Chapter 9. Waiting for the spring

The misty air fogged up around her, sending shivers to her arms. Behind her was a railing separating from the river where several boats were tied. The lanterns emitted a warm glow and although the rugged wooden door was weary, the plants on either side of the door bloomed at their utmost. 

'What am I supposed to do here? Where am I?!' Hatsuki could feel her breath shaking while taking small steps on the stone pathway. She knocked on the door twice and yet no one answered. 

'Is truly no one here?' 

Even her thoughts felt too loud. Fingers brushed off the dried wood. Suddenly from the other side, a short man walked past and headed towards her. His expression was undecipherable as he said, "Are you, Miss Asano?" 

"....Yes" Hatsuki replied with hesitation. Her hands tightly clutching each other. 

"The arbiter informed us about your arrival. Please come inside, the class is about to start" said the man as he led the way and so, Hatsuki followed from behind. Her steps created a distance, and she took time to take a look at the courtyard where a circular stone table had been placed. 

The wooden benches were kept next to the railing made of wood and iron. Plenty of flowers of all seasons bloomed and a flimsy paper covered the window only letting the lights from the candles pass through to the outside. 

The man walked inside a room and so, Hatsuki too peeped her inside before entering. There were a few other people who had covered their faces, sitting on the circular wooden tables. With light footsteps, Hatsuki too walked in, her eyes held slightly downwards, taking a seat at the closest table. 

"Now that all of us have gathered let me introduce myself. I am Yan, your teacher for the class of elegance. Here you'll learn ways to learn to be elegant while performing various skills. So, for the first class, I shall be handing these little paper cards to you. Distribute it to all of your colleagues near you and also, I humbly request every one to take off your mask" 

At the words of teacher Yan, a few people groaned while some obediently followed his words. There were about nine more students apart from Hatsuki and as the paper got passed on, Hatsuki too got a hold of it from a young woman who had long curly hair and timid smile. 

"Now that everyone has a paper, your first-time task is to draw a cat in under twenty-five seconds! Ready? Start!" Teacher Yan had a grin on his face as he observed the various expressions on the student's faces. 

Some were outraged, to some it was impossible, and some found it simply a hassle. Among them was Hatsuki who had a coy smile. She took hold of the brush and simply drew a few strokes just the way she doodled in her free classes, creating a little cat. 

"Times up!" 

Almost immediately all the paper started to float in the air and were brought to Teacher Yan's palm. Stacked in an unorderly order, he started to place the papers on the wooden board. There were cats with only their body, or only their head, or with wonky eyes. Someone had even drawn a cat without a tail. 

The pictures brought a rush of embarrassment to many of the student's faces while also breaking the tension as little giggles could be heard from each table. 

"Now… these are some extremely creative drawings I must say." Even the teacher couldn't hold the giddiness as some of the pictures were too hilarious. With a chummy smile, he continued "As I pull out each of these papers, I want you to introduce yourself and then place your hand on this oracle." 

Firstly, he picked out the cat with no table and a man wearing glasses stood up. He had a handsome face and an airy aura, sort of like the breeze of the march. 

"Good evening. I am Kai and as of now, I am a student of master zhenren, learning medicine. I hope we can get along" 

After introducing himself, he placed his hand on the little crystal ball which revealed a sky-blue color. The students applauded and then after the teacher called another student. 

Next was the same woman who had given Hatsuki the paper. From afar, she was like a princess. Her posture was virtuous and even her voice was like the soft waves. 

"Good evening. I am Yuming. I play guzheng and I hope we can work together" 

Giving a short bow, the woman then placed her hand on the crystal. The crystal ball turned violet, gaining a round of applause. 

As the list went on, several other students got their powers tested. At the very end, only Hatsuki's paper was left. The only perfectly drawn cat. 

"Now this is the best one so far, right? Did you used to draw often miss?" asked the teacher while Hatsuki walked up front. 

"Not really" She replied. 

"Oh. Well, please introduce yourself then and press your hand on here" 

"Hello, I am Asano Hatsuki" It was the briefest introduction, so she made to give the deepest bow.

Although she didn't fumble nor hesitated, many of the students had their tongues clicked as though a country bumpkin had joined them. To not even be able to follow the culture the Dragon Lord had left behind, Asano Hatsuki had disgusted many of the students. 

Straightening her back, Hatsuki then placed her hand on the crystal ball. For a while, it didn't seem to change colour but after a while, a deep shade of forest green started to emerge making everyone applaud and astound. 

Returning to her place, Hatsuki felt somewhat irked, not knowing what the colour meant. So, after taking her seat she leaned towards the side and called "Excuse me, Miss Yuming" 

Yuming took a sharp turn towards her and gently lifted her brows. 

"Do you know what that green meant in the crystal?" 

Yuming gave the nod and replied in a low voice "Waiting for spring" 

"Now now, no side talks." Teacher Yan clapped his hands and at once all the students straightened their postures. 

"It seems we have some exceptional students this year, considering that we got forest green, violet, gold, and sky blue. So for those of you who are unfamiliar with it or want to know more, essentially these colors define the abilities you have. For example, the forest green means that you have been blessed with the fire of justice. Once you cultivate it, you can burn any soul, and it will be broken till the tiniest fragments to the point they completely disappear.

So, now that everyone has gotten the idea regarding their powers. Your assignment is to find out more about your powers and also, to find your objective. What do you want to achieve? Prepare a short composition."