Chapter 16: The Beginning of a Long Journey
Chapter 16: The Beginning of a Long Journey
– The Next Day –
“Urgh…” I groaned as I opened my eyes. I was lying on a soft mattress, with a blanket over me. The first thing I did was check my neck area. The stone pendant was still there, albeit hidden underneath the white and light blue shirt I was wearing. I relaxed – this was a normal procedure for me, a habit by now, if you will. I looked around. The curtains were open and the winter breeze that was supposed to be freezing felt mildly cool instead. If I had to describe the room with one word, it would be-
-White.
I recognized this as the school infirmary – I had been here multiple times before when my fellow schoolmates took the bullying to a physical level. Then, I realized there was a light weight on my leg, and a strange warmth in my blanket.
After blinking any remaining drowsiness away, I noticed that the weight on my leg had been Feng Mian. She was sitting on a chair, and seemed to have fallen asleep while looking after me.
This was the first time anyone has truly looked after me like so since my parents’ deaths. A feeling impossible to put into words stirred in my heart.
Glancing away, I decided to resolve the other mystery. I flipped open the blanket, and what awaited me was-
“…Mm…? Big Brother Xuan Kai…?”
“Q-Qing Yue? What…are you doing…” I trailed off.
“Big Brother?! You’re finally awake!”
“Uh…Yeah.”
Then, tears began forming in her eyes as she pulled me into a tight embrace.
“Big Brother Xuan Kai…you’re okay…I’m so glad…” she cried.
“Ah…”
Not sure how to deal with the situation, I awkwardly put one hand around her and hugged her back. A strange warmth in my heart made me not want to let go, but after a few minutes, she reluctantly let go.
“..Um, Big Brother Xuan Kai, what happened?” she asked nervously. “H-How did you become like this?”
I didn’t know what to say…should I tell her the truth? But she would just needlessly worry…
Suddenly, as I was weaving out a good lie to tell, a third voice interjected us.
“I would like to know as well…” Feng Mian said quietly, a faint blush on her cheeks.
“You were awake the entire time?” I asked.
“N-No, I just woke up.”
“Ah…sorry, did Qing Yue cause too much of a commotion?” I hurried apologized.
“No, not at all!” Feng Mian replied immediately. “In fact, I have to thank her for waking me up…although indirectly.”
This was around the same time my memories came flooding back towards me, so I began to remember everything that had transpired. “…Right…I still haven’t told you what exactly happened, huh?”
“…I’ve made some of my own guesses, but I would still like to hear the full story.” Feng Mian stated hesitantly.
“H-Hey! Don’t ignore me!” Qing Yue said with a pout, though her eyes were still red from crying. “I want to know as well! Mou~I let you out of my sight for a couple of hours and you end up like this!”
“…Sorry.” The only word I had in reply.
“Hmph! Well, whatever.” she glanced away. “Just tell me everything, from beginning to end!”
I decided to stay true to my words – I had meant to tell Feng Mian earlier, but…well. However, there were some parts I couldn’t let her know – such as the fact that I had listened in to her conversation with the mysterious man.
After carefully thinking about which parts to say and which parts to leave out, I gave my consent. “…Alright then.”
And with that, I began to retell the catastrophic events that had happened on that day.
*****
– 30 Minutes Later –
“Wow…” Feng Mian was left speechless by the story. “I-I mean, how did you even survive that blast?! That was a Level Two spell, you know!”
“…I’m not too sure myself.”
Meanwhile, Qing Yue, on the other hand, was giddily jumping up and down on the bed. “Woah! Big Brother Xuan Kai, you’re so cool! Like a prince, you rushed in and met the attack head-on to protect your princess!”
“W-Wha-!” Feng Mian reacted sharply to this statement. “W-Who’s his princess?!”
“Hey, you should consider yourself lucky. I wish I was the one he rushed in to save!” Qing Yue replied, her expression carefree. Then, turning to me, she asked innocently. “U-Um…Big Brother Xuan Kai, would you do the same for me if I was in that situation?”
“Of course.” I replied without any hesitation. “You’re more important to me than anyone else.”
“…!”
Silence. The only thing that could be heard was the soft blowing of the wind.
Qing Yue gazed into my eyes like a cute kitten, and I stared right back into those deep blue eyes. I loved her – that goes without saying…but right now, the feelings I had in my heart felt like something stronger. Something MORE. A different type of love…
“A-Ahem!” Feng Mian finally broke the tranquility.
“A-Ah!” Qing Yue seemed to snap back to her senses, and so did I. She hastily turned away with a deep blush on her face.
I decided to change the topic. “….In any case, that’s the full story.” As I sat up and prepared to leave the infirmary (I was already healed by now, thanks to the Blessing Magic of the school nurse. Blessing Magic could also heal people, and works quite fast), the two cute voices stopped me.
“W-Wait! But I have so many questions!” Qing Yue exclaimed.
“T-That’s right!” Feng Mian joined in as well.
I let out a short sigh and sat back down on the bed. “…Ask away.”
“O-Okay! Then, first up! Big Brother Xuan Kai, so you can use magic now, right?”
“…I suppose so.”
The stirring in my Dantian from yesterday was long gone. It seemed the mana has concentrated and settled in, just like the textbooks said: Only when you try to use the stored mana will the tremor take place – and after a while, it will settle back down. Yesterday, I must’ve activated the mana in my body subconsciously in an attempt to break free from the chains. Normally, you shouldn’t feel anything in your Dantian area.
But even so…there’s gotta be an overwhelming amount of mana in my body to be able to cause such a violent shaking.
“And not just that, you have a lot of mana in your body?” Feng Mian added.
I gave a firm nod. “…Indeed.”
Qing Yue appeared like she was thinking about something, and she smiled soon after as if she had found the answer.
“So…you have the Blessing Element just like me, Big Brother Xuan Kai?”
“…I was able to use Blessing Magic, so that would be the logical assumption.” I replied.
“But you could’ve awakened more than one element, right?” Feng Mian asked.
“…I suppose that is true, but I would have to actually try to find out.”
“My thoughts exactly! Big Brother Xuan Kai, let’s go to the magic training room!”
“…Isn’t that place usually full?”
The magic training room was a spacious area like a gym, except that it was enforced with magic barriers. The purpose of his room was to provide a safe place for mages to hone their skills in magic. There was one room for each grade at Shenzhen Magic High School, though the Class A of each year had the privilege of a private one. This was extremely useful, as the magic training rooms are almost always crowded with people, making it hard to concentrate and it’s users vulnerable to stray attacks. It was also filled with danger, since all the classes oppose each other at this school, thanks to the class ranking system.
“Don’t worry! It’s 4 in the morning right now!”
Huh?
So the sky outside wasn’t grey because the sun had just set, but because the sun hadn’t rose yet?
Wait. Then-
“…Then how are you guys here?”
“Ehehehe~” Qing Yue let out a devious little laugh. “We sneaked in, of course!”
Seeing her announce this so happily like it was a huge achievement, I couldn’t help but let out a little smile. Although I wasn’t particularly happy with her actions, doing this was just so typical of her, seeing as how she used to always sneak out of the Qing family manor to meet up with me – and this time, she had gotten Feng Mian caught up in it too.
“…I see.” I replied, doing my best not to let her know that I was smiling. “And you went along with it?” I continued, directing my gaze at Feng Mian.
“W-Well…I had already thought at the time that you probably blocked the attack for me. I mean, there was no other explanation…you’re clothes were burnt, you had smoke stains all over your body, while on the other hand, I was perfectly fine!” she replied. “But what surprised me was that you didn’t have a single spot of blood or any sign of a bruise on you…putting that aside, I decided that I would have to repay the favor. It was 6 by then, the school infirmary was already closed – no one was there to even treat you. I then went back to the female dorms and contacted Qing Yue, while still carrying you. She organized all this.”
Ah…I had thought the Blessing Magic was the nurse’s. Turns out, it was actually Qing Yue who healed me. She did have the Blessing element, after all. And Feng Mian carried me all the way to the girl’s dorms…I truly owe her one. But at the moment, something else was more concerning-
“…Wait. You said that I didn’t have a single spot of blood or bruise on me. You’ve seen my upper body, but how could you know whether or not my legs were hit?”
“A-Ah!” she quickly hid her face with her hands. “Oh no…I let it slip out…”
Qing Yue put her arms on her waist and shook her head in disappointment. “Haiz…you’re actually a big klutz, aren’t you?”
“…What…” I was very confused.
“Big Brother, you’re pretty dumb as well.” Qing Yue then said, pointing at me. “Look at what you’re wearing!”
Then I realized. The white and light blue striped clothes I was wearing…I obviously couldn’t have put them on myself while unconscious. But that meant-
“…Er…Thank you…I guess?”
“Yep! No problem! When we were young, we even bathe-“
I quickly stopped Qing Yue by putting my hand over her mouth. “…We did nothing.” I said darkly. After looking into her eyes to confirm she got the message, I lifted my hand.
Feng Mian, meanwhile, looked more confused than I had just been. “Wha…?” She tipped her head and rested it on her hand. The gesture was adorable, and I could feel my heart thumping against my chest. I quickly looked away.
“Ehehe, it’s nothing!” Qing Yue said cheerfully.
“…Anyway, if it is indeed 4 in the morning right now…then I suppose we should get a move on.” I said, gazing out the window.
Qing Yue then handed me some simple clothes she had bought beforehand, and after I told the two of them to go on ahead while I changed. However-
“I’ll wait right outside the door.” Feng Mian said. “Qing Yue, wait for us at the magic training room.”
“Eh??? Are you guys going to make out or something???” the person in question replied curiously.
“W-W-W-What are you saying?! Of course not!” Feng Mian rebutted immediately.
“Well, I’ll just go on ahead then! You guys have fun~” Qing Yue said with a wink. Then, just as she was about to exit the door, she turned back one more time. “Oh, don’t make me wait too long though, okay? Or I’ll be jealous…”
“J-J-Just go already!” Feng Mian exclaimed furiously, her cheeks painted pink with embarrassment.
After they had both left the room, I quickly pulled on the clothes Qing Yue had brought me and also exited the door, only to find Feng Mian leaning against the wall.
“…I assume you have something to talk about.”
“…Yes. D-Don’t take what Qing Yue said seriously!” she explained in a hurry, her cheeks still flushed.
Ignoring her second statement, I prompted her to continue. “…What is it?”
“Well, u-um, you know…” she trailed off. Then, after taking a deep breath, she continued. “How long were you on the roof for, observing the situation?”
…I had expected this question to come up. She needed to know whether I had heard her exchange with the mysterious man. Of course, I had no intention of telling her the truth.
“…Since Li Yi Fei called out to you.” I replied, feigning certainty. I couldn’t let her tell that I was lying. Unless she had a Psychic element affinity, of course – in which case I was screwed. “I praised myself on arriving there just on time.”
“Hm…I got it,” she replied. I couldn’t tell if she knew I was lying or not…but it seemed the latter. She appeared deep in thought, and eventually looked up at me with a bright smile. “Thank you.”
“..Huh?” I reflexively replied out of confusion.
“I-I mean, you saved me, after all. I thought that a thank you should be in order…”
“…I see. Don’t think too much of it. I just couldn’t leave an innocent person to die.”
“S-Still,” she stubbornly said. Then, in a meeker tone, she added. “…So you would’ve done the same for any other person too, huh…”
She seemed sad and lonely. Seeing her like this, I couldn’t help but feel guilty for lying to her earlier. I wanted to comfort her…but I’m not able to bring myself to say something that may sound like a damn confession.
“…I value my own life over some random stranger’s,” I said cryptically. Although I didn’t give her a direct answer…I think she would figure out what I meant – maybe not now, but in the future.
However, she grasped my meaning way faster than I had expected.
“Hehe~ I understand now…hehe~” she said while staring down at the ground, a faint blush on her face. “…Truly…thank you.”
“…We shouldn’t keep Qing Yue waiting for too long.”
“…Yes…you’re right. Let’s go!” Feng Mian said as she looked up once more with a cheerful smile.
I looked back into the room one last time and gazed out the window.
Magic.
The reason my parents were sacrificed.
The reason my life was trampled upon mercilessly by others.
The reason I – my very existence – was viewed as no more than a scrap of garbage.
But-
What I have been missing all these years, is now fulfilled.
What I have been waiting for all these years, is now within my grasp.
What I have wanted to do yet couldn’t accomplish all these years, is now within my reach…
…And I am ready to serve my purpose.
The Xuan family…Li Yi Fei…Li Mu Shen…Lan Gui Ying…
Prepare yourself – I’m coming for you.