Failed prodigy

In a world of magic, magicians were not fantasy or myths, they were the center of society itself. Kingdoms depended on them, wars were fought because of them and powerful families ruled above others thanks to their magic.

One cold winter night, a baby was born into the prestigious Valderinet family, one of the strongest and most respected bloodlines in the world. The moment the child opened his eyes, the room fell silent. His hair was completely white, as white as fresh snow, and his eyes were a bright emerald green that almost seemed to glow under the candlelight. He looked beautiful, ethereal even.

Those features belonged to only one other person in history.

Arien Valderinet.

The greatest magician to ever exist.

Centuries ago, Arien had become a living legend, a magician so powerful that people still spoke his name with admiration and fear. He had mastered spells no one else could cast and reached heights nobody had ever achieved. According to the Valderinet family’s beliefs, if another child was ever born with white hair and green eyes, that child would inherit Arien’s monstrous talent.

So when they saw the baby, they celebrated as if the heavens themselves had blessed them.

They named him Eirenn, a variation of Arien’s name, believing he would become even greater than the legend himself.

The news spread across the world in only days. Nobles, magicians and scholars talked about the miraculous child born into the Valderinet family. People called him the child chosen by magic, the future king of magicians, the second Arien. Before Eirenn could even walk, the entire world already expected greatness from him.

Normally, children awakened magic around the age of four. Some would create sparks, others could move objects or accidentally use small spells without realizing it. It was always different depending on the child, but magic always appeared.

Except for Eirenn.

At first, his family wasn’t worried. They believed someone destined to become the greatest magician alive would simply awaken later with far stronger abilities.

But four became five.

Five became seven.

Seven became ten.

And Eirenn still had no magic.

Whispers slowly spread through the Valderinet manor. The servants began talking behind closed doors. His relatives looked at him with confusion instead of admiration. How could the child who was supposed to surpass Arien not even create a single spark?

When Eirenn finally awakened his magic at the age of ten, the entire family gathered to witness it, hoping for something extraordinary.

But all that appeared were tiny white sparks falling weakly from his fingertips.

That was it.

No powerful aura.

No overwhelming spell.

No miracle.

Just weak little sparks that disappeared after seconds.

The room was silent.

The hope in everyone’s eyes vanished instantly.

Eirenn couldn’t control elements, couldn’t transform objects, couldn’t cast proper spells. Even children far younger than him possessed stronger magic. The boy who had once been called the future greatest magician in history was weaker than ordinary four-year-olds.

And once again, the news spread around the world.

But this time, not with admiration.

With mockery.

People laughed at the “failed prodigy” of the Valderinet family. The child who had been compared to a god turned out to be almost powerless. The family’s pride quickly became shame.

In the world of magic, magicians were ranked by strength:

S, A, B, C, D, Z and -Z.

-Z rank was considered pathetic, a level so low that very few people in the world even possessed it.

Eirenn barely qualified as a -Z rank magician.

His own family looked at him with disappointment and disgust. Some openly called him useless. Others acted as if he didn’t exist at all. The same people who once celebrated his birth now avoided mentioning him entirely.

Then, one year later, his younger brother was born.

Hinrel Valderinet.

Unlike Eirenn, Hinrel had dark blue hair and red eyes like the rest of the family, so nobody expected anything special from him.

Until he awakened magic at only two years old.

The same age Arien had.

Hinrel could already control water and wind with incredible precision, something impossible for most children. By the age of five, he already possessed the strength of a B rank magician, a level most people only reached after years of training.

The family immediately shifted all their attention onto him.

Hinrel became the prodigy they had always wanted.

And Eirenn became the mistake they wished they could erase.

The comparisons never stopped. Everywhere Eirenn went, people whispered about how shameful it was for someone like him to exist in such a powerful family. At school, students mocked him constantly. Some laughed at him for being unable to fly like everyone else. Others stole his things and hid them where he couldn’t reach them using magic.

Eirenn endured all of it in silence.

He never blamed Hinrel for any of it. In fact, he was happy his younger brother never had to experience the same loneliness he did.

But deep inside, the hatred toward himself kept growing stronger.

Every night, Eirenn studied magic alone. He spent hours reading ancient books, trying desperately to improve. Slowly, after years of effort, he managed to create a tiny ball of light in his hand.

That was all he could do.

A small glowing sphere no bigger than an egg.

And even that exhausted him completely.

By the age of eighteen, nothing had changed. His magic remained weak, useless and pathetic while seven-year-old Hinrel had already reached A rank level, capable of summoning massive waves and creating powerful storms.

The gap between them felt impossible to cross.

The Valderinet family no longer considered Eirenn one of their own. To them, he was an embarrassment that stained their perfect bloodline.

Still, Eirenn refused to stop trying.

Even after years of humiliation, part of him still desperately wanted to prove everyone wrong.

That hope was the only thing keeping him moving forward.

Every day after classes, Eirenn would disappear into the oldest parts of the academy library, searching through dusty shelves filled with forgotten books and ancient records. While other students trained together, laughed with friends or practiced powerful spells in the training halls, Eirenn spent his time buried in silence, desperately searching for something — anything — that could help him understand why his magic was so weak.

Most people in the academy barely acknowledged him anymore. To them, he was a joke, the pathetic older brother of the famous Hinrel Valderinet. Some students openly mocked him in the hallways while others pretended he didn’t exist at all. Eirenn had gotten used to it long ago.

One afternoon during break time, he hid himself in an abandoned library beneath the academy. Almost nobody ever entered that place anymore. Dust covered every shelf and the air smelled of old paper and decay. The room was dark except for the weak sunlight slipping through cracks in the ceiling.

Eirenn slowly searched through the shelves until he found an old book shoved into the farthest corner of one of them. The cover was covered in dust and ancient writing, thankfully, ancient script was a subject he excelled in, thanks to his hard studying.

“The Mysteries of Light.”

His eyes widened slightly.

Light magic was incredibly rare. Most people considered it useless because it lacked offensive power compared to fire, water or lightning magic. But since the tiny ball of light was the only spell Eirenn had ever been able to produce, he immediately opened the book and began reading through its pages.

Time passed without him noticing.

Then finally, he stopped on a page describing a basic light-concentration spell.

The incantation itself seemed simple enough.

Eirenn stared at the page for a moment before slowly standing up. His heart was beating faster than usual. He raised one hand in front of him, took a deep breath and carefully recited the spell exactly as it was written.

For a second, nothing happened.

Then suddenly—

The tiny ball of light in his hand exploded in size.

A massive glow illuminated the entire room, becoming as large as a watermelon or bigger before floating violently in front of him. The brightness was so intense that Eirenn had to shield his eyes.

The spell vanished only seconds later.

But Eirenn remained frozen in place.

His breathing became uneven as he stared at his trembling hand.

Did...

Did he really just do that?

For the first time in years, excitement filled his chest instead of despair.

“I did it...” he whispered in disbelief. “I actually did magic..!”

A smile slowly appeared on his face, small at first before growing wider. He almost looked like a completely different person. His eyes shined with hope.

Quickly, he tried the spell again.

But this time, only the usual tiny light appeared in his palm.

Eirenn blinked.

He tried again.

Nothing.

Again.

Still nothing.

Again.

The ball remained small and weak.

The excitement inside him slowly disappeared, replaced by panic.

“No... no, come on...”

He repeated the spell faster now, his voice shaking desperately as he extended his arm over and over again.

Nothing changed.

The large light never appeared again.

“Why isn’t it working...?” he muttered quietly. “I just did it... I know I did...”

His chest tightened painfully.

And before he could stop himself, tears suddenly fell from his eyes.

Eirenn had never cried before.

Not when his family rejected him.

Not when the world mocked him.

Not when people compared him to Hinrel every single day.

But this...

This tiny moment of hope appearing only to disappear seconds later...

It completely shattered him.

His legs gave out beneath him and he collapsed onto the floor beside one of the bookshelves. He pulled his knees against his chest and buried his face into his arms as quiet sobs escaped him.

For once, he was tired.

Tired of trying.

Tired of hoping.

Tired of pretending everything didn’t hurt.

Then suddenly, the old wooden door of the library creaked open.

Eirenn quickly lifted his head, wiping his face

Someone was standing at the entrance.

A person he had never seen before.

A new student?