Thirty Days of Classes, part 12 (after battle)
Alright, that's good enough.
Bloody hell, lad. That was much closer than I thought!
... Huff... huff... G-good match.
... Jeez, don't most people usually lose steam the longer a fight gets? What the heck was that at the end...?
The two of them clashed with everything they learned, and with all they learned up until the lessons began...
I thought for sure that Jia Xichun would come out on top without breaking a sweat, given that Sinclair wasn't using an Identity and the tough training Jia Xichun had as a Family Hierarch candidate, but...
... perhaps thanks to the Night Drifter's teachings, or thanks to that mark on his forehead...
... I saw a glimpse of Sinclair I'd only seen in a select few Mirror Worlds.
<You alright, Sinclair...?>
Hm? Uh... yeah, it's not like we were going at it with real weapons. And the fight ended before it got any further, thankfully, so I'm not hurt or anything.
I'm feeling a bit of fever on my forehead, though...
It didn't seem like Sinclair noticed the single, yet clear, red line that appeared on his forehead.
It's not like anything bad happened when that mark manifested back in La Manchaland, but...
... considering that Demian and Rim were the only other people who'd ever shown similar marks, I couldn't help but worry a little.
... Hey, you ever run away from home before?
Uh... where's this coming from?
Going by the way you're acting, it's clear to me that you're a homebody, but...
... there's something behind your eyes that tells me that your life hasn't all been sunshine and rainbows.
Hm... I wouldn't call it 'running away from home'... it's more like I left home.
... Because I didn't have a choice.
How did that feel?
... Like I was melting away into nothing. I suddenly had to face the whole terrible world all on my own, and that was so overwhelming that - well, I'm sure you can't quite commiserate. You've been on top of your game your whole life, after all.
... I did leave Daguanyuan by my own volition, but...
... if I'm being honest - and here's something I never told Wei - I felt unutterably lost. There was so much that I had to do, so much responsibility.
I guess neither of us were that ready for the world when we left home.
I feel just as lost back home, though.
Ah, and there's Heathcliff, too - he also left home. Sometime ago, we paid a visit to the manor he grew up in.
Heading home must've been pretty exciting for him. You have no idea how much of the journey back he spent gussying up and primping his hair...
…….
... Somethin' just came up.
Class dismissed.