Bab 5: Rivalry

After this hunting expedition, Drodosis attended the knight training that occurred in the afternoon, something that he wouldn't miss for all the gold in the world. After all, not to mention that he was polishing his swordsmanship more than ever at this moment, he also had contact with people he could fool around with.

Otherwise, he would only stay with his parents or knights, either way people he couldn't offend or disappoint. Around other trainees, Drodosis was popular, and known as a sword genius. Moreover, everyone knew that he was going to become the future lord of the Kerrosby Valley, so they were trying to gain his favour.

Drodosis' best friend naturally became Arnold Hawfea.

Arnold was a two-meters titan, and with Eric's training since a young age, he was nearing the preparatory knight realm. Receiving Lara's teachings for years, his swordsmanship had also broken through the beginner realm, and he was the only one who could take Drodosis head on and still win swiftly.

"One more round!", Drodosis shouted with evident rage and battle spirit in his voice.

"Alright!", Arnold answered straightforwardly. He wouldn't back down in front of adversity.

Arnold was a true warrior, and he found many similarities between himself and Drodosis. Both of them were striving to become knights. Both of them had knight parents. Both of them were stronger than their peers. And more importantly, both of them had reached the beginner swordsman realm.

Their spars were overly violent yet gentle at the same time. Clashes were loud, but they always stopped before the sword eventually hit their opponent in order to prevent injuries from happening.

After their spars, Drodosis went to his bathing experience, and decided to meditate at the same time, despite his fatigue. After one hour of breathing technique inside the medicinal bath, Drodosis felt more alive than ever.

Upon getting out of his room, he found Arnold waiting for him.

"Hi, Drodosis. I was wondering whether you would come with me to spar a little bit more. I really enjoyed this afternoon's spar!"

"Seems like we had similar ideas, Arnold!"

This day was really eventful. It also marked the debut of a growing rivalry between two sword geniuses. One was relying on the biochip and hard work, while the other was relying on body strength and unwavering battle spirit.

Feints, thrusts, chops, slashes…In the evening, the training ground was used by two trainees, and their hard somehow earned the appreciation of Roland, who was passing by with Eric.

"I am relieved to see our sons being on friendly terms!"

"I never doubted a second in our sons' character! They are similar in so many ways.", Eric answered.

"Haha!", both of them thus burst into laughter.

The next day, Drodosis attended the morning breakfast with the three knights once again. This time, the subject wasn't about politics, but basic knowledge that they considered essential for a future lord.

Roland – "Remember this conversation, Drodosis. A lord must never stop himself from accumulating knowledge."

Helena – "Indeed, I want to tell you about our trip to Starlight City! Such a grandiose city. Walls were 12-meters-high, and the hustle and bustle could be heard from kilometres away! The merchant caravans and the golden statues at the entrance made the view gorgeous…"

Drodosis asked with curiosity, once Helena was finished with her passionate description: "What were you doing in such a great city?"

"Oh? I was just sightseeing, and of course, conducting some trades. The Kerrosby valley possesses quite a lot of fertile lands, but the core pillar of our household's economy is the fur industries that I manage. It's also because of these responsibilities that I cannot spend as much time as I would like to with you, love!"

Drodosis felt really happy at this moment. He felt lucky to be born in this family, to receive this parental love. At the same time, he had mixed feelings of guilt and shame for not being able to tell them the truth about himself. He was not their son, but also a transmigrated being!

After attending the knight training with Lara and the other trainees, Drodosis and Arnold began sparring, under the sparkling eyes of bystanders.

As both Drodosis and Arnold were exhausted after sparring for more than one hour, they went straight to the dinner hall, and ate to their feel. They found out that their rivalry wasn't simply about swords, but everything in the daily life.

Seeing Drodosis eating an entire chicken by himself, Arnold tried to eat one and a half, but ended up with nausea under Drodosis' straightforward laughter. Thereafter, both headed to the library, and even though Drodosis had already read all the books inside, he loved exercising his mathematics, literacy and geographic skills.

Arnold felt dumbfounded seeing that he was outsmarted by someone who was 6 years younger than him!

[Beep! Name: Arnold (14-years-old, 2 months). Strength – 1.19 | Agility – 1.02 | Physique – 1.48 | Status: Healthy. Perks: Knight Perseverance, beginner swordsman…]

Before Drodosis realized, a real friendship formed itself between the two of them. They didn't have to hide their true strength in front of each other. They accepted their differences, their strengths and weaknesses. Although they had met quite a few times in the past, it was the path of the sword that really brought the two of them close to each other.

As the evening was falling, both of them were laid on the ground, under the beautiful sunset.

Drodosis – "Hey, Arnold, do you know a place where we could learn horsemanship?"

Arnold – "Of course! My father is a knight, but he rose from a family of rich farmers! His story is known throughout the entire region as a success testimony that everything is possible, provided with guts and hard work!"

Drodosis – "Really? Do you think we could do it tomorrow?"

Arnold – "Of course! My house is a few miles away, but if we run, it shouldn't take longer than a few hours. I will have to ask the permission from my father. You should do the same, or Helena might be worried sick again!"

Drodosis – "Haha! You're right!"

The next day, both of them practiced horsemanship, and obviously…they failed. No matter how easy it looked like, most of horses in Swania were extremely wild and prideful. How could they allow humans riding them? However, Drodosis and Arnold had fun. Despite falling over and over again, they stood up…to the point that their forceful attempts attracted many slaves and farmers.

Days passed in a peaceful and quick manner. Under the heat of the summer, they finally managed to get some attainments in horsemanship after 4 days. Of course, they didn't stop from training their swordsmanship skills in the meantime, and Drodosis also attended his morning lessons with his parents and the knights.

At this point, the friendship between Arnold and Drodosis was sealed, along with their rivalry!