- 10 Years Later
Shining, silver banners were hung up on opposing sides of a grand hall.
Rousing musical fanfare reverberated off the stone walls and filled the atmosphere with an uplifting sound.
Cheers and jubilation came from the crowd as names were rattled off in alphabetical order.
A veteran knight of over twenty years, Emmanuel never expected that he would take to teaching quite as much as he had.
There was a satisfaction to the job that he hadn't anticipated. Seeing the young boys he practically raised gradually turn into men was oddly rewarding.
He looked through the crowd of brand new squires, searching for the one pair of cadets whom he had enjoyed watching the most.
"…"
Emmanuel scanned the entire crowd. Twice.
Of course, they weren't here. What was he even expecting?
-
"I can't believe that you signed us up for more schooling right before we were supposed to graduate. Would it not have been possible for us to have taken a year off or something first?"
"Volkova Academy waits for no man, brother. It's the playground for Komen's elite and the most over-the-top royals you can think of. If we don't get in this year, the consequences would be disastrous."
"Again with this talk of disasters, you're so overdramatic dramatic…"
A young maid was coming around the corner with a small wooden basket in her arms.
She bumped into what felt like a wall and started to take a tumble, only to be caught by the firmest pair of arms she had ever felt.
"Careful there."
For a moment, the young woman was left breathless.
Staring back at her with a smile was one of the most handsome young men she had ever seen.
He was a well-built and tall figure, with muscles like staunch iron and a height of at least 6'2.
A shock of black hair came from the roots of his scalp, but gradually turned into a delinquent-like blonde.
His golden eyes were humorous and compassionate. The longer the young maid stared into them, the more she began to feel a number of warm and fuzzy sensations.
His only clothes were a white tank top and the standard white coat worn by the clan's main line.
A menagerie of intricately designed tattoos were visible on the top of his chest and the length of his arms.
The more the young woman analyzed him, the redder her face became. She was starting to look unhealthy.
"I'll take that as a compliment." He smiled at her. "Here, let me help you stand."
The young man helped the maid get to her feet, only for her to immediately double over in a deep bow.
"I'm sorry, Young Master! I wasn't looking where I was going and I was in such a rush to get back to the garden, I-"
"I'm not a tiger or a monster, miss, there's no reason to be so nervous. Running into you is actually the highlight of my day."
"T-That's… very kind of you to say."
If the maid turned any redder, a trip to the infirmary was going to be unavoidable.
"See you later." He waved the woman away and winked at her.
As he walked past the stunned maid, she finally noticed another man moving quietly behind him.
Even though she had never seen him before, she recognized him from all of the whispers in the castle.
The figure was an inch or two shorter than the young master, but just as muscular.
He was a dark skinned man with short, curly hair and a pair of burning orange eyes.
A short goatee decorated his chin and made him look slightly older than the young man he accompanied.
He wasn't a far step down from his companion in terms of attractiveness. But where the former seemed more approachable and friendly, the latter seemed violently standoffish.
He passed her by with only a nod, and the young woman meekly nodded back.
When the two men were far enough away, they continued their conversation like nothing had happened.
"Missing graduation is a bit disappointing, I'll admit that, but it's for the best. Knights of Olethros can't just wander off for five years to study on another continent." Raizel sighed.
The pair of young men stopped outside of a particular wooden door.
Solomon was perplexed when Raizel didn't immediately enter and instead placed his hand on his shoulder.
"There's one more thing I should probably tell you."
"I'm worried already."
"I got you registered with dual enrollment. You're taking mage and swordsmanship courses."
"The fuck? Are you out of your mind!?"
"Only when I drink."
"You know how hard I worked to surpass the body I was born with. Im growing at a great pace, and now you want me to run around practicing magic tricks?"
"Brother, I know better than anyone just how hard you've worked. You're one of the best swordsmen Olethros has seen in years. But in the future, it might not be enough. If you have a chance to grow, you should take it." Raizel said sincerely.
There were many reasons why Solomon took issue with this plan. Impracticality being chief among them.
For ten years, he had worked himself to the bone to transform his body into that of a model swordsman.
He has expanded his knowledge of the fundamentals of swordsmanship until he could even best other instructors.
The entire clan thought of him as some kind of monster who had reached the middle rank of the yellow core stage in only a year.
Solomon had devoted his life to his swordsmanship. He didn't want to deviate from the path he'd already started treading on.
"You talk of growth, but it seems to me that you wish to see me stagnate.You know that people who try to split their focus never even go half as far as those who specialize. Magic swordsman are laughingstocks!"
Raizel's lips curled into a smirk. "The Athanatoi aren't."
Admittedly, Solomon was a bit caught off guard. He had no comeback for that.
"Fine, but do I look like an undying metal man to you? "
Raizel couldn't exactly say that he did.
He could see that Solomon was resisting this idea rather heavily, so he knew he had to do something to sweeten the pot.
"What if I offered to buy you a good sword?"
Solomon stiffened. With his training schedule, he went through swords like most people do toothbrushes.
He was desperately in need of a good, high-quality sword that wouldn't chip easily and was durable enough to keep up with him.
A dwarven sword was the best answer. But the little artisans price-gouge like nobody's business.
Even with the money he'd earned over the years, Solomon was something of a tight-fisted young man. He'd never shell out for a sword like that, even if he needed it.
But his very rich brother didn't have his same aversions.
"…I want a greatsword."
A vein bulged in Solomon's forehead. "…Okay."
"It has to be made with at least three monster cores."
"Mother f…." Raizel took a moment to compose himself as he felt an immense strain on his wallet. "Fine. Do we have a deal?"
Solomon looked like he was thinking of another addition to his already outrageously expensive sword.
Before he could add anything else, Raizel grabbed him by the wrist and made him shake on it.
"Okay, splendid, we've got a deal."
Intending to put this whole mess behind him, Raizel started to push open the door to Solomon's room when he suddenly paused.
"What?" Solomon tilted his head, not understanding why his brother wasn't barging in like usual.
"…Know what? Let's just meet up in the morning." He started to walk away. "I'm going to go readjust the savings for my future child."
"…Right."
Solomon thought for a moment Raizel might have been joking, but he turned the corner down the hallway and didn't look back.
Eventually, he dismissed his brother's odd behavior and told himself that Raizel was probably going to look for the young maid they had just come across.
Shrugging to himself, Solomon entered his room and shut the door behind him.
He had a simple, tidy space with a king-sized bed, a desk, and a bathroom.
The only thing he possessed in the way of decorations were the dozens of sword hilts he'd used throughout the years.
Of course, he had gone through so many swords in his time here that there was no way he could fit all of them on four walls. But he kept the ones that were the most significant.
With time to himself, Solomon started to head towards his bathroom when he suddenly felt someone attack him from behind…