During the day as Kane trained the fifth stance, he was surprised not to see tutor Rikimaru in the morning, but still being increasingly confident that he would become a Lower Knight today, despite his significant progress and first fully executed stance, including bouncing down a hurdle, the boy was troubled by uncertainty.
Although he was still a recruit, after successfully performing the fifth stance for the first time, he was already musing about how he was a Lower Knight during training.
"Aahh... A little more, and I'll get a real sword. I'll be sure to leave Byrock this spring, although I don't know what awaits me after I leave it. I wonder how Ren works and who will leave Byrock with me this spring..."
The longer he thought about his plans for the future, the farther into the future he tried to look, but all he saw in it was uncertainty and more and more questions.
Because of the early winter's cold weather, the recruits were given coats to train in, which Kane didn't appreciate.
"So what if it's warmer, if when I start exercising I'm hot, steaming all over, sweating, it's even harder to move in a coat. It was already better to exercise without it even if I had to be sick."
He complained while talking to himself during training, but tried to forget about the uncomfortable and unpleasant things he encounters in life.
Standing on the training ground a moment before lunch, further training the fifth stance, he summed up his current situation.
"There are a few days left until Lower Knight leaves Byrock, it was supposed to be 2 weeks, but looking at the weather, I think they will leave sooner. I have the fifth stance pretty much learned, enough to try to approach the test. Assuming I become a Lower Knight today, I will have a maximum of a week to get used to the new sword..."
With all the thoughts locked in the boy's head, his body was already unconsciously performing the fifth stance, striking up and down the hurdle again and again, spreading across the training ground the hollow sound of the hurdle falling to the ground and the sword strikes, slowly falling into a trance of training and forgetting the world.
Kane continued training despite the pain in his hands and the heat he felt in his coat, diligently performing sword strikes again and again.
As the boy practiced with his back turned to everyone and fell into a trance of training, he didn't notice that the training ground had suddenly become empty. It wasn't until he heard sudden screams as recruits left the dining hall that he realized something was wrong.
Seeing one of the recruits running up to a stand not far from his, he called out in his direction.
"Oi, where have you been?"
"Like where? At dinner."
"There was already dinner?"
"Well, where do you think everyone is leaving from?"
Replied the boy walking on to continue training.
"And now I have to wait until supper..."
Kane heard a burbling in his stomach, and knowing he couldn't help it anymore, he began to look with his eyes for tutor Rikimaru to take the test for the fifth stance, and rest until supper.
The short boy, still 11 years old, stood on his tiptoes and, covering the sun beating the rays of light on his eyes with his hand, began to look for Rikimaru in the crowd of recruits, but to no effect.
"Where did he go? All the groups are already setting up, is he still in the dining hall?"
He sat down on a nearby wall, and, supporting his head with his hands, slowly looked around the training ground. Five minutes, ten minutes, half an hour, Kane kept waiting for the tutor to appear, but even though all the groups had started another training session, he didn't see him anywhere.
Not knowing what was going on, he approached tutor Lorenz, hoping that he would help him.
"Excuse me, as I'm looking for tutor Rikimaru, but I don't see him anywhere,"
"tutor Rikimaru Eizo was sent to peace talks on Yoman this morning. He will most likely return in the spring for your first Knight exam. Is something wrong?"
"I wanted to take the Lower Knight exam today."
"In that case, I can replace him, go to your station, and I will come to you right away."
"Yes sir!"
Kane felt slightly relieved that his training had not gone to waste, and he could take the exam, but as he walked to his station, he began to reflect on Lorenz's words.
"Did they send him to Yoman? He didn't give any specific country, although it makes sense since he's from there."
He was pondering while staring at a hurdle when he heard footsteps approaching behind him.
"Are you ready?"
It was tutor Lorenz, looking to assess Kane's fifth stance.
"Yes, I just have a question about tutor Rikimaru. He told me about The Gables War and that several small countries fought in it, which one did he go to?"
"At your age, to know such things, impressive, but also useful. A person who does not know history will forever make the same mistakes. As for the Yoman mountain range, the war between the countries there ended 15 years ago.
Only two countries survived The Gables War, absorbing the territories of the three losers, the Kingdom of Eternal Dragon and the Yoman Mountains Empire. Tutor Rikimaru was sent to the Yoman Mountains Empire, because currently their king's advisor is the Daughter of the Prince, who ruled the country of Rikimaru during war.
She managed to escape when their country was destroyed, and since the King of the Empire had a good relationship with his brother, he took his daughter into his court to keep her safe."
"It's a bit messed up"
"Well, life writes an unheard of story, the Kingdom of Forsteck already has enough problems on the western border with the Leroni Empire, to the south we have the ocean, and the countries to the east don't cause any problems, so King Doran the Steel is trying to secure the northern border peacefully to spare himself a war on two fronts."
"Just because I've heard it before, why is the King called the Steel?"
"It's due to his unique ability of Ren, which makes him able to harden his skin, making it like steel."
"Harden the skin? So does the tutor know what Ren is?"
"Yes, although I don't know how to use it myself, a friend of mine from the army is a Master, and he explained it to me once."
"Will you tell me what it is? Everyone I've asked so far didn't know the details or didn't want to say"
"After supper, come to me, and I'll tell you, now I don't have time, start the test."
"Yes sir!"
Kane raised his spirits, hoping that he would finally know what Ren is — the power that has fascinated him for so long with its mystery.
"Begin, fifth stance, five times."
"Strong from the bottom, fast from the top."
He said this quietly to himself as he approached the hurdle.
Kane tensed the muscles on his arms and legs, took a deep breath, and with a quick step forward, attacked with his sword from below, spreading a empty sound of sword strike against the hurdle. As soon as the dust along with the hurdle lifted toward the sky, Kane, in the blink of an eye, pulled the sword blade back downward, knocking the hurdle toward the ground with such force that he broke it in half.
Letting the air out of his mouth, he realized after a moment that the hurdle was in two parts and stared breathlessly at tutor Lorenz.
"Eeem... I'm sorry?"
Tutor Lorenz stared at the damaged hurdle with bared eyes, not knowing what to say.
"How did you do that!?"
"I don't know, I just hit it."
The boy responded by slightly panicking upon hearing the confused tutor yell.
"So what now?"
He asked, unsure of what to make of his test.
Tutor Lorenz sighed, rubbing his eyes.
"You passed, I have no intention of destroying any more hurdles, so that's enough, but as punishment tonight after supper, you clean up the training ground. Congratulations on becoming a Lower Knight, I'll give you a new sword tomorrow morning."
"Yes sir! Thank you!"
He saluted proudly.
"And what should I do with it?"
He pointed his finger at the damaged hurdle.
"Leave it here, then we'll burn it in the oven."
Tutor Lorenz walked away to his group, scratching his head, seeing the boy's strength.
"I passed"
He said to himself, feeling relieved and satisfied, heading prematurely for supper.
Sitting in the empty dining hall, sipping cold water from a mug, he stared as one by one, people began to gradually enter the dining hall, finishing their training.
Seeing Daren enter with Auren, he waved to them, and as they sat down next to him, he said.
"I became a Lower Knight."
Not hiding his satisfaction, he awaited his roommates' reactions.
"Congratulations! How's that? Did you get your new sword yet?"
"No, they won't give it to me until tomorrow morning, I hope I'll have time to get used to it, however, a piece of wood and steel is different."
"At least you will have these few days."
"And how about you? Did you come out of the third group?"
Kane asked.
"Me and Daren have a test tomorrow, so we'll see."
"What about Collin?"
"I don't know."
"What about me?"
Asked an approaching Collin, who had heard the boys' conversation.
"How's the situation? Did you get out of the fourth group?"
Kane asked again.
"Today I passed to the fifth, how about you?"
"I'm already Lower Knight, but good luck with the fifth stance because even I had problems."
Upon hearing this, Collin's face immediately grinned, and he sat in silence.
"What do you mean, it's difficult?"
Asked a curious Daren.
"In the fourth stance, there is not even a specific way, just hold the sword stiffly and that's it, because it is a simple cut. In the fifth stance, if someone can't handle the sword, he can get stuck for up to a year."
Auren shivers went through him, feeling as if the description fit.
Eating supper, all four roommates sat in awkward silence, until Auren couldn't stand it and started trying to start any kind of conversation.
"Kane, if you think about it, you've changed a lot in the course of this year."
"Right, as you mentioned."
Daren added, staring at the boy.
"You've gotten older, you've learned a lot, you're more willing to talk to people, and your eyesight is somehow different, more... alive."
Kane sighed reflecting in his mind, feeling first pain and then relief recalling his short life, and said.
"maybe... maybe you're right, maybe things are better? I've had a lot of time to think things through, I think I'm starting to understand this world."
Despite the passing of hours, lying in bed at night, Kane still recalled those words and the conversation with Daren.
"Have I changed that much? I am stronger than I was in the spring when I got here, though have I found a purpose in life despite the passage of time? Day after day, without a purpose, I get out of bed and train, preparing for the unknown.
So what if I've found my place on earth, if it won't lead me anywhere?"
He sighed wonderingly to himself, so as not to tire himself with pondering, he closed his eyes and fell asleep.