The Lost Remnant Chapter 2: Chapter 2

Read chapter 2 of The Lost Remnant by malik3 on NovelPedia.

Three Years Later THUD. THUD. Sweat drips down from Raiku’s chin as he keeps punching the practice dummy. The birds perched nearby scatter into the sky at the noise. As he notices them, he halts for a moment to regain his concentration, but as he tries, a blue bird suddenly lands on his left shoulder catching him off guard. Raiku caught off guard by the sudden flapping stumbles to the ground. As Raiku falls, a cloud of dust fills the air around and disperses. “Ow, dang it!” Raiku slams his fist into the ground. He stands up and brushes his knees. The orphanage housekeeper watches behind a window holding a basket of laundry. She sighs and another lady comes and stands by her side. They both watch as Raiku stretches and gets ready to punch the dummy again. “What a boy he is,” sighs the housekeeper. “Hes always outside alone training. This city has the most normal people.” “Why can't he just play with kids his age? What happened to his parents?” asked the lady. "Only God knows," she said finally. She glanced down at the basket in her arms. "I have to get these dried and folded." Her footsteps echoed softly down the quiet hallway as she turned away. The other woman walked in the opposite direction, and the hallway became empty. The next morning, Raiku heads for the dining hall. Kids were chatting and laughing. Raiku found an empty table in the corner next to the trash, at first quite reluctant, he headed there anyway because he was yet to make any friends. Raiku didn't look up once from his meal. He only stared at the rice in front of him, picked up his chopsticks, and was about to dig in when the bench shook — a group of boys dropping down around him all at once. The group leader swung his arm around Raiku's shoulders with a wide grin. Raiku's body went rigid. "Come on, man — why so stiff?" the leader laughed, squeezing his shoulder. The boys around him snickered, watching. "Loosen up a little." Before Raiku could say anything, the leader's hand shot out and sent the bowl skidding off the table. Rice scattered across the floor. Every head in the dining hall turned. Raiku looked up slowly. "Just leave me alone." The group leader’s face dropped as he heard Raiku finish his sentence. His anger slowly rising as his hand found Raiku's shoulder again, fingers pressing down harder and harder, slow and deliberate. Then the door swung open. The housekeeper stepped in, took one look at the rice on the floor, and her eyes narrowed. The leader's hand dropped instantly. The laughter died. "Who decided it was a good idea to throw rice on the ground?" she snapped. "Oh, that was all Raiku, Miss," the leader said, his expression already innocent. "We were just laughing around and he accidentally knocked his bowl over. But I'm sure he'd be happy to clean it up." His friends grinned behind him. The housekeeper turned to Raiku, tossed him a broom without even looking at him, and walked out. The children filed out after her, and as the last one passed, the leader slapped Raiku hard on the back — just once — and kept walking. The dining hall fell silent. Raiku stood alone in the middle of the room. He looked down at the broom in his hands, then at the scattered rice on the floor. He exhaled slowly, stepped forward, and began sweeping. The dustpan filled quietly. He walked to the trash bin, emptied it, and set the broom down against the wall and walked out the room leaving it in complete silence. Three Years Later THUD. THUD. Sweat drips down from Raiku’s chin as he keeps punching the practice dummy. The birds perched nearby scatter into the sky at the noise. As he notices them, he halts for a moment to regain his concentration, but as he tries, a blue bird suddenly lands on his left shoulder catching him off guard. Raiku caught off guard by the sudden flapping stumbles to the ground. As Raiku falls, a cloud of dust fills the air around and disperses. “Ow, dang it!” Raiku slams his fist into the ground. He stands up and brushes his knees. The orphanage