Chapter I
The Kingdom of Elaris.
Spring season.
The training grounds of the Silver Order echoed with the clash of steel.
Young knights competed to earn a place among the king's elite.
One corner of the field, however...
...was almost silent.
A young man stood alone.
A long spear rested in his hands.
His movements were slow.
Deliberate.
Every thrust was followed by a breeze.
Every sweep of the spear made fallen leaves dance across the ground.
The instructors called it...
Weather Magic.
Not because he could summon hurricanes.
Not yet.
But because the wind seemed to obey his emotions.
His name was...
"Merlin Geralt"
Twenty-two years old.
Quiet.
The kind of man who listened more than he spoke.
Many mistook his silence for weakness.
None of those people had ever sparred with him twice.
That morning, the captain of the Royal army blew the war horn.
Every recruit gathered.
"The king has issued a decree."
"The northern frontier has gone silent."
"Three villages have vanished."
"We are sending a scouting party."
He looked across the recruits.
Then unexpectedly...
He pointed directly at.
"Merlin."
"You'll lead it."
A murmur spread through the crowd.
"He's only twenty-two."
"Why him?"
Before anyone could question further...
A clear female voice cut through the whispers.
"I object."
Every head turned.
A young woman stepped forward from the ranks.
She wore light leather armor instead of plate.
A longsword rested at her hip.
A bow across her back.
Confident.
Sharp-eyed.
She looked at the captain, then at Merlin.
"Not because he's incapable..."
She crossed her arms.
"...because he never speaks."
Then, for the first time...
She looked directly into Merlin's eyes.
A faint smirk appeared.
"How is a silent man supposed to lead anyone
The entire training ground fell silent.
Not because of words...
Because of what happened before them.
The moment Merlin shifted he's spear into a combat stance...
Every soldier behind him instinctively mirrored the movement.
No order.
No command.
Just instinct.
The captain raised an eyebrow.
Several veteran knights exchanged glances.
One of them muttered,
"So the rumors were true..."
"The recruits follow him without him asking."
The young woman stared at him.
The smirk disappeared.
She looked at the formation behind him, then back at his spear.
A small gust of wind swept across the field, lifting her dark hair.
She chuckled.
"Hmph..."
"So you can talk."
She stepped forward until only a spear's length separated the two of them.
"Merlin Gerald..."
"You're either the most arrogant man I've ever met..."
She drew her longsword.
Its polished blade reflected the morning sun.
"...or exactly as good as everyone keeps whispering."
She spun the sword once and rested it on her shoulder.
"Let's find out."
The captain didn't stop her.
Instead...
He smiled.
"Perfect."
"Lady Elena has never been defeated by a recruit."
"If Merlin is truly leading the northern expedition..."
"...then let everyone see why."
The soldiers immediately formed a large circle.
Veteran knights stopped training just to watch.
Even the royal battle mages looked over from the towers.
This wasn't just a spar anymore.
It had become a spectacle.
Elena lowered her sword into a duelist's stance.
Her eyes were locked on Merlin.
There was no mockery left in them.
Only excitement.
"Come on then, quiet commander."
"Show me why they follow you."
The wind around he's spear began to stir.
The duel... was about to begin.
Steel met steel.
Clang!
The first clash echoed across the training grounds.
Elena expected the spear to retreat after the impact.
Instead...
Merlin stepped forward.
His spear moved like it had no fixed form.
One moment it was a weapon of reach.
The next...
It became a staff, deflecting her blade before spinning back into a deadly thrust.
Elena barely leaned away.
The spearhead brushed a strand of her hair.
A smile crept across her face.
"Interesting..."
She dashed in again, refusing to give the spear room.
The longsword was at its strongest in close quarters.
Three rapid slashes.
Left.
Right.
Downward.
Merlin blocked every one with the wooden shaft alone.
The wind around the spear began to whisper.
Not a storm.
Just enough to alter the direction of Elena's blade by a fraction.
A fraction was all Merlin needed.
The watching knights began murmuring.
"He's not overpowering her..."
"He's reading her."
The captain folded his arms.
"No..."
"He's making her fight exactly where he wants."
Elena realized it too.
Every attack she launched...
Merlin redirected.
Every step she took...
He had already anticipated.
She suddenly laughed.
A genuine laugh.
"So this is what they meant..."
"...you don't control the battlefield..."
"...you control the person standing on it."
For the first time in years...
Someone had made her feel as though she was the one being studied.
She tightened her grip.
Her eyes sharpened.
"Good."
"Now stop holding back."
A gust of wind swept across the arena.
Merlin's cloak fluttered.
The duel had only just begun.
The moment crimson flames wrapped around Elena's blade...
The entire arena grew several degrees warmer.
The air shimmered.
A few recruits instinctively stepped back.
One whispered,
"Fire Magic..."
Another replied,
"No... that's not ordinary Fire Magic."
"She's controlling the temperature of the blade itself."
The veterans watching from the stands finally stopped talking.
Now...
They were paying attention.
Merlin's expression changed.
Not with fear.
Not with doubt.
But with something he rarely felt.
Excitement.
His grip on the spear tightened.
Inside his mind, a thought crossed for only a second.
"A woman... wielding fire this naturally..."
"Incredible..."
"So this is Lady Elena..."
His lips almost curved into a smile.
Almost.
He said nothing.
His spear answered for him.
Elena swung.
The flaming blade roared through the air.
Merlin met it head-on.
BOOM!
Fire and wind collided.
The impact sent a shockwave across the training grounds.
Dust rose.
Leaves spiraled into the sky.
The spectators shielded their faces.
When the dust settled...
Neither had moved.
Merlin's spear held the burning sword at bay.
The wood should have burned.
It didn't.
The wind surrounding the shaft constantly diverted the flames just enough to keep them from catching.
Elena's eyes widened.
"You figured it out..."
Merlin remained silent.
He rotated the spear.
The wind changed direction.
Suddenly Elena's own flames bent back toward her, forcing her to leap away.
She landed gracefully.
A grin spread across her face.
"You're enjoying this..."
Merlin gave no reply.
Only another step forward.
For the first time...
Elena realized something.
She had been trying to defeat Merlin.
Merlin...
Was trying to understand her.
Every spell.
Every stance.
Every movement.
As though he wasn't fighting an opponent...
He was learning from her.
The captain smiled to himself.
"That's why he's different."
"Every battle makes him stronger..."
"...because he treats every opponent as a teacher before an enemy."
Elena lowered her burning sword for just a heartbeat.
She couldn't help but laugh.
"You're a strange man, Merlin Gerald."
"You haven't spoken a single word..."
She pointed her blazing blade toward him.
"...yet somehow..."
"...I feel like we're already having a conversation."
The arena remained silent for a heartbeat.
Then...
Elena slowly lowered her burning sword.
The flames around the blade faded until only warm embers remained.
She looked at Merlin for a long moment.
The quiet man hadn't celebrated.
Hadn't taunted her.
Hadn't even spoken.
He simply rested his spear against the ground.
A faint breeze circled the arena, carrying away the last traces of smoke.
Elena smiled.
A genuine one.
She sheathed her sword with a sharp click and turned toward the captain.
"I accept Merlin Gerald as our leader, Captain."
She glanced sideways at Merlin before adding with a grin,
"No objections."
For a second...
No one moved.
Then one veteran knight struck his fist against his chest.
Another followed.
Then another.
Soon the entire training ground echoed with the salute of steel against armor.
Even the recruits who had doubted him lowered their heads in respect.
The captain stepped forward.
"Then it is settled."
"At dawn, the northern expedition departs."
He looked at Merlin.
"Choose your companions wisely."
Before dismissing everyone, the captain turned to Elena.
"Lady Elena..."
"You'll accompany Commander Merlin."
She rolled her eyes dramatically.
"I had a feeling you were going to say that."
Then, as everyone began leaving the arena, she walked past Merlin.
Without looking at him, she spoke just loudly enough for only him to hear.
"You know..."
"...for someone who barely talks..."
She glanced at the spear in his hand.
"...you have a surprisingly loud way of introducing yourself."
She continued walking, a small smile still on her face.
For the first time that morning...
Merlin noticed something.
He wasn't looking at her because she was a powerful fire mage anymore.
He caught himself wondering...
What made someone like Elena smile like that?
And that thought lingered far longer than the duel itself.
