One week later. My arm is good to go. I go to the head office of the knights on the first floor to ask when my training will start.
"You will start tomorrow before sunrise. Your knight's training is divided into three areas: physical reinforcement, Angas learning, and assassination's initiation."
The vice commander of the order of knights of Flolerl: BORGAS GRANDCROSS, explains to me everything that will be happening. He is massive like the mountain guy who attacked my village with Tatiana. The only difference between them is the voice. His voice is rocky, but not too loud to be aggressive.
Did he say there is an assassination's initiation? Are knights supposed to be assassins?
"The assassination's initiation is normally an optional path. The commander introduced it herself. It is mandatory for you, however." Ah, he must have understood I am surprised to hear about assassinations in a knight's training.
"What?!" my voice leaks out due to the shock. Mandatory training. I never said I wanted to be an assassin. In fact, I never wanted to be a knight, either! And for the country who sent murderers to my village even more so!
"Can you read?"
"Hm…Yes, sir." Mom did teach me to read and write since I was five. But I don't know if they are using the same language here.
"Take this note and read it aloud if you can." He passes me a piece of paper. There is a seal at the end of the note. I can indeed read it. Fuuu... thank you, mo... I should just read it.
"By the present note, I, VERONICA FLOLERL, testimony that KEVIN KOERSOMBRE, after defeating a member of the Flolerl household, TATIANA FLOLERL, is able to follow the knight's training complete course for the next seven years. This training will include the assassination's initiation, which will be given by a private source. Kevin KOERSOMBRE will have no access to weapons other than what he brought with him and what he may possibly acquire by himself. A Report is only necessary in case of death."
WHAT IN HELL IS THIS?!
"Well, as you can see, the commander's orders are clear. You can go and rest. That will be all." Borgas starts writing something on his desk after telling me to go. I am so shocked and perplexed that I stand there for a couple of minutes. He continues to work as if I am not even there, not even raising his head to see if I am still alive or anything. I suppose I am just another sacrifice and nothing else.
I turn and open the door, but then, he calls out to me.
"You…" He is still human, after all! I am just seven years old! All of this is just nonsense, right ?!! Right ?!! "Don't expect to survive this training; you are too weak for that."
I go out of his office and close the door. While I am going to my room, voices keep singing in my head.
"He is dead weight to us!"
"You were discarded because you are garbage"
"Do you know the depth of my pain and hatred for my dead daughter?"
"You are too weak for that."
I grit my teeth in rage. The world keeps pushing me around, mocking me, humiliating me, rejecting me like a waste. Then I will show them. I will show them all! Because I don't know anything, because I can't do anything, I cannot answer back. But, I will change! I must change! I must never be weak or ignorant enough to be manipulated and thrown away ever again.
The next morning, I am out of my room before the sun even rises. I didn't sleep at all. I couldn't. It's still dark outside. I directly go to the courtyard of the castle, dagger in hand. Then I sit in the corner of the field where they visibly seem to train.
"This place looks pretty relax for a castle full of knights." Nobody is patrolling or taking guards. Or maybe they are able to defend themselves alone since they are knights?
While I am just sitting there, waiting for other people to come. Something comes touching my ear from behind. I immediately try to stand up as I hear that something breathing, but I am restrained somehow. I try to stab behind me with my dagger, but my arm is not even moving. What is happening now?
"Not enough. Not enough at all, this is clearly not enough. How did you kill Tatiana with such a level?" I see. That person must be the private member who will teach me assassination techniques.
"Who are you ?" I ask while still trying to move.
"It does not matter who I am. What matters is that I can kill you right now. What will you do, weak boy?" That voice is neither masculine nor feminine; I wonder who this is.
"I will kill you."
"That's what I want to see, you have three minutes to free yourself, or you are dead." I try to move as much as I can, try to move my arm to slash but nothing. I can't move at all.
***
Three minutes pass in a flash. I suddenly hear the breathing once again.
"0 point. every time you will fail, I will break something, and you don't have the right to heal it."
I hear a little cracking sound after that. She must have broken something on my body, but since I can't feel anything at all, I didn't even shout.
"Well, well. Ten points for not crying or screaming. You are surprisingly sturdy for a seven years old child."
I feel like my body is ready to move and try to jump. Since I was restrained earlier, I put as much force as I can in my legs. Because of that, I am surprised by my jump and end up landing face-first on the dirt. Even so, I immediately turn to face the mysterious voice, and there it is.
A female silhouette, wearing black clothes covering the whole body as well as the face. Only the eyes can barely be seen.
"From now on, I am your worst nightmare. I will come when you sleep, when you eat, when you are in the bathroom. Anytime and anywhere. Every time you will succeed in warding me off or accomplish something I deem fit of an assassin, you will receive points. Every hundred points you will have, I will teach you something."
She brings a small needle out of nowhere and throws it on a nearby tree. A snake falls then like it just appeared there. How did she know it was there?
"Every time you will fail, I will break one of your bones. Don't even try to heal it; I will break it as long as need be until it recovers by itself. The other apprentices will come in exactly 35 minutes. I broke two fingers of your left arm. If you can touch me once, you will receive ten points; if you can't, I will break the three other fingers. Start."