the one who remembers

With his eyes closed, Cale lay on his back and enjoyed the sun's rays on his skin. He had worked what was likely his last shift at the tavern until late in the morning. Now he was enjoying the good weather on the shore of the great lake with Fengari. The last few days had flown by, and tomorrow Cale would also receive his answer whether he had been accepted as a soldier. For hours now, he had been thinking about how he could rise through the ranks as quickly as possible and how he could win the king's trust.

Going the path with Sir Venlan or Sir Freigoud didn't seem like a bad idea, but the opportunity to spend time with them was almost zero. Therefore, he had to shine with his skills and knowledge so that he would get the attention he needed, and he couldn't afford to make any mistakes during his time there. The fact that Fengari was the only one known to have a perfect score at the institute was definitely a big plus for his plans. Having an intelligent daughter who knew how to behave was certainly helpful. Even if he hadn't originally intended it.

But since Loys of Freigoud had noticed his presence during the ceremony and knew his name, Cale still considered this unlikely possibility. Perhaps he could even use Fengari to get to Ben and ultimately his father, even though he didn't really know how to achieve that. He didn't want to stand in Fengari's way by constantly giving her tasks. She had already done more than Cale could ever repay her for.

The third option that crossed Cale's mind was to create a dangerous situation for humans in which he would become known as a hero. However, he wasn't sure if such a drastic move was necessary. Therefore, he kept the idea in mind as a contingency plan if he had no notable successes to show for himself after five years.

"Please don't do this", Fengari's delicate voice said, causing Cale to look up. She was standing knee-deep in the water in a thin dress, slowly trying to get used to the feeling. She didn't dare to swim, even though Cale had offered to teach her.

However, a strange boy next to her seemed to find her behavior very funny, because he splashed her with water to get her attention.

"Can't you swim?" ,the boy replied mockingly - he seemed about same age as Fengari. He continued to splash Fengari with water, so she held her arms protectively in front of her face. Cale knew that she was forcing herself to remain calm, even though she could kill someone with her gaze right now.

"Not very well, no", she replied honestly, causing the boy to cry out and use both hands to splash her. With iron will, the blonde-haired girl stood next to him and endured the torture as her long hair and clothes became completely soaked. After a good minute, however, the child lost patience because Fengari showed no reaction, ran forward a little, and dove into the water. About two meters in front of Fengari, he resurfaced energetically. "I'll show you how to swim!"

"Thank you for the offer, but I'll pass", she replied clearly, brushing her wet hair out of her face in annoyance.

"Are you afraid?", the tanned child shouted and began to swim in front of Fengari, repeatedly splashing water in her direction with one hand. The wave didn't really reach her, but by now Cale was also fed up with the behavior. Just as he stood up, a woman's voice called out from a distance.

"Don't swim too far out!", she admonished the boy who was bothering Fengari. Cale glanced at the plump woman lying on the gravel about 15 meters away from him with two other children, visibly ignoring her son's interaction with a strange girl.

"Yes!", the boy simply shouted back and swam a little further out. He was clearly not listening to his mother's instructions. "Look! I'm a good swimmer and diver! I can hold my breath for a really long time!"

With that announcement, he dove in with full momentum and disappeared beneath the surface of the water. Cale, on the other hand, had come to a stop next to his new daughter and crouched down inconspicuously beside her.

"Are you okay?"

"What an annoying person. Parousia would certainly have killed him."

"Probably, but you're not Parousia. Thank you for holding back."

"I'm not going to sacrifice all my work for this human child", she replied sharply. Cale sighed with relief and stroked her face before straightening up and glancing across the lake.

Dozens of people spent their time here in the summer, some swimming and some sailing with their small boats on the almost clear water. The lake was so large that he couldn't see the end from where he was standing, but it was possible from his house. It was located on a slight hill, and from his bedroom window he had a wonderful view of the water. Sometimes he stood silently at the window for a while, thinking about his past and his future. He missed talking to his friends, and he wouldn't have the opportunity to hear their voices again anytime soon. The only positive thing about this thought was that Grischa had already shown some kind of interest and Cale saw this as an opportunity to develop his relationship with him.

"Isn't he a little too long underwater?", Fengari asked a little later, pointing her finger at the spot where the boy had dived in a minute ago.

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Cale needed a moment to process what Fengari had said. Surprised, he straightened up and struggled forward – he even had to swim a little before he could grab the child and pull him out of the water.

"Hey, boy!", Cale shouted loudly as the child stirred and began coughing loudly. Relieved, Cale exhaled, picked up the boy, and patted him on the back as he turned and headed back to the beach. Some people had heard his cries and had also jumped up, but they had stopped at the shore and stared at him in complete horror.

"By the gods", muttered a woman as Cale passed her with the strange child.

"How can you leave your child unattended?", another woman scolded loudly, turning to the heavier lady who was running toward her. "Have all the gods forsaken you?"

"How dare you!", the mother screamed, slapping Cale hard across the face. Surprised, he held his cheek with one hand while the woman literally ripped the boy from his arms. "Karteso. Karteso, can you hear me?"

"Mom", the boy said weakly as his mother carefully took him in her arms and turned to Cale.

"You should be ashamed of yourself. Who gave you permission to be here?"

Irritated, Cale stared at the angry woman, unable to understand what exactly her problem was. First, her son had harassed her daughter, and now she wasn't even grateful that he had obviously just saved his life.

"Excuse me", Cale managed to say as an unknown woman appeared in front of him and yelled at the mother to watch her children. The mother continued to berate the spectator before distancing herself from the group and instructing her other children to pack up their things. Fengari appeared next to him a moment later and grabbed Cale's hand, causing him to look down in surprise.

"Are you okay, Dad? Did that hurt?"

"I'm fine", Cale replied in surprise, because the dragon had addressed him by another title and not as father.

"That woman is out of her mind", the stranger announced and asked if Cale was okay. Shortly thereafter, the other people also approached Cale and began discussing the mother's behavior.

"She should consider herself lucky that someone was watching."

"What an ungrateful woman. I feel sorry for her husband and children."

"I can't believe that just happened."

The opinions of the concerned people were all the same. They condemned the woman for her negligent actions and unfriendly manner. With angry glances, the group watched as the mother wrapped her child in a towel and disappeared after a good minute.

"She was probably shocked and worried about her child. I can't blame her. If something like that happened to my daughter, I would freak out too. But thank you very much for your support", Cale said politely and bowed to the strangers, who were all a little surprised by his reaction.

They then said that he had done nothing wrong and that they would be grateful to him if Cale had saved one of their children. After a few brief comments, the tone softened and everyone went their separate ways, allowing Cale to lie back down on his towel. Fengari sat down next to him and remained quiet, probably feeling somewhat guilty for having caused this situation. Without a word, Cale placed his hand on her head and lay back down before a stranger spoke up.

"You don't expect something like this on a normal afternoon, do you?"

"Not at all", Cale replied politely and stretched backward to take a look behind him.

A young man his age was crouching on the rock a good meter away from him and gave him a friendly smile. He had short, light brown hair, blue eyes, and a light beard. He was also wearing long clothes, which seemed unusual for this weather. Not only that, but he had no towel or other items with him. If Cale hadn't sensed half an hour ago that this man had sat down behind him, the situation would have seemed a little strange to him.

"Do we know each other?", Cale asked.

"I don't think so. You're not from around here, are you? Judging by the way you behaved towards the mother."

Cale didn't really understand what the stranger was hinting at. Was it meant as an insult, or was it just a strange way of showing interest? Was he deliberately ignoring Cale's appearance and focusing on his behavior? He must have seen the whole scene from start to finish, but he hadn't tried to help. What was wrong with this man? Did he just want to stay out of trouble, or why was he acting so strangely?

"You're right. My daughter and I moved here from Altona."

"Altona? Not from Frignez?"

"No, we're from Altona", Cale repeated dryly. He tried to understand what the man actually wanted from him.

"Please excuse me. I would have assumed your appearance was more typical of someone from Frignez. You don't have any relatives there?"

"Not that I know of", Cale replied calmly and lay back down on his back.

With their appearance, Cale didn't blame anyone for thinking they were foreigners from the Healer Land. After all, only there was the combination of blond hair, blue eyes, and pale skin so prevalent. This statement applied to Aletta, Miguel, and pretty much everyone he had met up there.

"May I ask your name?"

"If you tell me yours in return and I can name you as an eyewitness to the events earlier", Cale said ironically, causing the stranger to clear his throat amusedly.

"Gladly."

"Then allow me to tell you my name", Cale said theatrically, raising his hand in the air as if imitating a nobleman introducing himself. "My name is Zod Adenia of the House of Adenia of Altona. The young lady on my right is Ahri Adenia, my lovely daughter."

"It is an honor to make your acquaintance", the stranger replied with a mocking undertone, which made Cale grin. The stranger understood the allusion and responded in kind. "My name is Jarle of Mornet - from the House of Mornet."

Surprised, Cale paused in his movement and turned abruptly to face the unremarkable man behind him. He looked at the stranger in amazement, for he had not expected this answer. Mornet was the name of one of the dukes of Sylve, whose family lived in the province of Mornet, which was named after them. A family of four who live on the southern tip of Sylve and were among the richest families in the entire country.

Sitting in front of Cale was a member of that very family, which could rival the influence of the king's right-hand man, the Duke of Freigoud. But that was not the real reason why Cale was so surprised. He knew the name Jarle of Mornet in a completely different context.

His death.

In Cale's previous life, he had learned that the second son of the Duke of Mornet had committed suicide, although the public had never learned why. It was quite possible that his own family did not know either, but Cale had never looked into the matter in detail. It was not important enough to him.

Instead, he was suddenly seized by a feeling of fear. Not because of Jarle of Mornet himself or his impending suicide, but because of his unexpected encounter with him. After all, he wanted to avoid the Mornet family at all costs.

For one simple reason. Swordmaster Jonat Paseru.