Chương 23: Sunlight

"I have a question." Noah kept his sword raised. Johan stood before the castle gates, his armored tail swaying lazily behind him.

"Why did you side with the Black Witch?" Johan blinked. Then he shrugged.

"It's nothing deep. Not like the other guards." Noah's eyes narrowed slightly.

"Most of them owe her their lives," Johan said.

"She saved them from human trafficking, abuse, and other horrors." For the briefest moment, a shiver ran through Adam. It was small. Almost unnoticeable. But Noah saw it.

"As for me, she gives me a nice life. Free food. Entertainment. A comfy bed to sleep in." He gestured toward the castle behind him.

"All I have to do is stand out here and make sure nobody except her guests enters the castle." His yellow eyes drifted toward the strange fairy-tale town behind them.

"It's a good life. Better than being a starving beggar on the streets." Cyrus adjusted his glasses.

"So she has guests who visit?" Johan looked at him.

"Care to tell us who?" Cyrus already knew the answer. Johan did not seem to notice.

"Just a couple of freaks in masks," he said.

"A bird-looking one, a guy with a blue mask, and a child." Noah's grip tightened around his sword.

"The Crows." Johan sighed.

"If that's what they call themselves, sure." Noah stared at him for a moment.

"One last question." Johan raised an eyebrow.

"Have you killed anyone before?"

"Nah." The answer came easily.

"Lady Medusa doesn't like the smell of corpses in her land." Johan rolled his shoulders.

"I just knock intruders out and throw them back outside the barrier." Noah lowered his sword slightly.

"Good." Johan tilted his head. Noah raised the blade again.

"Then I'll just knock you out and throw you outside the barrier." Ava stepped forward.

"Noah—""You all need to save your stamina," Noah said. He did not look back at them.

"If The Crows are inside, and Medusa is waiting deeper in the castle, we can't afford to waste energy here." Cyrus frowned.

"You are certain?" Noah kept his eyes on Johan.

"No." His sword darkened as black spots spread along the blade.

"But I need to see how far I've come." Adam watched him carefully, his usual smile absent. Noah took one step forward.

"I'll face him alone." Johan stared at him for a moment. Then he sighed and scratched the back of his head.

"Seriously?" Noah adjusted his stance. For a moment, he remembered his father. Walter standing in the training yard. Walter's feet moving across the ground with calm, perfect precision. Walter's voice telling him that the Royal Arts were not simply about attacking. They were about movement. Protection. Counterattacks. The strength to stand before danger and guide it away from those behind you. A ring of golden circles appeared across the ground around Noah. The true essence of the Royal Arts.

Noah stepped onto the first circle. Power rushed into his legs. He moved. Then he stepped onto the next. And the next. His placements were sloppy. His rhythm was uneven. His footwork still lacked his father's grace. But he was using it. He was finally using the martial art he had once only dreamed of mastering.

"Royal Arts," Noah said. The golden circles glowed beneath his feet.

"First Stance." Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation. He vanished forward.

"Royal March." In a flash, Noah appeared in front of Johan. For the first time, Johan looked surprised. Darkness flowed through Noah's sword as he swung. Johan reacted quickly. His armored tail snapped in front of him, the length of it blocking the blade. Noah's sword struck hard. Black energy bit into the tail, leaving a dark burn across the armored surface. Johan glanced at the mark. Then he smiled.

"Ability Activate." Noah's eyes widened.

"Rebound." Johan's tail glowed. The force Noah had struck him with came rushing back. Noah was launched backward, hit by twice the strength of his own attack. He slammed into the ground and rolled, coughing as he forced himself to stop before he crashed into the others. Ava took a step forward.

"Noah!" Noah pushed himself up on one knee, breathing hard. Cyrus adjusted his glasses, eyes narrowed in analysis.

"A reflection ability," he said.

"He stores the power from incoming hits, then sends it back at his target with twice the force." Johan rested his tail over one shoulder.

"Pretty much." Cyrus looked toward Noah.

"Noah, he is a bad opponent for a close-range fighter like you." Ava tightened her grip on her daggers.

"He's right. Let us help." Noah wiped dirt from his mouth. Then he smiled.

"It's fine." Cyrus frowned. Johan tilted his head. Noah stood, raising his sword again.

"He's actually my perfect opponent." Before anyone could argue, Noah rushed forward. The same stance. The same approach. The same downward strike. And yet something was different. His grin was much wider. Johan blinked.

"Why are you smiling?" Noah did not answer immediately.

"What a stupid smile," Cyrus laughed from the sidelines. Noah's grin only widened.

"A Hero should always smile," he said. Darkness surged through his blade.

"Even in the face of death." He brought the sword down. A burst of black energy exploded from the strike. Johan's tail snapped upward to meet it. The armored appendage glowed red.

"Rebound." The stored force surged forward. Noah watched the counterattack come. And smiled. Golden rings appeared. Not beneath his feet. Around his blade. The circles were uneven and imperfect. Their spacing was sloppy, their shape unstable. But they existed. That alone was enough. The foundation of the Royal Arts. The principle from which every future stance was born. Noah tightened his grip.

"Royal Arts." The golden circles spun around his sword.

"Second Stance." The rings brightened.

"Sunlight!" Johan's eyes widened.

"Rebound!" The two forces collided. Instead of being launched away, Noah's golden circles pushed back. The repelling force struck Johan's attack head-on. For a brief moment, neither side moved. Then Johan was thrown backward. His feet left the ground as he crashed across the castle courtyard. He skidded through the dirt before digging his tail into the earth to stop himself. For the first time, surprise appeared on his face. Noah lowered his sword.

"The key to these rings is their repelling force." Golden circles continued rotating around the blade.

"By manipulating mana in a specific way, they can be created." He pointed his sword toward Johan.

"When placed beneath the feet, they repel the body and increase speed." The rings shifted slightly.

"When placed on a weapon, anything that clashes with it is pushed away." Johan slowly stood. His tail twitched. Cyrus adjusted his glasses.

"A speed stance and a counter stance."

"Not bad," Adam admitted. Noah smiled.

"This is the Royal Arts." Golden light reflected across the dark blade.

"The martial art passed down since it was first created by Fafnir himself." The circles around his sword spun faster. For the first time since the fight began, Johan no longer looked relaxed. And Noah could feel it. He was finally beginning to understand the power his father had tried to teach him. Noah rushed in again. This time, Johan did not retreat. Both of them activated their attacks at once. The red glow gathered around Johan's tail as he prepared to multiply the force stored inside it.

Noah's golden rings formed around his blade, uneven but bright.

"Rebound!" Johan shouted.

"Sunlight!" Noah called back. They clashed. The impact threw them both backward. Noah hit the ground hard, rolled, and forced himself back to his feet. Johan skidded across the courtyard, his tail cutting through the dirt to stop him. For a moment, they stared at each other. Then both smiled.

"Again!" They charged. Steel met tail. Gold met red. Repelling force crashed against reflected power again and again, each collision shaking the courtyard and sending both fighters flying apart.

"Again!" Noah's arms burned.

"Again!" Johan's tail cracked.

"Again!" The golden rings flickered. The red glow flared. They slammed together one final time, both preparing for another collision. Then the castle window shattered. A massive black hand burst through the wall. It was crude and poorly drawn, like something pulled from the fairy-tale world outside. Its fingers were uneven, its shape too simple, and in the center of its palm opened a wide, gaping mouth. Noah and Johan froze. A woman's voice echoed from within the castle.

"Let them through, Johan." The hand hovered above them, its maw stretching open.

"There is no need to risk your life over children." Johan's expression changed immediately. He bowed his head.

"As you say, Lady Medusa." The hand withdrew into the castle. For a moment, the courtyard was silent. Then Johan stepped aside. He moved toward the castle doors and opened them. Before the group entered, he glanced back at Noah.

"I'll tell you this much." Noah lowered his sword, still breathing hard.

"Of all Lady Medusa's staff, I am both the weakest and the least indebted to her." Johan's yellow eyes narrowed slightly.

"The others will not fight to stop you." His tail flicked once behind him.

"They will fight to kill you." Ava tightened her grip on her daggers. Cyrus adjusted his glasses. Adam said nothing. Noah looked past Johan and into the castle. The darkness inside waited like an open mouth. Johan stepped fully aside.

"They will die before they let you harm our mistress." Noah took a breath. Then he walked through the door. The Fool's Tea Party had entered Medusa's castle.