After they manage to complete their assignment and report to Master Shion at the training ground, master shion gave them one free day to explore the place around. Miya took this chance to rope her sister into helping her with Kise 's lost pendant.
"Who is Kise again?" Ailee asked. Her sister was always like this. She can easily make friend with anyone. One minute going to one place, she would just say Hi and they will be best friend without realising it. While her on the other hand, take a long time to get to know people. She complained to her mother about it. She was jealous of her sister. And her mother said, "both of you have your own strength and weaknesses. But it doesnt mean you lost to one another. It just means both of your way to handle thing cannot be the same. But in the end both of you will surely get a good friends. That is the most important thing, dont you think so too?"
And in the end, Ailee understand by what her mother said by that.
"Its just a boy who is a cry baby."
They stood waiting at the meeting point and when Ailee saw a boy a bit older than them, maybe two or three years older than them? He came running and then fall on his face flat before standing back again and running again.
"I think I know why he lost his pendant." Ailee said dryly. You can only see that kind of thing happen in cartoon or anime. A walking clumsy disaster.
Miya shrugged. " I know he is older than us but look mama always said boy mature slower than girls. So cant blame them."
"This is not about maturity. That boy is a walking disaster. An epitome of clumsiness."
"That makes him fun to be friend with"
"More like it may cost our lifes" Miya rolled her eyes. Ailee is being too much. Overthinking doesnt help.
"Oh I'm sure nothing will happen-"
And the boy trip one more time this time, hhe accidentally hit the stacking wooden plank and one of it shoot impossibly high up and then javelin right where they stand. Just a second before it hit them, Ailee drag Miya together with her and took two steps back.
Miya blinked her eyes.
"I told you so"
"Sorry about that" said Kise gingerly while scratching his head.
"You need to be careful. No need to rush." Chided Ailee, shaking her head. Kise nodded.
"Now, tell us what the pendant look like? Can you at least draw of it?
Kise took a stick and draw it on the ground. The pendant was round with three stones around it.
"This round shape is jade, and these three stones onyx black. My parents give me this, they said its a protection pendant"
Ailee look at the drawing and had an inkling what type of protection it is.
"When did they give you this, if I may ask?"
"Around when I was one year old, I was told. I keep on bumping things, getting myself injured. They had to find immortal sage to help make this pendant."
"So basically, your parents believe you had poopy luck huh. Well our mom once said to us, there is no such thing as bad luck and good luck. Bad luck is a blessing in disguise. Teaches us to be better than we were before. Good luck is a good job that is paid off or simply a blessing to see if we keep up the good works or not"
Kise look at Ailee with puzzled look.
"So you are saying that, its a blessing that I keep bumping on things and get injured every time?"
Ailee sighs.
"It means you have to learn from your mistakes and clumsiness. My sister over here, she was like you too. She was clumsy. Keep making mistakes, doing the wrong things over and over again. But our mom teaches her how to improve herself. If you keep on tripping yourself, then the problem would be the way you walk. Improve that, change the way you walk and you will see huge different. Understand?" Miya nodded vigorously, still remembered how she keeps on breaking the glasses and dishes when she wash. Or when she hold her phone and breaking the screen, or when she color with her color pencil and it will break each time she hold it. Their mom was really patience teaching her. There were times she feels like giving up and think something is wrong with her that she cried. Their mom would smile and pat her head telling her, its fine. She will sing a song :
"Dont give up and dont look down,
Keep on trying and try again,
Where ever you go,
remember this song,
keep on trying and try again."
It was a simple song that became her mantra whenever she keep falling from her bicycles, whenever she couldn't read and keep getting her tongue tied, whenever she trips on her feets or break those dishes. Mom never stop cheering for her, guiding her with patience. How she loves her mother dearly. And now she missed her mother so much.
Miya knew they were given the best mom ever. She is their blessing, and she is thankful they get to be together in this world.
Kise slowly nodded but isn't completely on board with the idea. Ailee sighs again.
"Come on lets go find your pendant, while you practice changing the way you walk."
The three of them went around the place to search for Kise pendant.
***************
Raiyon walked past the garden as he was exiti g the training ground. Ringo was following him closely behind him, talking non stop. He was used to Ringo bubbly characters. She won't stop talking whenever she's with him and most of the time he had perfected the arts of zooming out and letting whatever words that comes out from her mouth fall into deaf ears.
It was then he saw the trio. It was as if they were looking for something, as they keeps on pry around bushes around the garden.
"Where else did you go that day?" Ask the girl with yellow hair. He didnt remember what her name was, as it doesnt hold him any interest to know her name. But the person on the middle one, that he knows.
Kise who was his former childhood friend. They had grown estrange, after their training starts. Kise was slow learning the martial arts. He had good grasp of controlling his mana and using it but too slow to really use his power to really be useful in combat. It is packed with power but really slow to activate which he find, useless. Unlike him, he could do everything fast. It might now on par with him, but he could definitely take down a lot of enemy compare to Kise. Kise would die before he get his power to hit on any enemy.
Kise began to skipped his training when he saw that he wasn't anywhere good. And Raiyon knows, it was also because Raiyon had clearly made it clear that he was superior than him which deep down in his heart, he had regretted saying that. Not that he was going to admit it.
Ringo stopped talking and look toward the direction Raiyon was looking at. Ringo scrunch up her face in displease.
"What is Kise doing with them?"
Raiyon just shrugged.
"He should be training instead of playing with a bunch of girls"
"I dont understand what Grand Elder Sei sees in them. Asking me to be their lady in waiting. When I asked the other elders, they didnt tell me where they come from and simply ordered me to help them during their stay here" Raiyon knows Ringo was among the preetiest girl on her age. She had mastered the arts of being a lady and trained in combat. All of the Shoa tribe kids were trained to be the best in everything. And Ringo was one of the top ten best fighter of her age. So its no wonder it hurts Ringo pride when she was basically asked to be their maid. Raiyon was impressed she could keep her act while she was accompanying them. Knowing her, it would definitely ticked her off and he had expected her to blow out any moment then.
His eyes trail at one of the girl, the eldest he presume between those two siblings.
There were something about her made him puzzled or more like different. But he choose not to dwell in it too much.
As if knowing he was thinking about her, the girl slowly turn and look at him.
After checking him, she turn around back ignoring them completely. That ticked him off. Usually, he will ignore it too but he doesnt know why but that made him feel irritated as hell.
"Pftt. Who does she think she is? Snobbish girl" Ringo sneered. Feeling rather angry on the receiving end of being completely ignored. No one ever ignored her or Raiyon before.
It is usually the other way around. Those people had the audacity playing the higher one here when they are just free loader.