Beginning.

The year 160 of the Lunar Calander— Yasid Empire—

~~

"Hey Mom! Dad! Where are you?"

A black-haired boy is running through a dense, dark forest. Panicked and searching desperately.

He spots two forms looming in the distance and sighs with relief. "Hey, wait for me!" He yells, but the shadows appear to move further away.

He hears the crackling of twigs and the movement of bushes.

The sound of footsteps approaching from behind, moving closer and closer, horrifies him, making him reluctant to move an inch. Fearful of what's behind him. "Is it a monster!?"

Despite the looming threat, he manages to glance behind. A figure. A face. Someone he knew. Stood there, expressionless.

Finally, he is able to let go of the breath he was holding.

"Mother! It's you! I have missed you so much," he says with longing.

The woman looks at him with distaste, as if his statement appalled her. She gazes as though her eyes are dead.

The boy is then slapped across the face.

"You disgust me! You are so absolutely useless! I curse the damned day you were born!" The lady spat with a cold look in her eyes.

He stares at her with a look of shock and confusion. The words hurt him far more than her slap.

"Why, Mom? What have I done wrong!? Please tell me," the child grips his mother's arm. "I have missed you so much! You have not been visiting at all! You said you would take me to see Father once I turned seven. It's been a year; you haven't come back... Please don't abandon me; I promise I will become a better son!" He says with a pleading look.

The woman kicks the child without sympathy, sending him whirling. "Do not touch me!" She starts walking away into the wilderness.

"No! Mother! Don't leave, please tell me what I have done wrong. Is it because I am weak and can't wield Ether? Is that why!?" The child shouts pleadingly, tears flowing down his face.

He starts chasing after her, but to no avail. Her shadow moved further away as he ran faster.

"Wait! Don't leave!"

"Son! Wake up!" A voice echoed, but his mother's words still rang in his ears. "You disgust me." His eyes flew open, his breath shaky, and his hands clutched the blanket tightly. It took a moment for reality to set in—he was safe. It was just a dream.

He glances about, and his gaze falls on the grey haired man beside him.

"You were having a nightmare; what did you see?"

The boy, unwilling to respond, decides not to talk about it.

"Good morning, Uncle Daniel."

The boy greets with a sincere smile.

Daniel responds —unconcerned that his questions were disregarded.

"Good morning, Alf. Son, you haven't forgotten about today, have you?"

Alf looks at him confused.

The old man sighs helplessly.

"You turned eight a week ago. Your martial arts training starts today. So, get out of the bed before I make you!" He says, irritated.

"Oh, so it starts today!" The boy answers enthusiastically, forcing himself out of bed despite his lack of sleep.

"It is not even light out yet." Alf comments.

Daniel looks at him with anticipation.

"So, you think being a warrior is easy? Training non-stop won't be enough for a weak boy like you."

Alf looks at him, taken aback by his harsh comments. "He has never spoken to me like this," Alf thinks to himself, obviously upset by Daniel's words.

"Quit your jittering. After you have washed yourself, meet me at the well; that is where we will start the training."

Alf nods obediently and leaves the room, making the old man sigh in regret.

"Am I being too harsh with him?" Daniel thinks to himself, caressing his face.

He shakes his head.

"No, I can't afford to be lenient with him. The anticipated duel will take place in seven years; he must grow strong enough to fight the most promising kid in the Elerian Clan. He needs to get stronger as soon as possible if he wants to have a chance at victory!"

~~

Alf arrives at the training spot, but the old man is nowhere to be found. He begins to look around and suddenly get's goosebumps.

"BU!"

A bold voice comes from behind him.

"AGH!"

He jumps surprised, and snap's his head back.

"Hahaha! I surprised you, did I not?"

Daniel starts laughing heartily.

"Hey, don't sneak up on me like that! I almost had a heart attack!" Alf rebukes him.

Daniel's eyes turn cold. "The enemy will never hesitate to sneak up on you!

You must always be aware of your surroundings."

Alf is taken aback when he looks at Daniel's cold eyes. He has a sudden realization. "This is what Mom used to say—warriors are unrelentingly strict and serious when it comes to battle."

"Let's begin with your stamina!"

Daniel declares with anticipation.

"Run for 10 minutes at your max speed!"

Hearing this, Alf doesn't complain further. He starts running, gradually increasing his pace till he is running at full speed.

"Not bad! His pace is good. If he can continue at this pace for 3 minutes, that would already be impressive!" Daniel comments inwardly, not expecting much from Alf on his first day of training.

Alf kept running , for what felt like hours. Despite his painfull knees and heavy breathing, he noted that as he continued to run, his feet felt lighter and his breathing became more stable. At first he was gasping for air, and his legs were feeling sore after only a couple seconds of running. Now, its seemed as though he could soar through the sky. "This seems to be getting easier. I never knew running could be so fun!"

He dropped down after a few more minutes, panting.

"That should be 10 minutes, right?" He asks Daniel while steadying his breath.

Daniel is pleasantly surprised. He had not expected Alf to finish the run so quickly, but he did, and even outperformed by running nonstop for 15 minutes!

Despite being eight years old, Alf hardly went outside, and if he ever did, it would be a 10 minute walk to the Academy.

He was more of a book worm, and had always been shy of strangers. He was clumsy and would occasionally trip when walking on flat terrain.

It seemed improbable that such a youngster would perform well in physical training; this performance was even more unexpected.

Daniel laughs a hearty laughter. "Hahaha! Even though he does not have any Etherial talent, he seems to have a good physique. He is the Commander's son afterall, so its no surprise!"

Alf gazes at Daniel, questioning his sudden outburst.

"Ahem! It looks like you successfully performed the task I gave you. But don't get too cocky, I have something more for you!"

Alf notices Daniel's look, and his face lights up as he understands his Uncle approves of him. His emotions were an open book, and easy for even a child to read.

"Of course Uncle! I can train more!" Alf replies with excitement.

Daniel is thrilled when he sees his disciple's enthusiasm.

"Now, perform a hundred push-ups, a hundred sit-ups, and a hundred lunges." He goes on to show him how to perform each exercise.

"I bet he will not be able to finish this; he needs more training," Daniel thinks, proud of himself.

"Yes Sir!"

Alf obediently starts performing the exercises.

One by one, he starts going through each exercise. He starts with push-ups.

Though with great difficulty, he reaches the goal of a hundred, while he breezes through the other two.

"Amazing! He has reached this level of physical strength despite having never trained before."

Daniel mutters, and starts pondering Alf's ability. He then decides to question him.

"Son, have you been secretly training without telling me?"

"No Uncle! This is my very first time! I have never done any training before." Alf replies straightforward.

"I see." He says, his arms crossed and eyes closed, still engrossed in deep thought.

"Then our training ends here for today. You already have a solid foundation of strength and endurance, so you can begin your martial arts training after a month."

~~

After completing the training with Daniel, Alf head's back inside. Even though he continued to work through the exercises, he was still fatigued. He was still a child, not yet developed.

He went to his room and pounced on his bed, tired and sore all over his body.

"Alfie, where were you?

I did not see you all morning."

A voice wakes up Alf from his half- asleep state, causing him to jump out of bed.

He looks at the direction of the pleasent voice.

At the room's entrance, a girl stood, looking at him, with emerald eyes. The girl had a child-like face with blonde hair that was tied in two little pony tails. Though, from her build, she seemed a lot older.

" Oh! Sister Ophelia. I had gone to train with Uncle at the well." Alf responds to Ophelia with glee.

He then rushes to her and hugs her tightly. They chat for some time about his training and she takes him to have breakfast.

Alf was sitting on the dining table, when an old voice asks.

"Son, I heard you trained with Daniel today. He was not too hard on you, was he?"

A woman with grey hair speaks while serving bread.

Alf pauses briefly before replying, "No Aunt Ellen, he was very kind."

"That is wonderful to hear! When he gets too excited, especially during training, he loses perspective."

Aunt Ellen let's out a sigh.

Alf nods and continues to peacefully devour the bread.

"Eat quickly if you don't want to get late to the Academy."

Ophelia comments, reminding Alf of what he dreaded the most.

Alf's expression darkens slightly when the Academy is mentioned. "I hate School!"

He considers for a moment before deciding to go to the Academy after eating his breakfast.

"I hope I don't meet him today!" He prays to God and leaves the house.

To be continued...