Regicide

The frost giant dashed towards me, kicking up a cloud of snow with each step he took. I couldn’t move. He must have used magic to freeze me in place. Sharp claws pierced my skin as a small creature climbed up my back.

“Don’t worry, I’ll help you, Ferdinand Bernhaas” whispered Luna.

Loss of control over my body happened once again and it moved without my will. I—well, my body—ran forward to meet Boreas head on. The king swung his axe across, grabbed it with his left hand, and then brought it down with enough force to cleave any man in two. I sidestepped his overhead swing and made a jab at his exposed torso, but he swung the side of his axe at me. I blocked the face of his axe with my sword, and even though his swing hand little momentum, it was powerful enough to send me backwards. If he had swung his axe with more force, I believe my sword would have shattered from the impact. I rolled and sprang to my feet, jumping back to avoid a horizontal slice.

We faced each other with neither making the first move. Luna took control and had me fake a step towards Boreas. He backed off, raising his axe to counter any potential strikes. One step forward, one step back. Each move intended to test the other and look for any gap in his defence. When Luna spotted an opening, she had my body lunge at Boreas, sword extended. He swatted the blade away like it was a fly. My arm snapped the blade tip back to meet the hook of Boreas’ axe, binding the two together as my arm swung in a circular motion, carrying the blade of the axe away. Then, the sword tip disengaged and struck Boreas above the hip.

Incensed, the frost giant king stamped his feet and pounded the ground with his fists, bellowing out a war cry to the heavens. A cloud of snow obscured him and from which he then leapt out. I felt the blade of his axe graze the tips of my hair as I ducked below his strike. Boreas was off balance from that last attack, verging on falling over to his side. Taking advantage of this opportunity, Luna had my arm plant my sword into the ground next to Boreas’ axe, momentarily trapping it. And then, like a pole vaulter, used the sword to swing my legs and hips up and deliver a precise kick to the side of Boreas’ head. Where this strength of mine came from, I don’t know.

Boreas reeled back from the blow, releasing his grasp on the axe. I landed on my feet, withdrew my sword from the earth, and levelled it at Boreas’ head.

“Yield,” I commanded him.

“Stop! The trial is over,” said Marisa.

Hatred filled Boreas’ eyes and he smashed the ground with his fists. I drew back my blade and turned around to get some distance.

I thought I was walking away but my feet weren’t hitting the ground. ‘Strange,’ I thought. There was also a strong vice clamping around my back. I got spun around and suddenly was face-to-face with King Boreas. He was holding me in the air. His other hand reached out and plucked Luna off my back, exposing her and her invisibility cloak.

“Liars! Cheats! Scoundrels! This little rat! You thought you could hide a cat!? And that I would accept that!? Curse you knaves! Rogues of deceit! Treacherous king-slayers! I will flood your land in rivers of blood! Wroth! Wrath! Death!”

With no interference from a moral source or thought, the sword I had once held in my hand was now lodged deep into the neck of King Boreas. His eyes went wide and he gasped for breath, dropping us as he clasped his hands around his throat. The whole world was bereft of sound in these moments. The king staggered and swayed, and then fell. A warm, spring breeze blew over the mountain top. King Boreas turned to nothingness. Half buried in the snow, only his fake crown remained.

It wasn’t until we had nearly returned to the sylph war camp that I stopped shaking. But in that moment immediately after killing Boreas, if I had had any lunch in my stomach, it would have been immediately expelled. We were all lost for words, all a bit shocked. The first to speak was Marisa.

“It would be wise to leave, lest the other frost giants discover our deeds.”

“Y-You! What k-kind of plan was that!?”

“Relax, Ferdinand. You’ve just experienced a lot of stress.”

“Relax? Luna, we both nearly died! Do you think he would have willingly left had we beaten him in this stupid contest? That wasn’t even the trial Lord A-Arvid tasked us with!”

“Much of my plan was spur of the moment. I was swept away by the fires of action and play-pretend.”

“You think that justifies it?”

I couldn’t think straight. All I could think about was how dangerous Marisa’s plan had been.

“I knew Luna would help, Ferdinand. As for Lord Arvid, once we will have made our return, I am sure that I am right that King Eulerich would have forced him to change the trial. King-slaying was too heavy a task for one such as you.”

“My Lady, Ferdinand, we must leave now. The frost giants will soon discover their king is dead.”

The force behind Luna’s words caused me to pause and regain some semblance of control over my emotions. I picked up King Boreas’ crown and followed the two back to the king’s chamber. We gathered our stuff and made a hasty escape from the mountain. We travelled in silence for the rest of the trip back to Lord Arvid’s camp. We made no stops or breaks. This journey was becoming too dangerous—far more perilous than I had imagined. When the time was right, I would need to speak with Marisa, but for now I was just glad I hadn’t lost my head.