Rebirth: Childhood friend of the heroine

Edric was rubbing his palms together as he entered the room, and told them, "No results. This place is huge and considering Alex must be hiding his identity, it becomes even more difficult to locate him."

They rented a small house where the four of them were staying. Since yesterday, all four of them have gone to search for Alex in different directions, but to no avail. The capital was huge, and the market was overcrowded because of the tournament.

"It's nearly impossible to locate him like this." Valerie muttered, "And we cannot take the help of authorities as well. With just the four of us, I don't think we can find him before the tournament."

Celestria frowned, "So we are left with only one option."

Amanda heaved a sigh, as she finished the cup of tea and voiced, "Meet him during the tournament."

Celestria nodded, "The preliminary rounds would be held for two days before every chosen one would be gathered in Whiteden for the quarter-finals."

Amanda added, "So we need to pass the preliminary and meet Alex in Whiteden, I suppose?"

"But are we all going to participate? I mean, there is a chance for Edric to be recognized." Valerie voiced.

"So what? Not like Edric is some kind of wanted criminal here." Amanda added.

However, "Participating in another nation's tournament so he could get selected as their warrior....won't that be considered as Edric is considering migrating to a different nation? Worse, he might be regarded as a rebellion." Valerie's words caused Amanda to frown.

"Aren't you exaggerating things a little here?" The lime-haired asked.

"However, what she is saying isn't baseless either." Celestria added, "Recently, Alex became the savior of Grimland, an occurrence which could cause the previous Hero of the nation to feel betrayed. And then, all of a sudden, he is being spotted participating in another nation's event."

Celestria asked, "How will that be interpreted?"

A profound silence ensued in the room. The closest to the government was Celestria as such, she could guess how they would think.

"So....who is going to participate?"

------------**------------ Explore hidden tales at empire

"I hope you had a good sleep last night." The next morning, against what he desired, the Patriarch invited Alex and Rebecca for breakfast.

Other than the three only the soldiers around the room could be seen, who were there for the Patriarch's protection, undoubtedly.

"Yes, it was comfortable." Alex gave him a nod and he continued to feast on the warm meat.

As they continued to eat, Godric again spoke up, "The day after tomorrow, it begins. You will need to win two rounds to qualify in the quarter-finals, which would be held in Whiteden."

Alex was aware, so he gave no sudden reaction and said, "I will do what I can."

Godric hummed, "I have prepared both indoor and outdoor training grounds, and have arranged the necessary equipment you may want. However, if there is any other requirement you may have, you can contact me through Russel." Gesturing towards the soldier on his left, the man spoke.

Alex nodded, "Well, I carry my things along, but thanks for the help."

"Thank me by qualifying in the quarter-finals. I can't wait to see Eryndor being pulled from his high horses."

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In the afternoon, Alex and Rebecca went to check the equipment together.

The indoor training ground was vast, unlike what he expected, and had enough space for them to spar.

While Alex was assessing the weapon, he heard Rebecca asking, "The man you need to interrogate...how far does he live?"

Alex, without removing his eyes from the sword he was tracing with his finger, responded, "Three hours it will take to reach us there. At our full speed."

Rebecca narrowed her eyes, "So are we leaving tonight?"

Alex nodded, "Yes, after dinner, we will depart and return before breakfast."

"What if these people notice? After all, we don't know how long it will take to get the information."

Alex shrugged, "Not like Godric will forsake us just because we were snooping around."

Rebecca nodded before her eyes went towards the weapon he was assessing, "Why don't you try something else this time?" She pointed at a sword which has a blunt top.

The weapon was unlike any he'd seen before—broadening gradually as it extended away from the handle, giving it a striking and powerful appearance. Partition marks ran along the blade, hinting at hidden mechanisms or a layered design.

"A composite sword?" Alex asked, "My sword art would be pretty much ineffective with this one."

Rebecca grinned, "Try something new? You might as well, find some improvement?"

Alex thought for a moment before he picked up the sword and assessed how it worked.

"Should I feed-ah!" Just as Alex supplied his SE into the weapon, he found the teeth of the sword separating at his will.

He swung the blade and,

**SCREECH**

The elongated blades collided against the surface, scraping the wooden floor.

Rebecca grinned, "So? Wanna give it a go?"

Alex stepped back as he reeled the sword, and said, "Can you manage against this great me?"

Rebecca chuckled, "Let's see about that."

Alex grinned, his grip firm on the composite sword. Rebecca stood a few paces away, her daggers twirling in her hands like extensions of her fingers. The tension crackled in the air as they both moved simultaneously, closing the distance in a blink.

Rebecca struck first, her dagger slicing through the air toward Alex's shoulder. He swung the composite sword with a smooth motion, the blade's broad edge deflecting her strike with a sharp clang.

"Not bad," Rebecca smirked, stepping sideways and launching a flurry of quick jabs aimed at Alex's torso.

Alex countered with a wide sweep of his sword, the segmented blades extending mid-swing to force Rebecca to leap back. The screech of metal echoed through the training ground as the sword scraped the ground.

Rebecca darted forward again, her movements quick and unpredictable. She feinted left, then spun to the right, her dagger aiming for Alex's side. He twisted his wrist, retracting the sword's segments just in time to block her attack.

"You're fast," Alex admitted, stepping back to gain space.

"And you're hesitating," Rebecca complained, closing the gap with a low sweep of her leg, aiming to trip him.

Alex jumped and while holding the sword in both his hands, he tried to hit her shoulder.

Rebecca raised her forearm and parried the attack, as she heard,

"I am learning about the new weapon."

Rebecca raised her brows as she swatted his sword away and jumped back on her feet.

Looking him in the eye, she asked, "When the first time we fought there was an intensity in your eyes that said you are coming at me with the intention of ending me. But now, you seem just casually swinging your weapon. Why?"n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

Alex heaved a sigh, "Because at that time you were nothing to me...but now you are a friend."

Rebecca was dumbfounded as she raised her finger towards herself, "Me...." Pointing the same finger at him, she added, "...your friend?"

Alex asked, "You don't want to?"

Rebecca's eyes widened, "I want to! It's...just...you are my first friend that's why I am...."

Alex somehow didn't feel surprised that he was her first friend, so he didn't react and asked her, "Now, shall we continue the spar?"

Rebecca smilingly nodded, "Yep! Let's go!"

Rebecca grinned as she lunged forward, her daggers flashing in a rapid series of strikes. Alex parried, the segmented composite sword retracting and extending with his movements. Their weapons clashed in a chorus of metal, sparks flying with each blow.

"Not bad, Alex," Rebecca teased, pivoting on her heel to avoid his sweeping strike. "But you're still too slow!"

She darted under his guard, aiming a strike toward his ribs.

Alex launched the fragments to block the attack; however, suddenly, Rebecca threw the other dagger at his feet. Alex instinctively stepped back, giving her just the opening she needed.

She closed the gap in a heartbeat, using her momentum to knock the composite sword out of his hands. Alex tried to grab her wrist, but Rebecca twisted gracefully, sweeping his legs out from under him.

He hit the ground with a thud, groaning as Rebecca pounced, pinning him down as she sat on his chest and looked at him with a faint blush on her face.

"I wished to sit somewhere else, but that would have been too much for a friend."

Alex was rendered speechless for a moment, as he heard her adding, "This is bad...the more time I spend with you, the more I fall in love with you, Alex. Am I mad? Maybe I am but I can't help it. Haa~"

She leaned her head and hugged him.

Alex stared at the ceiling, thanking that Sarah wasn't here.

Letting the two meet would be disastrous.

'I wonder what she is doing...'

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A/N:- I hope you all enjoyed reading the chapter. Thanks for reading.