Svend slowly opened his eyes, and was hit by the blinding yellow light, the sun had already set. Though he's still tired from staying up late at night because his master tells him everything that he has forgotten, he still gets up as it was already late in the morning.
He put all force to his left and right arm to lift himself, and slowly got up, and he sat down near to what was left of their campfire from the other night. He then stretched his arms to his head.
After that Svend looks around, and his eyes notice a sitting old man. It was his master, Master Kaelen, he was taking shelter under the tree, suddenly a voice rang out.
"Good, you're finally awake."
Svend was startled, for he didn't know that his master was awake all this time and thought that he was sleeping.
"Yes master, I'm already wide awake."
"Who wouldn't be awake, when someone just scared you like that." Svend thought, his face showing a slight smile.
"Then pack the things inside the bag!"
"Hurry up and don't be a lazy dog and get to work." Kaelen said to Svend while smashing Svend's head with his walking stick.
"Ok, I'm doing it…. Ouch!!, stop!!"
Svend then quickly folded the sheets he and his master slept in and put it in their bag, he also tidied up their pillows and blankets and also put it inside of their bags.
"It's done now master, where should we go now?" Svend asks his master while putting his bag in his back and giving Master Kaelen his own bag.
"We go left this time." Master Kaelen responded to Svend's question.
"If I'm right we should be in the city of Spirberg tomorrow by noon, if we hurry up."
"We better hurry up then." Svend replied with a playful smile and happiness in his face as he started to get moving forward.
Master Kaelen follows the sound of Svend's footsteps and they continue their journey towards the north, where they need to find a seer who might know a way to remove the curse in Svend's body.
Hours later they're already traveled for about seven miles, and Master Kaelen hears the heavy breath of Svend, for they have been traveling non stop since the morning, and Svend's body was still not in a good condition. So the master chose to stop and rest for a moment, Svend thought he was finally getting his rest while drinking the water he got from his backpack, but no.
"Take your sword." Master Kaelen commanded Svend.
"What?"
"But we just stop."
"I thought we were resti.."
Before Svend can speak another word in his mouth, his master smacks him.
"Ouch!" Svend scream from pain.
"Take your sword"
"You need to train that frail body of yours."
Svend then takes out his sword from its waist and removes it from its scabbard, and quickly puts on his fighting stance. Svend clutched his sword in his arms, his grip was hard on the sword's handle.
In Svend's mind everything that is happening was so fast, this is even the first time he trains with sword, but he feels like he have done this before, maybe he did train with the sword and forgotten it due to the curse, but before he can think more about it master Kaelen launched himself towards Svend.
Svend was caught off guard by how fast his master moves, but what he can't believe more was how he parried the thrust of the stick of Master Kaelen.
"Its seems like you can't believe your eyes"
"Are you questioning how you can move like that?" "Like how you just deflect my attack?"
"You might have forgotten what I've taught you for the past two weeks, but your body can't."
"Your instinct and your guts helps you move your body, and your body remembers each move that I've taught." Master Kaelen proudly said to Svend with a big and wide smile on his face.
"Now let's get back to our training, shall we?" Kaelan smirks and quickly launches himself towards Svend once again.
Svend smile thinking if his body was strong and already used to this, then he might have a chance at defeating his master.
But the next attack of Master Kaelen was nothing like the first, each strike was more powerful than the last, the stab, the slash attack had overwhelmed Svend and made him back off each attack, Svend has no choice but to counter it by using a defensive form, blocking each of the attacks.
Still in the end Master Kaelen disarmed Svend's sword with only just a walking stick, but for now it was enough to satisfy the master.
"Pick up your sword and polish it before returning it to it's sheath." Master Kaelen said to Svend while sitting on the ground.
Svend pick up his sword with his mouth wide open, and his heart pounding loudly. The scene left his stun and speechless, he was amazed for what he had seen, his mind still playing vividly about the fight. He studied and calculated every move he can use to counter each attacks of Master Kaelen in his mind, if Kaelen ever uses that same techniques and moves on their next fight, Svend will surely gain the upper hand.
Master Kaelen noticed it, the way how Svend moves, he was already more stronger and faster than when they had their first sparring.
"Your a genius, Svend, a prodigy even, but it all will go to waste if you puts your mind only on revenge."
"I hear it in your heart, it had the same beat as he was."
"For both of your are blinded by your revenge." Master Kaelen though.
Later that night, after they had their dinner and had their rest, Kaelen told Svend to assume the cross sitting position that he had told Svend about the other night, and Svend quickly do as he was told.
"Your body is weak, and so is your mind."
"You need to strengthen it, or it will consume you." Kaelen said to Svend.
Svend holds the ring of his father while maintaining his breathing and the position of his body, each breath he did was equal to each memory he holds, it was a battlefield in his mind, and Kaelen was assisting him by reciting each names of those he had lost.
Each day and night the curse was spreading and eating Svend slowly, so he needs to make not just his body but also his mind stronger, to at least fight and stop the curse from spreading even if it's just temporary.
In the mind of Svend, he tries to recall all that he had lost, the face of his mother, the voice of his sister, and the structure of their home. But as he was getting it all back, Svend reach to deep within his mind, and the darkness takes him, his mind was clouded by the negative energy the dark curse have. Instead of the happy and good memory, he was meet with the same tragic event that buried deep inside his mind, the tragedy of his family, his village.
Then suddenly he meet that same eyes that looked at him, the violet bone chilling stare he felt in that night.
But he was not just seeing any memory, because the eyes was actually glaring at him with confusion, as if it was wandering where he was.
On the other side of the world, in a place where death is normal, and darkness rules. There the hollow knight sat on the top of the broken throne, feeling the presence of Svend, a human who has the curse of the dark, what Svend saw in his memory is the same scenery The Hollow Knight saw.
But what Svend saw was next was not a part of his memory, Svend was confused while looking at the memory he never remembers, names that he had never heard, and place he has never been to, then as he look at the eyes he saw guilt, and anger, it was then that he knew it was the memory of the knight. It was as if they were connected by the same power. By the same curse.
As Svend was going deeper into the memory the hollow knight was ready to end him, but before the knight can do anything, Svend was pull out by his master, Kaelen sacrifice his life force to save Svend and take him out of the memory.
Svend has return to reality gasping for air, his hand trembling and his legs shaking.
"Daegal…"
"Daegal Kazamir."
"Thats his name…."
"The name of The Hollow Knight." Svend said to his master with his heavy and panting breath.