The long-awaited day arrives. The day Gemma will receive the announcement that she must leave this city and live a proud life as an Archturian.
Gemma did all the selection tests flawlessly. Even on her last day, she received many praises for her fluid fighting style and decisive moves.
Gemma opened the mailbox, trying not to squeal with joy when she saw a white envelope with The Arc’s emblem emblazoned on it.
Gemma took it, impatient enough to open it in the house. She sat on the steps in front of the door, tore the envelope hastily, and began to read its contents.
Gemma skimmed through the opening sentences at the beginning and immediately looked at the score table. All of her scores were near perfect, and she became the third-ranked winner in Archturian selection history. Gemma couldn’t hide her grin as she read that. She was only one rank below Jo.
Gemma continued reading, looking for the word that she was accepted, but couldn’
“Not bad for an hour of training.”Gemma curled her lips downwards and nodded, trying to imitate the style of Jonah when he was her mentor. Looks arrogant but also amazed at the same time.Moonla and Fro, the names of the girl and the boy, looked in disbelief at the throwing knives that were firmly stuck to the wooden stake. Fro turned his head back and forth at the knife and at Gemma.“I’ve been practicing for a week, but the knife isn’t stuck anywhere at all.”“It all depends on the stance and the swing of your arm. Lack of strength and the knife will not reach the target, too much force, the knife will be thrown over the target, or stray somewhere else.”Gemma walked over and picked up the silver throwing knife. She turned around and was restrained when Moonla asked a question.“Are you an Archturian?”Gemma was silent. The emptiness in her heart that had disappeared becau
Nero, Sarah, and Jonah hold Heros with Alfhild, while Jo guards the exit. Without saying anything, Gemma threw her best shot at Heros’ face. Gemma had been wanting to do this for a long time.Gemma didn’t expect that Heros could dodge her attacks so fast. Heros ducked and tripped over Gemma’s leg, making Gemma nearly fall to her knees. But Gemma didn’t lose that easily.There was a gunshot. Sarah’s Alfhild almost hit Heros’ arm, but Heros could dodge again. All this time Gemma had always judged Heros as someone who couldn’t fight, but it turned out that she was wrong.Heros jumped over the railing, then he shouted, “Wait a minute! Wait a minute!!”But who wants to wait?Jo climbed the stairs in one big stride, then threw a kick with both hands on the banister for support. Heros jumped, and he plunged back down to the floor.Heros doesn’t know, and Gemma doesn’t know since when
One middle-aged man, one super old man with delayed aging, two good fighter women, two handsome soldiers, and a fugitive who also happened to be handsome, though with bruised cheeks and a few broken and missing teeth.They sat around the dining table in Michael’s cramped house. Their elbows and knees were close together. Sometimes they had to rub against each other. Their long legs, except for Gemma’s, bumped against each other under the table.After Servant’s problem had been resolved, for a while, they now moved on to discuss a more important issue: the series of events at Elenio.From the initial conversation, Gemma concluded that the tragedy at King’s Door and the explosion at Fiend last night were a planned series.That conclusion made a question pop up in Gemma’s mind. What division are Jonah, Nero, and Sarah from?“Before we continue. There is one thing that I must clarify here.”Gemma blinked
Waiting and being patient are two things that make Gemma itch. Maybe she’s allergic to those two actions. Then Servant appeared and offered an interesting idea.Gemma was lying on the cramped bed in her room. She still couldn’t face her father without her emotions overflowing. So, after a silent breakfast, Gemma cleaned up her own plate and rushed to her room.Not long after, Servant knocked on the door and entered. Gemma was still not used to this Servant form. Repeatedly, Gemma felt like she had a heart attack because she saw Heros in front of her.“Based on your radiance of energy, I can sense that you are a formidable fighter. It would be even more extraordinary if you could combine your powers with Princess Lanaya’s.”Without further ado, Servant explained a theory that made Gemma get up from the bed.“How’s that possible?” Gemma’s enthusiasm crept up from her question. Or maybe it’s
Servant tried to ignore what Gemma was doing. He felt pain just by seeing how supple the tiny body that held his master’s soul was.“Based on our last battle, there were quite several humans fighting against us. And even though I’m allowed to injure humans, the princess is not allowed to do so. So, in anticipation of this happening again, it would be nice if both souls were ready for battle. “Gemma finished stretching, which made Servant breathe a sigh of relief, then Gemma asked one last question.“You can easily enter a human body without causing any damage. How is that possible?”“I told you before, I found this body shortly after the soul inside was released. This body is just a shell, and when its owner leaves, I put it on. But I can only do what I do on bodies that have just died.”“Why not find a recently dead body for Princess Lanaya’s soul?”“The princess&rsquo
If it weren’t for the imminent curfew, Gemma wouldn’t want to stop. She hadn’t practiced this hard for a while, and the sensation caused an opiate she hadn’t felt in a long time.Not only did Gemma suffer physical injuries, but inside her head, Gemma felt like she was being stirred up to the point where she could barely walk. Servant had to carry her to come back home.The ultimate effect of this training is like a hangover. Everything is spinning, floating, the road is like bumpy.Gemma seemed to have just been thrown onto the bed, and she was as stiff as a corpse.“I’ll have Hazkiel prepare dinner.” Servant walked over to the bedroom door, and before closing it, he said, “Don’t push yourself too hard.”Gemma couldn’t even move her mouth to just reply.Gemma thought she had been asleep for some time, until she heard people talking nearby, then she opened her eyes.But
When his boss gave this task, Jo knew that there was interference from his father. Jo could not grumble in front of anyone. He could only vent it along the way to the designated meeting place.His Archturian uniform was a little wet on the shoulders because it was a light drizzle this afternoon on Meubena. The two red stripes on each side of Jo’s sleeve show his fairly high rank in Archturian.Jo looked up to make sure he was at his destination. An old tavern that no one would stop by because of its dirty appearance. The people of Meubena have many luxury options, and this place is not one of them.The words ‘Old Cap’ were carelessly carved on a wooden plank swaying in the wind. The facade of the building comprises dull wood that has aged and weathered. There were only two windows on each wall facing the street, full of dust and dark glass.Jo pushed open the swing door, which was also made of wood, the sound signaling that the hinges ne
Today is d-day.Gemma felt restless. She couldn’t sleep until morning. What does Maya want from her? Does Maya know Gemma has betrayed her? Where has she been all this time?The thoughts swirled in Gemma’s head like a Ferris wheel in a lightning speed. As a result, when morning came, Gemma got nothing other than dizziness. She wobbled to the bathroom to brush her teeth and wash her face. Gemma stared at her reflection in the small square mirror that hung on the wall. Well, her face wasn’t bad, and she didn’t look pathetic either. But there was something in her eyes that was very disturbing.Is that… guilt?Yes. Of course. As the time for meeting Maya approached, Gemma had no other feelings than guilt. She shouldn’t have exchanged Maya for a pile of money, for the sake of her own freedom.It was so… embarrassing. That is not the attitude of a soldier. Yeah, Gemma knew she wasn’t a soldier, but she wa