Tetsuya smiled as he picked up a frying pan. After showering, he had decided to whip up breakfast for the kids, Eita, Serrano, and himself. Using the spoon he had been using, he sliced the giant omelet he'd made into five even pieces. Once he finished, he walked over to the table where five plates sat.

"Thanks," Serrano said, smiling. He was the only one already awake.

"What's that smell?" Eita asked, rubbing his eyes.

"It's an omelet," Tetsuya responded it. "Hmm, guess that I should've asked if you were fine with one."

"An omelet, huh?" The blond, green-eyed teen stared at it and smiled. "It looks like a cloud."

Tetsuya laughed. "I make mine super fluffy!" He glanced at the living room, where the kids were still fast asleep. "I used to like them as a kid, so I figured those two might too."

"I'm not a kid, and I like them," Serrano said, using a knife and a fork to slice off a piece. He smiled as soon as it touched his lips. "It's great! You've almost matched your mom!"

Tetsuya puffed his chest proudly. "Thanks, but I doubt I'll ever match Ma's cooking."

Eita sat down in a chair and poked it, causing his food to wiggle. "It's like gelatin."

"Eat it, I'm sure you'll like it."

"What's that smell?" Nori asked as he ran into the kitchen. He appeared to be salivating.

"It's breakfast," Tetsuya said as he placed the last piece of omelet on its respective plate.

"What's breakfast?" Nori asked, tilting his head.

"I know that not everyone eats it, but you've never heard of it?" Serrano asked.

Nori shook his head. "No. Nori's never had it before, nor has Yuko."

Tetsuya glanced at the living room. Yuko was still fast asleep. While slumbering, she looked like a regular kid.

He picked up a plate and walked into the living room.

"Hey, Yuko. I made you some food," Tetsuya said, squatting beside the sofa.

The little girl's nose twitched. "Food?" she asked, standing up.

Nori giggled. "Nori's surprised that Yuko didn't wake up first. She usually wakes up before Nori does when there's food involved."

Yuko sat up straight. "Yuko must've been more tired than she thought," the girl mumbled.

Tetsuya ruffled her head. "Try to rest while I'm in class then. After my test is over, I'll come and pick you up so that we can go to the Angelic Dome, alright?"

She nodded her head. "Okay."

The brown-haired young man grinned. "Great!"

Suddenly, the doorbell rang.

"Wonder who that is."

"Nori will get it!" the kid said, running over to the door.

"Huh?" Ximena said as the door opened.

"Hey," Nori said, waving at her.

Ximena chuckled. "Oh, hey there! I didn't see you."

Nori lowered his head. "Nori wishes he was taller..."

Ximena reached her hand out and messed up his bright-red hair. "I'm sure you will be as long as you eat well."

Nori smiled. "Really, Miss?"

The green-haired young woman nodded. "Yup!"

"Yay! Nori's going to go finish his food right now!" the kid said, rushing back to the kitchen.

"Hey, be sure to wash your hands before you do!" Eita yelled.

"Okay!"

Tetsuya laughed. The kids sure made things more lively.

***

[Hours Later]

Tetsuya sighed as he stepped out of his history class. Hope that I passed the test... It was harder than I thought it would be. If only I had Taku's history smarts.

He was certain that he had gotten the questions about the developments that lead to the rise of modern vehicles correct. One was the use of steam to power turbines. Their first use was for trains and ships. It's why Kasai no Ki had the second strongest navy on the continent, only losing out to the water mana using Mizu no Kin. Their trains also lead to that nation becoming one of the wealthiest, as it could easily transport raw materials from the north to its ports in the south.

The second development, and the one that helped Kuroriku bridge the gap with their enemy, was the discovery of sableite, crystallized mana from plants. One would burn sableite to power turbines to produce electricity. Its original uses were the same as steam, powering trains and boats. It proved more efficient than using steam due to its mana richness, which caused steam powered vehicles to go into decline.

Kuroriku's eastern territory, Makkuoyama, was the top source of the mineral. This brought great wealth into an otherwise impoverished region. However, it wasn't without its drawbacks. It caused the already existing conflicts between the Kuroriku and Kasai no Ki to worsen as they fought for control over the sableite-rich deposits. Ultimately it lead to a shift of power and wealth from Kasai no Ki to Kuroriku.

For the development of cars, planes, and modern boats, it was the discovery of an oil-like mana rich substance in Kuroyuki no San known as Kuroil. Its energy content proved higher than sableite which caused it to replace it almost entirely, with the former only being used for electricity in the modern age. This discovery lead the crown to invest more into the northern province which previously proved difficult to traverse except for those with control over ice mana.

"Mister is finally done?" a voice called out. Tetsuya gasped as he noticed Yuko standing by the door.

"What are you doing here? Actually, how did you not get lost?" Tetsuya asked.

"Miss Xime showed Yuko the way. She said to come to meet Mister here as he might be tempted to sleep after the test."

Tetsuya's left eye twitched. "Did she really?"

Yuko nodded. "Yup. Sir Serra said that Mister's head looked like it was going to explode. Yuko found it weird that they finished before Mister, but Yuko guesses they're smarter."

Tetsuya curled his hand into a fist. I'm going to get Xime and Serra for this!

"L-let's go and train," Tetsuya said, averting his gaze.

"Mister's face is all red," Yuko said as she continued to have her usual blank-stare.

"I-it's the heat!" he yelled, quickening his pace. In truth, the heat rarely affected him, but he wasn't going to admit that.

He looked over his shoulder at Yuko. She was trying her best to keep up with him. Seeing her being short of breath made him wonder how she had managed to move so fast the other day.

"Are you okay?" he asked.

Yuko gulped. "Yuko will be fine," she said as she stopped and grabbed hold of the brick wall.

She was very sleepy this morning. Maybe she burned herself out during our spar the other day.

"Did you rest like I told you to?" he asked, putting his hands on his hips.

She nodded. "Yeah." She lowered her eyes. "But, it probably wasn't enough."

Tetsuya sighed. "Maybe we should save training for tomorrow. You look like you could use the rest."

"No. There are only twenty-seven days until the meeting at the palace. Yuko promised Mister that she would have his shield activated by then!" she said, moving her arms up and down.

Tetsu rubbed the back of his neck. "Hmm, I really hope that I won't need all twenty-seven days to awaken it."

"B-but what if Mister does need them? Plus, Yuko has to train him in other things too."

He laughed nervously. "Serra can train me too. He's been a knight for years already."

Yuko lowered her head. "True."

Tetsuya picked her up and put her on his shoulders.

"Wah?" she cried out in surprise.

The Agnes Knight smiled. "I'll give you a piggyback ride to the Angelic Dome, okay?"

Her eyes widened. "But, didn't Mister just say..."

"I know, and I still plan to have you rest. You'll be sitting down and watching over me. Give me tips if you think I need them."

Yuko smiled a little. "Okay!"

Tetsuya chuckled. "There's that smile!"

The girl's cheeks reddened a little.

***

[Angelic Dome- Serra's Special Arena]

"We're here!" Tetsuya said as the lights switched on in Serrano's planetarium-looking room.

Yuko jumped off of his back. "Let's get started then!" she said, pointing at him.

Did someone flip a switch on this kid? She's suddenly full of energy.

"What are we doing first?" Tetsuya asked, stretching his arms forward.

"Yuko wants to see what Mister can do with mana."

"Hmm, I don't have many angelic techniques. Let's see, there's this one," Tetsuya said, holding out his hand. Orange mana flared around his palm. "It's a healing technique, but it works best on wounds caused by a demon."

"Hmm, Mister won't be fighting many demons. The abysmals are a different species. Though, Yuko did hear that there are some hybrids in their ranks."

"What else do you know about this enemy we're facing?" Tetsuya asked, tilting his head.

"Yuko knows that they can rapidly regenerate. Even limbs that are cut off aren't much of an impediment for them," Yuko said as she cut the air with her hand. "They got only one internal organ, the core. Destroying it is the only way to kill them off."

Tetsuya rubbed his chin. "I see. So they're a bit like starfish, but more dangerous."

"Starfish?" Yuko asked.

"Yeah, if you cut off their limbs, they can regrow, but if you destroy its central body, they die. Well, there are a few who can regenerate from a single arm. Plus, doing so can take months or even years."

"Yuko didn't think such a strange creature lived here," she said, lowering her head.

"Yeah. I wish that I could see a real starfish one day," he said, looking up at the stars dotting the ceiling.

"They don't live nearby?"

"They live in the sea. Kuroriku is landlocked. Our beaches are all lakefront ones. So one can only find freshwater creatures in them."

"Oh," she said, frowning.

"Maybe one day, we can visit Kasai no Ki!"

Yuko blinked. "Yuko thought that Kuroriku and Kasai no Ki were enemies."

Tetsuya waved his hand dismissively. "Come on, that was years ago. We're at peace now, well, until the next war springs up. Hopefully, it won't happen." He stared into the girl's brown eyes. "Life here would become more difficult for Xime if so..."

"She's a Kasai no Ki, right? Her green hair told Yuko as much."

Tetsuya laughed. "Yup. She's one of the kindest people I know." He grumbled as he recalled what she had told Yuko. "Even though her teasing can get annoying. She's always calling me 'Little Tetsu' even when I tell her not to."

Yuko tilted her head as she glanced up at the six-foot-eight-inched tall young man. "Little?"

He snorted. "Rosa had the same reaction when she overhead Ximena call me that. I used to be around a foot shorter than Xime up until middle school. Plus, I'm the youngest in my family, so the nickname kind of stuck."

"Oh."

He smiled. "Well, enough about that. How about we continue with our training?"

Yuko nodded. "Any more techniques?"

"I got a sealing technique, but there are no demons around to demonstrate. I can also lift earth material such as rocks and clay." He held out his hand. Waves in the form of orange strings flew from his hands and pulled up a handful of tiles from the soccer field-sized ring in front of them.

"Basic," Yuko said.

"Here's another basic technique." Tetsuya held out his hand. Shadows swarmed around his palm as he absorbed mana from his surroundings. The end result was a perfect purple orb. "It's called Shadow Sphere, well some called it 'Darkness Sphere' too."

"How strong is it?" Yuko asked, tilting her head at it.

"Stand back, and I'll show you!" Tetsuya said as he stared at the large ring in front of them.

Yuko jumped back as he threw the sphere at the ring. The attack broke through a fifth of the ring's white tiles.

"And that's only grazing it," Tetsuya said, smiling.

"Hmm, Mister will need more than that," Yuko said.

Tetsuya's smiled disappeared. "I thought so. Wonder if my physical strength will help at all."

"Depends on the skills of the enemy. According to Master Kuroshi, some of them are proficient in martial arts, while others are skilled in energy attacks."

"Say, what kind of energy do they use? I mean, we angels use mana, while Xelerians use prana."

"They can use both of them, plus ki."

Tetsuya crossed his arms over his chest. "All three, huh?" So they can both draw energy from their surroundings like us angels but have a large internal storage like Xelerians. Not to mention, they can balance both to create ki. Combined with their regeneration, how will we be able to stop them?

"Don't worry. Mister has time to get stronger," Yuko said. "Try to work on polishing your mana techniques. You'll need them."

"Alright, I will!" Tetsuya said, moving his arms up and down. "Let's get started!"

"Won't you need a sparring partner?" a voice called out. The two of them spun around and saw the owner of the room standing by the door.

"Serra, I'm so glad to see you," Tetsuya said, giving his cousin a broad grin.

Serrano backed away. "Uh, why are you looking at me like that?"

Tetsuya lurched forward and threw a punch at him. Serrano dodged and tapped his arm, sending him spinning.

Tetsuya kicked the wall in the hallway and jumped at his cousin.

"H-hey, what did I do?" he asked.

"Heard that you and Xime were talking behind my back," Tetsuya answered as he continued to smile.

"Oh, that. We were just kidding like usual."

Tetsuya laughed. "Still, it's not nice to joke around when I'm not around!" He punched the floor, creating a three-foot radius hole in the front of the room.

Serrano sighed. "I'm sorry. We shouldn't have joked around."

Tetsuya snickered. "Come on, don't run away! Aren't you stronger than me? Don't act scared!"

Serrano gathered darkness mana around him and restrained his cousin with a cloud of shadow. "I am, but not physically."

Tetsuya laughed. "I love seeing you scared." The grip of the shadows on him tightened, making him flinch.

"Oh, really?" Serrano said, smirking at his reaction.

"Sorry," Tetsuya said, wincing.

The shadows dispersed. "Alright, I accept your apology."

Tetsu grinned as he rubbed his arms. "You've gotten better at using that 'Shadow Grip'."

"It's great for both defense and offense. Maybe I should teach it to you. Yuko was wondering how many angelic techniques you knew."

Tetsuya glanced at Yuko. So she already knew... Guess she just wanted to see a live demonstration, or to see if I had kept any secret from my cousin.

"Hmm, not sure if it fits me," Tetsuya said, stroking his chin.

Serrano narrowed his eyes at him. "You don't think that you'll be able to gather the mana necessary to use it, huh?"

"What? No way!"

"Uh, huh. You can't hide it from me. There's a reason why you stuck to basic techniques."

Tetsuya huffed. "I'll learn it one day, you'll see! Besides, the basics are where it's at!"

"If you say so." Serrano gasped as his phone suddenly rang.

"Who is it?"

"It's the princess."

"Rosa?" Tetsuya asked, leaning forward.

"Yeah," Serrano answered the phone and put it on loudspeaker. "Hello, Princess Rosalba?"

"Hey, Serra! Wanted to know how it's coming along."

"You mean in regards to our fledgling knight? He's still struggling to activate it."

"I will soon!" Tetsuya yelled.

Rosa chuckled. "That's the spirit! I look forward to seeing you activate it. I will likely stop by in a week or so, so you better not disappoint!"

Tetsuya puffed up his chest. "You'll see!"

"Great. In the meantime, I'll be heading to Shirayuki."

"The capital of Kuroyuki no San? What for?"

"To see my cousin, Hyosetsu. I heard from my sister that he's being considered for the fourth knight."

"Wait, so I'm the third?"

"Yeah. The first one is my sister, and the second is Eita's brother."

"Oh, I see. Wait, you know Eita?"

"Of course, he is the son of two of my fellow Seven-Hill Knights."

"Oh, right, he is."

Rosa snickered.

"Good luck on your trip. Say hello to Kohri for me if you see him," Serrano said.

"I'm sure that I will. At least I hope so. It has been a while since I have talked with him. That's one of the reasons why I'm looking forward to this trip. Though, there is another reason," she said, the cheer in her voice fading with those last couple of words.

"What's that?" Serrano asked.

"It's personal. Well, I better hurry up. The train's almost here."

"Safe travels!" Tetsuya yelled.

"Thanks! By the way, do not get discouraged. I am sure that you will activate it eventually," the princess said before hanging up.

"Alright, let's continue with training!" Tetsuya said, raising his arms into the air.

Serrano snickered as he put away his phone. "She sure lit a fire in you, huh?"

"Yuko already did that. You and the princess simply added to it."

Yuko smiled slightly. "Good!" the little girl said.

Serrano laughed. "Observe him, maybe you'll notice something that could work as a trigger."

Yuko nodded. "Yuko planned to."

"Wonder what kind of person this Hyosetsu guy is," Tetsuya muttered as he stared at the ceiling. He snickered. Since he's Rosa's cousin, he's probably a weirdo too. Hopefully, he doesn't struggle as much as I am.

**Solar Note: Hope that you enjoyed this chapter ^^. I added it to help show a few more things in regard to how mana works as well as bridge Tetsu's part better with what's to come. This chapter was dedicated to Torkuda. Thanks, man for all of your suggestions ^_^. I suggest that you folks check out his work, you might just enjoy it ;)**