Rowdy strolled casually through the grand hallway, his hands sunk deep in his coat pockets. The Noble House of Kaizer may have been a fortress of discipline and order, but Rowdy walked like he owned it, like he belonged nowhere and everywhere all at once. Ahead of him, two familiar figures turned the corner, Joshua, hobbling slightly on his crutch with his arm in a sling, and Captain Percival, walking with the commanding presence of a man who'd seen far too much.
They met in the middle of the hall, stopping a few feet from each other.
"Rowdy," Captain Percival began, holding out a folded parchment, "I know it's your first day, but I've got a list of goods that need collecting. We usually source our supplies from the slums."
Rowdy raised an eyebrow.
"The slums?" he repeated dryly.
"Yes," Percival replied without flinching. "The king has ties with the gangsters down there. They provide us with rare items and… other forms of intelligence. In exchange, the king keeps their territories off-limits to military interference."
Joshua blinked in realization. "So that's why Jonathan always handled the shopping trips to the slums! I thought he was just, you know, quirky."
Rowdy stared at him like he was staring at a creature missing half its brain. "You're so dumb it hurts," he muttered.
Rowdy unfolded the list and skimmed it. "I don't know where to find most of this junk."
"Don't worry," Percival said, slapping Joshua's back. "He used to go with your brother all the time. Joshua will accompany you."
"Great," Rowdy muttered flatly, as Percival walked off down the hallway.
Joshua beamed. "Don't worry, Rowdy. You're in good hands."
He threw an arm around Rowdy's shoulder, limping cheerfully toward the exit.
Rowdy eyed his casted leg and crutched posture. "Good hands? You can barely walk, cripple."
"Aww, you're worried about me!" Joshua laughed, putting Rowdy into a playful headlock and ruffling his spiked hair.
Rowdy grumbled, but a faint smile twitched at the edge of his lips.
(This guy's an idiot… but a good kind of idiot. Maybe I can trust him.)
They disappeared down the corridor, laughter trailing behind them.
Lion Mountain – The Training Grounds
Far from the laughter and chatter of the noble house, high atop the jagged cliffs of Lion Mountain, Blanchette's body trembled as she lowered herself for another pushup, just inches above venom-laced spikes. Sweat poured from her face, dripping onto the iron points below, sizzling where it met the poison. On her back sat Alexander, legs crossed, calmly flipping pages in a dusty book.
"The spikes beneath you," he said without looking up, "are laced with venom extracted from the fangs of the Bloodcoil serpent. If you're stabbed, you'll suffer three hours of unimaginable pain before death."
He turned a page casually.
"But don't worry. If you fall, I'll wait two hours before giving you the antidote. You've got half an hour left. You've already lasted two and a half."
Blanchette's arms quivered. Her muscles burned. Her breath came in short, panicked gasps. But she didn't stop.
Alexander noticed the fear in her, how her eyes flicked to the spikes, how her breath caught.
"So tell me," he asked, tone light, "why would you put yourself through this hell for that boy, Joshua?"
Blanchette's vision blurred for a moment, but her mind sharpened, remembering the look in Joshua's eyes the night he returned. The pain. The weight he carried.
Her trembling faded. Her rhythm steadied.
"Because Joshua is my everything," she whispered, then louder, "He does all he can to protect everyone, but he always ends up the one hurt. I won't let him carry that weight alone anymore. I'll be his strength. His sword. His shield. That's why I must become the strongest knight to ever live."
Her pushups became flawless, each one powerful and stable, sweat raining onto the spikes without hesitation.
Alexander paused in his reading. (She's insane… no, she's always been this determined. Maybe even more than I ever was.)
He looked at the hourglass. The last grains of sand fell.
"Time's up," he called.
Blanchette didn't respond.
"Blanchette, I said time's..." He cut himself off. Her eyes were rolled back. Her body was still doing pushups, unconscious.
Alexander's book dropped to the ground as he dove forward, slipping his arms under her just as her muscles gave out. She collapsed into his grasp, limp and drenched in sweat.
(No one… no one I've trained has ever had a will this strong.)
A faint smile formed as he carried her toward the nearby wooden shed.
(You might just be the greatest student I've ever had.)
Human District – Tailor's Boutique
Lancelot stood on the wooden platform, a measuring tape trailing across his chest. Jack and Raphael stood beside him, each being fitted for suits as well.
"I kinda wish Joshua was here," Lancelot muttered, adjusting the collar. "It's dull without him."
"Yeah," Jack said with a grin. "Joshua's like the glue of this group. Or the loudest explosion in the box."
Raphael scoffed. "It's good he's not here. All he ever does is drag people into chaos and make emotional decisions that get others hurt."
Lancelot narrowed his eyes. "What's your problem with Joshua?"
The tailor paused, sensing the tension. Lancelot waved him away. Raphael's tailor did the same.
"You know damn well," Raphael snapped. "If Joshua had never meddled with Zain, you and Jack wouldn't have put your lives at risk. And James... James would still be alive. It's his fault."
The words had barely left his mouth when Lancelot surged forward, golden light flaring in his eyes. He grabbed Raphael by the throat, slamming him against the wall of hanging suits.
"What. Did. You. Say?"
His voice was low and dangerous.
"Do you want me to kill you?"
Jack stood frozen, the tension suffocating the room. Raphael clawed at Lancelot's arm, his face turning red under the knight's crushing grip.
No one spoke.
The tailor staff had fled the room in panic.
Lancelot's glowing eyes bored into Raphael's as silence pressed against the walls like thunder held back by a thread.
Three stories. Three battles.
One between comrades.
One for love.
And one to uncover trust in unexpected places.
The flames of loyalty, loss, and rage continued to burn. And in the storm ahead, only the strongest hearts would stand unshaken.