The Path of Ruin

Kael slept so well that he had no dreams, no nightmares, nothing to disturb him.

When he woke up, it was late afternoon of the next day.

He stretched in his bed, deliberately not getting up for a while.

He enjoyed his cozy and comfortable bed for some time. After such a tiring day... it was really quite relaxing.

But, nevertheless, he sat up slightly, knowing that he shouldn't get too lazy.

Then, sighing, he tried to convince himself that he shouldn't stay in bed any longer, that he should go to Hakon.

And in the end there was a side that won.

He got out of bed, straightened up. He made his bed, splashed some cold water on his face as he did every morning, changed, and made his way to Hakon's room.

The palace, at least this building, seemed quiet compared to normal. Still, he didn't press too hard and came to the front of the usual room.

He knocked gently, and received a quick answer.

"Come in."

Hakon... was at his desk.

He had a more serious expression than yesterday as if something had happened.

Kael couldn't help feeling a little nervous as he closed the door and approached the desk. But he didn't flinch, and didn't avert his eyes.

And Hakon finally spoke.

"Now... let me be honest, Kael. I didn't think you would succeed."

It wasn't something he hadn't expected.

That's why he wanted to do this mission in the first place.

"That's why I didn't prepare anything accordingly... But we don't really need to. I'm going to write a report to the Empire with the evidence we have. General Loukan and I... are going to be very busy for a while, probably because of this. But, on the bright side... so will you."

Hakon curled his lips up slightly as if he wanted to lighten the mood a little.

"As promised, we'll make you look like you're at the center of this Feria Lockhend mess. But your identity will be kept secret from the public, only appearing in reports... In short, you will be a valuable asset to the Empire, not to everyone else. Because we're dealing with a duke."

This was also one of the things he expected.

And, well... he didn't really care.

His goal was not to be a hero, not to get attention or anything like that. He just... wanted to get stronger and get a solid position for himself, his goal.

"You have been undergoing simple 'training' under us up until now, at least in the eyes of the Empire. But after this incident, as a rookie, you will have to choose a department to work for yourself. You will start working directly for the Empire and receive approved assignments. Of course, you will still be under our supervision."

Good, Kael thought to himself.

This is what he wanted.

To be someone who could take a more active role, to become stronger.

"Besides... you've proven yourself for us, really, to a certain extent... at least. I can see how hard you've tried."

His lips curved upwards slightly, this time into a full smile.

It was a smile that Kael, unexpectedly, felt really sincere.

"So we're going to start trusting you a little more. And for that reason..."

Suddenly, unexpectedly for Kael, Hakon reached under his desk and pulled out a... chest.

He turned it towards Kael, then opened it.

And when he saw what was inside... Kael couldn't help but be surprised, his attention and focus turned there in particular.

There were two daggers in the chest.

"These are called Gile. But these particular ones are a bit more special."

They certainly looked... special.

Their single-edged blades, with a slight curve, were certainly among the shiniest, smoothest, and sharpest-looking blades Kael had ever seen. They were like a mirror. The handle, just like the blade, had a tiny curve to it, allowing it to fit in the hand. Thanks to the tiny engravings on it, they were also quite pleasing to the eye.

"They both have a leather-wrapped handle made from the bone of a creature that can be called quite powerful. The blades are made of steel, but not just any steel... the finest steel you will ever see in your life, as is the craftsmanship."

Kael moved slightly closer to the daggers. His eyes seemed to ask Hakon's permission as he reached for them... and he gave it.

The moment he took the daggers in his hand, he felt that they were strangely light. They fit in his hand, too. The blade seemed to be a little over twenty-five centimeters long, a bit longer than the ones he normally used... but that didn't seem to be a problem at all.

'They're nice, they're comfortable...'

He swung the dagger in his left hand, then connected the one in his right in one motion, just after the first swing.

'They are suitable for both slashing and stabbing...'

He liked them.

He absolutely liked them.

"These are yours now."

Kael did not answer. He sheathed the daggers and put them on his belt, then replaced them.

He was still reeling from using them.

With the exception of the gold inlaid dagger he had stolen from the Arcanoa Palace, these were the best daggers he had ever handled, or even seen.

"I hope you use them well. These daggers are... pretty good quality stuff. It would be a shame to let them go to waste."

Kael said nothing. He didn't really need to.

He liked the gift, and he had no plans to misuse them.

"Now... I'm going to finish writing my report on the night of today, and then give it. It will be reviewed quite quickly, most likely. And I expect that Feria Lockhend will be summoned to the palace rather quickly too. When Feria Lockhend gets here... a special investigation and trial will begin. In which you will be a witness, telling what we have planned together."

They were going to lie, in short.

Even if they could get out of it by telling the actual truth.

Well, Kael had no problem with that.

He was not a truthful person, to begin with.

He would gladly tell the biggest lies if lying would make their work easier or even better.

*******

Kael left the office after a short time so that Hakon could prepare the report.

And now, what he had to do was... nothing.

Until Hakon wrote his report, he was completely free.

And what he chose to do with it... was to head towards where he always went to train.

He wanted to try his daggers in a more proper environment, but he also wanted to work on his ability a bit.

So he moved relatively quickly through the palace grounds.

He reached the place where he trained with Hakon every day... and opened the door.

But what he found was not a quiet, cool, and empty room.

On the contrary...

"Huh?"

~clang!

~thud!

In the center of the room... a duel was taking place.

And it wasn't just random people dueling, either.

'Matthew and...'

General Loukan.

Matthew aside, he was quite surprised to see General Loukan. The man was... a general, after all. He must have been a very busy man.

But here he was.

He had a tiny smile on his face. His eyes were squinted, and he seemed to be studying Matthew's every move and attack.

Matthew, in contrast to him, was very serious.

So much so that Kael had never seen him so focused and collected, not even during the two missions they had worked together.

Kael closed the door slowly and leaned against the wall by the door quietly without drawing their attention to himself. Then he watched them with great focus.

Both of them wielded training swords, plain, seemingly devoid of any special features.

Neither of them used eon.

They were just using pure sword techniques.

After a short time, Kael noticed something else.

All Matthew did was attack, while all General Loukan did was defend.

And even though Matthew was extremely focused, with sweat constantly pouring down his forehead, General Loukan was very relaxed.

'Huh...'

As the duel continued, he began to notice more and more things.

For example... even though all the General was doing was defending, for some reason, it was Matthew who was being pressured.

Matthew was attacking and attacking, never stopping, but it was definitely the General who was leading the duel.

'How does he do it just by defending?'

Kael took his eyes completely off Matthew and turned them to the General.

He observed what he was doing in his defense.

He tried to understand how he was leading the duel, directing it, subduing his opponent.

When Matthew attacked him with a diagonal slashing attack, the General angled his sword. Instead of blocking the attack directly, he simply used his strength to make it slide off the blade.

But to prevent this from being used to his disadvantage, Matthew spun around in one swift movement, maintaining his momentum while simultaneously ducking slightly and attempting a horizontal slash from below.

The General drove his sword into the ground just in front of his feet, blocking the attack for real this time.

But it was no simple block. Kael couldn't see exactly what had happened, but... the sword seemed to have moved slightly during the block.

Not a movement caused by Matthew's attack, but a deliberate movement on the General's part.

And with this tiny movement, Matthew's sword suddenly swung backwards in an abnormal way.

It was so strange that neither Matthew nor Kael could understand what had happened.

For the first time, the General used the gap he had created, stopping the tip of his sword just inches before it touched Matthew's neck. And then...

"Let's take a break."

And... that was the end of the duel between the two.