Lingqi awoke with a start when two voices chattered away at one another. She looked around at her surroundings and saw a bright light directly above her and one person to her right and other on her left. Still clothed in her armor and immediately assuming the worst, she launched a fast fist at the person on her left before grabbing the head of the person on her right and slamming it down on the metal bar of the bed. She began to rise, but a sharp pain in her left elbow stopped her.
Looking over at the limb, she saw a needle in one of the veins and let out a shocked gasp. Whatever they were doing to her, it hurt so she slowly removed the small spike, swung her legs over the edge and shakily rose. The pain in her rib cage was bad, but it wasn't anything she wasn't used to.
Father… She thought. I have to find father. As she moved towards the door, the echo of fleet feet could be heard along with a slight clanking. Before Lingqi could make a move to hide anywhere however, the door burst open and three people entered; the first two were men she didn't recognize who immediately rushed to the aid of the two who were knocked out and the last was none other than Lu Bu himself dressed in his battle attire with a scowl on his face.
Upon seeing his daughter however, he breathed a sigh of relief as she ran forward and embraced him. "Lingqi. You're all right." He stated, returning the hug.
"Yes." She affirmed, stepping out of the brief embrace. "Despite their attempts to finish me off." Lingqi declared, gesturing to the two people unconscious next to her bed.
"Miss, our doctors here were only trying to assist you in healing your injuries!" The large, moustached man declared as he grabbed two chairs, placing them in the seats.
With a doubtful and angry expression on her face, Lu Bu introduced the two professors. "Lingqi, these men are teachers at this Academy." He explained. "The man in the suit is Professor Port and his compatriot with green hair and glasses is Professor Oobleck."
Oobleck waved after assisting Port with placing the knocked out doctors in the chairs, leaving them to recover. "General, would you kindly take your daughter out for the time being? I imagine that our doctors here will not be happy when they wake up."
Lu Bu gave him a scoff but reluctantly obeyed, signalling for Lingqi to follow him out the door. They exited the building to the warm afternoon sun beginning its descent. The Demon of the Battlefield then waited until they were out of earshot of anyone before explaining to his daughter.
He let out a sigh as they walked around aimlessly. "Lingqi, what is the last thing you remember?"
"Fighting these strange beasts in a forest and you saving my life." Came her quick reply.
"And before that?"
The question caused her brain to momentarily stop working. "I…I was outside Xiapi Castle, about to be executed by Cao Cao."
"And then the winds picked up, which led to you being here." Out of his peripheral vision, he could see Lingqi slowly nodding. "I remember the same thing. How we came to be here is unknown to me, but I know that this place isn't anywhere close to Xiapi castle."
"Then where are we? Jing province?"
Lu Bu sighed again. "No. I spoke with the professors who aided you and none of them seem to recognize the territories of the Three Kingdoms."
"Which means… We…We're in a completely different land." Lingqi declared in disbelief.
"I have no idea how it happened or what to do next but for now, let's allow these professors to order us around. Let them think they can tell us what to do and when the time is right, we will display our true might."
Lingqi smirked. She loved it when her father spoke of fighting and showing others what true power was. "Understood." To which Lu Bu gave a small smile. "But one other thing bothers me, father."
"And that is?"
"You said this place was an Academy and referred to those men as Professors. But why would an Academy be built so close to a forest riddled with bloodthirsty beasts?" Granted she was taught how to read and write in a village relatively close to another town that was frequently fought over, but even then the battles were several hundred leagues away if not thousands, not twenty.
Then, to her surprise, Lu Bu began chuckling quietly before coming to a stop in front of a large statue depicting a man and woman standing on a rock above one of the monsters she'd killed in the forest. Her father gestured to the piece of artwork and looked to her. "This school is meant to teach young people how to fight those beasts. As I understand, they are a disease and must be obliterated from this world."
"They teach combat to children?"
The question earned a nod from Lu Bu. "Also other subjects such as history but primarily combat, yes."
She grinned from ear to ear. "Then truly a place where we can succeed."
Lu Bu was about to return the gesture when a middle aged, silver haired man clad in a green scarf with a cross shaped pin and black suit approached the pair with a cane and coffee mug in hand.
"Good afternoon."
"Who might you be?" Lingqi inquired cautiously.
The man gave her a small smile. "My name is Professor Ozpin and I am the Headmaster of this school." He declared with a bow. "Would you mind telling me your names?"
"I am Lu Lingqi, daughter of the mighty General Lu Bu, greatest warrior of the Three Kingdoms."
Ozpin raised an eyebrow at the impressive title. "I see. But I trust my associates have informed you that there are four Kingdoms, not three?" To which Lu Bu and Lingqi nodded. "Yes, your situation is most unusual considering both of you were in a completely different world before arriving here." The statement caused both members of the Lu family to nod back. "However, I see no reason to refuse both of you a position here at Beacon Academy."
"I already know everything there is to know about combat, Professor." Lu Bu almost spat the title. "What more could I possibly learn here?"
"Well General…"
"You will address him as Master Lu Bu, being your superior." Lingqi snapped with crossed arms.
Ozpin smiled back and gave the girl a nod. "My apologies. Master Lu Bu, while you may know everything about combat, it's true that the students who attend my school do not. Therefore, I would like to offer you a position as a trainer while your daughter learns about history, aura, the monsters you both fought in the forest and of course, combat."
Lu Bu cocked his head. "That doctor also mentioned that word: 'aura'. What is it exactly?"
"The physical manifestation of one's soul that can act as a shield. A power granted to those who pass our entrance exam."
Lingqi looked at her father confused at he looked back with a similar expression. "If we were to accept your offer, would we be granted food and housing here as well?" Lingqi asked.
"Of course." Ozpin replied. "Your accommodations would be slightly different than the other students considering how you came to be here is also unlike how most arrive."
Lu Bu looked to his daughter and she nodded with a smirk. An opportunity to train alongside her father and prove her might to these professors was all she wanted.
The Demon himself also nodded. If it meant that Lingqi would be safe while he made sure she got stronger, he was all for it. Not to mention the fact that this Headmaster and his underlings helped Lingqi when she needed it. Even if they didn't notice it, Lu Bu owed them a great debt.
"Very well, Ozpin. We will take your offer."
"Excellent." The Professor declared with a smile. He then produced to odd-looking devices from his back pocket and handed them to the father and daughter in front of him. "These are scrolls. We use them to communicate with one another. Ms. Goodwitch will explain how to use them and in two days time, both of you will begin your initiation."
Lu Bu stopped gazing at the thing he'd been handed and looked at Ozpin. "I thought only students had to go through the exams, not teachers."
"True, however Master Lu Bu, it is a combat related test and if your might is as grand as you claim it to be, it should be no trouble for you. Ms. Lingqi will face the same test as all other students."
Lingqi smirked at the thought of someone thinking that her father would fall to any opponent while he merely grunted in response.
"I will send for one of the Professors to fetch both of you on initiation day and during that time, I suggest you use it to familiarize yourselves with Beacon's facilities." With that, he made his way back to the massive tower.
"He's certainly an odd man." Lingqi said.
Lu Bu grunted back. "Indeed. But he offered us food and shelter along with the opportunity to display our might, so we should at least play along."
"Excuse me." A feminine voice declared from behind them. Turning around, Lu Bu saw the woman from the forest approaching. "My name is Glynda Goodwitch, I will show you to your dorms and let you know how to use the scrolls I'm assuming Professor Ozpin gave you." After receiving a nod from them both, she took them to the quarters Ozpin had picked for them both.
One room for Lingqi and another right across the hall for Lu Bu, claiming that proximity would put them both at ease, which it did. The rooms themselves were structurally the same. A bed directly across from the doorway, a window on the wall behind their headboards, a dresser to the right filled with clothes Ozpin had taken the liberty of matching to each of them, an bathroom to the left and a desk beside each of the dressers.
And after a rather lengthy lesson about how to properly use their scrolls, which they both barely understood, the Demon asked the question Lingqi had in the back of her mind.
"When I arrived, you asked me to relinquish my weapon as well as Lingqi's. Where are they now?" He demanded rather than asked.
With a reluctant sigh, Goodwitch showed them to the locker room and locker numbers 319 and 320 where Lingqi's bifurcated crossed pike and Lu Bu's halberd were hung. The pair immediately retrieved their weapons and put them in their own rooms, not trusting them to be anywhere else.
They walked around the grounds for quite some time and it was getting late and after bidding each other a good night, the two warriors headed into their own rooms.
The Demon himself changed out of his armor and found a comfortable pair of dark red sweatpants but all the shirts refused to fit around his massive arms and in the end, he ripped off the sleeves of a black t-shirt and lay in the bed, finding it much more comfortable than the other sleeping arrangements in China, swiftly falling asleep to the real reason why he fought.
After removing her armor and tiara, Lingqi dressed in a black long-sleeved shirt the left of which she had to remove simply because it reminded her of her amour and found a comfortable pair of black shorts with a purple stripe on the left leg. Sleep had trouble finding its way to her however as she wrestled with her emotions and whether or not she could really trust the people at this academy. In the end though, she passed out knowing that if anything happened, her father would be able to fight his way out of it.
(AN: So shout out to General Feng Xian for helping me figure out a semblance for Lingqi that will be revealed soon. Go and check out his work!)