Author Notes:
Have I ever said that I love writing?
Hua: https://postimg.cc/mcJ0hX2w
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"You are...?" Comes the hesitant question of the young girl in front of me, her azure blue eyes widening in surprise as she scans me from head to toe.
Well, it's a reasonable reaction, all things considered. One tends to spook others when one walks straight out of a crack in reality. Speaking of which...
I turn around calmly, seeing a gaping wound in reality being mended by forces beyond my comprehension. Despite the crackling energy around the edge of this tear in reality, the rest of the world itself remains undisturbed, with not even a speck of dust being affected by the seemingly significant wound. A moment later, the crack is sealed shut, and things return to what they should be for this reality. With a small smile, I make the point to pat the imaginary dust off the shoulders of my robes before turning back to the still tense girl.
"Falling down a passage between universes makes for an interesting journey." I make a pained expression as I rest a hand over my heart. "Still... Quite painful, I'm afraid."
The little joke eases the girl back into reality, with a bit of a blush and a fake cough, the girl introduces herself, now prim and proper.
"Please excuse me for my previous showing of impoliteness. I am Chief Administrative Officer Nanagami Rin, affiliated with the General Student Council of Kivotos, and you must be ****** Sensei."
I smile before performing a curtsy, a short bow ending with me putting out my hand with the palm facing upward in the Chief Administrative Officer's direction. "May I?"
Perhaps having inferred something from my action, Rin blushes, yet she brings forth her gloved hand to put it on top of mine.
"This is like those knightly stories, right...?" I can hear her mutter softly in confusion, probably wondering to herself why she follows through with my act of aristocratic decorum.
"That is indeed the case, fair lady." I reply just before I lay a kiss on this slender and soft hand of hers. "Although you already know me, allow me to introduce myself properly. I once was a lowly mercenary, then a teacher whose career took a turn to be a commander. Ultimately, I am honored and fortunate to be crowned a Ruler by the people who have always believed in me when I lost faith in myself. Yes, that's right... My name is..."
"******."
"You have... Quite a resume, Sensei." Rin blushes as I let go of her hand.
Calming down her breathing, the girl with the eyes of the blue ocean steps aside before politely inviting me to step into a new chapter in my life.
"This way, Sensei, President Arona is eagerly awaiting your arrival."
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I open my eyes, once again finding my meditative state turning into a trip down memory lane. Reflecting on the emotions and actions I experienced in those memories, I find it impossible to refrain from commenting on them.
"Goddamn, I was a real player, huh... First Atsuko and now Nanagami Rin? And with how the past me introduced myself, my backstory was deeper than a cheap Chinese reincarnation flick. I should expect some other love interests down the line at this rate... Still, if my past resume is anything to go by, it does explain how I could navigate the waters of Kivotos with the Halos and all that jazz. It wouldn't be my first rodeo, at the very least, considering how I had been a sort of Jack of all Trades."
I then sigh, standing up and stretching.
"Regardless, it's more stories for another time. I wonder, since the Jatismar Ticket is showing me these memories in a reverse order, can it show me a glimpse of the life I had before Kivotos?"
With such thoughts in my mind, I find myself walking to the edge of the calm lotus pond just a few steps outside the veranda I meditated on. I start taking in the view, finding myself appreciative of the serene early morning atmosphere around me. The vista of the endless heaven above, the orderly garden below, and the soft, windy silence of the air... As expected of Mount Taixuan, it's the most perfect place for any martial artist who seeks to improve spiritually, not just physically.
Now standing by the edge of the lotus pond, I look downward, coming to see the reflections of the stars and the fading moon above. My visage is imprinted clearly on the pure water surface as well, and the first thing I glimpse from it is the purple eyes I possess. Upon taking them in, however, I come to a standstill, turning introspective under the calm induced by the environment. Hua once taught me that I should always closely appraise a person whom I haven't met for three days, just so that I can see how they have matured on their life journey. Yet, I think that same teaching can also be applied to me, someone who has embarked on quite a transformative pilgrimage of my own.
Because I have not been one to fuss about my appearance, for a brief moment in time, I truly do not recognize the gaze that belongs to me. My eyes are pure, as still as the mirror surface of this quiet lotus pond. Mama regularly compliments the shine in my eyes, telling me how clear and mesmerizing they are. It's only now, after tempering myself with the Blade Mantra and the Edge of Taixuan as a whole, when my mind is at peace, that I understand why Mama always says that. My eyes, unlike the common light purple that all Cadians have at birth, are actually of a rich, deep purple that is highly saturated with a flash of blue upon closer inspection. It is indeed a beautiful departure from the norm, if I do say so myself. Perhaps it won't be a miscomparision by equating my eyes to those of the precious Deep Russian Amethyst, a prized genre of stones highly valued for its visual impact in my previous lifetime.
"Really, it takes me this long to take a look at the mirror, or an equivalent of it." I comment to myself with a wry smile, maintaining the gaze I have with the reflected me. "I wonder... With my aura so altered by my time here, will Mama be able to sense something amiss? I can camouflage something, but I can't fool a mother's instinct."
Thinking about my Mama still sitting in the troop compartment of a Rhino, however, I sigh forlornly.
"... As expected, the soul knows what it wants."
Even with my will reinforced, my spirit honed, and my heart tempered by the Blade Mantra, I still yearn for a return to my mother's side. Time may stop in my home universe, and I may have all the time in the world here, on Mount Taixuan, but I can't find it in me to be contented with a peace without her. Truly, I am quite hopeless in that regard, aren't I?
"8 months are too long..." I make my resolve before my sense and intuition call for me to look up.
Then, I look up to see a scene that makes my heart nearly jump out of my chest. Xuanyuan is in a free fall, and while logics dictate that such a fall won't be able to harm her, my first instinct is always to be worried about those I've come to care about, so I jump up in a panic the moment I hear:
"Catch me, little sister~!"
I unfurl my wings of blue energy, and with a powerful flap, I fly upward to meet Xuanyuan halfway on her fall. I immediately embrace her, fearing that if I am to let go, she will plummet to her injuries or worse. My heart rate only calms, and I sigh in relief when I can hear the giggle coming from the Senior Sister resting in my princess carry. With a wry grin, I greet her.
"Senior Sister, welcome back, but let's try not to give me a heart attack next time, yeah?"
"Tehe!" Xuanyuan mischievously puts out her tongue, though her mischief can't quite cover up her blush when she realizes her position in my arms. "Little sister, you must take care of me! Jingwei made me fight this big Honkai beast all alone in the name of training. Then, she even forced me to sit through a meeting to merge a neighboring tribe under mine! I am a warrior, you know, a warrior! I had people for all those negotiations, yet Jingwei made me sit through all of that talk anyway!"
I chuckle knowingly before turning to the side, seeing a very exasperated Hua massaging her temple. "Sister Hua, welcome back. I hope the journey has been fruitful."
Hua nods at me with a small smile.
"We are back, Ein. The land of Shenzhou is becoming more united with each passing day. Although progress can be made faster if Xuanyuan is more responsible with her status as the leader of her tribe... And Xuanyuan, for how long do you want to inconvenience Ein with your playfulness? You have recovered most of your energy by now after using Eminence on that Honkai beast, so you have no reason to have Ein carrying you all the way to the ground."
"So you have mastered Eminence... As expected of Sister Xuanyuan!" I give the girl in my arms my sincerest compliment, knowing how hard it is to attain the pinnacle of the Edge of Taixuan. "I am anxious to see your Eminence in action, Senior Sister!"
I have a feeling that I am but a few steps away from that final barrier. Perhaps, with Xuanyuan as another living example, I will finally be able to break into that fabled realm of Eminence.
Xuanyuan, after hearing Hua's reminder and my praise, hops out of my embrace with a shy cough. In her joy of accomplishing another milestone in the unification of Shenzhou and wielding Eminence, Xuanyuan got a bit ahead of herself in pulling that falling stunt on me, probably... Why she did that to me specifically, however, is anyone's guess.
As for why the goal of unifying ancient Shenzhou comes about, it's because a united government is conducive to resisting the Honkai threat of this world. This isn't the first time Xuanyuan has had to go out and convince a neighboring tribe to fall under her banner. Of course, Hua is responsible for supervising the procedure, while Fuxi and Nuwa are the planners behind everything. I, in particular, only need to guard the house during such occasions and focus on my training. It's not an exclusion, but it's not really my responsibility when they see that I have a literal war to worry about back home already.
Thinking thus far, my gaze turns serious as I look over to Xuanyuan and Hua. Floating around me in midair, Hua and Xuanyuan notice the heaviness behind my gaze. Owing to her experience, Hua immediately understands my yet-to-be-voiced request and sighs helplessly.
"Do you really have to force yourself, Ein?"
"I'm sorry, Sister Hua, but this is what I desire the most." I reply evenly, conveying to her my desire.
Hua looks at me with a gaze of not pity, but understanding. "A warrior improves the most when there's a clear goal in mind... I understand your wish, Ein."
"Jingwei? Little Sister?" Xuanyuan stares at us, first in confusion, then in realization. "Oh... But you will return to us, right?"
Hearing the trepidation in Xuanyuan's tone, I smile, nodding in reassurance. "That's a given, Senior Sister, you all are my second and precious family I've made in this short life of mine. Besides, you can always check on me through the System."
The sight of Xuanyuan breaking out into a relieved, yet strangely determined smile allows me to take a mental breather. Hua then raises a hand, putting a sudden stop to us both.
"Now, let's not get too ahead of ourselves. Since you've accepted me as your Master, Ein, I have the responsibility to prep you well for your journey ahead. Much like what we've planned, you will need to attain Eminence before I can be assured that you can protect yourself in your homeworld. And since you want to speed up your training despite my advice against it... I reckon you have made peace with the consequences?"
I can feel Hua's admonition raising goose bumps on my skin, and for that, I am starting to think that maybe I shouldn't have raised this topic in the first place.
I think I was a tad too impatient for my own good. Not my brightest of moments...
"Ahahaha... Perhaps, we can discuss more about this, Sister Hua?"
Hua ignores my tense question before turning to Xuanyuan.
"I think," Hua then forms her fists. "This is a good time as any to give Ein some supplementary lessons, Xuanyuan."
Xuanyuan, bless her innocence, grins as she pulls out her Xuanyuan Sword. "Oh! Oh! Let me help!"
Seeing their rising spirits, I can only call out Myrtenaster and my Halo, showing a wry smile.
"Ay, caramba..."
It's time to give more than just my everything. I can't stay here forever.