"That's taking it too far, Your Highness."
Three distinct auras enveloped me as I acquainted Sean Blackwood's visage with the shattered tarmac.
A powerful gust of wind tousled my hair and jacket collar.
Turning, I caught sight of the tip of a claymore aimed at me.
Holding it was a tall young man with a slim build who appeared to be eighteen.
His striking features included obsidian-black hair transitioning to a reddish hue, complemented by fair skin.
Despite being clad in a simple dress of a light blue shirt, black jeans, and a long winter coat, he emitted an air of regal authority.
His abyssal black eyes locked onto mine, piercing as he firmly gripped his silver claymore, adorned with an ornate handle and intricate blue designs along the blade's edge.
"It's been a while since anyone addressed me in such a manner.", I remarked, meeting the intense gaze of the young man while simultaneously grasping the blood-matted silver hair of the unconscious Sean Blackwood.
His face is now almost a bloody pulp, most of his teeth are gone and he has lost consciousness.
Blood pooled out of the cleanly sliced stumps of his legs. It is a miracle that he didn't die from blood loss.
I smiled at the claymore-wielding young man.
Carlo Devereux, the second son of the Devereux Axial Family, a sword prodigy wielding complete mastery over all sword types, with the claymore as his specialty.
Oh, and he is the strongest recruit.
"It feels nice to be addressed like that.", I smiled at Carlo and slammed Sean's head into the tarmac one final time.
Carlo tightened the grip on his claymore and immediately assumed a stance, "Please carefully consider my words, Your Highness."
What a commendably righteous and forthright individual. What prompted him to become a Deathwalker?
"Well, well. Is this truly the infamous Failed Prince everyone's been talking about? He's a total maniac! I might just be falling for him.", teased a sly female voice from my right.
Turning, I saw a girl with cyan hair, appearing to be my age. Her azurite-like eyes sparkled mischievously as she traced a long, elegant finger along the rapier's blade.
Her physique resembled Iris, and she sported a green parka, a short pleated skirt paired with black leggings, and brown winter boots.
As our eyes met, she gracefully bowed, her cyan ponytail swaying in the chilly mountain breeze.
"An honor to meet you, Your Highness! I am Krystal MacLeod.", she introduced herself with the poise of a noble young lady.
"Mordred Pendragon. A pleasure to meet you.", I responded with a smile, wiping the blood splatter off my face.
Krystal's face reddened and she tried to cover her crazy grin, "Oh Incarni! You are so beautiful!"
"Can we fight?", she squealed, gripping her rapier, and a layer of ice coated the slender blade.
Her azurite eyes glowed, and large ice crystals formed in the air around her, and her aura shook the ground.
"Beginner A rank. Impressive.", I remarked with an approving smile.
Before I could activate Haema, another female voice intervened coldly.
"Calm down, you crazy girl.", another strong aura clashed with Krystal's, causing both to dissipate.
My attention shifted to another girl, seemingly older than me, with a tall, slim frame adorned in a light blue suit and white shirt underneath her black winter coat.
Her spiky brown hair reached her shoulders, and her stormy gray eyes, tinted with specks of amber, regarded me with hostility.
"Krystal, we shouldn't indulge this sadistic lunatic. He's a disgrace to the Pendragon name. The violence he exhibited against Sean Blackwood tarnishes the Royal Family's reputation.", she delivered her scathing words with a cold and regal voice.
"Awww.", Krystal frowned and she dissipated her ice.
I responded to the gray-eyed girl with an equally icy smile, "You must not be a fan of mine, Miss..?"
"Ava Baskerville.", she introduced with venom, "I should, at the very least, show basic courtesy even to a barbarian like you."
"I'm truly honored to have piqued the interest of a Baskerville.", I expressed, offering a warm smile and a courteous bow.
Among the prestigious Axial Families, the Baskervilles fascinated me.
Renowned for their expertise in covert operations, particularly assassinations, they were the go-to for discreet removals in Asteris.
"Speaking of which.", I continued, stepping closer and focusing my gaze on Ava.
The young lady from the Baskervilles appeared slightly uneasy, yet she met my gaze with unwavering determination.
"I've heard whispers about a Baskerville hailed as the deadliest assassin in the Kingdom.", I said, staring into her gray eyes.
"The Hound of Baskerville."
The already low temperature dropped when I mentioned the name, and I detected a subtle shift in Ava's stoic expression.
Drawing nearer, I inquired, "Could it be that you are the Hound?"
I may have looked scary because she stepped back before calming down. She took a deep breath and glared at me.
"Someone of my stature could never compare to the Hound, and frankly, someone like you isn't fit to discuss him.", she declared, her tone as icy as her resolve.
"So, the Hound is a man? Fascinating.", I remarked with a sly grin.
"Enough. Please step away from her, Your Highness.", Carlo warned me.
I turned around and saw his claymore pointed right at me. Ignoring the sharp blade, I walked past the young man and stood before the unconscious Sean Blackwood.
"One crucial lesson in the Shield.", I declared, my gaze shifting from the frightened recruits to the trio surrounding me and finally settling on young Blackwood.
"Always know your place.", I stated, extending my arm toward Sean.
"Hey!", Carlo moved to intervene, but tendrils of black darkness erupted from the ground, coiling around him and holding him fast.
Similar dark whips shot forth, ensnaring both Krystal and Ava.
"Don't tell me you guys were going to party on without me.", Iris chimed in with a calm smile.
"Release us!", Ava Baskerville demanded.
"Don't you realize what he is about to do?"
Iris tilted her head, "I know."
She glanced at me, "Do it. They won't move an inch."
I nodded, eyeing the white mechanima coiled around my arm.
"Basil. Wake up."
The white serpent's emerald-green eyes glowed as she roused with a hiss. Lifting her small head, she fixed her gaze upon me.
I smiled and nodded in the direction of Sean Blackwood.
Basil shifted her attention to the legless young man, nodding in understanding.
With a graceful slither, Basil moved away from my arm and towards Sean.
Two powerful auras fell on me.
"What are you doing!", Carlo roared.
Okay. This is getting annoying.
"Oh. Just shut up.", I sighed.
I unleashed my aura on the three of them, bringing them to their knees.
"How?", Carlo gritted his teeth, trying to resist my overwhelming aura, "This is on the same level as mine? How is it so powerful?"
I merely shrugged. "I'm built differently."
The other recruits watched in a mixture of awe and fear at the sight of Basil. Her white scales shimmered as her body elongated and thickened as she slithered toward Sean Blackwood.
The transformation was so seamless it looked otherworldly.
She delicately wound her long body around Sean until he was securely held within her grasp.
Raising her elegant head, Basil met my gaze with her emerald eyes.
I nodded, "Take him to Althea."
Acknowledging with a hiss, Basil dragged Sean Blackwood towards the entrance.
"Oh shit. His legs.", I suddenly remembered.
"I got it.", Iris whistled, and Perry swooped out of the sky, snatching the severed legs.
With a mechanical squawk, the falcon followed Basil towards the infirmary.
Suppressing my aura, the three nobles from Axial Families crumpled to the snowy ground.
I approached Carlo who was heaving on the snowy tarmac.
Approaching Carlo, who was heaving on the tarmac, I reassured him, "Don't worry. Basil is taking that asshat to the infirmary. He'll be fixed up in no time."
"You're powerful, both in body and mind. I hope you can hold your own on the battlefield," Iris remarked as she walked over to us.
She glanced at Carlo, then at Ava, and finally at Krystal.
"So, this is what Minerva meant by wild," she chuckled.
"You guys are quite quirky and fiery. You'll need that against the daemons."
"Oh, I forgot to introduce myself," she placed a hand on her chest and bowed.
"I am the captain of Unit 21. Iris Karsus."
Her name sparked a lot of commotion.
"Iris Karsus? The bastard of Duke Karsus?"
"The kinslayer. She killed her half-brother and the Duchess and even crippled her eldest brother."
"She is the youngest criminal to be sent to the Shield."
"I can't believe she's still alive."
Iris seemed to relish the unsavory chatter about her as she hugged herself, "Ah. That hits the spot."
"What are you? A masochist?" I frowned.
Iris raised her eyebrows. "It feels nice to be notorious."
"I'll surpass you in notoriety.", I declared confidently.
"Keep dreaming, pretty boy."
Our banter was interrupted by Carlo's shaky voice.
"You're both insane.", he replied between breaths.
My smile widened. "Oh, my. What gave you that impression?"
Spreading out my arms, I locked eyes with him.
"Young Master Devereux, we're all mad here."
*******
Arthurian Legend Fun Fact!
In some Welsh sources, Mordred was also referred to as Medraut.
One Welsh Triad (Welsh Triads are a group of related texts in medieval manuscripts that preserve fragments of Welsh folklore, mythology, and traditional history in groups of three), states how when he came to Arthur's court in Cornwall, he devoured all of the food and drink and even dragged Gwenhwyfar (Guinevere) from her throne and beat her up.
But in another Triad he is described as one of "men of such gentle, kindly, and fair words that anyone would be sorry to refuse them anything"
The Mabinogion (which are the earliest Welsh prose stories) also describes him in terms of courtliness, calmness, and purity.