He walked toward them slowly. His steps were sharp and gave him a sense of confidence. Kier was sixteen years old. His hair was short, messy, and black—darker than black, unnaturally black. The upper half of his forehead was covered by the messy strands hanging down. His eyebrows followed a straight line but curved slightly at the ends, and beneath them were his brown eyes. Even though his eyes were brown, they still matched his hair and eyebrows, making them appear a bit darker than usual brown eyes.His nose was neither big nor small, and his lips, pressed together naturally, gave his face a subtle charm. He wasn't the kind of handsome boy who would take the breath away from ladies, but he wasn't bad-looking either.
He was of average height for his age, and his posture was always balanced—like someone used to reacting quickly.
He was wearing a white T-shirt and gray short pants. His left hand held a gray jacket that happened to carry a few white apples. Everything about him looked normal, but when he raised his right hand to greet them, the black robe wrapped around his arm—tied like a bandage from the wrist to just above the elbow—looked almost as if it were part of his body.
Not to mention the long and thin object on his right side: something slender and dark, looking almost like a piece of wood painted black, hanging at the right side of his waist, with its end slightly curved toward the left.
"Where were you, Kier?" Marwen asked with a bit of anger and concern. "You were gone before I even woke up, and why aren't you wearing your jacket when it's still cold outside?" she added.
Kier took a step back. With a troubled look on his face, he answered, "I was at the cliff swimming, and then I hurried to the port after I heard some commotion." His tone was low, and then he noticed Bron standing right next to her.
"Anyway, enough about me—we have a guest over. It's been a while, Bron. You don't know how much I've missed you, man. Just look at you, you've grown so much. Uncles these days grow so fast it almost made me cry just thinking about it."
Bron's eyebrows shot up while the rest of his face remained stiff, as if he couldn't believe what he was hearing.
"Are you for real?"
Kier moved closer to Bron, placing a hand on his shoulder. He stretched a little and whispered into his ear,
"Play along, man. You don't want to cause trouble, do you?"
"It wouldn't do me any harm," Bron replied with a cheeky smile.
"Oh, you bet it would. Now there's no turning back, so just play along."
"What are you two whispering about?" Marwen asked, breaking their hushed conversation.
"Nothing, just catching up. Isn't that right, Bron?"
"Y-yeah… just catching up," they both answered with nervous expressions.
"Hhhh… you two are stupid. I can see right through your acting." Lady Marwen stood up and started walking toward the house.
'Grr—glrrr'
A low rumble escaped Kier's stomach, breaking the silence around them.
Lady Marwen turned back and looked at Kier. With a gentle voice, she said,
"I guess you haven't eaten at all. Tell me—what do you want me to make?"
"Oh no, don't do anything. I haven't eaten because Elia has prepared something for us as a farewell gift," Kier quickly answered. "She'll be here any moment now, so we'll all eat together."
"Is that so? I swear this girl always finds a way to make me indebted." Then she looked at Bron. "Did you know about this too?"
"Yeah, she said she would prepare something, but I didn't know she meant for all of us," Bron answered.
"I see… she's a good girl. A farewell gift, huh." Lady Marwen's eyes softened and began to dim slightly, as if the life in them was fading.
"Farewell? Of course—today… I keep forgetting what I'm doing." Bron reached into his coat. "Kier, this is yours."
He took out the letter and handed it to him.
Kier accepted the letter, feeling a little nervous about opening it. The sad expression on Lady Marwen's face worried him, but he tried not to think too deeply about it. He gently opened the letter.
Painted in gold and silver was the symbol of the royal family—an eagle with its wings spread wide, holding a golden crown in its claws, while a lion beneath it bit into the crown. The emblem was shaped almost like a triangle with rounded edges.
And so he read:
——————
Kingdom of Irene
Council of Selection & Honor Guard
To: Kier of the Western Isles
The sixteen-year-old boy Kier from the West has been formally recommended by Sir Bron, Captain under the Green Flag with Three Golden Rings, and by Sir Agron, an ally of the Royal Palace and bearer of many distinguished titles. Both men have testified to the boy's abilities and have strongly insisted on his participation.
Therefore, the boy named Kier shall be admitted as a participant in the Great Tournament of Verilion.
Attention: Being a participant in the Tournament does not mean that you are part of Verilion.
By this decree, you are granted:
Temporary Protection under the Honor Guard Seal
Right of Passage through Irene Territory for the duration of the Tournament
Right of Challenge and Defense under the Laws of Combat
You are required to present yourself at the Kingdom of Irene, no later than the first sunrise after receiving this letter. Failure to appear will result in the immediate forfeiture of your place.
In honor and vigilance,
Eryndel Vaelor
High Marshal of the Honor Guard
Bearer of the Silver Crest
Kingdom of Irene
——————
"So I'm in?" Kier asked.
"Yes, congratulations, Kier! Congratulations to you too, madam."
"Aha, thanks a lot, Bron, you're the best. Here, take one." Kier extended his jacket toward Bron, where he was carrying white apples.
"Well then, I guess I'll take one," said Bron while taking an apple from the jacket. "White ones, huh? Where did you get them?"
"I grew them myself. This is the labor of hard work, you see. But I need someone to take care of the tree while I'm gone, so I was gonna ask you, moth—er?"
Kier noticed Marwen was deep in thought and not paying much attention to them. Even Bron turned toward her as she forced a smile. Kier instantly knew she was worried about him, since the Verilion Tournament was extremely dangerous.
When Marwen realized they were both looking at her, and just as she was about to speak, Kier didn't hesitate for a second and shouted:
"Don't worry about a damn thing, all right!"
Both Marwen and Bron were taken by surprise. Kier then lowered his voice.
"I know you're worried about me, and I know you don't want me to go, but really—I'm going to be fine. It's not that I don't want to listen to you, but you know I have to go. I made a promise and I intend to keep it. This black robe in my right hand is a witness to that. Besides, they say joining Verilion can make any dream come true. You said it yourself: chase your dreams, even if it eventually gets you to bleed. So if you don't want me to go… are you saying I'm weaker than them? The boy that you raised?"
They could feel he meant every word; nothing he said was a bluff.
"If you don't mind me saying," Bron quickly added, "I can assure you Kier has what it takes to go toe-to-toe in this tournament. You saw it yourself when he fought against me."
Marwen had known this boy since he was a baby. She raised him, fed him, clothed him, and took care of him all his life. Like any mother, it was natural for her to worry this much.
After taking a deep breath, Marwen finally spoke.
"I've raised you all these years, and I know you better than anyone else. So I know for sure that even if I say no, you'll still go with Bron, or you'll find some stupid way to get out of here. Yes, I'm worried about you participating in this tournament. And yes, it can give you many opportunities to explore the world and grow stronger… but for you to go out there while everyone is watching will be…"
Marwen stopped for a moment, looked him in the eyes, and gathered all her strength.
"Forget it. Kier, I won't stop you or anything. So go out there and give it your all. Go show them the boy I raised."
A smile appeared on her face; the eyes that once looked lifeless now shone with determination.
"Ahaha, you don't need to worry about that. I'll make it for sure." With her approval, the burden that had been holding him back finally vanished.
"Wow, that was a great speech from both of you."
Applause, applause.
A gentle feminine voice was heard from behind them. It was a woman around Bron's age. She had an average height, a nicely shaped figure—truly the image of a healthy woman. Her black hair was tied behind her back, her eyes had a brownish hue, and her facial features were more than anyone could ask for.
Bron froze completely; he knew that voice very well. She's right behind me… should I greet her? But what the old man said… man, what should I do…
Before Bron made his decision, Kier stepped ahead of him.
"Oh, Elia, it's you! Finally—my stomach is screaming for something," Kier said with his shameless attitude.
"Congratulations, Kier. You made it," Elia said with a gentle smile.
"Elia, my girl, what did these two stupid guys tell me? That you were going to make something for us?"
"Yeah, I made something for us to eat together since I knew Kier was leaving soon," Elia explained, showing the baskets she was carrying.
"Why did you give yourself so much trouble? You could have told me—I would've gladly helped you."
"No, no, it's completely fine. I made this because I wanted to."
"Elia, how have you been?" Bron finally broke his silence, his face completely red.
"Hey, Bron! I'm doing fine—but are you sure you're okay? Your face is completely red. Do you have a fever or something?" she asked with concern.
"No, I'm fine," he answered quickly.
"Then how about a warm breakfast to feel better? Where can I put these, Lady Marwen?"
Marwen showed her the place and helped her carry the baskets.
"Before that, here, take one." Kier extended his jacket again so she could take an apple. "It's from my tree. I brought one for everyone."
"That's so sweet of you, thank you!" Elia said, taking one. "Look, mine even has some red on it."
"Yep, there were only three of those. One is for you, one for that guy, and I left the last one on the tree—that one's yours." Kier turned to Marwen as he finished talking.
"I'll take good care of it, don't worry," Marwen said.
"Now let's go eat, because we have a big day ahead of us."