The wind blew through the training grounds of the Galvan Manor as a battered Cypher held aloft his wooden sword with shaking hands. He was tired, but despite his exhaustion and bleeding knuckles, his eyes held in them a fierce determination to continue.

Through his black bangs, he could see that Eiden stood equally tired. But he too stood firm, and as smug as ever as he faced down the young servant boy. The two of them clashed again, wooden staves clacking against each other as quick blows were parried and blocked.

Cypher spun on his heels to dodge a short series of attacks from Eiden, and after planting his feet, returned his own. Eiden growled with frustration, a look of hatred blooming on his face. It was at that point that Cypher slowed his assault.

With disdain he deliberately raised his sword arm to deliver a downward blow, leaving himself open. He held the pose for an instant longer than he should have, and Eiden took slow notice of the action. With a grunt and a quick flourish of his sword, Eiden cracked Cypher along his exposed ribs.

He let out a triumphant cry as Cypher's sword clattered to the ground and the boy fell to his knees. However, he didn't notice the glaringly obvious fact that Cypher had allowed the attack to go through unblocked.

"Enough!" said Jelroy as Cypher lay on the ground clutching his ribs to suppress the pain. The blow had been a very harsh and hard one delivered with Eiden's full strength. Had he not grown used to being battered this way over the years, something might have broken from the impact.

"Enough? No that isn't fair!" bellowed Eiden. "You can't expect me to go easy on this bastard can you Jelroy? We've barely been at it for more than a few hours can't we continue?"

"With all due respect my lord," began Jelroy, "A mere servant could never be a match for one of your skills. Even I can only do so much. If you wish to continue having a partner to spar with, you'd do well to keep him from sustaining any further injuries until the healers can tend to him. Cypher, that will be all for today, you may go. Off with you now."

Jelroy looked at him with a raised eyebrow, knowing full well what the young boy had done. It was a clear warning that Cypher had quickly understood. Cypher pulled himself to his feet and reluctantly bowed to first Eiden and then to Jelroy, before turning to leave for the healer’s quarters.

Tired and bruised as he was, he was eager to continue his bout with the smug young heir. He was growing in skill during these sparring sessions. Cypher had noticed a clear opening in Eiden's form during their last clash before he had allowed the heir to hit him, and could have easily won the match.

However Jelroy was onto him, and he dared not press the issue. He was lucky enough to be allowed to train with Eiden as it was and would have to further refine his skills tomorrow. Jelroy was clearly not going to allow him more experience today. Eiden had almost noticed the obvious difference in their skill.

"Leave the sword behind bastard, I'm done with you for today. Tomorrow I expect you to be in top form, I can't afford to slack off now," chided Eiden. He casually tossed his own sword to Jelroy before taking a long drink from a jug of water he had lifted from the ground near a small bush.

"Of course, my lord, my mistake," Cypher answered before setting his sword against a nearby tree. With another bow, he left uttering curses under his breath.

Cypher scurried into the servant's entrance of the manor and up the stairs before Eiden could berate him further and, after changing his mind, headed towards not the healer's quarters but his own. His wounds were minimal and he would be fine after a bit of rest and a bite to eat.

Cypher threw himself upon his bed as he slammed the door behind him and looked up at the ceiling. He sighed with frustration as he lay there. Oh, how he longed to teach Eiden a lesson in humility. For the last year, the two of them had been sparring for a few hours every day in preparation for the upcoming entrance exams to the Guardian Hall Academy and soon, the young heir would be leaving to hopefully attend classes there.

Eiden had grown steadily over the course of their training but Cypher had surpassed him a long time ago and was quite gifted in the way of the sword. At this point in their lessons, Cypher had mastered the basics of the art. He was faster, stronger, and overall, a much better swordsman than Eiden.

However, he could not simply reveal this fact. Hurting Eiden's ego was strictly taboo and he knew full well what would happen if he proved himself superior to Eiden in any way for even an instant. Sufficed to say, Cypher was reluctant to experience that again. He knew that should he reveal the full scope of his superior abilities, more beatings would be quick to follow.

Thus, Cypher held back each and every day, spotting various openings in Eiden's defenses. Of course, this too was a form of training all its own and Cypher knew that quite well. Since his experience in Gett a year ago Cypher had changed a lot. Not only had he gone through a growth spurt, but he had dedicated every waking moment that he could to training. His results had paid off immensely and he was far and apart much different from the green swordsman who had slain Gelath the Ghostly.

Eiden’s attitude towards Cypher had changed, but only slightly. The heir was still quite the bully, but his torment of Cypher had noticeably eased up over the course of that last year. Were there improvements that could be made? Of course. But Cypher found that he was left alone while doing his chores, and even in his downtime, Eiden found better things to do than torment him. These days, Eiden only gave him trouble during their training sessions.

"Spoiled little brat, wait until you get into the academy. They won't be so quick to coddle you there I bet..." Cypher mumbled to himself as he sat up and stared out his window, munching on an apple he had grabbed from his bedside table. He spat a seed out the window, staring across the field at Eiden and Jelroy who were moving through various drills with the sword. In only another few months, the entrance exam would begin.

While Eiden had indeed been less of a thorn in Cypher’s side, a replacement quickly took his place. To Cypher’s dismay, he had discovered that he would be required to accompany Eiden during his time at the academy. It had been a hasty decision, but one that he was forced to go along with. Eiden had stumbled across a bit of knowledge about the Academy that stated that those from Noble houses were allowed to bring along a single servant to assist them in their day-to-day lives. After some begging and pleading with his father, Galex had come to Cypher and ordered him to accompany Eiden to the Academy.

It wasn’t an ideal situation, but Galex had sweetened the deal by offering Cypher a full tuition to the Royal Institute of Knighthood. He would have to serve Eiden for two years, but once he was old enough he would be allowed to transfer to there and follow his life’s dream of becoming a knight. It was a fair proposal all things considered.

Knights who trained there were guaranteed to succeed. They would find themselves serving under the Dellorimian royalty directly. They would be able to lodge in the royal castle and such a position garnered respect and admiration from nobles and commoners alike. At the end of a ten-year tenure, they would be allowed to pursue their own goals and take on assignments of their own choosing until they retired at the age of fifty.

The exam, Cypher guessed, wouldn't really matter all that much as Galex would have already paid for his son's admission into that prestigious school. Eiden was quick to sneer and brag about how Cypher would be joining him to handle his every want and desire. How he would be worked so hard, he would wish he was back at the manor still shoveling shit behind the stables.

That remark had made Cypher want to punch the smug heir. However, it wouldn't do him any good to act out before they were safely away from the manor. Once at the academy, (while not a student) Cypher would be able to do as he wished in his free time, as long as the tasks Eiden gave him were completed.

Here at the manor though, his days were constantly filled with the never-ending stream of chores he was required to do in order to "earn" his room and meals. He was eager to get to the academy more than he let on, as he didn't wish for Eiden to leave him here out of spite. A life of servitude was not what Cypher had in mind at all. In truth, the offer that Galex had given him was indeed great and normally anyone would kill for a chance like that. But Cypher had other plans. As good an offer as it was, Cypher saw it for what it truly was, trading one leash for another.

He was done serving under others, always being at the beck and call of someone else, never having his own independence until his life was already half over. A light knock at his door disturbed his thoughts, and Cypher turned and said, "Come in!" With a creak, the heavy oak door slid open to reveal Molly carrying a tray of bandages and ointments and a small bowl full of water.

"I take it that the young master was as relentless as usual?" She said, raising an eyebrow as she looked him over.

"Aye, but it's not as though my injuries are that bad, just some bumps and bruises. You didn't have to waste your time coming all this way just for my sake Molly," Cypher responded, smiling warmly at her as she set the tray down on the small table near his bed.

"You can act as tough as you want, but just because you're twelve now doesn't mean you're all grown up quite yet. I may not be your mother, but I am most certainly going to make sure that you keep yourself in good health." She turned to sort out the items on her tray and held out her hand to him.

"What kind of nurse would I be if I let my charge fall victim to some infection or sickness that could have been easily avoided had he not been so stubborn? No, I simply won't have it. Now, march yourself over here and sit down!" Cypher did as she asked. Truthfully, his body ached from the ‘training’ he had endured this morning and some tender care would be nice.

He placed his hand in hers and she turned to face him, quickly taking note of the cracked skin of his knuckles. They were still bleeding slightly from the many times Eiden had disarmed him with quick hard raps of his wooden sword.

"One of these days I'm going to teach Eiden a lesson. He's so smug and arrogant and doesn't even deserve half of what he has. How is it that people like that are born into such wealth and power while people, good people like you and I are forced to serve them?" Cypher asked.

"Now, now. I'll not have you bad-mouthing our benefactors like that. Haven't I taught you better than that? I know he can be... tough, to deal with, but he is of noble blood and deserves the proper respect,” sarcasm heavily coated her words as she spoke and a smile of understanding was shared between them. “Between you and me though? Aye, the little brat deserves a good beating with a gnarled stick 'round his backside."

This made him smile again as Molly tended his wounds starting with his knuckles. She washed them using the bowl of water and a sponge, and then applied the stinging ointment before wrapping them in the bandages as she continued.

"Aye, it's unfair how one can be born a noble and another a mere servant. Such is the way of the world though and it won't do to dwell on that which cannot be changed. I've been a servant for more than forty years and I can tell you I've seen my fair share of rotten children and thrice-blasted nobles."

"Equally though, I've seen many a good man come from families such as these, and not always is it that they treat their servants with such cruel disdain. Besides, I think that Eiden is the way he is because his father is never around. The boy craves attention and seeks to gain it however he can. You, on the other hand, are a good-natured young lad with a big heart."

Molly held his arms up and removed his torn and dirty shirt as she spoke and examined his bruised ribs. She grimaced a bit as she beheld the long-healed scar from Gelath’s blade, and applied a numbing cream gently over the areas to soothe the pain a bit as she spoke to him in her tender voice.

"You were dealt a bad hand in life, and despite that fact, you remain a sweet caring boy. Don't let a snobbin' like Eiden trouble you one bit. He might be destined to lead this family one day, but it is you who has the ability to change your lot in life. He is stuck in his role and cannot be more than another noble family head. You aren't a proper slave, and although it may not feel like it you are free to one day leave this manor and strive for a better life out in the world."

Cypher nodded and smiled. Her speeches were always most welcome when he was frustrated like this. Indeed his lot in life wasn't set in stone. Eiden however was destined to one day lead his family and that narrowed his future down to a single point.

Molly smiled at him and pulled a small piece of candy from her pocket. She handed it to him with a wink and Cypher grinned at her before popping it into his mouth. The sweet flavor quickly warmed him and brought yet another smile to his face.

"Thank you, Molly. I don't know what I would do if I didn't have you to tend to me. I won't ever forget how kind you've been to me over the years. If there is anything I can do to make it up to you please let me know."

"Ah, think nothing of it love. The family might treat you poorly, but I at least see the value in a promising young lad such as yourself. You can do so much if only given a chance. Don't ever let the world bring you down to a point where you cannot even show kindness to others. As I said before and will say again, your heart is big and your soul is kind. Keep that alive within you, and there's no limit to how far you'll go."

With that she kissed him on his forehead like she usually did and gathered up her tray to leave, closing the door softly behind her.

With his training for the day done and his wounds mended, Cypher let out a deep sigh before heading off to complete his other tasks. His workload had been somewhat reduced due to the demands of training with Eiden, but he still had a lot to accomplish each day.

Today he had to clean the stables, polish and sharpen the swords of the guardsmen of the manor, and collect and replace their dirty linens with clean ones. It would only take a few hours to accomplish everything but he still wasn't looking forward to it.

"Just a few more months, that's all I have to wait. Just a few more months of this misery." Cypher muttered to himself as he headed out of the manor and down to the stables. His days carried on like that for another month. He would wake, head down to the training field, and spar with Eiden. Then he would do his chores and in the evenings, would read and recover.

During this time, Eiden seemed to grow more and more smug and insufferable. He would intentionally harden his blows in their training sessions leaving Cypher sorer and more bruised than normal. He returned to his old ways and would chastise and complain about work Cypher had already completed forcing him to redo the chores while he watched and nitpicked his every move.

Eiden would even add more tasks on top of the ones Cypher was already required to complete in an effort to make his life even harder. Even when Eiden was spending time with his mother or sisters he would find ways to bully Cypher. He would kick at mop buckets near Cypher as he passed him in the halls and dirty a floor he had just cleaned. He would leave sparring equipment in the manor and force Cypher to make multiple trips outside just to return it to its proper location.

Eiden's bullying had grown more and more obvious as the time to depart drew nearer. Cypher could do nothing, as Eiden's mother Tyrina simply saw it as harmless fun and wished to keep her son happy before he departed the manor for several years. Where normally she would have scolded Eiden for being so petty towards a mere servant, (an act she deemed beneath nobility) now she simply forced a laugh and looked upon Cypher with pity as she walked alongside her son.

Eiden's father was nowhere to be seen, however. Galex was always handling business in other parts of the manor, or out in the nearby cities they ruled over. He was quite busy managing things there and didn't seem to have much time for Eiden.

Molly was right, Cypher noticed. It seemed that each time Galex would postpone spending time with his son, the young heir would seek him out and bully him in worse ways each time. Eiden was venting his frustrations on Cypher, and now that the time to leave was nearing it could not be more obvious.

As angry as it made him, Cypher bit his tongue and suffered through the harsh treatment. He had done it for years now and a few more months was nothing he couldn't handle. He was more cunning than any of these nobles realized and he had a plan. It was a plan to escape this manor, this family, Eiden’s smug glares, and most of all, his life of servitude.

Once he arrived at the academy away from the ever-watchful eyes of the guards and the noble family, he would escape and hopefully find the kind of life he dreamt of. One he could call his own.