Shoving off the cold, Eddra pulled him out of his bed. Setting foot in front of a window, he looked at the wet gra.s.s and bushes due to the dewdrops. It must have rain all night.

"[Inventory]," Eddra called.

After he had received the pen of his father from his mother yesterday, Eddra immediately inserted it inside the [Inventory] when he went back to his room. He was convinced that the [Inventory] was the most convenient thing that the [System] must have had.

Ding!

The portrait rectangular plate showed itself just beside the [Side Quest]. Taking a glimpse at the other plate, he saw that the time duration had lessened.

[Side Quest: Birthday Celebration! (2/2)

Decline the Baroness" orders and enter the military.

Time Duration: 52:35:07

Reward(s): 40 EXP, (1) Practice Dummy u0026 (1) Wooden Sword

Warning: Failing the Quest will bring death to the User.]

"Okay, everything is looking good," he muttered to himself in satisfaction. Eyeing the clear skies, Eddra unknowingly started his morning routine he had created to discharge his stress in the military. "... [Hide Inventory]."

...

Panting, Eddra was grappling to catch his breath as he leaned his palm on the wall. He had been pacing back and forth outdoor for two hours and hardly half until the sun had arisen, despite this, his satisfaction was still not fulfilled. This was nothing to how long he had been running while he was in the military. Feeling ridicule of his current figure, he was much weaker than an unborn infant.

"Ha!"

Eddra heard a loud huff in a near distance. Peeping inside the room where he a.s.sumed heard the huff from the window before him, Eddra saw his second brother constantly swinging a sword on his hand in the air.

"... Playing with the sword?" he kidded, drawing the window open wide, climbing from it to set foot inside Everette"s room. "Your posture and foot positioning is wrong, too. That won"t do if you still have intentions of joining the military."

Everette lowered his sword in a second after he heard his older brother"s unexpected appearance. "Er... What are you doing here, brother?"

With a smile formed on his lips, Eddra thought of something that was missing in his morning routine, a friendly spar. "I want to ask if you are-- perhaps okay to have a quick spar with me?"

"Brother... You simply want to mock my abilities and make me all pessimistic "cause I can not swing a sword suitably, right?"

"Yeah-- No! I mean, we need to..." Unable to continue his sentence to find something pleasant to say, Eddra thoroughly gave up. "... Yeah... You are right." He scratched the back of his head, dropping his gaze.

"Okay. I"m in," was Everette"s reply.

Raising his head, Eddra"s face gleamed from his brother"s approval. It had been a while since they had spent time with each other. Well, at least that was the case for Eddra. "Great! Let"s do it outside."

Climbing down on the open window, he leaped down on the ground of which caused a loud thud. Soon after, Everette followed him, too, jumping from the window.

"This reminds me of our childhood days," Eddra recollected, grabbing the round lumber near the barrel. "Is that a different sword? Why are you not using what the father gave you when we were young?"

Examining his sword"s blade, Everette replied, "... I feel like I am not allowed to swing such an excellent sword. This one I am using... is cheap and dull, too. I just thought that, perhaps, I need to heighten my swordsmanship with this first to be able to use what father gave us." Everette swung the sword in the air. "How about brother? Where is yours? You okay with just a wood?"

"I... kinda broke mine years ago while practicing." Eddra shyly laughed, scratching the back of his head as he remembered what happened to the broken sword from his childhood. "I"m fine with this wood."

Eddra also twirled the wood in the air. When he saw his opponent, Everette, took his posture, and held his guard, Eddra started visualizing the wood on his grip as a longsword and held his position.

"Should I just go... gently on him?"

Advancing forward with his right foot, Eddra charged first to Everette, launching an overhand cut of which was instantly deflected. With an abrupt shift of Everette"s footing, Eddra a.s.sumed his opponent would make a counter-attack on him.

A smirk was unknowingly painted on Eddra"s lips as he jumped back. His second brother must have been practicing every day without showing it to anyone. If Eddra did not invite him presently for a spar, perhaps he would not be able to witness how his brother had grown.

Everette delivered a similar attack, an overhand cut to Eddra"s left. "Brother! Do not go easy on me!" he roared as Eddra dodge to the side of which was followed with a left underhand cut. When his opponent also deflected that attack, Eddra"s smirk grew larger.

Grinning from ear to ear, Eddra answered his brother"s wishes. Waiting for the right timing as they exchange launches back and forth, with another overhand cut and a sudden thrust to his side from Everette, Eddra reoriented his opponent"s sword and smoothly thrust the head of the lumber on Eve"s throat.

"Hak!" Everette coughed out, causing him to lose his grip on his sword.

"Eve... Don"t think of something reckless again like entering the army," was Eddra"s warning to his brother, dropping the wood on his side. "Come, let"s feed our stomachs. I"m getting hungry."

...

After they had eaten, Eddra, Everette, and his mother stood before the entrance door and above the staircase, expecting for someone"s arrival. When they saw a carriage casually approaching, his mother could not hold her happiness.

"Eddra, the man we are waiting for is going to be one of your teachers. So, greet him formally." His mother patted him on his shoulder.

When the carriage stopped in front of the house, one footman that was with the quests a.s.sisted two men out of the carriage. Eddra immediately squinted his eyes to the familiar faces of their guests.

"Good day, Baroness Orhom." The middle-aged man reached his hand for a handshake, revealing the pocket watch chained on his waist hidden in his long coat suit for a second.

Eddra stared at his soon-to-be teacher and the boy on his uniform of which looked younger than him, back and forth. No doubt. Eddra knew both of them.