'Clang!'
The harsh sound of steel clashing against steel filled the training yard of the Arc Estate as Arcturius blocked Crocea Mors with his metal heater shield. Arcturius wasted no time after the blocked strike before thrusting his own sword against the white shield of his opponent, the now sixteen-year-old Jaune Arc.
This battle has been going on for some time already. Jaune, for his part, performed admirably and held his own against Arcturius. The teen was able to avoid damage so far, mostly evading Arcturius' attacks at the start. However, with the passage of time, both Arcturius and Jaune were too exhausted to reliably attempt quick evasions and had to resort to tanking attacks. So, when Arcturius made his attack, Jaune was forced to take the hit.
Arcturius's thrust made Jaune stumble a few steps backwards, freeing Arcturius's shield from Jaune's assault. Arcturius took the opportunity to smash the side of his shield against Jaune's own before the teen could fully recover, forcing Jaune to give more ground to Arcturius.
As Jaune tried to find his footing once more, Arcturius already reformed his stance with his shield in front of him and his sword pointed towards Jaune from the top of the shield. Arcturius wasted no time after reforming before rushing against Jaune, smashing his shield against the teen's once more.
Arcturius noted that Jaune seemed to have recovered very quickly in that short period of time, feeling that his opponent didn't budge backwards from his charge. He quickly tucked that note away for later before thrusting his sword towards the vulnerable head of Jaune. Fortunately for Jaune, the teen was able to react quickly and dodged to blade by moving his head to the side.
Suddenly, Arcturius felt the weight in front of him give way, putting him slightly off-balance. He immediately realized that this deliberate and instead prepared to recover afterwards. As he expected, Jaune quickly pushed back against Arcturius' shield, forcing Arcturius to move backwards and away from Jaune.
Arcturius saw Jaune advance towards him, looking determined to end the fight. Then, on instinct, Arcturius raised his shield to block Jaune's sword thrust to his face.
'Taking advantage of my blind spot. Smart. Might have gotten me if I wasn't used to fighting with one-eye yet.' Arcturius mentally commented, proud that Jaune was heeding his teachings before making his move.
Arcturius immediately pushed Jaune's sword to the side with his shield, forcing the teen to slightly pivot away. Another opening presented itself on Jaune's now exposed side, something that Arcturius tried to take advantage by thrusting his sword into the opening.
'A ruse.' Arcturius realized too late as he saw the slight tensing of Jaune's legs before the teen deftly knocked Arcturius' sword with a shield.
Arcturius, now without a sword, barely raised his shield up to meet the shield charge of Jaune. Since Arcturius was in an awkward position when he lost his sword, Arcturius was forced to go with Jaune's momentum. Arcturius backpedaled, not being able to get a footing, until his back slammed full force against a large tree.
Arcturius let out a groan of pain before feeling cold steel being pointed towards his neck. Arcturius refocused his vision and saw Jaune, tired and sweating, holding Crocea Mors above his shield and very closely to Arcturius' throat. The teen took deep breaths, his muscles tense, and his eyes sharp with determination.
Arcturius felt proud. He only started training Jaune when the child turned fourteen, but Jaune achieved so much already. Jaune might have been fickle with his dream initially, but some perspective from both parties enabled the two to push on and allowed Arcturius to realize what a fast and eager learner Jaune was. Jaune was probably one the best students he'd ever known, second only to his daughter.
"Good work, Jaune. You have performed impressively in the duel and showed a mastery over the basics of combat. Keep them in mind and you will live through many battles." Arcturius praised Jaune with a reserved but proud smile.
At the acknowledgement of his performance, Jaune finally loosened and lost his serious expression. His blue eyes softened with a mirthful twinkle while his mouth gave a tired but victorious smile in response to Arcturius' own.
"I finally beat you, Grampa Turius." Jaune said in an exhausted voice as he moved Crocea Mors away from Arcturius' throat and to his own side.
Grampa Turius. Arcturius never thought he'd be called Grandfather after he died on that field, but now that he does, Arcturius cherished it. Initially, only Aurum, his wife Violet, their elder daughters, and Jaune knew and were told about his true circumstances. So, to explain his sudden appearance to the younger children, as well as the other members of the community, Arcturius was said to be a long-lost grandfather by the name of Turius Arc. From there, the children got 'Grampa Turius' and called him that ever since.
"Yes, you did." Arcturius acknowledged with a smile.
Granted, it was a toned-down version of Arcturius' skill to facilitate Jaune's training but even then, Jaune's victory was commendable.
Jaune, finally hearing his victory completely acknowledged as well, dropped to the ground, the ache in his muscles finally kicking in.
"Congratulations, son. You did well." Aurum's voice proudly said as he moved towards the sitting form of Jaune.
With Aurum's entrance, Arcturius was once again fully conscious of the audience they had during the fight. He saw Jaune's sisters rushing towards their brother, while Jaune's mother followed behind them.
"Congrats, little bro. You finally showed Gramps whose boss." The second eldest, Rouge Arc, congratulated with a smirk as her hand ruffled Jaune's hair. Arcturius simply chuckled at the statement, knowing that the short-haired girl meant nothing malicious about it.
"You were really great out here, Jaune. You really amazed all of us." The third eldest, Flora Arc, told Jaune as she played with her long braid.
"Looks like you'll get to be a hero after all, bro." Jaune's twin, Joan Arc, teased as she leaned down to lightly punch her brother's shoulder.
"That was really cool, big bro! You swung your sword at Grampa like 'swoosh' and he blocked like 'clang' And-" One of the younger twins, Vanilla Arc, started to recount to her brother before being cut off by her twin, Verde Arc.
"Vanilla, we know what happened. We all saw it." Verde Arc said, causing Vanilla to blush and glare towards Verde. Arcturius, along with the others, always found their childish confrontations amusing.
"Big Brother!" The youngest, Beryl Arc, suddenly shouted as she ran towards Jaune's body and hugged the boy. Arcturius found the sight adorable, knowing that Beryl adored her brother.
"Congratulations, Jaune. I knew you could do it." Violet Arc finally said as she stood beside her husband.
"Thanks, everyone. Thanks for supporting me." Jaune earnestly said as he continued to hug his youngest sister and rub his hand comfortingly on her back.
"Well, as much as I hate to break such a tender moment between you and Beryl, we still have one last thing to do, Jaune." Arcturius said, getting off the tree he was leaning on and joining the family.
"We do?" Jaune asked, not knowing anything.
While the other girls seemed to share Jaune's confusion, Arcturius saw the knowing smiles of Aurum and Violet. Arcturius smiled as well, having told the two of what he had planned for Jaune.
"You'll have to get up for this, Jaune." Arcturius said, offering a hand towards Jaune.
"Alright. Come on Beryl, I still have something to do." Jaune coaxed his sister to let go of him so that he could stand up. Beryl gave him a soft 'okay' before letting go. However, she turned to face Arcturius with a 'serious' expression on her face.
"Are you going to fight big brother again, Grampa?" She questioned Arcturius in her most demanding voice, which just caused everyone to smile.
"No, no, Beryl. No more fighting for us. This will be fast, I promise." Arcturius explained to the child, keeping the soft smile on his face.
"You promise?" She asked.
"Yes, I promise." Arcturius readily promised. That seemed to have been enough for Beryl, with her giving a small nod and going back to her mother.
Arcturius once again offered his hand towards Jaune, helping up his young descendant from the ground.
"Crocea Mors, Jaune." Arcturius prompted as he held out his palm, making Jaune give the ancestral sword back to its original wielder. Arcturius inspected the blade for a moment, looking for non-existent damage on it before giving a serious look towards Jaune.
"Kneel." Arcturius ordered with authority, changing from 'Grampa Turius' to Knight Arcturius of the Imperial Guard.
Out of habit from being under Arcturius' training for two years, Jaune immediately complied, going down on his left knee, his shield to his side.
Arcturius saw realization set in the eyes of the older girls, and Arcturius internally smiled at their reaction.
"In the name of the God of Light, I charge you to be holy."
"In the name of Joan 'the Maiden', I charge you to be just." Arcturius started, bringing down Crocea Mors ceremoniously to Jaune's right shoulder. Arcturius saw Jaune's eyes widen in realization as well and was pleased to see the teen keep silent anyway.
"In the name of the God of Darkness, I charge you to be strong."
"In the name of Aurelius 'the Martyr', I charge you to be brave." Arcturius continued, placing Crocea Mors on Jaune's left shoulder.
"In the name of the Empire, I charge you to serve until death."
"In the name of Eleanor 'the Pure', I charge you to be a light against the darkness." Arcturius ended, placing Crocea Mors on Jaune's right shoulder before removing it.
"Arise Ser Arcturius, Knight of the Empire."
"Arise Ser Jaune, Knight of House Arc." Arcturius commanded his descendant, finishing his modified version of the knighting ceremony.
Jaune complied with a proud look on his face, rising to face Arcturius. When he was on his feet, Arcturius offered Crocea Mors back to Jaune, who gratefully accepted it.
When Jaune finally sheathed the ancestral sword back into the transformed scabbard of his shield, Arcturius heard the rest of the family clap for Jaune. Words of celebration and congratulations were given once again to Jaune, who couldn't keep the smile off his face.
"Get some rest Jaune. You had a long day. You'll need the strength for tomorrow." Arcturius reminded Jaune, who turned towards the resurrected man, once again confused.
"Tomorrow?" Jaune asked.
"Yes. Tomorrow. We're going to tour Beacon Academy after all."
'Being a grandfather is fun.' Arcturius thought as he enjoyed the mix of shock and excitement in Jaune's expression.
