1 The New Warlord 1

"Have you heard of the legend of the 19th Kingdom?" A boy asked.

"No, I haven't heard of such a thing. I thought there were only 18 in the Region of Genten." His friend said.

"Apparently if one conquers all 18 Kingdoms, the land where the 19th Kingdom will appear! Isn't that cool Aria?" The boy looked at Aria.

Aria was eating her sandwich and looked at the boy and smiled. She ruffled his hair and looked at the sky.

"It sounds cool..but I don't really care too much for the fairy tales. I'm happy with the way things are now. Peaceful and calm.." She closed her eyes.

The boy smiled and nodded then chuckled. His friend smiled also then they kept talking about the legend. Aria enjoyed the gentle breeze hitting her face. Aria was an 18 year old Junior Warlord for Auroria. She was training under the current Warlord. She was also the kids favorite because she would always give them candy and snacks on her days off. She was always busy so she never had time to herself. She heard the grass crunching and saw a woman sit down beside her.

"Aria. How are you feeling?" The woman smiled.

"Sefia? I am doing fine, but what are you doing here? Why aren't you with Joshua?" Aria asked.

"On break. I just saw you here and thought I come by to talk with you." Sefia smiled.

"I see. Well since you're here." Aria started. She got the basket of food and held it to Sefia.

"Really? I can have some? What about the children you're with?" Sefia said.

"We've been here all day, they ate until their hearts were content." Aria smiled.

"I see..I really appreciate it." Sefia smiled.

Sefia took out a few sandwiches and began to eat them. She smiled and looked at the sky.

"Any news on Kikuri's whereabouts..?" Aria asked.

"No. I hope to find out soon..." Sefia said.

"Why did she run off anyway?" Aria asked.

"Don't know...I wish she could've spoken to me..we have been a duo since we were first becoming knights for this kingdom." Sefia said.

Aria pat Sefia's shoulder in a comforting manner. She knew the pain Sefia was feeling on the inside. She wish she could have done something to help her. Sefia looked at her and smiled.

"Sefia!" Joshua called out.

"That's my que that break's over. I'll catch you later." Sefia got up and walked off.

"Alright kiddos it's about time you went back home. It's reaching the evening time." Aria said.

The boys nodded then got up and walked back home. Aria got up and rolled up the towel and picked up her basket. She made her way back to the castle. She walked through the gates.

"I'm back!" She called out.

"Aria." A male said and walked out a room.

"Well well Reud. Back from training?" Aria smiled.

"No just been taking care of the ballista. It's pretty difficult to fix." He said, wiping the sweat from his face with a towel.

"Let me set these down and I'll come help you." Aria said.

"No no, you're fine. I'm almost done anyway. You should get as much rest as possible since you're training with Lord Astros tomorrow." Reud said.

"You sure? I can always lend a hand." Aria said.

"I'm sure. Just go get some rest." Reud walked back in the room.

Aria went to set her items down and headed to her room until a knight walked to her. She stopped and looked at the knight.

"The king has ordered you to go on a quest for Talamat Feathers then he wants you to venture to the Irios Oceans for Magic Water." The knight said.

"Eh? But the Talamat Feathers itself would take at least a year to get and Irios Oceans is the most dangerous Ocean in the entire region." Aria said.

"Those are his direct orders." The knight said.

"Can I at least get a horse?" Aria asked.

"Any form of transportation is fine, as long as the tasks are complete." The knight said and walked off.

Aria walked to her room then grabbed her lance and katana. She slid the blade of the katana into the scabbard and carried her lance in her hand. She walked to the location of the horses. She looked around and chose the black coated horse. She untied its leash and walked it outside the barn. She hopped on the horse and commanded it to run off.

Sefia and Joshua were standing guard and saw Aria on a horse. They knew she had a mission given to her by the king.

"Talamat." Aria said to herself.

The horse stopped seeing a giant bird fly over them fast. Aria commanded the horse to follow. The bird was faster than the horse by a landslide. She saw the horse was tired and she rubbed its mane then hopped off the horse. She wandered into the forest following the bird. She stopped when she saw the bird land in front of her.

"Ah, Lady Phoenix!" Aria smiled.

"Aria. So it was you. I thought it was one of the neighboring kingdoms.." Phoenix said.

"Mmm? Did something happen?" Aria asked.

"Yes. Lord Hideyoshi and Lord Motoshiki are at war..They both seek my sister's Talamat Feathers.." Phoenix said.

"I see..the current king from my kingdom sent me out to get some feathers..but your sister isn't even on this region so I have to find a way to Aysio. I honestly don't want to do this..but the king's orders are absolute." Aria said.

"I could help you get there, but we have to be fast about it. It'll take a few months to find my sister once we get there. She lives in a ravine.." Phoenix said.

"Mmm..are you sure? Plucking those feathers is a hassle.." Aria said.

"I'm sure..do not worry." Phoenix spread her wings and allowed Aria to climb on. They flew off to Asyio.