When the bandits arrived, Tohgi stood there, eagerly anticipating a battle to break out between them. Their leader looked at the mailbox of the property.
Bandit leader: This is Denver's property, you boys shouldn't have come here in the first place, this village owes a lot to him, if anything we should pay our respects. We're going home, count yourself lucky kid.
Tohgi let out a very disappointed sigh.
Tohgi: (what a let down…)
Tohgi went back into his house when the bandits left. The leader held onto his neck in fear.
Bandit leader: (What the hell was that look, why does an 18 year old have so much murderous intent?)
Bandits: boss we shouldn't allow this!
Leader: listen very carefully, if you want to stay alive, don't ever cross that boy again, that look was like a predator waiting to pounce on its prey.
The bandit leader ensured that they took heed of his warning, despite any ill feeling they might have had. A few weeks passed and it seemed like Tohgi had moved on from the distraught of the examination result. It was a regular day, everyone going about their business when Willow knocked on Tohgi's door.
Tohgi: Come in!
Willow: Do you mind taking me deeper into the forest, there are plants I can't get on the routes you showed me. I want to assist mother with her traditional medicine while you help with the trade and manual labour. I want to also contribute something to our family.
Tohgi: Look at you acting all mature and stuff.
Tohgi grabbed her head and rubbed it, teasing her while laughing at her.
Willow: Stop…. You're making it embarrassing
Tohgi: Sure, sure, come tell me when you're ready.
Willow: We can go now.
Tohgi: huh? Right now?
Willow: if you're not up to it, that's fine.
Tohgi: That's not the problem, don't you usually practice your voice enhancement magic around this time? Did Miss Sunday cancel? I can renegotiate with her .
Willow: no, no, it's not that, I was the one that cancelled.
Tohgi: why?
Willow: there's no point, the capital city isn't kind to southerners, they would never accept me.
Tohgi: Listen, because I failed doesn't..
Willow: That's a lie.
Tohgi: huh?
Willow: I saw your report card, sorry for snooping but your drawer was open. I asked Mr. Groggy what battle ratings meant and the ranking.
Flashback
Groggy: Oh.. Tohgi must have told you about them, knights are ranked from F to A and Infinity. A rank means they can be a captain and B rank means they can be vice captains, infinity rank is special
Flashback ends
Willow's eyes were filled with tears.
Willow: But that doesn't make sense, your report card clearly said B class battle rating, how is that failing? There is no point pretending we can do things just because we want to, I rather make myself useful than wasting time trying to do the impossible.
In that moment, Tohgi realised his coming home hadn't affected him alone, it also meant that his little sister could no longer reach for the dream she harboured for so long. Distraught at the thought of crushing the dreams of his little sister he panicked and responded without thinking.
Tohgi: One year!
Willow: huh?
Tohgi: continue practising for one more year, If i don't become a knight by then, you can give up
Tohgi thought to himself, anguished by the sight of his sister being brought to tears because of something well out of her control.
Tohgi:(what the hell have I been doing these past weeks)
Willow: There's no point being stubborn about it Tohgi
Tohgi: Do you want to sing?
Willow: I want to be useful
It was clear Willow was close to her breaking point, she had no strength left to hold onto her tears. This was meant to be a straightforward conversation, she had not planned to be faced with the reality of her dreams fading into nothing, but Tohgi was relentless. His voice got louder and more assertive to force an answer out of his sister.
Tohgi: you didn't answer my question, DO YOU WANT TO SING?
Willow being pressured by his tone, responded in kind.
Willow: OF COURSE I DO… but it doesn't matter… I..
Tohgi: you promised to trust me, just one more year is all I'm asking for, if I don't become a knight I would never mention singing again. You can still help mum while you train, I'll teach you everything you need to know about the plants this year and continue teaching you how to defend and evade against animals or people. You can do both if you want, but you can't drop your singing. Please!
Tohgi couldn't help but sound desperate, the pain and responsibility Willow felt was not something he ever wanted his little sister to go through. The tears Willow was holding onto so strongly began dropping down her cheeks. Was it relief? or agony? Perhaps a mix of both. She mustered up the courage to be true to herself.
Willow: Can I really continue?
Tohgi: Yes… yes you can!
Willow: Am I not being a burden to all of you?
Tohgi: Of course not!
Willow: Can I really become a singer in the city? Isn't that just selfish?
Tohgi: Yes you can and no… it's not selfish.
Willow wiped the tears off her face.
Willow: okay… I'll continue for one more year, but just one!
She kept sniffling while wiping her tears off.
Tohgi: (A world where a 13 year old is stripped of the luxury to have a dream? I am not even the least bit interested in it. I'll find a way, I have to!)
One week had passed since Tohgi continued training on his sword skill and martial arts but he couldn't sense any substantial progress. He went to the primavera vitae to replenish his strength and deliberate as he usually does after training.
Tohgi: It's cool and all rejecting the world but what the hell can I actually do. Madness is repeating the same thing and expecting a different result (Do I have to defeat him?)
Tohgi thought back to the fight against Lorenzo in a bid to find a way around the difference in sword skill, but he could think of none.
Tohgi: (A vice captain huh? Levitating blades… Since when did you start making statements you can't back up?)
Tohgi was completely out of ideas and had a blank mind, he sank into the spring while looking at the sky through the water, it was so calming that it put him in a trance.
Tohgi: (the sky is so peaceful… so are the trees and this water… no unnecessary strife, everything exists separately, yet in unity… all of it as one. I can feel my body and soul revitalising, I really appreciate how soothing the reiki from this spring is)
He closed his eyes and envisioned the reiki from the spring interacting with his reiki, it was as though he could see it with his eyes closed. Suddenly a thought came to him and he jolted out of his trance.
Tohgi: Hold on… wait a minute ("as one" the reiki from this spring interacts with both my body and my reiki). Wait! I might be onto something here (it is possible to absorb executed magic, which is just reiki taking a different form. Our beloved Xanarc rose to the top with that ability. Normally everyone's reiki has a unique identity, and infusing someone with reiki that has a different ID usually leads to an adverse reaction, pain and rejection, that's the basis of the durability test. What makes the Xanarc able to do it? I assumed it's just the nature of his ability, albeit a weird one, maybe his reiki allows for that. If one's reiki can allow for that naturally shouldn't all reiki do so even if it is to a lesser extent? The same way everyone's reiki has the ability to morph into something regardless of what that something is… right?)
Tohgi sprung out of the spring and was deep into thought
Tohgi: Hmm… (if that's the case, this spring naturally infuses living things with its reiki, does that mean nature's reiki might have less of an adverse effect?) Nope, that can't be the case, someone would have figured that out by now, it still has a different ID that much I am sure of. Does that mean the reiki from this pool somehow changes the nature of the reiki of the things it comes in contact with? That would allow replenishing from other reiki sources, like the spring itself, right? (that effect is only within the pool though, meaning whatever changes to the nature of my reiki should only be temporary, I've never felt the way I feel outside the spring. That means I would need to be in constant contact with the spring) If that's the case.
Tohgi drank the water from the spring and waited a few moments.
Tohgi: Of course that wouldn't work… it's not like the Xanarc drinks magic (infusing reiki, the spring, it all goes through the body, almost like it's going against my flow, maybe if I try to consciously change my flow? Wait, is that possible? What if I can also pull in reiki? Instead of releasing it. I never thought of consciously controlling the flow of reiki before. Hmm, but I would need the reiki from the spring, reiki from the environment itself doesn't interact in the same way.)
Tohgi sat under the waterfall leading to the spring and meditated.
Tohgi: blank my mind, reverse my flow…
Tohgi began to feel a sensation he was not familiar with. It felt as though his essence was shrinking.
Tohgi: shit! Is it actually working? (so this is how they hide their reiki, but I can't feel any other reiki, only mine and a little interaction from the spring… It's coming in but not enough… It feels the same as when I lay in the pool. To be fair I'm not releasing any reiki so my channels don't seem to be accessible, is it a defence mechanism against external reiki? That would make sense because of the adverse reactions. Maybe if I try to do it myself… kind of like casting magic, but with my reiki flow in reverse.) oh... I can feel it, it's working!! My rei...
Tohgi began aggressively coughing and his eyesight became blurry. Blood spurted out of every crevice in his body. A stem began growing out of his mouth and roots coursing through his vessels, the pain was so excruciating he could feel his brain throb. What was left of his consciousness could only muster one thought "more water". Using what little strength and sanity he had left, Tohgi dragged himself into the spring, submerging his entire body before passing out in the water.
END!