"Shizuka, go ahead of me."

Despite hesitating for a moment, Shizuka understood his intention to watch over them. She nodded and walked to the gate before awaiting further instruction from the examiner.

"Name?"

"Kobayashi Shizuka."

"Age?"

"Fifteen."

The disciple looked up from his scroll and stared at Shizuka expectantly. Understanding the order of things, she stood up straight and began breathing in. After one breath in, the Qi surrounding her seeped into her body. Yoshie nervously grabbed onto Kenja's sleeve as she watched her older sister. Shizuka exhaled, and the Qi could be felt leaving her body. Before she could begin a second cycle, she heard the disciple speak.

"You may enter. Next!"

Shizuka smiled calmly and looked at Kenja and Yoshie. Kenja gave her his nod of approval, and she walked a few steps inside the gate before turning around to watch her family's performance.

"Okay, Yoshie. There's nothing to worry about. If Shizuka can do it, so can you." Kenja gave her his best 'There's nothing to worry about!' smile.

"Yes, niisan." She walked to the gate and stood in front of the disciple.

"Name?"

"K-Kobayashi Yoshie. I am fifteen years of age."

The disciple looked at her the same manner as he did with Shizuka. A few moments passed before he motioned to her with his hand.

"Well?"

Baffled, Yoshie replied innocently, "Well what?"

Kenja closed his eyes chuckling to himself. "Yoshie, breathe in," he advised her harshly.

Finally remembering what she was supposed to do, she stood up straight and immediately began breathing in. The Qi did not flow to her as quickly as it did with Shizuka. As she was about to finish the cycle and exhale...

"...Achoo!"

Qi gushed out of her body in the direction of the disciple. While the point of the Qi-breathing exercise was to draw in Qi and flow it through the body's meridians for nourishment, being able to expend Qi out with such a speed showed talent for Qi control. 

The disciple's eye twitched at the incident, but he did not let her continue.

"You may enter. Next!"

Immediately forgetting about her mishap, Yoshie felt like she was on cloud nine. She turned to Kenja and gave him a wide-open smile. He gave her a nod of approval. 

She turned and scurried to her sister's side, almost tripping over her own feet from the excitement she felt.

It was Kenja's turn now. He psyched himself up as he approached the disciple.

"Name?"

"Kenja."

Kenja didn't know his surname. In fact, he was only partly sure that Kenja was his name. He had always planned to find out where he came from before he decided on what his surname should be. It was not out of respect for his parents, but he felt that as long as he didn't know his own origins, he would be unsatisfied with any surname he adopted.

"Age?"

"Seventeen."

Before looking at Kenja, the disciple shook his head gently as if knowing the outcome. Kenja stood up straight and widened his stance. He exhaled normally to get ready for the first cycle, and then he began.

In...

And out...

Kenja maintained his focus as he readied himself for the second cycle. He could not feel the slightest change in Qi flow inside nor outside his body. The disciple maintained a fixed stare at Kenja.

In...

And out...

This breath was larger as if he believed that breathing harder would encourage the Qi to surge into action, but there was no change in the air around him. The disciple continued to remain motionless. Kenja was slightly anxious, but he knew that if he let his feelings disturb him, any chance at passing would vanish. He kept his feelings in check and readied for the final cycle.

In.....

And out.....

There was no apparent change in the surrounding Qi at all.

"Fail. Please leave."

The people in line held faces full of pity for Kenja, seeing someone try so hard at a basic test that nearly everyone would pass and yet still fail was quite unfortunate. His sisters' moods took a 180 as they walked toward their brother. They would rather give up on cultivation than give up their brother.

'If our brother is not permitted to cultivate, then why should we?' Their brother was their foundation in life, and nothing else could compare to him.

Seeing his sisters walking towards him, Kenja put on a frown and yelled at them. "What do you two think you are doing?" 

He had long readied himself for this. He rehearsed what he would say countless times just in case. He practiced scowling and furrowing his brows. Even making them go before him was also part of his plan.

His sisters stopped and bowed down their heads in shame. Shizuka was the first one to look up and reply.

"We do not wish to cultivate without niisan."

Yoshie fervently nodded her head in agreement.

"My sisters would have faith in their brother. By turning your back on this opportunity, you have shown me a lack of faith. As of this day, you are no longer my sisters. Now turn back. If you continue as you are, I will leave, and you will never see me again. This, I swear on my name."

The twins' eyes filled with water and streams flowed down their faces. Their brother rarely swore on his own name. When he did, he had always kept his word.

"N-n-niisan..." Yoshie whimpered.

"What did I just say? I am no longer your brother, and I have no sisters. Don't overstep your bounds!" Kenja forced a hateful glare in Yoshie’s direction.

Kenja did not hate the actions of his sisters, but he couldn't let himself become the reason for holding them back. Severing ties was the surest way of protecting them; at this point, Kenja knew he was just heavy baggage preventing their rise to success. His sisters were actually quite good with Qi-manipulation, and he had given them many insightful lectures that he had memorized over the years to ensure they prosper alongside their colleagues and rivals.

Sensing the gravity of the situation, the disciple stepped towards the girls and urged them to go inside. Yoshie continued sobbing while Shizuka wiped her tears and bit her lips. They gave Kenja a final apologetic look before going back into the gate and disappearing from Kenja's sight.

The disciple, relieved that the dramatic moment has passed, turned back to Kenja and said in a respectful tone, "Kenja-kun, you are barred from taking tomorrow's examination. Please, do not come tomorrow."

Kenja nodded respectfully before bowing in gratitude and leaving. 

Aside from Vice Elder Shirou, the only other person from the sect that was acquainted with him was this examiner. It was difficult to forget the mortal who stubbornly refused to accept the reality that he could not cultivate, continuously making a fool of himself so many times, every year, for three years. 

Even though the examiner knew Kenja would not succeed, there was no harm in allowing him to fail every time. 

Tomorrow was different though! 

The youngest princess would come for tomorrow’s examination. It was not good to show her such a thing at their front gates.

Kenja was not surprised by this. 

Considering the fact that he had he caused a scene and with the princess’s impending arrival, it was obvious they would like to minimize the time wasted on incompetent applicants in her presence.