For the next couple of days, the whispers began.
Death took another one, some said.
A masked phantom, others added.
Only hunts at night. Only kills the powerful. Never fails.
And yet Damian was alive.
Although his face did not show it.
He wandered the city aimlessly, numb and adrift. The home he had known had fallen into ruin. His master's forge had been claimed, the tools sold, the property stripped bare by vultures in fine robes.
As Damian traversed through the kingdom, a poster caught his attention.
Torn, weather-worn, but still legible beneath the smudges of soot and blood:
"ANNUAL ROYAL GUARD TRIALS – OPEN TO ALL.
Prove your worth. Take your place.
Duel a guard. Win, and the armour is yours."
Date: 4th Day of the frost moon
Location: King's Arena or Queens Arena
It was today.
The king and queen, though still bound by title, ruled from opposite ends of the kingdom. Their marriage had been one of necessity, not love. A political solution forged in desperation after the true king's death left a throne without blood to inherit it. The queen, a ruler by blood. The king, a ruler by power.
And peace… was only a word.
Elaria was split in all but name. Two courts. Two sets of laws.
Two castles. Two crowns. And two royal guard factions. The King's Guard and the Queen's Blades.
In Elaria, to become a royal guard, you had to fight for the title. Challenge a current member. Win and take their place. Most who tried were defeated and broken. Especially those who sought to challenge Her guards.
The Queens Blades were whispered about with reverence and fear. Unmatched. Untouched. Unchanging. Not a single new recruit in five years. Five long years and not one of the Queens Blades had ever been beaten.
And yet, four of the queen's guards were only nineteen.
But the king's side was different.
In the last three years, four of the king's royal guards had been replaced. It was seen as the easier path. If such a thing existed. So that's where Damian was fixed on.
So Damian tightened the grip on the sword he and Rhys had forged.
And for the first time in days, he walked with purpose, straight toward the Kings Arena.