Moving fast.

The next day, Cassian arrived at the barracks again and found Cele standing at the center of the yard.

"Why didn't you come yesterday?" she asked, worry on her face. Cassian explained what had happened the previous day, what Ezo had done, and how exhausted he had been.

"I didn't know, sorry."

"It's fine."

"So you're a mutant too? You don't look scary like Mister Ezo," she said, a shiver running down her spine. She had seen Ezo from a distance and had been terrified by his appearance. She couldn't imagine fighting him. Cele now saw Cassian in a different light. "Though you're not as scary," she added, wrapping an arm around his shoulders.

"Maybe in the future, then you'll be scared of me," Cassian teased, pinching Cele's side.

As they attempted to tickle each other, a kid approached them. "Excuse me, are you Cassian?"

Cassian nodded.

"Hi, I'm Daniel. My sister is Dalia, and she told me to say sorry for not visiting you. She's been quite busy." The boy, Daniel, looked a little awkward and nervous. "Also, I wish to be your friend!" he added, his voice loud enough to startle Cele.

Cassian looked at Daniel. He resembled Dalia, with the same wavy hair. "Sure, we can be friends. Can you tell Dalia that maybe I will visit her if she can't visit me?"

Daniel's face brightened. "Okay, I will! By the way, do you guys know where we're supposed to meet the teacher?"

"Teacher?" Cassian was confused. "What teacher?" He looked at Cele, who suddenly had a panicked expression.

"Crap! I forgot! Come, Sian, or we'll be late!" She grabbed Cassian's hand and started running, with Daniel hurrying behind them.

They soon reached a large podium with small wooden chairs arranged in front of it. Kids from different ages and parts of the barracks were already seated. Cele guided Cassian and Daniel to a mostly empty area, and they sat. A few minutes later, a tall and slender man entered the podium, and all the kids quickly fell silent.

"Good morning, Cadets."

"Morning, Professor!" The older cadets answered in unison, while the younger ones, like Cassian, remained quiet.

"Most of you know who I am, but it seems this year we have new faces. Let me introduce myself. I'm Professor Alex. But please, just call me Professor."

The man spoke eloquently, his hands moving in rhythm with his words, capturing everyone's attention. Cassian had a hard time keeping up with his speech.

"The reason I'm here today is to teach history. But for those who have heard me before, don't worry—I will be brief. I'm only going to cover the important events so the new kids don't feel lost. Let's get started."

Cassian focused on the professor, curious about the world and its vastness.

First, Professor Alex explained how people could tell time before darkness arrived. In the first stage—morning—fire burned a bright and powerful red. During the second stage—midday—the flames became a more modest orange, still bright. The third stage—end-day—saw the fire lose its strength, with flames turning yellow, weaker yet still capable of burning. Finally, at night, during darkness, fire lost all its color. The once pitiful yellow flames became a powerful white inferno, burning fiercely as though fighting against the darkness. Professor Alex called this the purest form of light—one that gave its all at the end of its life.

"Sorry, it seems I got a bit excited. Let's move to the next topic."

He then explained how humans began counting time. There were nine months in a year, divided into three sections, each containing three months. The people of the past had devised this metric to make timekeeping simple for common folk and those without education.

The sections had simple names: the first was Origin, the second Welfare, and the third Reward. Cassian found this easy to remember. Then, he learned the current year—Year 249 of the Stering Empire Calendar.

After that, Professor Alex spoke about special days and celebrations. The one that interested Cassian the most was the last day of the year when people thanked Darkness for giving them another year of life. Cassian wasn't sure how he felt about this. What bothered him more was that he couldn't recall ever celebrating such a thing. He couldn't even remember the faces of his parents. In fact, he had no memories before his village was attacked. But those thoughts vanished as quickly as they had appeared, leaving him disoriented.

Next, Professor Alex discussed the ongoing war. Tricous and Ventes had been at war with Raumhant for over thirty years. He explained how this settlement had once belonged to Raumhant but had been conquered. The professor insisted that it was only a matter of time before Raumhant fell completely and that the new generation of soldiers—his students—could be the ones to make history.

Then, his tone darkened as he spoke of a man named Dominic. The professor was furious, recounting how Dominic had killed another dragon rider from Ventes and stolen the dragon's corpse. His words were filled with venom, and the cadets shared expressions of anger. Cassian, however, didn't care. He glanced at Cele, who wasn't paying attention at all. Her head rested in her hands, eyes closed. Cassian chuckled at the sight.

Professor Alex concluded his lecture by encouraging cadets to give their best, to make those who had placed them under their care proud. Then, he walked off the podium, and the cadets started leaving.

"Hey Cele, wake up." Cassian shook her gently.

She opened her eyes. "Is he done?"

"Yes," Cassian replied.

She sighed. "This is no good, Sian. Why does it have to be this boring teacher?"

"I don't think it was boring." Cassian and Cele looked to their right—Daniel was still there.

"Me neither," Cassian said with a smile.

"Well, now it's time to eat and then leave," Cele said, rubbing her belly.

"Let's go."

They reached the eating area, where they were given food that Cassian could only describe as disgusting. The only decent thing was the meat.

After eating, the three of them parted ways. Cassian made his way to Lord Roberto's house. The barracks were close, so he arrived quickly.

The guards saluted him and let him inside. There, he found one of Lord Roberto's knight squires, whom he trained with. It was only basic swordsmanship and footwork. Cassian was surprised not to see Ezo—he had been ready to cut the man's stomach again for what he did the day before—but he was thankful for the normal training.

When he finished, a maid was waiting for him. "Lord Roberto wishes to meet you."

Following the maid, Cassian entered a large office filled with bookshelves. A desk sat at the center, and behind it, Lord Roberto was seated. The maid bowed and left, closing the door behind them.

"Hi, Cassian. Remember me from yesterday?"

"Yes, sir," Cassian answered.

"Good. I wanted to apologize for what Ezo did and to discuss your future." The man leaned back in his chair, folding his hands over his chest, studying Cassian.

"Cassian, would you like to become one of my knight squires?"

Cassian didn't know how to answer. He had no experience talking to adults, and he wasn't sure what it meant to be a knight's squire.

"What is that?" Cassian truly didn't know.

"You will become one of my apprentices, and maybe, in the future, a knight. You'll be respected and have more authority than most people your age."

Cassian was at a loss for words. That sounded good, but he still had something else to ask. He didn't care about respect or authority—all he wanted was a house.

"If I become a squire, can I get a house?"

Roberto looked at Cassian, momentarily dumbfounded. Then he sighed. He's just a kid. Why am I telling him things he probably doesn't care about? I could have just asked what he wanted and given it to him if he accepted. Maybe I'm not as smart as I thought.

"Sure, I'll give you a small house. But why do you want one?"

"To live with Ailyn."

"Ailyn? Sofia's daughter?"

Cassian nodded.

"So, the two of you don't want to live with them anymore, huh? Fine. I'll arrange a small house for the both of you, and tell the girl—Ailyn—to come here with you tomorrow."

Cassian was delighted by Roberto's words and couldn't hide his happiness. "Yes, sir!"

After that, he left and went home, where he told Ailyn what he had done.

Ailyn was happy—but also a little sad. She had done nothing. But still, this was better. It meant they could move faster.

Yet she couldn't help but worry. Why would Lord Roberto want to meet her?