Lunar Awakening-Chapter 41: The Princess & Her Knight.

It was the start of another brand new day, hot sweat dropped down his forehead and poured unto the floorboard beneath him.

Unable to sleep Leo had started his strict training regiment, one day of comfort was not going to dull his senses in any way.

He practiced his swordsmanship till his hands could no longer swing the rapier. Now he was doing hand stands push up, his bare chest dripping with sweat.

His concentration was not the greatest either, he felt a number of soft tender fingers caress his chest. And looked up at Trish currently squatting right before him, she was still in her pyjamas. She had entered his room a while back and watched him train without saying a word.

He could not blame the young girl, she wanted to spend as much time as she could with her brother before he would return back to Hellscape and possibly never return. While many sisters would nag their brothers for something they wanted or brag about their older brothers to their friends, Trish was different.

She never even gloated over the fact that her brother was a superhuman to anyone, not even her friends.

Speaking of friends...

"Trish?"

She responded without taking her eyes off his chest, "Mhm?"

Leo groaned a hot sweat trickled down his nose and slid off to the floorboard in the small puddle already there. He wondered how best to put it.

Of course he could not just come out as ask if she has any friends, the day before she did talk about her classmates but never anyone in particular.

"How has school being lately?" He said the only words that came to mind.

Her fingers now moved in a different pattern, drawing circles in his chest and giving him a tickling sensation that threatened to make him lose his focus.

"Peachy?" She said in a glum tone.

Leo could sense that she was no her usual self, her happiness was his top priority so he had to know what the problem was.

"Did something happen while I was away?" He asked more seriously.

Sensing her brother’s change in time Trish held her breath for several seconds before saying, "It’s dad, he tells me not to worry but he really needs our help." 𝙛𝓻𝒆𝓮𝒘𝙚𝙗𝒏𝙤𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝒐𝙢

Leo paused mid push and looked at his sister’s delicate frame, her features now looking slightly pale. He let her take her time as he pushed himself up on his feet with on land and reached for a towel to wipe off the sweat from his body.

Trish remained in the same spot for several seconds before saying, "After you left dad has been crying a lot, he doesn’t show it but I know. A week back some men came here saying something about a loan and how they are going to take the gym and the house, they almost beat dad. They laughed at him and called him names like cripple."

Leo watched his sister shudder as she paused tears streaming down her face, he dove down and pulled her into his embrace. He could feel a rage boiling in his chest. An attack on his family could not be forgiven, and hurting his sister required nothing more than death.

He was a killer after all.

It had puzzled Leo about why he always had killing as his first option in every situation.

It begged the question.

Did the Hellscape call them to be killers, or were they already killers who reached out to Hellscape.

"Who did this?" He asked, his voice seething with rage.

After a while she responded. "Don’t do anything rash brother. I don’t want dad to have anymore trouble. Promise me."

Leo was many things but rash he was not.

"You reek though." She said with a soft giggle.

Leo backed off from her and bowed his head in fear, "I apologise for this lowly servant’s behaviour."

She frowned, "You’re not servant, you’re a knight and now that I am officially thirteen I have to ask a question."

In that moments fireworks fired off in his mind.

’Could it be? It can’t be that she wants a boyfriend, no I would kill any boy who dares to touch my sister.’

Trish cleared her throat and spoke softly, "Can I see it?"

"Huh?" Leo snapped back to reality but was left dumbfounded.

She poured and threw him man angry look, "You promised, don’t tell me you forgot."

Leo did forget or more accurately he could not remember what he was supposed not to forget. "I made a promise."

"Mhm-hmm." She gave a very dutiful nod. "You said that when I turned thirteen you would show me your artifact."

"I did?" Leo had no memory of that.

Lately he had no memory of anything, it was like he had simply pushed a lot that had to do with his life to one side.

He forrowed his brows and thought of what he would have said had he not received his legacy. Would he bring up the story about how he had lost his rusted dagger?

"Right, but just one look." He said and watched her eyes light up with enthusiasm, it made his heart thump with a certain rhythm.

He wished he had an artifact they was not a weapon, or something like a shield but unfortunately he did not. He stretched out his hand and summoned the red needle, sparks of golden light shimmered in the air before him dancing and weaving in and out of itself till a pale construct of a rapier formed in them.

Trish watched the awakened artifact taken from before her very eyes and watched her brother twirled it with precision and grace. "Are you good with it?"

He held it in place for her to inspect it, "Well yeah, it’s largely the reason I’m still standing."

Her face grew brighter, "I wish I can wield one of my own. nd fight alongside you big bro."

Her words sounded full of warmth and also harmless but to Leo they were none of those things, they brought him great despair to imagine his sister in the hellish lifestyle of surviving in Hellscape.

But after a few seconds he felt great relief, it was well known that those who became superhumans where those who wanted nothing more than to live a peaceful life. So maybe, because she wanted such a life she would be free from it. That thought alone gave him solace.

"Can I hold it?" Her voice broke through his reverie causing him to pull back the sword slowly.

"Absolutely not. A princess should not wield swords." He dispelled the weapon and turned to face the clock on his work desk.

There was still an hour to the appointed time with whoever it was he had called the night before.

"Where’s dad now?" He asked.

She reached for a mop by the side of his bed and wiped the sweat off the floor. "Gym, I guess."

He wondered if she always stayed alone in the house at times like this. It was the weekend so she would not be heading to school.

"So you stay at home?"

"Yup! There’s always a dumb show on TV anyway."

He asked again, "Have any friends come over?"

She froze mid mop before saying in a voice he had never once perceived from her, she sounded enraged.

"Anyone who makes fun of my dad does not deserve to be called a friend."

He had no idea what to say, he wasn’t quiet conversant in the friend department. And the way he looked at it he did not want her ending up like he did.

"Here’s some cash for you while I head out soon, anything you want me to get for you?" He asked.

She looked at him was a serious glint in her bright blue eyes and spoke with conviction, "A bowl of ice cream I guess."

Leo looked at her with horror clearly written on his face, "What’s with such a lofty response over ice cream?"