"Pithos! I'm gonna catch you!"
Asher skipped through the garden giddily as his eyes swept across the different variety of colorful and fresh flowers. His dark hair that was only adorned with a streak of red was messy and had countless leaves and small sticks sticking out. His white shirt was stained with various dirt marks, and his long, brown trousers were slightly ripped due to falling countless times. The servants of the estate stared at Asher with eyes brimming of shock as they avoided their little master. Who wouldn't, after Young Master Asher had considerably changes in a matter of a few days? Who knew what was now hiding inside his head?
Before the whole ordeal, the adolescent child was laying in bed while staring at the white ceiling. Kio had stopped by Asher's room only to inform him that he would be training with the knights (just in case Asher decided to leave his room to find him). After he had left, Asher was left all alone with his pet cat, Pithos. This was when Asher had the bright idea to play hide and seek.
"Hey Pithos, wanna play hide and seek with me? I'm extremely bored," stated Asher with a pout. He had never engaged in such a childish game in his previous life. In this life, Asher wanted to experience everything he could no matter how silly it was.
Pithos, on the other hand, held no interest in playing such a game. However, after seeing Asher's earnest and hopeful filled eyes, he had no other choice but to agree. Who would say no after seeing their beloved human beg in such a way?
These events led to their current situation. Pithos was hidden in the bushes, his keen eyes observing Asher's every move. Once he saw Asher approach the bush he was hiding in, he instinctively took a step back.
"Mroww!"
Pithos' back paw landed on a sharp piece of glass, causing him to meow loudly in pain. Alerted by Pithos' cry, Asher began running towards the bush. The black cat immediately jumped out of the bushes and out of Asher's reach.
"Eh?"
Asher tried to stop running, but he was going far too fast and his thin legs wouldn't be able to endure such a harsh stop. So, as any other young child would do, he jumped up in the air and hid his head between his knees. He flew right through the bushes and fell down a long wall and into a training ground.
The training ground was full of men that were all lightly dressed. Most of them possessed swords, but a few others held other weapons. One in particular, a frail-looking man with short honey-brown hair and striking golden eyes, was holding a long whip. He was battling against a man gripping a mighty, gleaming sword that emitted a soft golden light.
The battle was quite intense despite the huge difference in weapons. The man possessing the sword easily blocked the whip's attacks while slowly closing the distance between them. When faced with the gleaming sword, the brown-haired man easily maneuvered his body in strange yet elegant ways, completely dodging the attacks.
The brown-haired man jumped back in order to gain distance. While he did this, the man with the sword wasted no time in rushing forward to exploit the brown-haired man's vulnerable state. However, the brown-haired man released a strong wave of magic while being in the air. The dirt around him began surrounding him as he manipulated the wind to do his bidding. Before the man with the silver sword was able to reach him, the brown-haired man had used his whip to grasp the sword. Then, he manipulated the wind to allow him to turn around and flick the sword away with his whip. Finally, he maneuvered the whip to coil itself around the man that formerly possessed the gleaming sword.
"Checkmate."
The brown-haired man smiled in triumph while others gasped. Unknown to him, they weren't gasping at his incredible victory, but rather, at the sword that was flying straight towards Asher.
Asher, of course, took notice of the huge sword flying his way. His eyes widened in fear as he remembered the fireball his father conjured and threw towards him a few days prior. Because of this, he was unable to move. His mind and heart screamed at him to move, yet he wasn't able to. Fear was etched deep inside his bones.
"Someone! Do something!"
Finally, the brown-haired man took notice of the fear-stricken Asher and the threat he was currently in. His eyes widened in shock and anxiousness before he tried using his whip to seize the sword. However, he was too late.
"Kid! Get outta the way!"
Asher tightly closed his eye as a lone tear fell down his face. Is this how everything ends? His dreams and aspirations disappearing just like that? After how much he suffered, didn't he deserve a happy ending? Then, a flash of light appeared.
"Tell me. Who caused this?"A cold voice rang out.
Thankfully, because of one of the knight's yells, Kio's attention was quickly captured. Without thinking or even hesitating, he abandoned his match and rushed to save his younger brother from impending doom. He gripped Asher in his arms as he conjured massive spikes of ice that protruded from the ground. The gleaming sword was now trapped inside the firm ice. The only part left untouched by Kio's ice was the sword's golden handle.
Kio walked out from behind the spikes of ice and towards the sword. His hand traced the ancient carvings before grasping the handle and releasing it from the icy prison. He then turned around to confront the knights, his sharp, cold, deep-forest eyes intently observing each and every one of them. Many of them avoided his gaze, while others stared at him straight on. The man that had caused the whole incident felt nervous. He avoided Kio's gaze while hiding his whip behind his back as his clammy hands tightly grasped the leather handle.
Kio's gaze rested upon the owner of the gleaming sword before saying, "Markos, explain why your sword was just about to pierce my younger brother."
Many people gasped at the revelation. The youngest master of the Pierce household has never revealed himself because of his unwillingness to train, so this was the first time they saw Asher. Many curious gazes were directed towards Asher, making him feel uncomfortable.
"Master Kio, I was sparring with Pinpin when things started getting out of hand."
"Out of hand?" Kio asked sharply. His cold voice was enough to freeze the deepest parts of hell. Asher, now much more aware of the stares he was receiving, softly asked his elder brother to let him go. Once he was on the ground, he held tightly onto Kio's hand while hiding behind his back, peering slightly to stare back at the others.
Finally, Pinpin decided to confess. "It was my fault, Master Kio. I wasn't paying attention and flung Markos' sword away from him before claiming victory."
Pinpin walked towards Kio and knelt down apologetically. "I'm ready to receive punishment, Master Kio."
Kio was silent. He stared at the man that was kneeling down in front of him before staring at his younger brother, his eyes softening ever so slightly. He then looked at Pinpin again, his eyes turning chilly and merciless.
"As a knight, you must never forget your surroundings. We save and protect lives. We never take or endanger them because of a mistake. What if you were in a real battle with countless lives at stake? Would you still be as clueless of your surroundings?"
Asher stared up at Kio in surprise. His elder brother just spoke with such passion that even his cold facade wasn't able to conceal it. It even allowed him to speak properly, leaving no room for any misunderstandings.
Kio bent down to reach Pinpin's level. He turned his head slightly, looking like a cute puppy in Asher's eyes. "It was a careless mistake. One careless mistake that could ruin your life or someone else's. I won't forgive you for the scare you caused my younger brother. However,"
Kio turned to look at Asher and smiled slightly. "I'm sure Asher will easily forgive you, despite your incompetence. Consider yourself warned and make sure you learn from this experience."
After saying this, Kio stood up and walked away with Asher hot on his heels. The surrounding knights kept staring towards Asher while others stared at Pinpin, eyes filled with pity. It wasn't every day someone received a stern warning, especially from Kio.
Finally far away from prying eyes, Kio turned around and stared at Asher expectantly, waiting for him to explain his side of the story. Asher smiled sheepishly while rubbing the back of his neck. Thinking about it now, the situation made him feel absolutely helpless.
"I was playing hide and seek with Pithos before I fell through some bushes. I was so entranced by the battle that I forgot about everything else. I'm sorry, Kio," said Asher. Seeing how genuinely sorry the little boy felt about the situation, Kio couldn't help but groan and shake his head.
"Forget about it. Next time you want to come to the training ground you must inform me. I'll take you here."
Asher's eyes brightened. He could now come here whenever he desired! Despite risking his life back there, it definitely paid off.
Smiling broadly, Asher began walking towards the training grounds to witness the other battles. "Do you train here with the other knights too?"
Kio nodded before unsheathing his own sword. The blade was thin yet extremely sharp. It has been reinforced with other rare and valuable materials, making the sword much more resistant. The handle was a light blue color, signaling the fact that Kio was an ice user. Finally, engraved in the handle was the Pierce family's crest.
Asher's dark blue eyes widened in surprise after seeing the beautiful sword and how it glistened under the sun's rays. Undoubtedly, this is the weapon that suited his older brother the best. Simple, light, and sharp.
Then, he began to think. After coming to this world, Asher has only discovered a few things; one of them being the fact that this world possesses magic. Despite this, his powers had never made an appearance, not even once. There also hasn't been any mention of him possessing any sort of magical ability. Was this body born without the ability to manipulate magic?
If that was the case then life would become much more boring. Sure, he could still enjoy the life he had always wished for, but wouldn't everything be much more interesting with magic around? The characters of his game all possessed great magical talent and ability. It became clear to Asher that he also wishes to have some sort of powerful or useful magic.
Seeing how a small frown began forming itself on Asher's usually bright face, Kio tried to decipher just what was running through the younger one's thoughts.
Not wanting to wait any longer, Kio asked,"What are you thinking about?"
Asher stayed quiet before responding, his voice dripping with hopelessness, "I want to learn magic. Is it possible for me to do so?"
This is something he really, really, really wanted to do. The feeling was clearly displayed on the younger one's face.
After hearing Asher's confession, Kio froze. In the past, Asher wanted nothing to do with magic. If he remembered correctly, Asher had once mentioned that he will never use magic and that he will forge his own path. At the time, his words weren't that grave. Rather, it was an interesting dream. If it ended up working out for him, Asher would've ended up becoming a well known and respected man.
However, not everyone held the same thoughts. It was when those words left Asher's mouth that his father grew distant. Asher became the disappointment of the family in his father's eyes. Despite this, Asher only grew to become much more brilliant over time. He still had his brothers and mother by his side, so he had yet to completely notice his father's growing absence in his life.
However, their father then began admonishing Ian and Kio from spending time with his younger brother. Alejandro was afraid Asher would spread his incompetent way of thinking to his elder brothers. This was when Ian and Kio began to neglect him, following their father's strict rule. This was the time when Asher's brilliance began diminishing. The brilliant light his aura exuded was forever lost in time.
Then, Asher lost something important to him. This was what caused him to completely become the quiet and reserved Asher everyone knew. The one that possessed no motivation, no aspirations, no light. His light had been blown out by his own family.
Now, Kio sees the new Asher. He isn't the same one from before. The one Kio knew, loved, and dearly missed. Still, he couldn't help but love this new Asher as well. He looked determined, innocent, naive... everything he had once lost. His aura changed, the way he speaks, the way he carries himself, even the way he gazes at things he had never seen before has changed.
The old Asher is gone. The gloomy place he was once in had completely changed him. He has been born once more, and Kio can't help but feel even more guilty. Why? Why has his brother changed so much? Because of him? Because of Ian? Their father? Why is the love he holds for Asher was now much stronger than before?
Kio sighed shakily while massaging his temples. New feelings had been forming themselves inside of him without his noticing. He definitely needed time. Time to process everything. He needed space.
"I'll teach you everything you want to know. Until then, don't follow or talk to me. I want space."
After those few, short words, Kio swiftly escaped, leaving a confused and bewildered Asher behind. Did he say something wrong? Anyways, how would he be able to leave this place without Kio?
A cough was heard from behind as Asher kept glancing around at the place he was currently in. After turning around, he saw Pinpin standing behind him looking regretful.
"Hey, little master. Sorry for what happened before. The names Pinto, but everyone calls me Pinpin."
Asher stared at the man in front of him as a bright idea rushed into mind. "If you are feeling regretful, will you help me find my way back home?"
The young child's tender smile caused Pinpin to relax and smile as well. "Your wish is my command, little master."