King Of The Wind

Chapter 3: Trainer

Despite everything that had happened, I couldn't get that girl out of my head.

Alice, was it? She was beautiful. I never saw anyone even remotely close to her before, well, besides my mother, who was extremely beautiful.

But that's not exactly the reason why she was still in my head. It was how she reacted to what I said.

Alice: "The only person you can rely on is yourself"

She was also rubbing her bandages, like it was some reminder.

I didn't want to push my boundaries, so I didn't say anything about it.

After I finished failing at preparing myself for what may come next, I walked out of my room and downstairs to meet up with Alice.

The second I got down there, she was waiting by the stairway. She didn't even look at me, she just tilted her head towards a new door.

Alice: "Come on"

I followed her out into a massive courtyard, bushes and flowers scattered all around the bright green grass. In the center of it all, was a large platform.

Agis: "What is this place?"

Alice: "Your new training grounds"

She walked over to large selection of weapons I hadn't noticed until then. She looked them over before pulling out a basic knight's sword.

Alice: "Catch"

She tossed it towards me and by some miracle I caught it without losing any fingers. The sword was heavy in my hands. I suddenly dropped it as the memories of Mother flooded my mind again. The sword in my hand did nothing against her killer.

Alice: "What's wrong? Pick it up"

Agis: "I... I-I can't..."

Alice: "Why? Is it too heavy?"

Agis: "N-No... it's just..."

I looked down at the blade, one similar to the one that cut Mother down. If I had a choice, I never would want to see a sword again. With trembling hands, I somehow powered through it and picked up the sword. Since it was so heavy, I had to hold it with both hands.

Alice: "Alright, attack me"

Agis: "A-Attack you?! But you don't have a weapon"

Alice: "Do it before I attack first"

Hesitantly, I lifted my sword up with both hands. This was wrong, attacking someone with a sword. Even thinking back, I only tried to kill the man out of fear and a need to save Mother.

Agis: "I-I don't want to hurt you"

She rolled her eyes.

Alice: "Imagine I'm the one who killed your Mother"

It felt like I was punched in the chest. She knew about what happened, and now she was provoking me with it.

Agis: "T-This is just training, right? Please don't bring her up..."

Alice: "Why not? Don't you want to become strong and get revenge on your Mother's killer? Don't you want to be strong enough so it doesn't happen again?"

I stayed silent.

Alice: "If you don't move, I'll strike first"

In one swift movement, Alice was already right on top of me, slamming her fist across my face. I hit the ground hard, dropping my sword in the process.

Alice: "You aren't fit to be a King's Candidate"

She turned away from me and started walking back to her original spot.