One morning, as I woke up early to begin my training, I decided to break into my father's shed in search of a certain something. I had grown tired of the same training every day and was looking for a change of pace.
The shed held many of my father's tools, but what I was interested in was his axe. A small axe he used for chopping wood. It was leaning in the corner of the shed, and I quickly grabbed it and left.
I went deep into the forest and found an area with lots of thick trees. My goal was to cut them all down, no matter how long it took. Whether it took months or years. I wanted to train with a weapon, and this axe was the only weapon I had available.
My motivation was fueled by my jealousy of Ragnar. He had the chance to train with a real weapon while I had to train my body. I didn't want to be left behind. I wanted to learn how to wield a weapon and an axe was as good as any.
So, I spent the morning hacking away at a tree, swinging with more desperation than technique. I barely made a dent in the tree, but that was to be expected.
The weight of the axe was too much for me to handle at first, but over time, I got used to it. I also gradually adapted to the proper technique I needed to swing the axe more efficiently. It took me a month to cut down my first tree.
By that time, I had developed blisters on the palm of my hand, and the skin was peeling off. I took it as proof of my hard work, no matter how painful it was. I even split the wood into small chunks with the intention of selling them. The problem was, I didn't have anyone to sell them to.
One particular morning, while I was swinging at a tree, I heard a rustle from the bushes, followed by a scream and then a sharp thud.
Curious, and a bit wary, I went to see who it was, and to my surprise, it was Frey, my half-sister. The sight was amusing, to say the least. She had teary eyes, a bumped knee, and was sitting on the ground covered in flower petals of various colors like some kind of fairy goddess descending to earth.
After stopping myself from laughing, I offered her a hand. The two of us lived together, but we hardly spoke. She had a shy personality and was always with her mother, Ari. Plus, I had the feeling she didn't like me very much. Or maybe she was just wary since I didn't make much of an effort to connect with her.
She resembled her mother. She had long blonde hair that cascaded down to her waist, a slender build, and a face cute enough to pass for a princess. Ari, Ragnar and Frey were the only ones in the village who had blonde hair. There was a rumor that my father's second wife, Ari, was actually a foreigner. Which made sense the more I thought about it.
"Are you okay?" I asked as I extended her a hand.
She averted her eyes, her face flushed red. She was embarrassed. She also had a small cut on her knee. It was a small chip, but it seemed to be bothering her, so I tore off a piece of cloth from my clothes and wrapped it around her leg to stop the bleeding.
"Eeep!"
She let out a cute noise and squinted as I wrapped the cloth around her knee, and when I was done, she bowed her head.
"T-Thank you very much!" she exclaimed in a high-pitched voice. She bowed her head and lifted the hem of her skirt slightly, her face as red as a tomato.
Is that a curtsey? Her mother must've thought her that. Her mother raised her as if she was the daughter of a noble. She was polite and kind. Unlike the other girls her age who had the temperament of a wild boar.
Seeing her reaction, I couldn't fight the urge to pat her on the head.
"You're welcome."
I thought she would react adversely, but instead, a warm smile crept on her lips.
It was strange; after all this time, this was my first interaction with her. I never really got the chance to know her before; maybe this was my opportunity.
"What are the flower petals for?" I asked.
There were flower petals of different colors scattered on the ground around us.
"They were a gift."
Her hands tightened on the hem of her skirt, her eyes showing a deep sadness within them.
"A gift? For your mother? If that's the case I can help you pick some more." I asked.
She shook her head and raised her hand slowly, pointing her finger at me.
"They were a gift for you."
A gift for me? But why? For the first time during our whole conversation, she looked me in the eyes as she spoke.
"I want you to train me!" she blurted, fist clenched.