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"So," one of the older Guardians, Nayeon uttered as they took a break from sword-fighting practice. "What brings you all to the Guardians?"

"I would just watch you guys go in and out everyday to solve disputes, help innocent civilians and scare off enemies," Chan was the first to speak. "And I thought to myself, I want to do that too. I want to help others like you guys do... And of course, you guys get paid a lot."

Nayeon chuckled, "I mean, we are risking our lives our there. May as well get paid for it, right? What about you?" she pointed to Avery.

She shrugged, "I guess the same reason. I'd see you guys came to Masan and how everyone loved and counted on you for their safety."

"My father is an army official," Nathaniel explained. "So he would tell me folk tales about the Guardians all my life. Sometimes he'd even take me to watch some of your battles and whenever I saw them, I realised fighting for the cultures and traditions of the East is what I want to do."

"Well," Chaeyoung pressed her lips into a thin smile, leaning her back against the wall behind her. "You all have such uplifting stories. Hate to completely ruin the mood but the Royal Army killed my father. He was an army messenger and he went to Mokpo to give them a letter from our army. Next I knew, his rotting body was on my our doorstep with the Royal Army symbol stitched onto his chest. Mind you, my mother had already passed on at the point. So I made it my life goal to get back at the Royal Army for making me an orphan."

"Something similar happened to me except wasn't either one of my parents. The Royal Army attacked and slaughtered my little sister. She was only ten at the time. Still had a whole life ahead of her. So I promised to live the rest of my life avenging her. And now, here I am... What about you?" Nayeon turned to Hyunjin."Why did you join the Guardians?"

Nathaniel had barely even realised Hyunjin was with them. He wore a black tee paired with trousers of the same colour. He kept his eyes on the ground although his hair was too long for anyone to see this.

"He doesn't talk," Chan explained to her. "All we've gotten out of him is that his name is Hyunjin."

Nayeon nodded understandingly, "should we get back to training then?"

They all agreed, standing up and heading back to their stations where Nayeon sorted them in paired and handed them wooden swords so they could practice against each other. The pairs went as followed: Nayeon and Avery, Chan and Chaeyeon, and Hyunjin and Nathaniel.

"Looks like it's us two, huh?" Nathan smiled at his partner but got nothing in return. He chose not to take it too personally but he had to admit, it bummed him out that he couldn't get him to speak whatsoever.

A bell summoned the beginning of the play match and instantly, Nathan and Hyunjin's swords collided. The older male swung again in the latter's direction but he blocked the action. A couple more blocked attacks and Nathan realised he was being pushed further and further away from the centre of the room where everyone else was. He tried to lead the younger back but instead lost his grip on his sword and the wooden object went crashing to the ground, earning the other groups' attention. Hyunjin tried attacking again but Nathan hurled himself out of his reach, attempting to gain his sword again. Noticing this, the younger male kicked the sword away and charged at Nathan.

The older snarled, realising this match was going to be ten times harder than he had originally expected. He effortlessly dodged Hyunjin's attacks, making sure to lead him closer to the area his sword had been kicked to. Everything was going well until Hyunjin tripped Nathaniel, sending him to the ground. Nathan didn't even get the chance to wince before the younger was aiming his sword at him. Groaning, Nathan rolled himself across the ground while effectively dodging all Hyunjin's attacks until eventually grabbing his sword. He kicked the younger's stomach, causing him to double over in pain and giving Nathan the chance to regain his balance.

When Hyunjin charged again, Nathaniel was more than prepared for it, slamming his sword against the latter's. Now things were getting interesting, Nathan thought as he continued swinging his sword against Hyunjin's with a newly-found force. The sound of wood clashing with wood echoed around the practice room, even successfully catching the attention of all the other groups practising in there. But none of this mattered to either of the boys.

Both of them had been the best in sword fighting where they came from and the thought of their throne being threatened in the new atmosphere was enough to keep them focused on winning this battle and this battle only.

Finally growing tired of all the swinging of his sword, Hyunjin slammed his foot against Nathan's shin, once again sending him to the ground. But Nathan was just as quick when he tripped Hyunjin. The younger's body collided with the ground with a loud thump that got the older Guardians sprinting towards them, worried that this match might become more than just that. Quickly kneeling beside Hyunjin, Nathaniel swung his sword at him. Feeling slightly light-headed, all the latter could do was bring his sword up to meet the other. He kicked Nathan's stomach as revenge but the older failed to react so Hyunjin eventually opted to knee his nose which definitely took him back. In fact, he was enough to get Nathan to lose his grip on his sword and fall to the floor. The younger male tried to stand up only to immediately fall to his feet in exhaustion. His body was weak and it was clear from the way it swayed back and forth, he was feeling dizzy. Everything around him was spinning, twirling and merging with other objects but despite this all, Hyunjin still raised his sword up and pressed it lightly against the other's belly, announcing himself the winner.

He then collapsed against the practice room floor, panting heavily as he felt himself fall in and out of consciousness. His hair was completely dishevelled and his fringe stuck to his forehead due to his sweat. He squeezed his eyes shut, focusing on his breathing momentarily as he felt his exhaustion quickly being overshadowed by the pride that came with realising he had just won.

Upon opening his eyes again, he saw Nathaniel hovering over him with bandages around his nose. The older's face immediately morphed from a concerned expression to a warm smile.

"You little twit," Nathan uttered, helping Hyunjin up to a sitting position. He realised now that he was no longer in the practice room but in fact in what he believed was the living room of the Guardian Building. His gaze caught Nathaniel's again as the older commented, "you almost busted my nose."

Hyunjin glanced around the room, admiring all the painting on the walls and the pictures of previous Guardians on the room dividers. He never got the chance to fully appreciate the beauty of the room before so now he wasted no time doing so.

"Anyway, " Nathan leaned back against the seat and sighed. "Congratulations on your win. You deserved it. Good game."

And just then, Hyunjin did something Nathaniel definitely was not expecting. Hyunjin smiled at him and mumbled, "round two?"