By the time they left the Valley of Wind, afternoon had already thinned to amber. A couple more stops, and dusk slipped in like a quiet tide. Yumigawa Senki and her group laughed at how fast the hours ran, how night arrived before their hearts had caught up.
For Yugong Jingyue, it hit harder. Her days were usually idle and bland, a pond without ripples. Since Yumigawa Sumeragi left the Central Continent, a day this rich felt rare, like rain after a long dry season.
She wanted the house to hold more voices, to feel warmer. In truth, Jingyue wished she could tag along with Senki and the others into the outside world. Even wandering winds sounded better than the Central Continent’s empty halls with few footsteps. Yes, much like Sumeragi’s thoughts back then.
But if she left, none of the current clan head’s children would remain at the Mizumi Clan’s estate. That didn’t sit right.
On the road home, under a sky washed orange by a sinking sun, Jingyue sighed. “When will the cold, boring life at home change? Every day feels like retirement, smooth but dull. I want to go out with you and see the world...”
“Jingyue, the outside isn’t that kind,” Senki said, her voice calm as a steady rain.
She shook her head gently. “Out there, there are many people and many ways to live. Sure, you won’t be as bored as at home. But in environment and resources, the outside falls far short of the Central Continent. And beneath it all, it’s a society where the weak get eaten. Plenty of common folk live miserably, no matter how hard they try. They earn little, and nobles use them as punching bags when their mood sours. Exploitation is as common as dust. They say the slums are worse, though we haven’t been.”
“Huh? Is it really as bad as Qianji Sister says? I didn’t feel that,” Littlesky frowned, genuinely puzzled.
“That’s probably because you rarely look at the common folk,” Senki replied, voice cool as moonlight. “The darkness under a ‘peaceful prosperity’ is far colder than I’ve said. Without a name, backing, or strength, it’s hard for ordinary people to live well. In many backward kingdoms, commoners are treated like slaves.”
Senki had grown up on the Central Continent, a hidden paradise cut off from the world’s grime. What she saw on the Eastern Moon Continent left her with a heavy heart.
During her time at Egisia Academy, she sometimes went with Eastern Moon Aixue and Faya to the coastal kingdoms around the academy isle to shop.
In those kingdoms, she saw common people treated like slaves again and again. She even cut down a few nobles who didn’t know better and tried to harass them. When the relatives of those nobles heard and came raging with squads of noble guards, they were thunder and steel—until they heard the name of the Mizumi Clan. At that sound, they dropped to their knees, bodies shaking, and begged for mercy.
It taught Senki a harsh lesson: status often weighs more than anything. If she hadn’t been born in the Mizumi Clan and were just a talented ordinary fighter, nobles would hound her forever.
“So the life we have—never worrying about resources, idly savoring each day—is exactly what countless commoners long for. Don’t dislike it too much, Jingyue,” Senki said, shaking her head again.
“I don’t hate it,” Jingyue answered with a wry smile. “It just feels like retirement. What you said shows up in realistic novels and manga all the time. I know a bit about the outside.”
The air grew heavy, like clouds gathering before rain. Littlesky cut in, unhappy with the mood. “We’re almost home for dinner. Let’s stop with the gloomy talk that drags your heart down! Other people’s lives are theirs. We don’t need to carry it. We just need to live ours, right?”
“Mm. You’re right, Littlesky. Letting that sort of thing sour your mood is pointless.”
“Then after dinner, let’s plan where we’ll play tomorrow!”
Senki smiled and brushed Littlesky’s soft, silver hair, smooth as flowing water. She met Jingyue’s eyes, and together they set those heavy thoughts aside like leaves on the wind.
After a night of easy debate, the three sisters chose to visit a place where elixirs cluster. They’d play and, while wandering, pick herbs useful in battle. Two birds with one stone.
Closest to the Mizumi Clan’s home, and rich with Divine Elixirs, lay a perfectly named valley—Divine Elixir Valley.
Beyond its herbs, the valley’s scenery was beautiful, hills and groves breathing calm. Everywhere carried a scent like fresh medicine, a clean fragrance that cleared the mind with just a breath. The aroma rode soft breezes, called the Wind of Elixirs. It’s a perfect place, whether for gathering or for play.
At the deepest part of Divine Elixir Valley stands an orchard, a hush of trees bearing Holy Healing Fruit—the peak of healing and recovery in this world. No doubt, that was one of their main goals.
So the three quickly reached a consensus: tomorrow, they’d head for Divine Elixir Valley.
Around eleven that night, the sisters flipped through Yumigawa Sumeragi’s photo album, moonlight pooling on the floor.
“Mm~ Our brother was cute no matter how many times I look,” Littlesky said, eyes shining, practically drooling. “I’m so jealous of Qianji Sister and Serenemoon.”
In one photo, teenage Senki and Jingyue held a golden-haired, adorable Sumeragi as they slept, like summer lilies cradling a sunbeam. Littlesky wished she were an older sister, not the little one.
“We’re the ones jealous of you, Littlesky,” Jingyue said softly. “You were raised by Sumeragi himself, from small to tall.”
She pointed at a photo of Sumeragi, eight or nine, carefully dressing toddler Littlesky. Jingyue’s face brimmed with longing. “I want him to bathe me, to dress me too...”
“Jingyue’s right,” Senki chuckled, tapping Littlesky’s smooth forehead. “Don’t take it for granted. Everyone in the Mizumi Clan knows Sumeragi dotes on you most.”
“Hehe... That’s true. I wish brother would keep raising me forever.”
The childhood memories warmed Littlesky’s smile until it glowed.
“Sumeragi will find someone he loves one day,” Senki said gently. “He’ll marry. He can’t take care of you forever.”
“What’s the problem? I’ll just marry brother and be his bride!”
“Sumeragi’s bride, huh...” Senki paused, then grinned. “Mm! Good idea. Decision made. We’ll marry Sumeragi.”
“Hey, hey, we’re his blood sisters!”
“So what? Don’t you want to stay by him for life?”
“Mm... I do.”
For a while, the room felt endlessly warm, like a hearth under winter snow.
