*Lei*

I stretched my hands up to the sky as the sun rose over the horizon.

I grinned. "Another day, another medal to be won!" I shouted.

"Why are you so loud this early in the morning? It's barely six," Yen asked, rubbing her ears.

"Yeah," Kun said, nodding as he rose from his bed. We had spent the night at the imperial palace of Rios, the original home of our modern universal empire.

I scoffed. "You two always complain about me not waking up early, yet when I do you start complaining about that." I sighed and shook my head. "Seems there's no winning against you two in this regard."

"Or any," Kun said, snickering.

I laughed. "Oh yeah? I'm certain that I can defeat you in battle."

Kun summoned his wand and transformed it into a sword. "Then let's see you try, little bro!" he said, grinning.

I summoned my butterfly knives. "Bring it!"

"You dolts! You'll destroy the room!" Yen yelled, stepping in the middle of the wide gulf between us. "Also, how could you have never gotten up this early for school? Even when we took the entrance exam, I had to wrestle you awake."

I rubbed my neck. "Please don't remind me, I saw my life flash before my eyes."

"Poor little brother," Kun said, walking over to me. He pulled me in for a hug. "Don't worry, I'll protect you from our mean sister."

I smiled. "Thanks, Kun. But I can protect myself."

Yen grumbled. "Since when did I become the villainess here?"

"Well, you do have that glare down," Kun and I said in unison.

Yen closed her eyes. "I do not!" she said, opening them.

We laughed. "You blinked just now!"

Yen walked up to us and smacked us in the chest with the palms of her hands. Sound waves vibrated outward, pushing us toward the glass window.

"Wahh!"

Kun and I covered our backs in wind to stop ourselves from crashing through the window.

"T-that was close," I said, lowering my head.

Yen smiled. "Well, this villainess is off to eat. Don't worry, I won't leave you two any honey foods."

"What? You evil person!" I yelled, standing up. I ran for the door as she opened it.

Yen giggled. "You know I wouldn't actually do that to my adorable little brothers."

I sighed. "Oh good. You looked serious when you said that."

"Wait Lei, she might say that she wasn't actually kidding," Kun said, walking up to us.

Yen raised an eyebrow. "That seems like something you would pull, not me."

Kun grinned. "Well, maybe..."

"Kun is the bad guy!" I said, backing away from him.

"Well, he does wear a masquerade mask and attacked us out of nowhere when we met," Yen said, trying not to laugh. "So he definitely has the villain get up."

"I'm no villain," Kun said, putting a hand on his chest. "I'm a hero!"

Yen and I just stared at him.

Kun blushed. "H-hey, what's with those deadpan looks? I'm serious!"

"More like an anti-hero," my sis and I said in unison.

Kun crossed his hands over his chest. "Hmph. See if I save you next time you two are in trouble."

I grinned. "Well, if you are a true hero then you would save us anyway."

Kun tilted his head. "True..." He chuckled. "But you said I was an anti-hero."

"I-I'll make sure not to require your help then, just in case," I said, grumbling.

"You three are so loud," a voice called out as the door opened behind Yen. It was our baby brother, Shandian.

"Hey, half-pint," Yen said, picking him up. "Did we wake you up?"

Shandian nodded his head. "Yeah," he said, rubbing his eyes. "And probably everyone else around."

"They should really make this room soundproof," I said.

"Yeah, but maybe that's a bad idea. Yen did just try to kill us," Kun said.

Shandian's eyes widened as he looked straight into our sister's eyes. "R-really?"

"I was just giving them a good scare. Plus they saved themselves. You know I can't defeat those two by myself. One-on-one yeah, but not one-on-two."

Shandian smiled. "I wish I was here to see that."

"You wanted to see us get scared?" I asked.

"Psst, I think Shandian might be the true villain among us," Kun whispered.

"V-vilain?" Shandian asked, blinking.

"Oh, just ignore him, little one. Your brothers are just being goof-balls."

Shandian smiled. "What's different about that? They always are."

"Yen, what have you been teaching Shandian?" Kun asked, sniffing. "When did he become this snarky?"

"He must've learned it from you," Yen said.

"True," I said, chuckling.

"All three of you," Shandian said, looking down.

All three of us laughed.

"I guess that's true," we said together as we patted his soft blond head.

Our little brother giggled.

"Well, seems you quieted them down, Shan," a female voice said. We all turned to the hallway. Standing outside of the room were Mama and Papa.

"You kids really are noisy," Papa said as he stretched his arms into the air and yawned.

"Hope our other-selves have quieter kids," Mama whispered.

Papa chuckled. "Yeah, well Eri and Ocarina have a loud mouth in Raul."

"Huh?" the four of us said together.

"It's nothing to be concerned about," Mama said as she reached her hands out for Shandian. "Come on, little one. Time to go eat then we can go do some more sightseeing."

"Sightseeing? Sounds like fun!" Yen said, smiling.

"Will you three be able to join us this time?" Mama asked with a hopefully smile.

"I think we can join at certain intervals, but we have events we're participating in," Kun said, lowering his head.

Papa lowered his arms. "Sorry kids..."

"Huh? What are you sorry about?" I asked.

"For not being able to afford us a real vacation. The six of us haven't gone on a vacation together. The last time we had a vacation was before Shandian was even conceived."

"Oh right, the one to Xian!" I said.

"We did go to Kyuu Seishin before that... though that was to see Eri participate in the Mahoulympics," Kun said.

"Huh? When was that again?" I asked.

"Did that happen?" Yen asked, rubbing her head.

"You two don't remember? It's when we met that guy with the shield. The one who resembled Papa."

"Hmm, I don't recall," Yen said.

"Think you saw him the least out of us," I said. "I remember him somewhat."

"I remember him rather well," Kun said, puffing up his chest.

"Well, you did call him 'Papa' when you first met him," Papa said.

Kun blushed. "I-I thought he was you!"

Papa chuckled and patted my brother. "You know, looking at you reminds me a bit of him. His hair had also turned white at one point."

I suddenly felt a pit in my stomach, but I didn't know why. But... a sensation resembling guilt washed over me.

"Really?" Yen asked. "How strange."

"I guess it is," Papa said, putting his hands behind his head. "Anyway, I'm going to go shower. You five eat without me."

"You aren't going to eat with us?" Mama asked.

"I'll join you in a bit. I'm sure that by the time I'm done, our three little piggies will still be eating."

"Who are you calling 'piggies'?" we triplets asked.

Papa laughed. "Who else?"

"Papa is right, you are piggies," Shandian said, giggling.

"Well, you're one too, half-pint," Yen said, stretching his cheeks.

"Wouldn't that make him half a piggy?" Kun asked.

"Three piggies in a half then," Mama said.

The four of us grumbled as she joined Papa in his teasing.

"See ya!" Papa said, waving.

"Papa sure has been more talkative lately," Yen said.

"Think it's because he misses you guys," Mama said, snuggling Shandian. "This one doesn't talk as much as you. So it tends to feel oddly quiet."

"Should I talk more, Mama?" Shandian asked, looking up.

"Nah, you're fine the way you are. Plus, it's nice to have a least one quiet child."

The three of us grumbled.

Mama giggled. "Come piggies, it's time to eat. I made you honey shrimp, honey roasted beef, honey chicken, and honey roasted fish."

"Yay!" the four of us yelled.

***

https://youtu.be/L1VIh_lEP_o

After eating, I went off to one of the events I had signed up for. Zelde and I were the only ones who had chosen to participate in this one. It wasn't as flashy as some of the other events, but it did have a loyal following.

"What event is this?" Shandian asked, looking around as he rode on Papa's shoulders. Looking at them made me wish I were a little kid again... I enjoyed riding on my dad's back. I felt like a giant.

I sighed. I could only hope to grow up to be as tall as my papa. He was 6'8. Meanwhile, Kun and I were 5'3. The good news was that Papa was around our height when he was our age too.

Suddenly a faint memory flashed before my eyes. A blurry one. I was riding on the shoulders of someone who reminded me of Papa. Things were crashing all around us and there was incredible heat all around.

"Lei?" Shandian asked.

I shook my head. "What?"

"You didn't answer him," Mama said. "Are you alright?"

My eyes darted down. "Sorry, I got distracted there for a second. This event is archery."

Mama gasped. "Archery?"

"I didn't know you had taken an interest in it."

I chuckled. "I've been attending some of the meetings of the archery club at school. I've gotten rather good at it. Though... for some odd reason there's always a strong wind guiding my arrows, so I haven't been able to participate in non-magic events."

"Well, good thing this is a magical one," Papa said, smiling. "Hmm... you know, I feel like I've seen you launch arrows before."

"Really?"

"Yeah... back when you were a kid. It's strange, but it almost feels like a memory."

I rubbed my head. A memory, huh? What dad described rung a bell, but like a lot of my childhood memories, it was blurry. My mom said that when I was little I got into an accident which damaged my memories. Since then, I haven't been able to remember most stuff from before I saved Adela clearly.

I couldn't even recall the face of the girl I used to play with... it didn't help that she had moved by the time I returned to Wahkan.

"So you've practiced your archery, huh? That's good to hear. You had quite the amazing aim when you were a kid," a familiar voice called out. It was the emerald-eyed guy who hung around Koukyuu.

"Wait, Hideo, you've seen Lei shoot a bow before?" Mama asked.

"Yeah, he managed to destroy a cloud of abyssmals," Hideo said.

"I did that?" I asked, blinking. I laughed. Guess I was amazing as a kid. Now, if only I could remember how I did that...

"So, what brings you here?" Mama asked.

Hideo walked forward to the part of the room that lacked a wall. Across from us, several meters away, were multiple targets. Standing in front of everyone was a single young man with brown hair.

"Who is he?" Shandian asked.

"We are about to begin with a demonstration. Today's we welcome a young man from a faraway land said to be one of the greatest archers of his generation."

"You humble me," the young man said, chuckling. His smiled faded as he drew an arrow from his quiver and raised his bow toward the target. He took a deep breath and focused on his on the center of his goal.

He pulled the string back gently and held it for a good while before firing it off. The arrow struck the exact center of the target. Next he took another arrow and shot at the center once more, ripping the first one. Then he repeated it a third time, drawing gasps from everyone in the room.

"Who is that guy?" most of the murmurs asked.

"I'm not sure, but he's rather good looking, don't you think?" some people responded.

"Is he cheating?" some asked.

At those remarks, the youth turned scoffed. "If you'll like, I can show those who doubt my integrity up close."

Those who had questioned the reality of his aim gulped.

Hideo chuckled.

The young man turned around and smiled at him. "So you made it after all."

"Yeah. Koukyuu volunteered to watch over the kids, though right now they should be sleeping. Though I wish I could've brought them to see their uncle Silas' skill with the bow."

Silas blushed. "I'm not that good. I still can't get my hundredth arrow in a row."

My eyes widened. "Wait, what?" I exclaimed, perhaps a little too loud as several eyes turned to look at us.

Hideo puffed up his chest proudly. "You heard him right. My little brother here can shoot ninety-nine perfectly centered arrow in a row."

The room exploded into murmurs once more.

Silas sighed. "Brother, you're drawing unneeded attention toward me. You know how much I hate unwanted attention."

"Ahh, sorry, Sil. I know, I'll make it up to you by making you curry for dinner!"

He put his hands on his hips and sighed. "Alright, I'll overlook it this time." He glanced at me and noticed that I was wearing plain clothes. "Are you participating in the event? If so then I suggest you hurry up and change, it's about to begin soon."

"Ahh, I forgot with all the commotion!" I yelled. "Ugh, if only Miss Zettai were here. She could use that spell of hers which changes one's clothes."

"You mean Koukyuu?" Hideo asked.

"Yeah," I said, nodding.

"You know that casual clothes are fine. The uniform is only a formality," a voice called out. Walking up to us was Zelde. She wore a brown leather skirt and a red tank top. Draped around her shoulders was a fire-rat skin cape.

"I-I knew that," I said.

Zelde smiled. "I bet you did."

I grumbled. She was making fun of me... wasn't she?

"Archers, step forth!" the announcer shouted.

"It's time for us to, Lei," Zelde said.

I nodded. "Yeah!"

"Uh, you do need to wear a glove though," Silas pointed out.

"That I got," I said, reaching into my backpack and pulling out a brown leather glove with turquoise accents.

"Looking forward to seeing how you do," Hideo said.

"Hmm?" Silas said. "Why?"

Hideo chuckled. "You'll see soon enough."

It was nice for someone to have high expectations of me... but at the same time it was kind of overwhelming.

Zelde and I went to pick up bows laying on the walls and then made our way to the open part of the room. On the floor were various markings. The further one shot, the more points one would receive for their team. However, the risks of missing also went up.

Zelde and I rose our bows in unison. She had chosen the third line, giving her two-hundred points if she hit the center. Meanwhile, I chose the closest line.

I felt the gazes of my family, Hideo, and Silas on me. I bet Hideo wondered why I had picked the closest line.

I took a deep breath and shot my arrow. My arrow punctured the air before it and spun it around it, using it to push itself forward in a straight line. The arrow stuck dead-center. As did Zelde's.

"Not bad," I overheard Silas say.

I drew my third arrow and moved to the third-line this time. I flicked it at the same spot as before. The second arrow completely split the first one right down the middle.

"Wow..."

I smiled and backed away and away.

"Huh, what is that kid doing?" someone in the crowd said.

"Excuse me, coming through," I said as I backed away more and more until my back hit the wall. A hundred meters stood between me and my target.

"Is he insane?" some asked.

"He thinks he can make that shot after having only two successful ones?" someone else said.

"What a conceited guy. He probably only got lucky," another said.

I smiled and let go of my arrow. Everyone in the room gasped as the wind from my arrow pushed them away from it. The arrow ripped through the second arrow and even the target itself.

"H-he destroyed the Orichalcum target..." one of them said.

"How strong is that kid?"

"Wow," Silas said, staring at me with wide eyes. "I can see why you seemed so sure of him now, brother."

Hideo laughed. "Told you saw. I know how to spot a fellow prodigy."

"Ehh, you, a prodigy?" Papa asked, giving him a deadpan look.

"You're sounding just like the peasant!" Hideo said, glaring at him.

Papa gasped. "Uh, i-it slipped from my mouth."

The black haired man narrowed his emerald eyes at Papa. "Yeah right... Hmph, to think that even after everything I've done, that people still doubt me."

"Uh, most people don't even know about that," Mama said.

"But Feng does, he was there!"

"Sorry," Papa said, rubbing his neck.

"There's that quirk of his! You aren't him in disguise, are you?"

"What? No, of course not! I'm Feng!"

"Well, you certainly are his doppelganger alright..." Hideo grumbled.

Doppelganger?

"Lei!" Zelde yelled, running over to me with something in hand. "Look!"

"Huh?"

She opened her hands to reveal a platinum medal. "You won us platinum!"

I smiled at the medal. "I would be surprised if I hadn't."

"Here, it's yours," she said, handing it over to me.

"Here, allow me to put it on," Mama said, placing her hand on it. She took it from me and put it around my neck. "Looks really good on you, son."

I lowered my head. "T-thanks, Mama."

"Are you blushing?" Shandian asked.

"Shhh, Shan, don't embarrass your big brother further," Papa whispered.

I covered my face with both hands.

Mama laughed and wrapped her arms around me. "You've really grown, my little one. It's getting harder to believe that you're the same fragile baby who struggled for his life in my arms."

I laughed. "That's the plan. I want to overcome him, the old me. One day I'll overcome who I am now." I clenched my medal tightly. "I still got a lot of obstacles to overcome before I can become Magus Maximus. One of those includes defeating my Papa. But I promise you, I will become the eighth Magus Maximus."

Mama backed away from me. There were tears in her eyes. "I'm confident you will, just don't disregard your health on the way there. There's been several scares with you since your birth. I don't want to lose you..."

I grinned. "Don't worry, Mama. You won't lose me!"

Papa placed an arm around Mama's shoulder. "You better keep that promise Lei. If anything ever happens to any of you, I'm not sure if I would be able to handle it. When we believed Kun to be dead, I struggled to accept it. I don't want to go through those sleepless nights again."

"Another similarity with that guy..." Hideo said, smiling, though the look in his eyes was sad.

"I think a lot of people share that sentiment," Silas said. "Dad certainly did, as do you."

Hideo nodded while retaining the same solemn smile. "Yeah..."

I closed my eyes. I too wanted to protect those close to me. That was one of the reasons I sought power. Though I would eventually learn that there were situations in which power wasn't enough...

**Character Section**

Silas Makkuroyama Kuroriku- Sex: Male Age: 23 Powers: Wood and Wind Species: Zionian Nationality: Kurorikuian

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