"Hey! Are you gonna keep us waiting?!" Alice yelled with her usual, annoying voice. "Come on!" Arth sighed after realizing that the young man had already been gone from his sight. He caught up with the two and then they continued going straight towards the main road. The aromatic smell in the cold air had captured Arth’s nose as they passed by the flower shops and stalls beside the street. He suddenly remembered the garden he used to go in the Frostwood village. Even with the low temperature and the snow falling, the cyclamen and winter flowers were still in bloom. The group finally stopped in front of a two story building, its walls cemented and painted in dark brown. The roof was entirely covered by thick snow, and the glass windows had black curtains inside. As Robert opened the wooden door, Arth saw different shelves of clothing, textiles and carpets inside, making him realize that it was a fabric shop. The gentle and comforting fragrance o

  “Let the match begin!”   The championships of the tournament started after the sun had settled. Arth’s ears were struck by the people’s screams, cheering all around him. Torches circled the stage, giving light to the entire arena. Throughout the tournament, Arth managed to make it to the finals without breaking a single sweat. His previous opponents had simply been too dumb, so he never got to use his sword. But now that Arth would be facing a strong opponent, he knew that winning this final match would never be easy.   ‘Tristan from Cold Hills village … He’s the guy I saw yesterday when we went here in the capital… the dual blade wielder,’ Arth thought, eyeing his fiercely-looking opponent. Tristan stood a bit taller, with lighter skin than Arth. His bright, gray-colored eyes burned with passion and sense of duty. “I guess he’s a knight in the capital,” Arth whispered to himself.   “You’re q

  “You’ve grown so big now … little Ali, and your hair … keeping it long as always, eh?” The grand knight cocked his head, a smirk forming on his lips. He had the same white hair, black eyes, and light skin. Their family indeed had decent looks and beauty. But the evil smirk on her brother was like the one you would see from a mad villain.   “Call me by that name again and I’ll torment you worse than you can ever think of, before you end up just like father … just like that devil,” Alice’s spat, her black eyes becoming vicious. Arth had never seen her as serious as this before. He could sense the overflowing hatred and resentment in her eyes.   “Get the councilor now,” Alice said, turning to Arth. “We’ll handle these two.”   Arth looked at her with worried eyes. “Are you sure?”   “We don’t have much time. You need to kill our target now.”   “But what about—”

  “You’re all screwed, now.” Robert still had the guts to tease his opponent, though he was already on the ground, coughing with blood.   “Curse you, rebels!” The grand knight went outrageous, stabbing his broadsword against Robert, but then …   The sound of thunder clapped and rumbled throughout the skies. They all paused and looked up. The dark clouds began to glow with yellow light, illuminating the open grounds of the bailey. Something big was about to happen … something that was truly beyond what they expected.   The glorious judgment from the heavens had finally come. Thousands of golden arrows fell from the clouds, like rain, with glowing drops, but these drops were as deadly as life-ending catastrophes.   “Let’s move!” Arth immediately helped Robert to get up. Then the three began to rush back towards the Lower Ring.   As they hasted, Arth looked back, seeing

“Three hundred and seventy-eight knights …” King Terrowin’s voice echoed around the dark throne room, then silence followed; a dead, cold silence. He stood from his blue crystal-made seat and then climbed down the wide steps. “One grand knight …” the king continued. Kael was in front, kneeling, with his head looking down on the blue floor. He had just returned from their huge loss after their encounter with the Forgotten Winter. And being alone with the Cold King made his heartbeat race, as if chased by death itself. “And another one of my High Councilors …” Kael closed his eyes, shamed. He went against looking at the king’s face. He had already triggered the devil's outrage, and it’s about to explode unto him. Silence filled the throne room once again. The only thing Kael could hear was his chest pounding hard. His palms were freezing. How fortunate Kael was that they were both alone, for if not … he could never face anyone anymore. His failure was a huge disgrace that he might