William:
"Alright, Witch, it's been a week of drinking your potion, and I feel better than ever."
"Ah, good, good. I'm glad, child."
"So, when are you going to train me?"
"Oh, child, I'm not going to train you right now. It's far too soon for that. I only needed to heal you and get you to your friends."
"WHAT! You said after a week of drinking your potion, you would train me!"
"You're right, child, but I never said I would train you right away. I'll train you in the future when it matters more," she said, grinning at me.
"LISTEN, WITCH, I don't know how much time I have until HE decides to go looking after my friends, and I have to get strong RIGHT NOW, not in the future."
"Fine, child, so impatient. Go stand in that corner, and I'll cast a spell that will help you get stronger."
I didn't expect the Witch to agree; I thought I had to argue more. I moved to the corner of the cabin; nothing in particular looked special—it was just another corner.
"Alright, Witch, go ahead."
"Child, you may hate me, but there are places you and your friends are needed that will help you in your future. You'll know when to come back. When you do, please think instead of acting with your emotions."
Confused, I stood there, not knowing what was happening, until I saw the Witch's face becoming more and more of a grin as she said,
"Bye-bye, child. Stay safe."
She completed her spell, and I found myself instantly transported to a cave. Frustration consumed me; I should have known the witch wouldn't agree so easily. I should have realized she had other plans. But now wasn't the time to dwell on my mistakes. Surveying the darkness around me, I continued walking in a straight line, my arm outstretched to detect any walls in my path.
After about 30 minutes of stumbling and bumping into walls, I noticed a faint light in the distance accompanied by familiar chatter. Intrigued, I followed the sounds until I was close enough to discern familiar voices.
"Princess, are you going to eat your lizard tail or not? I've been eyeing it for about five minutes now."
"Sigh. Go ahead, Arthur."
"SWEET! THANKS, PRINCESS."
As I approached, the surroundings grew brighter, and my heart lightened, knowing my friends were safe. When I finally arrived, Arthur seemed too engrossed in devouring his lizard tail to notice me, and the princess appeared deep in concentration, likely contemplating how to find me.
I uttered a single word, and their faces immediately registered confusion. After a moment, they rushed toward me, with Arthur leaping into a hug and the princess embracing me tightly. Arthur couldn't contain his excitement.
"I KNEW IT! I TOLD YOU, PRINCESS! WILLIAM WOULDN'T BE DEFEATED BY THAT WEAK DRAGON. I TOLD YOU, AHAHAH!"
Still hugging me tightly, the princess spoke with a hint of regret.
"William, I... I thought you were going to die. No, I knew you were going to die, and I'm sorry for leaving you there. I should have done more; I should have helped you fight that dragon. Instead, I..."
I quickly interrupted her, embracing them both.
"It's fine, Princess. I should be apologizing to you. I froze in terror at the dragon, and you were the only one among us to act. In that moment, you were stronger than us. I apologize. I should have acted quickly; after all, I'm supposed to be a Royal Guard. My job is to protect you and your father. I've already failed your father, and I don't want to fail you too. Please accept my apology, as I won't let you down again."
"William, you know better than anyone else that I consider you a dear friend more than a Royal Knight. Please don't put your life on the line for my safety. And as for my father, you didn't fail him; it was he who betrayed him. He's the one who failed my father, not you. Also, if anyone should be my Royal Knight, it's Arthur. I don't mind him risking his life," she chuckled as they both let go.
"HEY, for both of your concerns, I was not standing in fear like William. I was standing in awe of the beautiful dragon!"
We all laughed, a rare moment of light-heartedness breaking through the recent gloom. It felt like ages since I'd shared laughter with them, especially since the turmoil that began even before the king's death.
"William, while we're thrilled you're back, how did you manage to find us? And from back there, no less?" the princess asked, her face a picture of confusion.
I explained everything - the dragon's powers, the old witch, the so-called destiny I was meant to fulfill.
"OH MY GOD! So you're telling me you discovered a new kind of dragon, William?" Arthur's face lit up with excitement; he's always been fascinated by dragons.
I nodded in response to his question.
"So, are you going to name this new dragon, or...?"
"It's all yours, Arthur."
"SWEET! I think I'll name it the Mythical Time-Controlling Super Cool Dragon!"
"How about 'ChronoWyrm' instead?" suggested the princess, her face alight with excitement. "It combines 'Chrono,' related to time, with 'Wyrm,' an old word for dragon. It suggests a creature deeply intertwined with the fabric of time."
"WHOAH, THAT'S A COOL NAME! But what about 'The Keeper of Time Dragon'?"
"Hmm, that's also a cool name. What about you, William? Any suggestions?"
"Uh, no, I'm not great at naming things."
"Then how about you choose, William? ChronoWyrm or Keeper of Time Dragon?" the princess said, her face serious.
Arthur clapped a hand over my shoulder. "Ah, my best friend in the world, come on, you know which one to choose, right? Remember that time you asked me to go and grab..."
"ALRIGHT, I'M GOING WITH KEEPER OF TIME DRAGON!" I blurted out, cutting him off mid-sentence.
"WHAT! THAT'S NOT FAIR, ARTHUR! YOU BLACKMAILED HIM INTO CHOOSING!" the princess protested.
"What can I say, princess? I'll do anything to win a dragon-naming contest," Arthur said with a laugh.
"WILLIAM!"
"I'm sorry, Princess. He won unfairly, but he won the naming contest."
"TSK, just wait, Arthur. I'll have my revenge."
"Alright, back to business. Do you two know the way back?"
The princess spoke first, her tone still laced with the bitterness of her loss. "Yes, the Kingdom of Virdien isn't far. Just a couple of minutes away, and we should arrive. But before that, what did the witch say about your destiny?"
"She didn't say. She refrained from sharing that information."
I considered telling them that she said I would not kill HIM, but I refrained, not wanting to worry them further.
"WHO cares what the old stinking witch said, William? Your destiny is yours to control, not some witch's. You do you, my friend," Arthur said, smiling and giving me a thumbs up.
I smiled at his words and thanked him.
"Come on, friends, to the Kingdom of Virdien!" Arthur shouted.
As we followed Arthur through the cave, he used his sword style to illuminate our path, making light a non-issue. The cave was quite small and moist, and a question crossed my mind.
"Hey, Arthur, how did you find this cave?"
"Oh, you see, while I was running for my life with the unconscious princess, I used my sword style on instinct, and the flow led me here."
"I thought your style could only take you to kingdoms."
"Well, yes, it's designed to detect the abundant mana in kingdoms and guide me to them. But how it worked back there, I have no clue. It's a first for me."
Arthur's mastery of mana had always intrigued me. He had been gifted with it since we were kids. As for myself, devoid of mana, I had to rely on physical strength, something I could never hope to match with HIM, a Chosen One born with a strength no human could rival. We drew closer to the exit, the light radiating from Arthur gradually dimming as the brightness from outside intensified.
"Ah, fresh air – good to smell you again," Arthur exclaimed, taking deep breaths.
"From here, we need to head southwest," the princess directed, pointing in the direction.
Our journey continued in silence. I could tell that both Arthur and the princess were on high alert. A pang of guilt washed over me; if only I were stronger, they wouldn't have to be so wary of the lurking dangers. Despite the possibility of getting help from the sentinels, I knew I needed more power, more strength. Lost in these thoughts, I was brought back to the present when the princess announced our arrival.
"We're here."
"Okay, both of you just follow my lead. Sentinel and I are pretty good friends, and I'm confident he'll believe and help us," I explained.
"Hmm, but what if word has spread about the king's death and the false statement that you killed him? Would he still help you?" Arthur questioned.
"Yes, he would listen to me. I assure you, Sentinel isn't the type to believe everything he hears. He's a smart, kind man."
They both nodded, and we passed through the veil into the Kingdom of Virdien. The first sight that greeted us was a series of broken, abandoned houses.
"Uh, did we come to the right place, William?" Arthur asked, confused.
"Yes, we're in the poorer side of the kingdom. Didn't you pay attention in history class, Arthur?"
"Well, I did, but it's been two years since we graduated. You know, my memory gets a bit fuzzy with all the fighting and running. Right, princess?"
"I don't, Arthur. I actually liked history, and I was also required to know the history of all the kingdoms," the princess said, her eyes sadly surveying the destroyed homes.
"Let's just go," she said, lowering her head, unwilling to look any longer.
We continued through the wreckage, passing countless broken houses and some barely functioning. It was sad to see how this kingdom operated, and though the princess had the potential to make changes, she was still too young to take the crown. We arrived at a massive wall, damaged and scarred, surrounding the kingdom. A solitary man sat by a door, presumably drunk. He seemed to be the guard here, though no one else was in sight. As we approached him, I spoke up.
"Sir, are you the guard here?"
The man lifted his head, glanced at me, then at the princess and Arthur, and spoke in a slurred voice,
"Do I look like the guard, boy?"
"So, you wouldn't mind us entering the kingdom then?"
"Do whatever you want, but if you're looking to speak to the council, it's too late."
"What do you mean, drunkard?"
He laughed and took a sip from his bottle. "All the people from this side revolted and killed everyone on the other side. There's no more council, no one you'd want to talk to. They've all been replaced by the poor."
"WHAT! What about Sentinel?"
"Ha, that fool was the first to die."