Consequences of words

"Jin! Oh no! Are you okay?!"

"I would like to answer your question, whatever it is, but I can't hear a thing right now because SOMEBODY rang the Big Bell While I Was Still IN IT!" Jin roared.

"Huo! Did you know he was in there?"

"How should I know?!"

[System! Did you know he was in there?!]

[Indeed.]

[Why didn't you warn me?! Next time, warn me if my actions would inadvertently harm somebody innocent!]

[There seems to be little harm to Jin. Mere annoyance, at best. The dinner bell is one of Jin's Most Favorite Sounds in the whole world.]

Riku followed a grumpy Jin in to dinner, and ate quietly while questioning. [System, what just happened today? I'm rather confused.]

[User fought Herman…] System began.

[I meant at the Ji Clan.] Riku clarified.

There was a short pause. [The Ji Clan Elder offered a marriage between you and his daughter and to aid you claim the Xi legacy if you would join his clan. He wanted to add the Spirit Smithing talents in your bloodline to his own clan.]

[Ah… so that's it…] Riku realized. [But I wanted to restore my own Xi Clan, not to join the Ji!]

[Following that, Shui and Mu sabotaged his offer and declared war on your behalf.]

Riku almost choked. [Wait. What? Why? How did they do it?]

[Going by probability… had you accepted the Ji offer, the Ji clan would gain Ji Riku and the Huang clan would lose Huang Riku.] System figured. [They would lose their Junior Brother, the Earth Element of the Five Elements, and your bloodline talents.]

Right. He was 'Huang' Riku now. [Then what about that Ji girl?]

[She was as confused as you. Upon Mu's declaration that negotiations failed, she who already saw you as an enemy, immediately voiced assumption of open hostilities in a way that actually initiated it.]

[We were just discussing a land deal!] Riku groaned. [How did it come to this?!]

[The word of the heiress of Ji cannot be questioned. Having war directly declared, neither party can back down any longer. Shui sought to control the damage. He thus insisted on non-lethal contest. Additional rules were set on both sides to prevent any truly damaging action to be taken by either party.]

[So I'm in a seven-year war with the Ji that neither of us want and in which we have agreed not to hurt each other?]

[Correct.]

[What are we fighting for, exactly? The land? For me?] Riku gulped.

[The prize of the war has not been determined. Such rewards are commonly decided upon by the terms of surrender.]

Riku sighed to himself. [Couldn't the Ji girl just have clarified her statement early on?]

[She did not, and would not. Had she been of any other clan, perhaps, but one of the laws of the Ji Clan is that they keep their word. Even misspoken ones.]

Riku shivered. [What a terrifying rule! Remind me never to marry into that family!]

[Is that really your intention?] System seemed unsure.

[Why do you sound uncertain?] Riku questioned.

[I think she likes you.] System explained.

[No, no, please, no! She's almost as bad as Ruyi!]

[I think Ruyi likes you too.]

Riku almost choked on his dinner. "I'd rather marry Mu!"

Unfortunately, he'd said that last sentence out loud, at dinner, in front of everybody, during a quiet period in which nobody made much noise. Everybody heard him.

Everybody immediately turned to him with varying looks. Mu herself was stunned. Shui literally choked.

"Nooo!!" Ruyi shrieked. "You can't marry her! Not her!"

Jin and Huo were staring blankly. Like… totally blank.

Thankfully, Master Huang had other thoughts. "Thinking about the Ji Clan offer, Riku? And the Ji girl?"

Madam Huang cleared her throat. "It's too late already. War is to be waged."

"How, exactly? We can't kill each other. So, what, we just fight and beat up each other without killing until one side surrenders?"

"Pretty much. You could also just taunt them and tease them into submission, but I doubt the Ji Clan are that easy to bully." Master Huang mentioned.

"Bullying is forbidden!" Mu stated at once.

"Maybe if you kidnapped her…" Jin began.

"Kidnapping is forbidden!" Mu barked.

Riku stared. "So THAT's why she said that…"

"Blackmail and defamation are also forbidden." Shui cleared his throat. "Also, only the younger generation of the Ji Clan would participate in this war against you."

"Against me alone? Aren't you going to help me?!" Riku protested.

"Maybe." Shui squinted at him. "What's in it for me?"

Riku gaped.

"I want a Grade 1 Spirit Sword!" Jin leapt up at once. "That's your Xi Clan talent, right? I'll help you if you'll forge me one! I know you're poor so I'll even provide the materials!"

"Then I want a Grade 2 Spirit Sword!" Ruyi threw in. "Or else!!"

"I CAN'T forge a Grade 2 Spirit Sword! At least, not yet, and not without learning it from my clan's manuals!" Riku protested.

"Then I want TWO Grade 1 Spirit Swords." Shui said.

"Three." Mu raised her hand.

"Ten." Huo cut in.

"Two hundred." Master Huang added. "I'll need at least two hundred to arm the Town Guards. Help me arm them and I'll spend my resources and go all out to increase your strength. I'll personally escort you to train at the Origin Springs!"

"Even Master Huang…!" Riku mourned ever bringing up the topic.

Madam Huang sighed. "I can also bear some costs to help you increase your strength, but I want a Tier 2 Black Starlight Flower grown by your own hands."

"A what?" Riku stared.

"A spiritual herb that is difficult to nurture. You'll have to pay special attention to that one." Master Huang grunted. "I'm not sure if our land even has enough spiritual power to grow it, but it's worth a try."

"Then… then I want one too! Either a Grade 2 Spirit Sword, or a Tier 2 spiritual herb flower!" Ruyi exclaimed.

Riku shook his head. "What am I up against, anyway?"

"The Ji Clan has seven children in our generation." Shui reported. "Ji Basil and Ji Iris are 1st Stage Adepts. Iris was the girl we met today, by the way. Ji Thyme is a 2nd Stage Adept. Ji Cymaria is at 3rd, Ji Orchid at 4th, Ji Rose at 5th and Ji Lotus at 6th."

"So… beat down two herbs and five flowers, and I get my land back?" Riku asked.

Shui chuckled. "If only it were so simple. But you can expect them to challenge you at any time."

"I doubt Rose or Lotus would bother with a Novice like you." Madam Huang assured Riku. "Cymaria isn't fond of fighting either. Your biggest concern should be Orchid."

"A fourth stage Adept." Jin grimaced. "Sorry, Riku, I can't handle her. You'll need Shui for that."

Shui grinned. "Two Grade 1 Spirit Swords, and I'll keep her off your back. Make them twin light swords for dual-wielding, please."

Jin went on, "I can handle Iris or Basil, but Thyme… you'll want to ask Ruyi."

"Or I can just get Mu to take them all down." Riku suggested.

"If you do that, Rose will most definitely step in and stop her. Or worse, Lotus would get involved, and then you're going to need Huo's help."

Riku made a quick calculation. Even pitting all the Huang children against the Ji children, there would be no one to stop Cymaria and the second Stage 1 Adept. Riku's best hope would be if Cymaria simply didn't bother, and he only had to deal with that Stage 1 Adept as a Novice.

That left Riku with but one conclusion.

No matter what, he was going to have to get stronger, fast. Otherwise, he was definitely, inevitably going to get beaten to a pulp and bullied for the next seven years.