It came at him from out of nowhere, rapidly expanding in his sight.

"Shit!" Reivan exclaimed as he hastily threw his body to the left, barely evading the frosty spike that had been aimed at his face. He unconsciously raised his right hand and brushed his cheek, where he could still feel the chill that the projectile had left behind — despite him not having made contact with it.

"You have good dynamic vision and reflexes, I see," Donovan muttered while rubbing his chin. "I took your racial advantages into consideration too, so it seems you're just particularly excellent. I didn't think you'd avoid it so easily..."

'Are you fucking kidding me!? Is there something wrong with your eyes, old man!? What about that makes you think I did it easily!?'

Had Reivan delayed by even a millisecond, he would have lost an eye! Reivan couldn't help but glare hatefully at his teacher, spitting curses at the old man in his mind.

"Also..." Donovan's lips curled up into a smirk as he looked at the young prince. "I've noticed this since earlier, but it seems you swear quite a bit."

"Oh..." Reivan's face stiffened as he tried to come up with excuses.

"I don't particularly mind." The old man shrugged. "Curse words are just words as well. And words are a form of expression. You were using them to express yourself, not to hurt someone."

'That... is really convincing. Especially coming from you.'

The man in front of Reivan had not uttered a single swear word since they'd met. However, his words arguably caused the most emotional damage.

'When I look at it that way, isn't this guy worse than me?'

"However..." Unaware of the thoughts running through his student's mind, Donovan continued, "It is important to be mindful of when and where you use them. One never knows who might be listening or what kind of impression it might leave."

Reivan nodded, feeling a bit sheepish. He knew Donovan was right, but it was hard to break old habits. Once upon a time, he used to cuss without restraint, since everyone around him knew what kind of person he was anyway. Still, he was a different person now — he even had a new name! Furthermore, his actions would affect not just his own image, but the reputation of the entire royal family.

As such, he made a mental note to work on renouncing his bad habit.

'Princes like me shouldn't be swearing...' he repeated this thought in his head, almost like a mantra.

"Alright, back to training," Donovan said with a slight grin. "I can see your potential, but it's only going to come to fruition through hard work. And don't worry, we won't be doing too much of it today. I'd be amazed if you lasted for more than a minute."

Reivan's brow furrowed as he frowned, deep lines appearing on his forehead. "I can at least do that much..."

"You have confidence, I'll give you that. But confidence can only get you so far, boy. A minute is a long time, depending on what you have to do."

Determination to prove him wrong filled Reivan's mind as he took a deep breath. He knew the pressure was on, but he was ready to rise to the challenge, eager to improve his skills and be the best he could be. He knew that a time would come when the kingdom would have to rely on him, and he didn't want to let them down when that time came.

"Watch out." The ancient knight's offhanded warning set off alarm bells in Reivan's head.

The young prince quickly scanned his surroundings, trying to identify where the next ice shard would come from. But as he searched, he realized that Donovan had simply been warning him to pay attention and be ready for any potential danger. He couldn't help but heave a sigh of relief at this realization.

But the moment he let his guard down, he heard the distinct sound of something shooting through the air.

"Wah!" Reivan lunged forward, barely dodging a frozen ball that flew at him from the right. He heard it whizz past as a smile bloomed on his face.

'Heh!'

As he basked in the glow of his accomplishment...

Thud!

He suddenly doubled over in pain as the air in his lungs was forcefully pushed out of his mouth. Excruciating pain erupted from his stomach, accompanied by a numbing chill.

The culprit was a cold and hard object that turned into water the second after it had struck him.

"Ugh..." Reivan looked down at the aftermath of the attack; a wet stain on his shirt that served as a much harsher reminder of his failure than the physical agony he was suffering.

'Where did that come from...?'

His vision spun as his brain tried to regain its functions. He'd heard nothing nor seen anything, so the shock he felt was even greater.

"You were too careless, not to mention slow." Donovan shook his head, a trace of disappointment in his eyes. "In battle, one moment of carelessness can cost you your life. That's why you must always be aware of your surroundings and never let your guard down."

Reivan felt a pang of frustration and disappointment wash over him. His carelessness proved to be his downfall. He knew Donovan was right and that the lesson was important, but it didn't make it any easier to accept his failure.

Donovan had never said only one ice shard would come at Reivan at a time. And the old bastard definitely didn't say he'd get a break every time he avoided one.

'Dammit...'

"...I understand, sir," Reivan said, trying to hide his disappointment. His head was hung low while he bit his lip in vexation.

Looking at him, the old teacher sighed. "I suppose it would be too cruel to end it here, so I'll give you another shot. Don't get hit by the ice shards and try to last a little longer this time."

Reivan's eyes immediately brightened as he straightened up, ignoring the pain and the residual coldness in his abdomen. He did not miss Donovan's provocation, but he was far too thankful for the chance at redemption. He took a deep breath and focused on his surroundings, determined to not let his guard down ever again.

'Alright... Time for take two.'

Reivan shook his head while inwardly pumping himself up. Since he was far too afraid to be struck in his blind spot once more, Reivan kept his feet moving while his head swiveled left and right. His golden eyes lightly glowed with light as they warily observed the surroundings.

His newfound caution quickly bore fruit. Amidst the water wall, he managed to spot a clump of water condensing before it became a solid block of ice as big as a watermelon.

'Oh god, that's gonna hurt if it hits me...'

Reivan went on high alert as he tensed his muscles, preparing to leap in any direction. However, as moments passed, it became apparent that the boulder was not going to be unleashed.

Whoosh!

Instead, he heard a familiar sound right behind him.

'You have a really shitty personality, you bald bastard!'

Realizing he'd been duped, Reivan immediately ducked as an ice shard flew past the spot where his head had just been. Learning from his past lesson, he wasted no time in lunging diagonally to the right, ending his jump with an additional roll to evade the block of ice he'd originally seen.

This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

"I... did it," Reivan said, his eyes drawn to the fragments of ice scattered across the floor. If he'd been a bit slower, he would've gotten struck by that boulder.

'That was a big one. Wouldn't I have died instantly if I got hit by that? Is this okay? Am I gonna be okay...?'

"Not bad." Donovan praised with a blank expression, not looking particularly impressed or worried. "Preemptive dodging can only get you so far, however. Your evasive maneuvers are random in nature and serve no purpose other than to escape. In battle, every single action ideally serves a greater purpose, setting you up for future actions. Keep this in mind."

Reivan listened silently as he watched his surroundings on full alert. However, he was inwardly scratching his head at what his teacher said.

'You say that, but how the hell am I supposed to think of "future actions" when those things are coming at me so fast and from all sorts of directions...!?'

If that wasn't enough, the old coot even employed nasty tactics to make Reivan let his guard down. Still, even though a part of him thought the bald man was being unreasonable, Reivan decided to take his teacher's words into consideration.

Whoosh!

But before he could even come up with a way to realistically implement those teachings, he heard the sound that was slowly climbing the rankings for "Sounds Reivan Hated The Most".

This time, the ice shard came flying at Reivan from the front. But because he'd been paying too much attention to watching his sides, his reaction ended up being a bit late.

'Fuc— I mean, fudge!'

Evasion was no longer possible, so as he unconsciously began preparing for the pain of having his face caved in, he raised his hand without thinking.

To his surprise, the pain he expected never came, as the ice shard was handily blocked by the flat of his blade.

"Haah...haaah..." Reivan panted, his heart beating a mile a minute. With a hint of a smile, he looked down at his Soul Armament.

Blocking with his sword was something he'd thought of doing from the start, but putting it into practice was not so easy. After all, the process of blocking was too slow, so dodging preemptively became the better alternative in his mind.

This time, he was lucky.

"Hm. I thought you'd never use your weapon." Donovan snorted mockingly as he looked at his student from above. "Don't be too relaxed, though."

"Ah!" Reivan tilted his head to the left as he exclaimed, an ice shard narrowly missing his head. He thanked his ancestors for his good reflexes.

'Wait, this guy's been going for my face a lot...'

While brushing the thought aside as a coincidence, Reivan began walking briskly again, careful not to stay in a single spot for too long. He also made sure to randomly stop in place or take uneven steps, just to throw off the bald bastard's aim — a tactic he'd learned from playing a few MOBAs during his past life.

For a brief period, his strategy proved to be effective. Reivan easily avoided dozens of projectiles, his reaction time sharp enough to either keep moving and avoid an incoming shard or halt his steps to avoid its path. With his keen perception, he was able to identify and respond to the projectiles flying through the air with ease.

'Hey, this is going pretty well...' Reivan didn't dare to be careless again, but he allowed himself a few mental pats on the shoulder.

But just as he was about to reach the one-minute mark, the difficulty level increased without warning.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

Three cannonballs made of ice — each of which was much larger than his head — flew at him from different directions. One from the front, one diagonally to the right, and the last one somewhere behind him. Their trajectories' heights were slightly varied, but given Reivan's small stature in comparison to the size of the projectiles, it made little difference.

Reivan's thoughts froze for a fraction of a second. If he was given enough time, he could probably tell the perfect direction to escape to, but that was a bit too hard to do when projectiles were rapidly making their way to him in real-time.

'Screw it!'

Trusting his gut instinct, Reivan dashed to the left. Before he could confirm if the boulders had completely missed him, the hairs on the back of his neck stood on end, causing him to hastily turn around. Reivan's sword traced an arc in the air as he rotated his body, and for a moment, he made a silent prayer in his heart that he'd made the right decision.

'Please!'

His prayers didn't go unanswered. The edge of his blade met with a circular clump of ice, slicing through it smoothly — just like a hot knife through butter. This would normally be cause for celebration, however...

"Ah!?" Reivan exclaimed with widened eyes as two smaller ice fragments were now flying at him. As expected of an Aizenian knight's weapon of choice, Soul Armaments were incredibly sharp — too sharp, in this case.

In the end, Reivan could do nothing. He could only watch the fragments closing in until the moment the cold projectiles mercilessly collided with his chest, sending him flying backward. The resounding thud as his body hit the ground and the searing pain in his abdomen — and now his chest — could not overshadow the feelings of disappointment and frustration growing within Reivan's heart.

'I...'

Reivan's eyes were hollow as he blankly stared at the giant orb of light illuminating the underground chamber. He had been given a second chance out of pity, and yet...

'I failed...'

----------------------------------------

"Hmm..." Rodin hummed in contemplation as he chewed his food with a concerned look on his face. After he swallowed, he couldn't help but mutter, "Our son is very late."

Naturally, he was referring to his second son, Reivan. His first son was having dinner with Aizen's guests from the east to build rapport. Naturally, Stella was also absent from the palace's dining hall, since she didn't want to spend time away from her husband — especially since they'd literally been wed for less than a week.

"I know... it's worrying." Vianna, who was also deep in thought, looked up at him and nodded. She sighed while pushing aside her untouched plate of braised chicken, her appetite dulled by her worries. Even the tantalizing aroma from one of her favorite dishes could not pull her out of her melancholy. "But I suppose no news is good news. I'm just glad he hasn't been rushed back to the palace unconscious."

"That would have been the worst-case scenario," Rodin agreed. "But he does have that useful ability to replicate medicine effects. With Donovan and Valter there, he'll be fine as long as he doesn't die instantly. The real problem... is his mental state."

"True..." The queen nodded before she bit her lip. "That old coot better make sure Rein's not hurt. Or else..." Vianna thought for a bit, wracking her brain for an appropriate punishment. "I'll freeze off all of his remaining hair!"

Of course, this was assuming her son was just hurt. If he was permanently injured in some way, or — the Sun God forbid — died, then Vianna didn't know what she would do to that old man. Luckily, that couldn't possibly happen with them being so close to the kingdom's oldest man.

"Oh, shush. You know he means well." Rodin chuckled wryly, recalling his own troubles with the old knight. It would normally be unthinkable for a vassal to speak so crudely to their master, but Rodin and past kings had let it slide since they valued Donovan's service and understood his intentions.

'I just wish he'd tone it down a bit when he's talking to me...'

"Bah. Off with his head, I say!" Vianna bared her teeth as she stood up but soon sat back down. "Well, that's a bit too much. But still, you should discipline him for his insolence!"

Rodin looked down at his food, ignoring his wife's words.

'It's a bit hard to do that when he was drinking buddies with my father. And my grandfather...' The king thought as he chewed on his food. It wasn't easy to chastise someone who'd seen you when you were in diapers.

"Spineless..." Vianna sighed at the sight of her husband, and for a moment, she debated just flying off to her son and snatching him up before anything could happen. Luckily, she was able to hold back her urges.

'It's a necessary evil. My baby's just too much of a genius! Which is usually a good thing, but...'

Vianna frowned, her thoughts heavy. As a parent, having an exceptional son was a blessing, but often, excessive talent bred arrogance — and children were particularly susceptible to it. She had witnessed the negative consequences of overconfidence far too many times and did not want her beloved son to fall into that trap. Despite the reservations in her heart, she knew that what Reivan was about to face was ultimately for his own benefit.

'He needs this. Cause I sure as hell did...'

But at the same time, a lack of confidence was also a big problem. A balance must be struck.

'Parenting sure is hard...' Vianna thought with a complicated expression. Her fluffy ears drooped as her soft tail limply sagged to the floor, a clear indication of her emotional state.

Rodin sighed, his brows creased. "All we can do now is wait and hope for the best. In our limited capacities, we've raised him as best as we can, and I have faith that he will make it through this. I'm sure he'll be able to handle the pressure and come back much stronger for it. Perhaps in the future, he will look back to this period in his life and feel thankful."

"...Maybe you're right." A hint of a grin graced Vianna's countenance, barely a smile but enough to brighten her features. "All I can do is be prepared to comfort him when he gets home. Oh! And the presents! He'll be so excited when he finds out he has two adopted little sisters now!"

With a hint of playfulness, the king curled his lip in a sneer. "Let's just hope he meets them before his next birthday, hm?"

"Hey... That's uncalled for, isn't it?" The queen cried out in indignance. "I'm trying my best here! Learning a language is hard, and teaching it is even harder! The younger one is cute and smart, but the older one seems a bit dumb... Oh, but she's cute too, so it's okay. It's quite adorable, actually."

"Is that so," Rodin replied with a smile playing on his lips as he gazed upon his wife, his chin cradled in the palm of his hand.

'She's just like you, then.'

After Vianna felt she had made her point clear, she cast her gaze downwards to her uneaten food. Despite a lack of appetite, her growling stomach eventually won out, and she tentatively picked up her knife and fork.

Rodin struggled to find the right words to say. Joking around any more than they already have seemed insensitive, while making negative comments only added to the heavy atmosphere.

In the end, they both ate their meal in silence, each lost in their own thoughts about their son and the weight of their responsibilities as parents.