“Hey boy. You’re completely soaked. You’re off today, you don’t have to work out here in the rain.” - Vein came up to Smurt, who was trimming wood at his work station. Smurt’s station was located near the Passage of continents. The place where Vein spends most of his time.

  “H-h-hello. I… I can’t stop. I’ll be punished.” - Smurt, shaking and frozen, replied to Vein. - “Don’t worry, boy, I’ll vouch for you that I gave you the day off.” - Vein wanted to pat Smurt on the head, but Smurt immediately flinched in fear. In that moment, Vein saw the terror in his eyes.

  “Sir… you don’t understand. Vouching is nice, but… but it won’t protect me. Nothing will protect me from that man with the blue shield on his back. Please… don’t tell him that I mentioned him.” - Vein thought for a moment and realized that Smurt meant the supervisor’s right-hand man. He also quickly realized that Smurt was completely stressed because of him.

  “Alright. Then we’ll do it differently. Come with me to my house, you can warm up there. When it stops raining, you can go back out and finish your work.” - Smurt accepted the invitation. Vein used the situation and asked him about the supervisor’s right-hand man. Smurt replied that he is cruel to everyone, but especially to him.

  The rain stopped and Smurt returned to his station. It turned out that the supervisor’s right-hand man had come to check on Smurt while Smurt was with Vein. Smurt was later severely punished by having a finger cut off for not being at his station. That night, Smurt committed suicide. It was too much. It didn’t take long before Vein heard about it.

  Brown month, night 31.

  “Hey, they call you Grr, right?” - Vein caught the Supervisor’s right-hand man staggering around drunk. The guards were probably playing cards again.

  “Heeey. You’re the mighty Vein!! Yeah, they call me Grr. What do you want?” - “That kid who killed himself a few days ago. I heard you mentally destroyed him. Is that true?”

  Grr thought for a moment, as if he didn’t know what Vein was talking about, then remembered. - “You mean that shitty little puppy? Yeah yeah, I gave him hell every day for every little thing he has done. I’m sad my fun is gone, but there's nothing I can do... well maybe I could find new puppy, any suggestions?!!” - Grr started laughing… mocking Smurt’s entire existence. Vein started laughing too. Both of them laughed. Vein pulled out a knife. He slit Grr’s throat.

  “This should have been done a long time ago…” - Vein said to the bleeding Grr.

  Brown Month, day 32. - A few moments before the duel between Shard and the supervisor.

  The supervisor lunged at Shard. Vein was about to intervene, because he didn’t want the others to suffer for his actions. At that moment, Flake stepped in front of Shard. Vein sighed in relief. There are more people in this prison with their hearts in the right place.

  The duel begins.

  Shard said goodbye to his friends in case these were the last moments of his life. In the end, he said goodbye to Flake. - “I don’t know if I’ll be able to put you back together if you lose.” - Flake said as tears ran down her face. Shard thought for a moment about what to say. But actions speak louder than words. Shard kissed Flake. - “Ever since I saw you, I wanted to do this. Flake… that night when I was guessing your name was the best night of my life.” Shard stepped into the circle formed by people. In this circle, the duel would take place.

  Flake watched as Shard walked away, not knowing what to say. She was completely in shock… a good kind of shock.

  The supervisor and Shard grasped their swords. The supervisor also had a shield. Shard ordered him to throw it away. Everyone wanted to see a fair fight. The supervisor obeyed.

  The duel officially began.

  Shard and the supervisor slowly began approaching each other. Shard with his small sword, held close to his body, ready to swing it in any direction. On the other side of the coin, the supervisor approached, dragging his large and long sword along the ground. The supervisor was a head and a half taller than Shard… and much stronger.

  Everyone watched as the two approached each other. Everyone had the same thought. What will happen when the supervisor wins… after all, how could Shard possibly defeat the supervisor? Play stood next to Vein. - “Boss…do you think Shard has a chance?” - Vein stayed silent and watched the scene. - “One more question then…what will you do if the supervisor wins… you won’t… you won’t let me die… right??” - Vein aggressively patted Play on the head. - “Shard will win.” - Play didn’t like Vein’s answer… he had the same faith in Shard as everyone else, even though Shard was his friend, Play was realizing reality.

  When the supervisor was two steps away from Shard, he ran at him and raised his sword. Shard jumped aside as snow flew into the air behind him from the supervisor’s strike. At the moment of Shard’s dodge, Shard swung his sword at the supervisor’s stomach. The supervisor didn’t expect this move and ended up cut.

  “YOU BASTARD!!!? DID YOU FORGET WHERE I’M FROM??? I had the honor of learning from the best swordsmen of the black Crystal kingdom. I had the honor of defeating Horw in a duel…I HAD THE HONOR OF FIGHTING SWING…THE BEST SWORDSMAN OF MIDDLEWORLD!!!” - The supervisor touched his wound and smiled. - “You fought Swing and all you can do is scratch me… you’re nothing but a disappointment, you filth.”

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  The supervisor lunged at Shard again, trying to cut him in half with his sword. Shard jumped aside again, but this time the Supervisor was ready and punched Shard hard in the stomach with his other hand, sending him flying.

  Before Shard could stand up, the supervisor lunged at him again with his sword. He tried to drive the sword into Shard’s head. Shard dodged and the sword stabbed into the ground. In that moment, the supervisor kicked Shard away.

  The supervisor wanted to finish Shard while he was still lying on the ground. Shard dodged his sword again. He rolled backward, stood up, and spat out blood.

  This time, Shard charged at the supervisor, ready to strike him. The supervisor caught his attack in his hand. In that moment, the supervisor tried to cut Shard in half. Shard managed to jump back, but his sword remained in the supervisor’s hand.

  Shard was terrified. He was unarmed. - “THIS IS WHERE IT ENDS, YOU FILTH!!” - The supervisor ran at Shard while holding a sword in each hand. At that moment, Vein threw Shard a sword. Did this break the rules? Yes. Did anyone mind? No. Not even the supervisor minded, because defeating someone unarmed is pathetic.

  Thanks to Vein’s quick action, Shard managed to block the supervisor’s strike. Their swords collided. Shard’s sword, the one he had received at the start of the duel, broke in half from the impact… Shard had been given the most ordinary and old sword that could be found in the prison. Shard was knocked to the ground, but now both fighters again had only one weapon.

  Shard managed to get back on his feet, and the supervisor began using his strength and speed to it's full potential. He swung his sword relentlessly. Shard dodged every attack.

  Damnn, he's so fast, at this rate I'll get tired much faster than the Supervisor as he's much stronger than me. One mistake, and I'll end up split in half.

  Shard began to notice the pattern of the supervisor’s attacks. Swing to the right, then to the left, and finally straight, aimed at Shard’s head. Shard was getting exhausted… he had to act fast, or it would be over.

  Shard let the supervisor swing right and left, but when he aimed the sword at his head and tried to stab him, Shard made a desperate move. - It's now or never. This will hurt... but it's the only way to win... it's the only way to survive.

  Shard blocked the supervisor’s strike with his left hand. The supervisor’s sword pierced almost Shard’s entire arm. The arm was completely destroyed. Everyone watched the scene as if they had seen a ghost… it was epic. It was epic, but for a different reason…

  White Month, day 4. – Twelve years ago.

  A wagon carrying a new batch of prisoners arrived at the Northern prison. At the gate, the supervisor was waiting for them. - “Greetings! Call me the supervisor. I am the head of the group that will be overseeing you.”

  “Hello! Welcome here. Call me the Supervisor. Nice to meet you.” - The supervisor extended his hand for a handshake as a greeting. One of the prisoners extended his own, ready to greet the supervisor.

  Their hands truly met. The supervisor shook the prisoner’s hand and then greeted the others as well. - “Alright, newcomers! Follow me, I’ll show you around.”

  The supervisor showed the prisoners the entire prison. Near the end, a child ran up to him. - “Daddy!! Have you shown them everything already? I want to play with you!!!” - “Just a little while longer, sweetheart.” - The supervisor hugged his daughter and turned to the prisoners. - “Ah yes. This is my daughter. She is the star of this prison. Please be kind to her.”

  The new prisoners met the supervisor’s daughter. From time to time, when the prisoners had finished their work, the supervisor’s daughter would play with them.

  Blue month, day 12. – Twelve years ago.

  It was a snowy night. A few prisoners attempted an escape. They broke into the pantry. They were ready to flee. At the entrance, the supervisor’s daughter was waiting for them. - “Hi… I heard noise outside, so I came to see. What are you doing?” - One of the prisoners laughed. - “Isn’t it obvious? We’re escaping. Now move aside so nothing happens to you!”

  “You can’t run away! That’s against the rules.” - The supervisor’s daughter stood in their way. She tried to stop them and talk them out of escaping. One of the prisoners shoved the supervisor’s daughter to the ground. Her head hit a stone directly. She started bleeding from her head and lost consciousness. - “Damn, I didn’t mean to do that.” - “Forget it, we don’t have time.” - The prisoners ran away.

  The next morning, the supervisor found his daughter dead. He completely collapsed. One of his closest tried to comfort him somehow. - “Don’t even come near me… this… this will NEVER HAPPEN AGAIN. A hundred times more supervision. A hundred times harsher regime… gather all that filth stuck here. Pick one of them aside. The one you choose, we’ll beat to death in front of them. We’ll say that person tried to escape. This was the first and last time this filth tries anything.”

  The supervisor took his daughter in his arms and went to bury her. The supervisor’s closest was completely beside himself. The supervisor did not grieve, he did not cry. He just looked at his dead daughter and accepted reality… but something snapped in his head that day.

  That day, the regime of the entire prison changed drastically. That night, the Supervisor could be heard crying from his quarters. The supervisor was broken… he just didn’t show it publicly.

  Brown Month, day 32. - Present.

  It was epic, but for a different reason… everyone was staring at the supervisor’s neck. At the moment when Shard blocked the supervisor’s strike with his own hand, he drove his sword into the supervisor’s neck.

  The supervisor collapsed to the ground. He would bleed out any moment. The supervisor looked up at the clouds. - “I hope we’ll meet again.” - Shard approached the dying supervisor and pressed his hand to his neck. - “Help me save him!!” - The Supervisor grabbed Shard’s hand. - “You filth…Shard…I lost…let it g-go.” - The supervisor closed his eyes. The supervisor was dead.

  Shard was taken to the healing hut. Flake had to cut off half of his arm. Otherwise, Shard would have bled out. Not to mention the infection that could have occurred.

  Shard came out of the healing hut. Everyone was chanting his name. Shard was the hero of the prison.

  That night, Shard rested in the hut. Vein visited him. - “I want to personally congratulate you… everyone sees you as a hero now.” - “Thanks, Vein… but I’m exhausted, I’m going to sleep.”

  Vein turned to leave, but before he did, he said a few words to Shard… words that will decide Shard’s future. - “Shard… the Passage of continents is finished. In seven days, I, my team, and the supervisor were going to set out on the first expedition of Northlak. But the supervisor is no longer here… Shard… everyone sees you as a hero… so I want to ask you one question.”

  “Will you take the supervisor’s place in the expedition?”