Simpler times

I lay Crystal down gently to her bed as she remained unconscious. I finally deduced that the book they ripped must have been my storybook I planned to publish and luckily get a large profit from.

I suppose I should be more careful of my belongings as anyone could just barge in and take it and speaking of barging in, you wouldn't guess who entered just now.

Zyderine the jealous sister.

"Is she still asleep?"

"Well, there wouldn't be any point in laying her in the bed if she wasn't now would there?"

"You know I don't get it, how could you treat me so coldly but her so kindly"

"I don't know what you're talking about Rene"

"Not only did you go out of your way to make her redeem herself to Alfron that you revealed yourself to Lacquer but you also taught her your secret language. For what Spade? You want to get in her pants is that it?"

I stand up quickly and draw close to her.

"Now you look at me when I say that I am only treating her the way she should be, it isn't because I am attracted to her or that I am trying to make you jealous, it is because she treats me right, like the mentor that I am and you, you clearly don't understand our relationship if you think that I'm one of those lowlife suitors trying to get you or your sister"

I leave annoyed. Why did that offend me though? Is it because I was accused of being unfair? It's one of those things that are true but annoying still perhaps.

As I leave I happen to see Saber who comes approaching me.

"Alright Escroc, you win"

"Hahaha I'm glad you can see reason"

"Do you want to begin training now?"

"Yes that would be fine"

I suppose I could release some steam as well.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"What happened?"

Lacquer asked with concern as Alfron shared his troubles.

"She said that she wanted peace of mind and that I haven't been making her a priority"

Alfron replied with his head in the ground.

"Well is it true?"

"Yes… but I don't know what to do. If I put her first then I am sacrificing my rank, pride, and my relationship with my father"

"Do you think she's worth it?"

"I don't know"

"Let me ask a different question then, do you love her?"

"More than she would ever know"

"You know Alfron, all you have to do is show her that you love her. Your rank, pride, and father she wants you to have that still and she doesn't want you to throw that away either but what she does want is for you to show you care"

Lacquer said as he pats Alfron's shoulder and left. Alfron wanted to stop Lacquer, tell him all the other things happening in his life like he used to but he knew it would only make it much harder to stop Lacquer when the time came.

Instead, he decided to turn to his best friend, someone who was his escape when things became complicated in the castle with all the pressure he gets being regarded as a genius and the power struggle he has with his older sister Zyderine. His best friend is named Perseus Bloodeon who is just a humble hunter his age that disliked the congested environment of the city and all the bothersome crowds.

Alfron rides his magic boulder as he passes through the woods and happens to see Saber training Spade along the way but he doesn't have the energy to deal with either of them yet so he keeps moving forward.

When he arrived in a small wood cabin his magic eventually ran out and he felt the toll of the magic overload but he still entered. A foul stench covered the whole cabin, it was rotting corpses and the whole cabin was bloody and a mess.

Alfron came to appreciate this scenery that was straight out of a horror movie and felt nostalgic for the first time he entered this sad excuse for a home.

It was almost 9 years ago and Cebunilla was just barely a country yet upon its new pledge for independence when he fought with his sister Zyderine about who would accompany their father to the business meeting with the other kings and because Zyderine was older and the main heir to the throne she was the one chosen to accompany and Alfron being the young brat he was, ran away from home.

It rained that day and Alfron looked for a place to wait for it to end and he came upon an old rickety cabin with a door open. He came inside and was completely disgusted by the foul stench and butchered animals and he quickly ran away but standing in the door was this fat bald man wearing a bloody apron and his hands held a butcher knife that was dripping with blood.

Alfron ran away from him so he went further inside and from a nearby room came out another person, this time a lady carrying a child and although they weren't quite as scary, Alfron still panicked.

"Aaaahhhh!!"

"Shush child!"

The big man shushed Alfron with his hand and feeling this Alfron almost fainted. The lady then whacked the big man.

"Now Albert that isn't any way to treat a child! Go wash your hands, dinner will be ready shortly"

The big man or Albert as he was called said sorry to Alfron and gave him a handkerchief to wipe his face as he went to the kitchen.

The young boy being carried went down and greeted Alfron.

"Daddy was scary huh?"

Alfron could only nod as he was still confused as to what was happening. The lady also came to Alfron and wiped his face with the handkerchief.

"Oh poor child, you must have been scared by the thunders didn't you?"

"...Yes I'm sorry"

"Oh, it's no problem we always welcome guests in our humble home! Besides our little Percy here also has trouble making friends, would you mind being his?"

Percy got flustered.

"Mom don't embarrass me!"

He pulled her dress impishly. Now Alfron calmed down.

"I'll be your friend Percy," Alfron said.

"Really what's your name?"

"Alofaron Troy Valhalien, but you can call me Alfron"

The two were surprised to know that the young boy in front of them was the prince himself.

"Well, now I guess we'll have to make our soup extra special for our guest shouldn't we Celine my dear?"

Albert was the only one who acted the same despite knowing who he was talking to.

"Ah yes I suppose"

Celine snapped out of it too and slightly brushed be brunette hair and went to the kitchen.

A few moments later everyone was gathered to the dining room where they ate and Alfron opened up his problems where the family happily listened and conversed with him"

"Hey, Alfron! Dude you look as ghostly as the first time you entered here"

Persius teased Alfron as he remained standing in the door reminiscing the times he entered that very same door.

"Ah hey Percy I just came to visit"

Percy looked at him with a condescending stare knowing fully well why Alfron came to visit again

"I bet it has to do with a girl again doesn't it, come let's talk about it over dinner."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Crystal woke up and Zyderine was sitting beside her, she was expecting Spade to be the one so she was slightly disappointed but happy nonetheless that her sister showed concern.

"This reminds you of the days doesn't it?"

Zyderine was the first to break the silence.

"Hm?"

"You used to always feel tired after playing so much that you would sleep in my bed and I would watch over you"

"And when I awoke you would comb my hair and we'd talk about why the sky was blue"

Crystal chuckled in nostalgia.

"Those were simpler days huh"

"Why did you suddenly change?"

Crystal looked at her.

"Well I grew up, I understood that one day we wouldn't just be sisters, that one day you'll have to leave me too"

"No, I won't! I don't even want the throne! I just want my sister back"

"That pains me Crystal because out of all of us you are the one most fitting for it, but for mine and my mother's sake I have to take that throne"

"I just want you back Zyderine, I would give away all my talent of potential just to have one more day where you treat me like a sister again"

"And one day when this is all over I will but for now you have to wait because there are things I need to deal with first"

"Ok but please don't take too long or lose yourself trying to find what you lost"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Sabre drilled Spade and was honestly disappointed with what he saw.

"How the hell do you get that much confidence with incompetence as great as yours?"

Gasping Spade replied. "It's a talent"

Spade lacked experience and talent most of all, while his reflex and endurance were above average his speed, reaction time, and strength was mediocre at best and while that would be fine for some recruit it was a terrible performance for someone who leads a team.

"A leader must set both a good example and a proper standard, if the leader is incompetent then the followers would be too" that was one of the first things that Lacquer taught him.

Sabre met Lacquer around the start of the independence movement of Cebunilla and Lacquer was rallying up recruits and training them to do magic and combat.

Sabre was an orphan whose parents died from a fire accident and he was left to fend for himself doing anything he could to survive, the rebel group just happened to be free food and shelter to him that's why he entered.

The first time he met Lacquer was in a survey mission he led which only involved a few enemy soldiers that they needed to account for.

"Listen up, when we are outside you must make sure to keep your head down and eyes on the targets, if they're gone assume you have been made and immediately inform me so that we could leave as a team, we do everything as a team remember that"

Lacquer instructed.

The others in the team were devoted citizens wanting to get back their old life and only Sabre was uninterested in the mission and only tagged along for the food.

When they arrived at the destination things were going as planned for the most part but Sabre noticed something odd. It was an empty pot that was slightly warm indicating use not long ago and Sabre didn't want to die in the hands of enemies that are way more than what was initially reported so he started slowly running away.

Sadly for him the enemies hiding ambushed him alone who strayed away from the group and as one of the soldiers were about to stab him, Lacquer came and saved him, soon after the rest of the team also attacked.

"Why didn't you tell us about the other enemies?!"

Lacquer interrogated Sabre but he couldn't reply and just ran away. Sadly for Sabre was that running opponents were easy prey for the enemies which made him their target and trying to save him the other rebels went straight for the enemies as some were caught in the traps.

Sabre tripped while running away and an arrow was heading straight towards him but again he was saved by Lacquer but at the expense of the arrow piercing straight through his arm.

Wounded Lacquer qued the retreat having failed the mission and lost some men.

"Damn you!"

Lacquer pushed Sabre.

"Do you know how many lives we've lost because of you?!"

"I'm sorry!"

"No, I don't need your sorry! They needed your help! The lives lost today, they are your burden to carry now"

"What the hell do you want me to do? I can't use magic like the rest of you"

"If you can't use your arms then use your teeth, sharpen them that people wouldn't even care about it, find your strengths and make up for your weakness, it's the least you could do for our fallen comrades"

Due to that fateful day Sabre found his light, and following Lacquer would bring him pain and darkness and he would always try to outshine him but never could.

In a way Lacquer became Sabre's friend and teacher but at the same time his rival and his enemy.