Jonghung had told her that she would only have to pass one last fight to become a fully trained warrior. He had said the name of her opponent was Youngjae. Suwha had never heard of him. Maybe she had seen him before, but didn’t know that this name belonged to him. Anyway she was glad to be given this chance. Ever since she had been a little child she had wanted to become a warrior. It was the highest position at the temple after master Jonghung and her only wish.

The day before the fight, she was enjoying some time off with Yujin. They had known each other ever since she could imagine. Unlike Suwha she had parents, but they had abandoned her, when she had just been a little baby. Master Jonghung had taken her in, raising her like the other children. She wasn’t trained as a warrior. Her focus was on healing methods. She was a very extraordinary person, a hard working student and Suwha’s best friend. They were sitting in the flower gardens. The sun was shining brightly that day. Everything around them seemed to blossom and grow. Yujin was playing with a little yellow flower, carefully picking off the petals on after another. She was mumbling “I’m gonna do it.” She loosened a flower petal. “I’m not gonna do it.” She loosened another one. Suwha laughed. “What are you doing?” Yujin seemed deep in her thoughts. She didn’t answer. Instead she kept picking off the petals. Then Suwha grinned and lifted an eyebrow. “Are you in love?” Finally Yujin seemed to hear her. She looked up completely shocked and shook her head. “No.” she said softly. “Come on, admit it. You have a secret admirer.” She gasped. “Suwha!” she protested. “What?” Suwha said scoffingly. Then Yujin’s expression became serious. She had a look around and after she had checked that no one was listening, she leaned in and slowly began to say “Can you keep a secret, Suwha?” Suwha rolled her eyes. “Of course.” Yujin continued “I was in the temple the other day and I overheard master Jonghung talking about my parents.” Suwha’s eyes were fixed on hers. “He said that my parents..are looking for me.” Shocked she asked “What? I thought your parents left you.” She nodded slightly. “That’s what the master told me, but what if they are out there, Suwha? I can’t miss this chance to find out more about them.” Suwha furrowed her eyebrows. “What are you saying? I don’t mean to leave, do you?” Yujin looked at her with sparkling eyes. “Tonight.” Suwha jumped up. “What?! Yujin, you can’t just leave.” Slowly she collected her herbs and stood up. They were now facing each other. “Suwha, I thought you of all people would understand. I need to go. I have already left a letter at master Jonghung’s table.” Her eyes saddened. “But I don’t want you to go. What do I do without you?” Yujin took her hands. “You will remember me. I’m so glad to have met you, Suwha. I’m sure we will meet again someday. I will always remember you.” Suwha sighed and hugged her tightly.

They had decided to meet at midnight on the outer wall. Suwha was waiting in her nightwear. Yujin appeared out of the darkness. All her belongings were strapped on her back. She looked confident. They said their goodbyes and then Yujin climbed up the wall, sat on the top for a moment to look back down at her friend and then she jumped. Suwha heard her land on the ground outside. Slowly she placed her hand on the cold stone wall. “Goodbye my friend.” She whispered. It was quiet for a while as Suwha stood at the wall, leaning her sleepy head against the cold stone. Then suddenly she heard something rustle in the bushes behind her. Quickly she turned around. “Who’s there?” she asked frightened. No one answered. Suwha knew someone was there. She had clearly heard him. “I know you’re there.” Then a boy stepped out from behind the rose bushes. He was her age and she had seen him before, yet she couldn’t remember his name. His dark eyes stared at her. Suwha spotted a torch in his right hand. “I heard voices.” He said deeply. Suwha tried to think of something. She couldn’t tell him that a student had just fled. “I..I was meditating.” He eyed her with a reproachful look. “At midnight?” Suwha breathed nervously and nodded her head quickly. Maybe too quickly. “Don’t take me for a fool. I saw you two. That herb girl climbed over the wall.” Suwha didn’t know what to say. “Why didn’t you stop her?” he asked further. He seemed very angry. Suwha couldn’t think of anything to say, but she knew she had to lie. Otherwise she would get into big trouble. Carefully and without trying to look too nervous she answered. “I tried. I tried to stop her, but there was nothing I could do.” He lifted an eyebrow. He kept thinking about what to say. Then after a moment he turned to leave and said “Just this once.” He merged with the darkness until she couldn’t see him anymore. She gasped and wiped away the sweat on her forehead. She went back to the sleeping dorm. Quietly she lay downn on the ground pulling the blanket over her shivering body. She closed her eyes, but she couldn’t sleep. There were too many thoughts circling in her head. Where was Yujin now? Was she safe? Who was the boy that had caught her off guard? And then she thought about the fight she would have to master tomorrow. The thought of fighting made her tired and she slowly but surely fell asleep.

It was early in the morning when Suwha woke up. She decided to take a walk in the garden to prepare herself for the fight at noon. She had sat down on a little bench surrounded with big sunflowers. She closed her eyes. She couldn’t think of the fight that was coming closer every minute. Suwha wished she could sit there all day and breathe in the summer air that smelled sweetly of lovely flowers. She wanted to rest, keep her mind of all things. But she had to face the truth. There was no escape from that fight. At noon she would have to face her opponent. Would she even succeed? Maybe just another month…She could train all day and gain more strength, but the fight was today. In less than two hours. She had practised the last few days, but nothing could make her feel confident, no matter how hard she had trained. It felt like she was walking into her doom. Suwha knew if she would fail today, there was no hope. No hope to become a warrior. She would have to give up on her dream and become a herb picker. As Suwha thought of that possibility she clenched her fists. No. She was ready. Jonghung would not have sent her into the fight, if he had thought she wasn’t prepared for it. She had heard about the great skills of her opponent Youngjae, but she felt more confident now. Suwha planned to face him without fear and without hesitation. If she should fail, she would fail after giving her very best. The two hours went by like a racing train. Suwha had walked to the fighting place waiting for her opponent. With the time more and more students gathered around the court looking anxiously at her. Then master Jonghung came out of the temple. As always he stopped at the right outer corner, keeping a distance to the other people.

Then the doors to the sleeping dorms banged open. Youngjae stepped out onto the court.  Suwha’s jaw dropped open. With widened eyes she stared at the boy, who had startled her the night before. He stopped a few metres away. Now she solved the puzzle. Of course she had known him. Youngjae, the boy who kept always to himself, who didn’t have any friend and yet was the best student master Jonghung had ever trained. Suwha swallowed hardly. How could she forget? Youngjae was looking at her with a satisfied grin. She would stand no chance.

Thank you for reading my story :) Next chapter will be up soon^^ Now it's getting more exciting ^_^ Hope you will all enjoy! :D Cheers!