Aermith smiled brightly while examining the fireworks. If his daughter was happy, then so was he. Avina had only ever heard fireworks go off, so seeing them up close was something she never thought she’d ever experience. Those standing all around had clapped their hands together while more explosions went off in the sky.

“Alright that’s enough for now, we still have a lot more to see.” He patted her leg before making his way through the crowd. As they continued to venture through the kingdom, more and more things began attracting Avina’s attention. Street vendors had various toys for sale while others sold street food. All of this was nice but what deserved a celebration of this caliber? The King’s birthday perhaps, or maybe even the Prince’s.

“I hate to ask Father but what is this festival for? King Xerxes’s birthday isn’t for another couple of months right?” She questioned him.

Her Father responded rather quickly, “You truly don’t remember? It’s Nadall’s birthday.”

“The god himself?” She answered.

“The one and only Avina. I guess it’s partially my fault that you don't remember. You, me, and your Mother used to go to the altar to offer Nadall gifts. It used to be our way of celebrating his birthday but after she passed, we stopped going. You’d cry every time I spoke about heading there because it reminded you too much of your Mother.” He explained.

There was silence for a bit before Avina decided to break it, “I understand now. I was too young to remember anything. Actually, I’d like to visit that altar sometime. Maybe even offer gifts like we used to.” What used to be a hurtful memory was now something she accepted. Unusually, she felt that if she were to go, she’d feel closer to her Mother more than ever.

Aermith lowered his head while his lips curled into what a smile would be, ‘Mina… you would’ve loved to see how much our Daughter has grown since you last saw her.’ This thought laid dormant in his head for as long as he could remember. Just before his mind could wander a bit more, the sound of clashing metal was heard in the distance. It was loud enough to alert him and Avina.

“What was that-” Before her sentence could even be finished, Aermtih hustled towards the sound. It was almost instinctive. This sound that Avina found irritating, is what her Father found oddly appealing. Like a siren’s song, it called out to him, making him fall deeper and deeper into a rabbit hole guided by none other but curiosity. His pace quickened which worried Avina. Before they knew it, they found themselves approaching yet another crowd. But this crowd was significantly more different than the one that watched the fireworks. The majority of these people were men, men who were riled up for a reason that was unknown to her. Rather than being amazed, it terrified Avina. The same couldn’t be said for Aermith as he knew exactly what this place was. Aermith slipped past the men while holding onto his Daughter’s legs. After some time, they got to the front. Not a single word left the two as they saw what was going on.

Avina’s eyes trembled at the sight. The two men standing in the middle of the arena were the least of her worries. It was the amount of blood that littered the arena that caught her eye. There was too much for her to digest, it was sickening. To think that everyone around her enjoyed this? Even her Father stood there in silence, just watching the fight occur. As for the showdown going on, it looked to be between two knights. Both appeared to be worn down from their battle. Pieces of their armor were scattered throughout the field, blood oozed from their puncture wounds, it was a surprise that they even had the will to carry on the fight. Slowly but shortly, the crowd’s chants dimmed down.

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Nothing else mattered at this exact moment as all of their undivided attention was placed on the two combatants. At last, Avina mustered up enough courage to get a look at what was going on. They both stood still… just glaring at each other. No sudden movements were made, it was hard to tell if they were even breathing at this point. Like everyone else around her, Avina was now locked in. The tension in the air was intoxicating, it was enough to drive a man mad. Who was going to make the first move? Which one of the knights would be the victor? Avina was dying to know.

And then it happened. Faster than Avina could even blink, both of their blades had met in the middle. They’d both push off before charging at each other once more. Yet again, their broadswords had clashed. Sparks from the metal colliding flew into the air. The two were almost in unison while they fought. Each swing had the same force applied, they even moved at the same speed.

“I can’t even keep up with them!” Avina was annoyed that her untrained eyes were unable to keep track of the knights. Even while annoyed, it was still amazing that those two were able to move at such a blinding speed.

“Allow me to explain to you what’s happening,” Aermith responded. “Not a single one has landed an attack by now, but that’s to be expected when driving a knight to the brink of their limits. Each attack has intent behind it. Matter of fact, anything we do has intent. Whether we’re guided by our pride or honor, you’ll always be fighting for what your heart believes. No matter what condition they’re in, it’s their will that carried them to this point. And it will continue to carry them up until their very end.”

A grunt came from one of the knights as the open wound on their thigh was struck again. It was enough to stagger them and leave them vulnerable to another attack.

“That’s checkmate right?” Avina wasn’t sure if she had spoken too soon or not.

The knight immediately took advantage of this opportunity and aggressively jabbed at the wound again. The cold steel tore through the muscle tissue and exited out the other end. A bloodcurdling screech left the man while dropping his sword to hold his leg.

“Correct,” Aermith uttered. “She won.”

She winced at the man’s yelling, “She?! How do you know for sure!” Avina was almost sure that it was two men fighting.

As for the last standing knight, they had ripped their sword out of the other’s leg. With their free hand, they’d grab the helmet from the eye sockets before taking it off. They shook their head a bit, freeing the long and beautiful scarlet red hair that the helmet hid away. Just like her hair, her eyes matched the same color.

“You damn bitch! You aren’t allowed to stab the opponent! How the hell am I expected to fight a real battle like this-”

Without hesitation, he was knocked upside the head with the hilt of her sword. Her injured opponent was now knocked out cold.

“Damn bastard, you’re lucky I wasn’t allowed to kill you, so stabbing you was the bare minimum.” Her aura was fierce, more fierce than anyone Avina had ever seen. The crowd didn’t cheer for her. In fact, they began booing her.

“Father, why are they booing her? I don’t understand, she won that fight.”

The answer to Avina’s question was rather simple, “It’s because she’s a woman, Avina. No man wants to see a woman win, let alone be a knight.”