Freya stood up and fixed her clothes, then resumed her fighting stance. The man jeered at her, “If you really want to end up with broken bones, then let’s go again.” The referee waved his flag, and he charged at her again. Freya quickly realized that he was using the exact same tactic that he had previously used. He couldn’t even be bothered to change his attack, so Freya knew immediately what she had to do. She raised her hand, lowered her body, and began counting silently to herself. Archer had told her not to act too quickly in this kind of situation; the way to succeed was to wait until the opponent was at the right distance and then attack properly. As the man reached her, she stepped on his knees and grabbed his head with both hands. At the same time, she brought her knee up with sudden force so that it smashed against his chin sending him sprawling onto the floor crying, “My chin, my chin…”
The crowd had become silent and were staring in wonder at this small but monstrous girl. They murmured to each other, “See how she broke Jimmy’s chin with her knee. Where could such a girl have come from?” As the crowd continued staring at her, Freya went over to the man called Jimmy and offered her hand saying, “Thanks for teaching me.” However, he brushed her hand away and buried his nose in the ground, deeply embarrassed and ashamed. With a shrug of her shoulders, Freya walked away and headed toward Gemini, who was watching in the crowd. She approached him boldly and said, “So what do you think? Now, are you willing to teach me?”
Gemini stood looking carefully at Freya. His face was somewhat distorted as he couldn’t quite believe what he had seen. He had rarely felt much in the way of changing emotions, as he had been born into the Count Stern family as the second child. He had always been interested in combat; swords, archery, martial arts, and horseback riding were all hobbies that he had had for a long time. After he became the Crown Prince’s guard, his sole focus had been protecting Lucius. And yet he had never seen a person move as quickly and skillfully as this woman, not even the multitude of knights that he had known over the years. He thought that he would have to reconsider his previously held belief that women were not as strong as men, after seeing Freya’s recent performance. He sighed deeply as he pondered these matters, and was suddenly interrupted by Freya asking, “Sir, why aren’t you saying anything?” Gemini was aware of the sharp energy around the woman in front of him, even though she was barely tall enough to reach his chest. Such quick movements from a small body didn’t seem normal to him, and he considered that if she knew how to use a dagger effectively, she would be perfect for surprise attacks on the enemy. He looked at Freya and said, “Ok, I will teach you in small steps whenever we have time.” Freya’s face lit up into a smile and she quickly replied, “Are you sure? You’re not just saying that?” Gemini replied, “The men of Stern always keep their promise.”
The wind was blowing Gemini’s hair around, and his face remained serious. Freya thought to herself that despite his lack of expression, he was still quite handsome due to his tall height. She was thinking that there were quite a few handsome men around here, but now she was focused on Gemini.
Her thoughts were suddenly interrupted by a voice from behind her. “What are you two talking about? Why are you staring at each other like that?” Freya turned around and saw Lucius, sweaty and glaring, standing behind her and looking at them quizzically. She didn’t think she had done anything wrong, and her eyes widened in defense as she felt that she was suddenly being criticized. Gemini stood up quickly and answered, “There’s no reason, Your Highness! We were just….” But he was interrupted by Lucius who kept glaring at Freya and said, “I thought I ordered you to stand there and not move?” Lucius was pulling his chainmail aggressively and Freya wondered what he expected from her. Was she supposed to just stand still like a statue for hours on end? She wanted to return his aggressive glare but she knew that was impossible. She lowered her head and looked at his clothes, noticing that his white pants were muddy and his shirt was loose at the front. She saw a red line between his neck and chin and wondered what it could be. Her thoughts were suddenly interrupted as Lucius snapped, “We’re going back!”
As Freya began to follow Lucius, Gemini also made it as if to follow them but Lucius stopped and coldly said, “Gemini Stern. You will stay here and guard. Is that not one of your duties to me, as Grand Master?” Gemini looked embarrassed and replied, “Yes, Your Majesty.” Gemini knew that when His Majesty called him by his full name, it usually meant that he was not in a good mood. He didn’t know what he had done wrong, but he knew from experience that it was best not to press the issue.