Chapter Five

Just before dawn can break, now begins Eden’s first day of training. He wears his usual fishing clothes, black tank top and pants. In these, He doesn’t care about being drenched in sweat since he gets them wet at the docks anyway.

In the kitchen, Sanders grinds up some oats with blueberries and a banana until they’re mushed. Then he breaks in a raw egg and adds a cup of milk into the mix. He whisks the contents together and pours it into a cup for Eden.

“What’s this?” asks Eden.

“Your old man taught me how to make that,” Sanders chuckles.

“Why?”

Sanders grabs his beard and tilts his head. “He said it helped him build muscles.”

“Why did he need to build muscles?”

“Well.” Sanders quickly turns his back to Eden. “He wasn’t always a fisherman.”

Eden raises an eyebrow at Sanders “Wait, what?”

“Hurry up and finish that drink already! We can’t waste any more time!” Sanders quickly exits the house, leaving Eden by himself.

Shrugging, he downs the drink. It tastes sweet and is delightfully soft in his mouth. He smacks his lips and quickly finishes it by slamming the cup on the table. “Done!” Finally chasing after his uncle outside.

As a warm-up, Eden runs laps around the pier. Already a few fishermen are up and early netting fish. The sky still looks dark as night, but Eden can see the sun peeking from the other side of the buildings as he paces toward them. He dashes up the stairs, leaving the docks, and jogs along the outside of the pier, where he passes by familiar faces like the trader who kicked him out and other shopkeepers readying to open up their shops.

The air is chilly in the early morning; Eden can see his own breath puff out clouds as he pants. Jogging all the way to the other side of the docks, there's another staircase that leads down to the pier. Then Eden slows down into a walk to catch his breath. His lungs hurt from running in the cold morning, and his legs feel numb.

"One more lap Eden!" Sanders shouts.

Eden nods and continues to run by Sanders.

“One more!”

“One more!”

“One more!”

With every lap that Eden passes, the sun slowly comes out of hiding, bathing the Kingdom of Basintroll with its warmth. He makes his way up the stairs again and passes more people than before. Nobles, commoners, and even the fat old lady that yelled at him and Sanders. They merely glance at him as he runs by. Out of breath, his legs tremble with soreness every time his feet hit the ground. Sweat trickles down his face like melting ice cream, and his vision blurs. He stops running and walks toward the stairs, while gripping the handrails and steadily making his way down.

Sanders approaches him, and he applauds Eden. "Good job, boy, now onto the next session, weight lifting.”

Eden smiles and nods his head, still out of breath. Next place to train is at one of the empty docks.

Sanders fills two buckets full of water and hands it to Eden. “Lift them,” he says while crossing his arms, watching him.

"Yes, sir!" Eden enthusiastically lifts the buckets of water and curls them. He could feel his muscles develop every time he lifts. But the bucket gradually becomes heavier with every set. Eden rests once every twenty reps, relieving his arms for only a brief moment. Sanders instructs him to not stop until each batch is complete, and if he were to stop in the middle of the set, Eden will have to start over.

Eden takes in small breaths when he curls the bucket up, and he exhales in a grunt when lowering it. He lifts the bucket again, but his arms begin to shake like the tail of a rattlesnake only managing to bring it up halfway.

"No~ Do it again!" Sanders bellows.

Air fills his lungs then Eden tries to curl the buckets again. His muscles scream in pain like a vein on the verge of popping.

"Come on, Eden, that's five reps, there's still five more, let's go!"

Eden replies with a grunt and gives it all he’s got to finish his last set. "Six... seven... eight..." he mumbles to himself. His strength begins to give in. The buckets weigh like bricks, but he doesn’t stop.

On the last rep, Eden screams along with his muscles as he struggles to lift the buckets. Finally bringing the heavyweights up to his chest, he immediately drops them. Water splashes everywhere. Eden waves his arms in pain while Sanders grabs a bottle of water and softly pats him on the back.

But Eden can’t rest too long. There’s still so much for him to do, even if he’s exhausted. His body feels numb, and his muscles are sore. He wants to rest, but Sanders won’t let him.

"If you rest now, you would be pushing your dream of becoming a Legion back!" Sanders advises. "Every second of the day counts, so let's get going." he waves his hand at Eden to follow him.

Eden groans and follows.

"Now, it's time for some sit-ups!" Sanders claps his hands together as a signal to start.

Eden lays down on the cold, wet wooden dock, and Sanders grabs hold of Eden's ankles so that he can correctly do it.

"So, how many am I doing?" Eden nervously asks.

"Until I say stop," Sanders replies.

Eden lets out a heavy sigh and begins doing his sit-ups. He lifts his body from the ground and up to his knees, then back down. His abdomen starts to feel sore when he hits twenty. On this workout, he exhales little bits of air every time he gets up to his knees and takes small rests after every set. Eden continues doing sit-ups until he reaches a hundred. Sanders finally allows him to have his awaited long break, so he lays spread out, gasping. Every part of his body cries, his abdomen, arms, and legs hurt like they’re made out of lead.

"Great job, now let's go and have lunch, son."

Eden gives Sanders a thumbs up, still unable to speak.

They both enter a bar in the Trench to have their meal. Sanders orders grilled fish, steamy mashed potatoes, boiled green peas, and a roll of fresh hot bread for himself. While on Eden's dish, he only orders him a pile of grilled fish and a cup of water.

Eden pouts at his plate then at Sanders's, "why do I only get fish?"

With a mouthful, Sanders replies, "Cause you need a lot of protein to grow muscle." He continues to stuff his face with food.

Eden sighs and shakes his head, but he smiles anyway. He stuffs his own face with fish.

After lunch, Eden follows Sanders back to the docks to relax. Resting his feet in the water and stare off into the horizon. The sky is blue as the sea, the clouds are puffy as cotton, and the winds feel refreshing as it gently caresses his face. While sitting here with Sanders, they crack a few jokes about the workout sessions and Eden’s progress.

"Hey, wanna go fishing with the others?" Sanders asks.

Eden tilts his head and thinks. "Hmm... maybe not. I kind of want to continue training."

"Oh, okay then. Well, work hard, son.” He pats Eden's back and disappears into the crowd of fishermen, leaving Eden to continue to train by himself. Eden wants to catch up to the other Legions as fast as he can, so he can't waste any more time. There is no one to teach him; he has to work twice as much. Eden lifts buckets of water, sit-ups, and runs laps around the pier again, hoping to become rapidly stronger.

* * *

Meanwhile, Sanders meets up with some friends in front of a fishing vessel. Most of the boats here have a similar model but in different colors. The one Sanders boards is made of bright red cedar wood with a single tall white sail. Its size is nothing like a pirates but is as big as three small houses in the Trench with a cramped cockpit in the middle. They board the boat and sail until the kingdom is on the verge of disappearing on the horizon. Sanders brings out a fishing rod, he sticks a bait to the hook, and he casts it, making a quiet humming noise. He sits patiently for a tug on his rod while staring at the swaying waters.

"So, how's the training going?" One of his fishing buddies asks.

"It's going alright, Alfred," Sanders replies, giving his friend a glance.

Alfred is a more slimmer man than Sanders but is just as old. He has on a similar vest as Sanders, except it’s red and checkered, matching his cap. Wears a blue jean overall that’s tucked in his tan rubber boots that reach his knees and a long grey beard, covering his mouth like a bush.

Another fisherman joins them also casting their own line into the sea. "What's wrong, old man? You're looking kinda down today.” This one has a tattered white tank top on and tan shorts. His skin looks dirty and tan, has a grey scruffy beard that irritates him, and a simple red hat.

“Erik.” Sanders sighs as he reels his bait back; he doesn’t reply for a while and his friends don't say anything either. They simply wait for an answer, like waiting for a bite on their fishing poles. Sanders hooks a different bait and casts it back in the water. Then he finally replies in a sullen tone, "His strength training started out great, but..." He trails off for a bit. Sanders finds it challenging to empathize; he tries to find words to say but struggles.

His crewmates each slap his back. Sanders turns to face them, and they give him a warm smile. He smirks and fist-bumps with them. "Our workout was great, but it's just that I can't help the kid train with his sword."

"Ohhh," the others reply in unison.

"How bout you take Eden out to fight bears in the woods?" Alfred asks.

"No, kid could barely run a lap of the pier; he'll run out of stamina before he even finds a bear," Sanders replies.

"Ooh! I know, tell him to spar with the knight that watches the kingdom gates. Erik jokes as he snaps his fingers. "But the knight takes his job seriously, so Eden would have to tick him off first before they can spar."

"That's called a crime, idiot," Sanders chuckles.

"You do realize that we're not Legions or knights; we're fishermen, we fish," says another fisherman from inside the cockpit.

"Well, I never asked you guy's advice, now did I, Zane."

Sanders burst out in laughter with his crew. Zane pops out of the cockpit, wearing a ripped tan shirt and jeans brings out a barrel full of mead and wooden tankards. He pours a cup and hands it to Sanders; he drinks and laughs together with his friends as his spirits slowly lift with every gulp. Then continues fishing in silence so as not to scare the fishes with his and his friend’s boisterous voices. Sanders returns to staring off into the horizon, looking at the small kingdom he, Eden, and his crew live in.

"You and the kid will figure something out," says Erik.

Sanders turns his gaze to him, "You think so?" He asks.

"Definitely. And when you do, don't hesitate to ask us for help." Erik raises his fist in front of Sanders and smiles. "We've got your back, brother."

Sanders grins and fist bumps Erik again.

They reel in their baits and replace them with new ones then they cast it right back into the water. Erik's bait gets tugged, and he pulls in a catch. Zane, too, catches something in his line. They manage to reel in two sea basses; they put the fishes in a crate, hook new bait, and re-cast their lines.

Sanders feels a tug on his line, and it pulls his fishing rod. He tightens his grip on the rod and pulls. The fish is firm and hefty that it almost bent his fishing rod, but Sanders won’t let that happen. He lifts the rod and reels in the fish simultaneously. The fish starts to slow down as if it's slowly giving up resisting. He grunts as he can see the fish's body under the water's surface. Then it breaks out of the water, flopping in the air. Sanders swings his rod over, flinging the fish onto the boat. A bright Pink Salmon. Sanders lifts the fish up to show it off to his friends; they laugh and applaud for his fishing skill.

As the sun sets to the west, everyone closes up their shops and goes home. Sanders and his group arrive at the pier with crates full of fish. He follows them, bringing the boxes out of the ship and storing them in a shed with their names on it. Confirming that his friends lock the cabin, he bids his buddies goodnight and goes home.

Sanders walks toward his house; the pier is empty and dimly lit by lamps. The full moon brightly shining in the night sky as if it's showing him the way home. He unlocks the front door to his home and enters. First things first, he goes to check on Eden who’s already sound asleep on the couch. Sanders smirks and heads to the kitchen; he opens the fridge, turns on the stove, and cooks up some leftovers.

Sanders quietly eats his food, wondering what he should train Eden on tomorrow. After finishing the leftovers, he washes the plates, bathes, brushes his teeth, and goes straight to bed. It’s not long until he’s fast asleep.

The sound of a door closing wakes Sanders up. It’s still night out; he figures a thief must’ve broken in. Sanders grabs a club that sat next to his bed for emergencies. His hands tremble as he reaches for the doorknob and slowly turns it. his breathing begins to shake with every inch of the gap between the door widens. He opens it all the way and sees nobody. He cautiously checks the kitchen and the bathroom for any intruders. What if it was Travis? He suddenly thinks. Sanders quickly makes his way to the living room. Eden’s gone. He instantly turns around and storms his way to the front door but stops; outside the window, there he is. Eden stretching in the moonlight. Sanders releases a long sigh of relief but is curious about why the kid is up in the middle of the night.

Eden finishes his stretches and picks up his Armaments that are laid on the ground. He begins to swing his sword around; he slashes and thrusts the air. Then he raises his shield to guard and hacks with the sword again.

Sanders widens his eyes. He sadly smiles to himself and goes back to bed.

* * *

After practicing with his Armament, Eden returns back inside Sanders’s house to sleep. He closes and locks the front door, then he makes his way to the bathroom to wash up before bed. Eden places his Armaments next to the fireplace and sits down on the couch with a sigh. He notices that there's an apple and a small note on the sofa. Eden picks it up and reads the message. "Eat this after practice." He smiles. "Love you, uncle." He throws the apple up, catches it, and takes a bite out of it. After finishing the fruit, he throws the core in the fireplace and goes back to sleep.

Once again. At the strike of dawn, Eden is up and back at the docks training with Sanders. They start their routine. Eden runs laps around the pier and passes by the familiar faces he met yesterday, glancing at him. After running a few laps, Eden curls buckets until his muscles start screaming. Next, a hundred sit-ups. After training, it’s lunch at the bar; Eden's plate is the usual, full of fish. Then comes the night time; Eden wakes up to practice with his Armaments.

Eden repeatedly trains this way for the next couple of weeks. It becomes more exhausting with each passing day, but the soreness in his arms and legs make him all giddy. Eden can feel his body slowly changing and developing. He’s able to run laps around the pier without gasping for air now. Eden can curl the buckets more efficiently, and he can quickly reach a hundred crunches.

“Eden, let’s go, ” says Sanders, gesturing to Eden to get on a boat.

"Where are we going?" Eden asks, boarding on the fishing vessel.

But Sanders doesn’t give him a reply; the old fisherman raises the sail and brings up the anchor, preparing for their voyage. Eden narrows his eyes and wonders why they're going on a cruise when there is no fishing equipment to be seen. The ship is empty with just the two of them. Eden shrugs and leans out to stare into the distance.

The endless sea and clear sky collide at the horizon like two separate worlds clashing with each other. Seagulls soar above him, squawking and fish jump out of the water, splashing below him.

The boat comes to a stop. Eden turns around to face Sanders, looking back at the kingdom. "What's wrong?" He asks.

"Nothin," Sanders replies. Then he gives Eden a blank expression.

"What?"

Sanders grabs hold of Eden's shirt and throws him overboard.

Eden screams and splashes into the water. He rapidly blinks his eyes underwater and swims up to the surface. He gasps as he pops out like a weasel. "What was that for!?"

"Time for some endurance training, boy.”

"Endurance training?"

"You've gotten too used to our original training sessions, so it's time we drill in something new."

"So I'm swimming?"

"Yes."

"How far am I swimming?"

"Back home."

Eden gapes as he turns to look at the distance between him and the kingdom. Basintroll is but a speck in the distance. "But tha-" But before he can finish his sentence, Sanders raises the sail and leaves. "Hey, wait!" He yells. Eden chases after Sanders; he kicks and strokes the water. But Sanders is getting smaller the farther he goes. He stops and loudly groans, slapping the water around him. Fortunately, Sanders stops at a certain distance and waves at him. Eden sighs in relief and presses on. He swims as fast as he can. However, His muscles throb with soreness every time he lifts his arms out of the water, and it won't be long until he runs out of breath. Keeping his body above the surface is difficult as he can feel himself sinking when his movement slows.

"Come on, let's go!" Sanders hollers. "I thought you want to be a Legion!?"

Eden kicks harder, increasing his speed. "This is nothing!" He shouts back.

"Big bark, no bite!"

The ice-cold water and his muscles' soreness are nothing; it's just the process to become a Legion. However, it's still hard for Eden, hard for him to swim. It's hard to become a Legion; he yet doesn't know the first thing about swordsmanship. Isaac and Travis are Five Stars, and Eden is a One Star. The captain of the knight's words comes flowing back in his mind.

Because you One Star's are weak.

The laughter of nobles and Travis's words pulse throughout the walls of Eden’s skull, You're a One Star! You can't do anything. Just go back to fishing, you trench rat. He can feel it—that one small feeling in the back of his mind.

Give up.

All of this training feels more like he's training to be on a swimming team. Not knowing how to swing a sword bothers him more than he thought. How can I be a Legion without knowing how to fight?

"Eden! I know you're thinking of giving up!"

Eden stops to look up to his uncle on the boat.

"Stop being so soft, boy! If you keep this up, you'll never be a Legion! You'll never see the world if you're soft!"

Eden smirks. He dismisses all negative thoughts and focuses on the task at hand. Not knowing a single thing about swordsmanship, he'll just have to cross that bridge whenever he gets there. There’s no need to worry about that now. He needs to have faith in his uncle and have faith in these training sessions; He needs to trust the process.

Now that he looks at the boat, he realizes that it's closer than he thought. He also notices that the kingdom is also close by. I guess it wasn't as bad as I thought. He takes bigger strokes this time to propel him faster. Even with the aching pain of his muscles, Eden presses on. Swimming at his best and not letting any of his bones, muscles, or joints rest.

While swimming, Eden notices Sanders waving both of his hands, shouting. But with water in his ears, he can vaguely make out the words. So Eden stops and wipes his face to clear his vision.

"-Ark!"

"What?"

"I said shark!"

Instantly, Eden goes into a frantic panic; he spins around in all directions trying to catch sight of the shark.

"Just get your ass over here, boy!" Sanders tosses a floater down for Eden to grab it.

From the corner of Eden's eye, the shark ducks its fin under the surface. "Oh, goddess!"

Eden swims like never before; adrenaline rushing through his body, making him forget about the soreness. Eden will not dare look back; the thought of it being just a few feet away sends tremors throughout his body. Instead, he focuses on reaching the lifeguard that gets closer every time he strokes the water.

"Eden, it's right behind you!"

Eden thrust his arms out and reached the lifeguard. Sanders grips the ropes tightly and immediately pulls him out of the waters. Eden soars out of the water, and simultaneously, the head of the shark breaks the surface. He scrunches his legs up as the shark opens its jaws just beneath him.

Sanders throws the rope over his shoulder and yanks it like throwing a person while unleashing a war-like cry. Sanders falls onto the wooden ground as he flings the rope; Eden flies through the air while still compressed as a ball. The shark gnaws at him. But barely misses and splashes back into the sea.

Eden grunts in pain as he lands and rolls on the deck with a thud.

Both Eden and Sanders lie on the floor of the ship's deck, facing the sky. Slowly, Sanders starts to chuckle, then bursts out laughing, and Eden follows suit.

"We really shouldn't be laughing about this," says Eden with a concerning look. Acknowledging what actually just happened makes every inch of his body shake with worry about coming back here to train.

"Yeah, I guess," Sanders chuckles.

"I almost died. Again."

"But you didn't." Sanders stops laughing; he crosses his arms behind his head to relax and smiles warmly at the sky.

Eden does the same and stares into the sky too. The sky is cloudless as ever and blue as the ocean.

The two relax on the deck and listen to the wind whistling, waves swishing, and bathe in the sun's heat. Sometimes, seagulls will fly over them in their V formation and squawk. The sea is peaceful; it's far away from all the trouble, nobles, knights, and far away from everything. If only life could be so peaceful as the sea.

"We probably shouldn't train all the way out here again," says Sanders.

"Yes, please," Eden replies with a chuckle.

Sanders gets up to the bulkhead of the boat. "Well, it's time to head on home, son."

"Yeah."

Sanders raises the sail of the ship and drifts towards the kingdom. Eden continues to stare off into the sky; he watches the seagulls migrate toward the south as winter comes closer.

The two arrive back at the pier and head straight home. After all that occurred today, Sanders immediately crashes onto his bed, instantly snoring.

Meanwhile, Eden bathes; he reeks of the sea. His muscles are painfully sore. He looks at himself in the mirror as he flexes in front of it; he can see the small changes to his body. His arms and chest muscles look more prominent than before; he can even see the veins bulge to his skin in his arms. All of this brings a smile to his face.

After bathing, Eden leaves the house and heads to the library to do some research. The sun slowly travels its way down west, but there’s still plenty of time before that. Eden quickly fixes a hefty ham and cheese sandwich for himself then out the door he goes.

The library sits in the middle of the town square next to some other shops that sell clothing and bread. Eden stands in front of the building, looking at its black iron hanging sign that’s shaped as an open book and reads, Basintroll Library. It’s as big as its neighboring stores here; a wooden door and a wide glass window, exposing the many shelves of books with small placards on top of various different genres. Here, Eden seeks knowledge that can help him become a Legion.

The door to the library rings as Eden enters. "Hello, welcome to the Basintroll Library," a receptionist greets him.

As a greeting, Eden nods his head with a smile and makes his way to the similar sections to his needs. Tall bookshelves loom over him like towers of knowledge and are lined up beside each other, leaving big enough aisles to venture through. There are quite a few people in the building, reading and writing on round tables, while others stand and search through racks of books. The place is quiet with warm lighting from chandeliers, occasionally, papers and pages rustle in the air.

Eden inspects through shelves that he thinks can help him find anything on swordsmanship. He scours through the books and flips through many pages for what feels like hours but can’t find anything. Texts about crafting swords, materials of blades, and history about swordsmanship are all he can find and nothing about learning the skills or techniques that a Legion needs. Eden approaches the receptionist "Hi, um, do you have any books that can teach swordsmanship?"

"I'm sorry, those books were donated to the training camp," she replies with a smile.

"Okay, thanks." Eden sighs and scratches his head; he finds the nearest bench to sit and sinks his head down. "Not even the library has anything on swordsmanship," he mumbles. Looking up from the ground, Eden stares at a bookshelf in front of him. But this shelf isn’t stacked with books but with old yellow newspapers instead. Instinctively, Eden stood up and picked a random newspaper.

The paper is titled, "The Masked Hero Emerges!" It’s about a Legion that used to roam the nights of Basintroll and stopping crime. They called themselves "Hornet," and on the newspaper's cover was a blurry picture of them jumping between buildings. The Hornet wore a mask, a scarf around his neck, and his outfit was supposedly black and yellow like a hornet. He wielded a scimitar and a straight sword.

Eden nods his head in amusement and unknowingly invests himself into the story.

There were numerous sightings of the Hornet. Witnesses had stated that the masked Legion has his way with complex environments; He can jump, climb, vault, and roll around buildings like a ninja. Some other blurry images were trying to show the Hornet's skills.

The article states that the last sighting the Hornet was seen was at a back alley; the Hornet fought against a group of Legions who were thieves. He managed to defeat the group and captured the leader.

Eden turns to the next page and continues reading. His back aches while sitting up, so he lays on the bench facing the ceiling for a more comfortable spot. He holds the newspaper up to block the lights from blinding him as he reads the title of the next headline.

“The Battle of the Hornet and the Lightning Beauty!”

The Lightning Beauty had short black hair, wore long flowy clothes that cover her figure like a dress with bright ribbons and sashes, and wielded a curved bladed lance. With every swing of her Armament, thunder strikes. Her moves were elegant and robust, mixing her graceful dance with martial arts.

The two faced off throughout the rooftops of Basintroll with the Hornet flying through the air, evading every purple bolt of electricity from the Lightning Beauty’s Armament. In the end, there was no clear victor as when the fighting ceased, they both disappeared.

Eden looks at the nearest window to see that it’s almost night out. Time for him to go back home; he gets up from the bench and yawns as he puts the newspaper back on the shelf. The library is almost entirely empty, with a few people at tables still reading. Eden passes by the receptionist as he leaves, and he nods his head to her as a farewell.

"Have a good night," she smiles and waves goodbye.

On his way back home Eden yawns again, feeling sleep enveloping his vision. He lazily opens the front door and can still hear Sanders snoring from his room. Eden goes straight for the couch, and as soon as his head hits the pillow, he falls into sleep.

As time passes, both Eden and Sanders continue their training. Following the same routine, Eden runs, lifts, crunches, eats, and swims. This time he swims closer to the pier, avoiding the sharks that inhabit the waters farther out. He repeats this training for the rest of the month.

One morning, Sanders goes to the pier to help his other fishing mates crate fish, leaving Eden to train alone, but today, he changes his usual route around the pier and goes into town square. As the sun quickly rises, its light warms the frigid air. As he dashes, the streets of Basintroll steadily increase, bustling with people. Nobles and commoners alike pass Eden.

Then something catches Eden’s eye, making him stop. In the middle of the square, he notices a group of people that look like they’re fighting. One of them has gauntlets on their hands like a steel plated glove while another wields a straight sword. Narrowing his eyes, he can see silver and bronze stars engraved on their weapons. They're Legions. The ones that don’t have Armaments stand at the sides, watching the two Legions get into their stances. Blade in both hands and close to his side. While the other Legion raises his arms up, one slightly extended out and the other guarding his head.

The Sword Legion thrusts his blade, but his opponent evades, lightly striking a blow to the stomach. The Gauntlet Legion grabs the weapon out of their hands, then he pushes him away to create some distance.The Sword Legion is now unarmed, and the Gauntlet Legion holds the blade up in one hand, still in his stance. They both smile then the audience begins to applaud, then returning the Armament, the two Legions shake hands.

Eyes sparkling, something clicks in Eden's mind. He stares at the Gauntlet Legion. The way he held the sword paints an image in his head. Imagining himself in the same stance, right arm slightly extended out but with his sword firmly gripped, and on the left, his shield close to his head. An idea for him to learn swordsmanship. Or a way for him to fight.

Eden hurriedly dashes; his face glowing with excitement like a feline predator chasing a meal that’s just in front of him. He heads toward the training camp. I should've thought of this!

Eden makes it to the camp, but he doesn't go through the front door. Instead, he heads to the back. Fortunately, they're crates, so Eden hurriedly stacks them and gets on top of them. He peeks over the concrete wall of the camp and witnesses countless Legions in training. Various Armaments from axes, lances, swords, and bows train against each other, wooden dummies, and at targets. Eden pays no mind to the sword Legions at all. Instead, he focuses his attention on the Gauntlet Legions. His eyes widen; the gauntlet legions don’t fight the same way as the one in the town square did. They practice in different styles; some are jumping over obstacles, blocking against heavy blows, dashing past each other, waving their arms, and pummeling bags of sand. Eden doesn’t know which to watch, so he simultaneously switches his views between them. He records their fighting style, stance, and how they practice against wooden dummies, sandbags, and with each other into his mind. The hand movements on the wooden figure, the punch and kicks on the sandbags, and the way they spar with each other. Eden's eyes are wide open, trying to catch every little detail they do and store it in his mind.

"Hey, you! What do you think you're doing?" One of the Legions calls out to him.

Eden gasps and drops down from the boxes and runs. Shouts of giving chase make him sprint back to the pier as fast as possible, zooming through town square while avoiding other people. A broad smile that reaches his ears and warm as the sun crosses his face as he jumps over a set of stairs leading down to the docks. Eden lands in a heroic pose then dashes. His eyes dart left to right, then he sees Sanders with his fishing mates dragging wheel barrels of fish. "Uncle!" He hollers excitedly.

"Hm?" Sanders lifts his head from his work.

Eden approaches Sanders out of breath.

Sanders's fishing friends all gather with their eyebrows raised, waiting to see what Eden has to say.

"What is it, boy?" Sanders asks.

Eden sticks his index finger at them and continues to fill his lungs with air. The group of fishermen patiently waits for him then, he quickly lifts his head and with one of his vast grins across his face again. The fishermen's eyes grow wide at him, then they nod at each other.

"Uncle, I need you to build me something," Eden finally replies.

"Build something?"

"Yes, it's gonna help me train my combat skills."

Immediately, Sanders drops the wheel barrel and returns a smile back at Eden. "Then what are we waiting for? Let's go!"

Both Eden and Sanders quickly make their way toward home, ditching the other fishermen, and Sanders immediately goes to work. Grabbing tools and lumber from his shack and placing them on the table outside his shed. While, Eden grabs some paper and pencil and draws the wooden dummy he saw at the camp. He then gives the picture to Sanders as he prepares. He stares at the hand drawn photo with an eyebrow raised then nods his head at Eden.

Sanders begins by placing lumber on the sawhorses and hand saws them at different lengths. Eden helps out by giving him tools and materials. Sanders shapes the smaller lumber with a chisel then drives a hole into the larger piece. Then he sticks them together, giving the wooden dummy arms. He does the same way for the leg, then he hammers the dummy onto a flat piece of wood for it to stand on.

Dusk finally arrives, painting the sky brightly orange; Eden simultaneously wipes the sweat off of his forehead as Sanders does, taking off his hat. He stands silently next to his uncle and idolizes their work; it's finished and looks similar to those in the camp with the exception of it being more squarish. Eden goes up to the dummy and gently starts hitting it. He tries to recall how the Gauntlet Legions practiced against it, but the memory is blurry and colorless.

Sanders chuckles at him. "Do you even know what to do with this thing?" He asks.

"Not yet, but I have an idea of how," Eden replies.

Sanders raises an eyebrow. "I'm listening."

Eden smirks. "I'm going to glimpse at how Gauntlet Legions practice and imitate them."

"Gauntlet Legions? But you have a sword Armament."

"And a shield that can be used as a gauntlet," Eden points out. "While you were crating fish, I went for a run around the town square, and that's when I saw it." Eden's eyes light up at his idea. "There was a match between two Legions; one of them held a sword and the other gauntlets. The Gauntlet Legion snatched the other guy's weapon and held it like this." Eden proceeds to stand the same way as the gauntlet legion did. He positions his legs apart with his right foot in front. He raises his left arm close to his face as a guard then grabs a hammer and slightly tilts it.

Sanders grabs his chin and grins. "I like your style, son." He pats Eden on the shoulder and raises his fist. "Tomorrow, I'm gonna turn you into a Legion."

Eden smiles back and fist bumps Sanders. As the sun hides behind the houses of Basintroll, the moon sneaks its way to take its place. The two end their day to give themselves rest from woodworking and excitement.