2 - Home

Kiro normally detested his home. It was large, expensive, and unwarranted, almost no practical purpose. The painted murals and jade-embedded doorways seemed to look down on him, as if mocking his current financial status. Today,  he was too tired to care. The extravagantly decorated testament to his dependence on his family meant that he could sit down and nap for a couple decades. First, though, food.

He shook a heating stone, placing it underneath a cast iron pot. The stone was imbued with fire mana, and over a couple minutes, it would generate enough heat to rival a cooking fire. He tossed some non-infused meat and vegetables (Suns rarely actually ate the results of their hard work, lest they absorb enough fire mana to cultivate) into the pot, letting it warm while he turned to the crimson chest.

He moved aside the vials of elixir, pulling out alchemy equipment. This would be the next step in his experiment.

Seira, while not out of healing elixirs as he had told the Supervisor, had gotten into another duel yesterday. Her opponent had been a powerful mystic of the same Level and twice her age. Even her powerful aura had not been enough to protect her this time around, resulting in a singed spot at the top of her head. It didn’t affect her at all, but the spot was conspicuous enough to make her the perfect test subject.

He drank down the soup while fiddling with some sticks in the fireplace. The heating stones the majority of the Hong Clan used for cooking simply weren’t reliable enough for alchemy, and while real alchemists might’ve had imbued burners to use, Kiro made do with what he had. A simple touch to the heating stone ignited it, and once he was confident in the heat output of the fire, he gently placed a vial of water into it. He sat down for a quick break and-

He jerked awake, looking around. The rising sun merrily greeted him, shining through his blinds and into his kitchen. When had he fallen asleep? He must have pushed his body too hard. The vial of water rested among ash, the remains of his perfectly positioned firewood.

He slowly got up, trying to shake out the soreness from his limbs. There wasn’t any time for breakfast, he would have to make do with a couple sparkleaf stems. A good bath called to him, but tardiness was never good, even if he knew Supervisor Meng would never punish him for it.

He was lucky for that judgement for when he arrived, it was not the jolly Supervisor Meng who looked over them, but rather the distinctly unpleasant Supervisor Ba. Hong Ba Shou was a mean old woman of the 3rd Level of cultivation, meaning that although she looked frail, she could likely break every bone in his body with ease.

She also seemed to have a grudge against Kiro’s mother. He didn’t know what—she might have accidentally coughed on her for all he knew—but Supervisor Ba made his life hell for it. After all, anyone would recognize the weak link in his family. All he could do was take it and pray to the heavens that she forget him. But, of course, that was too much to ask for.

“Ah, Tang Kiro. I see that you haven’t started working yet. Is there a reason for this disobedience, or are you simply too bigheaded to listen to others’ orders?”

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He gritted his teeth. “Of course not, honored Supervisor. I was simply looking for the rest of my harvest group.”

“Oh, the son of Warriors isn’t strong enough to harvest by himself? Why, I haven’t seen anything this absurd since I was Level 1!”

At the word ‘Warriors’, half the Suns looked at him. They were all jealous of the upper class, and even if he worked alongside them, the words of the Supervisor served to further alienate him.

“Come, Kiro. Let’s get started,” one of his harvest group said. It was Rynn, the man who had collected the snipped stalks last time around. He didn’t look at all ashamed to be working with him, but at the same time he was always hard to predict. The heavens seemed to bend everything in favor of him, and Kiro couldn’t figure out why he hadn’t leveraged for promotion yet. As a Torch, he would be worlds better off than the Suns. Nevertheless, he was fairly efficient with the scissors, so Kirkept him around. This time, they switched Rynn around to operate the right scissor, allowing for a much smoother harvest.

Throughout the day, a thought nagged at Kiro’s mind. Why hadn’t Supervisor Meng showed up? It wasn’t like him to go back on his word, and even if he was sick, he would have sent a letter to tell him. This time, there was nothing. Nevertheless, he forged on. The heat was still unbearable without frostfrond extract, but the constant intake of sparkleaf on top of Rynn’s natural stamina allowed them to produce almost double the last day. He collected his wages and was just about to head home when a black-and-red blur tackled him.

“Kiro! Surprise!”

He got up to see Seira standing over him, arm stretched out. He opened his mouth to say something, then stopped, remembering where he was. He bowed at the waist, pressing his palms together in front of him.

“Wait, Kiro! Don’t say it!”

“This humble Sun greets the honored Brave,” he recited.

Like a wave, the Suns around him realized who she was. Soon, it was like she was standing in the middle of a rippling lake of bows.

“We greet the honored Brave,” they shouted, their voices in perfect sync.

“I hate it when they do that…” she mumbled. “Whatever. All of you, please, stand up straight.”

“Of course, honored Brave,” Supervisor Ba said from within the crowd. “What might these pitiful Suns be able to help you with today?”

Kiro could see a flash of irritation on Seira’s face before it was replaced by perfect serenity.

“Oh, nothing, Supervisor. I simply wanted to have a chat with my dear brother.”

She could have easily had Supervisor Ba lashed for her disrespect, but Seira hated using her power to control others. Supervisor Ba also seemed to know that, and was taking advantage of the fact to extract a little bit more revenge on their mother’s kin.

“Oh, of course. Might you keep him in check next time he comes to the harvest? He has a mouth of him like you wouldn’t believe, not at all befitting his bloodline.”

For the briefest moment, it felt like the heavens themselves were suppressing his movements, and Seira gave the slightest frown.

The Supervisor must have realized that a Torch giving orders to a Brave, no matter how generous, could only end badly, for she added: “That is, of course, if it suits you, honored Brave. This humble Torch would never dare to impose her own authority upon you.”

“Alright, well then I’ll be off. Kiro, I’ll be at your house.”

With a flash of light, she sped off into the distance. He could hear Supervisor Ba’s sighs of relief, along with those of every Sun within a fifty-foot radius. Seeing her so shaken at the sight of his sister had lightened his mood quite a bit, and it was with a smile on his face that he gathered his things and marched back towards his home.