Lucian held the scroll tight, frustration simmering under his calm exterior. He had thought of asking Elder Fürtwald directly. How am I supposed to unlock a Principle from this?
The next time he approached the elder, words already formed on his lips, he got nothing but a calm, unreadable smile.
"Keep going," Fürtwald said.
Lucian clenched his fists, but he did not leave. He decided he wouldn't give up.
The scroll had a name called Hollow Iron Sickle.
Its title alone carried weight, though its meaning was hidden. He learned slowly that this was no ordinary text. It wasn't a book to read in the conventional sense.
It forced him to confront knowledge he wasn't ready for. Even when he read each line perfectly, comprehension slipped through his fingers like smoke.
It doesn't want me to understand it… yet, he realized.
What he could grasp was simple. The scroll's knowledge hinted at the idea of a Principle that could be forged, a power hidden behind effort, observation, and endurance.
That was all.
Every other line remained a locked door.
He forced himself to read again, daily, hourly when possible.
Days blurred into weeks.
Weeks stretched into months.
Each passing hour, he memorized passages, recited them, wrote notes, tried to force meaning into them, but the scroll resisted every attempt.
Months passed. His hair grew slightly longer at the sides. Still, he pushed.
And then months became a year.
A full year had gone by. One entire cycle of seasons.
Lucian had lived in a constant loop of reading, re-reading, memorizing, and failing to comprehend.
Yet, he did not quit.
The Hollow Iron Sickle sat on his desk every night, edges fraying, ink fading, but his fingers never left it.
He understood only fragments of what it meant. Only enough to know that there was something hidden in him waiting to awaken.
Even after a year, he had not unlocked his Principle.
But something inside him had shifted.
His patience sharpened and observation deepened. He noticed subtleties in the world around him like the flow of air, the angle of sunlight, and the rhythm of footsteps in the hall.
The scroll had not given him its full gift yet, but it had already begun to shape him.
And despite all the failure, he turned the page once more, determined. I will understand it. One day.
Lucian approached Steward Halbrecht one morning, the crisp autumn light spilling across the courtyard.
His small legs carried him quickly, but his posture stayed straight.
"Sir," he said, bowing lightly. "May I go to the capital? There's someone I need to meet."
Halbrecht studied him, arms crossed. "And who might that be?"
"Elder Fürtwald," Lucian said calmly. "I need to consult him."
The steward nodded slowly, considering. "Very well. But you will not go empty-handed. I have a task for you while you are there. You are to deliver this package to the trade council. Do not delay."
Lucian nodded. "Understood."
The steward handed him a small, wrapped box. "Do not open it. Do not let anyone see its contents. Go straight to the council."
"Yes, sir."
Lucian turned and began walking toward the city gates.
At nine years old, he was small but steady, his mind alert. He kept track of every street, every vendor, every guard's movement.
The capital was alive with noise and motion, but he moved as quietly as a shadow, careful not to draw attention.
When he arrived, he found Elder Fürtwald in a quiet study tucked behind the northern district.
The elder had recently moved here, taking up a modest house with tall windows overlooking the market.
Lucian knocked once and stepped inside when allowed.
Fürtwald looked up from his papers, his expression calm but sharp. "Lucian. I wondered when you would come."
Lucian bowed. "Sir. I needed to speak with you. There are matters I cannot resolve alone."
The elder motioned to a chair. "Sit. Tell me what you have learned, and we will see how far we can take it."
Lucian placed the box from Halbrecht on the table, careful not to open it. "I have questions about unlocking a Principle. The scroll… Hollow Iron Sickle. I have studied it for a year, but I cannot fully comprehend it."
Fürtwald's eyes narrowed slightly, thoughtful. "Ah… the scroll. You have endured much. That is no small feat for one so young. And you still persist."
Lucian's lips pressed together. "I need guidance, sir. I cannot fail. I need to understand."
The elder leaned back, his hands folded over his chest. "Then you will continue, but not blindly. I will give you insight today. Listen carefully, for the path is neither easy nor safe."
Even at nine, he understood the weight of this moment.
The scroll had been silent for a year, but now… perhaps the next step was finally within reach.
Elder Fürtwald turned toward Lucian as they walked down a narrow cobblestone street, his voice calm but direct.
"Tell me, Lucian… are you a strong person?"
Lucian paused. Strong? He shook his head slightly. "I… I'm not, sir."
The elder nodded. "Honest. But intelligence alone will not be enough."
They continued walking until the city faded behind them, leaving an open, empty field. The grass swayed gently in the wind. Fürtwald stopped and turned to face him.
"This is where you will begin to understand strength," the elder said. "I was once a general. I fought battles that decided the lives of thousands. Every move mattered. Every decision, every weakness could cost everything."
Lucian's eyes widened. He had read and memorized, observed and calculated—but battle? Physical battle? That was not his strength.
Fürtwald handed him a wooden blade, smooth and light. "You will fight me. Observe, calculate, and adapt. Use your mind."
Lucian gripped it carefully, analyzing the elder's posture, the way his fingers curled around his own practice blade.
He measured distance, timing, and angle. Every instinct he had told him where to move, how to defend.
The first clash came quickly. He parried, sidestepped, and tried to predict the elder's strike.
Fürtwald's movements were fluid but deliberate. Lucian found a small opening in his stance.
This is it. I can do it.
He lunged.
But before he could even connect, the elder shifted, a flick of the wrist, and Lucian stumbled, the blade slipping from his hands.
A light strike to his side sent him sprawling to the ground.
"What?" Lucian gasped, struggling to comprehend. I saw it… I calculated… I analyzed…
Fürtwald's voice was calm as he lowered his blade. "Observation is not strength, Lucian. Intelligence will guide you, but it cannot replace what your body cannot do. Even the sharpest mind is defeated by raw experience and practice when one is unprepared."
Lucian's chest heaved. His mind raced, trying to process the lesson. I… I was supposed to see the weakness. I knew it…
The elder shook his head gently. "Knowing and doing are not the same. This is your first step. Learn, and you may yet survive the battles to come."
Lucian stared at the wooden blade on the ground, disbelief and frustration mixing with determination.
Lucian scrambled to his feet, gripping the wooden blade tighter.
He lunged again, this time focusing harder, every movement calculated, every angle measured.
But as he approached, his eyes caught something strange on the elder's chest, faint but glowing.
10%
He blinked. What does that mean?
The world seemed to pause for a heartbeat. Then, the system's voice rang softly in his mind.
[The number represents the damage received. The more you are hit by an enemy, the higher it rises. The value affects the activation of certain Principles.]
Lucian froze. So… it matters how badly I am struck… His mind raced. But why is it appearing now?
The elder swung lightly, tapping Lucian's shoulder. The number flickered, and Lucian felt a strange resonance in his chest.
[Principle Of Sacrifice Unlocked.]
Lucian staggered back, the words echoing in his mind.
[This Principle will help you become the sacrifice. Your pain, your endurance, your willingness to take damage will empower abilities tied to protection and survival for others. It is a path of giving yourself for the sake of another.]
He blinked, trying to process it. His body still ached from the previous fall, his arms trembling from holding the blade.
Sacrifice… me... for someone else?
The system clarified further.
[The Principle responds to your choices in battle. Accept damage, endure, and focus on preserving others—it will grow stronger with each test.]
Lucian's chest tightened.