Good morning, sunshine. Maeyurai thought to himself, looking outside the bright window with half-lidded eyes.
Having slept like a baby, Maeyurai didn't feel drowsy, not even one bit. He yawned and stretched his back before he hopped off the bed.
"It should be time for breakfast now," he said. "I'm going to wash up before eating breakfast."
After leaving his room, he spent the next few minutes washing his face. Afterwards, he wore casual clothes and headed downstairs.
This was Maeyurai's daily morning routine. The second part of it includes eating breakfast with Shikkan and taking a walk outside.
The familiar scent of pastries would once more fill the air as Maeyurai walked down the staircase.
A sight to behold, as dozens of loaves sat atop the table. Ah, yes, another magnificent breakfast for Maeyurai.
"Oooh, looks good, Shikkan," Maeyurai said by the wooden railing, already eyeing the table.
Shikkan was washing his hands in the kitchen sink. He turned his head towards the sound and saw Maeyurai coming in hot, ready to eat.
"Go on and start eating," he said with a chuckle. "Someone's waiting for you outside."
Pulling on the chair, Maeyurai took a seat once it was out of the table. A curious glint in his eyes as he heard that there's someone waiting for him.
"Someone is? Who?" he asked, eyebrows drawn together in confusion.
"You'll find out soon," Shikkan replies vaguely, leaving Maeyurai questioning who it is.
Huh, someone's waiting for me? I wonder who...
As he continued to eat, the thought of whoever was waiting outside didn't leave his mind. He instinctively started eating faster just so he could see who's looking for him soon.
While Maeyurai was eating, Shikkan headed downstairs to open the bakery.
Two minutes later, Maeyurai finally finished eating. He brought the wooden plates to the kitchen sink and washed them.
Afterwards, he would go downstairs in a hurried manner. To his right, he saw Shikkan crouched, preparing everything close to the service window.
"I'll be going out now, Shikkan," he said, his hand already on the main door.
"Okay, good luck," Shikkan replies, still crouched while he sets the loaves in place.
Good luck? What does he mean by that? Oh well, I'll take it.
"Thanks."
Maeyurai turned the doorknob and opened the door.
When the door was fully opened, he was met with two girls—presumably around his age—standing in front of the bakery, both wearing the same slate-colored clothing.
One girl had blush pink hair that reached up until her chest. Long strands of hair flowed down on the left side of her adorable face like a curtain, while the other side was slicked to the back. She stood at a height of 5'6, a slim frame with a rectangle body shape.
While the girl on the right side, who seemed to be in her own world, continued to stare at the sky. She stood at a height of 5'9, her long, dark navy blue hair cascading down her head, perfectly framing her beautiful face.
The girl with light pink hair turned her head to face Maeyurai.
"Is there a Maeyurai here?" the pink-haired girl asked.
These two are the people looking for me? Why?
"Uh, yes, I'm Maeyurai," he answered.
"Oh," the pink-haired girl said. "Come with us then!"
The pink-haired girl moved swiftly and took Maeyurai's hand, dragging him away right after. Then the other, taller girl would wake up to reality, turning her head with a gasp.
"Huh? Shienne, wait up!" she shouted, running in the same direction as Shienne and Maeyurai.
Maeyurai couldn't fight back; he was yanked away without his consent.
"Guh!?" he uttered, overwhelmed by Shienne's sheer strength.
What is this monstrous strength?! I can't pull back—I'm getting kidnapped!
"Wait—wait!" Maeyurai exclaimed. He was confused as to what this was all about. "Where are you guys taking me?! I didn't agree to this!"
"Don't worry! It's not like we'll harass you!" Shienne replied, looking back at Maeyurai over her shoulder.
"To me, it looks like it! At least explain first!"
"Later!" she dismissed Maeyurai, increasing her pace to take him away even faster.
This left Maeyurai bewildered. However, the direction she was heading seemed familiar.
...Wait, I know where this direction leads.
Maeyurai clearly remembers this path. Different kinds of thoughts entered his mind, lingering far longer than they should.
"Don't worry," said the taller girl as she suddenly appeared, running beside Maeyurai. "We were just instructed to bring you somewhere. That's all."
Her sudden appearance greatly surprised Maeyurai. Because of this, his legs froze, and he ended up stumbling forward due to being roughly pulled by Shienne.
"Oh dear," the taller girl muttered.
He was now being mopped across the dirt floor, and Shienne wasn't even aware of it as she just continued to sprint forward.
"Shienne," the taller girl called out. "You might want to slow down—Mr. Koja will scold us later if he sees Maeyurai stained in dirt!"
Hearing her name in the air, Shienne stopped in her tracks and turned around to look.
"Huh—"
Crash!
How stupid. Shienne suddenly stopped and gave her friend a brake check. Unfortunately, she couldn't stop in time, stepping on Maeyurai's back as she crashed into Shienne.
"Ouch!" Maeyurai exclaimed, feeling a heavy sharp pain on his back.
The two girls' foreheads clashed, creating a loud thud of their craniums hitting each other.
The taller girl's momentum was transfered to Shienne, making her recoil back with great force. But it wasn't enough to throw Shienne off balance, stepping two steps back to stop her movement.
"Ow... Mhiya, why did you suddenly call me?" Shienne said, rubbing her forehead.
"Why did you suddenly stop?" Mhiya, the blue-haired girl, replied.
"Because you called me, that's why!"
"You didn't have to stop just to reply!"
"Well, you called my name, so what else am I supposed to do?!"
"Obviously, continue running and reply without stopping? That's easy to do!"
Maeyurai, watching all this unfold, slowly rose to his feet. He gasped for air as Mhiya knocked the wind out of him when she stepped on his back.
"C-can you both stop arguing and just tell me where you're bringing me?" he said, coughing as he found it difficult to breathe.
"Shut it," Shienne replies with a scowl.
"Don't be so rude, Shienne. This is why Mr. Koja always punishes you!" Mhiya told her off.
The entire argument was pointless.
Maeyurai thought that the two girls were incredibly childish, which is what he didn't expect at first.
But regarding this matter, what perked up Maeyurai's curiosity is Huizen's connection to these two.
Why does she keep mentioning Huizen?
Why call him by the last name?
Are they, like, his students or something?
Wait... It's possible that this Koja they're talking about is different from Huizen.
Maeyurai coughed; he struggled to breathe properly.
"Excuse me, who is this Mr. Koja you both are talking about?"
What came next was silence. The two merely ignored Maeyurai, continuing to stare each other down.
This silence is awkward. He thought, looking left to right, watching as the two girls just stared at each other.
After a few seconds of a silent staredown, Shienne sighed, lowering her head in submission.
"Whatever," she said. "I apologize. I shouldn't have run from the start."
She pointed her hand towards Maeyurai and continued, "But it's because this guy took forever to wake up! I got impatient."
Maeyurai raised both of his hands. "Oh, sorry. I didn't know there were people waiting for me outside; not my fault."
"Yes, it—"
"Okay, let's just move on," Mhiya cut off Shienne before she could start another argument. "Mr. Koja is waiting for us."
Mhiya went on ahead and started walking, leaving Maeyurai and Shienne behind.
"Uhm... By the way, my question still hasn't been answered yet..." Maeyurai said, following Mhiya. Behind him was Shienne, quietly walking along.
"About who Mr. Koja is?" Mhiya clarified.
"Yes."
Looking over her shoulder, Mhiya asked, "You don't know Koja Huizen? He's our master."
"Oh," Maeyurai uttered. "I thought it was a different person. If what I'm assuming is correct, you guys are his students, right?"
"Yeah, we've been training under him for five months now."
"So you guys are bringing me to Huizen?" he said, before he realized one thing. "Wait, how did you guys know where I lived? I don't recall ever telling Huizen anything related to that."
Shienne would butt in to the conversation. "That's because he told us to stalk you last night; that's how we found out where you lived."
"Huh? Stalk me last night?"
"While you were running," Mhiya said. "We followed you. Then earlier, Huizen told us to fetch you without telling us the reason why."
"It was a hassle to explain things to you along the way, but now here we are," Shienne added.
I see... This is something.
I wonder what Huizen needs me for. He didn't even tell his students why.
Is he trying to recruit me? Who knows? I can only find out later.
Not long after, they finally reached Huizen's house. Its mere size never ceases to leave Maeyurai dumbfounded.
"Sheesh, I forgot how big this place was."
"Anyway, we'll just enter the house. Mr. Koja's waiting inside," Mhiya said, leading the way as she brought out a key from her pocket, pushing it into the doorknob of the main door.
Her hand gripped the doorknob and turned it, pushing forward as she entered the house. Inside was a large living room. There were paintings displayed on the wall, with most of them being very well created. The interiors were grand, having designs and patterns on the ceiling and corners of the walls.
"Huizen's quite wealthy," Maeyurai muttered under his breath.
"Well, yeah," Shienne said; it seems she heard what Maeyurai said. "The main branch of the Koja family is filthy rich—living in the Galfida. This is nothing compared to that."
"Mr. Koja also stated that he's the only Koja living here in the entirety of Baofuming," Mhiya added, walking up the stairs to the right.
"Galfida? Where is that?" Maeyurai asked.
"It's in the west. It's the farthest region from Baofuming. Baofuming is the region that we currently live in," Shienne answered. While Mhiya was already gone, she went ahead to call Huizen on the second floor.
"If you wish to know more, Huizen has a map. Just borrow it from him," Shienne continued, taking a seat on the couch by the center of the living room. She was more laid-back than what Maeyurai initially thought.
"Got it, I'll definitely ask for that."
A few moments later, Huizen came walking down the stairs, followed by Mhiya.
"Ah, Maeyurai," he said with a grin. "Good to see you here. Did the two girls do anything bad to you?"
That final sentence reminded Maeyurai of what happened earlier. Being dragged across the dirty ground wasn't a pleasant experience. He instinctively glanced at Shienne, who was looking away.
"Tch," Shienne muttered. It seems she felt Maeyurai's gaze on her.
Should I? I could tease her for doing that to me. Hehe.
"No," Maeyurai said. "They didn't do anything particularly bad."
The two of them did not expect that answer. Mhiya froze, holding the railing of the staircase. Shienne had wide eyes, though her face was averted away from the others.
Huizen smirked. "Is that so?" he said, eyeing the stained knees of Maeyurai's pants. "Well then, let's fill you in on why I asked the two of them to fetch you."
"It's because from now on, you'll be training under my watch," he continued right after.
"Oh, what? I am?" Maeyurai pointed to himself.
Huizen hummed in confirmation. "Mhm, you will. You didn't think I'd do this, did you?"
"Well, yes. I thought you would teach me a few things and just have me do things on my own afterwards."
Huizen chuckled at Maeyurai's answer. "Interesting, so you think like that, eh? No matter, I'll carve archery and magic into you like I did with those two girls."
"Anyway, you two, properly introduce yourselves to Maeyurai," Huizen said while looking at Mhiya and Shienne, gesturing for the two of them to stand along his side.
The girls immediately walked and stood beside Huizen. The first to introduce herself was Shienne.
"Yumeia Shienne, 16 years old. I was born in Zimpali, but due to a Lord-Level Rumbling Field, my family evacuated to Gangumen. My hobbies include archery or anything physical related."
"So you like being always on the go, then?" Maeyurai asked.
Shienne crossed her arms. "Yeah, basically."
"It should be my turn now, yes?" Mhiya spoke up, looking at Huizen.
Huizen nodded.
"Okay," Mhiya said, turning her attention to Maeyurai.
"My name is Aratsumo Mhiya, and I am currently 17 years old. I was born in Gangumen, and I've lived here my entire life. I met Mr. Koja two years ago, but I only recently started training under him. I like reading books, watching the sun set, and the starry sky."
Maeyurai smiled sheepishly. "Nice to meet you two, Shienne and Mhiya. I am Yhodth Maeyurai, only 16 years old. I was told that I wasn't born in Gangumen, so I don't know where I lived when I was a baby."
"Nice to meet you too," Shienne and Mhiya said in unison.
It was quite awkward. Formal introductions weren't Maeyurai's thing. In fact, this moment was his first time ever introducing himself to other people.
"Great!" Huizen said, clapping his hands once. "Now you three know each other!"
"Let's move on. Shienne, go get the clothes I prepared for Maeyurai. It should be on the table by the window upstairs," he ordered, looking at Shienne. "Now, Maeyurai, just wait here. Once Shienne gives you the clothes, go in the bathroom and change, then just come to the archery range once you're done."
"Okay, but where's the bathroom?" Maeyurai asked.
Huizen pointed to the door right behind Maeyurai. "There, and you can sit on the couch. We'll be waiting by the archery range."
Afterwards, Huizen walked out the main door, waving his hand. Mhiya followed along.
So I'm going to be training here now, huh?
How exciting! I'll learn a lot today!
One minute later, Shienne returns from the second floor, holding the uniform for Maeyurai in her hands.
Maeyurai, who was sitting on the couch, heard her footsteps on the stairs. She soon approached him.
"Here, just go change. It should be simple, yeah?" Shienne said as she handed over the clothes, going out the main door, heading for the archery range.
"Okay."
Maeyurai held the clothes and went to the bathroom.
"Damn... even the bathroom looks fancy," he said, looking around the spacious bathroom.
The mirror by the sink was big, and there was even a tub—which was something that Maeyurai didn't have in his home.
He stripped off and changed into the uniform given to him. He would then place his previous clothes over a rack, hanging them.
What the—it fits me perfectly...?
Looking at his own reflection in the mirror, it was similar to what Shienne and Mhiya wore.
The slate-colored pants, waistcoat, and undershirt were similar. The only difference was that the girls wore a mini-skirt with a fine hose—and he wore a scarf and pants instead. Well... Why would he even need to wear a skirt? Unless you want him to cross-dress, of course.
Wearing the newly provided uniform, Maeyurai headed off to the archery range.