Shifting Tides

Starting Anew

Adam was told that he could stay with Celia in her room for now. The main reason was that she could guarantee his safety this way. The guards were on constant lookout during the day so he had to be hidden in the meantime.

As he woke up cozily that morning, he saw Celia holding a wooden sword firm in her hands. She held her breath as she raised it above her head before bringing it down as she breathed. Her breathing was controlled to match her swing so she could control the motions.

Celia noticed Adam's gaze as she did her morning regimens but didn't pay mind to it. It was normal for one to loosen up their muscles before they began their duty.

"Would you like to join me?" Celia asked nonchalantly as it seemed like the boy was interested in the sword. It was also a good opportunity to see if the boy was actually proficient in fighting like that night. Adam nods and took the training sword that was handed by Celia.

He looked like he was pondering about something as he grabbed the sword, she thought to herself as she steadied her shield.

"Try to land a hit on me." It took a minute before Adam made a move. His footing was unbalanced, his posture was clumsy and he's only using his right arm to hold the sword. He really looked like an inexperienced boy.

Adam rushes forward with his sword behind him. His thought process was to build up momentum and use that as a mean to amplify his strength. He was weak. He knew that so he did whatever he could to make himself the slightest bit stronger.

The room they were in was quite spacious. It was Princess Shina's own instructions for her guard to have a larger than average room to themselves so that they could have room to train.

Celia heaved a sigh in her mind as she read Adam's movements. He wanted to forcefully throw away her shield using the momentum he had built up. She readied herself to have the shield slant at an angle so the sword just slides across it.

In response to Adam's wishes, the wooden sword he held shined with a fading golden tint. Celia recognized the glow. It was similar to the glow of that golden spear albeit much weaker for some reason.

Adam swung the sword and it slid right off the shield just as how Celia predicted. It was unfortunate. She thought that he would at least be somewhat capable of fighting with a weapon.

To her surprise, Adam's attack didn't stop there. He had swung the sword back to do a second horizontal slash which also slid off because the shield had been readjusted at the last second.

He continued by twisting his body to follow the sword's momentum and brought the blade down with a vertical slash. Celia her shield above her to block the slash by knocking the sword away and the difference in strength shined at this moment. Adam was thrown off and onto his side whilst Celia stood strong with her shield.

I never stood a chance, he thought to himself as panted for air. He was exhausted from just three sword swings. He didn't even land a hit. Celia, on the other hand was looking at her round wooden shield. He had dug a groove into the shield using just a dull wooden blade.

So his ability is to enhance things, she came to that conclusion after what had just transpired. She saw the potential this boy had within himself and wanted to see it. She wanted to see him become the best knight that had ever existed.

Her resolve strengthens. She vowed to help him realize his potential until the day he leaves. This shall be her way to thank him for that night.

Celia offers her hand to Adam. She tells him her thoughts on how he can improve and that she'll be helping him with each step of the way.

"So you'll be training me here when you're off duty?"

"We will be using the training grounds. It's the place we first met you."

"Would... she be joining too?" His finger points towards the entrance to the room. Celia looks back and find a teenage girl wearing a fancy dress. It was Shina. She came to Celia's room because she was a few minutes late when she had always been punctual.

"Good morning, Princess."

"Good morning, Miss Celia..." Shina was a bit dumbfounded. The boy from that day was on the bedside with his clothes covered with dust. Celia on the other hand was holding a round shield. It looked like something had went down earlier but she couldn't figure out what it was.

Celia grabs a chair and offers it to the princess. She lightly dusts off the seat and sat herself down elegantly. The sight catches Adam's eyes as he had always been fascinated with royalty.

"I'll summarize what happened." Celia then proceeded to explain the events that transpired in the last few minutes. Shina heaved out a sigh and takes out a handkerchief. She hands it to the boy who was covered in dust.

"My name is Shina. Princess of Light Kingdom. It's nice to meet you." Her smile was warm and radiated a gentle feel towards the listener.

"I'm Adam." He decided to show respect by accepting the cloth with both hands. Japanese businessmen gave and accepted cards by using both hands as a sign of courtesy.

"Adam... Adam... Adam.." Shina mumbled the name a few times. It seemed like she was trying to remember it. In fact, she actually was trying to memorize it. Adam's appearance from that night resembled that of her late grandfather's when he last graced the battlefield with his presence.

"Miss Celia, I want to join Adam's training session. Is it okay?" Shina had all the authority in the world to do or ask for whatever she wanted yet she still asked for permission from her personal guard. Celia exasperated a sigh. Shina was still not fully seeing herself as the crown princess of a country. It was not a bad thing though as this naive side of her was the one thing this whole country agreed to be too pure. She just nods and her face changes to that of a child who had just received affection from their parents.

Adam was just sitting there on the bedside not exactly knowing how his life is going to change from this point onwards.

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"Should we give him some form of assistance?"

"I agree. It would take him years to reach his prime at the pace he's moving at."

"It would be difficult even if we choose to help him. Our existence must stay a secret until the pieces have all come together."

"I believe casting the spell, [Chrono Trigger] would be an effective solution."

"Such a solution might backfire if it were to just be casted on him. I recommend that we make it a conditional spell that'll activate when he brings out his power."

"That sounds reasonable enough. It would stimulate him to learn more about his power."

"Let us proceed with the casting then, gentlemen."

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