I wake up with a start; I’m sweaty and I can feel my heart pounding through my shirt. It’s ‘that’ dream again. I’ve been having that dream for a quite some time now and while I’m not particularly religious or superstitious, it has been said that dreams are an oracle from a higher power. Coincidentally, I’m just a regular human being save for my abnormal bad luck and my penchant for the dangerous and the bizarre. My name is Keith. I’m a simple man who likes simple things, namely napping and cooking – though I say that, the only people who have ever tasted my cooking can be counted on two fingers, my instructor and my childhood friend. Anyway, I take off my shirt, wipe off my sweat and quickly wear my sports attire and walk towards the door connecting my room to the common area of the barracks. I’m a Prentice Knight serving under the Princess and my Instructor could be described as ‘Demon Incarnate’ or ‘Dreadnought’ but no one has the balls to call her that to her face.

For the time being, I wave to my fellow Prentices as I head towards the gymnasium on the ground floor of this complex. ‘A healthy body is a healthy mind’ or something like that, right? For someone as lazy as me, maintaining a routine as demanding as this can be troublesome if I’m being nice or pointless if I’m being honest but it is something that I have chosen to do, not for myself but for the benefactor that I swore to protect. I notice the lack of chattering and I wonder why everyone is being quiet, even the rowdier bunch who gather around the newer recruits to pester them for their money. Cliché, I know. There are two reasons for this abnormal occurrence. It’s either the Princess is here and the Officers are taking an extra measure in being a pain in our asses or my esteemed instructor is here, awaiting the idiots who demanded to be her prodigies. As I reached for the gymnasium’s door, my question was answered – painfully.

“Worthless peons, know your place!”

“Gghhhhhhuuu”

“Ughhhh!”

The sheer force behind the voice forced me on my knees and in the gym, I can see two figures on their bellies, flapping around like freshly caught Salmon. For a minute there, I saw some weird letters coming from the shock that I received but logically speaking, I must have been imagining it. The shout managed to force me, a perfectly healthy young man on my knees and the two unfortunate souls who received the brunt of the shock are on their bellies due to mana being infused into each syllable. That’s nothing just anyone can do and the mere act of infusing mana into something as small as a voice could be considered nothing short of miraculous. The only one in our unit capable of something as pointless (but admittedly, impressive) as this is my instructor.

Seeing me on my knees, my instructor gives me a mischievous smile as she sizes me up, like she normally does. She may look like she’s only mocking me but as she plays with her long, dark hair, I can see her brown eyes focus on the smallest details surrounding me. From the traces of the bed on the side my face that I slept on, to which arm I put in through my shirt first this morning, nothing can escape her perception. It’s creepy, really.

“Good morning, instructor.”

“Good morning, Keith. Did you sleep well?”

See? Nothing escapes her eyes. Even the state of my sleep is under scrutiny. I simply smile and nod at her as I proceed to do my stretches. I can see the sun teasing the skies as it wakes from its slumber through the open windows in the gymnasium. The room is simple and wooden, filled with various tools and machines to help the soldiers maintain their physical fitness. Usage of the room is free and recommended, of course, and it is big enough to have at least 30 soldiers working out at the same time. In the middle of the room is a big mat, similar to ones being used in martial artes tournaments. On that mat are the two salmons who are now back on their feet, resuming their stance. Though they were mercilessly and effortlessly forced on their stomachs, these two are among the best prentices in our batch. The larger one is called Mifumi and the slimmer female is Lin.

“Hey Keith. You’re up early.”

“K…Keith?! H-hey.”

As usual, even their greetings are varied. Mifumi is scary as usual but beneath that harsh exterior lies a heart of gold and that’s one of his many problems, the Man can’t bring himself to harm other creatures even in training. Lin greets me like ‘that’ again, as though she was scared of me or something. I simply smile at them while I’m keeping an eye on my heart rate. Noticing me struggling, Lin calls out:

“Hey Keith. Have you eaten yet? Maybe we can have b..breakfast together?”

“Ah hey Lin. Yeah, Mifumi! Let’s go have some breakfast after our training!”

“”Idiot””

Every day, Lin asks me to eat breakfast with her and Mifumi and every time that I accept her invitation, my instructor and Mifumi always calls me an idiot. I wonder why? I notice that Lin seems a little crestfallen so I try to cheer her up.

“Hey Lin.”

“W-what is it Keith?”

“I think your form looks great today. Maybe your training is really going well.”

“Oho”

I notice Lin stammering to herself as she performs her usual kata and on the side, I can feel that my instructor is sending me a malicious gaze. Mifumi, on the other hand looks around nervously as he does his kata.

“Did you say that I looked great, Keith?”

“Well, yeah, you always do. Except today you look a little better than you did yesterday”

Well I really do think that Lin is a really fast learner so her training is naturally really going well so I can’t let her overtake me too much. I pick up the pace as I start my usual jumping jacks. *Shudder*… I notice a particularly evil aura directed towards me. Instructor’s really angry about something. Oh God. Does she know?

“Keith, you stupid child…”

“I-instructor. I’m sorry but I swear on my honor that you are the only one for me.”

Now Lin’s looking at me with a demeaning sort of ‘you heartless scum’ sort of gaze. I really am scared that my instructor found out that I trained with Siegfried the other day even though having her even consider me as an apprentice is the biggest honor anyone can ever receive in this academy. I notice that Mifumi is starting to sweat heavily between his brows, he must be really feeling the burn today! Anyway, my instructor’s face looks flushed and as she noticed my gaze, she coughs and manages to calm herself down. Thank God.

“Well, *ahem* it’s good that you know Keith. I’ll leave it at that.”

“Yes instructor. You are the only instructor for me. I wish I could have you teach me forever as my only teacher.”

“Huh?”

“You heard me right Instructor. I will no longer have lessons with Siegfried since I have you as my Instructor.”

“So that’s what you meant.”

“Yes that is exactly what I meant.”

Huh? I can feel Lin’s gaze slowly becoming warm while I can feel an otherworldly tension coming from the Instructor. It seems familiar. Sweat forms from my brow and traces itself to my chin as I realize that what I’m feeling is killing intent and all of it is directed at me.

“Activate: Runes”

Runes are – wait. This is no time to review military terms! A torrent of flame forms around my Instructor’s body and the wooden room starts to creak due to the superheated aura emanating from the Instructor’s well trained body. The mat around her starts to rapidly melt as the air is sucked out of the room as she stands up and starts to walk towards me.

“I…I..Instructor...?”

“Run!”

“Run Keith!!!”

Ugggh. I find a well-aimed fist lodged in my abdomen as my vision blurs and the air is forced out of my lungs. I faintly remember what happened. The instructor blinked from her spot and instantly appeared in front of me before I could even blink. It’s a highly advanced military maneuver exclusive to my instructor and right now, I experienced the full brunt of her title “Laser Beam” and it’s definitely not for show. I start to lose my consciousness as I futilely try to keep standing. It’s no good. I fall down and return to the world of dreams but I vaguely hear the instructor’s soft voice before I completely pass out.

“Idiot. Saying that I was the only one for him when he didn’t mean it that way.”

It’s no good, I couldn’t hear what she said. Well whatever it is, it’s going to be another hell of a day for me. I guarantee it.

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Author's notes

Hi everyone! Alizoned here. How did you like this chapter? Let me know in the comments below. Thank you for reading and I hope you enjoy the next chapters!