Palma looked up at the Chief. His face had softened up from the shock of her identity.

"He's not as scary as I thought." Palma thought.

The Chief looked at Palma.

"Come, child." He said.

Palma looked at her mother nervously. Nepella smiled and patted her on the head.

Feeling a little more confidant, Palma got up and slowly walked towards the Chief.

Up close the Chief had a stern but gentle face with wrinkles and grey hair. His sharp ocean blue eyes showed no hostility towards Palma.

"So you are my daughter's child." The Chief said, while placing Palma on his lap. He stared at her for a while then smiled. 

"You look just like her." He mumbled.

"Like her?" Palma thought. "I look like who?"

Palma stared at her grandfather with curiosity. She wanted to ask what he meant, but she was too afraid. Palma stayed queit.

"If I may, Sire." Nepella said to the Chief.

"You may." He replied.

"I have come to request that we have Palma trained." Nepella said, with a serious expression.

"Hmm..." The Chief groaned.

Palma looked at the Chief nervously. The Chief looked down at her.

"What do you think, child?" He asked.

Palma looked at her mother. Nepella nodded at her with a serious expression.

Palma could tell that her mother wanted her to agree with the decision. However, Palma want to say what she thought on the matter not what her mother wanted her to say.

"I don't want to be a hero." Palma said with confidence.

The Chief looked at Palma surprised. He was suddenly reminded of a women he knew long ago, who said those exact same words.

"Palma!" Nepella shouted with rage.

Palma flinched. Her mother has never shouted at her like that before.

"Did I cross the line?" She thought.

"Why is that?" The Chief asked, softly.

Palma looked up at the Chief's eyes. It had a gentle yet longing look in them. Her heart skipped a beat.

"Why? Why are you making that face?" She thought.

From her six years of experience, Palma thought hard about what she wanted rather than what others' wanted for her.

"I do not want to be a hero because, all the children my age do not like me because I am the Hero's daughter. They do not want to approach me. Even though I want to be their friends, they find it difficult to treat me like others. If I become a hero, there will be people who dislike me and fear me. That is not the kind of person I want to be."

Plama's eyes glistened as she spoke with confidence.

There was a long silence.

"I see..." The Chief said, while placing Palma on the ground.

Palma looked up at the Chief, but she could not see his face clearly.

The Chief then called in a worker and the worker guided Palma to the entrance. Nepella stayed to talk privately with the Chief.

A half hour went by before Nepella had come out of the tent room.

Palma, who was sat on a stool near the entrance of the tent, came down from her seat and looked up at her mother.

Nepella did not make eye contact with Palma.

"Ahlee!" Nepella called out.

A young female worker rushed out of a tent on the left.

"Escort Palma back to her tent." Nepella ordered her.

"Yes, Ma'am." The female worker replied.

The female worker gently took Palma's hand and escorted her out of the Chief's tent. Disappointed, Palma stayed queit.

And she safety returned to her tent.