New Beginnings

The Kanterbury Kingdom is a vast kingdom that many people inhabit. His ruler is a kind queen yet firm that goes by the name of Camilla. With her as the queen, the kingdom has prospered to be a land of peace, kept in order by the guardians, the strongest warriors this kingdom has to offer.

But not everyone is as lucky as them as poverty and crimes persist. Ultimate peace and order are impossible to achieve. Unfortunate souls always exist, even if the domain of Kanterbury offered everything to its people. Nonetheless, there was one boy that wasn't as fortunate as the others.

In the Kanterbury forest, a young boy with blue ocean hair and matching eyes with a Z on top of his head was located there, running away as a bear was chasing him. As the young boy ran from the danger, he tripped and fell to the ground.

"Ittai…" As he tried to gain his footing, the bear tried to claw him but the boy rolled to the side, dodging the hit. It went like that for a while as the little boy eventually escaped the bear. But with that chase, the kid was now lost in this forest.

He was perhaps lost, but his smile remain on his face as he gather some wood for a fire. It wasn't normal for kids to know that kind of survival stuff, but he wasn't like the other kids either.

After gathering the woods and starting the fire, the blue-haired kid stayed near the fire as nighttime was setting up. The night was coming and yet, the boy remained calm with a smile on his face. Looking in his little backpack, there was some food he had gathered earlier in the day. With that, he began eating as the temperature was dropping, though the fire was keeping him warm.

As the boy was eating, the fire was still lively, keeping the boy warm with its unique function. With this, the kid finished eating as his eyes fluttered, his body becoming heavier.

With his last remaining efforts, he gathered a bundle of dead leaves and put it as a pillow. Laying down on the grass, he put his head on the leaves as his eyes got heavier by the second. A minute later, the boy succumbed to his sleepiness as light snores were heard by the silent night.

Many would freak out if they were in this situation, living like this, but not him. This was the boy's life for quite some time now, his survival was the only goal he had. Never gave up, it didn't matter to him, even if he was asked to do some unorthodox things, he would never complain. In his own words, he was a 'total pushover'.

And with that, the night passed and the only sounds were the dying fire and the snoring of the little kid, but he wasn't alone. A red-haired woman was looking at the kid in a troublesome way, her eyes lowering down as her eyebrows frown, making a place to an expression of compassion and worry.

Time passed and the sun was starting to set up, its rays illuminating the dark forest, making the little kid flutter his eyes at the arrival of a new day. The wind was blowing through his hair as he slowly opened his eyes. As he tries to get his surrounding, he felt another presence with him, making him look around frantically.

"Easy little bud." The soft feminine voice reached for Iruma's ears as he looked in front of him. There, a red-haired girl was smiling down at him as she offered a sweet smile. Her eyes looked carefully at him, making sure he was comfortable with her.

After a dozen minutes, the boy was sitting down next to the woman as they both ate food that Iruma had in his bag. As the two eat, the woman glanced at the boy and her smile remains. Seeing this, Iruma takes the courage to talk first. Turning to her, he looked up at the young woman with the purest smile she ever saw.

"What's your name?" The way he said it was so innocent for the girl as she giggled. It wasn't every day that she would had free time like this, but looking at the blue-haired boy, she thought to herself it was worth it.

"I'm Eva, the new captain of the Guardians!" She smiled at him, seemingly proud of the fact she was one. The boy looked at her with a spark of excitement in his expression. Although he was excited, he was clueless about it as he looked a bit confused as he looked at her.

"W-what's a Guardian?" That question made Eva in a state of stupor as she quickly recovers. Looking at the boy she was sure that no lie was said but that only made her more worried about his condition.

"You don't know what we are?" He shook his head, meaning that he deny the existence of those mighty warriors.

"I never heard of it. I've been in this forest for a while now. I don't know how much but I'm sure my parents will come soon! They always do!" Eva normally would be reassured and call the parents but something was wrong with what he said.

"Wait… you said you didn't know how long you've been here?!" The boy nodded as Eva went to search for something in her bag as she now have some papers.

"What's that Eva?" But the woman didn't respond as her hands were shaking from the sheer anxiety she was experiencing. Looking quickly at him, she looked back at a paper with the following instruction.

KID FOR SALE!

WILL DO ANYTHING YOU WILL ASK HIM!

GREAT HELP IN THE HOUSE AND CAN SURVIVE FOR SEVERAL MONTHS WITHOUT HELP!

PRICE: 500,000 GOLD

NAME: IRUMA SUZUKI

Under it was the exact picture of the boy that she had in front of him…

Iruma was sold to be a slave

Her eyes were horrified, she put so much pressure on her hands, and the paper was almost tearing apart as she stopped and breathed deeply. There was a rumor of a slave auction inside the kingdom but Eva couldn't find any clue… up till now as she had living proof of it right before her eyes.

Iruma Suzuki was the rumored slave that was supposed to be sold. As Eva looked at him, she just couldn't allow this to happen, things needed to be done.

Kneeling to his level, Eva looked at the boy as if she was looking directly into his eyes. Iruma was perfectly fine and seems to not even mind his situation, as if he was used to living in these conditions!!

"Iruma, could you come with me? I want to present you to someone." Her voice was stern, this wasn't the cheerful Eva anymore. A dark feeling swelled inside her as she looked at the pure smile of the child as he nodded. That dark feeling wasn't towards him, but rather his parents. Without a second thought, she grabbed him.

"Where are we going, Eva?" Smiling down at him, she ruffled his hair as they walked out of the forest eventually.

"We just gonna see the queen, Camilla. I have some things to say and I will try to help you Iruma."

"Help me? But I'm fine-"

"No, you are definitely not okay!!" Increasing the tone of her voice, she proceed to breathe as her voice sounded more caring.

"You need this help Iruma, please let me help you…" Iruma was a total pushover and for Eva to say please, he could not refuse her request. And so, the two of them made their way toward the castle where the royal family was living.

As they walked into the city, people were looking at the boy with pity and worry in their eyes, and with reason. Posters like Eva saw were seen by mostly everyone and looking at the kid, who would not feel bad for him.

But he didn't seem to care much as he continue to smile despite the stares he was having. Obviously, the boy was getting anxious but this smile never faltered. On top of that, his clothes were covered in dirt and mainly turned up as his hair wasn't looking so good too.

Not liking the atmosphere they were in, Eva accelerated her pace of walking as Iruma tried to follow as much as he can. Behind them, people were whispering to one another as they couldn't break eye contact with Iruma.

"Look isn't he…"

"The poor lad…"

"I can't even imagine who would do this!"

"You think it's his parents…?"

"Who else would it be? Make me sick that people like them still exist…"

"Not only that but the price too, it's absurd!"

The comments kept coming along their way to the castle as the two finally arrived at the modest castle of the royal family of Kanterbury.

Entering there, the guards already knew Eva and let her enter without much intervention. But as they looked at Iruma, their face contortion-ned to one of extreme worry, which annoyed Eva, people kept having this look and while she may think everything is fine, the boy wasn't just a painting to look at!

Finally, she and Iruma arrived at the main hall as a woman was waiting for them. Upon seeing Eva, the woman walked towards her and smile. She didn't notice Iruma yet as the boy stood there, waiting.

"Eva, it's so good to see you!" Hugging her, Eva tried to smile, but she couldn't as she kept having thoughts about little Iruma. Finally, the woman looked down to see the boy and her eyes widened. Eva understood and kneeled at Iruma's level.

"Could you be a good boy and wait for me in the next room?" Nodding his head, Iruma went out of the room as the two women dropped the kind act a stern look was on Eva's face. The woman's face was one of worry and anxiety.

"Is this…"

"Yes Camilla, he's the boy that was supposed to be sold. I found him in the forest near here last night." Camilla had her hands over her mouth as she tear up.

"Oh, dear…" Nodding in a disappointed manner, Eva looked the queen in the eyes directly.

"..." But Eva didn't need to say anything, Camilla already knew why she was here of all places. A kind yet sad smile was on the queen's face as she put her hand on Eva's armored shoulder.

"Don't worry Eva, he'll be in good hands here, I'm sure our little princess would love to have a sibling to play around fufu~" Eva sighed in satisfaction, she knew she could trust the queen with the boy and this was the safest place for him. She's glad that her long-time friend accepted her request.

After exchanging some more, the two were parting ways as Eva turned back to the queen with a darkened expression. Camilla froze in place, this was the first time she saw her friend so… serious.

"If I ever find his parents, don't expect me to have mercy on them just because they are part of the kingdom." Camilla knew all too well, she knew what needed to be done and even if she wanted to retort back, there was no way she could really say something here. Smiling back at her friend, she nodded,

"Of course Eva, I won't interfere if that's what you ask." With that, the two women went to the other room as Iruma was sitting there silently. Seeing Eva, he ran up to her as she smiled warmly at the boy, her eyes looking tenderly.

"Listen Iruma, from now on you will live here, this is queen Camilla. She will act as your legal parent. I will come soon to begin your training." That day, Iruma Suzuki, age 8, would live under the same roof as the queen and the princess, as well as train with the actual captain of Guardians, Eva.

This was the beginning… of the Tale about Iruma Suzuki.

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