It wasn't long before the news of the appearance of two dragons spread throughout the sects in their country, and that came with a lot of pestering through written letters once they found out the twins were staying at the Infernal Spirit Sect during the time being.
Eryn knocked on the wooden doors of Teacher Li's office and peeked inside. "Mister Li?" she called.
The elder man looked up from the piece of paper on his table, his eyebrows raised in surprise. "Oh, Eryn!" he said, putting down his brush and setting aside his ink. "Come in, what brings you here?"
Eryn stepped over the little ledge of the entrance and went to sit down across from him. "Ah...I'm just taking a walk around and decided to stop by," she said. "What are you writing?" She peered curiously at the half-finished letter set before him on the table.
Teacher Li rubbed his chin and picked up his brush again, adding a few more words to the lines. "I'm responding to a letter sent from the Cold Moon Sect...in fact, there'd been many letters these past few days," he remarked. He raised an amused eyebrow at Eryn and smiled. "They're all quite curious about you and your brother. Especially after hearing that the attack the enemy has sent has been completely wiped out without a single survivor, the others are very excited."
Eryn stretched her back and rested her chin in the palms of her hands, her elbows propped up on the desk. "And what are you going to say to them?" she wondered.
He dipped his brush in the ink and continued writing, his brushes quick and smooth. "Well, your brother came by yesterday to remind me to not put in too much detail about you two, which makes sense because then, in case these letters fall in the hands of the enemies, or if the information got leaked out, they won't know too much," he piped.
Eryn nodded. "A good move," she pointed out, glad that her brother was able to think up something like so.
"So I'm just trying to be as plain as possible in these letters," the teacher mumbled. "I've also included details on the info we were able to get out of our captive before you, er, ordered to kill."
Eryn pursed her lips, remembering all the things that that man confessed to them while begging for his life. Though, he deserved it, didn't he?
If they okay with going to come raid and kill off these sect members of the Infernal Spirit Sect, then wasn't it okay if it were the other way around?
"Then has the Blue Feather Sect sent a letter yet?" Eryn asked. "Even if they haven't, you should warn them, for they are the next target. Even if they are a second-rank sect, they still need to prepare."
Teacher Li nodded, flicking back his red and black sleeve. "You are absolutely right, which is why yesterday, the grandmaster sent one of the elders to go in person to warn them, in case they don't believe what the letter says," he clarified, waving his brush back and forth. "Of course, we have also sent reinforcements in case they haven't enough men."
"Finished," he said, holding up the pressed sheet of paper to dry off the ink.
Eryn watched as he carefully folded up the parchment and slipped it inside an envelope before sealing it with a stamp.
Teacher Li sighed and cracked his knuckles, his hands stiff from writing so many letters. He stood up and picked up the five other envelopes on the side of his desk. "I shall take a walk and hand these to the grandmaster, do you wish to come along?"
Eryn stood up and smiled. "Okay."
_______________
"Did Elder Sima tell you when you will be leaving?" Teacher Li asked as they walked through the halls. "I'm sure he has to bring you back to his sect soon."
Eryn wrinkled her nose. "Two days ago, he said 'soon'. But I don't know when 'soon' is," she mumbled.
He chuckled at her answer, then stopped when two figures came walking towards them in the courtyard. It was a girl, whom Eryn recognized as Milan. In the past few days, the senior disciples of the sect took the initiative to introduce themselves and some other disciples to her and her brother.
Milan nearly almost always had an uninterested look on her face, seemingly annoyed by most of the things that came her way. She stopped once she arrived in front of them and bowed. "Teacher Li," she greeted.
Then she turned to Eryn with a twinkle in her eye. With a slight smile, she said, "Sister Eryn."
Eryn only smiled and waved, still feeling awkward about all these specific honorifics that nearly everyone used. It was kind of complicated.
Milan stepped to the side and pushed forward a muscular boy with short, brown hair. "Say what you want to say," Milan said flatly to him. "I won't be so nice and help you, next time."
Teacher Li frowned at the sight of them. "Eh, Milan, what did you bring Nicolas here for?" she questioned.
Milan shook her head. "I don't know. He insisted that he wanted to speak with Sister Eryn," she responded.
Eryn pointed at herself, confused. "Me?" she asked. She eyed the unfamiliar boy in front of her, glancing at his buff form and the strange look he had on his face. She didn't remember seeing this person since the day she stepped into the sect's property.
The boy named Nicolas scratched his head and grinned sheepishly. "I just- I just wanted to say I'm sorry...for my behavior the other day," he said nervously.
Eryn blinked. "Excuse me? I've never seen you before, though..."
Teacher Li cleared his throat, making the boy flinch. "He's the one that caused trouble in your courtyard on the first day you arrived," he said, glaring daggers at him.
Eryn mouthed an 'oh'.
"I guess it's fine?" she said when she realized everyone was waiting for an answer from her.
An awkward silence fell upon them.
Milan scrunched up her nose, disapproving. "Is that all you wanted to say, Nicolas?" she grumbled.
Nicolas snapped out of his trance. "Eh? Uh, n-"
"Then get out of here," Milan said, staring him down with her cold eyes. "I'm sure we all don't have time for your nonsense."
Nicolas opened his mouth as if he wanted to say something, then relented and turned, trudging away. His shoulders were slumped in defeat.
Teacher Li released a breath. "Well, since Milan is here, how about you two girls go about, instead?" he suggested. "I still need to get to the grandmaster."
Though Milan's face didn't show it, she eagerly went to stand next to Eryn, immediately agreeing. "Sure," she answered, a hint of delight in her voice.
The teacher waved with hand and nodded before disappearing around the corner.
"Sister Eryn, I'm sure you haven't been at the top of the mountain before?" she said, pulling gently at her elbow. "The view is quite nice up there, and some of us senior disciples are going to activate a spell atop the mountain. Would you like to accompany us?"
"A spell?" Eryn repeated. "What spell?"
"A defense spell, of course. Think of it as an energy shield," Milan replied. "We're going to put one up for our task, but also think of it like an outing. Many of us haven't stepped out of the sect in a long time."
"...Alright then, lead the way."