18: Family Bonding.

As he walked in, he couldn't help but direct his eyes around the room and just then, his gaze met those cold green emerald eyes standing in the distance.

He paused instantly as they both exchanged glances while his heart continued to race with every passing moment.

" They feel so much similar." He thought as he tried to look away.

" Thank you for your warm welcome, you may all leave now."

A soft gasp escaped his lips. The voice he just heard was all he needed to escape from his daze; it was hazy and cracky but very familiar at the same time.

As his gaze trailed further it finally met that of the old woman standing next to his mother. Her hair was just the same color with her face slightly wrinkled–his grandmother.

In that instant, as their eyes met, he got on his knees and bowed his head before her.

" Well now, it seems that my grandchildren have all grown quite much since the last time I saw them." She said, slowly walking towards him.

His eyes were widened as his gaze was kept on the floor, " Is this the original story I made? I know I wrote about her grandmother but she never arrived at the mystic clan, not once. Is the plot slowly changing for some reason?"

While he was still there and deep in thought he felt a slight pat on his head and the same voice came afterwards.

" Well, why don't you get up now? We have so much to do in such a short time."

********

After about an hour, he was left strolling through a flower garden as he admired every single one that crossed his sight.

His attention wasn't drawn to any of them, all he wanted to see was their bright petals; it wasn't something he was used to doing but he simply wanted something to cool his mind.

A family union had ensued between the four of them and it wasn't the best moment for him although it was mostly the two older women talking.

" Damnit, it's only a matter of time before the old geezer comes over to bombard him with her questions." He thought turning his gaze towards the girl next to him, " and now I have a bigger problem to worry about."

Now with his younger sister, he couldn't help but glance at her eyes every passing minute and each time he did, a white outline would instantly appear around her pupils.

" For some reason, she's being extremely cautious around me. Though I may be faster, her stamina is a little greater than mine."

" So it seems that due to his lacking he decided to focus entirely on his manifestation of mystic energy and a slight focus on agility as well. So... he's planning to use momentum and lashes as a way to make up for his lack of strength, quite intuitive but it puts his stamina at a great disadvantage."

Those were her thoughts with each glance but even at that she couldn't resist the very urge she felt to challenge his strength; she had heard many things about him and the fact that he was defective was the greatest among them.

But ever since the very first day of her life, she had been kept away from him and apart from the earlier gestures, she couldn't bring herself to say a word to him.

Her lips would move slightly each time but no word would be uttered so all she could do was sit there staring until he would be triggered to initiate a conversation with her.

" HEY, is there something you want from me?"

She hesitated for a moment as she stared deeper into his eyes – she couldn't sense any malicious intent from him but it was clear that he was just as uncomfortable as she was.

" Yes... E-elder brother, would you please..." She said, pausing for a moment as she quickly turned away her gaze from him.

He couldn't explain what had happened to him at that moment but his expression had instantly changed as soon as he heard her call him elder brother.

His eyes widened for a moment and his jaw dropped; it was most likely what had triggered her shy reaction just then.

" ... Would you please help me train today?"

Normally, under such circumstances, he would stand up and walk away from the person while making up the best excuse he could.

But at that moment, he wanted to think everything through before giving her an answer; whether it had to with their ties was what he didn't know but the current look on her face just melted his heart.

" Aren't there any others around to help you train? I had a teacher when I was your age but isn't it past your training time, you can wait till tomorrow to restart your training session."

" NO, please brother... I've set a goal that I'm most devoted to seeing through. Even a minute wasted of my schedule would indeed cost me greatly." She pleaded, bowing her head before him.

He bit his lower lip slightly as he raised his hand slightly and without realizing it, it landed right on top of her head; he didn't know what had happened, it felt like a natural reaction.

" Fine then, I'll help you train, Adira."

She instantly raised her head as she directed her gaze toward him with a bright smile on her face.

Her eyes instantly turned watery and a tear slowly dropped from her left eye; the complex emotions she felt were all slowly unraveling in one go.

" Huh... What's the matter?" He asked, trying to sound like any other compassionate elder brother would.

She didn't say anything and simply nodded her head with an even bigger smile on her face.

" So... Well, can we start the training now."

He paused for a moment as he returned her bright smile before responding, "Sure, but you should tell me what weapon you specialize in before we can start training."

" Ploearms and swords."

******

The fact that she specialized in polearms and swords meant that her soul weapons were probably related to both of them.

Soul weapons were always given to the inheritors for a reason related to their class and specification. He couldn't help but wonder if her soul weapon had something to do with unraveling the weak points of her opponents although he was yet to see it.

But as they were both standing opposite each other, dressed in their training fits with wooden swords held firmly in their hands, he couldn't get the very thought out of his mind.

But getting her to show him turned out easier than he had expected and his eyes couldn't stop shining as she revealed the glimmering silver weapon.

It was a dual-bladed sword with the blades slightly bent inwards.