"You two, look out!"
Kaien shouted as he lunged towards Selene and Itsuo to push them away from the pillars behind them. Doing so, he avoided the one that was aiming onto himself while saving Selene and Kaien in the process. But as a result of pushing them aside, he finds himself standing in the line of fire of the pillar that was supposed to hit Selene from behind.
Kaien tries to go to the opposite side of where he pushed the two, but he wasn't able to avoid the pillar that grinded through the lower left of his abdomen in time.
Itsuo quickly opened his eyes to check up on Selene after they were pushed violently down to the ground by Kaien.
"Selene! Are you okay? Huh?"
As Itsuo heard the sound of the blood falling to the ground, he sees the horrifying result of what Kaien did to save them.
"K-Knight Commander...?"
"Tsk...!" Kaien irked up as he felt the pain begin coursing through his whole body. He closed his eyes and lowers his head as he attempt to endure the pain.
"What a fool."
Kaien mustered up the strength to open his left eye and glared onto the one who can manipulate the ground.
"As I thought, you're the young commander and the knight who is always beside prince Edle. Knight Commander Kaien." The man told Kaien.
"You..." Kaien uttered as he groaned in pain.
"You really are a fool, aren't you? You should know more than anyone to not avert your eyes on your enemy even just for a split second."
"Still, even though he didn't notice it in time, he still managed to save those two from your attack, Lando." Said the woman to the one who can move the ground.
"Yeah. Though the plan is to kill all three of them in one go, you were only able to impale one with your ground. You're a failure." The man who can go through walls added.
"What did you say? Do you want me to impale your ass to the ground?"
As the three continue chattering in front of them, Itsuo helps Selene get up on her feet.
"Thank you." Selene thanked Itsuo afterwards.
After that, Itsuo started thinking. What course of action should he and Selene take? Seeing Kaien in his state, it poses a difficulty to fight all three of them with only him and Selene who can move. They are definitely at a disadvantage now.
"Should we try to get Commander Kaien out of that pillar and escape?"
He thought. But if they do, the three of them will surely notice them and attack them immediately. He also thought about running away with Selene and get to Christa for help, leaving Kaien in the hands of the enemies, the three might end up killing him before they could get help.
Just then...
"Hey."
Kaien's voice brought Itsuo out of his thoughts as he calls him and Selene. They turned their attention to him.
"Both of you can still run, right? Go. If you find Edle, tell him that the plan failed and get away from here as far as possible."
"Commander Kaien..." Itsuo uttered Kaien's name.
"Oh, right!" The man suddenly speak in a loud tone, getting the attention of Kaien and the others.
"Aren't you supposed to be by the Prince's side? Where did he and that one pretty woman go?" Lando referred to Christa. "Did the Prince left you for that girl? That's sad." Lando said in a scornful tone.
Kaien who were quietly listening to the man suddenly tittered after what he said.
"If that were the case, I'd be more than happy to watch him from a far, holding her hand without me stepping up and having to assist him anymore."
The man frowned. He was not pleased by the response he got from his insult. Kaien once again turn to Itsuo and Selene.
"Itsuo and Selene, was it?"
Both Itsuo and Selene looked at him wordlessly.
"Let me rephrase what I said earlier. If you meet Edle and Christa, tell the Prince this: Stop being a shy idiot and hold her hand already." Kaien told the two before telling them off. "Go."
"Prince Edle and Christa...?" Selene shakes her head as she remembered the situation they're in. "Itsuo...?"
The man looked and sees Selene with a concerned expression on her face. She seemed like she doesn't want to leave the commander alone with enemies in front of them. Not knowing what Itsuo thinks at the moment, she awaits his decision.
Itsuo, looks down at the palm of his left hand as he remembered a certain moment in which he and Christa are having a sparring session as part of their daily training.
Tired and out of breath, Itsuo is lying on the ground when Christa's hand reached out to him.
"All good?"
Panting heavily, he replied.
"Yes."
Itsuo took Christa's helping hand and gets up from the ground. Behind him, Selene comes in to fix his body.
"You sure went all out again, Itsuo." She told the young man.
"Even so, I could barely hit Christa with my own wooden sword." Itsuo retorted. "It's already been 3 weeks since we started training every single day and the results are always the same. It feels like I'm not even improving at all."
Selene's eyes slowly runs through Itsuo's exposed arms. Looking back, his muscles look a little more toned than it was 3 weeks ago. After saying that he felt that he isn't improving at all, she thought that Itsuo probably didn't realize that what he said is not entirely true. In reality, while Itsuo is slowly becoming stronger, Christa is also increasing her strength slowly in every of their sparrings which is why the end result of their training is always the same.
*Tap*
Just then, a wooden sword appeared before Selene's eyes as it taps onto Itsuo's shoulders. She looks up to see Christa making a rather playful smirk towards her.
After realizing why Christa is making such a face, Selene's own face turn bright red and turns away in embarrassment. Itsuo who felt something touched his right shoulder sees Selene looking away and were confused as to why. He then hovers onto Christa who continues to make a cheeky grin while looking at Selene.
"Christa...?"
Christa then erased the mischievous expression on her face as he looks back onto Itsuo. Following with a question.
"I thought I heard you said you're not improving at all. Would you mind telling me the reason with that thought?"
Itsuo looks down at the palm of his left hand with a worried look on his face as he gives the woman his answer.
"I know you're strong. Most people knows that fact as well. That is one reason why I wanted you to train me. But, every single day we clash swords, I would always go down, beat up and all that. The result is always the same since day 1. I can't tell if I'm even improving one bit..." Itsuo paused a little before continuing to speak. He looks at Christa right into her eyes. "...I can hardly call this as training."
Christa looks at him without saying word. Before long, she let out a soft smile before taking the wooden sword she put on the ground earlier.
Itsuo watches her turning around into an open field as she swings her wooden sword powerful enough to cause a gust that blows the dry green grass in the open field. Both Selene and Itsuo were in awe after witnessing what Christa did.
After that, the girl speaks about her past.
"10 years ago, I met my master and brought me into a certain forest where powerful monsters lives. Did you know the first thing she told me after we went there?" Christa looks at Selene and Itsuo with her back facing the two. ""Kill them.""
Itsuo's eyes grow wider as Christa continue to share the stories of her childhood.
"At the time, I got no experience with battles. So although goblins are considered weak creatures, I was nothing but a fodder to them. Even so, after healing my injuries, my master gave me back the knife I dropped on the ground and told me: "Go.""
After that, she turns back and walks slowly towards Itsuo.
"Just like my master instructed, I confronted the goblins. Again, and again, and again. I've fallen countless times in failure, but with my master not letting me give up, eventually, I landed a killing on one of them. After that, I kept on killing them one by one. Up to the point that I can kill them all at the same time. After that, I thought that hellish killing is over, but I was wrong."
"You're wrong?!" Itsuo was shocked.
"After dealing with the small and weak goblins, my master brought me a hobgoblin. And just like the first time I fought the small goblins, I was only a fodder to the hobgoblin. But, my master once again gave me the knife and told me to keep going. And so I did. Eventually I was able to kill the hobgoblin. Then the next, and the other one, then a mob of them. At this point, it became a normal thing for me."
"Oh..." Itsuo uttered.
"The one thing I learned during that endlessly tiresome training is that, no matter how much I've become stronger, there is always someone or something that will always be stronger than me."
"There is always someone that will always be stronger than you, huh?"
Christa stood right before Itsuo. And as if he's looking at something bigger and taller than him, he looks up to her.
"Let's say you're up against a very powerful opponent. Just because you've fallen to the ground, doesn't mean you have lost. As long as you have the determination to win the fight, take up your sword, stand up and keep fighting!"
As the memories of Itsuo ended with a flash, he clenched his fist and apologized to Kaien.
"Sorry, Knight Commander Kaien..."
Kaien looks at Itsuo with a bewildered expression printed on his face. Itsuo draws his sword from his back and walks up front before looking back to Kaien.
"...I have not fallen to the ground yet."