Old Grudges

The next day, after the Norwick Dynasty king departed, Doom's new curriculum was officially scheduled.

He followed his mother, with a Champion Swordsman trailing behind him. Harlan's attire today, however, was somewhat overly formal.

His pure white power armor, though covered in scars, was exceptionally clean. Doom's personal emblem was engraved on the left breast, and he wore a blue-based, gold-trimmed guard's cloak trailing behind him, also embroidered with Doom's emblem.

Doom suppressed his excitement deep within, showing nothing on his face, though his eyes, darting around throughout the journey, betrayed his anticipation.

The War Academy. The foundation of the Guardian Domain, where all laws of war and the training of warriors were carried out.

Qualified youths were selected at seventeen to enter the academy and learn everything related to warfare.

After a rigorous training cycle of at least thirty years and long, systematic psychological conditioning, they would begin their graduation assessments.

Warriors who graduated successfully, even without power armor or weapons, could skillfully utilize the detailed tactical methods they had learned to complete missions under extreme circumstances.

Conditioned warriors were pure; they would not be discouraged by failure, proud of success, fearful of strong enemies, nor merciful toward the weak.

A resilient consciousness would build a high wall deep within their minds, blocking out all redundant thoughts detrimental to rationality.

From the day a warrior apprentice graduated from the War Academy, they were a qualified Night Watchers.

They would become Nul's sharpest blade and its unbreakable barrier.

The War Academy provided the Norwick Dynasty with at least five hundred people annually to maintain the absolute military force of the Guardian Domain.

At its peak, the Night Watchers had thirty thousand qualified warriors, enough to sweep across all of Nul and suppress any petty troublemakers.

Doom was full of anticipation, ready to accept warrior training.

Previously, his mother's education had been gentle; she patiently imparted experience and knowledge, answering his questions tirelessly. But like any ordinary family in the Guardian Domain, his mother had set one mandatory requirement:

Until she gave her consent, he had to respect her and stay away from the War Academy.

This was because the War Academy was filled with violence, linked to all forms of slaughter; conflict and destruction were its eternal, unchanging melody.

The Guardian Domain took pride in the Night Watchers, respecting and worshipping the warriors who protected their home, but they did not worship them blindly.

Before a child's mind was mature, many mothers forbade their sons from being exposed to excessive violence.

"Mom, this isn't the way to the Command Branch, is it?"

Following his mother, Doom noticed the path was wrong. According to royal tradition, princes entering the War Academy first entered the Command Branch to learn combat command, then pursued other studies based on royal arrangements or their own needs.

Queen Daisy smiled gently at her son, the softness in her eyes nearly overflowing, but she did not answer his question, instead pulling his hand to continue forward.

When the three arrived at their destination, Doom finally knew what his first branch was!

Warrior apprentices with tall builds, averaging 2.3 meters in height, were dueling on the training grounds, sweating as they tested their martial arts.

They wore only shorts, without any auxiliary equipment, their wheat-colored muscles gleaming in the sun as they fought each other with primitive blades, deciding the victor.

"Your Majesty, Your Highness."

The warrior apprentices did not come to pay their respects; the one who approached was an old man with a bushy beard.

The handsome old man had his thick white hair combed back, his beard neatly trimmed, and a peaceful smile that brought out deep wrinkles on his face.

"Xilan! I haven't seen you in a long time!" Doom called out in surprise, running up to hug the old man.

The Royal Grandmaster Swordsman Xilan! He had served the old Norwick Dynasty king and taught the current Norwick Dynasty king.

Nearly three hundred years old, he served as the current dean of the Duel Branch, responsible for teaching swordplay to warrior apprentices.

During the Siege War, he had been by the Norwick Dynasty king's side, the king's most trusted partner. He had witnessed Doom's birth and had looked after Doom for several days.

"Whoa~" Xilan steadied Doom as he collided with his legs, marveling at his current strength, his face full of smiles: "Little Doom, I haven't seen you for a month, and you've grown taller again!"

Doom was uninhibited around the old man, looking up at him with a face full of small pride: "Eat well, sleep well, and naturally I grow fast!"

"Hey! Old man!"

A rude, harsh voice rang out, causing Xilan's expression to change; he detested the owner of that voice.

The old man was not one to be bullied either; his aged face showed disdain as he retorted sarcastically: "I wondered who it was, turns out it's the Savage Swordsman Harlan!"

"What? You haven't died on the battlefield yet?"

"Heh~ I won't die even on the day you rot to death!" Harlan laughed dismissively, showing no respect for his elder, only a blunt rebuttal.

The Champion Swordsman turned "casually" to face Xilan, "inadvertently" revealing the red personal emblem on the left breast of his armor.

"How is this possible!" Xilan exclaimed in surprise. He had seen it; the warrior's habitual, detailed observation allowed him to spot the emblem on Harlan's chest at first glance.

"Doom!" The Royal Grandmaster Swordsman looked grave, crouching in front of Doom and asking very seriously: "Did he use some despicable method to make you take him on as a personal guard?"

Doom looked blank, not quite understanding the relationship between the two. It seemed very unfriendly?

"Tsk tsk tsk, old man. You need to see this!"

Harlan looked triumphant, taking a holographic projection device from his waist and playing the scene of yesterday's oath in 3D, without missing a single detail.

What he saw caused Xilan's expression to shift from disdain to gravity, and finally to a dull, stunned silence as he stood there without a word.

Queen Daisy walked with soft steps, not disturbing the old man, and silently pulled Doom away from his side.

Doom looked at his mother in confusion, and just as he was about to ask, Daisy covered his mouth.

"Shh!" Queen Daisy pressed a slender index finger to her lips, signaling him not to make a sound, and winked playfully, letting Doom wait and see.

"Take a look at this!" Haran Ogilvy turned around with a smug expression, revealing the emblem on his blue cloak.

Xilan's expression shifted rapidly, from livid to calm in less than a second.

Then, he smiled easily: "Congratulations, you now possess the same honor as I do."

With that, he turned and walked to the edge of the training ground, took a stone sword from the weapon rack, and tossed it in front of Haran: "Come! Let me see if you are qualified to shoulder this heavy responsibility."

"Hmph! You think I'm afraid of you?" Haran sneered and shouted toward the training ground: "Someone! Remove my armor!"

Who wouldn't want to watch a duel between a Royal Grandmaster Swordsman and a Champion Swordsman?

Duels were common in the Duel Branch, and the apprentices quickly took their seats in the gallery, waiting with great interest for the clash between two warriors at the pinnacle of swordsmanship.

Several students approached Haran to help him remove his power armor.

"What is going on with them?" Doom didn't understand what grudge existed between the Royal Grandmaster Swordsman and Xilan.

"It's a complicated story." Daisy wrapped her arm around Doom's shoulder and leaned in to whisper patiently into her son's ear:

"Master Xilan is a Royal Swordsman with superb skill; he was also your grandfather's personal bodyguard, possessing both immense strength and great honor.

Haran Ogilvy is a master of the blade and equally decorated, but he is not a Royal Guard, so he has always been considered a cut below."

"The reason they truly became enemies is very..." Daisy deliberated for a moment before finally spitting out one word: "Entangled."

As his mother explained, Doom gradually understood the reason for their rivalry and mutual resentment.

His eyes lit up with anticipation as he looked at the two men on the training ground.

During his academy days, Haran Ogilvy was an outstanding student, and Xilan, who had served as his teacher, was quite fond of him.

On the battlefield, Haran cut down generals and enemies alike, earning the title of "Sword Master" for his intense, personal style of swordsmanship.

As a Sword Master, one could submit an application to have holographic recordings included in the Royal Swordplay Archive as a reference for the royal heritage.

This was a tremendous honor, the lifelong pursuit of any Grandmaster Swordsman.

However, Haran's swordplay projection was rejected for a blunt reason: Xilan believed his technique wasn't true swordsmanship, but rather an intense instinct.

Members of the royal family should not learn "swordplay" that relied on instinct like a beast.

Haran strongly disagreed with Xilan's assessment, arguing that humans are also beasts and royals are still human; in the moment of deciding victory or defeat, instinct is sometimes more effective than any sword form.

The debate between the two caused quite a stir, and in the end, the student and teacher parted on bad terms.

One afternoon, the more Haran thought about it, the angrier he became, so he blocked Xilan's front door and cursed him for three full hours.

Just as he was feeling smug, thinking Xilan was a coward who dared not come out to confront him, Xilan appeared behind him carrying vegetables he had bought from the market.

Without a word, the two tacitly found a place to engage in a secret duel.

The result of that duel remained unknown, though Xilan later stated on many occasions that instinct is indeed effective at times, but not often!

Haran also remarked that rigid, rule-bound swordplay could sometimes produce different results, but not often!

This outcome caused everyone watching them to breathe a sigh of relief, believing it was the beginning of a mended relationship.

But what happened later twisted their relationship even further.

Haran had quietly married the old man Xilan's beloved granddaughter!

When his granddaughter held up the marriage certificate and stood before the old man with Haran, declaring that she would love this man for the rest of her life, Xilan, who had shed blood his whole life without ever shedding a tear, wept.

He rushed out of the house in tears, challenged the civil affairs officer who had processed the marriage registration to a duel, and beat the man half to death!

In the past, their strength was comparable, but Haran had been slightly suppressed due to having less honor.

Now, things were different; having become a Royal Guard, Haran possessed the same honor as the old man Xilan.

He had come for revenge!