get a good night’s worth of sleep. Kassandra has not yet told Kasim about the mysterious boy
participating in the tournament, mostly because she forgot to.
_________
Due to the popularity, the Medalian Insigniae Magnae is held during the late afternoon.
Since the tournament is directed towards all demographics including adults and children,
the actual Insigniae Magnae is divided into the so called Insigniae Minimalis, the sub brackets
suitable for groups of the same age.
For reference, Everyone below the age of 11 years is put into the same bracket.
A separate tournament bracket is also given to the aspiring adults below the age of 21 years
and the retired or retiring seniors of ages over 38 years of age.
Everyone inbetween these age-groups is put into the same tournament bracket.
The order of events held is declining by age, meaning that the elders are expected to
set the scene and mood for the next generation of warriors and nobles, the middle-faction
being the highlight of Medalia’s event.
Even though the tournament is divided into different brackets, a person from a younger
age-group is allowed to participate in elder age-groups under the condition of “proving their
qualification”. The actual way of getting approved is deliberately held vaguely in order for
promising young men to gain the opportunity of proving themselves for their noble house.
Since this event is meant for a rich demographic it is never mentioned but it goes without
saying that the people are expected to contribute an entry-fee in order to participate in the
tournament.
Since the participants in the outer brackets often amount to very few people, these brackets
are typically held only for the duration of one day.
If the number of people in the youngest grouping is too small and the participants accept the
organizer’s proposal, the youngest bracket will sometimes be merged with the
second-youngest.
Of course, the age disparity between contestants is typically resolved by ordering the
match-ups by age.
The actual Insigniae Magnae is held for up to three days depending on the number of applicants.
Witnessing the Medalian culture as a visitor and spectator has given me a high appreciation of
Medalia as a village.
I highly encourage you to visit them if given the time and opportunity.
Furthermore, I highly recommend the procedure of Insigniae Magnae to be adopted by
Estica's neighboring countries as well as those outside of Weldapper!
It can be said to have tremendous benefits for cultural exchange and broadening the young[…]
_________
An excerpt published under the name of Marco Tamil. The authenticity of this excerpt has
been doubted in the past due to the difference in time-period to Tamil’s last work of literature.
It is expected, that Marco is a family name that has been inherited by the next generation of Tamil.
Since Kassandra and Kasim have no interest in the first Insigniae Minimalis, they have decided to give
themselves a bit more time to explore the vicinity around Estica,
half hoping to find the young boy from yesterday to thank him for his positive attitude(Kasim’s opinion).
By sheer coincidence, they can find the boy… sitting at a very peculiar place.
If you exit Medalia through the front entrance and after a few minutes diverge from the path
to the left side, you will see a large cliff above a chasm, that is bridged by a wooden
construction, that feels like it could crumble at any point.
The construction contains wooden planks threaded on top of two(once upon) sturdy ropes
with a complicated knot on each connection point.
The ends of the bridge are solidified by a triangular wooden construction, that in itself is tied
to a heavy weight to counteract the weight of the bridge. While the stabilizer is in relatively
decent shape, you can see small threads coming off of the once sturdy rope, if you look closely
enough.
It would be reckless to cross the bridge in this shape, to say the least.
Anyways, on top of the bridge, there is currently a black-haired short boy lying down and
looking up into the sky.
The two fresh acquaintances gasp in shock as they realize the situation the boy is in right now.
Skipping forward in time for a few minutes, they manage to catch Imogyeran’s attention
through the use of Kasim’s incessantly loud voice and after a bit of arguing Imogyeran is then
brought to step down from the unsteady bridge and tormented into an assault of
admonishment by the two children.
A stray thought like that passes through his mind before quickly disappearing again. The
encounter eventually results in Imog Kasim and Kassandra making up and having some
small-talk on top of a nearby rock-formation. The topics are relatively mundane things
such as the nice weather and the beautiful scenery from above this place.
It turns out, that Imogyeran settled down on top of the bridge, because he “...love(s) to
hang out on top of something that feels like (he is) sleeping on top of thin air.”
Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.
And the sheltered boy does have a point.
The loose parts of this bridge give it less of form-containing stability and result in a higher
susceptibility to the wind.
In short, the strong winds from the canyon sway the bridge from side to side and to
Imogyeran, it feels like being in a large cradle made out of wind.
To top it all off, he can see the scenery below and above the bridge while on top of that place.
Deeply below the bridge, there is a small stream of water silently flowing between a large
cluster of sharp and Grey rocks. Over the years, the walls of the canyon have been smoothed
out by the wind and they now emit an almost soft greenish luster, somehow reminding the
boy of ‘Donmir’ in his mind.
If Imogyeran looks hard enough at the line directly adjacent to the stream of water, he can
faintly make out the texture of course sand. This is also Imog’s first time seeing coarse sand,
though he does not recognize that himself.
Atop of the bridge, there is a beautiful view of a purple-blue sky, showing a texture of smooth
paper and clouds swirling around, circulating, creating streams of wind almost mirroring the
scenery from below.
If you look for a long time, you will notice the white-orange hue of light moving across the sky,
standing in its peak and sharing its warmth with every being living underneath.
The sun, also called “Sombra Luz”.
<
The question is a sudden one. The three of them are simply looking at the sky, when Imog
asked that question.
(Kasim):
<>
(Imog):
<
One reacts with a bewitched feeling of watching a cute child ask an innocent question while
the other considers the intent behind the question.
(Kasim):
<
you put your mind to it. So surely, if you try hard enough why not?>>
Kasim smiles and shields his eyes from looking too long at the shadow of light above
themselves. He imagines himself jumping so hard he can touch the shadow of a sun on the
sky.
Kassandra keeps quiet and listens to their conversation, not really wanting to partake in it but
silently agreeing with Kasim’s opinion.
(Imog):
<>
Unexpectedly, the answer that came out of Imog’s mouth, is not the one they were expecting.
(Kassandra):
<
(Imog):
<
Neither party expected this answer and they just decide to keep quiet for a while and to enjoy
the warm day without dwelling further on what was said.
(Kasim):
<
(Imog)
<
(Kasim, turning to Imog):
<
The question arouses some interest in Imog.
<
The question is rearranged by Kassandra, since she feels like the word ‘fate’ might be a bit
hard to understand for Imogyeran..
<
<
been given to us from birth and he also told me that whatever things we will do in our lives, it
will always have been the natural outcome of things to have turned out that way.>>
<
Imogyeran interrupts Kassandra from repeating her friend’s words.
<>
Imog stands up with a quick hop and does some exercises to get the blood flowing inside his
body. Then he picks up a random pebble up from below and holds it in his hands.
<>
The question is sudden and not fitting to the thing he has been asked. Kasim is beginning to
suspect a mental disability from this kid but he isn’t bothered too much by it and answers the
question.
<
ground.>>
He answers with a shrug.
Imogyeran keeps his silence and holds the pebble in both of his hands. He is clasping the
pebble tightly and closing his arms so that the tip of this piece of stone is touching his chest.
The two don’t really understand what he is doing but they decide to be a bit curious and sit
themselves up to spectate the show.
But there is no show. Imog just continues to intimately embrace the pebble, not moving or
making a sound for a long time; he is smiling the entire time.
It is at the moment, that Kasim decides to interrupt the guy hugging a rock with words that
Imogyeran speaks aloud again.
<
He looks up at the sky, changes gazes to the pebble and finally looks at the two of them staring blankly at the guy.
<
The entire situation is one large enigma, which cannot be understood by anyone but the boy
himself. Kasim is left speechless as he closes his mouth and waits for the mysterious boy to
talk again.
It is at this moment that he remembers the incident from yesterday, which partly went above
his head due to a slight concussion suffered.
He remembers the crimson eyes that rooted fear inside his heart and Kasim’s legs start
shivering again.
The smile that seemed sweet sounds sinister and evil as he gets encroached in his own view of
the person before him and what they are doing right now.
Kassandra just keeps quiet and watches intently and curiously as Imog does his show.
*Swish*
With a quick bending motion Imogyeran first bends forward to the two of them and then
rotates his body by changing the position of his feet and while rotating the boy tightly grasps
the pebble with his right hand, ready to do a pitching motion. The next thing anybody sees is
the pebble flying in an arc and falling down the chasm.
Imogyeran laughs while the two spectators are as confused as before if not more so.
<
there and stay on the ground until somebody picks it up again, right Kasim?>>
He looks at Kasim, who in turn winces at making eye-contact with the guy. After a second,
Kasim quickly nods his head, seemingly not wanting to speak again.
<
RETURN TO THIS VERY POSITION WITHOUT ANYBODY TOUCHING IT!
I bet that the next day we meet again at this spot, this stone will be coming over to us and become my friend, Raul!
If I win my bet, this means that fate doesn’t exist! If you win your bet then your father was right! How does that sound!?>>
The boy is smiling from ear to ear as he says this.
…
The three of them quickly part ways again after this incident. Imogyeran refuses to elaborate
further and the two of them want to create some distance between him and themselves.
The next time they meet again is in the second round of the Insigniae Minimalis, where Imogyeran and Kasim will have their face-off.
Not everybody experiences a story in the same way.
While Kasim experienced a thriller-mystery of an abyss-like encounter with a creature, be it
human or not,
Kasanova Rojora experienced an entirely different story.
A story of betrayal of honor. A story of betraying honor.