Marya and Convex sat with their head bowed down in the headmaster's chamber parallel to the headmaster. Miss Calliope sat beside them and stared at their face with her arms crossed.
The headmaster glared at their face and said, "Speak." He was angry at the damage they caused because of a petty quarrel. They broke the academy protocols.
"Master, Marya was the one who mocked me first," Convex said in a low voice without lifting his gaze.
"What did you say?" The headmaster raised his brow. "She mocked you? She mocked you and you indulged in a fight?" The headmaster breathed fire in this moment and all of them noticed his rage.
The old man was a man of principles. He did not allow anyone to break the rules, let alone his own daughter.
"Tch…" Convex clicked his tongue. "Master…" He uttered and clenched his fist.
"I am listening," The headmaster said.
"Are you implying I am the only one at fault?" Convex somehow said it after hesitating for a few seconds.
"What did you say?" The headmaster groaned and slapped the top surface of the table. It was such a powerful hit that they all, including Miss Calliope, got frightened. They noticed the uneven breaths of the old man.
Suddenly, Marya spoke before her father could speak, "We both are at fault, father." Her gaze remained as down as it could be.
Miss Calliope stared at the headmaster's face, waiting for him to decide about them. He glared at both their faces and took a deep breath.
He looked at Convex. "I am trying to have good relations with your father, which is why I don't want to punish you. If I ever find you quarreling in the academy's premises again, I will forget everything."
Convex nodded.
"You may leave now." The old man looked at Miss Calliope. "You too."
Miss Calliope knew what was about to happen now as she had witnessed it countless times in the past. The headmaster had a hot temper, but he didn't show it to everyone. She felt bad for Marya but she could do nothing. They both stood up and left the chamber.
When Miss Calliope stepped out of the chamber, the headmaster said, "Close the door."
Miss Calliope left after she did so.
THE FIRST PROVINCE
Commander Adrian found a young man in the market who sold his dead friend's battle helmet. They both faced each other when Adrian confronted him.
"Who are you?" He asked.
"What do you mean? Why do you want to know?" The man asked in return.
Commander Adrian got angry at this. "Don't make me repeat my question."
"But…" When the young man was about to speak, Commander Adrian ordered his soldiers-
"Take him!"
The soldiers followed the command. Two of them moved ahead and grabbed both the arms of the young man.
"Wait! What are you doing?" The young man struggled. The people around the market all crowded around them and watched the scene. They all looked furious at the soldiers and the commander as they thought they were again about to waste someone.
"What did I do?" The soldiers pulled him while he struggled. "You cruel demons, I know you are going to execute me. I won't accept this."
Commander Adrian pulled out his sword and put it on his neck. "If I wanted to execute you, I would have done so already."
"What do you want from me then? I will face everything right here, right now," The young man said.
The commander moved his eyes around to look at the people gathered around them. He thought that if he torcher this man in front of everyone, it would instill fear in everyone's hearts. And if he refused to speak, he would execute him in front of the public's eyes.
"Very well, I will grant your last wish." He sheathed back his sword and ordered his soldiers. "Tie him up on the platform."
The soldiers tied him to the wooden pole in the center of the wooden platform. The commander walked around him with a lash in his hand.
"So, tell me now. How did you get a hold of Commander Gore's battle helmet?" He asked.
"What are you talking about?" The man reacted. It seemed like he didn't know that the helmet belonged to Commander Gore.
The commander raised a brow. "Oh, so you don't know that the helmet belonged to Commander Gore?"
"I found it in the woods when I went to search for food. I didn't know it belonged to Commander Gore," The young man reasoned.
"Do you think we would believe this story?"
"But this is the truth."
Suddenly, the commander hit the young man with the lash. "Stop this nonsense! Tell me the truth! Who has sent you? Where do you belong?" He again hit him on his back.
"Ah!" The young man cried in pain. "Commander, this is the truth. If I were a suspicious person, why would I sell the helmet in the market in the first place? To get caught and tortured like this?"
"Shut up!" The commander reacted and hit him again.
"Ah!"
The people surrounding the platform talked and murmured among themselves. They witnessed the cruelty of soldiers daily, and they were done with it. Many wanted to teach these dynasty servants a lesson, but they did not have the power to do that.
If only there was someone they could rely upon.
The commander grabbed the young man's hair, glared into his eyes, and said, "Don't you think your life is too precious to be wasted like this?"
"Why should I accept a crime I didn't do?" The young man answered.
"I see. So you are going to play stubbornly. Alright, let's see how long you can play it." The commander stepped back and hit him with lashes again and again.
The man moaned and cried in pain until someone merged into the crowd and stepped forward. When the commander continued to hit the young man, the mysterious person spoke.
"Commander Adrian, leave him. I am the one you are searching for."
Commander Adrian's hand stopped, and he turned to look at the person. Everyone in the crowd looked at him mysteriously.
The mysterious person wore a knitted grayish shirt, black leather pants, and he covered his mouth up to nose with a piece of black cloth. He had white short hair with length up to his shoulders and had small brown eyes.
"Who are you?" The commander asked.
"The one who killed Commander Gore," The man answered.
Everyone got shocked after hearing this. They all murmured among themselves.
"What? He killed Commander Gore?"
"Is this person an idiot?"
The commander said while staring at him, "If you killed Gore, why are you here throwing your life away just like that? Wouldn't it have been better to stay hidden?"
At this moment, the young man tied on the stage had a smirk on his face that no one noticed.
"I am not here to throw away my life. I am here to take lives," The man replied.
"Soldiers, grab him!" Commander Adrian ordered his soldiers. When the soldiers were about to charge at him, they heard a metal crunching sound followed by a moan.
They could not comprehend it because it happened too fast. They all froze in their places and got shocked to see that…
THE FIFTH PROVINCE
After the class got over, Alan walked into the woods. As he was going deeper, he sensed someone following him. When he turned back, he saw no one.
A silhouette hid behind a tree at a distance. It seemed like this person followed Alan into the woods.
When Alan went deeper, he saw a young man with a buzz cut in a white knitted shirt and brown baggy pants. He had a short mustache. He took his support from a wooden stick in his hand as he had one of his legs damaged.
"What is the word?" Alan asked.
"The siege plan will be in motion from today," The man answered.
"Good," Alan smirked. "Are all the pieces in their place?"
"Yes."
"Good. Our target is The Holy Land of Alabusia. We need to free it from the clutches of evil," Alan said.
The person who hid behind the tree could not hear their conversation as they stood far away.
"Who is that man?" The person thought.
The silhouette was familiar. It almost resembled a young woman in armor. When the sunlight fell on her face from between the branches of the trees, a familiar person in silver hair came into view.
Earlier when Marya walked out of the principal academy building with a sad face after getting a scolding from her father, she saw Alan leaving the academy. She didn't know why but she wanted to follow him.
Maybe her intuition was right. It brought her to witness this scene.
"What are you up to, Alan?" She thought when she looked at Alan talking to the unknown young man.