“Why are you thanking me?” Galen asked.
“You are the one who organised the trip; without you, we couldn’t have enjoyed this more,” he replied.
“It’s because you invited them that made this trip great. I am the one who needs to thank you,” Galen told him.
“Do you have any other plans for the next trip?” asked Ken.
“I have, but not this month, maybe we shall go next month,” Galen said.
Then, after a small conversation, they walked home.
Andrew started walking alongside Ken.
“How much has he changed? He was lonely up until last month; now he has become a leader,” Harkey thought.
“You have changed a lot, Ken,” he thought of the instances with Ken.
“Did you forget about the training schedule with Roger?” Andrew asked Ken.
“No, we will resume tomorrow,” he replied.
“How did you know Haili?” asked Ken with a smirk.
“I have already said it, I have only met her once before this,” he told.
“Say the full story, she seemed to like you,” Ken revealed an unbelievable fact.
“Really?” asked Andrew.
He then revealed what happened when they first met. It took almost 15 minutes to explain to him.
“Blue girl? Huh,” Ken started laughing.
“Don’t laugh, idiot,” Andrew said.
They spoke for another 5 minutes before eventually leaving for home.
Ken went home and reflected on the day, thinking about the entirety of events that had happened.
“Ken, do you love knights?” asked his father while they were having dinner.
“Yes, I do. Why do you ask it now?” he asked.
“Well—” he thought something, but later decided not to tell him.
“Why?” Ken asked again.
“Leave that. Did you read the news today?” he asked.
“What news?” he asked.
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His father showed him the newspaper.
“Brumaldan’s no.1 knight, Thalen Hollovar, was seen killed along with 10 soldiers near Brumalis lake,” was the headline of the news.
“How did someone kill a knight like him?” Ken was shocked.
“Sometimes being strong in one means you are vulnerable in others,” his father told him.
“What are you talking about, Dad?” Ken was confused further.
“His family is the one that will suffer the most,” he said.
“Family? Being a knight is not easy,” Ken muttered.
“What are you saying, Ken? Being even a human is not easy,” his father said with a smile on his face.
“Maybe,” Ken also smiled.
Then Ken went to his room.
“How did someone kill a top-tier knight? Is he stronger than him?” he wondered.
“Then why didn’t he become a knight himself?” his mind is full of questions.
While thinking about the answers, he slept.
The next morning, Ken woke up at 7:20 am.
He took his phone nearby to check the time, only to realise he had skipped the training with Roger.
“Why am I so pathetic?” he asked himself.
“Maybe because I am Ken,” he answered to his own question.
“I am tired, should I go to college?” he thought for a while before sleeping again.
It was 7:29 am when he woke up again, this time due to his mother shouting.
“Ahh! My head hurts a lot, my body feels heavy,” he couldn’t do anything for some time.
He then walked to his stop half-heartedly as he didn’t want to go to college.
Ting!
A text came his way.
“How are you?” was the message sent by none other than Lucera.
“Wait, she texted me, now?” his eyes sharpened for the first time.
“She must be really worried about me, I am alive after all,” he thought, walking.
“I am fine,” he replied.
In college, “I am glad that I get to see them again,” Harkey thought, after seeing both Ken and Andrew.
“Hey, Andrew, we are alive,” Ken said during the break.
“Yes, we are alive somehow, but I felt something different in my body in the morning,” Andrew told him.
“Me too, my head also hurts a lot,” Ken said.
“My head too,” Andrew muttered.
“Did you go to training?” asked Andrew.
“So, you didn’t go there?” asked Ken.
“That means you also didn’t go there,” Andrew said with a half-smile.
“I woke up late, let’s go from tomorrow,” Ken said.
“Fine,” replied Andrew.
Then the day passed regularly as Ken returned home and fell asleep early.
Ken woke up early this time at 5:32 am.
He left the home at 5:46 am after informing his mother.
“It always feels fresh when you wake up early,” he muttered while walking.
He took a random route, thinking about the past, and only realised he was taking the wrong path to Roger’s house at 6:00 am.
“I am surprised to see myself being more idiotic than I think,” he said with a smile.
He then started running towards Roger’s house.
He arrived at 6:15 am.
“Why are you late, Ken?” asked Roger.
“Is the first question you ask someone who has returned after a long time?” asked Ken.
“I don’t want any reasons. I am your teacher, and I get to treat you in any way that I want,” said Roger with a smirk.
“Andrew came at the right time. Why can’t you?” he added.
“What’s up, Ken?” Andrew saw and asked Ken.
“This guy,” Ken thought.
“No time wasting, let’s continue our training,” said Roger.
“You are the one wasting time,” Ken thought.
“Do this right, this time,” he said, giving the same drill.
“I would show you how it’s done,” Andrew was about to hit it.
SMASH!!
He hit it the first time. His right hand smashed the rock, but didn’t hit the tree.
It was positioned perfectly. “That’s how you do it,” said Roger.
“Now, you do this,” he ordered Ken.
“If he can, then I also can,” Ken thought.
Roger holds a rock right in front of the tree.
“Now hit it,” he shouted.
“Back leg grounded, front leg in the air, right hand with a smooth motion,” Ken was about to hit.
“All power focused in my fist, AHHH!” he hits it.
SMACK!!!
Ken smacked it perfectly this time.
His hand didn’t hit the tree this time.
“I did it,” he said, so happy.
“You did it,” Andrew said, smiling.
“This isn’t even beginning, but this would give you a lot of confidence,” said Roger.
“Now, hit me,” he ordered Ken.
“What?” Ken was confused.
“Is he kidding?” Andrew thought.