The trainees together with Instructor Agnes left the battle camp after they watched the spar and were now back at the Training Center.
"Did you see the flames on Sir Leo's greatsword earlier!? It was amazing!" Said a young girl.
A boy replied, "But General Mika's Tidal Arts was very beautiful! Just like her face…"
"Argh! You're so annoying!"
"But what I said was true!!"
"No, you just like her because she's beautiful!"
"Well, don't you like Sir Leo because he's handsome!?"
"N-No, I just idolize him because he won!"
"Heh, it was obvious that they were acting! After all, how on earth could a second class beat a first class!?"
"You're mean!"
"Again, I'm just telling the truth! Or maybe he cheate—"
"Hey."
Before he could finish his words, the young boy heard someone call from behind as he felt a grip on his shoulder.
"Eh?" He turned his head and saw Tanya's menacing glare.
"Eek!"
"Can you repeat what you just said!?"
Her voice sounded so threatening that he nearly peed his pants.
One had to remember that Tanya's strength was no joke, just the month they had at the Training Center was enough for her physical attributes to be incomparable to what they were before.
The boy felt scared, he could feel the crushing pain on his shoulder.
"Hey, why aren't you answering?"
"I asked you to repeat what you just said."
Even the girl who was arguing with the boy earlier became scared, "S-Sister Tanya, I t-think that's enough…"
The commotion caught everyone's attention and they were soon surrounded by the other trainees.
"No! He likes badmouthing my father so let him!"
Everyone was dumbfounded as soon as they heard her words. It was also apparently the reason why they felt familiar with Sir Leo earlier.
It was because he and Tanya looked very much alike!.
"What!?"
The most dumbfounded one was the boy who was currently having his shoulder be slowly crushed by Tanya's grip.
Unable to bear the pain any longer, he pleaded, "I didn't know that he was your father! I'm sorry!"
Seeing that Tanya wasn't letting go, Jin intervened. "Sister, that's enough. He just didn't know any better."
"R-Right! Besides, what I said made sense. It was a first class vs a second class after all. I'm really sorry…" The boy reasoned meekly as his eyes started to get teary.
"That's enough kids." Instructor Agnes's calm voice sounded, catching the attention of the trainees.
The boy looked as if he saw hope and said, "Instructor! Please help m—"
Pop!
The crowd went quiet when they saw their instructor lightly flicked the boy's forehead.
Oww!
"First, that's for recklessly accusing an esteemed warrior. You lot must remember that every warrior in the fortress risks their lives to protect you. No matter how much you favor a warrior over another, you can't just go on and badmouth them, you understand?"
She then turned to Tanya and said, "I know that his words hurt you, but you should never let your emotions get ahead of you. Doing so would only worsen the situation, understood?"
Tanya pouted as she nodded unwillingly.
Instructor Agnes sighed and looked at the trainees, "Did you remember what the commander said before we left the camp?"
The children nodded.
"Good. He said that he hoped you lot were able to learn things from the spar, right?"
The children nodded again.
"The spar between General Mika and Sir Leo is very special. Do you know why?"
The children shook their heads this time.
"It's because the commander aimed to teach you that nothing is absolute. General Mika is a Gold Core Stage First Class Warrior while Sir Leo is a Bronze Core Stage Second Class Warrior."
She walked around as she spoke, making sure that everyone was listening to her, "Now, why did their spar went the way it did? Because of variables. These variables includes but is not limited to a person's experience, techniques and battle wits."
"Although General Mika had outstanding talent, she still lacks experience. The requirement to be a First Class Warrior was to reach the Gold Core Stage and have a Overall Physical Rating of A. It doesn't include the proficiency over ones' techniques and weapon. You should ask Instructor Oswin about this if you're curious."
Agnes stretched and said, "Alright that's enough for today, I'm tired. You're dismissed!"
The children watched her departing back, thinking about what she said.
* * *
"Argh! I'm still pissed!" Tanya pouted angrily.
Jin smiled and rubbed her head, attempting to comfort her. "There, there~ He's just ignorant. Don't waste your time thinking about it…"
"I wanted to crush his shouldher earlier if not for Instructor Agnes's intervention!"
Since the sun was already setting when they arrived at the Training Center, the two decided to go home immediately.
Their friends were also exhausted and thus, didn't choose to play before going home.
After a while of silence, Jin could feel his sister calming down, "What do you want for dinner?"
Tanya thought for a moment before replying, "Hmmm, Mushroom Stew and Baked Potatoes and Toasted Bread and Rice and…"
Jin had a helpless smile on his face as he listened to his sister's request and her many "ands".
Since he knew that his sister's appetite was big, as well as the fact that she was angry earlier, he decided to cook what she wanted in order to appease her.
* * *
It was now 10 in the evening…
After the siblings ate dinner together, Tanya went straight to sleep with a smile as she rubbed her bloated stomach.
Jin, on the other hand, went straight to the mini library.
"Phew, I'm exhausted…" He silently said in his heart.
After a tiring day, he cooked tons of meals for his little sister which made him dizzy with exhaustion.
However, he still needed to do something before going to sleep.
Jin sat up on his chair and began to think about the aura arts he gained earlier, the exhaustion in his eyes were soon replaced by excitement for the new knowledge he acquired.
He took a piece of paper and lightly dipped the quill in the ink as he started writing.