A Brave Sacrifice for Prince Arlo

A horde of Trident Tailed Bees burst out of the forest. As more of their numbers came out, it became impossible to count them. Their erratic movements made it easy for them to slip into the soldier's blind spots.

The bees attacked the soldiers in front or moved past them to attack the people standing further back. Arlo's heart tightened when he saw this. He reluctantly pulled out his sword to protect himself.

He had only started learning swordsmanship and is still considered an amateur. Comparing himself to a soldier would be laughable. He probably wouldn't even get a hit in.

He watched as one soldier after another fell to the ground in pain. 'If they can't fight against the bees, then why could I?'

Still, he was left with no choice. More soldiers were running over to assist, but he had an ominous feeling that if he turned to run, he would be killed.

This premonition motivated him.

"It's just like training. It's just like training." He mumbled under his breath.

Finally, a bee targeted him. It moved in a strange pattern. Left, right, left, right.

He found the movements to be somewhat similar to the falling of a leaf. As it fell through the air it would naturally sway left and right on it's way down. He put most of his concentration on tracking the bee, while he kept an eye out for any that came his way.

As it approached, Arlo felt that he could predict it.

'It moved left just now, that means...'

"Right!"

Arlo slashed out with his blade. The bee swerved to the right and found itself right in the path of it's enemies attack. Blood erupted as two halves of the bee fell to the ground. Thanks to the power of his sword's enchantment, he was able to split it vertically.

'That wasn't so bad! But don't get cocky.'

In this intense situation, he had to remind himself of his limits. It would be normal for a person to kill one of these things and come under a false impression that they were weak. Then, that person would run off and act like a hero charging into the enemy only to find himself dead.

Arlo was no hero. Heck, if he didn't have such a powerful enchanted sword then he might not have been able to cut through the entire bee based on his strength alone. He knew the bee's strength was wearing the enemy out through sheer numbers, and poison.

Arlo watched his soldiers fall around him as he stood rooted to his spot. If some people saw this, they would think that he was so scared that he froze, and would make fun of him. However, not only did the soldiers not mock him, they even praised him!

'Shoot! Is that Arlo?'

'Holy?! Yeah, it is! Despite such a large swarm buzzing around in front of him, he's still so calm!'

'Mm. If it was me, even when I was thirteen I would have pissed my pants and run away crying.'

Seeing their young Prince standing unfazed by the opposition, their morale rose exponentially! What right do they have to be cowering away while a boy younger than their grandson takes the frontline?

Arlo didn't know what the soldiers were thinking as he focused all his attention on slashing any bees that came near. Suddenly, a wave of roars appeared behind him as the soldiers that had been loitering in the back, came rushing up to him.

"Young Master! Please fall back and leave this to us!"

Incredibly, he found himself protected from the bees by a thick line of soldiers. They swung their weapons with determination, felling the horde quickly. A group of veterans escorted him back further into the camp as they were afraid a stray bee might get past the lines and attack him.

Even after Arlo reached a safe place, they didn't leave. They scanned the surroundings with their weapons drawn. It was at this moment that Arlo realized the power of a group.

He was so confident after striking down one bee that he had to remind himself to remain humble. Meanwhile a group of soldiers could use a formation and take down a hundred without breaking a sweat.

This was the power of an individual against the power of the group.

He felt his eyes start to water. During his entire life, this was the most dangerous moment. He looked back over at the battle and saw the many soldiers laying on the floor gasping for air as the poison took hold and couldn't help but feel guilty, like this was his fault.

He felt the weight of leadership. He was sent to guide this army and lead them to victory in the north, but how could he? He was only a four years old boy with no experience.

He wiped the tears off his face and stood up. How could he sit here and cry in safety while his soldiers were dying from poison? He's an apprentice Poison Maker! He turned to one of the veterans who seemed to be the most reliable.

"What's your name?"

"Gerhardt, your highness."

Arlo sniffled and looked at him with red eyes. "I can make an antidote for them..." He pointed at the soldiers laying on the ground. "But I need to go into the forest to find the ingredients. Will you help me?"

The veteran Gerhardt looked at his comrades. They wanted to say something but shook their heads at him not to say it.

Gerhardt had always been a fan of the only Prince of King Humphrey and felt that he should tell him the truth. Who knows, maybe it will help him mature.

"Your highness, I will have to respectfully decline. It might seem cruel but, we can't risk your life for the sake of those few. I'm sure they would agree too. We all ran over there to protect you and were ready to risk our lives to achieve that. If you run off into the forest and get hurt trying to save them... I'm afraid they would never forgive themselves."

Arlo felt like his brain had been shook by Gerhardt's words. He felt dizzy and fell back to the floor. 'They would sacrifice their lives just like that?'

He couldn't understand it.

He definitely couldn't accept it.

Arlo's hands shook uncontrollably. His emotions were in a mess and he felt that he would explode at any second when a familiar voice said the words he wanted to hear.

"It's all right. Take him into the forest to find the antidote."