Chapter 60: A promise fulfilled

The inside of the castle was fitted with temporary decorations all over. Lanterns of different colours hung from the tall ceilings of the castle, giving a rather joyful ambience.

I was walking around aimlessly in the ballroom. It was still being prepared for the party that would take place during the evening.

Small round tables with names were set around the entire ballroom with the middle being empty. A podium was being prepared for what I assume is for the speech.

The room made me feel like I didn't belong. I should go somewhere else.

Just before I walked out of the room, I quickly glanced at the tables being set up. It didn't take long for me to find Artorius' table. It was just like every other table, yet it felt different in a way.

I squeeze past the workers as they move another table into the room. They were in a hurry and I didn't want to bother them while sightseeing inside the castle.

"Ah, Zenith." A faint voice called out from my right.

I turned around to see it was Kody. He was talking to Sylas and they were both wearing an outfit similar to mine.

Finding familiar faces made me feel better. I quickly went up to the two and greeted them in my usual way.

Kody's hair was leather black and shining in the light. He dedicated quite a long time to his hair today it seemed.

"Zenith, you will follow us during the party," Sylas tells me.

I nod in response. "Sure, I have nowhere else to be,"

They both chuckled amongst themselves and looked back at me, all in sync with each other. "Very well. If you have to leave, tell one of us,"

"Will do!" I exclaimed as if I were taking orders.

Though I was around the same age as them, they were significantly taller than me.

My height was much closer to an adolescent boy's rather than a fully grown adult's. The same thing could be said about my body. Nothing indicates that I'm a man, only a young boy.

Both of them start to walk away from me. I panicked and caught up to them while they walked away, talking amongst each other in a conversation I wasn't involved in.

"It's nerve-wracking, isn't it?" Kody says as he turns to Sylas. "Something like this has never happened before. I'm quite excited!"

Kody was ecstatic about the entire event. Though we were told to not talk about it, Kody and Sylas didn't care and openly talked about it.

"Perhaps we will make history today," Sylas says with a smile. "It's really exciting."

"What do you think, Zenith?" Kody asked as both of them turned their heads towards me.

"Huh? I haven't been briefed on what you are talking about," I replied.

"Boo. Boring," Kody says, frowning and turning back.

"His majesty seems to have kept it only between us then," Sylas tells Kody.

"Ooh! Makes it all so exciting! I'm getting tingles in my body!" Kody cries out while hugging himself.

Their chatter made me nervous about what was coming ahead of me. I was left with no context behind what made Kody so excited. He isn't this excited about a job usually. Strange.

ARTORIUS' POV

I stepped one foot outside the estate and was blinded by the bright sun's rays. It made me realise how much time I spent inside rather than going outside and exploring.

Amelia wasted no time and dashed off. She was excited to take a walk outside and begged me after breakfast to go outside.

"The sun is really bright today," Kathlyn says as she steps outside.

I didn't expect Kathlyn to come along with me. Vincent and Felix wanted to train while Alexander wanted more sleep. Seems like I might've overworked him with the project.

"Mhm, too bright," I replied to her while blocking the sun from my eyes.

Wanting to not fall behind Amelia, I started to walk away from the entrance and into the sun's blazing heat. The multiple layers of clothing made me reconsider being in this life.

I frantically looked around to see where Amelia was. I found her being distracted by a few butterflies fluttering in the grass. She was staring at them with the curiosity of a newborn.

"Amelia is playful, isn't she?" Kathlyn chimed in, noticing me staring.

I turned around to look at Kathlyn but was taken aback by her beauty. She was only wearing a simple white dress, yet it made her look… prettier.

"Papa! What are these creatures called?" Amelia suddenly asked me through telepathy.

It made me freak out and quickly turn back around to her. Amelia was hopping around the butterflies and playing with them as they danced around her.

"O-oh, they are butterflies, my dear," I replied to her.

Rather than answering me, she was laughing and giggling in telepathy. It made me feel glad I took her outside for once.

She ran back towards us while the butterflies followed her. Kathlyn noticed the butterflies following her and giggled.

"She seems to have befriended them," She says as Amelia tries to jump back on me.

I caught Amelia and let her climb onto my shoulder. "Looks to me she's running away," I told her as Amelia struggled to get onto my head.

Kathlyn turned towards me and noticed Amelia on my head. She chuckles out loud before poking Amelia in her nose.

I start to walk aimlessly while looking around the surroundings. Trees towering over the wall grew new leaves that shook in the gentle breeze blowing past.

Kathlyn suddenly tangled her hands with mine. I whipped my head and looked at her but she acted calm about it, looking the other way and not making eye contact.

It makes my heart beat faster when she does something so unexpected. A warm feeling grew in my chest as we kept walking down the pathway. The gates opened in front of us as the guards noticed us walking.

The guards bowed as we exited the premise of the wall. The pathway felt wider and a sense of freedom came into my mind.

I couldn't help but glance back and forth between the path and Kathlyn. My eyes kept swaying toward her. Every time I glanced at her, I noticed a new thing about her hair.

Her hair is straight from the top but curls around at the end. It floated whenever she took a step. All of these are noticeable every time I take a peek at her.

Amelia jumped off my head and ran off on her own. I was not worried about her since I can always reach out to her. Kathlyn however, seemed worried we might lose Amelia.

"Are you sure letting her run off freely is safe?" Kathlyn asked me with a worrisome face.

I gave her a reassuring smile and nodded. "Mhm. Amelia is going to be fine,"

She still seemed anxious about her but I couldn't do anything about it. Or did I?

"Amelia, don't stray off too far, okay?" I told her through telepathy.

"Okay~!" Amelia yelled back to me in telepathy.

Instantly she noticed the distance between us and waited for me and Kathlyn to slowly trot to her.

Luckily she is obedient.

Kathlyn seemed much more at ease seeing Amelia not stray off too much. Her usual smile returned to her face as we walked through the forest.

"Hey, Artorius?" Kathlyn suddenly spoke out. "Do you remember a promise you made to me?" She asked.

I made up an awkward smile and looked at her. "W-what promise?" I asked her, clueless about what she was talking about.

She had a bright smile on her face. "I doubted it. We were really young at the time,"

I figured.

"What was the promise?" I asked her out of curiosity.

"You promised that we would go to the capital together one day," She said with an innocent smile.

I acted like I couldn't remember. "Sorry but I still cannot remember," I told her regrettably. "Though since you say I did promise you, I'm glad I could fulfil it."

Her cheeks turned a light hue of red as she giggled. "I'm glad you did!" She cried out joyfully.

Though I didn't lie to her, it was a lie. I have no recollection of the past events but wished to know them to grow a deeper bond with everyone.

Though we were at the heart of the forest, it wouldn't take long to come out on the other side. We could already see a clearing in front of us, making us realise how far we had walked in such a short amount of time.

"Perhaps this forest isn't as big as we thought," I told her as we grew closer to the exit.

Kathlyn chuckles out an awkward laugh, realising it's the end of the forest already. "Yeah… It definitely felt longer during the carriage ride." She replied.

Amelia acted like a child throughout the entire walk. Being distracted by the smallest things around her. Unlike a child, however, she was obedient and kept a close distance between herself and us.

"Do you want to keep walking forward?" I asked Kathlyn while glaring at Amelia.

She paused for a few seconds. "Perhaps I will if you come along," She said before giggling mischievously.

Cheeky.

"Heh, perhaps we can see the capital from here," I told her before I began walking faster.

"W-wait, really?" She exclaimed

I tugged her along with me till we made it out of the forest. We were on top of a slight incline which made it easier for us to see far into the distance.

Amelia kept up with us as much as she could. It was a short sprint but Kathlyn was surprised and lost her breath.

"There it is!" I exclaimed as I pointed to it.

Kathlyn caught her breath and looked at where I was pointing. Her eyes lit up as she noticed the capital's walls and the castle's roof peeking out from inside the walls.

"Woah… This is the first time I've seen it," She murmured, trying to describe the view.

I take in a deep breath, breathing in the fresh air and breathing it out slowly. Amelia does the same seeing me and gets distracted by butterflies once again.

As I eyeball her, Kathlyn tugs on my arm to take my attention away.

"Hm?" I said as I turned around to her.

She was pointing out at the sky which seemed odd to me. But then I realised why she was pointing out it.

There was a layer of fluffy clouds that were drifting across the light blue sky. It wasn't visible from the forest because of the restricted view, but in the clear it was beautiful.

I wished time could stop right now.

FELIX'S POV

"Good one! Keep it up!" I exclaimed from the sidelines.

Alexander and Vincent were sparring with real swords. Both of their skills were similar and it was tough to tell who would win.

Alexander has better footwork than Vincent. His form however suffers while Vincent's thrived. Both had an advantage over one another and it looked like anybody's game.

Both of them were parrying and blocking well. Even going as far as to dodge a few strikes from each other. They both were slowly becoming tired and slowed down.

Vincent stares down at Alexander as they walk around in circles. Alexander gives him a cocky smirk as sweat drips down from his face.

Suddenly he goes on aggressive and tries to take down Vincent. Though it was futile as he blocks and moves away from Alexander's sword.

A few servants had noticed the spar and decided to join in as spectators. There was a small crowd that formed around the ring, some of them were healers for safety reasons.

"Watch your footwork, Vincent!" I shouted out as encouragement. "Alexander is just trying to get to your head!"

Vincent was determined to defeat Alexander, but vice versa could be said for Alexander. The ring had become a dusty mess where the sand got into the eyes of even the spectators. Alexander seemed to be tearing up but kept his eyes open through the pain.

This time Vincent goes in for the strike from a high guard. Their swords meet and spark while making ear-piercing clanking noises. The already dulled blades grew even duller as the fight continued.

Alexander's smirk was wiped off him as he realised his mistake. He couldn't hold down Vincent since he overpowered him in raw strength. He was being pushed lower and lower as Vincent grew a larger and larger smirk on his face.

The fight looked like it was over but in the nick of time, Alexander breaks out from the situation and rolls out from his striking distance.

Everyone in the crowd cheered for him as he wiped a sweat drop from his cheek. Vincent got back into his stance and kept up his smile.

"Know your strengths, Alexander!" I shouted out to him. "Don't let him overpower you!"

The match would've been much more tied if there was magic involved. But for the sake of training Vincent, magic was disallowed and it was just a sword duel.

"Seems like quite the fight is happening here," A faint voice of a familiar chauffeur comes through from behind me.

The sound of metallic cluttering continued as I turned around to see Ron coming down the stairs. I waved him a greeting and he waved back.

"What brings you here?" I asked him as he came up beside me.

"Just wanted to know when we are going to the capital," He says as he stares off at the spar.

"Get the carriage ready before five," I told him while focusing back on the fight.

Ron nods and continues to spectate along with me. Though I was coaching the two in the spar rather than spectating.

None of them had landed a decent blow on each other so far. They were all either blocked or parried away before they could get too close.

Suddenly, however, Vincent got even faster than before. His footwork became unpredictable to me and Alexander.

"H-how can this be possible!?" I muttered seeing the phenomenon.

"What is it?" Ron asked me, panicked as he couldn't notice it.

"Vincent is getting faster…" I told him as my voice trailed off. "He should be getting tired and yet, he is getting stronger."

Alexander was being pushed back further and further as Vincent grew stronger and stronger. His speed was ferocious and his footwork was unpredictable. It was similar to Artorius' fighting style.

"F-Felix… I think you should stop him…" Ron whispered as we both realised the situation.

I was hesitant to stop the fight. There was danger but I wanted to see how far he could go.

Suddenly Alexander's sword gets swept out of his hand. It flew into the air and left everyone, including me, speechless.

Vincent's barrage of attacks stopped and the sword landed away from the two. Alexander, who was too stunned to move, looked at Vincent with eyes full of fight and anger.

Ron and I breathe out a sigh of relief as the situation calms down. "That was close," Ron says as his lips break into a smile.

Vincent sheaths his sword and Alexander shamefully picks his sword up again. Vincent still had an arrogant smirk on his face as he walked away from Alexander and back outside the ring.

"Great skills, Vincent," I told him as he vaulted over the wall. "How did you manage that?" I asked him, curious about his hidden skills.

Vincent looks at me and scoffs. "When a man is fighting for his family, he can tap into power unbeknownst to him." He says before walking away in a swaggered manner.

Ron and I both looked at him with a blank expressions as he went to hand the sword back to the workers. I turned to Ron and he turned to me, both scratching our heads at his behaviour.

Alexander comes out from the ring and throws his sword to the ground.

"How the hell did he find that strength? I thought I had him!" He shouted out his frustration.

I pulled Alexander aside and whispered to him. "Did you notice anything different about him?" I asked him. Hoping for answers.

"No!" He yelled out. "He's just acting arrogant because he beat me!"

Huh, strange.

Seems like Vincent has hidden powers that he hasn't shown us yet. Perhaps he's hiding them on purpose, but why?