In the past there was a king whose honor was second to none. His principles were so honored that it prevented him from lying or breaking his own word even at the cost of his own life.

His reign was one of the shortest we have ever seen.

His name is not even listed in the history books.

Let me tell you the story of a fool, who dreamed to build a wonderful world.

Stories to Read Around a Campfire – Luanne Vieira Flores

*

The stars shine brightly as Arthur walks through the streets of Fiandel. This is the fifth consecutive night he dedicates to search for Akemi.

Since the day Galaaz helped him to understand his own thoughts, it became clear to Arthur that he could not let things with Akemi end as they were. And, even almost a week after starting his searches, he remains convinced that he needs to find her, to at least have a proper goodbye.

After the day he assisted Rinlia with the incorporeal on the outskirts of the capital, he had enough knowledge to do this search on his own. The task, however, was lonely because he did not let Galaaz accompany him, aware that the wolf’s presence could scare her.

The wolf was responsible for making excuses for Arthur’s absence – from the start, the narrative was that the boy went out to “clear his mind” after a tiring workout and was trying to adapt to life in the new city.

Such excuse was partially honest, since the training was effectively destroying the foundations of the boy’s physique in order to build a warrior and magician in his adult body.

A few times during the search, Arthur thought he had found some trace of the incorporeal. His attention was caught, and, for several minutes, he thought to be in the right path. However, after a few minutes, without a better way to guide himself, he had to give up – the same happened every time, making so he does not even know if he was doing the searches the way it was supposed to be done, however, it is the only thing he can do for now.

Therefore, he continues to walk under a sky with bright stars.

*

Thiago is sitting straight, in a rigid posture, with his eyes closed. His breathing process is well-paced and the absolute silence causes his teeth to clench and the pressure in his jaw to increase.

His hands are pressed against the stone floor as he patiently waits.

“One, two, three…”

[…]

"Forty-one, forty-two, forty-three..."

A discreet sound to the right.

“Stone?” He concentrates more energy on his palms, feeling a disturbance on the left side.

“It is a distraction. I-” He does not have time to finish. His body, instinctively, releases energy on the floor – on the left side. Small electric rays appear on the stone, trying to create a protective net to hurt whoever would try to attack him.

But the protection is slow and a wooden stick hits him on the left shoulder before the spell is complete. The impact is not strong enough to hurt his bones, but the area is slightly bruised.

-Slow. – Rinlia grumbles. – Its better, but still slow. And you are trying to cheat by increasing the amount of energy around you. A little more and it is no longer an observation net. It is an attack.

-When I realized that you had thrown a stone to distract me, I thought I had to do something to protect myself. – He says, getting up and massaging his shoulder.

-The point of using small amounts of magic in your surroundings with this spell is so that you can notice the attack before it reaches you. If you use too much energy, it will alert whoever is trying to attack you.

-I know it. I just-

-You’re just looking for shortcuts. You’re still in a hurry. There is no need to do that, Thiago.

-Thanks, but I need to improve. After all, the test will happen this week.

-The test is just a formality. – Rinlia shakes her head. – It is just so you can officially be a mage in the military. Since you are my apprentice, your approval has been decided beforehand. You don’t need to be anxious about it.

-I’m not anxious. – He tries to keep his tone friendly, but it is hard to ignore her rank. Luckily, the door to the training room opens. He looks in that direction, determined to use anyone as an excuse to leave.

His plan, however, does not work since Yvanna is the one who walks through the door.

-Excuse me. Am I interrupting? – The vampire walks towards them.

-Not at all… Your Highness. – When realizing they are in Thiago’s presence, Rinlia decides to get formal.

-My wedding is only in a few weeks, Rinlia. – Yvanna smiles. – Besides, Thiago is my personal friend. You don’t have to keep up appearances in front of him.

-All right, all right. – The elf smiles – What are you doing here? Did something happen?

-Nothing important. I just came to tell you that Armenvald scheduled Arthur’s test. It is going to happen this week.

-Already? A bit too early, isn’t it?

-I’m just the messenger. I had business here, so I said I would inform you.

-I see… - Rinlia puts her hand under her chin. – He needs to prepare for this. Thiago, clean all this mess and put the equipment in the cabinets. Use this night to rest. Tomorrow we will intensify your training for the test.

-Oh, really? I thought the test was just a formality.

-I know you. If your test happens in the same day as Arthur, I imagine you don’t want to do bad, right?

She winks at him and heads for the exit.

-Aren’t you coming? – She asks Yvanna.

-I still have business in the building.

-Oh, right. See you later, then.

The vampire waves and waits for the elf to be out of sight before turning to Thiago.

-You seem to have improved.

-Were you watching me?

-I didn’t see it, but I listened to Rinlia’s instructions to you. Also, you are not shaking as much as you used to. – She points to the hand he is trying to hide behind his body.

-Did you notice?

-It wasn’t hard. You are the type who is honest even when you don’t want to. – She smiles. – You still can’t use magic without the… Psychological effects?

-I’m getting better, but I still have to deal with the problems after using it. At least now I can fight for some time before losing control.

-That’s great news. But don’t rush it, ok? You must acknowledge your limits.

-I’m working on them.

-I’m serious. – She gets closer and grabs his arm, exposing his trembling hand. – I know how you are. You’ll try to look better than Arthur. Don’t do that.

She strokes his hand, dispelling the tremors in his fingers.

-How strong is he?

-No one knows how strong he can be. And I don’t want you to get hurt. You already have to worry about your own situation. – She lifts his hand. – These symptoms can be a problem.

-I’ll be fine.

-And I want to believe that.

They maintain eye contact until Yvanna let go of his hand and takes a few steps to the side.

-Anyways, - She says. – I didn’t come here to catch up. I need a favor.

-From me? – Thiago’s look of disbelief amuses the vampire for a moment.

-Isn’t that obvious? Listen: There is someone trying to get evidence of my… Infidelity. Concrete evidence. The kind that cannot be refuted.

Thiago is startled by the statement.

-But you said that-

-I know what I said. And I believe everything that I told you to be truth. It does not mean that no one will try to harm me with the information. That’s why I need you to investigate who is trying to sabotage my relationship with the prince.

-And how would I do that?

The vampire takes a deep breath while looking into his eyes. She needed to trust him, however, that is not something that she can easily do. Not after all she learned in her lifetime.

But he is her best option. At the moment, besides Rinlia, there is no one in the army whom she can really trust. And she could not ask this favor to the elf because she would not be able to do a sneaky investigation, as she was a prominent figure. Besides, Yvanna knew that Thiago could not have tried to incriminate her while they were on Vivre and such alibi was good enough for now.

-Someone may try to plant evidence in Bernard’s quarters. He is our ally, but that is the point. Your task is to be on the lookout for suspicious movements in his guard.

-How can I do that if I spend all day training?

-If it was just to keep an eye, I wouldn’t need your help, would I? – She notices the surprised expression on his face. – Sorry. I… I’m just a little tired. What I wanted to say is that such things are being investigated by Bernard himself. What I want is for you to use your brain and try to get information among low-ranking soldiers. Bernard will move you to a room where you can keep a watch on whoever enters and leaves his room.

Thiago shakes his head.

-Ok… It’s just...

-What? It is a favor. I cannot offer you a lot of gold, as this is not officially a mission. My funds are being watched by the crown now that the wedding is on the way, but-

-No, that’s not it. – He gestures, trying to clarify. – I don’t want gold. It’s like you said: A favor. What I cannot promise you is a good job. I don’t know how much I can do alone in an investigation such as this one.

Yvanna shakes her head.

-That is enough. As long as you know how important is this favor.

-Yes.

-Are you sure you don’t want payment? As I said-

-Yes. If this is a favor, then, that’s how it works. A favor for a friend. – He punctuates the last word. The vampire notices it, narrows her eyes and smiles, showing off her canines.

*

Armenvald’s feather works incessantly. From his desk he sent letters to all the kingdoms in the continent – and even some letters were exchanged with magicians from the other continent.

It is from the ink coming out of his silver inkwell that magic books are born, influencing an entire planet. It is from the words chosen by that mind that new apprentices are taught and new soldiers are trained to protect families and loved ones.

It is in that dimly lit room that an old magician gives instructions to an apprentice standing by the door.

-The test will happen without an audience until the time I wrote in the letter. We won’t even notify people that tests are being carried out in the arena before the usual time, do you understand?

-Any specific reason?

-Several reasons. – The magician answers, still writing. – And none of them is any of your business. Just make sure that no one other than the individuals on that list can be in the arena before the specified time. Go.

The apprentice heads to the door.

-One more thing.

-Yes?

-Take a message to the castle. Tell Njalmar… Tell the king that I am supervising the dinner that will be made after the prince’s wedding, for safety’s sake. I don’t like to let Bernard take care of everything alone. It is better to be extra careful.

-Yes sir.

Armenvald dismisses the apprentice, resting his pen for a moment to take a letter that had been open on his desk and burn it with a simple spell. He looks around and is faced with the empty, poorly lit room. After that, he goes back to writing.

Lots of letters to write, books to draft and futures to shape.

*

Arthur staggers. With his body aching, the only thing he can think about is how much he doesn’t want to see Guinevere’s smug expression after she used him as a punching bag for hours.

-C’mon, Arthur. This is the third time I repeat these instructions. Come on! You already gathered the energy. After that, you don’t need to stay so focused, unless the goal is to drain your opponent’s magic.

Arthur’ real desire was to have the power that Guinevere said he did. Who knows, maybe, he would be able to take the smile off the face of his “Teacher”.

However, all he can do (so far) is to concentrate and steal energy from others. Because that is the only way he can gather energy in his body. By “stealing” the power that the world has given to others and, now, he can take for himself. It does not matter who: From Guinevere, Galaaz, the insects or even from the trees. He just needs to gather the energy to survive the wave of attacks that would surely be delivered by the blue-haired warrior.

-What is the reason for the hurry? – He tries to buy time, delivering the question with the maximum amount of provocation he can put in his voice. – Has anyone been asking for results?

-I would be more curious to know why you are so calm. – She says without hesitation. – After all, it is your neck that is at risk if my superiors lose their patience.

-What do you-

He does not have time to finish, as she throws herself forward without a weapon – since the first day, she no longer needed to use weapons to scare him out.

And, in a fraction of a second, he remembers the training that Guinevere has been sculpting in his mind: To dodge, step back, breath. Another step back, turn the body and swing the staff. To recover after his strike is defended, dodge again, perform a pirouette, strike again and, then, concentrate the energy his body has collected back into the staff. Finally, to jump forward, aim the staff and, then, release.

And nothing else. His staff energy is just a light that protrudes ahead and destroys part of the lawn, since Guinevere managed to deflect it in time.

He feels the side of his body hit by a kick, strong enough to bury part of his body in the ground.

-She always escapes. - He grumbles. – I need… I need to prevent her escape.

“I need to take that stupid smile out of her face.”

Feeling his head spinning and with his hand closed around the staff – dropping his own weapon would result in severe punishment – he tries to remember the reason to endure that pain.

And he knows he needs to get up.

To survive.

He lifts the staff and gather energy.

To see the world.

He needs to release the energy in bigger quantities and, at the same time, he tries to make spheres, shooting them in different directions and closing her escape routes.

Those spheres explode around the body of the blue-haired warrior, creating smoke and spreading dust everywhere.

While he admires the rising dust, a mixture of concern and pride battle inside him. Pride for the apparently successful attack. Concern over the teacher’s anger after being hit by a recklessly delivered blow.

“At least her smile must be gone by know.”

But things do not usually go the way Arthur predicts. This repeats when Guinevere appears in the smoke and dust, smiling even more than before.

-How did you do that? – She shows her arm, with bruises in two different places. – I didn’t tell you to do that.

-I just… I was trying to be sure you couldn’t run away.

She shakes her head slowly, several times.

-That is good. You have stopped thinking of your magic as something that needs to imitate spells that you have seen before. We will work on this.

-Wait. What about the break?

-I was the one who lost in that exchange. - She smiles and stretch her arms. - If I don't need to rest, then we won't have a break.

"Let's continue."

*

*