Laudis got up from the bed and pulled the curtain off the window. Sunlight came right through it. The kid dressed up, packed everything he had, and left the room. He left the key in the lock. The boy did not say goodbye to anyone; he preferred to go unnoticed, perhaps like a shadow.
'The castle is to the north of the capital. I will have to walk for about two and a half hours, or run and shorten the time to about one hundred minutes. But I don't need to be there early in the morning. I need to be there today. Wait, I said that I would be there in three days. I'm one day before the planned arrival. Argh! I will have to elaborate on the earlier coming, what a pain in the ass...' Laudis thought, walking through the castle gate.
The boy walked as he planned for about seven minutes. Then it hit him, he was wasting precious time that he could spend in any other way. The boy disregarded any inactivity; even when he had to go somewhere, he would rather run to save time. He tightened up his boots, took off the coat, and started running. With every step, the small branches and acorns cracked under his weight. The leaves showed him a bit of empathy and produced shadows. From time to time, he passed by bushes with berries, puddles, and obelisks engraved with directions. His breathing was steady and controlled. For a seventeen-year-old guy, he was in great condition. The animals didn't care for his presence, leaving him alone. His mind was empty; there were no thoughts, no words, or emotion. Laudis pursued the goal without any distractions. He entered the city outskirts. The road was formed with small pebbles rather than gravel. Someone recognized him in the market.
"Is that you, Laudis?" asked Gladius, looking at the guy running in the main road.
He didn't bother stopping; his mind was empty — the captain was ignored.
"Hey, I said something to you! You should answer me," the knight halted him.
"What?" Laudis responded with surprise, fully regaining his consciousness.
"Why didn't you answer me in the first place, but only after I stopped you?"
"When I run, I run. I don't think about anything else; my sight is solely focused on the road. I don't care much for the surroundings, unless there is a decoy. I hate being distracted. I pursue my objective, while they pursue nothingness. I'm different; I mean, I am better. People might focus on the goal, but they think about everything else at the same time. Their muscles work, but not their mind. The target is only pursuable when your whole body is working, not part of it," the boy replied with a neutral expression. His eye almost pierced through Gladius.
His shirt and hair were wet. On the other hand, his voice and breathing were normal and steady.
"Did you run all the way from the castle?"
"Not all the way, perhaps ninety percent of the road."
'Ninety percent? That's around eighteen kilometers. He also carried equipment. That is an unusual thing. He has great endurance for someone coming from that kind of people. I underestimated him,' Gladius thought with intrigue hidden behind his poker face.
"When did you leave the castle?"
"Hard to tell. I don't have a watch, judging by the sun, it was around five."
"You don't have one?"
"Yes? I was homeless, I've already said it. Sometimes I didn't have anything to eat, and I never thought about buying such a luxury."
"So you weren't lying... That's a pity, here," he handed him the beat-up silver and chained pocket watch.
"You know I won't return this?"
"I know. Now, why don't we eat something nice?" the knight replied, taking the youth's bag.
The kid took a closer look at the timepiece. The harsh sun, which reflected on its surface, blinded him for a while. After that, Laudis opened the watch and checked the current time; it was twenty past seven. The vendors were already selling the goods, but the volume of customers was low, giving them space to walk freely. They went to the Bear and Wolf's Den.
"One last question. Why did you come here a day before your planned arrival?" Gladius wondered.
"I learned everything I needed to know. Also, some servants were unhappy with my presence, so I didn't want to bother them anymore," Laudis replied, looking at the clock tower.
It was about seventy meters tall, built with brick and stone. Its clock was black with white hands. The four lamps were placed on each side, illuminating at night. Three guards were securing the building against vandalism and unpermitted entrance.
Both of them went through the doors. The rest of the Crusaders were sitting in the corner of the room. Dantenium was eating meat with eggs. Udania had a chicken with greens, and Solisia had bread with ham. They talked loudly, making everyone present in the tavern pissed.
"So, what was his name again?" the man asked drinking from a cup.
"Whose name?" the woman wondered.,
"You know, that kid who tries to become one of us."
"Ah, I forgot."
"It was Laudis," he whispered, standing behind him, giving him goose bumps.
"Ah! What the hell are you doing?! You shouldn't scare people off, especially at my age. I could die from a heart attack," the male shouted with heavy breathing.
"Doubt it," his emotionless face gave everyone present a strange sensation.
"Now, as you can see, the applicant came back. It means he's ready for the second trial, right?"
"I guess. Now, can you spare me some food? I didn't get my payment yet."
"Right. Buy me a lamb with vegetables, and you can order whatever you want for yourself," he replied, handing out the money.
The kid came back with two plates. In the first one, there was the captain's meal, and the second one was his. It consisted of one pork chop and three apples.
"You've got quite a taste, you know? I would never eat fruit with meat, but whatever makes you content," Dantenium stated, looking at his plate.
"When you're starving, you don't think about making a meal. You only think about what is the least molded and most edible. The apples and pork are no coincidence, they are the first products I bought with my earned money. I cooked the meat over a campfire; furthermore, I burned it. Despite that, it tasted like an extravagant meal prepared by some world-class chef. In short, it gives me a hint of nostalgia, I guess," Laudis responded, slicing the meat.
"Man, are you always moody?" the man replied, sighing.
"Moody, you say? I prefer the word melancholic. It shows the constant and heavy pain I bear every single day. I wish I could be angry, even once..." the boy whispered, looking down.
"What did you say?"
"Nothing important. By the way, when are the second and third trials held?"
"The second one will be held five days from now and the third one will be held the day after that. Your target is to chop down twenty-five trees in twelve hours," Gladius stated while eating and reading a newspaper.
"Will I be trained by anyone?"
"And what else? Maybe I will help you out with my Earth magic, huh? Hey!"
"Just shut up for once. You can ask for help, but we aren't obligated to help you," Udania replied, slapping the girl on the shoulder.
"I see... Thanks for the food. Will I be granted a room, or should I organize a bed myself?"
"Here," Dantenium passed the key without eye contact.
"Appreciate it."
"Wait! I found them in your bag. What are those?" the knight stopped him, showing three cigarettes rolled in a newspaper.
"Firstly, who permitted you to search my belongings? Secondly, they are cigarettes. I'm seventeen, thus I can buy those. After all, the law says you have to be over sixteen to buy and smoke tobacco products."
"Yes, but I will dispose of them. It is one of the rules; any applicant for the Crusader position is forbidden to use any drug, it's listed in §14."
"Can I see the full list of them?"
"Yeah... no. I don't have them on hand, but I will remind you every time you disobey. That's good, right?"
"Nice..."
Laudis went upstairs to room number fourteen. It was the same as the last one he had been in. The kid left the bag filled with essentials — the knife with fly line, the second pair of clothes, and the picture frame. It was empty with a broken window. On its back, there was only a carving 'G.G. Portrait 583 V.E.'.
'I don't know why or how I became the owner of this. Honestly, I don't recall anyone with those initials. Maybe someone else would know it. I can ask Will about it, and if he doesn't want to share the information, there is still Gladius left. He is the most trustworthy of those fools,' Laudis thought, holding the broken frame.
"Can I come in?" a female voice came from the hall.
"Give me a second," he hid the item under the bed and opened the door.
"So... you know. I'm not sorry, but what do you say about a training with me? You can treat it as a compensation, I suppose," said Solisia, glancing at him.
"And what do you mean by train? Do you mean sparring or what?" the boy asked doubtfully.
"You want to spar with me?"
"I guess? Is there a problem?"
"You know I might not look strong, but I am a Crusader after all," she responded with a disoriented look.
"I care not for your words. I want to see if you are truly worthy of the title," he replied with aversion.
"Right..."
"When should we begin?"
"Why don't we do it now? It's about eight, so it's a good time for that kind of stuff."
"Sounds good to me."
Both of them left the tavern. They went for about eleven minutes and entered the forest. It was filled with dummies, targets, and such. It was a training camp. A few small leaves flew from the oak trees. The peaceful breeze lowered the sensible temperature. Animals looked at them with interest. The girl stopped. The area was mostly flat with no obstacles nearby. The wind was weak, giving them good conditions to fight.
"This should work," she stated, looking around.
"Why don't I list the rules?" he added before the clash.
"All right, it's your right, I suppose. So?"
"First of all, all kinds of mana usage are forbidden. Second of all, sparring ends when one of us surrenders or starts to bleed severely. At last, we are using real weapons instead of wooden replicas," the boy stated all the principles with no expression.
"Are you sure about the third rule?" the girl replied, puzzled.
"I said what I said. Now, are you ready? I suppose that you will be using your flail, right?"
"Indeed. Let's start."
The boy stretched his arms, legs, and neck. The female didn't care much; she was getting impatient. The fight began. Laudis drew his swords and started the initiative. He aimed with the X-Cut for her left arm. Kss — Solisia blocked herself from the double-sided attack with flail spare and jumped backward. Tuch — she aimed and delivered a hit to his hand, causing him to lose one of his weapons.
'Think, think, think. I cannot draw the second sword right now; my right hand bleeds. Damn, I can't feel it anymore. She didn't use the full power, yet it hurts like hell. Now I have fewer possible outcomes, which I thought of at the start. I can think of two outcomes. The first one has about seventy percent for a draw, and the second one has fifteen percent for a win. I shouldn't poison her, we are having a spar, not a death match. If only I had a long sword instead of two short swords. After the fight is over, I'll sell my swords and poison for the better one,' Laudis thought, crouching.
"Are you done?" she mocked him with a smirk.
"..."
The wind began to blow faster, making the atmosphere tense. More leaves started falling, deconcentrating both of them. The kid rushed again, but there was something unusual. He threw five stones at her, which she spared with ease. Then Laudis rushed again with full speed. Solisia aimed for his abdominals to nullify the damage, but he halted. The boy stopped about two and a half meters before her; it was the reach of her flail.
"What do you want to do now, huh? You can't hit me with it," the girl stated, surprised and feeling a bit off.
Laudis threw three stones at her hand to loosen up her grip. Then he quickly rushed to the left, obviously aiming for her arm. She managed to strike down his sword, but it was all intended. The boy kicked the weakened hand, causing her to drop her flail. Both of them were unarmed. The smirk on the girl's face faded away just like the sunset.
"Draw?" he reached out his right, bleeding hand. The boy even forced himself to smile despite the embarrassment he felt.
"You know, that every good swordsman carries backup, right?"
Solisia reached out her left hand with a pocket knife and aimed for his neck. At the same time, Laudis drew his knife with fly line, targeting the same spot.
"You aren't too bad. Let's call it a draw," she accepted the outcome with slight chagrin.
"What am I seeing? Perhaps two love birds on a date?" mocked Dantenium pridefully.
"Unlike you, I can actually talk to women besides the necessary interactions," the kid replied with the same attitude.
"Yeah, yeah. Come to me, I have your up-front money. Captain decided to spare some of his own budget, so you wouldn't be broke," the man handed the sack with money.
"Thanks. You guys don't care what I do before the trial right?"
"Yeah, you can even go to the broth—" the male responded with detachment.
"Shut up! Nobody cares for your sick activities; therefore, don't force them on the rest!" the girl nudged him.
Laudis left them quietly and headed to the tavern.
'It's good I keep them in my pocket,' he thought, walking and bandaging his right hand.
He collected all of his poison — four small bottles around 150ml each. The kid went to the market and tried to find any buyer for his swords and products, but with no success. Most people weren't a fan of a seventeen-year-old selling homemade poison and weapons. The boy was walking there for two hours with no offer. When he headed back to his room a strange man approached him. He was about the same size at him, around fourty years old; his bald head reflected the sun. The male had a long, black beard resembling a hermit's one.
"Hey, you want to sell those right?" the salseman asked, wiping off the sweat from his head. He was constantly looking around almost like he was afraid of something.
"Ye—"
"Come with me, no time to spare."
Firstly they were walking thourgh the most crowded parts, but then they turned to the strange alley. No signs, people, nor a single sound. The youth wondered whether to leave the stranger, but he knew that it was his last hope. The male opened a random door to the apartment. As soon as Laudis walked in he noticed the variety of the goods. Strange substances kept in jars, used and new weapons, stone gargoyles, or even armour. The smell of old rags cared the boy off a bit, yet he was persistent to sell his items.
"Sorry for making you come here without a word. Sadly I can't buy a sword legally from a minor, the rules here are really weird lately. I remember when I was your age we were stealing the fallen soldier's equipment and selling those to buy some food. Ahh, that was a good time. Nonetheless do you want to sell the poison too?" the vendor asked, sitting down in the beat-up chair.
"Yeah. The two swords and these four bottles. I see you have nice ones too, would you give me a discount if I buy one of those?" the boy replied, looking at the swords stuck in the barrel.
"I guess so. Hmm, let me check those... Okay, at the closer inspection the swords are in mediocre condition and the substance is pretty acidic. The most I can do is ninety golds for all and sell one long sword for fifteen golds," the salesman said, inspecting the items. A golden ring reflected the lamp's light.
"One hundred and ten gold for the sword," Laudis extended his hand to seal the deal.
"Okay, okay..."
After a short while he found a sword, which was in pretty good condition. It had an engraving saying 'Sun Sword'. The youth didn't think much about it and left the store, checking the time. It was already half past six; sun was setting. After calculating the money he had two-hundred-ninety golds. The boy went back to the tavern. He decided to return the money and have it over. After all he wasn't really a Crusader. Laudis left the market and checked the time. It was already half past six; sun was setting. After calculating the money he had two-hundred-ninety golds. The boy went back to the tavern. He decided to return the money, wanting not to own any debt. After all he wasn't really a Crusader.
"Here," he handed two hundred golds to the captain.
"You don't need them?"
"No. I sold my swords and poison."
"Why? I thought you enjoyed your weapons?
"Yes, but they are too weak. I bought myself a long sword, so I can finally strike with greater force."
"I see..."
Laudis went to his room. He stared at the wooden ceiling with a strange soreness.
'I have four days left. Twenty-five trees in twelve hours means I have to cut down around 2.08 trees per hour. The activity engages most muscle groups — legs, abs, back, triceps, and even chest. Also, I have to build up my endurance. To put it shortly, I have to train my whole body. In the morning, I will run three times around the city, giving me a distance of around twenty kilometers. Then I will focus on the muscle building, mostly by chopping logs. At the end of the day, I will finish it off with shadow boxing to stay focused. Now, I have to rethink everything about myself to prepare for the trials. I am still a novice with no real battle experience. I am weak, sociopathic, egoistic, and narcissistic. I care not for the rest, as long as I am alive, I am content. Yet I feel empty, I don't know why, but this emptiness causes me pain. A constant and heavy pain. The conflict of my existence is strange; I hate and search for any human relationship. My only desire is to understand myself, even at my deathbed. Despite all the money I acquired, the physique I built, or even the cigarettes I smoked, I still lack the inside. If only I could experience any type of it, even a cruel one. But to my sorrow, the world gave me none. I am isolated...' thought Laudis, polishing his sword. A single tear ran down from the eye-patch; he didn't even notice it. The kid put the weapon down, undressed, and fell asleep.