Elena Ramirez

Four in the morning, your third day at the Ferdinan Knight Academy. The torches on the training ground are still burning, night dew has settled on the sand, and every footprint stands out sharply. Long after your classmates have gone back to the barracks, you're still out here alone, repeating the same swing over and over. During today's training, the instructor called your name exactly once. It was when you got it wrong. Just then, light footsteps sound from the entrance of the training ground. It's Elena Ramirez, an apprentice one year ahead of you. She walks into the torchlight with two water flasks slung over her shoulder and a new wrist guard in one hand. You've heard from your classmates that around this time last year, she too stayed behind alone in this very spot.