Kariah-Belle Nadire traced the X-shaped scar that ran slightly above her belly button. Water washed the sweet-smelling soap from her brown skin and curly brown hair as she stood in the shower.

Her mind flashed back to that day. The day her family branch was attacked. The doctors said her brain was working to keep those memories suppressed, and because of the trauma, she could barely remember her life before the incident.

She remembered her parents' murderer, though.

Memphis Felicity was his name. He was in history books for what he'd done to her branch.

She started to shake with anxiety at the mental image of his jagged smile. Kariah-Belle still remembered him wearing the frilled helmet with three horns.

She tried to calm herself but failed. Kariah-Belle started to hyperventilate.

"Are ya done marinating yet?" teased Mae as she entered the girls' shower, followed by Akio.

Relief washed over Kariah-Belle at the sight of her friends. She beamed at them. "Pretty much," she told them as she finished drying herself off.

Two Holy Knights were coming to handpick a few members from their school to be an apprentice.

A Holy Knight taking on an apprentice was a rare thing as they tended to go on missions outside nations very often and usually weren't seen for months at a time. They are the strongest the four nations have to offer, and having one for a master meant you had a bright future as a Knight.

Normally the students at each university wouldn't be evaluated until the Trials, a series of tests that evaluated an individual's skill and knowledge. After that comes the Grand Festival. A televised event where advance course teams from each of the four great schools are pitted against each other in a battle royal.

Kariah-Belle had attended last year's Grand Festival as a spectator. It was fun, and she was only slightly bummed she wouldn't get to compete.

The Order, an army of trained warriors, needed capable Knights immediately. Not just any Knights. They needed younglings with the potential to one day reach the rank of a Holy Knight or at least a mid-tier Divine Knight quickly.

Everyone from Kariah-Belle's team would become a Master Knight right after graduation. They were good candidates to apprentice for a Divine Knight.

Only Jet and Akio would get a spot under a Holy Knight. Kariah-Belle could just imagine her team's leader and her bestie becoming Holy Knights of great renown. She decided that when they did become Holy Knights, she'd treat them to a feast.

The girls talked more about the Knights coming from the different nations as they wrapped up their showers. Kariah-Belle already knew Akio wanted to be a treasure hunter greater than her father, Rexilous Stoneheart, and that Mae Lu wanted to become queen of a nation. When Kariah-Belle sat on the council, the two would work together to help orphanages.

Kariah-Belle sported a frilly skirt over leggings and a crop top that hung loosely off her left shoulder.

Mae Lu wore a simple purple plaid skirt and white button-up with a lavender tie that hung loosely around her neck.

Akio donned a lime green tracksuit. The green jacket had her family's insignia on the back.

The trio made their way to the front of the school like the other students around them. It wouldn't be long before the Knights from the other nations would be at the university's front entrance. The whole while, Kariah-Belle annoyingly teased Akio about the day she fell in love with Lax-Rim, saying how it's something straight out of a romance novel.

Sometime later, Mae Lu spotted Jet and Lax-Rim behind a large crowd of students sitting on a large iron block, no doubt created by Professor Mar-Gin. The three young women made their way over and climbed the staircase. It was an unobstructed view. She and Lax-Rim marveled at the skills other Knights used to get a vantage point.

Within a matter of minutes, three large aircraft landed. Each one possesses the crest of their respective nations. They belonged to the nations of Zyran, Zexus, and Laviria.

Everyone cheered when the Holy Knights of Zexus and Laviria exited their aircraft. Limbo Wolf and Star Titannia had been the only two Holy Knights to volunteer to take on a pupil from the students who would graduate early. Two of the Seven Swords of Justice, a title given to only the strongest Holy Knights.

Their names were known through Lore for their incredible feats. The most notable having the two taking down three giants made by a strong life force region.

Kariah-Belle noticed the Holy Knight's apprentices exiting the ship. She spotted Master Knight: Aya the Frozen Gun right away by her snow-white hair. Her skin had slightly more color than Akio's.

A sharp pain hit her heart. The young woman was the daughter of the man who led the attack on her branch. Kariah held no hate for the woman. In fact, she felt sorry for her.

Rumor had it that her father killed her mother right in front of her.

Talk about being cruel. Kariah-Belle admired the woman's strength. For her to experience such a tragedy and not be tainted by dark mana was a testament to her will. She was suspected to surpass her mentor and become one of the Seven Swords one day. Kariah and Mae Lu idolized her.

And that was when she spotted him.

Kaden.

At first, the young man hadn't stuck out much, other than the fact that he was only the second apprentice to Star Titannia, and he too was predicted to be one of the Seven Swords. The young man was known for recklessly leading a small force through the Mystic Forest of Dragna to retrieve lost comrades. He and Aya were still rookies when they aided in bringing down a Darkness Tamer. His skin was the same tone as hers and his brown-black wavy hair was kept in a short but thick ponytail.

Then she noticed the scabbard that sheathed his sword sported the Nadire crest. Three blue roses.

What the heck?

Only members from a family branch could brandish a family's crest. It was the same with weapons and gear passed down through the generations.

Kariah-Belle's mother had been killed along with the rest of her branch, which meant she should be the only person in the world to brandish the Nadire crest. Why did this guy have something that belonged to her family's heritage?

Her head was buzzing with questions. She turned and their eyes met.

Her mind went blank as her vision was taken over by a flash of light that was like a canvas for two dark silhouettes.

One was tall. It seemed to be wearing a helmet with horns and frills.

The second silhouette was small, like a child. It looked as though it was thrusting a sword into the taller silhouette's chest.

The image left as fast as it had come, and Kariah-Belle's vision returned. She placed her hands on her temple to massage away the sudden dizziness. "What the heck just happened?" she whispered.

Feeling a pair of eyes on her, she turned to find Akio watching her, looking as detached as ever. But Kariah could tell what she was thinking. While the others were cheering and rooting, Akio took notice of Kariah-Belle's strange behavior by raising her eyebrow.

Kariah-Belle mouthed, "Not now. We'll talk later."

Akio nodded to her friend. Kariah didn't know how she would explain what just happened to her friend, though. She was at a loss.