Still holding Neryssa's wrist, he pulled her and they began to run towards the mountain. The guards with Arlen couldn't chase Nico as they needed to take care of their fallen prince.
Nico and Neryssa on the other hand imbued their feet with mana to boost their speed. As they ran, they laughed in victory.
Neryssa was happy– genuinely happy.
Perhaps the first time she'd ever been truly happy. They ran until they got to a river and then they stopped to catch their breath.
"Whoo!" Nico whooped.
"I don't think they'd chase us this far." Nico chuckled and proceeded to sit down, resting on both arms as he stared at Neryssa.
"Did you get the charcoal?" She asked. Nico showed her the bag that was used to conceal it. She walked to his side and sat down.
"I like it here." She said and hugged her knees.
"You'd eventually come to realize that there's no place better than home."
Nico's own words began to bring back memories of the past. If Eleanor had lived to grow up, she'd have been the same age as Neryssa.
Nico couldn't deny the fact that he would miss her when she leaves. Then the only thing he would cling to once again would be memories of the three years they spent together.
"Promise me you'd come visiting?" She turned sharply at him, her eyes already manufacturing hot tears.
"Now see who's being a big baby." Nico teased and she struck him hard at the back of his head. Nico let out a wince but her gaze was still on him.
"Promise me." She stretched out her pinky towards Nico.
Nico paused for a while. He was gathering his thoughts together. There could be unforeseen circumstances ahead and that would make him go against his promise.
"I promise."
With that, Nico locked his pinky with hers.
—
Both kids got back to the cabin late in the evening. Torvald was already waiting at the edge of the cliff. They walked holding hands towards Torvald.
"What took you so long?" Torvald asked, not looking back at them.
Nico hesitated for a while. Lying would bring punishments to him. Telling the truth would only do worse.
"We stopped by the river to get a quick bath." Nico said.
This wasn't a lie, just a half baked truth.
Torvald turned back to face the children, studying them to see if they would flinch. After thoroughly assessing the children, he let out a sigh.
"Let's prepare dinner."
Torvald didn't trouble the kids about the errand he sent them again. The rest of the evening was spent peacefully and quietly.
"Grab two swords." Torvald said, obviously talking to Nico.
They had just finished their meals.
Nico was troubled. He'd eaten more than his body could handle and was too tired to even pick himself up. Was Torvald watching him all along?
Nico walked to the stack of wooden swords and drew two swords. He flung one to Torvald who caught it effortlessly.
"How many plates did you eat again?" Torvald asked as both of them began to walk in circles.
Nico hesitated first then said, "four."
Then it dawned on him– he shouldn't have eaten too much. Torvald sped towards him, closing the gap between them in an instant. Nico defended but the force rattled the bones in his leg forcing him down a knee.
"Shit!" Nico cursed under his breath.
"You want to be a foodie or a swordsman?" Torvald yelled, applying pressure on Nico's wooden sword.
Nico instinctively rolled over, narrowly dodging a strike that would have struck him directly on the forehead.
Torvald struck backwards but Nico had his sword in a vertical angle, deflecting the strike but the force vibrated his hands and it stung his palm.
Torvald was obviously stronger. So why go through all this trouble? What point was he trying to prove?
"If there was a beast attack now and it's just you and Nery, what would you do if you're unable to move because of the food you consumed?" Torvald wasn't holding back.
He kept on spamming repeated strikes and Nico could barely hold his own. Nico tried to attack. He swung his sword towards Torvald's face but missed. Torvald made to sweep his feet off the ground but Nico raised it.
Nico was slowly feeling his body again, unlike before.
Torvald's offense wasn't complete, his sword was still approaching Nico's face. Nico ducked, bending forwards to his side whilst maintaining eye contact. His body was already feeling light.
He aimed for an opening but his speed was still slow. Torvald used the bottom of his weapon to strike Nico at the back of his head causing him to fall straight down.
"If that was a spirit beast, you'd have died." Torvald said nonchalantly and let out a loud yawn.
"Pack up. Lights out in a few minutes." With that, he walked into the cabin.
Neryssa, who could do nothing but watch, quickly ran to Nico as soon as Torvald walked in.
"Nico!" She called and flipped him to face her.
He wasn't unconscious and he wasn't showing any signs of pain at all. This was just another late night lesson he was learning from Torvald.
"Are you hurt?" She asked, worry evident in her tone.
"I've never felt better!"