Possible triggering content - None!

The Elder’s gaze fell on the children's intrigued eyes in front of him. He smiled faintly at Mika, who seemed to be too out of the loop. He nodded to himself, cleared his throat, and moved on.

He noticed her and Sensei, who were standing behind them, would probably be frowning at her for being not attentive even here. She gulped and focused on the story.

“In the past, the deities' battles—with one to protect—were legendary. They made sure that the next generation would inherit their abilities—until they were given to not of the purest…”

And the powers were passed down to the ‘not-so-pure’ and they opened one of the three hell gates to draw power from, right? She thought.

She was right. The Elder said that and continued. “Because of the opening, beings that live in hell—called Demonic beings were plaguing this world starting the chain effect that led us here. They razed lands, terrorized villages…”

And then those deities died, and the powers were passed down to better hosts and the current generation is the best one so far. They are actually trying to close the gates, right? And to support the war efforts, humans formed twelve war clans. She thought and yes—It was a bull's eye. She remembered every inch of the story.

Oh my god!! I should be out there training. I’m a warrior! Not a historian! She whined.

The 'Battle of Lost Time' was brought up, and she instantly was hyper-focused. It was about a fight that happened about a decade ago. “It was the biggest blow to the Deities in all of human history…” Elder noted.

Yeah! All because of this incompetent Deity of Jikan, who gave the wrong intel about an attack and caused the Deity of Tenki and Jikan to die in the battle. Jikan even traveled forward in time to see about the attack and still made mistakes. Only if she didn’t mess up. Mika fumed, and the Elder noticed it.

“Then, are Tenki's and Jikan’s powers waiting to get a new host?” A kid questioned.

The Elder smiled and nodded and the kids jumped with joy, yelling, “I’ll get the powers then!”

Another girl questioned. “How can one get those powers?”

“It’s not that easy. Only the strongest of enlightened beings with true empty hearts would know. Us, normal people are too weak to hold the knowledge…”

The children collectively said, “oh nooo.”

“But don’t worry. There might be a pure being amongst us as we speak,” he sparked some hope.

Mika sighed. Ugh, they don’t understand how much of a disadvantage it is to have two Deities missing.

Noticing Mika was zoning out again, he said “One day, as the Elder, Sensei, and even Mika, too, hope that someone worthy, someone pure, will take that position and lead us out of the darkness,” he smiled at her to catch her attention. “That one day, when the remaining two powers found the rightful person to wield them, we can push back and take our home,” he added.

“We work through the pain and sweat to serve the nation. We dare not take breaks and should aim for the positions in the army that will bring our fading repetition, our families and the nation out of the darkness. Am I right, Mika?”

She realized she was too careless—that she would not make it into the army like her dad if she kept slacking off. Her face fell, still keeping her respect for the Elder, even though she didn’t dare to face him. I’m sorry! I’ll work harder! If not for the clan, at least for mom. The images of her mom coughing her lungs out watered her eyes. Her eyes flamed with determination.

“I’ll make it,” she said, gritting her teeth, her heart clenching at the thought. “I’ll be the strongest. Work for the army and rise through the ranks! Serve the king. I’ll work so hard that even not just my family, but everyone can eat until their stomachs burst open. I’ll do it. Till our clan is regarded as the best, once again,” she took a deep breath and faced the Elder.

“I can do anything, after all,” she added with a smile.

The Elder smiled at those words, ending the story. The kids stood up, beaming back and bowing to say thanks before they excused themselves. On their way out, Sensei pulled her to the side.

“You have to make it! For the welfare of your mom. You have already lost the edge that the title grants on the recruitment for the army. You don’t have that anymore. Work harder, Mika."

She nodded with conviction in her eyes. He grinned at her; she took off before him. “She’s just like her dad,” he whispered to himself, following his student to the exit.