Age of Heroes (Age of Heroes Chronicles)

Chapter 23: A new environment (1)

1007 AF Whitemonth

68 Whitemonth 1007 After Fall

The Academy loomed before the friends as they emerged from the trees.

"Here we are," said Arial triumphantly, dismounting his horse. His eyes look at the structure all around him and he could not believe that he is finally here.

Kyle's pale face twitched. Arial also notices Kyle. Arial could see that Kyle is nervous. Then Kyle looked at Arial and said

"I'm going to call it" Suddenly Kyle spoke while holding his stomach and pointing his finger at Arial

Arial chuckles because he could guess what Kyle will said

"Call what?" Arial asked

"Your pumpkin soup has turned my stomach," he said accusingly to Arial. He seems to want to ride the horse back to Danoba.

Lisa rolled her eyes.

"No, brother, that's just your nerves," she said, giving him a slap on the head. Kyle winced and glared at her.

"Ouch, that hurts Lisa"

"I know. That's why I did it" Lisa said chuckling. Arial just shakes his head, ignoring the pair of siblings.

Arial look in front of him and he take a deep breath

The Academy was much bigger and more majestic than any of them had expected.

The sky-skimming towers held two hundred years of history. There is observatory, towers, apothecary, libraries and many other structures

Castles rose from the enormous grounds, like a grand city of knights.

Every time a new Knight Master was chosen, a building was constructed in his honor; it was no wonder there were so many.

Sons of nobles, unlanded sons, brave sons, craven sons, there would be lots of people within with different perspectives, different reasons for joining.

Arial was well aware that most noble sons only entered the Academy for the prestige, some hoping for great success, while others dreamed a fantasy about knighthood.

But despite its faults, Arial respected the Order of Alan.

They did all they could in his past life, even when the Four Immortals did not.

Though, Arial thought, it wasn't fair to blame all four of them; the Northern Badger and Southern Healer did try to protect the Kingdom of Vangua and Vern Empire from the Dark Lands' invasion, although unsuccessfully.

Arial suddenly remembered Kyle and Lisa as he looked towards them.

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Their mouths were hanging open as they stared at the Academy in wonder.

'I guess they don't see this kind of building usually' Arial thought to himself as he looked at the sibling's expression

Arial had become accustomed to enormous, lavish buildings after all, he had once dined in the palace of Vern Empire, sipping wine from the Emperor's private collection, not to mention eating exotic food from the ice storage in the bottom of the larder of the Imperial Palace.

Arial even have sit himself on the Imperial Throne, pretending that he was an Emperor of a great Empire when he was bored.

But the siblings, they had never seen anything so fantastic or grand such as this. They marvel at the structure for a few second before they are ready to move on

They made to walk through the gates, but were blocked by a guard.

"Where do you think you're going, kid?" The guard ask, his voice stern as he examines Arial and his companion

"To the Academy," Arial said coolly.

"I need to see your papers."

Arial opened the knapsack and once again pawed through the jumble of mess his parents had sent, before pulling out his letter of acceptance and brandishing it at the guard, who nodded and stepped aside.

"Here. This is for my passage and this is for my friends"

After checking the validity of the letter, the guard gestured them to go inside.

"Welcome to the Academy, kid. Hope you survive." And the guard smile like it is some inside joke.

Arial just snorted and enter

The trio headed through the gates and the large wooden front doors. Inside they were met immediately by a plump young woman with thick, auburn hair.

Arial guessed that the girl is around eighteen of age

"New recruits?" she asked.

Arial nodded.

"Here take this. Read it when you have the time. No, read it" she said her cheek flushed.

It seems she is new at her job. Then she handed them a set of keys.

"Here's your room number. Don't get lost. There are still old traps from the last graduation party the knights got a bit rowdy. Don't worry! They're mostly harmless. Worst case scenario, you get splashed with cow dung or a bit of poison. Most of which is harmless. They went into the swamp and concocted something from the Green Tree. There is also some weirven herbs there thus many Knights usually goes there to get some"

Kyle and Lisa's faces paled.

The woman sat uncomfortably while they stared at her, trying to figure out whether or not she was joking.

After she said a very pointed "goodbye", they headed to the towers.

Arial's mind swam to the long, arduous journey that lay ahead.

Knighthood training always began in early childhood.

Youngsters were sent to the Academy from the homes of wealthy lords to begin their training. Arial supposed he could have been considered wealthy too.

"Are we there yet?" Lisa said as they climbed the towers. Kyle rolled his eyes.

"I keep telling you, no!"

The sibling keeps complaining and bickering as they climb upwards. Arial don't know what to do.

Hopefully their time at the Academy would teach them some discipline, Arial thought.

They will learn to perform the duties of Knights in this Academy and Arial hope that would rein them in a bit.

There are many duties that a Knight performs.

The duties of a knight were seen as the combat duties and those duties related to serving the lords and ladies.

One of the Knights training is practiced in their daily life in the Academy.

All their games and sports were geared towards learning skills related to horsemanship, the two-handed sword, battle axe, mace, dagger and lance.

They're also taught internal energy cultivation.

I'll pass on the internal energy teaching, Arial mused.

After all he learned from the greatest teacher, the founder of martial art technique, Levitia. Obviously dangerous weapons will not be used in classes. That's true for most Knights.

But not the Order of Alan.

There have been crazy Knights in their history but no craven. Great emphasis was placed on physical fitness, bravery and strength.

Arial thought went away for a while and he look elsewhere, hoping to concentrate

He glanced through one of the tower's windows; vast green forests surrounded them for as far as he could see.

Next to him, Kyle was flicking through an information leaflet he had picked up in the entrance.

"There are loads of classes internal energy class, barehanded fighting, swordplay, horsemanship, weapons class, physical class"

"Wow, this place is no joke," Lisa muttered as she heard Kyle listing the classes that exist.

Arial thought about it and listens. He once read about The Order of Alan when he was in the Grand Library so he was not entirely unknowledgeable about this matter

Sword play is practiced using their own swords and shields. Fighting on horses introduced the young knights to the balance and skills required in mounted combat.

Knighthood Training in other physical class included climbing, swimming, throwing stones, javelins, archery and wrestling.

Every training is to produce elite knights that could uphold their oath to fight evil and doing good.

They had reached the sixth floor of the tower and she checked her key. "I'm here." Kyle checked his own key.

"I'm upstairs, I guess," he said. Lisa kissed her brother goodbye and waved to Arial as the boys continued up the staircase.

"Looks like we're sharing," Kyle said to Arial as they reached the eighth floor. Kyle like that more than he let on.

This is a foreign place and at least he is rooming with a person he knows.

Opening their door, the room before them looked like a dormitory, and they set about cleaning, and unpacking their bags.

Arial hung a painting of his parents above his bed. An artist commissioned by his father painted it a few days before they departed.

Arial also take out the books h buys from a trader and put it in the side table in chronological order.

It had many topics about things that Arial was interested in.

"Want an apple?" Kyle throws Arial an apple as they also begin cleaning the leftover food.

There were three other beds in the room, and it seemed Kyle had noticed it too.

"Do you think someone's going to join us?" he asked anxiously.

Arial understood why Kyle is nervous. Kyle had been accepted to the Order of Alan not for his own skill or pedigree of nobility, but on Arial's recommendation.

Arial knew that he was more than worthy of a place at the Academy, but Kyle lacked confidence.

Because Arial knows Kyle. He is stronger than he believes. In a way Kyle reminded Arial of himself in the past.

Kyle believes he could not go higher, soar higher. But Arial believes that he can. He just needs a little confidence.

Arial is confident of him because he train Kyle since he was a kid.

He is a little slow but compared to the nobles that will enter here he is more talented than any of them.

He just doesn't know. He lives in cages with bars built from his own fears and doubts.

And Arial believe someday he will break free of that cage with his arm open wide and that time he will fly and soar higher than anyone.

He could become his right hand man later when the Invasion began if he could not stop it.

"Looks that way," Arial said, dusting his window.

"Tonight will be the feast for the new students, right?" Kyle asked while dusting his desk

"Yeah, although not many will have registered yet. Classes don't start until Seedmonth First Day."

They continued cleaning in silence, and eventually collapsed onto their beds, exhausted.

They hadn't been asleep for long when Arial was woken abruptly by a knock. Yawning, he went to the door and creaked it open.

"Tired, Arial?" Lisa was bright-eyed and bouncy as usual. She peered over Arial's shoulder at Kyle, sleeping soundly.

"Want me to wake Kyle?" asked Arial.

"Oh no," said Lisa, a mischievous grin spreading across her face, "let me."

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First part of the chapter. Hope you like it and leave some comments and vote for the story