บท 99: A New Ability
"Haa…"
Hound sighed. Sitting in front of her was Sebastian who had suddenly asked to meet with her without any prior notice.
"Hound and Fox are acquainted, but the second princess and Sebastian Sol aren't. Keep that in mind the next time you're planning on dropping by."
"Yes…"
Sebastian hadn't thought of it prior to entering the palace. He typically intruded on Hound's living quarters in Blue Rose all the time.
"So, what do you want?"
"A sparring partner…"
"..."
Hound glared at him. Sebastian could only withstand her glare for a few seconds before looking away.
"You came all this way, while risking our identities, might I add, to ask for a sparring partner? Couldn't you have gotten Amira or some random guy off the street and asked them to spar with you?"
Sebastian coughed. "Amy and I are uh… She's currently mad at me."
"...you're too much of a handful. What did I do in my past life to be stuck with you…?"
When she isn't wearing her mask, she's very talkative. That's' what Sebastian understood from their exchanges. Even right now, he was practicing what Wisteria had taught him. He was trying to study Hound's habits.
"Alright, fine. I'll spar with you, not like I'm doing anything anyway."
Hound sighed and got up from her seat. Sebastian followed behind her. Many servants attending the royal palace cast him curious gazes but they quickly turned their eyes away.
"Your Highness Euphea."
Sebastian looked at the one who had interrupted their walk, he was a familiar face though Sebastian had not interacted with him before. He was a Duke with ties to the Inheritors, though he wasn't one himself.
"Duke Anton."
Hound—Euphea greeted him. She didn't greet him with a curtsey, she held a higher position, after all.
"Your Highness, where are you planning to go?"
Euphea knit her brows. "Must I report my whereabouts to you?"
"Please don't misunderstand, Your Highness. I'm just curious as to where you plan to bring the one behind you. I don't recall hearing a planned visit either."
"That's none of the Duke's business. He is the fiancé of my friend, it would be rude of me to turn him away when he has come all this way. Now, if you excuse us…"
Euphea led Sebastian away. Sebastian took a look back and saw the duke's cold gaze on him before he turned away.
"I apologize about that. The Duke has been a long time supporter of my father and he frequents the palace often. With talks about my engagement to his son, he's began treating me like a daughter."
"Engagement, huh…"
Euphea was a couple of years older than Damian, she should be past the age that's prime for engagement and marriage.
It was surprising, but not unexpected. Sebastian forgot it himself after she was revealed as Hound but Euphea's beauty was out of this world.
Even without her name, many people would sing praises of her beauty after just catching a glimpse of her once.
Maybe the king didn't want to marry his daughter off and allow her to marry someone she loves.
"It's a common talk among nobility and Inheritors alike. Though your engagement has love, it is also a political marriage, is it not?"
"...you have a good point."
Neither Sebastian nor Amy proposed to each other. It was their parents who had decided it without their consent.
"Remember, Euphea li Aurora doesn't know how to fight. We're going to be sparring at a secret spot in the royal palace."
"Must be tiring having to maintain two identities…"
Euphea paused. She looked back at Sebastian with a gaze that seemed to say, 'I don't want to hear that from you'.
Sebastian laughed awkwardly as Euphea sighed.
…
"Agh…"
"When you asked to spar with me, I had assumed that you already had a level of skill, what is this?"
Euphea sighed and shook her head. In her hand was a wooden sword which she had just used to smack Sebastian in the abdomen.
"Observation isn't such a simple skill to learn. It could take years to even take the first step. Don't think you'll suddenly be able to match my movements when I've been practicing it for as long as I've been training."
When it came to training, Euphea was very strict. She didn't like to mince words and pointed out what was wrong with Sebastian's thinking and actions when she sees them.
In a sense, she could be the perfect training partner.
If Sebastian just wanted to get one-sidedly beaten while improving, then Mile or Wisteria would've made better partners.
"It'll be night soon so after three more bouts, we'll end this for today."
"Alright…"
Sebastian stood up and brandished his sword.
THACK THACK THACK
Sebastian swung his sword thrice and Euphea blocked three times. Without missing a beat, she stepped into his sword range and hit his chest with her sword's handle.
"Again."
Sebastian took a deep breath and attacked again. He went for a thrust but Euphea dodged to the side and hit him at the side of the neck.
"Again."
…
In the end, Sebastian couldn't land a single blow on her. He really wasn't used to a sword, but he didn't always have the option of using a spear.
Most of the knights and Inheritors that could use weapons preferred the sword. If he were disarmed and locked in combat, he wouldn't have the luxury of having to choose a weapon, he had to make do with what he had.
And, the spot in the royal palace that Euphea had led him to only had wooden swords. It was a place for nobles to practice, apparently.
Once Sebastian got home, he was greeted by Sana and Martha who was holding onto his little brother.
"Where's mother?"
"She's already retired for the night. She was up playing with the little master and Sana and got tired."
"I see. Sana, what are you doing?"
"Training!"
"Right now?"
"Yes! Sana is training in the backyard but ran here when papa returned."
"Ooh… Then, I'll accompany you while you're training."
"Nn!"
Sana was as energetic was ever. Sebastian ruffled his little brother's head for a bit before following after Sana who was running in the halls.
Once Sebastian stepped into the backyard, he saw Sana sitting by the side. She was holding a wilted flower and was actively trying to heal it.
"Hoooh…"
Sebastian could see the wilted flower slowly regaining life. Healing abilities couldn't return someone from the dead, but they could bring someone back from the brink.
The wilted flower must've still had a bit of life left in it as Sana managed to return it back to normal after a couple of minutes.
"Sana thinks it's harder to heal plants than people."
"Well, plants are a lot simpler after all."
Sebastian sat beside Sana and watched as she kept on picking flowers and healing them. There were an abundance of flowers in the backyard that she could use for practice.
"..."
Sebastian went into a trance. He absentmindedly stared at Sana's healing and repeated it in his mind over and over.
"—pa? Papa?"
"Eh? Ah, what?"
"Sana's finished."
"Oh… Good job. Let's go to bed."
"Nn!"
Sebastian shook his head to focus and led Sana by the hand to her room. He then walked into his own room and made sure to close the door and curtains before sitting on the bed.
—Have you managed to learn it?
"I think so…"
Sebastian hadn't meant to, but he had somehow unconsciously began deciphering Sana's ability.
After taking the spear resting on the wall beside the bed, Sebastian cut open his palm.
—A rather big cut. What would you do if you aren't able to succeed?
"Then I'll have Sana heal it tomorrow."
—Haa…
Balanos resigned and sighed.
Sebastian hovered his left hand over his right palm where he had cut and then closed his eyes. He had to remember Sana's actions.
After a few minutes, a flicker of green light appeared on his hand. Sebastian opened his eyes as the light flickered less and less.
It looked like a candle about to be blown away by the wind.
"Uughhh…"
With one last groan, Sebastian succeeded in making the green light still. His wound slowly began closing as sweat poured down from his forehead.
It took him around five minutes to completely heal his wound.
"Wow. That was amazing."
—I can't say the same about your performance.
"Shut up."
Sebastian took the spear once again and cut his palm open once more. He hovered his hand and around five minutes again, did his wound finally disappear.
"Hmm…"
Sebastian took off the clothes on his upper body and aimed the green light at the scar caused by the hawk. After around ten minutes, he could see that the scar wouldn't disappear at all.
"Guess that was hoping for too much."
—If you had that power when you were cut, you might've been able to prevent a scar.
"Pity."
Amy always looked a bit despondent when she catches sight of his scar. Though she wasn't perturbed by its looks, it reminded her of her inability to protect him.
Sebastian didn't want her to feel responsible.
"Let's go find that person that can wield shadows tomorrow."
—Nn.
With that ability, Sebastian would be able to fulfill Balanos' requirements easier. He would be able to travel from Aurora to Tidas easier too.
Sebastian spent the night practicing his healing. Though he was moving slowly, he was satisfied.
…
"Of course I'd end up here."
Sebastian sighed. He had ended up in a fairly familiar place, in fact, he came here just yesterday. He was told that he shouldn't be able to enter the royal palace so easily so he planned to limit his visits but fate somehow liked to go against him.
"Is the one that can use shadows really inside there?"
—There's no mistake. I felt their presence yesterday as well.
"Then, why didn't you tell me?"
—Because you were preoccupied with something else.
If Balanos had told him yesterday, then he would've asked for Euphea's cooperation. Now, he seemed sshameles for visiting a princess two days in a row without any prior notice.
"Ughh…"
—Stop complaining and move. You're not the only one pressed for time.
"Fine…"
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SeverTheHeavens
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