Chapter 13 Wake up

At that time, the sunlight penetrated through the window of the ward. The light fell on Nico's eyelids and woke him up from his deep sleep. He had just dreamt of walking on clouds with his sword.

As he opened his eyes, he found himself lying in bed. The pungent smell of alcohol filled Nico's nose. Despite wanting to get up, the bed was so soft that Nico was lulled by its comfort. He felt like he was sleeping in heaven.

Since he was a child, Nico had been accustomed to sleeping on a worn-out and hard mattress. But now, his back felt a new luxury that he had never experienced before in his entire life. The bed was even softer than the one in his castle's bedroom. It felt like he was sleeping in a luxurious VIP room that only rich people could afford. Nico did not know that it was just a regular spring bed. His previous way of life, which was very poor, had never allowed him to experience sleeping on a soft spring bed.

Nico lifted his head after stretching. He woke up in a hospital ward, a large room with a chandelier on the ceiling. Next to him was a chair and he saw an unknown person sitting there, also sleeping. His eyes were closed and his head hung over the armrest. From his tall and sturdy body, he looked like a knight. As soon as he realized being watched by the awake Nico, he was startled and ran out of the room shouting, "Sir Storm bringer is awake!"

A few minutes later the ward's door opened widely and a group of fierce-looking and big-bodied knight soldiers rushed in. That made Nico scared and he pulled the blanket up to his face. But what they did next amazed Nico even more.

They kneeled in front of Nico and the one at the front yelled, "Attention!" while bowing his head.

Nico was confused and immediately got up from the bed, surprised. He did not dare to lie down in front of the barbaric-looking people in front of him.

"Report. I am the head of the West Castle Division, Sir Kashan. These are my subordinates," he then ordered the knights behind him to introduce themselves and pay their respects. Some were happy, but most of them felt forced to introduce themselves.

"I am the head of the dragon knight division. We ride dragons to battle," said one person with bright red armor.

"I am the head of the magic knight division. We use magic to aid us in battle."

"I am the head of the holy knight division. We are blessed with holiness that can heal knights from any injury."

"I am the head of the elemental knight..."

"I am the head of the shadow knight..."

"I am the head of the nature knight... I am the head of the blood knight..." and many more division heads shook hands with Nico and explained their numerous tasks to him. They all mentioned their names one by one, making Nico feel nauseous trying to memorize them.

"Hold on, slow down. What's going on? Why do all of you want to shake my hand?" Nico asked, surprised, as he walked backward until he bumped into the bed.

"We are ready to help you with anything, Sir Nico," said Sir Kashan enthusiastically.

"Ehm," Nico coughed. After hearing the "Sir" before his name, Nico's heart soared to the sky. It was the first time he had been recognized in his life. He was used to being underestimated and insulted by people. This was the first time Nico had been respected and praised. He felt like he was standing on top of the world. He wanted to scream and run happily out of the castle.

But a few moments later, Nico realized he couldn't do anything. Why were they behaving like this? Nico then thought and remembered. Storm Bringer! It must be the sword he pulled out of Sword Graveyard Valley. As Geralt said, it was a famous sword. The only one in the world and its destiny affected the fate of many people. Maybe the sword had a special ability that could benefit these people, he thought.

Suddenly the door opened again and he saw Arman's face appear behind it with Arfin beside him.

"What are all of you doing here?" Arman asked, stunned. His face looked shocked to see the special room he had given to Nico filled with muscular and terrifying people. They seemed to be bullying Nico.

"We pay our respects to the strongest knight, Sir Nico," Sir Kashan said proudly.

"The strongest?" Nico said in surprise.

"Sir Kashan," Arman said angrily. "I know you've idolized the legend of Storm Bringer for a long time. But it's not appropriate to have all your subordinates come here just for your obsession."

"You know Sir Nico needs enough rest. Don't you see that he just woke up after adjusting to his sword? Get out now, or I'll call madam Ephelia to discipline you."

Hearing madam Ephelia's name, everyone immediately froze and became afraid. Sir Arman had long been friends with madam Ephelia. Everyone then obeyed and slowly left. Sir Kashan looked angrily at Arman.

"Good," Arman said as he closed the door to Nico's room.

"What was that?" Nico fell weakly onto his bed.

"Nico!" Arfin exclaimed. He quickly grabbed both of Nico's shoulders and said excitedly, "You're amazing!"

"Amazing what? I just fainted. And that doesn't look good. No one faints after pulling out their sword."

"Do you remember what happened yesterday when you pulled out the sword?" Arfin asked.

"Not entirely. My memory is a bit foggy for that day. All I remember is a blinding light and a terrifying shock."

"You pulled out the Storm Bringer sword, Nico. Storm Bringer!" Arfin exclaimed.

"What is this Storm Bringer that you keep mentioning?" Nico asked irritably, not understanding anything.

Just as Sir Arman was about to explain, the door to Nico's room opened again. This time Madam Ephelia came in, looking stunned accompanied by Sir Fergus beside her. Sir Fergus was the person Nico met at the East Edinburgh portal building. At that time, he changed Nico's face so that he was not allowed to fly. His words were very disrespectful to Nico.

"Nico! Who are your parents? Who is your father? Who is your mother? How could you pull out Storm Bringer?" Lady Ephelia asked with a series of questions.

"Fergus," Arman shouted. "Give me back my coin!"

Everyone seemed to be speaking incoherently again, making Nico dizzy. He screamed, "Enough! Can someone explain to me what Storm BRINGER is?"