Little Jun followed her words and arrived at the foot of the peak where the clouds meet the mountains. He placed her down against one of the trees and nervously raised his head looking around. It seems like there's nobody around. He turned back Lotus who was resting against the tree with her eyes closed. From another perspective, it seems as though she was sleeping peacefully. However, the sweat dripping onto her cheeks betrayed the calm look she had. There was also the occasional spasm of pain that would be portrayed. Greatly concerned, he looked to her and nudged her cheek.
"Can't we go find Big Brother Cater, at least? Or maybe Big Brother Trey?" Little Jun pleaded to her.
"No." Lotus shook her head.
"But, why not?!" Little Jun cried out.
"Because they wouldn't know how to help me." Lotus responded quietly as she struggled not to sound as weak as she actually was.
"Isn't Big Sister sick?" Little Jun said hesitantly, "The Big Brothers should be able to help you, right? Even Big Brother Trey said he's helped take care of his younger siblings when they're sick!"
"That's something else. My condition... isn't sickness. It's poison..."
"Poison." LIttle Jun mumbled in shock, "But isn't Trey good at alchemy? Surely, he can't be as bad as Big Sister. Maybe he can make an antidote!"
Lotus shook her head, "This poison isn't simple."
"But Crystal's poison isn't simple either, and you made an antidote for it on the spot. All you did was take a look at it and its symptoms too."
"Little Jun." Lotus said firmly, "It's not that he can't do it, but, to decipher this poison, it will take time, knowledge and experience. Right now, everyone in Night Raven College and Royal Sword Academy are students and teachers. They would need many years to create an antidote and cure to complex poisons. However... Everyone are mortals. They would need to eat to require the proper energy and rest both physically and mentally to work at their top form. We, cultivators, are different. We don't require food or rest at a certain stage. We need rest only for our mentality. Therefore, we spend more time and energy in our practice and seek the truth of life and the world. The time everyone here spends are only a small fraction of the time we spend practicing in a week. That's why, in our world, what's more important is talent and bloodline."
Thinking this, Little Jun grew confused, "If so, then why are you spending so much time with Brother Yuu and the cat? Big Sister is also a beast tamer too and you're stronger than the cat called Grim."
"Do you remember what I told you, Little Jun? They've saved my life and, with the enemy in the school, I can't let them die. They've also didn't harm Little Jun, so it's worth giving them my soul imprints. I'm the only cultivator in this world, after all. Those other cultivators could kill without hesitation. Although they did not save my life, they actually accepted me who is not related to them by blood. So this applies to them as well."
Little Jun remembered those words. That was the first actual conversation he had from the moment he came into this world and it was with his master who cared for him as her own family as she said she wanted.
"In truth, there are many cultivators in our world, but there are also many who sought for talent and power. As cultivators, we must have ambition to become stronger and strive forward. Without ambition, there is no motivation. This was one of the reasons why I chose to come to Night Raven College rather than Royal Sword Academy. Ambition gives birth to motivation, which gives birth to many prodigies in life. However, when ambitions goes too far onto the wrong path, it would make people become uglier. I've seen those who treaded off the path and become evil and those who later lost their sanity. Then, there are people who began to see the world and those around them as objects or their own families are their creations or creations of others. In most cases, it becomes difficult for people to retain their morality and compassion when there are those who wants to kill the other over competition of power... There are a light atmosphere of that in this school. However, only Yuu and Grim can still retain their sanity and their morality, even if that means they would need to learn have to play underhanded actions."
"It sparked Big Sister's interest after that..." Little Jun noted quietly.
Lotus softly nodded and petted his head, "You, who was only born during the autumn of this year, have only experienced a small handful events of life. However, just the fact that you can still retain your emotions as you regather the knowledge left in your bloodline by your predecessor has already given you enough knowledge to understand much of life. However, knowledge does not give you wisdom for that's earned from your experience in life. Are you not also interested in what life has to offer to you as you continue to live in this world?"
Little Jun didn't respond and was only left to his own thoughts as he pondered what he should do. As for Lotus, she knew from the moment she saw who he was born as that he wouldn't be simple. His bloodline came from the ancient Kirins that had once been called the messengers of the gods and existed even back during her time. However, there had always only been one and only one could be born at a time. However, to perserve the knowledge of the world and rule over their own domain, they must pass down their knowledge through their bloodline, which would slowly be assimilated into their heir's mind. That was why she knew that Little Jun was special. Even after tapping into the knowledge of the world, he would continue to act like an infant and make blunders that could and could not be intentional. That was because she had already instilled the idea of family into his mind that he decided to act like the child he is and learn more about this type of love granted to him by her called family, even knowing that she was inexperienced in it herself and learned it from someone who was also inexperience with family relations.
For someone who was new to love called familial love, just knowing even a little of it was a treasure in and of itself. To experience it was a memory to be upheld.
However, even after knowing his act, she couldn't bring herself to rebuke him and scold him for it. Instead, she teased him a little and played along with his act because to experience this love and be taught how to properly love your family was something that is priceless in this world. No matter how inexperienced she was or how clumsy her mother was, she had felt the warmth of motherly love the moment she took the hands of the Queen and the fragile affection she tried to convey the love to her. Then, there was her wary father who pushed her away. She knew that he accepted her due to her mother's insistence, but just the attempt he decidedly made to grow close with her when he can choose not to was already a miracle as well. And, the kingdom of fairies... Maisey who acted as her nanny... Everyone was her family. They were people who would do anything to keep her safe from harm and respect her wishes even if it had saddened them. They were people she could be truthful with and be accepted. That is also a miracle too.
That is her familial love with her family.
That's why...
That's why she can't bring herself to correct the Kirin who had also tasted his first warmth of familial love. If it was this, then she would also teach it to him what it feels and means to be a family. Being related by blood is only an opportunity, but being surrounded by familial love is trust and confirmation of that love. Even if it was just the Queen who treated her as family, it would already be enough already, just as how her brother was her only family in the past.
However, her brother was not one who treated her with as much affection as the Queen or the kingdom of fairies. Yet, she could not blame him at all, for he was also bound by duties and rules. Thus, they could not connect with one another as siblings. The only thing they could trust was this opportunity to become family and the other's wish to also nurture this opportunity. If only, they had the chance to...
"The people here lacks the power to continue their search for knowledge and our people lacks the morality and love to remain clean enough to be free of all tribulations. And more importantly, they do not have the ability to properly nurture their newborn prodigies into the world. Thus, leaving many strayed from the path. In this world, the people do not have the power and stamina to continue their search..." Lotus leaned back against the tree's truck and continue quietly with weariness from the fight for life, "Even if it wasn't impossible, it would be nearly impossible for Trey and the others to find a cure in time. It wouldn't be possible, unless the person was also a talent alchemist and strong cultivator..."