Bloomed to Wither

Chapter 1

—–CROW—–

“Catarina Donovan.”

“…….”

“What have you protected with your sword all this time?”

The office was bathed in the soft light of the setting sun.

Count Donovan stared at his daughter, who stood awkwardly like a criminal.

“If you had been just a little braver, your mother and your youngest sibling wouldn’t have died.”

His words fell like icy shards.

A few days prior, Kata’s mother and youngest sibling had perished. Her mother had died a warrior’s death after a fierce battle, while her younger sibling had suffocated in the burning mansion.

“If you are the ‘hero’ the prophecy speaks of… you should have at least protected them.”

The Count irritably tugged at his cravat, and Kata, who had been standing like a statue, flinched. Instead of protesting to her cold father, she silently lowered her head.

The Count sighed deeply, looking at the top of her motionless head. Tears dripped steadily beneath her bowed head.

“Get out.”

“…….”

“Get out. I don’t want to see you.”

That day, Kata was only ten years old. A fact that neither the Count, the world, nor even Kata herself had considered.

***

Catarina Donovan.

The eldest daughter of the Donovan family. Manifested her Aura at the youngest age of five.

It was an unbelievable, genius-level talent.

There was a time when the Empire buzzed with her story.

“She uses Aura at five!”

“If, as the Saint’s prophecy foretells, the youngest manifester slays the Demon King….”

Catarina Donovan was the hero who would end the Demon King.

The people of the Empire all agreed.

“But they were all wrong.”

Arcane Knights Order Headquarters.

Standing on the upper floor of the indoor training grounds, Soram looked down at the lined-up rookie knights. His gaze fixed on a knight with light brown, bobbed hair.

“Far from a hero, she was a dud who couldn’t even kill a single monster.”

The day the Donovan family’s seal was broken, Kata fainted at the mere sight of a monster.

Count Donovan lost his wife’s life, his daughter’s reputation, and the Emperor’s trust all at once.

Moreover, she hadn’t even achieved her Second Awakening after that.

Considering that promising swordsmen typically achieved their Second Awakening before the age of fifteen, the conclusion was all but certain.

The genius had fallen.

“I heard Donovan’s entrance exam scores were excellent.”

Soram scoffed at the cautious words of his squire, Leah.

“Still just a First Awakened, isn’t she?”

“Th…that’s true, but…”

Leah, also a First Awakened, silently closed her mouth.

Soram asked, “Who is Donovan’s opponent today?”

“Xenon Corer.”

“Oh dear.”

He smirked with amusement.

It was the first day of training for the rookie knights. The rookies had to spar with randomly assigned partners.

And Xenon Corer was the rookie who had taken the top spot with overwhelming skill. His tree-trunk-like physique and sharp features stood out even from a distance.

Holding a blunt-tipped longsword, he looked down at Kata with a deeply displeased expression.

The sparring began as soon as the instructor gave the signal.

“Uh, uh, uhhh?”

“What the…?”

And not even a few seconds later, Soram’s brow furrowed deeply.

That’s because Catarina Donovan’s skills were far worse than he had expected.

“Far… far worse.”

He had sensed unease from the start.

But she hadn’t managed a single proper counterattack. Even though it was a spar without Aura.

“…She looks scared,” Leah murmured.

As she said, something seemed off about Kata’s condition.

Her arms trembled faintly, and her legs, which should have been firmly supporting her body, wobbled constantly.

The moment Xenon’s face, as he pressed his attack, twisted subtly, Kata abruptly threw down her sword.

“…….”

Is she crazy? Soram watched as Kata ran to a corner, leaned against the wall, and vomited pathetically.

Xenon, suddenly without a sparring partner, looked extremely displeased. Instead of approaching Kata and asking if she was alright while patting her back, he stared at her hunched back with a cold expression.

Around the time the retching subsided, Soram spoke coldly.

“That’s a new one.”

He didn’t take his eyes off Kata as she staggered to her feet.

“You’re going to have a grand initiation.”

***

On the night of the first training day for the Arcane Knights rookies, an initiation ceremony was traditionally held.

And in the initiation ceremony, the most foolish rookie was “purified.”

The important thing here was how much the most foolish rookie was humiliated in front of all the other rookies.

How much embarrassment could a newly-adult noble have possibly experienced? The rookies, mostly from noble families, felt a terrible sense of humiliation even from minor insults.

“Catarina Donovan. You were called a genius when you were young, but you’ve completely fallen apart.”

Pressing hard on her temples.

“Even the Lord God Semasiar would pinch his nose and avoid a coward like you.”

Several senior knights surrounding her and mocking her.

“You haven’t changed a bit, have you? Still getting scared without a second thought?”

Poking at painful memories.

At the end of all this, the pitiful rookie’s face would be a mess of tears and snot.

If the other rookies, seeing this, developed a sense of caution against defying their superiors, the initiation ceremony was considered a success.

But.

“…….”

“…….”

Leah’s face crumpled.

Kata blinked, her expression completely unfazed.

‘Is she clueless?’

After vomiting so pathetically, her face now shone smoothly with vitality.

Instead, the senior knights who had been giggling around Kata began to show signs of fatigue.

This is awkward. Leah creaked her neck, turning to look at Soram. What should we do?

“…A rookie like you needs responsible guidance.”

Soram slowly began.

“From now on, come to the second training ground every day at 4:00 AM.”

“Yes!”

Kata replied readily.

He raised his eyebrows at her unexpected response.

“Every single day, without fail.”

“Yes, I understand!”

“…If you’re even a minute late, the entire rookie class will be summoned because of you.”

“I’ll keep that in mind!”

“…….”

***

The next day, around 4:00 AM.

Xenon, who had been absorbed in his training, slowly withdrew his Aura. The blue light that had been permeating the surroundings faded.

Turning his head, he saw Kata repeatedly glancing beyond the training grounds.

‘How foolish.’

Xenon frowned.

Soram wouldn’t show up at the appointed time. He wouldn’t be surprised even if Soram didn’t appear all morning.

Nevertheless, Kata fidgeted like a dog waiting for its owner, craning her neck. Just like before, she was ridiculously weak at predicting the malice of others.

Eventually, Soram appeared at the training grounds two hours later.

It was obviously a deliberate tardiness, but Kata, her eyes shining, rushed towards him and shouted,

“By the grace of Semasiar!”

It was a powerful greeting.

Soram, who had been walking with his hands behind his back, faltered, taken aback by her energy.

“Hello! Sir Soram!”

“Hmm.”

Scanning her lively face with displeasure, he blurted out,

“One hundred laps around the training grounds today.”

“…Excuse me?”

“Are your ears plugged? I said, run one hundred laps around the training grounds.”

As Kata blinked blankly, Soram curled his lips.

“Basic stamina is essential if you’re going to face monsters with high regenerative abilities. If you can’t maintain your initial speed, you’ll have to face the consequences.”

One hundred laps. It was an absurd number.

Xenon thought Kata would protest this unfair training.

The rookie knights’ schedule was already packed enough. If she excessively depleted her stamina in the early morning, there was no way she could properly handle the rest of the schedule.

However, Kata looked around as if gauging the size of the training grounds, and then nodded.

“Yes!”

“…….”

And she really started running. Honestly, without cutting corners, she stepped along the very edge of the training grounds.

—–CROW—–

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