CHAPTER 21: STORY OF ALPHONSE FARADEISS

ALPHONSE FARADEISS

ORIGIN

Dragon knights are cool and awesome. They are the embodiment of justice and power, and they are the ones who keep the peace between races and empires. That is what I believed as a child.

My father, Sir Joey Faradeiss is a glorious dragon knight. Actually, it’s not just him. My family is full of prideful dragon knights. My grandfather is a dragon knight. My uncle is a dragon knight. Hell, my cousins are also dragon knights. It’s almost customary for us Faradeiss dukes to enter the Dragon Knight Academy. The Faradeiss family is well known for being dragon knights since ancient times, and all of it can be dated back during the First Dragonoid War. There are even legends that a dragon knight with Faradeiss on his last name once fought alongside with the sorceress goddess Vesryn herself.

Among all my vast array of bloodline relatives, I idolize my father the most. There are tales of him fighting during the Alterra-Sargus War and even Alterra-Elysian War. He’s a veteran warrior who has fought other human empires, making him a war hero. Back on our family's house, he had these five shelves of trophies and a wide room full of medals. The previous emperors of the Alterran Empire award him almost every year, and he became motivational speakers and a figurehead of the Dragon Knight Academy himself.

I want to be like him. So I enrolled in the Dragon Knight’s Academy at a young age of sixteen. I passed all written and oral examinations and aced my magical combat tests. My ranking on the entrance exams is far superior to average students. Even with those feats, I failed for a simple reason: I was not able to find a dragonoid who has a high-compatibility rate for me to activate the Vesryn Pulse with.

Failing such a thing made me a disappointment on my clan’s eyes. The Faradeiss House looked down upon me for the simple reason of flunking the entrance examinations. I do have an idea of why I failed to find a dragonoid to bond my heart with. It’s because of my arrogant attitude and a dirty mouth. I’ve been swearing since the start of my life. I tried acting nice to everyone I’ve met, but still, that isn’t enough to get me a dragonoid on my own.

Even if I’m a failure, my father didn’t cast me out. My father treated me as if it doesn’t actually bother him, and in fact, he’s happy that he aced my other tests.

“That’s okay, Al. You will find somebody worthy of your power in the future. Wait and hope, my son.” My father said.

That was the last encouragement he told me. Because two months after I flunked the entrance examination on the Dragon Knight Academy, he was assassinated.

It was a peaceful night. I was walking down the hallways of our mansion when I heard a noise coming from my father’s office. When I opened my door, I found my father lying on his desk, lifeless. There was a sword stuck from his back all the way to his frontal chest, making it clear that his heart was stabbed cleanly in one shot. There’s too much blood spilling on the floor.

All the hair on my body stood up. There was the coldest chill I’ve felt in my entire life. My thought processes were frozen, telling me to run away.

I sensed a movement on the opened window. As the western wind blew the blue curtains, my heart was filled with fear. There is someone watching me. A mysterious man with a white hood and jacket and his face is covered by a skull-looking gas mask. It’s a White Ghost.

“Fuck… Fuck this shiiiiit!!!” I cried as I ran out of the office. “Help! Help!” I hollered out loud. But nobody heard my cries. The mansion is deserted, and I can’t even find my mother or my younger brother. 

The White Ghost teleported and chased me down. I soon found myself cornered in a balcony from the third floor. Much to my depression, I realized that there’s three of White Ghosts that has been chasing me down. It should have been obvious because these Elysian stealth units work in threes: Blinker, Forger, and Juggernaut.

One of the White Ghost created a javelin in which he used to graze my right shoulder. Because of the impact, I was sent flying from the third floor on the way to the ground. Luckily, my body dropped first instead of my head, and I only suffered broken ribs from the fall. With my remaining strength, I ran outside until I reached the highway.

“I’m such a fucking coward.” I cried as I try to save my selfish self. I do have the power to take down a single White Ghost, but I let my own fears dominate my mind. 

At that time, I was filled with regrets for running with cowardice. But that running was one of the best decisions I made. Because that has turned the wheel of fate that has to lead me to an event that could change my life forever.

“Um, mister… Are you hurt?”

While I’m walking aimlessly on the dark highways, I found a short girl. She has ash-gray hair falling to her waist, white complexion, and crimson eyes. She's an adorable dragonoid. She’s carrying large baggage on her back, making it clear that she probably came from the countryside. What makes her stand out is her witch’s hat on top of her head.

The mysterious dragonoid girl touched my wounds. I felt the coolness of wind and water while getting the warmth of the fire at the very same time. It’s an excellent display of elemental magic that sealed my injuries. She even magically controlled my blood to attach my broken ribs inside my body, and welded it back with fire.

“Who the fuck are you? Why are you helping me?” I asked.

“Is that how you talk to a girl who just saved your life?” The girl laughed. “My name is Zheastinaloej de Meister, a dragonoid witch from Heaven’s Village. I went here to the city to test my fated fortune. I want to get a job here so that I can send my village some money.”

“Zheasti-whatthefuck?” I asked. I swear I think her name is just something you type if you slam your fingers aimlessly on the keyboard.

“Zheastinaloej!” The girl scolded. “How about you, mister? What’s your name?”

“I’m Alphonse Faradeiss.” I coldly answered.

“Woaaaaaah~” The dragonoid witch girl had her eyes filled with amazement. “So you’re from the famous family of dragon knights!”

“I’m not a dragon knight, though. I can’t activate the Vesryn Pulse” I bowed. “You can laugh and fuck off if you want.”

Even with my profane language, the dragonoid girl continued to be as cheerful as ever. “Then take me as your dragonoid!” She held my hand. She makes it sound so easy.

The moment our skin touched, a connection between us was forged. I felt warm blood flowing in and out of my arteries, and my heartbeat started beating twice as much as before. I can also feel the dragonoid girl’s pulse as if she’s emitting a sonar with the very same vibration frequency as mine. I don’t know if it’s pure coincidence, luck, or fate, but there is one thing I’m sure: I can use Vesryn Pulse on her.

“Vesryn Pulse compatibility rate… is ninety-nine percent.” I muttered. The information was injected into my brain as soon as I recognized our heartbeats synchronizing. “H-How the fuck is this possible!?”

“It’s destiny!” The girl smiled adorably with a blush as she slightly tilted her head. 

I have finally found my power. The power to be the hero of justice, just like my father. The goddess should have forged this opportunity for me to possess such kind of mystic force. This is my ticket to become a dragon knight!

“Come with me, you arsehole!” I grabbed the dragonoid’s hand and ran back to our mansion. The dragonoid girl complained but I didn’t let go of her.

I finally reached my house back in just a matter of two minutes. Right at the entrance of the big house, I saw my little brother and mother chained on the posts near the entrance. And there are three white wraiths guarding them as if they are waiting the whole time and they knew that I’ll be coming back for my family.

“Oh, I see what’s going on.” The dragonoid witch spread out her hands, and her fingers glowed with fire, water, wind, and earth light orbs.

Meanwhile, the three assassins readied their battle stance. The Blinker revealed his dual blades, the Forger magically created a giant buster sword, while the Juggernaut presented his tower shield. There’s three of them and only two of us. We are outnumbered. They are even holding hostages, which should make this situation a lot harder.

I held my own chest and felt the beating of my heart. “Partial Dragon Form, Activate,” I whispered. 

And at that moment, four dragon wings spawned from the girl’s back. Each wing is a representation of the four elements she’s capable of controlling. She has a fire wing, water wing, wind wing, and earth wing. I’m pretty sure she is an Elemental Dragon.

“Haaaah!” The dragonoid witch flapped her four wings, and each of it sprinkled dust that corresponds to its elements. Fire, wind, water, and earth dust showered upon the enemy on a wide area of effect.

They had no choice but to have the Juggernaut tank the attack with his tower shield. Slowly, the tower shield rusted and melted, unable to withstand the chaotic mix of magic he’s taking head-on. The Forger helped by creating low-quality shields so that they can endure the endless drizzle of elemental waves. 

While they are busy, I sneakily flanked on their left side and removed the chains that are restraining my mother and my younger brother. The Blinker White Ghost saw me, so he threw his sword to my position. In the nick of time, I coated my arms with the chains to block the incoming sharp blade. 

“Blink!”

When the Blinker teleported right in front of me, I embedded the chains with my magical essence and commanded it to catch and grip the incoming assassin. My constriction to the white ghost became tighter and tighter until blood spurted out, like squeezing a wet sponge.

“Ack!”

With another chain on my left hand, I commanded it to grab the Forger’s neck. I injected fire energy to the chains which made it lava-hot, and it burned the throat and windpipe of the said assassin.

The moment I took down the second white ghost, the juggernaut was already dead. Zheastinaloej’s elemental sprinkles have melted, frozen, pressurized, and corroded the enemy’s body. Not even the thick armor can prevent the penetration of such elemental attacks.

And just like that, I have avenged my father whom I greatly loved and looked up into. I may have lost a dear person in my life, it was replaced with honor and power. The Vesryn Pulse.

I was finally granted to the Dragon Knight Academy, and my relatives look up to me like ever before. They have seen my abilities, and they speculate that I will become as great as my father. I became an untouchable dragon knight who is an expert in war techniques and magical combat.

From then on, Zheastinaloej stayed with me. We entered into an agreement that my clan shall give funds to her family that is living on her village for the condition of becoming my dragonoid. Without any qualms about it, she pledged herself to be my dragon for the rest of her life. 

Even though she’s technically my slave, I treated her as my very own best friend, like a human, and in return, she accepted me and my spiky behavior. These parts of our relationship are not bound by any agreement or reciprocal obligations. We did it ourselves. It is the effect of the bond we discovered; the power of the Vesryn Pulse.

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