The rest of the morning passed uneventfully. Leon and Raymond spent most of it waiting—waiting for Arthur to return. The City Lord's responsibilities had only grown heavier since the invasion. Reports needed reviewing, repairs needed overseeing, defenses needed strengthening. There was always another problem demanding his attention.
By the time Arthur finally returned to the castle, the sun had already begun its slow descent toward the western horizon. The moment he stepped into his office he looked exhausted. Dust covered his boots, his cloak bore traces of dirt and mortar, and the dark circles beneath his eyes seemed deeper than before. For a brief moment Leon felt guilty again—while he had spent the morning discovering the secrets of his power, Arthur had spent it carrying the burden of an entire city.
Arthur immediately noticed both of them waiting. His brow rose slightly. "Something happened." It wasn't a question.
Raymond nodded. "We learned more about Leon's awakening." That immediately gained Arthur's full attention. The older man's tired expression sharpened as he removed his gloves and took a seat behind his desk. "Explain."
Leon and Raymond exchanged a glance, then began recounting everything that had happened—the crystal's reaction, the pregnant mares, the visions.
"The visions showed many possibilities," Leon explained. "Most were different, but two kept appearing."
Arthur raised an eyebrow. "Describe them."
"The first was a massive black warhorse. Larger and stronger than any normal horse."
"And the second?"
"A silver horse surrounded by wind. Fast. Incredibly fast."
Arthur considered that for a moment. "A black warhorse..." He tapped his finger against the desk. "Let's call that one a Dreadmane." Leon nodded—the name suited it. "And the silver one..." A faint smile appeared. "Silverwind Steed."
Leon's eyes lit up. For some reason the names made the creatures feel more real, more tangible. "Those are much better than what I was calling them."
Raymond snorted. "Which was?"
"Big black horse and silver horse."
For a moment silence filled the office. Then Raymond laughed—a short, helpless laugh—and even Arthur's lips twitched slightly.
Leon's face immediately darkened. "What?"
"Nothing," Raymond said, still amused. "Just impressed by your creativity."
"I was a little occupied at the time."
"Clearly."
Leon rolled his eyes. The brief moment of humor eased some of the tension that had settled over the room. Once the laughter faded, the discussion returned to the matter at hand as Leon continued describing everything he had seen through the crystal.
Arthur listened without interrupting, the only indication of surprise coming from the occasional tapping of his finger against the desk. When they finally finished, silence settled over the room. Arthur leaned back in his chair, thinking, his expression revealing very little.
Leon nodded. "As far as we've observed."
"And these visions." Arthur folded his hands together. "You believe they represent possible futures for the unborn foal."
"Yes."
Arthur was silent again. Then he asked the question neither Leon nor Raymond had considered. "Why horses?"
The brothers frowned. Arthur continued. "What makes you think the power is reacting to the horse itself?" The room grew quiet. Leon blinked. Arthur looked directly at him. "The unborn foal is what matters."
Realization slowly spread across Leon's face. Arthur nodded. "Exactly." He leaned forward. "Your power may not be related to horses at all."
Neither brother spoke, because the implication was obvious. If Arthur was right, then horses were only the first thing they had tested. Not the limit of the ability.
The room remained quiet for several moments. Finally Arthur stood. "Let's conduct one more test."
Raymond straightened. "Now?"
"Now." Arthur nodded. "If we're going to discuss this further, I'd prefer certainty rather than assumptions."
The three quickly made their way toward the castle stables. The transfer of the pregnant mares had already begun, with stable hands moving back and forth carrying supplies while several horses were being settled into new stalls. Fortunately one of the mares Raymond had ordered transferred earlier had already arrived.
Arthur gestured toward it. "Show me."
Leon stepped forward. The familiar warmth immediately spread through his forehead—the crystal had reacted again. Arthur noticed the change. "The crystal reacted?"
Leon nodded. "It did." He stepped toward the mare and gently placed a hand against its side. The warmth immediately intensified and the vision returned.
Numerous possibilities unfolded before him once more—some distant, some unclear, some so fantastical that merely looking at them made him instinctively feel they were beyond his current abilities. Among them stood the Silverwind Steed. Leon focused on it and immediately the image sharpened as the other possibilities began to fade one after another, until only the silver horse remained.
The world around it seemed to come alive. Leon could see individual strands of its silver mane dancing in invisible currents, the grass beneath its hooves bending as wind swept across the plains, its coat shimmering softly beneath the sunlight with each movement carrying an effortless grace that made ordinary horses seem clumsy by comparison.
The crystal on Leon's forehead erupted with light. A brilliant golden radiance flooded the stall and Leon stiffened as the warmth gathering within the crystal surged violently. For an instant it felt as though something had opened inside him—energy poured out, not painfully at first, but relentlessly. His heartbeat quickened, a cold sweat formed along his back, and his legs grew slightly unsteady.
Within the vision, the Silverwind Steed lifted its head. Its silver eyes seemed to meet his as a powerful neigh rolled across the plains, the sound carrying far beyond what should have been possible and echoing across the horizon like a call answered by the wind itself. The currents around the horse stirred, then intensified. Grass flattened. Dust rose into the air. The mane flowing along its neck whipped wildly behind it.
Then it moved. One step. Two. The pace increased almost immediately, its strides growing longer, smoother, effortless. The landscape rushed past beneath its hooves as the wind screamed around it, faster and faster, until the silver horse became a streak racing across the endless plains—a blur of silver and white—before eventually vanishing beyond the horizon.
At the same moment, the mare beneath Leon's hand closed its eyes. The animal released a low breath as a soft golden glow spread across its swollen belly. Faint patterns surfaced beneath its skin, flowing slowly across the curve of its stomach like threads of molten gold before fading once more. The mare remained calm throughout the process, almost peaceful, as though instinctively understanding that no harm was being done.
The entire process lasted several minutes. To Leon it felt much longer. Every passing second pulled more strength from him, the dull ache that had lingered behind his eyes throughout the day sharpening steadily, his breathing growing heavier, the hand resting against the mare trembling slightly. By the end his vision had begun to blur.
The silver plains faded. The endless sky vanished. The last traces of the Silverwind Steed dissolved like mist beneath the morning sun. Then reality returned.
Leon staggered. A sharp pain exploded behind his eyes. "Ah..." His knees buckled and the hand resting on the mare slipped away as the strength left his body. Arthur moved immediately, catching him before he could collapse onto the stable floor. This chapter is updated first at novelping . com.
"Leon." The concern in his voice was subtle but unmistakable. Leon barely heard him. His head felt as though someone had driven a wedge into his skull, every heartbeat sending another pulse of pain through his temples. His clothes clung to his body, completely soaked with sweat. Even breathing felt exhausting.
"Water..." he managed to gasp. "Water."
Raymond was already moving. The moment the crystal's light had appeared he had been watching closely, and by the end of the process he looked almost as pale as Leon himself. He returned moments later carrying a bucket and a cup. Leon practically snatched it from his hands—one cup, then another, and only after the third did the shaking in his hands begin to lessen. He let out a long breath. Still exhausted, still hurting, but no longer on the verge of passing out.
For several moments nobody spoke. All three were looking at the mare. The animal appeared completely healthy—more than healthy. Its coat seemed cleaner somehow, brighter, and it eagerly devoured the feed before it with surprising enthusiasm. The swollen stomach beneath its flank appeared slightly larger than before, not enough to be obvious to a casual observer, but enough for Arthur to notice, enough for Raymond to notice, enough for Leon to know he wasn't imagining things.
"Did it work?" Leon finally asked.
Arthur continued observing the mare for several more seconds before answering. "I believe it did."
Relief immediately washed across Leon's face—not because the process had succeeded, though that certainly helped, but because it meant he hadn't endured all that pain for nothing.
Raymond let out a low whistle. "I'll admit it." He folded his arms. "When you first described this ability, I thought there was a decent chance we were misunderstanding something."
Leon shot him a look. "Thanks."
"I'm being honest." Raymond grinned. "But after seeing that..." His gaze returned to the mare. "I don't think there's much room for doubt anymore."
Arthur remained silent, simply staring at the mare for several moments and digesting what he had just witnessed. Until now Leon's ability had been little more than a theory supported by visions and deductions—interesting, certainly, but still unproven. Now he had seen the result with his own eyes.
His expression remained calm, but his thoughts raced. If this process could be repeated, how many times could it be done? How long would it take for the changes to manifest? What were its limits? More importantly, how could it be used? His gaze drifted across the stable. A single improved horse would change very little. A dozen might. Hundreds certainly would. And that was assuming the crystal only worked on horses. For the first time in days, amid reports of sieges, dwindling supplies, and approaching armies, Arthur saw something other than problems—not hope, not yet, but an opportunity. Small and uncertain, but real enough to demand his full attention. Because if this power truly worked the way it appeared to, its value might extend far beyond a single mare or even a single city.
Arthur looked around carefully, ensuring no stable hands were close enough to overhear. Then his voice lowered. "For now, no one learns about this." Both brothers immediately understood. "Information like this has a way of spreading." His expression hardened. "And once it does, you don't get to decide who hears it."
The stable fell silent. "I'll handle how this information is disseminated. Until then, it goes no further than this room." His eyes moved between both sons. "Especially not to the Mage Association." That warning carried noticeably more weight than the others.
Leon nodded. He didn't need an explanation. Anything capable of altering magical beasts—or perhaps creating them—would attract the attention of powerful people very quickly. The fewer who knew, the safer everyone would be.
Arthur looked back toward the mare. For the first time all day genuine concern appeared in his eyes—not fear, but calculation, the kind a commander wore when confronted with something capable of changing the balance of power.
"If your power functions the way we believe..." His gaze drifted toward the city beyond the stable walls. "This may become more valuable than every weapon we possess."
Silence followed. Then Arthur asked another question—a simple one. "How many pregnant mares do we currently have?"
"About twenty," Raymond answered.
Arthur nodded. Then he asked, "And what about cows?" Both brothers blinked. "Sheep." A pause. "Goats." Another. "Hounds."
Leon stared at him, because suddenly the scale of the ability felt far larger than before. Arthur looked toward the city, toward the coming siege, toward the war that threatened to consume everything. Then he spoke quietly.
"It seems we have much more testing to do."