CHAPTER 1 (PART 1): HIS FIRST STEP

Disclaimer: This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events, locales, and incidents are either the products of the author's imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.

This story is not affiliated with any institutions mentioned in the chapters.

Please be advised that this story contains mature themes such as violence and strong language that are not suitable for very young audiences. Read at your own risk.

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A grand adventure was about to unfold to a young swordsman from a humble village called Frostwood. He had come of age. And it was his most awaited day in his whole eighteen years of existence.

Galloping on a horse was a young man named Arth. His ocean-blue eyes were gently kissed by the afternoon sun rays, making his eye color more pure and vibrant. The strong blowing of the north wind let his hair, as black as the darkest night, dance with the cold breeze. He was dressed with a long, blue coat that covered his fair skin, reaching down to his knees.

“Finally,” Arth bit his lower lip in excitement. Chills ran down through his whole body, giving him a mix feeling of freedom and uncertainty. He just had left from his home, Frostwood Village, to enter a competition in Casterfall City. It was held every three years to search for the most skilled and talented warriors all across Glacia.

"Let's go buddy," Arth told his horse and they went full speed ahead. The huge city of Casterfall was located in the far north of Frostwood Village and it would take about one and a half day to get there riding on a horse. As they traveled north, the wind became colder than ever. Arth already expected this, now that he was going to the depths of the cold country.

As they reached the top of a snowy hill, the big city was finally seen ahead. The side of Arth’s lips suddenly rose and his eyes widened in excitement.

“Casterfall City,” Arth blinked his blue eyes a couple of times. "It's bigger than I ever imagined!" he whispered to himself.

As they went near, he was amazed of the highly-built stone walls of the city. There was a moat or a body of cold water that surrounded Casterfall. Silver armored knights with white capes flying on their back were marching, guarding at their positions behind the crenellations on top of the walls. They had shining helms, each having a blue plume, also known as a feather, on top.

“Those elegant armors are killing me,” Arth shook his head in awe. He jumped off his horse and dragged its rope as he walked on the wide wooden drawbridge across the cold body of moat. There were two armed knights guarding the gatehouse. One of them raised a hand, signaling Arth to stop.

"Another warrior for the competition?" the knight asked with one brow raised. He scanned Arth from head to toe, gazing at his blue cloak that covered his whole body. 

"Yes, sir," Arth replied politely and bowed a little. Wait... why am I bowing my head? He's not a lord or a king, he thought, then quickly straightened his body. That’s embarrassing.

"You can find the registration in the Standard Knight Academy," the knight gestured his hand towards the left direction.

"Thank you, sir."

The two knights nodded and let Arth pass. He started walking through the gatehouse with his horse while looking around. The road was made of cobblestone covered with dirt and snow.  Both sides of the tunnel had arrow loops where Arth saw armed archers guarding behind those holes. He could hear some armors clanking and footsteps marching. Those were probably coming from the walkways above the walls.

As Arth went out of the big tunnel towards the inner gate, his lips slightly parted in amazement, seeing the high structures and towers on the city. There were a lot of people seen even from the entrance. The smell of the air was completely different from what Arth had been used to from his village. There was a combination of husk and thick scent. It was not as fresh as the air in Frostwood because of the difference in the population. He raised his head looking up to the cloudy skies and realized that snow had already stopped falling.

Arth walked towards the left direction where the knight told him. While looking around, his eyes were suddenly caught by the Upper Ring at the center of the city. There stood the Keep where the Lord of Casterfall was living. The magnificent structure was elevated from the ground level and there were huge staircases as a way towards the Keep.

“Woah,” Arth took a pause as he saw a weapon shop. Looking through the glass window, several swords and armors were displayed. They screamed with elegance and power with their unique designs and marks. He stepped near the windows and looked closer. When he saw the prices, his jaws dropped in shock.

“Two-thousand gold pieces?!” Arth whispered loudly. It was already a fortune, having that kind of amount. And what he had was only a few silver coins as living expenses, enough for a couple of weeks. Growing up from his village, the only source of his income was harvesting woods. Frostwood was the only village in the north that supplies woods for different villages, cities, and the kingdom capital itself. He could work for his whole life, chopping trees, yet he would still be unable to generate such an amount.

As Arth continued walking, he noticed some people looking at him as he passed by. Seriously, their eyes are creeping me out, he thought. He slowly looked down, wondering why those people were watching him as if he was wearing some kind of a weird costume.

“Is this the Standard Knight Academy?” Arth whispered as he arrived at the opened gates leading towards a high building. “Yeah, it probably is,” he answered to himself before entering the gates. It was already filled with young warriors like him and there were some desks in front of the high building. He approached towards the last desk where a woman about the age of fifties was writing something on it.

While walking, Arth suddenly heard some warriors whispering. “He’s going to Lady Olivia,” one said.

“Oh no, poor him,” the other replied. “He’s dead.”

Arth furrowed his brows in confusion, but he just ignored them and asked the old lady at the desk. "Uh…Excuse me, ma'am. Is this the registration for the competition?"

“I told you, you brats should-“ The old woman stopped when she raised her head and looked at him. She tilted her head as her right eyebrow rose, surveying Arth's body covered with cloak.

Arth just smiled nervously. Seriously, why are they all looking at my cloak? Is there a problem with it? he wondered, shaking his head. The people here are scaring me.

When the old lady looked at Arth's face, her eyes widened. "Those blue eyes," she said with furrowed brows. "Where are you from, young man?"

"Frostwood village," he answered as he tried to touch his eyes, wondering what was wrong with it.

"Oh, I thought you're from Crown Galacer,"

"The kingdom capital?" Arth asked.

The lady nodded. "I never saw someone with blue eyes before, it's probably my lucky day!" she laughed out while shaking her head.

Arth's eyebrows stormed in confusion. Okay, now I believe she's a creep.

"What's your name?" the lady asked him as she took one paper on her desk.

"Arth,"

"Last name?"

"Can't you just put my first name only?"

The lady raised her brow, "Why? Where are your parents?"

"Because they’re dead?" Arth said matter-of-factly.

The old woman's mouth formed an 'O'. "So who raised you?"

"Chief Gregor Doran and Sarah Doran from Frostwood,"

She nodded and wrote something on the paper. "Okay, that would be... five silver coins," she gave Arth a number tag with a sling to put on his neck.

After paying for the registration fee, Arth wore the sling tag. He was number ‘eighteen,’ which made him a bit confused. He saw crowds of warriors but only eighteen registered in the competition. He realized that they were probably squires or students in the Academy.

"The competition will start later at one o'clock in the afternoon. There's a warriors' lounge on the third door of this building. You can rest there and get ready for later. We'll just call all of you about thirty minutes before the time," the lady explained.

Arth thanked the woman before walking away. He left his black horse at the stables on the right side of the building and went inside the academy, seeing many young men like him. They were dressed with different color coding of coats with white garments underneath.

The hallway was a lot warmer than Arth thought since it was crowded with people. The competing voices of the students were just too loud for his ears. Some were playing on the hall, some students were teasing each other, while some were laughing out loud with their group of friends. Arth never thought that academies like this would be so noisy… and wild. His eyes searched for the third door as he walked. Upon entering, he saw more warriors inside, who seemed to be his fellow competitors. There were about twenty beds on the room and some were sleeping while others were stretching up.

The warriors turned their heads to Arth as he stepped inside the lounge. He just looked down while walking slowly towards the vacant bed on the far end of the room. He immediately lied down on the soft bed, letting out a big breath before closing his eyes. He needed to rest a little before the competition since he had a very long travel. But the good thing is … he got here early.