THE AWAKENING || Vol.1 From The Saga "Arcanes" written by Sofia Guapo Mendes

CHAPTER XIII - THE CLEARING

I must have fallen asleep again, lost in my thoughts. I only woke up when the loud chime of a large clock outside my room startled me. It struck eleven times. I had been lying there for nearly two hours, procrastinating about my life, so I decided to do something more productive and stepped out onto the balcony.

From there, I had a view of the back of the palace, where a long building on the left was the stables. On the opposite side stood a tall structure that looked like it housed people, likely the staff. In the middle of the buildings was a large open clearing where several people were sparring. In the center, I saw Seth with his sword drawn, pointing it at Cat's throat while hers lay on the ground. Sophia was standing nearby, watching, her own sword still sheathed at her waist. And, not to be forgotten, Duke was chasing after two chickens, leaping and dodging as they tried to escape his playful bites. I decided to head down and join them.

When I reached the clearing, everything had changed dramatically. Sophia, now with her sword drawn, was fiercely dueling Seth. All the other small skirmishes had stopped, and a crowd had formed around the two siblings. No one dared to interfere in the fight; they were all nearly silent, watching in awe as both displayed impressive skill. I overheard a few murmured comments, praising both Seth and Sophia, and even some betting on who would win.

The duel lasted almost ten minutes, ending with Seth backed against a wall, disarmed. Sophia, however, now held not only her sword but also Seth's, with both pointed at his face. Contrary to my expectations, there were no cheers or applause—just an intense, heavy silence. It seemed as though Seth was genuinely afraid of his sister, who kept the swords aimed at his face for what felt like an eternity. Finally, she lowered them and handed one back to him. She then swiftly moved through the crowd, which parted to let her pass. As she walked by me, she instructed me to follow her.

We headed to a small annex at the far end of the palace grounds. It looked like an armory, with a kind of boxing ring, though without the ropes around it. I soon realized it was a miniature arena.

"Choose one," Sophia ordered, pointing to a bucket filled with old, rusty swords beneath a wall lined with gleaming, intricately detailed weapons engraved with symbols I didn't recognize.