Chapter 15 - Potential
“Your Highness! What do you think you're doing?”
Theodoros rarely raised his voice.
The reason was obvious.
Antonius was pushing a mud-caked supply cart with an arm still wrapped in bandages.
“The entire order is working,” Antonius replied without slowing. “I am already imposing upon them enough as it is. I cannot very well sit idle while everyone else labors.”
“But that doesn't mean—”
Antonius ignored him and kept walking.
The old man had died that day.
Swallowed by the landslide.
Nothing remained but the words he had left behind.
What would a prince who speaks of hardship while fleeing back to his comfortable palace know of our suffering?
No matter how hard Antonius tried, he could not forget them.
Nor could he deny them.
The words remained lodged in his mind like a thorn.
And so he worked.
He worked to leave himself no time to think.
The pain of his injuries, the exhaustion of labor, the simple act of driving his body forward from dawn until dusk—all of it seemed, little by little, to dull the wound those words had left behind.
Theodoros could do nothing but watch with mixed feelings.
At the same time, Antonius had not abandoned his other concern.
Andri.
The monstrous power he had displayed was extraordinary.
Not invincible.
Not without weaknesses.
But undeniably useful.
More importantly, there was a method to stop him should he lose control again.
If that power could be controlled...
Then it was a weapon far too valuable to leave outside his control.
Antonius spent more time with Andri than ever before.
They worked together.
Shared meals together.
Sometimes they simply talked.
Even Theodoros could see the change.
Day by day, Andri's admiration for the Crown Prince deepened.
One afternoon during a break, Antonius suddenly called out.
“Andri. Take a stance.”
He tossed the boy a stick lying nearby.
Andri caught it awkwardly and did as instructed.
The posture was clumsy.
Antonius stepped forward and adjusted it.
“Like this.”
He demonstrated a few basic forms.
Middle guard.
High guard.
A simple diagonal cut.
Only a handful of movements.
“Now you try.”
“Yes, Your Highness!”
The stick whistled through the air.
One of Antonius's brows rose slightly.
Again. And again.
There was no unnecessary tension.
No wavering in the path of the strike.
His body moved with an efficiency that most swordsmen only acquired after years of repeating the fundamentals.
Theodoros happened to be approaching with tea when he stopped in his tracks.
Antonius noticed him and gestured toward Andri with unmistakable satisfaction.
“Take a look.”
Andri was completely absorbed in practice.
Theodoros's eyes widened.
“...This is—”
Remarkable.
The boy had talent.
Before the day was over, Antonius paid a visit to Ioannis.
He requested that Andri be allowed to begin knightly training.
Ioannis refused without hesitation.
The very thought of a creature like that growing even stronger was enough to make cold sweat run down his back.
To be honest, Antonius had expected the answer.
Yet he accepted the refusal with a knowing look and withdrew without argument.
Watching from the side, Theodoros could only sigh.
He had a very bad feeling about whatever Antonius was planning next.
