[Completed] Legend of the Five Knights I: Rise of a Guardian Angel

Episode 29: Ice Roses

Several days had passed since the battle in the eastern frontier of Kuroriku. Rosalba had taken it upon herself to do some training in preparation for the upcoming war.

As she walked down a large corridor which houses several angelic domes, she came across a silver one. Cold air poured out of the partially opened door, encasing part of the hallway in a thick layer of ice.

The princess poked her head into the room and saw Hyosetsu slicing the air repeatedly with his new black sword. He stopped immediately and spun around. Beads of frozen sweat covered his brow.

"Princess?" he said, lowering his sword.

"I see you are hard at work," she said, pushing the door open.

He put a hand on his waist and nodded. "Yeah, it is best to be ready. The enemy could attack when we least expect it."

Rosa glanced at the glaciers covering the stands as well as half of the entire room. "True, but you might've overdone it."

He raised his sword and swung it behind him, shattering the glacier which covered half the football field-sized battlefield. He scoffed. "This is nothing."

Rosalba chuckled nervously. "I see... Uh, if you are not too fatigued, would you mind being my sparring partner?"

He ran a hand through his raven hair, breaking off the ice which had encased parts of it. "You plan on participating?"

The brunette princess puffed up her chest and swung her arms up and down. "Of course, I do! Did you think I was going to sit in this palace, twiddling my fingers while you and the others risk your lives for not only our nation but the entire universe?"

He averted his gaze. "No. It is simply that you have never struck me as much of a fighter."

Rosalba's mouth dropped. "I... Well, how rude! I will be sure to erase that view you have of me."

He took a step forward. "Is that so?" he asked.

The princess blinked. She thought she had seen traces of a smile beginning to form on her cousin's lips.

"What? Are you backing away now? Because if you are then-"

She shook her head, which grew warmer. "Sorry, I was just zoning out."

He slid his hand toward his hip and moved behind her in an instant. "Zone out in battle, and you will be dead before you know it."

Rosa gulped as he tapped the hilt of his sword against the back of her head.

"Train harder, then maybe I will acknowledge you as a warrior rather than just another spoiled princess," Hyosetsu said as he backed away from her. "Anyway, I'm off. Feel free to use the room if you want."

The princess's face flushed bright red. Her hands curled into fists as her cousin walked away. Her blood felt like it was boiling, but the worst thing was that he was right. She had nearly died at the hands of Suzuki. Had it not been for Tetsu and the others, she likely wouldn't be standing where she was or breathing for that matter.

She slapped herself and took a step forward. She gasped as chunks of ice broke off from her arms. Frost had formed on her exposed arms merely from being inside the room for a minute or so.

Maybe I should train my ice powers.

She raised a hand and focused the cold air on her palm. The moisture directly above her palm froze into a baseball-sized clump of ice.

Her lips crested upward into a smile. "Let's see if I can make you into a rose!"

She held out her left hand and formed a knife of ice. She threw it into the air and stabbed the chunk, shattering it into a thousand tiny shards.