More Relatives

The next few days passed very quickly. My course was on the verge of being completed, while my training saw some fruits. I began to develop my own rhythm, while the footwork technique uncle Aran introduced to me, became more fluid and practiced.

More importantly though, my other uncles and aunts arrived at the town. Uncle Norty and his wife Elly were the first to arrive. They had two daughters called Lana and Mira. Lana was older than me, she was twenty-two years old, whereas Mira was only seventeen.

Me and Mira got along really well, but Lana didn't seem interested in getting to know me. She was kind of shocked when she saw my mother, but the surprise seemed expected. Uncle Norty and aunt Elly didn't have such reactions. Aunt Elly was the same as my great aunt, she didn't even ask about it. My uncle treated my mother with respect, and didn't look weirdly at her.

Mira on the other hand, had loads of questions. She asked me about the North, and how come my parents are together. She even said that my mother had that kind of mysterious beauty to her. I felt proud when she said that, me and my father believed that my mother was really beautiful. We got to know each other a bit more, before the next guests arrived.

My aunt Haily and her husband Jeff came next. They brought Remi their daughter, and Vick their son with them. Aunt Haily was also surprised to see my mother's eyes, but she didn't look at her in a bad way. She even expressed admiration for how strong willed she was. Keeping that mask, and adventuring together with me father, wasn't easy after all.

Remi and Vick were around my age, eighteen and sixteen years old respectively. Remi was really polite but also very quiet. She only said a few words to be polite, but then kept to herself. I wasn't sure whether it was a lack of interest or simply shyness. Vick on the other hand, was the complete opposite of her. He was very lively, talked a lot, liked to fool around and even trained to become a warrior.

The last to arrive was uncle Aron, and his wife Diana. Their son Arche was only eleven years old, but he was a huge pain. That brat lacked any manners, and thought everything belonged to him. I never heard him say 'thank you' or 'sorry', as if he owned those things since the beginning.

Uncle Aron was polite and nice though. He was welcoming to my mother, and expressed admiration for my father. He seemed to like my father a lot, like he tried to live up to him. His wife Diana, she was a different story. The way she looked at my mother was annoying to say the least. My mother didn't voice her thoughts, but I knew she noticed that contempt. After all, I did, therefore she had to as well. Since mother said nothing, I decided to stay quiet as well.

Lana interacted with people older than her most of the time. She didn't seem interested in us young adults at all. Though she came off a bit cold, I didn't hold it against her. She didn't seem to hate me, she wasn't simply interested in younger people. Remi was similar in a way. She found a quiet corner, then read a book without anyone disturbing her. 'Well, I mean my family is big, but there are all sorts of people in the world. Not everyone will be social, or try to make friends'.

Arche was someone I learned to avoid. He was that bratty and snotty kid, who thought too highly of himself. I tried to be nice, but as some people would say, 'give a finger, and he'd take a whole arm'. That kid wasn't nice, there wasn't a shred of humility in him, or even manners of any sort.

Vick and Mira were quick to accept me as their friend, and relative. We struck a few conversations together, and learned a bit more about each other. "Hoh! You learned how to make Formations? Are you any good?", Vick asked, surprised about my knowledge of Formations.

"That depends, I'd say. How about I show you something? There's a little project of mine, just outside the town. I haven't finished yet, but most of the stuff is there already. Wanna go and have a look?", I proposed. Both of them showed interest, so I grabbed them and headed toward the gate. "Hey, Anna. Where are you guys going?", Arche wanted a piece of that action too. That wasn't something I needed at that stage. "It's for adults", I replied, before dragging Mira and Vick away as quickly as I could.

"Slow down, Anna! There's no rush", Mira exclaimed. "Come on, you need some exercise", I said, refusing to slow down. "Ha...Hah… Wow, you are quite strong. Do you want to be a warrior too?", Mira asked, once we were outside the town. "Well, I'm training but I want to be an adventurer. I want to visit other places, like my father used to do", I replied. "Hehe. Not bad, Anna. Not bad at all. Maybe we can spar a bit later? I'd like to see how strong you really are", Vick proposed. "Sure, we can do that, after you see my course", I replied.

They were a bit clueless when I mentioned the word 'course', but everything became clear when they saw it. "Anna… Are you sure this is not a joke? You mean, you made all of that by yourself?", Mira asked, shocked. "Yes, everything was achieved with the use of Formations. The walls and other obstacles you see, all of that thanks to Formations. Of course, this would be too easy for an obstacle course. Let me finish it, that's when you'll witness the real difficulty", I explained.

"Heh, to think I actually doubted you. How long did you learn about Formations?", Vick asked, really impressed. "I've studied them since my childhood. I was seven years old when my journey with Formations began... That would mean, about nine years", I replied. "Wow, you learned from such a young age? Moreover, you're also training your body. What sort of genius are you?", Mira still couldn't believe it.

"You praise me too much. There are loads of people much stronger, and more knowledgeable than me in the North. My Formations skills are considered intermediate, I have a long way until mastery. Besides, my mom didn't make my childhood very easy. Not only was she strict, she was also very stingy… I mean, would you buy your daughter a rubbish bed, even though you could afford a proper one?", I asked.

"Of course I'd buy them a better one. Yea, that's stingy as hell. Wow, I'm glad our parents weren't like that. Though I must also say, this sort of thing paid off in the end. You seem strong, and you have such great knowledge of Formations. That's worth something… Anyway, finish that course of yours already, I'd like to have a go!", Vick said.

"I hope you don't regret these words, hehe… Oh! My grandpa is coming over. Grandpa! Come meet my cousins!", I shouted. "Hehe, are you guys having fun? I'm Philip, Anna's grandfather", grandpa introduced himself. After a short introduction from Vick and Mira, grandpa praised my course and told me it looked great.

"Ah, I forgot to mention. Grandpa is a Formation master. He lives at the Formation Academy, you probably heard about it", I said with a bit of pride. "Really!? A real Formation master? Sheesh, no wonder Anna is so good with Formations", Vick exclaimed, surprised. "I'm old already, but Anna has much more potential than me. Her knowledge and grasp of Formations is excellent, my student would envy her. Perhaps you guys should visit the Academy after the wedding? You've never been there", grandpa proposed.

"That's a great idea, but… I'm not aware what mom and dad are planning. We should ask them first. I'm positive they'd agree though", I replied. "We'll deal with that after the ceremony. They have enough on their head already, let's not disturb them for now. Alright kids, I'll go around for a small hike. You enjoy yourselves", grandpa bid us farewell.

"...I wish we could go as well", Vick said. "I don't see why you couldn't join us. Though we have to leave that until the ceremony is over. Grandpa is right, let's not disturb them with that for now. Anyway, you asked for a spar, right? Are you still up for it?", I asked him. "Ha! I'm always ready, bring it on!", Vick exclaimed before retrieving his sword.

Once I took my scabbard out, both Vick and Mira looked at me weirdly. "What's wrong?", "Hey… Are you secretly very wealthy or something? That scabbard alone looks to be a special order. I'm sure the sword isn't any different either", Vick explained their confusion. "I'm not that wealthy really. There is a story concerning this sword. I can tell you later. Anyway, ready?", I asked. "Hehe, sure. Show me what you got!", Vick replied full of confidence.

I smirked, then used the footwork technique uncle Aran taught me. Before Vick had time to defend, my sword already pointed at his body. "You are fast, I'll give you that. This was just a test, let's try again!", he said before distancing himself. This time, I allowed him to attack first. His basics were not as good as mine, even I could see the flaws in some of his attacks. Vick was also weaker than me.

'He hasn't reached his Outer Limits yet, hence the difference', I thought. His sword was subpar to be delicate, or perhaps my sword was too good. After deflecting his sword a few times, I could already see some damage to it.

"Seriously though… What is that sword of yours made of? Moreover, you are quite strong", Vick complained. "Well, my sword is quite durable and sharp for sure. Though this isn't a question of swords. You'd still lose, even if we changed weapons", I replied. "What confidence! How about we change the swords then? I will use yours, and you will use mine. If you are that confident, there's no way you'll back out now, right?", he proposed. "Sure, nothing will change though", I agreed.

We swapped our sword, but the result was the same. Or rather worse. Vick's sword developed cracks all over the blade. The sword became useless, a few more strikes and the sword would shatter. "You weren't joking at all… Man, just how strong are you?", Vick asked in disbelief.

"My assumption turned out to be true. You haven't reached your Outer Limits stage yet, right?", I replied. "You did it at the age of sixteen?! I admit my defeat, you really are much better than me… I have to train harder", he said defeatedly. "Sorry about your sword. When my father returns, I will ask him to make a new one for you. He's a good smith, so the sword should be better than what you have", I apologised. "No, no, don't worry. I can get another one. They aren't that expensive. Besides, I underestimated you a lot. Warriors shouldn't make that mistake", he replied.

'That's great and all, but how far can you go with a rubbish sword? I'll ask father anyway, this will be a good surprise for him', I thought. "You must be as strong as my sister then. She reached the Outer Limits stage about two years ago. Maybe you two can have a bout", Mira added out of nowhere. "Lana reached the Outer Limits stage? That's great to hear. Though she doesn't seem interested in getting to know me. I don't want to bother her either", I replied.

"Haha, she wasn't like that before. I guess reaching the Outer Limits made her change a bit. She became prideful, and annoying as well. I'm her sister, and even I get the cold shoulder from her. That's a perfect opportunity to rub salt into her wound. She was so proud to have reached Outer Limits at the age of twenty. Hehe, I want to see her face, when she learns about you", she explained. "I'd like to test her out myself, find out the difference. I'll welcome her challenge, if she wishes to have a bout", I replied with a grin. "You girls are evil…", Vick said while shaking his head.