In the Beginning, There Were Three Cadets.
1675 Words
Almost eleven years later...
The 2nd of Bloommonth, 1016 CE.
Keenan Floribunda, Laika Santiaguel, and Yulissa Floribunda graduate from the Lebenswasserheim Royal Academy Senior High School, clutching their freshly-printed diplomas in jubilant victory.
They may have not made it to the honor students' lists; but nevertheless, with their diligence, they are one step closer to pursuing the promise they all made that fateful day.
One month later, at the Lebenswasserheim Royal Academy Military School.
The three have all passed the qualifications to become a cadet at the military school.
First, they must all be natural-born or naturalized citizens of the kingdom.
Second, they must all be physically fit and of good moral character.
Third, they must all be single and has never been married nor pregnant nor have a legal obligation to support a child or children.
Fourth, they must all pass the LRAMS Entrance Examination.
Fifth, they must have no administrative or criminal cases.
Sixth, they must be at least senior high school graduates with at least 85% GPA each.
Seventh, they must be at least 5 feet tall each, but not exceeding the maximum height of six feet four inches.
And lastly, they must be at least 16 years old but not a day older than 22 years old on the first of Bloommonth, 1016 CE (which means they must be born from the first of Bloommonth, 994 CE to the first of Bloommonth, 1000 CE).
***
And I admit, Yulissa barely made the minimum required age.
She was born on the 31st of Lifemonth, 1000 CE.
And if you're asking when I was born, my birth date's the 20th of Longmonth, 999 CE.
As for Laika's, she's born on the same year as me, on the 30th of Frostmonth.
Right now, before classes actually start, we're being given cadet gear, which is simply a modification of the usual academy uniforms. This way, mass production costs are lowered, and female cadets can reuse the skirts they've worn in senior high school.
The only discernible differences are the patch depicting the logo of the military school on the left-hand side of the chest, and the tag depicting the surname and the initials of the given name on the right-hand side – for example, my name tag is displayed as “FLORIBUNDA K”.
Furthermore, there are pauldrons that must be worn on each shoulder at all times, simply for recognition purposes from long distances. The pauldrons are made of a lightweight yet tough material, so they shouldn't get in the way of movement or even rest.
As for the weapons, we are all given a standard-issue saber each, complete with scabbard.
Sabers are standard issue for all military school cadets and newly-drafted soldiers, since they serve as general-purpose weapons for various battlefield situations. Thus, the weapon choices are rather limited when compared to those of our counterparts at the Lebenswasserheim Royal Academy Constabulary School, since their cadets are trained to adapt to more varied combat and rescue situations. Only full-fledged soldiers who have ascended to at least junior non-commissioned officer ranks can have their sabers be modified with elemental powers, and commissioned officers can specialize in another weapon or even offensive or healing magic on top of their standard-issue sabers.
As for a place to stay, the military school has its own set of barracks-style apartments for all cadets.
We are being trained everyday to become the finest knights of the kingdom, so having a comfortable place to stay in between lessons is mandatory.
It sucks that we all have to say goodbye to our hometown of Khahimyan, Eliomam Prefecture for the meantime.
But that's an understandable sacrifice.
Finally, we're being given a cadet handbook, which tells us the proper conduct and decorum for all cadets.
Needless to say, having to mentally prepare ourselves for the first day of military school can be a little tiring and nerve-wracking, but that's nothing to what lies ahead of us.
After all, the promise we've all made is our guidepost.
The 1st of Watermonth, 1016 CE.
The first day of classes at the Lebenswasserheim Royal Academy Military School.
We cadets are currently listening to the orientation speech by the Chief of the Royal Armed Forces himself, General Fal'nith Syounirl Iosephus.
He is a big, imposing man with a booming voice to match – which is no surprise to us, since he's the face of the entire Lebenswasserheimische military.
“It is an honor to face prospective protectors of our realm today – the realm established by our glorious founder, His Highness King Norbert Reganot Blumstein – just as it was in previous years. We are mandated by our kingdom's constitution to be the defender of the weak and distressed and the guardian of our sovereign territory, not to mention being the reliable ally to our counterparts in the Royal Constabulary as well as the various adventurers that serve as the lifeblood of our glorious land. Know this, cadets! We are gathered here because we have made a covenant of our own free will – and do not let anything stand in the way of expressing that free will, even if we have to give our lives for it! Remember one of the tenets given by the fairy of legend: 'A true adventurer is fueled by his own free will to explore and discover new horizons'. Thank you, and may you have a great time here at the Lebenswasserheim Royal Academy Military School!”
With the general's speech ended, we cadets all stand up and salute while stating vigorously, “By Sacred Water We Stand!”
The standard Lebenswasserheimische salute is composed of our crumpled right fists directly over our hearts, our right arms at a straight 90 degrees, and our left hands open and laid down.
It is universally implemented among the members of the armed forces, constabulary, citizens and adventurers, and the royal family.
Once the general takes his leave, we cadets leave the auditorium in an orderly fashion.
According to the cadet handbook, we must form lines and file out of the room, walking in a steady cadence while hugging the right-hand side of any structure, whether a wall, a room, or a hallway. Breaking of this orderly queue constitutes a violation and therefore merits a demerit.
Before classes actually started, Laika, Yulissa, and I were assigned rooms in the cadet apartments. As a general rule of thumb, only a maximum of five cadets are assigned to one room.
The specific apartment room is labeled “Room 614 – Zach Suratos Building”.
The buildings that constitute the apartments are named after notable soldiers in Lebenswasserheimische history.
We've left our bags containing our cadet essentials and other valuables in our room before the orientation ceremony began; and now that we're back, we're starting to unpack our goods.
I've brought with me some novels, some snacks, tumblers for physical activities, and mugs for coffee, tea, and hot chocolate.
My younger sister asks me...
“Brother, why'd you have to bring the novels you've finished reading several times?”
I succinctly answer, “Simple. To kill boredom. You may never know... we could be sitting ducks, never to be given assignments except for the truly essential ones needed for graduation.”
“You shouldn't think of that! You know Laika and I are cadets because of you!”
“Ha ha, sorry. My slacking off must've added some complacency points.”
I've spent an entire five minutes unpacking everything, and now I'm lying on my bed, picking up where I've last left off in the fantasy novel entitled I Bought an Island to Survive an Apocalypse.
I'm now in the part where the entire world is facing an unprecedented alien invasion.
While I'm reading the honestly escalating plot points, Yulissa unpacks her own gear, which mainly consists of...
...doodles of flowers she made when she was a kid.
Without a care in the world, she sticks them to the wall adjacent to her bed.
According to the cadet handbook, there are no restrictions on how to decorate rooms. And if ever there are conflicts that may arise from what decorations should be displayed, they must be reported to the immediate commanding officer in order for them to swiftly solve that dispute.
But honestly... those doodles should be kept in storage. They're freaking tacky!
“Uh... Yulissa... maybe you should've picked much better pictures to display.”
“Brother... don't you remember, when we were wee kids, you used to praise my drawings. You even called them cool!”
“Yeah, I may have called them cool then, but my tastes in art change now. So why pick these?”
“It's simple: I want my beloved brother to appreciate my art once more!”
I don't want to make her frown, so...
“OK, you win, my sister.”
Yulissa eventually finishes her proud display of doodles, and she's now lying in the soft bed, immediately loving its fluffiness.
My eyes are then set on my childhood friend, while still reading the novel.
“Why'd you have to bring your stuffed toys with you?”
I ask Laika, as she begins to unpack everything stored in her magical satchel, which she acquired for free from an adventurer as a congratulatory gift for being admitted into the military school.
The stuffed toys she bought with her include a crocodile plushie she nicknamed Hubert, a shark plushie she nicknamed Dale, and a jellyfish plushie she nicknamed Margaret.
“Of course, I want to bring my entire collection with me. If ever I get sad or lonely, I would just hug these, and my composure's back in no time.”
“I understand. We have our own ways to cope with negative emotions. Especially now that we're one step closer to being soldiers.”
We three have now finished unpacking everything.
We have enough time in the world before our immediate commanding officer calls us for the mandatory dinner, which will be held at the dining hall.
- Writer
