Mereo-san took me to her house. She was royalty and lived in a large house with servants and beautiful gardens. She showed me around the house and where I would be sleeping, which was a room next to hers. It was much bigger than my old home and had a bathroom. She gave me clothes to wear and had one of the servants draw me a hot bath, then instructed me to join her at the dining table once I was done. I washed up with the various scented soaps and used one of the scented oils on my body and hair. The oils smelled like coconut and vanilla, which reminded me of my mother. I then did my hair in several braids that I tied into a bun on the back of my head. The clothes Mereo-san gave me were a white, long-sleeved tunic, with white pants and a purple short-sleeved long coat with gold trim. They looked like what she was wearing but made for a younger person.
I finally made my way to the dining room and found Mereo-san waiting for me at the table.
"Come on, sit," she told me as she directed me to the seat right across from her. For dinner, I had steak, potatoes, and some other foods I could not name. I was too full to eat dessert, so Mereo-san said we can go to the patio and talk.
"So, Sayuri, tell me about yourself and how you ended up here."
I told her about my parents, my home, how we all had to stay invisible, so we don't become targets. I also told her how they trained me to survive independently and how my parents got shunned because my mother was a foreigner. I didn't tell her anything about my magic, my grimoire, or how I continuously have to suppress it to be invisible. I just met her, so I didn't trust her, and she was a royal, so I needed to know her motives before telling her anything more about me.
"Mereo-san, why are you helping me?" I asked her
"Because I can sense that you are a smart child with the potential to be so much stronger. Why do you ask?"
"My mother always told me that there are two types of nobles: arrogant, prideful, and cruel nobles or generous and kind nobles. The first never do anything charitable without ulterior motives. The second wants to see the best in the world, and their actions reflect that. The first kind is the ones who came to her homeland, pretending to be friends with gifts and ended up killing or trading her people like merchandise. The second kind is the ones who helped my great grandparents escape from the miserable conditions they were in. I just met you today, so I can't tell which one you are because both types would come to me with the same kind face and show me the same generosity that you are showing me right now. Still, only one of those will hold a knife on their backs, waiting to stab me at any moment. Which one are you, Mereo-san?"
"Your mother is a smart woman who raised a smart child. I could say I am the second kind but be the first kind. As you said, you just met me, so there is no reason for you to trust what my motives are. I can say that I sense something unique about you and the strength you have, unlike any other. I pride myself on my ability to spot potential in people and help them build on that. I can also see a bit of myself in you, so I would like to take you in as an apprentice and help you grow your magic. In the Clover Kingdom, we have the Magic Knights. They are some of the strongest mages in the land responsible for protecting the people of our kingdom. If you are accepted as a Magic Knight, you would be able to use your skills to help people who need them. It can also give you the resources you need to protect yourself from the people hunting you. You should receive your grimoire when you turn fifteen. Six months after the grimoire ceremony, the Magic Knight Captains hold the Magic Knights Entrance Exam, where the best mages are picked to join a squad. I can teach you the skills you need to make it through the exams. With that, you would get into a squad that would allow you to use your magic to help people while giving you a permanent home, a way to earn a living, and maybe even some new people you can get to call your family."
"Thank you for the offer. Before I left, my mother told me that I should try to find people who can accept me for who I am, and that might be just what I need. So when can we start?"
"Well, aren't you the enthusiastic one? Tomorrow, I will take you to get new clothes, show you our training grounds and introduce you to my brothers Fuegoleon-san and Leopold. Fuegoleon-san trains Leopold, so I can have you train with them whenever I'm not able. For now, go to bed. You have a pretty long day ahead of you," she told me.
"Ok. Mereo-san. Thank you"
"Now, run along, child. Goodnight"
"Goodnight!" I said, then went to my room where I found clothes to wear to bed.
The following day, I woke up early and got ready for the day. I waited for Mereo-san to fetch me for breakfast. She knocked on my door and led me to the dining room, where two other people were already seated at the table. One was a tall, handsome man with long, straight hair the same shade as Mereo-san's and purple eyes. He also had a purple diamond mark on his forehead and red earrings. He was wearing a red cape over a dark blue shirt with gold trimming, and I thought he had a wonderful and kind smile. To his left, there was a younger boy, closer to my age, who looked a bit like Mereo-san but with messier hair. He was wearing the same thing as the handsome man.
"Good morning, Fuegoleon, Leopold. This is my new apprentice, Sayuri. I bumped into her yesterday and decided to take her as my apprentice. I will be preparing her for the Magic Knight Entrance exam. I hope you will all be kind and welcoming to her," she said to the two gentlemen focusing on the younger one.
"Good morning, Sayuri. Welcome to our home. I'm Fuegoleon. I'm the captain of the Crimson Lion squad," he said with a gentle look in a calm, soothing voice. Or maybe that's how he sounded to me.
"Thank you, Fuegoleon-san," I could feel my cheeks overheat.
"Why does she look like that? Is she a foreigner?" the younger gentleman asked.
"Leopold, you will learn to respect our guests in this house," Mereo-san told him harshly as I looked down.
"It's ok, Mereo-san. I've heard worse. Will I be training with him?"
"On occasion, you might. We'll have to look at where your skills are first."
"Then, I look forward to training with you, Baka-Leopold" As I sat down at the dining table, I raised my eyebrows and smirked at Leo. 'I'm going to kick his ass,' I told myself.
After breakfast, Mereo-san took me into Kikka to buy some clothes for myself. I wanted something comfortable that I could move around in and carry my weapons in. I opted for a black tank top that fit comfortably over my body, black leggings, a black, cropped leather jacket with gold trim with a matching panel skirt, and boots. The skirt had square front and back panels that were longer than the sides and trimmed in gold, and the boots were flat, leather with multiple gold buckles. I also got a black mesh shirt, another black cropped leather jacket with gold trimming, tights in the same mesh as the shirt, a leather, gold-trimmed flare skirt, and black combat boots. I then got a leather belt with pouches in the back, consisting of knife sheathes and the other with small flaps that can hold throwing stars.
We came back from Kikka. After putting my clothes away in my room, Mereo-san took me to the Vermillion estate training grounds. Leopold and Fuegoleon-san were already training on the vast, open field. Mereo-san told me that they all had fire magic. The two gentlemen made their way to us when they saw us approach.
"What type of magic do you have?" Mereo-san asked me. I looked down and started rubbing the back of my neck.
"Well…I have metal," I replied then in a faint voice, "and water. And it's composite magic". Fuegoleon-san and Mereo-san looked at me quizzically.
"Composite magic?"
"I can use all metal types, and as long as something has water, I would be able to use its magic."
"Do you mind showing us?"
I knew that I wasn't supposed to show too much of my magic. I made three water kunai appear on the one hand and created copper, iron, and platinum kunai with my other hand.
"You must have pretty good control over your magic if you can use each hand to produce a different magic type at the same time," Fuegoleon-san said.
"My parents taught me enough in case I had to be on my own."
"Did they teach you any other skills?" Mereo-san asked
"I can use different weapons. And I have a bit of hand-to-hand fighting."
"Let's test it out. I'm going to have you spar with Leopold." Fuegoleon-san said, then called Leopold over.
"I'm going to have you spar with Sayuri to see how you compare in hand-to-hand fighting. No magic." Fuegoleon-san told Leopold. He had us move to the center of the field. Before we could begin, I ran back to the two Vermillions.
"How much can I hurt him?" I asked Mereo-san since she saw what I could do.
"Try not to break any bones." Mereo-san said with a smile on her face.
I went back to Leopold, and we got in position.
"I'm not going to be beaten by a foreigner and a girl." He spat out.
"I'll go easy on you if you apologize for this morning." A knowing grin spread across my face.
"We'll see about that," He replied with a sneer.
Fuegoleon-san counted down to start. "3…2...1…Go."
My father had taught me ki so I could read the energies around me and react.
I saw him move and knew he would try to take me down by my waist. I jumped over him and kicked him in the back so he could fall harder. I was tempted to end the fight here, but then he wouldn't have learned anything.
He stood up and straightened his clothes out, then turned to me as I smiled at him. I let him move closer and could see that he was starting to get angry. This time, he tried to hit me, the first one on the stomach I caught with my open palm. With his other hand, he tried to punch my waist, which I trapped with the other hand, then squatted with my right leg extended, bent it to trip him. Hence, his right leg gave in, and I pushed him back with the fists I held in one swift motion. He fell back on his back, again harder than he would have since I added extra force. I smiled at him.
"Ready to apologize? If you're nice enough, I might even teach you a thing or two," I told him, still smiling.
"Never," he hissed angrily at me
Third round, I decided to end it. Leopold came at me, screaming, and tried punching and kicking as I either dodged or blocked each of them. I hit both his shoulder seams, and his hands went limp.
"If you say you're sorry, I'll tell you how to fix it," I told him as I walked towards his siblings.
"He won't be able to use his hands for at least a couple of hours," I told Fuegoleon-san and Mereo-san. "I can fix it faster if he apologizes for this morning," I added as they chuckled and looked at their little brother. The latter was now walking towards us with both his hands limp on his sides.
"I demand you fix this!" he yelled at me.
"I don't think you have the power to demand here, Baka-Leopold. Maybe try to find someone you can look to as an equal to fix it for you. I'm just a lowly foreigner and a girl," I said mockingly.
"Fuego! Mereo! Tell her to fix it!" he whined to his siblings.
"I think she already told you how you can get her to fix it," Mereo-san said.
"Ok! Ok! Fine! I'm sorry."
"Sorry for what?"
"Sorry for being rude this morning."
"And…"
"I'll try to do better next time."
"Was that so hard? By the way, I know way more pressure points on your body, so you better be nice, or I'll make to pee on yourself in front of your friends," I told him. I grabbed his numbed right hand and massaged the point between his index finger and thumb for a while, then applied some pressure on it that spot and the base of his index finger, then did the same for the left hand.
"There. You can move your hands now."
"How did you do that?!" he exclaimed. I frowned at him.
I then turned around to Mereo-san and Fuegoleon. "I'm sorry, Mereo-san, Fuegoleon-san. I had to do it. My mother said that sometimes, you have to humble someone to teach them respect."
"It's ok, Sayuri. I was concerned about if you would be able to handle him, but I think you did just fine," Mereo-san said to me as I beamed.
"Let's imagine this was a real fight. How much harm would you have done?" Fuegoleon-san asked
"Well, he's a terrible fighter and reckless, so on the first charge, I probably would have broken a couple of ribs. On the second charge, I could have broken one or both wrists. On the third charge, he left his front wide open and was screaming as he attacked, meaning he had no strategy, so I could have broken his neck and possibly his kneecaps, basically everything on the front," I said.
"I could offer to teach him some basics, but I'm afraid he will learn nothing unless he learns to manage his short temper and impatience. I also don't like him very much. But I could teach you both about pressure points. It's amazing how many different ways there are to take down someone without magic. I can show you one way. You don't die. You just pass out for a bit," I continued excitedly.
"I would like to see that," Mereo-san said. I volunteered Leopold, who was still standing behind me as a test subject and quickly grabbed the point between his right-side neck and shoulder blade. His eyes rolled to the back of his head, and he passed out.
"It's easy. We have many fighting techniques in my country so people with low or no magic can defend themselves. Knowing pressure points can also be used for quick remedies. He'll be up in about an hour."
"You are quite a fascinating child. Where are you from?" Fuegoleon-san asked
"Hino Country"
"I think I've heard of that place before."
For about four years, I lived with the Vermillions. Whenever Mereo-san would travel to the wilderness or high mana areas, she would always take me with her. Eventually, I told her that I already had a grimoire that I got when I was five. Leopold and I ultimately managed to get along. After the last time I came back, he apologized for how he treated me. He had made a commoner friend without any magic who had been accepted by the Magic Knights. He was becoming more powerful every time Leopold saw him. After Fuegoleon-san was in a coma, Leopold and I actually became friends because I spent so much time at the infirmary as he did. We talked a lot about his adventures as a Magic Knight. I eventually told him that 'Baka' means idiot, so I had been calling him an idiot the whole time since I first met him.