n..--).).(/--1.)n

Although there was no Raze at the temple, the rest of the kids had to continue their day as they usually would. Instead of having Raze as a partner in the kitchen, Simyon had Safa there instead.

"You're not bad!" Simyon exclaimed, looking at Safa peeling the potatoes. "But your brother is quite skilled at this. Did he always cook at home for your family?"

Safa stopped for a moment and looked directly into Simyon's eyes. She was a little surprised by his words, because Raze hadn't cooked once in their home. However, she surmised that maybe Simyon was just trying to be nice about her brother and make conversation. With these thoughts, an awkward silence enveloped them.

"Ah, right, you can't talk. I'm so stupid," Simyon blurted out as he hit his forehead with the palm of his hand, forgetting that he was holding a knife. A stinging pain immediately followed, and he realized he had accidentally cut himself. It was small in size and wasn't very deep, but stinging like a paper cut.

Turning her head swiftly, Safa jumped up to find something to clean the wound with. There were kitchen towels available, which she wet with clean water that had been boiled and then used it to dab at Simyon's injury.

"Erghhh, thank you," Simyon said. "You know, you're a lot kinder than your brother. I imagine if this happened between the two of us, he would just say something like, 'Have you never been cut before?' then carry on peeling potatoes as if nothing happened. Or maybe he'd quip, 'I hope you aren't going to use that knife to continue peeling potatoes."

Safa laughed at Simyon's imitation of Raze, as she could easily picture her brother reacting in such a manner. At least the new version of him.

The pair resumed their chores. In the prevailing silence, which was unfamiliar for someone as talkative as Simyon, he felt the need to speak up.

"You know, it's a good thing you have Raze, and he has you. You two can watch each other's backs in this place. And if you ever leave, at least you won't be alone."

Simyon stared at the flames dancing under the pot, boiling the water. It was bringing back certain memories for him, especially when thinking about family. "I used to have a sister, and of course, a mom and dad," he began. "But there was a portal break in our village. Monsters emerged, killing everyone, including my family. In the end, I was saved by a wandering Pagna warrior, and I was brought here.

"You'd think, with a backstory like mine, I'd be the main character of some show or story," Simyon added, clenching his fist so hard it trembled. He was struggling to contain his emotions, and had to gulp down his feelings before something else came out of his eyes.

"I thought I could use the determination from losing my family to become a strong Pagna warrior, to prevent what happened to me from happening to others. But as you can tell from my martial arts skills, I'm not main character material. From the looks of it, neither is your brother."

He then looked at Safa.

"Safa, I think it might be you. You might be the one who needs to protect your brother, so stay strong, okay?"

While others might view Raze as weak, Safa didn't agree, especially not with the transformed Raze. Nonetheless, she nodded in response to Simyon, not wishing to upset him. She appreciated his presence and offered him a comforting smile.

As breakfast preparations neared completion, Safa set the table with plates and cutlery, while Simyon was responsible for plating the dishes. He heard the door open behind him.

"Ah, Mr. Kron, it will be ready in about ten minutes," Simyon announced as he ladled boiled potatoes and vegetables into a bowl. The meals were plain, but Simyon surmised that even if Mr. Kron wasn't poor, feeding ten children was no small feat.

"It smells good," came a voice.

Upon hearing the voice, irritation prickled at Simyon. Turning around, his fears were confirmed: it was Gren, accompanied by the two twins.

"You never do kitchen work. You have no reason to be here," Simyon pointed out.

"You're right. We just wanted to help out for a change," Gren replied nonchalantly, shrugging his shoulders and taking a bowl of food.

"You know, we've recently welcomed a special student. She's incredibly gifted. Everyone's buzzing about her, especially the other kids," Gren commented, receiving something from Giyo.

In his hands, he held a purple mushroom adorned with green spots. Carefully, he began to crumble the mushroom, making its distinctive color less noticeable.

"A unique student deserves unique food, don't you agree, Simyon?" Gren smirked, sprinkling the mushroom pieces over a single bowl. "We'll reserve this for our special guest."

Simyon stared at the floor, avoiding Gren's gaze. The trio's mocking laughter and their previous smirks churned his stomach. Yet, the most prominent cause for his unease was his own feelings of inadequacy.

'Is Gren so confident that he believes he can do this before me without repercussions?' Simyon pondered, finally lifting his eyes to confront the trio. 'I guess in his eyes I'm that weak last time, I didn't say anything either. If I do the same thing now, will the same thing happen to you.'

A conversation sparked in Simyon's head, when speaking to Raze and talking to his sister, his answer to this whole situation from before.

'If Raze won't stand up for you, I guess it falls to me,' he thought.

"Gren, I've wanted to do this for ages!" Simyon yelled.

Lunging forward, he threw out his fist and missed Gren entirely. Gren evaded the blow, eyeing Simyon with disdain.

"You tried to hit me, you worthless worm!" Gren retorted, counterattacking with a Qi-empowered punch that sent Simyon flying back, blood pouring from his nose.

"What's gotten into you? Did you get brainwashed by that girl?" Gren sneered. "Ever since she arrived, things have been off. She'll need to be handled. As for you," he continued, grabbing Simyon by his shirt, "we need this to look like an accident, or Mr. Kron might get involved. You'll stay silent, won't you?"

Scanning the room, Gren's eyes settled on the boiling pot of water. "Perfect," he mused, dragging Simyon towards the pot. His shoes scraped against the wooden floors. "If this scalds you, it'd justify your injuries."

Suddenly, the double doors swung open. As Gren pivoted to identify the intruder, a swift fist was speeding towards him, much quicker than Simyon's punch.

'I can't dodge it!'

Gren took the full brunt of the blow, his head snapping to the side, diverting some force. When he looked up, rage contorted his features, veins bulging at the side of his head.

"It's you! You b*tch, I'll kill you!" Gren yelled at Safa.

Dropping Simyon, his vision blurred as he assessed the situation. 'Damn it She's outnumbered. She can't handle Gren and the twins. I have to stop this somehow, before she's really hurt. I can't let Raze lose his sister like I lost mine!'