Lady of the Lotus

Entry 1: First Year, Autumn Season

First day of Imperial Academy. I have no idea what to expect, much less realize that one teacher can flip my life around.

The day goes by, class after class, and soon it's the last one- War and Diplomacy. The room is on the lower floor of the palace, right next to the food hall and courtyard. Of course, with my limited literacy of Orekan, it took some circling and a palace guard to get me there.

My friend, Ceylon Kumari, a daughter from the Queen's envoy like me, is sitting in the far left of the room, near the back. I'm not too happy with her chosen seat, as I don't have the best eyesight and she knows it! But I know why she's there and I think I would have done the same; in a room full of noble and royal Orekans, where else would a foreign N'daian— despite their own nobility— sit?

I take a look at the teacher as I enter the room, walking toward Ceylon. Like every other teacher in the palace, he is Orekan, with smooth black hair like a N'daian, almond eyes, and fair skin. The latter two descriptions are not so N'daian. He looks younger than the other teachers at the Academy but has a dark brown beard. He is greeting all of the incoming students.

He turns to greet me, and I look at his eyes when I reply back. They're a light hazel-gray and just...intimidating. I try to forget it, though as I write this down, I know I will forever remember them.

When he introduces himself as Sir Jae-sun, Captain of the Guard, and tells us the class rules, I am already feeling that I will like this class. He states that eating is allowed, that he doesn't care that we're all nobility, and that participation is essential for doing well in class.

I'm a quiet person, but his criteria for passing doesn't scare me. I'll make up my grade with my intellect. 

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