2 THE BLOOMING WARRIOR

SIX YEARS LATER

Martha rushed through the floor, yanking open drawers and throwing everything inside them to the ground. She finally came to a halt in front of one, pulling out a golden brooch. She sprinted into the corridor, her footsteps louder than the clanks and thuds of a construction site, giving the impression that the house was being repaired. She gave it to Alicia, who was standing in front of the mirror, struggling hard to hide her agitation.

"Hurry up or you'll be late; I believe I hear the majorettes approaching; are they here?!"

"Mom, don't make things too difficult for me! I can't relax with you running around the house like a maniac!"

"You're right, my goodness, I have no idea why I'm so nervous, because it's not even my ceremony,"

Martha took a breather and let out the trapped oxygen in her lungs. She smiled as she handed the brooch to Alicia.

"All right, take this; it's the last one."

"Come on, mum, you already know how much I dislike brooches."

"Well, for me, put this on!"

Her gentle voice wouldn't allow her to make it sound like a command.

"Okay, fine, This is the only time"

Alicia grasped it and proceeded to tie it onto her hair, causing her neatly polished locks to be mutilated. Her mother was not going to stand by and watch as her daughter was treated her hair unfairly; beauty needed time to establish, and Alicia's just happened to take her mother. She'd been up before the birds and spent the first half of her day brushing her daughter's hair until it was as close to flawless as hair could be.

"Here! Let me do that... you're just messing up your hair."

Martha returned the brooch. She twisted her hair back into a ponytail and pinned the brooch in the top.

It landed perfectly on her back. Her mother's lively eyes gleamed at the brooch, which reflected a harsh light that pierced her pupils.

"Oh, my daughter, you are absolutely stunning. I'm extremely proud of you!"

"Mom, stop to it."

She tried to ignore it as best as she could, but the mirror wouldn't let her. A beautiful maiden deserving of a Tiara reflected back, standing in front of her.

"Okay, this is great. Oh, I believe it's them... I can hear them."

To accompany the 'princess,' a squad of majorettes marched through Heagen town, heading for Iko's maisonette. One of the guards opened the gates and marched into the front yard as they approached. The heavy breeze, thick with pollen and scented with nectar, tried hard to take his attention away from his work. He marched through the lovely yard, which was strewn with chromatic colors of different flowers, eager to get to the front gate. He eventually came to a stop at the entrance to the maisonette and walked forward with a scroll. He opened it and began reading the contents aloud.

"The king officially invites you to the 186th knighting ceremony, Miss Alicia Iko of the house of Iko."

As a strong whiff of nectar blew past his innocent nose, he almost choked, his sense of smell was almost permanently damaged.

Martha approached the windows and peered out.

"Alicia, it's them. You must hurry or you will be late."

Alicia burst into a half-run towards the maisonette's front entrance, almost tripping. She slipped into her boots with dexterity and made her way to the gates. Her mother pursued her like a hunter on the prowl. Martha grabbed her from behind and gently yanked her around before she could leave the building.

"Wait a minute! Alicia, aren't you missing something?"

She was holding a sword at the time. The blade was then removed from her by Alicia, who stepped out.

"That is required for my knighting ceremony. After all, I suppose I do need your assistance."

She then giggled, and her mother hugged her goodbye. When Alicia emerged from the home, she was greeted by a squadron of knights. They stood there, looking blankly at her for a moment before she changed her expression.

The knight took a step back and removed a cape with a knight guard insignia on the back.

"Miss, please invite us to accompany you to the knighting ceremony."

Alicia snatched the robe from him and wore it about her neck. It was the right length, not so long that it brushed the field and not too short that it seemed uncomfortable. Perfect enough to dazzle the crowds of the capital that awaited her arrival. The group immediately made their way out of the maisonette compound, stomping their feet in unison.

They marched across Royal Republic into the king's palace. When they walked through the market, both the people and the vendors glared at them. They chanted greetings and praises to the new State Guard, Alicia, while others murmured enthusiastically.

"Isn't she the girl from Iko's house? She must have made her parents extremely proud."

"Wow, she's accomplished so much in such a brief period of time."

"Her father served in the military. Let's hope she lives up to her sir title, because her father left some huge shoes to fill."

The capital of the Independent States, the Royal Republic, lived up to its name. As an effect, nobles were the most populous people in the region. There was a particular community of noble families who had developed their prestige over the years to become household names recognized throughout the country.

The king's family and the dark bender's family, presumably the most famous of the class, were two of the thirteen families that made up the respectable class of families. The remaining eleven had established their prestige primarily through military acclaim. Their specialization in some aspects of warfare and war-related attributes, as well as their mastery of magical gifts, helped them attain their prized status. Others simply stood out in their own right.

The House of Townsdy was well-known for its war planning abilities. The house of Milner was renowned for creating talented prodigies that excelled at using Magic, primarily earth-based gifts, while the house of Iko was known for its hunting and tracking abilities. Their ancestors were outstanding scouts, and they used to run the scouting regiments' training academy until the last family head died.

The house of Xermia was noted for its weapon forging abilities; some even referred to them as a god-created clan dedicated solely to weapon forging. The swordsmanship of the Hermon family was legendary. They were unstoppable with blades, which is why every knight guard was sent to their training camps to hone their swordsmanship abilities. The house of Portriese isn't particularly gifted in combat, but they played critical roles in wars. They supported the military in times of need, especially during conflicts, because their wealth was undeniably unparalleled. The Aldeim family was well-known for its achievements in archery. The Eelse family supplied the army with horses and carriages. Any horse in the army came from a ranch large enough to be considered a state in its own right.

The Rovier family was well-known for generating leaders and administrators, to the point that they had their own school, which any member of the family was expected to attend as a rite of passage. They instilled leadership qualities in each and every family member, and they were ruthlessly strict to the point that any family member who brought them disgrace or ruined their prestige was deprived of their surname and expelled. The house of Callusios was renowned for its martial arts mastery, while the house of Akiro was renowned for its breakthroughs in the area of Gifts science. They were devoted to their studies. They inquired at everything that had to do with gifted people. If a clan member was doing research and died before finishing it, the research would be passed down to his or her eldest child. They were all sworn under a pacifist pledge.

These thirteen families had been acknowledged by the Independent States and each of them had their very own Crests. They were the only families allowed to have a crest, therefore it meant that when one was a part of any of these families he or she was burdened with the task of living up to their name from the day they were born up to the time of their death.

Alicia happened to have done just that, rising to the title of Honorary State Guard at nineteen, which happened to be no easy feat. All in all, she managed to beat the odds and climbed to the top, and that cloudy day was to be the day the Independent States officially recognized her achievements.

Along with other squadrons from the East side of the State, a squadron of Majorettes from Heagen town gathered in the palace courtyard. There were a total of six Knight guards that were to be given the honorary rank of State guard that year. This demonstrated that, out of the thousands of knight guards in the country, being a State Guard was no simple task.

The king's spokeswoman walked out of the palace and onto a balcony. It was of a decent length, not too long. As he lifted his arm, the chattering of the majorettes and knight guards in the courtyard came to a halt.

"Okay, that'll be it. Please grant the king some time to prepare for the ceremony. If you are to be knighted at this time, please enter the palace; the remaining knight guards and majorettes, your services are no longer required; you have completed your task. You may leave."

"SIR!"

After that, they marched into the market.

As the majorettes disappeared into the town, Alicia looked about, and the anxiety that had been building inside her started to seep out. She was totally blind to her fingertips twitching and her hand violently trembling.

"You don't have to be too nervous. It's not like we're being transported to the gallows or something!"

"What are you talking about?"

She made an effort to conceal her fear.\

"I can see that you're trembling. Relax; it isn't every day that you see the king face to face, let alone speak with him. Wow, this is incredible; I get to see him in person and ask him so many questions."

For a long time, Alicia glared at the man who was speaking to her. He was tall, not ridiculously tall, but tall enough to draw attention, the sort of height that would make him stand out in a crowd but not startle anyone. His green eyes gleamed with delight. He had a prominent chin and a pointed nose that protruded from his face. Alicia could tell he was an enthusiastic extrovert the moment she met him. He had a smile to complement his personality.

Alicia also came to the realization that he wasn't from the Royal Republic. He was sturdy and had a decent haircut, which seemed to have been performed recently based on the fact that a few hair strands protruded from the robe he was given that day.

His eyes gleamed with sheer delight. Alicia felt it was impolite to inquire about his origins, so she remained silent for a bit, but she could tell he wasn't from North Angus, either, since meeting the King was nothing out of the ordinary for them.

"Are you looking forward to seeing him?"

"This is the day I've been looking for my whole life! The villagers are going to be blown up!"

The remaining six knight guards began ascending the stairwell and into the palace.

"Please excuse my etiquette. I am yet to show myself. My name is Reene, and I'm from District Dark's tiny village called Sals."

"Hello, my name is Alicia, and I'm from the house of Iko."

"Wow, you're from the Iko family? I'm sorry, miss, I shouldn't be approaching you in such a casual way."

"It's all right! You have no obligation to treat me as if I'm royalty or whatever! just call me Alicia."

"Okay, that's great. Then, Alicia, it's a pleasure to meet you. You're unlike any of the other people I've known from the crested families. I'll never forget the torture I endured at the Hermon boot camp. Just a lot of spoiled brats running around yelling orders at us as if we were slaves."

Before beginning her speech, Alicia chuckled for a few moments.

"We're not like the other crested families, to be sure. Every human, regardless of status or position, is treated equally by us. So what about you? Forget about me. You must have put in a lot of effort to get here! I say, you made it all the way from District Dark and Alvatrone noticed you."

"You have no idea how long it took me to get here. It's almost unbelievable. That amazed me, I mean because you seem to be well acquainted with the commander well enough to only refer to him like that. If you had mentioned him like that in our village, you would have gotten a beating."

"I wouldn't call him acquainted; he's something like my uncle or something. He's not a blood relative, but he's a close family member, so I refer to him as an uncle."

"I'm sure your life is amazing, I bet..."

The spokesperson they had seen earlier made his way to the assembly point inside the castle after a door on the right-wing of the castle swung open. Alicia decided to take her time to study the remaining four knight guards to her right after their lively discussion was disrupted. She realized she was the only female knight guard among them at that point.