Alnea fumbled, trying to find words to weave them into an excuse, as all the smugness from his face was replaced by shame, and a hidden guilt.
“I don’t know why it happened like this. Maybe because it was the first time that I was practising Martial Styles.”
Once again, he was lying to his master. Once again, he was breaking her trust. Even though he had already decided to never do that just a short while ago, he was doing it once again. He was disappointing her, once again. And it looked like she knew it as well, for she kept staring at him in silence. In the end, she made up her mind about something, and got up from her seat. For the first since he had seen her, she got up from her seat. And even though she did not use her hands to keep her robe straight, it still kept flowing down her shoulders in the most elegant way Alnea had seen anyone carry their robes.
“I have some matters to attend to, so I need to go out for a while. I will be back shortly. Till then, you can have your breakfast.”
Saying so, his master did not wait for his reply, and walked towards the doors of the hall, while Alnea kept watching her in a daze. Her pristine white robe, perfectly hiding her feet beneath its hems and folds, kept fluttering along with her steps in such a way that it looked as if she was not even walking, but floating inches above the ground, sliding across the hall. And she slid with the same grace that she had stood up with, the same grace that Alnea had always seen her hold herself with, a grace of inviolable majesty.
Wherever she went, even the air itself gave way to her presence, bowing to her commands in a way that even the retainers of the Lotus clan did not bow to them. Even the doors of the hall opened on their own for her, illuminating her– No, the light was not illuminating her, she was illuminating the light, just as she illuminated the world outside the hall, brightening it up with her presence. So grand was her presence, that Alnea wondered, if she ever went out at night, would she turn it into a day?
Unfortunately, his own day soon turned into a darkness darker than even that darkest of nights, as he finally came to his senses when his master was long gone, and saw her empty seat. It was the first time he had seen his master go anywhere out the hall. Or rather, it was the first he had seen her anywhere but at her seat. He had, at one point, even wondered if she lived here, in the Fourth Glyph Repository of the Central Academy.
Yet, his master, who had always been at her seat, either teaching him, or meditating, had gone out of the hall for the first time, just after he had lied to her. Was it a coincidence, or was it because she had seen through his lies, and was too disgusted to be near him? Was she going to abandon him? Like his father, was she going to leave him too? He would not blame her if she did that. She had given him her full trust, and yet he had broken that trust by not only hiding things from her, but also by lying to her. And not just once. But…
She was his master. How could she leave him like this? When he had felt as if the whole world, except Cecilia, was against him, she was the one who had come forth to help him. She had been the one who promised him to make him have a foundation not lacking to anyone in the world. Was she going to break her promise?
No, it was not even about the promise anymore. After all, he had also told her that he would never break her trust. Yet from the very beginning, he had always been hiding things from her, and had kept breaking her trust. If she really did break her promise, then how could he blame her for that? It was all because of him. All because he…
Memories of the times he had spent together with his master kept flashing in his mind. Like how she would smile and nod whenever he would give her a correct answer. And even if he went wrong at times, she would not scold him, or be disappointed in him. She would instead correct him patiently, and make sure that he would never be wrong again. And when he tried to be cheeky with her, she would flick his forehead, or rub his head. Her gentle and warm touch on his head whenever she did that, still remained fresh in his mind.
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She was his master. And he was her disciple. Unknowingly, even though he had not been with her for long, she had already become an inseparable part of his life. A part, which he could not live without. A part, which he needed to find, and hold on to, with the intention of never letting go. He could not let her leave him. Without her, he would be all alone. No, he could not just sit like that. He had to…
Restraining his urge to run after his master, Alnea took out his breakfast with his shaking hands, and ate it. And in the chaos of his Heart, he tasted nothing. There was nothing more he wished to do at the moment, other than running after his master. But he did not know where she was. And she had told him that she would come back in a while. He had already failed her trust once. He was not going to break it once again.
That was what Alnea kept telling himself, as he ate his tasteless breakfast, waiting for his master to come back, like she had said she would. And that wait kept going on even after he had completed his breakfast. But there was nothing else he could do. Putting the lunch box back in his bag, he kept waiting, like he had been told to. Just as he kept waiting for his father to come, keep his promise, he kept waiting for his master to come, and keep her words as well. But just as his father never came, his master did not come either.
Yet he still kept waiting, living an entire day in every moment that passed in his wait. And he kept waiting until his master finally came back, floating back to her seat with the same grace that she had left.
“It took a little longer than expected,” his master said, but Alnea did not care. The moment that he saw his master, he was not able to stop himself anymore, plunging himself into her embrace.
“I was wrong, master,” Alnea said in a cracked, and hoarse voice, developed from his incessant sobbing in his wait. “I was wrong. I will never do it again. Please don’t leave me, master. I don’t want to be alone anymore. Please…”
Alnea felt his master’s gentle hand caressing his head, but that did not assuage his fears. He could not lose her. “I promise that I will be even more diligent,” he said, ignoring the heavy pressure that the new Oath, and its chains brought him. But he could not ignore the stiffening of his master’s hands on his head. Was she really going to leave?
“I will become the greatest Wanderer, your best disciple, and I will make you proud. I promise. So please don’t leave me, master. Please…”
“Silly disciple,” his master said, finally stopping him in his sobs. “Did I not tell you to be careful with your Oaths?”
“I will,” Alnea said hastily. She did tell him that, and he should have listened to her. Was that why she was leaving him? No, it was still not too late. She had yet to leave him. He could still stop her. He just had to take another Oath. Another promise. But he could not look at her. He was too scared for that. So, he kept his face buried in her robe, as he nodded along with her words.
“I will. I will always be careful with my promises from now on. I pr–
Unfortunately, before Alnea could finsh his words, and make his promise to convince his master, she deprived him of his voice.
“You are not just silly, but stupid as well,” his master said in an irritated voice, making him feel more fearful of her leaving him. And that prompted him to hug her even more securely, refusing to let go at any cost. Yet, in the end, he was still just a Seed, not even a Wanderer. His grip could never hold on against his master’s gentle, yet firm hands. Pulling him out of her embrace, she looked at his tear stained face with a stern gaze.
“Is this how you prove that you will be careful with your promises? By making another reckless promise?”
Alnea shook his head in fear. He did not know why he had done that, or how he should respond. His plans did not account for making her angry with him. Did his actions push her away from him once again? What was he supposed to do? How could he make her stay?