An Unlucky Day

I often think about luck. What does it really mean to be lucky? Sometimes I get told I have good luck, other times bad luck. But how lucky am I really?

I haven’t ever been seriously injured or gone to the hospital, so my luck can’t be that terrible.

That being said, I distinctly remember one day in my life where I thought “My luck’s been terrible today.”

Back then I was living in Sendai. On a day I’d made plans to meet up with a certain company in Tokyo that had helped me out a lot in the past, I woke up in the morning, and as I was getting ready to leave, I realized I couldn’t find my wallet.

It wasn’t where I usually kept it. I turned my room inside-out looking for it. It took some time, and when I finally found it, I took my bike and pedaled as fast as I could to the station. But as luck would have it, I got a flat tire when I was nearly there.

Fortunately, if the word fortunately could even be applied to my predicament, there was a bike shop nearby and I took it in hoping they’d be able to replace it. But of course this would be the one time they had to be busy.

With how long it would take for them to get to me, I wouldn’t make it to the bullet train on time. I explained my situation to the store clerk, left my bike there, and went to hail a taxi to take me the rest of the way.

I guess I was lucky since I managed to find one pretty quick. I made it to the station with just enough time to get some gifts for the people I was visiting before sliding onto the bullet train seconds before departure. Hoping to finally get to relax for a bit I headed to my seat, only to find some old dude sitting in it.

Confused, I told him, “Umm, excuse me, I think that’s my seat...”

The old man looked really embarrassed as he got up and left, which made me feel kind of bad. At that point, however, I was completely exhausted. I just slumped in my seat the whole ride over.

Now unfortunately, I’d only been to Tokyo a few times before this. I was almost certain I’d get lost trying to walk to my destination, so I got another taxi to take me there instead.

I sat in the taxi, told the driver to go to xx company’s office, and enjoyed the view while thinking that if I’d made it this far I’d somehow make it on time. But when the driver stopped, telling me we’d arrived, and I noticed something strange.

When I looked at the plaque in front of the building, I realized he’d taken me to the offices of the parent company of the company I’d wanted to go to, which, to add insult to injury, was on the opposite side of town.

I urged my apologetic taxi driver to go as fast as possible, but I was already very late by the time we arrived at the correct destination. The people I had gone to meet told me not to worry about it, but I couldn’t help but feel sorry for my tardiness.

After our meeting was over, we naturally segued into a party, and by the time I left for home, it was already quite late. Of course, the bike shop I’d left my bike at was closed. Then, when I finally got home, it looked like a burglar had ransacked the entire place. Of course, that had actually been me when I was looking for my wallet.

The next day I’d have to go back to the bike shop to get my bike. With that unpleasant thought lingering in my mind, I fell into a deep sleep.

Until now, I’d considered the events of that day just plain bad luck, but now that I’m writing about it, I realize I could have avoided a lot of those if I’d just been a bit more careful.

And, I guess, in a way I was lucky that all those things happened to me, since now I have something to write about.

Short Story: The Squire

“Come on, now! Don’t tell me that’s all you got!”

“N-No! I-I can still go on!” Though his words displayed will to continue, Will didn’t seem to have the strength to keep holding his wooden sword. Still, he pointed the tip toward Vice Commander Neil and calmed his breathing.

The situation didn’t allow for any more tactless tricks. His only hope lied with giving his all into one final blow.

“YAAAHHHH!” After mustering fighting spirit great enough to heat his blood, he leaped to close the distance between him and Neil. It seemed as though the tip of his sword would reach the man’s chest, but Neil avoided it right before the impact and went on to land a strong hit into Will’s neck.

“GHAH!” Naturally, it made Will drop to the ground. He no longer had the energy to even stand.

“That last lunge was quite good. Anyway, that’s it for today.”

“Th-Thank you... very... much!” Will thanked him, still lying on the ground and facing up. Neil smirked in response and went on to leave the training grounds.

The soft flow of the wind touched his sweaty skin and robbed it of heat. The chill was pleasant, but there was a chance that he could get sick. However, he was far too tired to even move, let alone get up.

“Come forth, Light! Breath of Vigor: [Refresh].”

Suddenly, Will heard someone chant a spell, after which his body was showered by light. The shine made the burdening weight on his body fade away, almost as if it was never there. He then stood up, looked around, and saw a boy lightly raising his hand toward him while leaning on the fence on the edge of the training grounds.

“Working hard, eh, Will?”

“Sir... No, Duke...”

“Having you call me that just doesn’t feel right.”

The white coat-wearing boy before him was the hero who had recently become the ruler of a small country. Not only that, but he was also a Silver adventurer. Due to him being the fiance of the princess of this country, Belfast, Will had met him in the castle many times before.

“You sure are strong now.”

“No, I still have a long way to go... In fact, I spend most of my recent time thinking only about how to become stronger...” Will’s words made the coated young man fold his arms and think about something before making a comment.

“What about a special move, then?”

“A-A special move?”

“Take a skill you’re good at and improve it to the point that you’re unmatched when using it. The order is diverse when it comes to that, right? Some swing their swords real fast, some are good at defense, and others are all about maneuverability, stuff like that. You should find something that feels right for you.”

Indeed, the stronger members of the order all had their specialties. It was a question whether they could be called ‘special moves,’ but Will understood what the boy meant.

After he left, Will pondered for a bit before deciding to retry the last lunge he attempted to land on Vice Commander Neil. Though it failed, he felt like it could’ve been his very own special move if he gave his all into it. He pictured himself jumping to his opponent faster than anyone and thrusting his sword just as swiftly.

Whether this encounter and the practice routine it created was what caused Belfast to ultimately gain the proud and mighty knight who would come to be known as ‘Will the Flash’ was a subject of rumor.