Blades.

Chapter Three

Aeris

The first thing Aeris noticed when she woke up was how bright it was. She opened her eyes too quickly and the bright light burned her eyeballs. Her whole body ached and no matter how much she tossed and turned on the bed, she couldn't find a better position so she just lay still and closed her eyes.

"Aeris..Aeris, are you awake?" A deep voice said beside her.

She opened her eyes slowly so as to adjust to the light. She looked around and saw Lord Lucian sitting by her bedside staring at her. She tried to sit up but maddening pain shot through her entire body and she fell back on the bed. She didn't know where she was and she wanted to ask but her throat was unbearably dry, making it difficult to form words. “W-Water…” she rasped.

Without hesitation, he stood, crossing the room with smooth, deliberate steps. He poured water from a jug into a cup and returned to her side, lifting it to her lips.

Aeris drank greedily, the cool liquid easing the rawness in her throat.

When she had her fill, he set the cup down and regarded her silently.

“Where am I?” she asked, her voice still hoarse.

“The palace of Arlindale,” he replied. “You’re in the hospital wing.”

The palace? The words barely made sense. The last thing she remembered was the mob, the stones, the pain. And then—him. A dark figure stepping through the crowd, lifting her as if she weighed nothing.

It had to be him. Lord Lucian

She studied him now, truly seeing him for the first time. His face was sharp, strong-jawed, with piercing dark eyes that held an unsettling intensity. She had expected someone older—someone grizzled and cruel. But he wasn’t. He was… young. Perhaps only in his late twenties, though his presence carried the weight of someone who had seen far too much.

Aeris swallowed. “Why did you save me?”

There was no hesitation in his answer. “Because I want you to fight for me.”

Aeris blinked. “What?”

Lord Lucian leaned forward slightly, resting his forearms on his knees. “I need soldiers. You have the fire of one, even if you don’t know it yet.”

She let out a breathless, bitter laugh. “I’m not a soldier.”

“Not yet,” he agreed. “But I will make you one.”

Aeris looked away, her fingers gripping the blanket beneath her. “I’ve never held a sword in my life.”

“Then you’ll learn.” His voice was calm, unwavering. “I will teach you. My commanders will train you. You will become strong.”

She shook her head, a mix of confusion and wariness twisting inside her. “Why me? I’m nobody.”

Lucian’s gaze was unwavering. “Because you don’t break.”

Aeris swallowed hard, her heart pounding in her chest.

No one had ever looked at her like this before—not with pity, not with disgust. Just certainty. As if he had already decided her fate.

She should refuse. She should tell him to let her go.

But where would she go?

Back to the streets? Back to a life of hunger, fear, and running?

Lucian stood abruptly, his dark cloak shifting with the movement. “Hurry up and recover,” he said. “Your training will start soon.”

Aeris frowned. “Why the rush?”

His expression hardened. “Because the neighboring kingdom has attacked our borders.” His voice was low, edged with something dangerous. “And we will retaliate.”

Aeris felt the weight of his words settle over her like a cold wind.

She didn’t know what she had just been pulled into.