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[attr="class","raescroll"]
Saki answered Junjie’s question with complete and utter honesty, telling the man exactly what had been going on in the Suru family even as Jevi was sitting right there with her. She minced no words about it, making it abundantly clear that at this point she was only together with Daiki for the benefit of her son and keeping the family together so he had something to return to after his absence. Not once had she doubted that he would return to her, that’s how she was able to remain so steadfast and strong. Jevi mentioned wanting to talk about this with her later, to which Saki agreed if that’s what her son desired, before she listened to Junjie’s response. He called her husband a soulless tyrant, to which Saki gently smiled towards the man. “He is still my husband, and I still hold love for him. Not for the man he is now, but for the man he once was.” Saki believed that man to still be there. Perhaps buried under years of frustration and blinded by desire and ambition, but there nonetheless.
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Junjie also gave his opinion on her choices, stating that divorcing might have been seen as a bit of a shame and would incite rumors as well, but he believed that Jevi was strong enough to endure such trials and tribulations as he saw Jevi as a strong man with a lot of future potential. He believed that Jevi would have preferred her happiness and building up from tattered ruins, rather than having her suffer. Jevi himself remained quiet, fighting the grief and sadness in his mind as he felt his mother’s gentle hand run through his hair. “So in the end, he would have blamed himself regardless, Junjie. I took the path that I believed to be best for my family, as I do still hold hopes that my husband will return to the man he once was. All he needs to realize is that Jevi can and will find his own path, and I have no doubt it will lead to great things, for he is my son and I believe in him and his abilities.” As she had been playing with Jevi’s hair, she leaned in and kissed his temple gently before she whispered in his ear. “I know you’re hurting for me right now, but I never stopped believing in you and I never will.” Jevi had a hard time not tearing up, but he forced his feelings down and saved them for later when it was safe to let them out and simply nodded in acknowledgement of his mother’s words.
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In his turmoiled state of mind, he slipped up and looked towards Hinota, which Junjie caught and quickly explained he shouldn’t and why. He had not thought about some servants siding with his father, and potentially using his weaknesses against him, but he was a quick learner if anything and hid his emotions away before his father returned. Some words were exchanged, and Jevi did not falter or fall for the man’s traps. Eventually this lead to Daiki running out of options, as the man was being bested by people much younger than himself in his own games. Hinota expressed her grievances eloquently, and healed Daiki with a spell. As she moved over to Jevi, she admonished him further for still believing he could elevate his family’s name, and implored him to fix his ways so he could mend his family together with his wife and son, rather than being the problem they fought against. While he dismissed her words, they did hit home for Daiki and he needed time to think. For so long he had been trying to do things his way, that backing down now felt like a cop out. To simply acknowledge he was in the wrong after nearly fifteen years was not an easy task, so he excused himself claiming to have business and left shortly after Hinota had healed Jevi.
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Hinota had decided to treat Jevi in a much more personal manner by touching his cheek to get his wounds to heal, much to Jevi’s delight even though Junjie protested at first. For a moment it was calm and serene as he was being treated by Hinota, and he even managed to compliment her in a way that was more befitting of her culture, so he could express his feelings for her without it causing issues. She mentioned she couldn’t help but blame herself, and Jevi would not continue to argue with her. Instead he spoke softly to reassure her. “Well, I’m fine now.” There was no more pain, and Hinota explained that the Angelic magic she had was rare like his own magic, even though plants was her primary element. Though, her flowers did not smell like they were supposed to, which was a bit odd and embarrassed Hinota a little. “It takes a unique person to create such unique magic.” It was clear Jevi did not think any less of her for it, and in fact he was intrigued more than anything, but now was not the time to ask her more about her magic.
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This entire time, Jevi had been referring to Hinota as Princess Yuiee, just like he had been instructed by Junjie to do until she said otherwise. Unless it was on her estate, where he should not follow her wishes, of course. However, as Hinota pointed out they were not on her estate and so she requested him to simply use her name. “As you wish, Hinota.” He smiled softly, though it meant a lot to him. When they first met, they had quickly started referring to one another by their first names, however after he messed up and ended up confessing his feelings in an attempt to clear things up, she had reverted to being formal with him. They were now back at a point where she was comfortable with him using her first name, and that brought him no small amount of joy. Their conversation continued after this as Hinota explained she was not just a tactical prodigy, but also a political prodigy. Jevi thanked her for using those skills to help his family, and mentioned it was more than what they deserved.
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Clearly Hinota was pained to hear him say this, even though it was how Jevi felt. His father was a tyrant, he was a screw up and well, his mother did deserve all the help they got. Junjie jumped in, telling him not to put his family name down like that. While they were suffering right now, they did deserve the help to get the family back on track. Hinota added onto that that he was being pessimistic when speaking like this, and it showed he was ready to end the war and accept fate as it were. Jevi bowed to the both of them, and spoke in a neutral tone. “My apologies. I will not speak like that again.” His mind was still in turmoil at this point, and with his mother acting so happy and carefree towards Hinota it only became worse as he could not wrap his head around it. Hinota talked to Saki, mentioning how she had already overstayed her welcome in her husband’s eyes from the moment he was challenged outside. “Well, then he should not have invited you, my dear. I will ensure you will feel welcome every second you are here.” Saki truly had found a friend in Hinota, and she would not let her husband ruin something so special.
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Since Hinota and Junjie were going to stay here for a undefined amount of time, Jevi was not accepting Hinota’s wishes to sleep in her carriage. She deserved better, and while his estate was not even close to being as nice as her own, it certainly was better than a carriage. Hinota expressed once more that she did not wish to be a burden, and Jevi gave her soft smile. “You are not, nor will you ever be, a burden to myself or my mother.” Obviously he could not speak for Daiki, but in this case he knew both himself and Saki would do anything to help Hinota and Junjie no matter what, and would not feel it was a burden in the slightest. With that cleared up, and Hinota telling them they were to decide as they were their hosts, Jevi finally found his chance to get a moment to himself by using Jasmine as his excuse. Saki was going to take over showing them to their rooms, and Jevi was going to rejoin them soon enough after tending to Jasmine. Hinota told him they understood as Jevi explained his duties were elsewhere, and bowed together with Junjie.
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As Jevi left, Hinota instructed Junjie to go after him a little bit later to take care of his student. They all knew he was suffering from the new information he had just gathered, and if anyone could help him right now it would be Junjie. Saki smiled softly to Junjie as he told her he’d help him through his emotional turmoil. “I believe you to be the right person for that, Junjie. He does truly look up to you.” She had never seen him treat any lessons as seriously as the ones he got from Junjie, and she knew it was because Junjie spoke her son’s language. They were swordsmen at heart, and that’s why they understood each other. As Junjie left, Hinota reiterated that Junjie was a very kind man despite his demeanor at times. “I do not doubt it. He has been nothing but kind to us.” Together they went over the room options, and Hinota made a good point about not being too close to Jevi’s room. “Of course, dear, how about the middle room then? Not too close to Jevi, not too close to us, and Junjie can be close to both of you once Luli joins us.” It seemed like the best middle ground, and Saki noted that Hinota had her reservations. “However, if you truly wish to sleep in your carriage instead, I will convince Jevi to let you.” The woman gave the imperial princess a knowing smile, and if anyone could persuade Jevi it was her.
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When it came to Edgar, Saki immediately stopped the man as Hinota pointed out that the carriage was like a room. It was understandable that she did not want strangers inside of it, even if it was good natured. “Understood. He can help Junjie later if it’s needed.” Edgar simply followed his orders and smiled at Hinota, giving the young lady a bow as she requested to be shown to the kitchen. “Most certainly, Princess Yuiee. If you would follow me.” As she was a guest of his Lady and young Lord, he would do his utmost to serve her every wish while she was here, and so he lead the way to the kitchen as requested. Saki smiled at the invitation and nodded, walking alongside Hinota. “I’d be happy to join you. I could help you out if you’d like, and I’m very curious to your cooking as well.” There was no way she was going to refuse Hinota’s invitation to join her. She meant it when she said she’d make Hinota feel welcome every single second she was here with them. As they reached the kitchen, Saki would help Hinota find her way in the kitchen. “So what can I help you with? What are you making?” Edgar bowed to the two ladies and left them to their own devices, continuing his own work until he was called upon.
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Meanwhile, Jevi thought he had a perfect escape and could have a moment to himself to decompress in peace. The stables, or rather Jasmine, is where he’d often go when things had become too much for him. The white mare was sensitive to his emotions, and always remained close to her master to support him in times like these. Their bond was close, and that was easy to see for anyone who saw the two interact with one another. Jasmine could be as stubborn as Jevi, but in the end she’d always listen to him. As he let out his woes, holding on to Jasmine for support, he suddenly heard Junjie’s voice as he had not heard the man enter the stables. “O-Oh…” The fact he was not alone and that Junjie had heard all his doubts dawned on him, and he quickly wiped his face clean from any tears so that he did not have to show them. Junjie told him that he hadn’t noticed because growing up he had normalized Saki’s behavior, and he urged Jevi not to be too hard on himself before asking him if he had ever drunk from an empty cup. The question came out of nowhere, and confused Jevi quite a bit as he shook his head looking at Junjie with his chin resting on the back of Jasmine’s neck. “No?” Was he supposed to have practiced something like that? It just seemed odd.
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Junjie continued to explain the idea behind drinking from an empty cup. In the East it was said a perfect woman could drink from an empty cup, however this was more so a metaphor for pretending everything in life was as it should be regardless of the chaos going on within or around them. Jevi’s eyes met Junjie’s as it was clear he was listening to what his Master had to say with his full attention. Junjie thought that Saki was one of those women, and the reason he had never realized her pain was because she did not allow him to realize. “Right…” That made sense, as it aligned with the kind of woman his mother was. When Junjie asked if he wanted to know how to protect his mother, Jevi could only nod as Junjie minced no words and told him to take out the threat. That threat obviously being his father. There were two options, which was to either make Daiki change his ways or to exile the man from the family. For the latter he’d need to take over the family, and it would also go against his mother’s hopes. This meant changing Daiki’s mind was the only way to go.
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Once again, Junjie promised him he’d be given all the tools required for him to grow stronger in his skills and to become a more rounded noble, that is how he was going to progress on becoming strong enough to protect what he held dear. Junjie stepped closer and flicked his forehead, which had Jevi move his hand towards his own forehead as the slight pain singed through him. “Ow!” This pain was quickly followed by a chuckle, as it helped him get out of his own head. A slight smile showed on his face as he listened to Junjie’s advice of using what he wanted to protect as his source to become stronger and keep the darkness away from him. His own reason for not running and continuing to become stronger and keep training were Hinota and Luli, and while they were his entire world that didn’t mean he wouldn’t do everything to keep Jevi and Saki safe as well. “I know, Master, thank you.” Jevi was grateful for the man’s help, and he had already shown in actions that he was true to his words.
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Hearing Junjie’s sigh made Jevi worried a bit, as he explained that if Jevi truly believed he was going to end up disappointing himself and Hinota he was going to cut his losses right here and now. He’d also make sure he’d never be Hinota’s sword in the future, and Jevi’s eyes widened a bit at the threat. His tone made it clear that he was not joking, and Junjie continued to question him. Was he going let his mother’s sacrifice be in vain, or was he going to stop feeling sorry for himself and end Saki’s need to sacrifice? Was he going to stay, learn and train to become stronger, or was he going to run away again like three years ago and make his mother go through hell once more? In the end, he wondered if he had chosen the wrong student, as earlier today he had promised not to let him down. While Junjie wanted an answer before dusk, Jevi moved away from Jasmine to follow after him right away and called out. “Master, wait!” For a moment he reached out his hand, but stopped himself from trying to grab Junjie’s shoulder if the man stopped. “I don’t need till dusk to give you an answer. I can do this. I will do this. I refuse to run away ever again.” He brought his right hand to rest over his heart as he continued. “I’m going to rectify all my mistakes, and I will do my utmost to show my father that he can trust me to do what’s right, so that he can hopefully return to the man my mother loved... No more feeling sorry for myself. I promise.”

[attr="class","raescroll2"]
Saki is going to the kitchen with Hinota, while Jevi speaks with Junjie in the stables.

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