The call

"Baba, baba, where are you?"

A ten-year-old boy of average height with dark black hair was running through the palace looking for his father. Suddenly, he stumbled and almost fell.

"Watch out, young master!"

A young man in his twenties, with medium build and brown hair, was running behind him.

"Hurry, Luthor, aren't you supposed to be a knight?"

"No, no, we must go back, young master, to finish your studies, because the lady will kill me for letting you escape."

"My mother won't do anything to you, I promise."

While Luthor was running behind the young master, he noticed someone with a horse through the window. He smiled and shouted, "The lord is in the courtyard with his horse!"

When the boy heard that, he stopped by the window and looked out to see his father. He opened it and called out to him, "Father, father!"

The man standing in the courtyard looked up at the window. He was a man of average height, with black hair like his son. His muscular frame was evident under his yellow shirt, and his face bore rough details with a light beard and eyes as sharp as a wolf's. He smiled and called out to his son, "I'm here, Blaze, come on."

Blaze responded, "I'm coming, father!" and rushed to the courtyard. When he reached the courtyard door, he opened it to see the courtyard filled with flowers and roses, but he paid them no mind, as he was used to them and had planted them with his mother. He turned right, heading to the stable. When he reached his father, he found him grooming his white horse and taking care of it. "Father, I made it!"

The father turned and picked up his son. "You're fast," they laughed together. They shared the same facial features, even the eyes, and a stranger would immediately know they were father and son.

"What are you doing, father?"

The father put his son down and replied, "I'm taking care of Stormy." The white horse's name was Stormy. Blaze looked at the horse. "Hello, Stormy." The horse neighed in response. "But why do you take such good care of him?"

"Because he's my friend and my companion in war, my son." The father smiled at Stormy as he patted his head.

"So, when will you teach me to ride a horse, father?"

"You won't be learning anything," the mother interrupted.

"Why, mother?" The mother was very beautiful, with a gentle face that exuded safety. What distinguished her were her red eyes and hair as fiery as flames. She wore a dark green dress with white flowers.

"Because you haven't finished your studies and you ran away. And you, Luthor, didn't I tell you to watch him and not let him leave until he finishes his studies?"

"I'm sorry, my lady. He slipped away when I went to the bathroom."

"Haha, don't be too hard on them, my dear. It's good to take a break sometimes."

"Yes, mother, I've grown tired of studying." He spoke playfully to his mother, trying to win her over.

"No, you must return to your studies." At that moment, a maid entered. "Sir, I have a message from the army commander, delivered by a royal knight."

The atmosphere between the father and mother changed from lighthearted to serious. The mother turned to Luthor. "Luthor, take my son to his room to continue studying."

"Yes, my lady."

"I don't want to go, mother."

"Go now, my son." "But, father, I want to learn how to ride a horse. I don't want to study."

The father took the message from the maid's hand and signaled for her to leave. She retreated quietly back into the palace. The father turned to his son and placed his hand on his son's head, saying, "I promise you, my son, if you pass the next exam, I will start teaching you."

"But what if mother refuses?"

"Then I will insist."

The mother stomped on her husband's foot. "We'll see if you can."

"Luthor, take him away, please."

"Yes, my lady."

Luthor picked up Blaze and they left for his room.

"You promised me, father!"

"I know, my son."

"So, Sir Andrew Wolf, known by soldiers and warriors as the War Wolf, can you explain to me what you hold in your hand? Didn't you tell me you were retiring?"

"I did retire, my dear, but—"

"But what? Don't you care about me and your son? Don't you care about our lives? Don't you want to stay with us and live a peaceful life? Is war all you think about?"

"No, my dear, I have submitted my resignation." He paused, looking at the letter in his hand and said, "This summons means only one thing: a full-scale war threatening the survival of the empire. I'm sorry, my dear, I need to leave to protect you."

His wife's face turned sour and she responded angrily, "Do you think the empire is weak without you? Do you think it needs you?"

"Yes, it needs me because I am one of its ten battle knights. It's our duty to protect it and its people and respond to its call even after retirement. The only situation we can't respond to is death. So, I'm sorry, I need to prepare and leave."

"If you leave, don't ever talk to me again."

"I'm sorry, my dear."

The lady of the house left for the palace, leaving behind her husband who wore a look of regret. She headed to her son's room, opening the door abruptly and speaking angrily, "Luthor, go, your master wants you."

"Yes, my lady." Luthor bowed to her and left. Before closing the door, he heard, "Goodbye, Luthor." Luthor looked at the smiling young master, nodded, and returned the smile with a gentle one of his own. "Goodbye," and closed the door.

The mother then began helping her son with his studies.

When Luthor closed the door behind him, he headed to the stables, where he last saw his master. When he arrived, he found him sitting on the ground, leaning against his horse by the stable door. He asked, "Is it a call to war, my lord?"

"Yes, it's a call to war. Did you expect it?"

"No, but the lady came to the room angry and dismissed me, saying you were looking for me."

"Well, she did the right thing because I would have looked for you regardless. Let's get ready."

Luthor took shade by the stable door and asked, "How bad is it this time, my lord?"

"It's bad enough that we will be fighting all three kingdoms."

Luthor's face paled and he looked at his master, who was his mentor in horsemanship and had adopted him from an orphanage in one of the border towns, training him to be a knight. As for Luthor, he saw Andrew as a father even though he hadn't granted him his surname and had only made him the first servant. Andrew had told him before that he would make him his son's right-hand man when he comes of age and starts his journey in the army. Nevertheless, Luthor shook off his pale complexion and adopted a serious look.

"When do we leave, my lord?"

Andrew sighed and said, "We leave tomorrow, so prepare the armor and swords."

"Yes, my lord."

When night fell, the mother called her son for dinner. When Blaze went down to the dining room, he found his mother alone at the table and asked, "Where's father?"

She replied, "I don't know. Finish your food and go find him."

"Yes, mother."

Blaze quickly finished his food and went to search for his father. He looked everywhere until he reached the top floor and saw the silhouette of a man on the balcony holding a bottle of wine and looking up at the sky. He approached him and asked, "Why is mother upset with you?"

The father turned and found his son looking at him with his black eyes identical to his own, and he understood why he had been told that looking directly into his eyes was intimidating. Nonetheless, he ignored his internal thoughts and laughed, answering his son.

"Haha, so you all figured it out. Well then." The father stood up and put the bottle on the balcony. He answered seriously, "Because I am going to fulfill my duty as the second strongest knight in the empire."

"What is your duty, father?"

"My duty is to protect the empire and its people. This is what we call the honor of a knight and his duty."

"Awesome! When can I become a knight and protect the empire like you, father?"

"When I return, I will start teaching you swordsmanship, provided you study diligently."

"Yes, father, I promise."

"But I have a question, father. If it's this serious, why is mother upset?"

"Ah, well, it's because I almost died many times."

The father then turned and took a sip from the bottle of wine while looking at the moon. He said, "Son, look at the moon, how beautiful it is when it's full."

The son approached the balcony and looked. Before he could say anything, he felt a warm hand on his head and heard his father's voice, "Son, I love seeing the moon full and I wish that if I ever gained control over a province, the family's emblem would be the moon. If I die before that happens, I leave the matter as a will to you, my son."

"Yes, father."