The little princess’ door wasn’t far from Al’s. I probably could have found it on my own, but Aston led me there unerringly.

He didn’t seem to mind just escorting me around and waiting while I did whatever it was I got up to. The other guards rotated, but he hadn’t yet. Although I was grateful for his patience, I wasn’t used to being guarded. For a moment, I wondered what motivated him. Status and good pay? A sense of patriotism and duty to his country? I didn’t feel I was close enough to him to ask. Maybe my predecessor had been.

This time, I paused before entering the room and assessed what I was going to find. I could sense more people this time, although none were as strong as me except for a pair of probably guards I put in the fifth stage. But one of those was waiting outside the door, the other one likely on a balcony judging from the distance. There were two presences in the room along with the one who had to be Xiaodan, the others bustled around in their vicinity.

I hadn’t felt any threat from Alaster, or had any weird feelings. Maybe that meant nothing, but in light of my predecessor’s writing, I noted it. If nothing else, I needed to check Xiaodan, too, see if meeting her might trigger anything. A long shot, but I have little to go on, so trying many different things makes sense.

Taking a deep breath, I opened the door. They must have sensed me anyway, since I hadn’t tried to veil my presence.

I barely had time to see another well-appointed room and a number of servants bowing deeply before my attention was drawn to the little girl.

“Big Sister Nari!” she exclaimed and jumped up.

I stepped further inside, smiling at her enthusiasm. She started in my direction, then paused and instead, with a glance at the stern-faced older woman with her, gave me a bow.

“Hello, little one,” I replied.

Xiaodan looked big for her age, but I didn’t have much to compare her to. She had black hair and almond eyes, with skin a bit darker than mine. Certainly more Asian-looking than me, or Alaster, for that matter. Not that I cared.

Although, glancing around, I noticed that three of the four servants visible in the room also looked distinctly as if they were of Asian descent, at least to my Earth-based mind.

While I stepped closer and caught the girl in a hug, I reflected on that. The people I’d seen in the palace so far all looked as if their ancestors were from East Asia, or white Europeans, or a mixture of both. But that was using Earth categories, and who knew how things stood here.

I’d given up wondering why there were even humans on multiple worlds. It was probably caused by those occasional portals or whatever that Mother had mentioned.

After a moment, I released my new sister and held her at arm’s length while I made a show of looking her over.

“Yes, you’re definitely my little sister,” I concluded and winked.

Xiaodan giggled.

“Xiaodan,” the older woman said, “why don’t you let Her Highness sit down?” She then turned to me and bowed her head. “If the princess wishes, this one will have some tea prepared.”

And here I was hoping there would be none of that ‘this one’ stuff. I knew it was supposed to sound humble, even deferential. But to me, it seemed pretentious, talking about yourself in the third person.

“Tea sounds good,” I answered. Right away, I sensed another servant rushing off. Then I sat down on a plush chair and patted the seat next to it.

Xiaodan settled into her place, smiling brightly. But then she stopped and looked at me with a bit of a tremble. “Elder Sister, you went on your soul journey?”

“Yes, that’s right. I did.”

“You visited another world? You were sleeping for so long.”

You don’t know the half of it. “Yes, I went to Earth. It was great. Maybe you’ll visit it yourself someday. That would be nice, wouldn’t it? I’m glad to know you missed me.” I smiled at her teasingly. “But I’m back now.”

“And … they say you’re different now?”

I sighed and looked her in the eyes. “Yes, I am different. I don’t want to try and hide this from you. I’m probably not going to be like the older sister you remember. Not quite, at least. But that just means you have new things to discover about me. And you’ll always be my Little An.”

She nodded tremulously. “Alright. I would never dare stipulate what Elder Sister should be like.”

“Hush, none of that now,” I chided gently. I laid a hand under her chin and raised it, like they did in novels. “It’s perfectly reasonable that you’d be feeling anxious.”

That earned me another smile, this one a little firmer.

“There, you see? No need to make a sad face.” I focused on the feeling I got from her. Unless I was mistaken, she had already reached the second stage of cultivation. Actually, that had to be recent. “And I can tell you’ve made good progress. Well done, Xiaodan.”

She blushed and her smile gained a few kilowatts. “Thank you! I want to be as strong as you, Big Sister Nari.”

“And you will be, someday.” Just hopefully after I’ve already gotten stronger.

“Teacher Mei said you became a genius at age ten. I don’t know if I can do that,” she confessed quietly.

I glanced at the teacher, who ducked her head. I hadn’t known that, but it made sense. And except for Xiaodan being adorable, I didn’t notice anything out of the ordinary about her or what her relationship with her sister might have been like.

“I believe in you,” I assured Xiaodan. “But even if you don’t, that’s okay, too. Being fast isn’t always good. And we can’t control what we’re born with, only how we use and develop it. Just keep working hard. The foundation is crucial.” I patted her head. “I’m already proud of you, and I’m sure Mother is, too.”

I hadn’t thought she could smile any more brightly, but this one could probably count as a technique with the power of light and cuteness.

“Besides, there are other important things. Not just cultivation or even capability. Strength isn’t everything.”

The girl scrunched up her face a bit. She probably didn’t hear that sentiment expressed often.

“So you just focused on other things since your last breakthrough, and people don’t understand when they say you take too long? Is that why Teacher Ling Ta calls you lazy?”

I choked a bit. Luckily, at that moment the tea arrived and I could dodge the question.

Tejoka

Minor edits (28.07.2020)