The headmaster scribbled on a scroll in his chamber while his attendant went through some documents. The chamber had wooden walls with scrolls hanging around as decorations scribbled with words like “Keep fighting” or “Dreams comes true”. There was a table spread at the center with cushions aligned around it for the guests to sit on.  

The headmaster seated parallel to the door while his attendant seated on his right-hand side. He thought about the sparring match of Argus with his daughter and what he had witnessed was out of ordinary. His paintbrush stopped midway when he thought about the moment Argus had hit his daughter.

The attendant noticed the headmaster lost somewhere while staring at the scroll. “I will get you another scroll, master,” he said when he saw the scroll had a large blot because of the headmaster pressing the brush too long at one spot. He stood up, pulled out the drawer near him and picked out a scroll.

“Is something bothering you, master?” he asked after changing the old scroll with the new one.

The headmaster stroked his beard. “That boy earlier…” he said.

“You mean, that boy?” the attendant guessed. “The one who fought Marya? What about him?”

The headmaster side-glanced at him and asked, “Did you see him punch my daughter?”

“Did he?” the attendant reacted, clueless. “Oh wait, but I do remember your daughter chasing him around like a predator. You must be proud of her. I mean…”

The headmaster suddenly interrupted him. “She lost.”

“What?” reacted the attendant when he could not comprehend it.

“She lost the sparring match against that boy,” the headmaster cleared.

“But I saw him accepting defeat, you too saw that,” the attendant said in confusion.

“The boy clearly was the victor,” the headmaster said and stared ahead at the door with a frown. “How long are you going to listen in? You can enter now,” he said in a raised tone.

The attendant could not comprehend whom he said that to, but realized he talked to a boy who suddenly appeared at the door scratching the back of his head with an awkward smile. It was Argus.

“Ah, you caught me. As expected for Great Master Geus,” Argus said and entered the chamber.

“Wait, were you…” the attendant spoke. “Were you here all along?”

“Nah, just arrived here,” replied Argus.

“Wait, you should ask for permi…” spoke the attendant when Argus seated parallel to the headmaster without asking.

“Let him sit,” the headmaster told his attendant before he could finish.

“Ah, okay. As you say, master,” the attendant nodded.

Argus and the headmaster stared at each other for a few minutes. “Umm…” the attendant tried to break the silence when he got uncomfortable with all the staring and eerie atmosphere in the chamber. “Why don’t we…” When he was about to speak, the headmaster spoke.

“Where did you come from, Alan?”

“From the first province, master,” Argus replied.

“The first province,” the headmaster said with a quizzical expression. “So, you belong to the first province… why did he…” he muttered as if he was thinking out loud.

“Is there something wrong with the first province, master?” asked Argus when he saw the headmaster talking to himself.

The headmaster raised his gaze and looked at him. “There is nothing wrong with it.”

Argus nodded and asked, “Was there something you wanted to tell me?” He scratched his cheek awkwardly, “Actually, my friends are waiting for me.”

“I watched your sparring match against Marya,” the headmaster said.

“Ah, I clearly lost against her,” Argus replied. “I must say your daughter is really strong. How did you train her?”

“Her mother trained her,” responded the headmaster and crossed his arms, his face showing no expression at all while his gaze searched for something inside Argus’ eyes, something he was familiar of yet unfamiliar.

“Whoa!” reacted Argus, faking his excitement. “She must be strong to train such her daughter to be like this.”

“Indeed, she was,” confirmed the headmaster.

“Was?” Argus reacted in confusion. “Did she…”

“She passed away due to illness a few months ago,” said the attendant when he thought it might be painful for his master to talk about his dead wife, but got silent when the headmaster side-eyed at him. “Sorry, master.”

“You are one of the very few people who defeated Marya,” the headmaster told Argus.

“I did not win, master. I accepted defeat,” Argus responded. “She won it clearly.”

“You hit her, it means you defeated her.”

“Did I? It must be a fluke,” Argus replied, rolling his eyes to remember such an event. He doubted the headmaster was rough on his daughters. He must have set the standards too high for them.

The headmaster said, “My wife Aleya Thornus, the hero in the fourth war against Alabusia, had trained both of my daughters personally since they were little. When other kids were learning to walk and run, they were already beating up the kids of their ages.”

Argus listened to him patiently.

“I want both of them to be the strongest warriors and serve this empire,” He added and asked, “Who trained you in physical combat?”

“I trained myself a little, master. I used to practice martial arts in the woods and copied the style of soldiers and proclaimed warriors of the empire stationed there,” Argus replied. “But I am nowhere near Marya in terms of strength.”

The headmaster frowned when he heard it. “Alabusian population is the most in the first province if compared to other provinces. Recently, a few soldiers and a commander have disappeared there and the people there have become rebellious nowadays. You seem quite knowing for your age…” He leaned his face ahead and asked in a low tone, gazing fiercly into Argus’ eyes. “Do you know something about it?”

The attendant stared at the headmaster with a perplexed face. Why did he ask this to the boy? Did he suspect him for something?

Argus scratched his cheek and looked away when he spoke. “I know little about it, master, but I have heard about the news too. It happened before I took off to reach here. I do not know much about what transpires there with the people as I am too busy training myself to get stronger. Also, nobody tells me anything because I am just a kid for them.”

The headmaster nodded his head consciously. “Of course, you are a kid. But try to remember, if you have heard or seen something.”

The attendant intervened as he could not hold it in anymore. “Master, how would this kid know about it?”

“Oh, my bad.” The headmaster smiled. “By the way, I am impressed by your fighting skills, Alan.”

“Thank you, master, but Marya would have given me multiple fractures if you had not arrived in time,” Argus mentioned while he scratched his cheek again. “Thank you for saving me.”

“Okay, you can go now. I want you to become an honorable Nigrosian who serves this country. Work hard on your training,” The headmaster said.

Argus stood up, bowed his head, and left with a smirk on his lips. 

The attendant had many questions in his mind. He could not help but ask away when Argus left. “Master, why did you ask him about the missing soldiers? Do you know something?”

“Tartar, do you know what technique he used to punch Marya?” The head master asked him in response. The attendant shook his head sideways to say no.

“He used one of the advanced punching techniques which were only taught in Alabusia,” he said. “To think that this kid taught himself one of the most difficult punching techniques of Alabusia seems impossible. Nobody among us Nigrosians practice those techniques. Also…” he stared at the doorway, “There is something off about that boy.”

The attendant was even more confused now. “What is in your mind, master?”

“I think there is someone who is trying to add fuel to the fire by provoking Alabusians in the first province. It could be the same person who is teaching the Alabusian arts to the children and could be related to the disappearance of the soldiers as well. This is the only viable theory I can think of right now.”

“But isn't this just a speculation?” The attendant asked, reluctantly.

The headmaster did not reply to him and unrolled the scroll kept in front of him. He dipped his paintbrush into the tray of ink and stroked his beard before starting to scribble again. The attendant waited for him to respond but continued to examine the documents when he realized the headmaster got busy with his scribbles.