The Nameless Heir

After begging Orion for three days to train him, Kael only had four days to learn the basics.

Most people trained for years to master combat, but Kael had divine desperation, a lack of options, and exactly one amazing mentor—or so he thought.

Orion Aetos—heir of Zeus, the best swordsman in the Academy, and a walking thunderstorm of judgment—was the only person willing to teach him.

Which was great.

Except for the part where Orion hated his guts.

Day One: Immediate Regret

Kael arrived at the private training hall bright and early, full of hope. He was confident that things would be easy, but—

As soon as he walked in, Orion threw a wooden sword at him. Kael caught it just in time before it hit the ground. The weight of the sword almost tore his shoulder out of its joint.

Orion gave him a look that basically screamed, Why me? It was clear he didn't want to do this but was forced to.

"Yeah. This is going to be worse than I thought."

Kael scowled. "Excuse you. I'll have you know I—"

"Come attack me," Orion cut him off.

Kael blinked. "Wait. What?"

"Come at me."

"…Physically?"

Orion sighed. "Yes. Strike me."

"Just like that?"

"Yes."

Kael hesitated. He didn't know what Orion was planning. "Get ready. Here I come."

Orion didn't react.

Instead, he smirked.

"That was not a good sign," Kael muttered.

"Attack me," he commanded.

Kael screamed and charged. He held the sword in both hands like a baseball bat and swung down hard—

Orion sidestepped at the last moment.

The next thing Kael knew, he was lying on the floor, his vision hazy, and he felt a sharp agony in the back of his head.

"What… happened?" he mumbled. His vision gradually returned, and he saw Orion hovering over him, grinning as though he was savoring this.

Kael exhaled. "I'm about to regret this, aren't I?"

Orion's smirk got even bigger. "What do you mean?"

Kael got back up and lunged again. This time, he tried a vertical strike.

Before he could even process what happened, Orion disarmed him mid-attack, kicked his legs out from under him—

And then he was on the ground again.

Kael blinked up at the ceiling. "This is not fun at all."

Kael was confused. One second, he was attacking. The next, he was flat on his back, rethinking his life choices.

Orion stared down at him, unbearably smug.

"Oh, my mistake. Were you attacking just now?"

Kael groaned, rolling to his feet. "Okay. That was a fluke."

"Sure."

He attacked again.

Same result.

Then again.

Still the same result.

By the eighth time he hit the ground, he just stayed there. Didn't move.

"You know," he gasped for air, "I'm starting to think this training session is just an elaborate revenge scheme."

Orion smirked. "Maybe."

Kael gasped. "Can I quit?"

"No. I'm having too much fun."

"I knew it. You Holy Knights are evil."

Orion tilted his head. "Well, considering you've spent the past three days harassing me at all hours of the day and night…"

"…Okay, fair. But it hurts."

Kael sighed, pulling himself up. "Fine. What now?"

Orion grinned.

"I don't like that look."

"Now? We actually start."

Day Two: Footwork, Positioning, and Form

For the next four hours, Orion drilled every single mistake out of him.

"Your stance is all wrong. If you keep standing like that, a simple wind can knock you over."

"Plant your feet. No, wider. NO, NOT THAT WIDE! Do you want to do the splits?"

"You're not holding a baseball bat, Kael. It's a sword. Grip it properly."

Kael's legs were on fire.

His arms burned from gripping the sword for too long. His legs screamed as he tried to keep his stance still. Every muscle in his back was in pain from the endless repetition of movements he barely understood.

He stumbled after every strike, his body betraying him. Orion sighed, rubbing his temple.

"Stop moving like an idiot," Orion muttered. "You're wasting energy."

Kael frowned. "I thought movement was important?"

"Yes," Orion said. "Controlled movement. Not whatever that is." He gestured vaguely at Kael's unbalanced stance.

Kael scowled. "I don't see you explaining anything."

Orion exhaled and stepped forward. "Fine. Watch."

He raised his sword and moved.

Kael had never seen anything like it. It looked like Orion's feet were barely on the ground. He had perfect balance and looked like he was floating. Every motion was fluid. It was like he was dancing.

Not a single movement was useless. Every movement had its purpose.

"This," Orion said, lowering his sword, "is what footwork should look like."

Kael exhaled slowly. "Okay. How do I do that?"

"You don't," Orion said. "Not yet. First, you learn how to stand properly."

Kael groaned. "This is gonna suck, isn't it?"

"Yes."

Day Three: Footwork Continues

Kael showed up early the next morning. His body still felt like he'd been run over by a Minotaur.

Orion handed him something new.

A set of golden bracers—made from celestial bronze.

Kael raised an eyebrow. "Oh, I don't wear jewelry."

"No, dummy," Orion said. "They're weighted."

Kael blinked. "…Weighted?"

"Put them on."

The moment he did, he understood.

His arms dropped to his sides, exhaustion doubling from the previous day.

It was so heavy he could barely lift his arms.

"Come on, they're only 50 pounds each." Orion smiled.

Kael struggled to breathe. "Couldn't we start with, I don't know, ten pounds?"

"We're not done yet."

"…What do you mean?"

Orion muttered, "Increase gravity x2."

The air around him shifted.

Kael's face slammed into the floor.

"Damn you, Orion!"

Orion smiled.

"Now get up and give me twenty laps around the training hall."

"TWENTY?! I can't even stand!"

Orion lifted Kael like a toddler.

Right then, Selene walked in.

"Aww. That's adorable."

Kael wanted to die. "This is embarrassing."

"I'm sorry to interrupt your father-son moment, but I need to borrow your dad for a bit."

"Kill me already."

Orion dropped him. "Now, run."

Day Four: The Final Test

Kael woke up feeling… good.

His body felt light. His movements, sharper.

Orion summoned three robotic dummies into the training hall.

"This is your test," Orion said. "Show me what you've learned."

The dummies surrounded Kael—autonomous constructs of Olympian craftsmanship, designed to adapt to their opponent.

Orion stood on the sidelines. "Don't hold back. Fight like it's real."

Kael nodded.

The first dummy lunged with a spear.

Kael parried.

The second dummy—a shield-bearer—charged him, but Kael sidestepped, sending it slamming into the first dummy.

From above, the third dummy slashed down.

Kael stepped back, gripping his sword tightly.

The weapon felt light in his hands.

He swung.

A horizontal strike—clean cut.

The dummy split in half.

The second dummy recovered, its spear thrusting toward him.

Kael jumped.

He brought his sword down—cutting the spear and the dummy in two.

He turned to take out the last one—

Orion's voice cut through the air.

"Stop."

Orion watched, unimpressed. "Not bad."

Kael grinned. "That's the nicest thing you've ever said to me."

Orion rolled his eyes.

"Ok, Kael. We're doing something new now."

Kael groaned. "We are going to have a sparring match."

"What."

"Get ready."

"You asked for it."

Orion smirked.

Kael attacked.

And it did not work.

Orion was faster. Stronger. Infinitely more skilled.

Kael threw sand in Orion's eyes.

Orion stumbled back, covering his eyes. "Are you kidding me?!"

Kael lunged. "No rules in a real fight!"

Orion blocked, still half-blind. "That is the dirtiest—"

"Oh, you know, Selene was saying how impressive you are."

Orion froze.

Orion froze mid-block.

His expression shifted—just for a second.

Kael grinned.

"Oh yeah," he continued. "She kept going on about how you're the best swordsman in the Academy. That you're so focused and disciplined. That you're, like, a total warrior prince."

Orion's ears turned red.

And that's when Kael attacked.

For five glorious seconds, he actually had the advantage.

Then, Orion snapped out of it, dodged, and slammed the flat of his blade against Kael's ribs.

Kael crashed to the ground.

"Dirty," Orion muttered. "But clever."

Kael wheezed. "So… it worked?"

Orion sighed, rubbing his temple. "You're impossible."

Before leaving, Orion turned back to him and patted Kael on the head.