"Dad…when is mom coming home?"
A small child with brown hair and amber eyes peered expectantly at his father,who was rubbing his scrimater with a oiled cloth as usual.
The father figure have the same brown hair that was tied in a pony tail, with a look of unshaven face and bags under his eye.The board shoulder and chest that were once packed with lean,tone muscles is no long there,instead replaced by visible amount of fat held tight by his garment.
"Liam,your mother is on a long journey you remember ? She is happy there and watching over us as we lived,waiting for the day when we are united."Liam's father spoke with a smiles that didn't reach his eyes,for they shone with a hint of hidden emotion.
"But....…"Liam lament and looked down at the ground,his hand fidgety.He know what he was not allowed to asked about her infront of his dad and was warned numerous time by his uncle.
But the years of jealous feeling when he look at the pair of mother and child figures in the village,on top of being isolated from anyone trying to befriend him and the harash training of the house tradition was stressing him out.
He need to know how can he find her,he longed for a moment when he will be embraced by her once.Even if he had never seen her face before.
He just know it would be wonderful to finally meet her and be loved by her.
His father listened as his breathing become slower at every words his son spoke.The hand that were coating his sword with oil slowly clenched into a fist.And as a deafening silent weight heavily in the room,Liam spoke once again,confused by his father's behavior but consumed by his need to know his mother's whereabouts
"Maybe we can go find her…?We are the best tracke-"
Boom!
Liam jumped and flinched as he stare at the man that have throw his sword into the wall next to him,the sword was shimmering with unbridled burst of mana as it stay embedded deeply in the wall,the blade creaks under the sudden stress.
"You…want to find her…?So do I.In fact why don't we join her right this moment?"The man pulled out a dagger from the table next to him.His eye red and wide with unleashed madness,a snare slowly formed on his face as he stride towards him.
Liam immediately noticed something about his father was horribly wrong.He didn't know what to do but back away to another corner of the room,his feeble training were thrown out of the widow as his legs trembled under the immense hatred the man emits.
"…ugh!!?"A gurgle came out of his mouth as his small throat were tightly squeezed in the palm of a strong adult hand,his windpipe immediately closed as he felt clasps and clawed at the hand holding him,and soon he was lift off the ground as easily as a sack of bread.
His eye widen at the sight of his father current appearance,his face that were always kind and loving whenever his father gaze at him were now filled with malice and hatred.It was hard to believe,almost like it was a completely different person.
"If you haven't ...If you haven't been born at all…Grace …she scream at every night in unimaginable pain and begged for death after you were born...It is all your damn fault,you and that damn healer!!"Liam felt his vision darken and his consciousness fading,the man's words and vicious appearance were the only focus left.
But even with the confusion, fear and pain he felt at the moment.He somehow understood the important part of it from the words his father utter,the look of pure hatred and malice in his eyes.
The fearful look on his fellow towns men's eyes when they spoke about a women from his family and when they look at him.Her scream that haunt the whole town for nights and days before it stopped in the middle of a full moon that he thought was a old tale of superstitious.
"It was my fault…"
----------
Liam slowly open his eye as the last bit of sleep left him,obviously he didn't sleep with much comfort last night.Only falling at sleep as the parades of emotions and days of travel and training made him too tired to move and think any further.
He blinks at the light the was casted from the raising sun through the gap in his room's shutter widow.His thoughts races as he ran a hand along a line of jagged white scar that form on the side of neck all the way to his collarbone.
That afternoon,when his father lashed out at him.It was his uncle who barged into the room and as a dagger was on it ways to sever liam's throat,He remember now that Jerome manage to throw a knife at the last moment hitting his father's hand and changing it trajectory.
Leaving only a swallow scar that reminds him of that day as vividly as if it were yesterday.He wouldn't and couldn't blame his father,for he too wished he had succeeded in ending his cursed existence there and then.
His life that were traded with a night of indescribable suffering his mother went through before her final breath.And was responsible for driving his father mad,sending himself off into a high ranking monster infested area and never to return again.
His only relief was his uncle and winey 's unhindered affections,they didn't blame him for it like everyone else did.In fact,they were the first and only people that showed him so much affection over the course of his short life.Only then did the memory slowly fade to the back of his head and forgotten.
He had sworn then and there that,be it a legion of dragons or a army of ancient demonic beast.He would fight teeth and nails to protect his family until his last breath.
It was the only reason that make him train himself so harashly and volunteers as soon as the law were passes to make one offspring of each family become a trainnee to fight against the empire in order to shield his cousin from the ordeal.
He strode out of his room after washing his filth covered clothing from days of traveling in the wild with no time to wash himself and putted on his trainnee uniform.
The clothing were a pitch black jacket laced with golden thread,the bronze button and the crest of the kingdom,a shield with the sigil of a golden stag,the symbol of strong perseverance and peace.
It gave off an feeling of a expensive and royal garment.His pant was of the same color and designed with comfort of the wearer in mind,Liam can feel the soft lining of fur inside the pant and warming him up in the cold breeze.
Soon he was walking along with a couple of cadet such as himself,they were heading in the same direction, to the dining hall on the second floor for their meal.But something was strange to the situation and was Immidiately noticed by liam
His uniform was completely different from theirs,as they are only wearing plain looking uniform of white and navy blue.There was no intricate design of golden laces or hint of furred lining in their clothing.Only the crest of the kingdom was the only similarity.
They too realized this and glance at the young boy that was almost a head shorter than most people in the area.Their stares of curiosity and some with even looks of jealousy made Liam felt uneasy as he quicken his pace to the front of the moving crowd.
"He looks really young…"
"Must be no older than my younger cousins,they were just childrens."
"A shame…our king really push the law way too harshly.Imagine when their family heard of his demise."
"Are you an idiot?That is a officer uniform,he is obviously special enough to beat your face black and blue dozens of time before going to bed with a contented smiles!"
"A officer cadet at his age?no way!"
Whispers of rumors can still be heard as Liam walked into the dining hall,waiting in line with the other cadet of different uniforms for their breakfast at the good distribution center.
"Officer?I have never heard when I was made one…"Liam thought in great confusion,was it the inspector who decided this after his performance ? Either way,he was excited at the notion of being able to be selected as one of the cadet as future officer,it could mean he will have more tools to protect his family.
"Hmm…excuse me,I don't think you needs to wait here."A voice came behind him,Liam turned around to find another teenager that were a full head taller than him staring at him in confusion.
"Pardon?I don't kn-"Liam was stunned momentarily as he spot the same style ofpitch black officer garment as he wore on the young man, the boy have a full head of golden hair curls stylishly with bright emerald eyes.
His face was a princely mix of handsome, kind and filled with compassion,almost seems to radiant a feeling of heroic presence that was even close to being a Saint.Another reason for being stunned.
"Ah sorry for startling you,I am Gareth Alden.A fellow officer such as you.You must be very talented to be selected at your age!Anyway we can eat at our officer trainnee gathering room ,they always prepared everything before we arrived." His voice turns into a whisper at the end of the statement, his face flushed.
Liam understood his gesture of consideration for the others and nodded.His curiosity replaced by a deep respect for the young man,prehaps people of higher ranking does not always shunned the others as much as he and jerome thought.
They walked to the northern section of the second floor,the area was even more extravagant than other area he had seen.The floor was covered in soft high-quality wool red carpets laced with golden pattern on the edges.The walls painted with the same design and covered by more detailed but more weathered painting of the major history in the nation.
Soft orange glow from the lanterns laid in their holders and cast a warm comfortable light to the corridor.They soon arrived infront of a heavy double sets door and with a few knock from Gareth opens up.
"Ah …horned lamb sausage again,I get it is expensive an all bu-hey Gareth.My man what made you so lat---"A girl with waist length red hair braided on either side chatted with a another girl as she pokes at her food with a look of annoyance but took notice of Gareth's presence when he steps in
His brown eyes was friendly but soon widened as if they would budge out when she laid them on liam.Her jaw dropped as many other in the room does with a look of bewilderment.
"He…he is…"The girl stammered as she took careful steps forward almsot the same way a predator was afraid her prey running away.Liam subconsciously took a few steps steps,his arms slowly reach for the door handle.
"SO CUTE!!"The girl rushed,appearing infront of Liam within a blink of an eye.Liam was soon took into a bear hug and bury in a flurry of red hair and black fabric,the familiar situation and softness of the embrace was met with the strange feeling of deja vu.
"Where did you find this cutie?This is wonderful,To think we will have someone this cute on the roster!Good job provost ! Now,I know you are hungry so let's eat, but don't worry big sis will take care of you from now on!"The girl hummed a happy tune and carry a mildly annoyed and frustrated Liam to their dinning table.
He was glad that he met so many good people who showed him geniune affection in such a short time,but it was getting ridiculous to be manhandled by every powerful women that he met like a small helpless child.
He was someone that spent years hunting monsters that the towns men would shake in their boot at the sight of them.
Prehaps all the talk of him being a powerful prodigy did got into his head after all,the world is big and these are all people who are both as talented if not more than him,on top of that they are always his senior.
With a deep sighs,he resigned himself to being putted into his seat beside the overly affectionate stranger.Foods quickly piled on top of his plate by her,the aroma made his stomach grumble and his mouth watered but first…
Cough!
"Thank you for your kindness milady,but maybe a introduction first would be better suited for the situation.I am Liam from the house of Massoutré"Liam smiles at her and resist the urge to devoured the pile of food that called out to him .
He have to make these people understand his isn't a gullible child that needs pampering,he need to make his worth and name known to consolidatehis future position.And having other constantly undervalued his ability would get him no where.
"Oh…sorry haha,I guess I was quite impolite.I am Amelia Galashiels,nice to meet you liam!"Amelia smiles sheepishly and immediately realized her earlier behavior was uncalled for.Anyone that was good enough to get into the officer program can't be a pushover,child or not.
"Sorry Liam! Amelia was just too excited earlier,I never thought she would get so out of hand at first even with her fondness of cute things."Gareth apologize and was soon seated next on a seat close to theirs.