused.

"Umm.. hey there. By any chance, are you human?" she immediately asked
without hesitation.

The crow just remained silent as she was waiting for a response.

Was I mistaken?, she thought.

How in the world did this person see through my disguise? William thought.
The crow noticed that this red-haired girl wouldn't seem to be satisfied until
she hears a sound coming from him.

After a long moment of silence, the crow finally uttered a few words. 

"H-How did you know?" he asked as it took a few steps away from her. 

I was right, she thought. "So you are human!" she exclaimed.

"I believe it's none of your concern." He frowned. "And how long have you
been watching me?" he asked.

"Don’t worry. I got here just now, and I apologize if I made you
uncomfortable. I’m not a creep I swear.” She said, trying to convince him.

"Please answer my other question, how did you know that I’m human?" He
said, demanding an answer.

Meanwhile, Edith pointed at him and said, "Well, you see, I could sense a
little bit of magic coming from you." She paused. "So I came to the
conclusion that you’re human," she added.

“Did you come from the empire? Judging by your clothes you seem like an
outsider,” he said.

“That’s right, I’m an outsider and I’m trying to reach to the empire by now,”
she responded.

He looked at her in the eyes and said, “You mentioned that you sense magic
coming from me.. only mages with extraordinary powers could do that,”

She smiled and said, “I am a mage indeed,”.

“Oh, and if I may be right, you seem to be stuck in that form,” she added.

Suddenly the crow’s mood lightened up.

“Wow! I’m so glad to finally meet a mage up close! Nice to meet you,” he
said. “At first, I had a thought that you were sent by my father to escort me
back to the empire,” he added.
Ah, he’s a runaway, she thought.

“Is this your first time meeting a mage?” she asked.

"I barely see any mages in the empire, and I only see mages in children’s
storybooks." "So yes, this is my first time meeting a mage up close," he
blissfully said.

"Haha, I feel honored," she smiled, putting her right hand on her chest.

“I don't know how to get my body back to normal, would you be willing to
help me? I don't have anything on me right now, but I promise I would do
anything in return,” he said.

“Hmm.. That is an awfully dangerous proposal. Don’t go around saying

things like that to people you’ve just met. Things aside, I am thankful for
your offer, but I shall decline,” she said.

“I’ll gladly help you return to your original form.” “And I don’t want
anything in return, I just need your name for me to do it,” she said while
slowly releasing a warm golden light from her hands.

I think some of my mana has recovered, this should be enough to help him,
she thought.

He was amazed by the warm golden light on her hands, he sees different
forms coming from her hands.

So this is magic, he thought as he was mesmerized by the magic right before

his eyes.

“William… My name is William,” he said.

His name caught Edith’s attention. That name..I’ve heard it before, she
thought.

“I might as well introduce myself too,” she said, “Greetings William, my

name’s Edith and I’m a mage,” she smiled.

“Now that I have acquired your name the spell will be complete,” she said.
“I shall begin,” she added.

Edith began to recite spells where no ordinary person could understand.

William was at loss for words when he sees the light getting brighter. He
felt a shiver looking at the magic flowing through his body.

“επιστροφή στη σάρκα ουίλιαμ…”

Wing and feathers on his body vanished. William began to feel his whole
body changing. As Edith was helping William, the next thing that happened
surprised her. Right before her eyes she sees a tall and beautiful young man,
with dark black hair and bright blue eyes that resembles an aquamarine gem.

“Wow! I’m back! Thank you. You have my deepest gratitude.” he smiled.

“You…you’re Prince William…William Gilden,” she was shocked. Edith

finally knew why his name felt familiar to her. Yet at the back of her mind
she knew that she was going to be in trouble when she deals with a member
of the royal family.

“Huh? Well yeah I am but that whole royal subject doesn’t matter to me,”
he said and stood up.
“Now do you know which direction is the academy is from the near
village?” he asked.

“Hold on, you’re going to the Eve academy?” “First of all I have lots of
questions to ask, why are you going there in the first place?” she asked.

William looked at her with a carefree look in his face and said, “Isn’t it
obvious? I want to become a mage.”

Edith was left speechless after hearing those words coming from his mouth.
Is he for real?, she thought.

“A prince wanting to become a mage, now that’s interesting!” She laughed.

“Well that’s your choice, I’m in no position to stop you anyways,” she said
as she crossed her arms.

“My father is highly against the idea, but I can’t help it. I really do love
magic more than anything else,” he said.
Did I ever think of magic that way?, she thought. “I see..” She said.

“Say, did you attend to that academy Edith?” he asked.

“No unfortunately, I only learned magic by my mentor but I’m also

planning to go to the academy someday,” she said.

“Well if I ever manage to study magic there someday, I’ll wait for you
there,” he said.

“I’m looking forward to it then,” she smiled.

“Then it’s a promise! Let’s do a pinky swear,” he said making a pinky

finger pose.

“Haha what is this, children’s play?” she laughed.

“Oh come on, a little pinky swear won’t hurt,” he said and laughed.

“Alright, pinky swear,” she said. Both of them intertwined their finger,
doing a pinky swear.

“Now that we’ve done a promise, I’m afraid I must get going,” he said.

“Without anything with you? Will you be okay?” she asked.

“Don’t worry, I have someone who will meet with me at the near village
ahead. He will help me in entering the academy,” he said.
“Thanks again for the help my friend, I’ll never forget about you, you’re an
incredible mage!” he added.

Edith smiled, yet despite her smile there was a sad look on her face. “Take
care of yourself in your journey… although I’m afraid you might have to
forget about me,” she said.

William was bothered at her response. “Wait what, why?” he asked.

“What the-”
Suddenly, William was slowly losing his vision, he fell on the ground and
completely lost his senses and fell into a deep sleep.

“I’m sorry William, we could’ve been good friends if you we’re just an
ordinary person,” she said.

Edith’s companion, Ro came outside of her necklace.

“In your situation, it’s highly impossible for you to have such thing as
friends,” he said. “What a shame, as I was reading his emotions, I knew he
had pure intentions yet it had to be none other than the Prince himself.” “I
can’t believe the heir to the throne is naive and all that,” he added.

Edith did nothing but remained silent. She was in deep thought.

Ro grit his teeth and frowned. “Look Edith, Celestia is looking all over for
every descendant. She will kill each one of them until all the descendants of
the First mage are dead and we barely managed to survive from all that was
happening,” he said. “The Prince’s royal family has connection with the
Queen Celestia, it’s better to erase his memories right now,” he added.

“I won’t erase his memories,” Edith raised her hand and began to use her
power.

“What are you doing?” Ro asked.

“I don’t like erasing memories that are not mine, I will bury his memory
deep in his memory lane. His current memories now will be hard for him to
reach, so there is still a chance that he might remember me one day,” she
said. “He was happy to meet a mage and we made a promise.” “All
individuals memories are priceless,” she added.

After hearing Edith’s words, Ro was delighted. “Alright, whenever trouble

comes our way I’ll handle it like I always do,” he added.

“I’ll meet him someday, and when that day comes, I’m sure he has become
a great mage,” after a while Edith finished what she was doing. “Alright
that’s about it, his memories have been buried,” she said.
William’s POV (Point of view):

I woke up feeling oddly full of energy. I just had a weird dream, yet I can’t
remember the details. How long have I slept? My body is back to normal
now which is great news. I’m sure I am near the village now since I see a
rough road ahead. I could just walk from here to there. There’s also
something weighing inside one of my pockets.

“What’s this?” I took out what was inside my pocket.

“It’s a.. necklace?” “It looks like the pendant on it contains a red gem.”
“I don’t remember bringing this though. Perhaps I must have misplaced it
inside my pocket.”

I wore the necklace. The gem is a bit heavy but I don’t mind. Somehow,
something tells me that I have to bring this with me on my journey.

“I have to get going,” And so, I walked until I have reached the village.

Months have gone by, I reached the village and stayed there for weeks. Of
course, I had to hide very well from the constant search of the soldiers
looking for me. Someone I knew helped me changed my appearance and
identity, having my hair color and eyes magically altered. I had been
accepted by the Eve academy and had been starting to learn magic since
then.

Here in this school, I have been staying here for about 2 weeks now. Right
now I am currently sitting inside the classroom while Madam Lisa is
teaching us about poisonous plants.

Suddenly the door opened and an unknown individual came inside the
room. Madam Lisa clapped her hands twice. “Right, listen up everyone!
Today we have a new student who will be with us for the entire year,” she
said. “Kindly introduce yourself dear,” Madam Lisa looked at the girl that
was with her. Seeing the new student, she has dark red hair, with green eyes.
Her appearance somehow made me nostalgic somehow and I don’t know
why.

The girl walked up to the front. “Good morning to you all, my name is
Edith. I’ll be in your care.” she said and bows her head.
So that’s her name, Edith. I couldn’t help but stare at this girl. I feel calm
looking at her somehow.

Suddenly, the girl looked at me, our eyes just met each other. Her
expression was like she was surprised to see someone she already knew.
Oh no, perhaps she caught me staring too much, she might think I’m weird.
But to my surprise, her expression changed to a happy one and smiled right
at me.

Right now is our break time. I went ahead to the school library. I needed
some books to help me learn more about poisonous plants and spells. As I
was looking for a book at the first section of the library I see the new girl in
our class, reading a highly advanced magic book.

“It’s you,” she suddenly spoke.

“Who? Me?” I asked.

The girl faced to me and said, “Well there’s nobody else here so I think it’s
quite obvious.” “I’m Edith, what’s your name?” she asked.

Since I have changed my identity, I can never tell anyone my real name.
“Matthias,” I said.

“Since I have acquired your name, you’re my friend now, nice to meet you
Matthias. I’ll look forward to work with you someday,” she said and smiled.

This red haired girl sure is full of ideas.

“I’m glad to make a new friend today. I’ll look forward to work with you
too in the future…Edith.”

The end.