The Goldheart training courtyard shimmered under the sharp light of mid-afternoon.
The air carried that faint weight of mana that always lingered near the practice grounds along with a mixture of sweat, steel, and power.
A dozen practice dummies stood in perfect formation like wooden soldiers, their straw-filled bodies casting thin shadows across the tiled ground.
Servants gathered at the edge of the courtyard, pretending to polish armor or carry water buckets, but everyone knew why they were there.
It wasn't every day the youngest Goldheart, known more for explosions and pranks than discipline, received a private lesson from the estate's most formidable swordsman.
And right on cue, Sir Leonard appeared.
