Mel seemed to be waiting for the young master Louise to open his mouth, and the moment he praised the girl from his family, he bloomed the fourth bud.
“Wait, I’ll remember! What was the name of this boy?”
While Grumpy Hanry was muttering to himself, Mel, who’s name Hanry could not remember, became the center of attention of all participants. Even the young genius of the Gloove family felt compelled to lift her head and look at him. After all, Mel was exactly one bud ahead of her.
“Not now, old friend. Let the noble children advance first. Start helping ours a minute after the noble kid’s open buds!”
The red-green leafed tree was impatient and was not alone about this issue. Mel heard another familiar voice in his mind.
“Brat, this is Hanry!”
Without remembering his name, the Senior Master began to talk to him in the middle of the trial. But Mel continued to act as if he didn’t hear him.
“Are you putting on airs because you made four buds open? I am talking to you, peasant boy!”
When Grumpy Hanry began to behave following his nickname, Mel slanted at him with no further ado. This gesture was another way of saying ‘I hear you’.
“Go as far as you can go. If you can bloom more buds than the girl on the opposite side, I’ll give you ten Ten-Buds Ghost Orchids!”
Keeping a distance with the Senior Master a minute ago, now Mel’s eyes grew twice their normal size. As they entered the twentieth minute, he was the leader with four buds. The prize was of no small matter. The tree inside the cave was shaking its branches like crazy, showing its joy at this situation.
“My grandfather told me not to be too unobtrusive, but I guess nothing will happen with this much. Let’s get a little faster!”
Mel was trying to follow the words of the man who inherited him everything, but life was always offering completely different ways.
The young master was delighted when Maria Gloove opened the fourth bud in the twenty-fifth minute, but this time he did not speak a word. He seemed to already believe that others were motivated by his words.
“My young colleague, the genius of your family had the fourth bud opened. Won’t we talk about it? Or is this a success for your Gloove family that is not worth mentioning?”
Hanry was wiggling, and when the Head of Department, who was seated in the middle, turned to him, something unexpected happened.
“Master Hanry, my Gloove family has been in botanical science for generations. We cannot engage in derogatory movements such as competing with temporary successes achieved by certain people!”
The Head of Department seemed to show Hanry the teeth, but the young master on the other side had taken the bait. Mel and his old friend tree took action as if they were waiting for this moment.
Mel had her fifth bud blossomed, and the tree made some of the children from lower classes open their second bud and some to open their third bud.
“This year kids owe you a lot, my young friend. Thank you very much on behalf of all!”
Hanry began to make fun of the man he tricked, but the Head of Department wouldn’t allow it any longer.
“From now on, I forbid both of you from speaking. Otherwise, I’ll give you a year of seclusion!”
That soft voice was gone; a sternly commanding attitude had come. It was unclear whether the Head of the Department was angrier with what was happening between the two other masters or with the success of kids coming from lower classes.
Thus, the tranquility was restored. When half an hour passed, the Ghost Orchids with Ten Buds in front of Mel and Maria remained stuck at five buds, and the best of the others stuck at three.
“Blooming the fifth bud will be at least as difficult as the beginning. If you have any sap with you, you can use them!”
A great show of joy arose from the side of the noble candidates. A shortcut to the test, in which one should normally proceed only with his own abilities, was opened and this shortcut was opened by the most competent person there.
Without wasting any time, the noble students poured the liquids contained in small glass bottles that suddenly appeared in their hands into the soil of Ten Buds Ghost Orchids. On the public side, there was no movement. Obviously, they had no substance called sap.
Hanry blushed from head to toe, whereas Louise of the Gloove family was watching the noble children with pleasure. Why wouldn’t he be delighted? The genius of his family had arrived at the seventh bud in five minutes, and the other noble kids arrived at the fifth bud.
After the sudden change of balance, children from the common people frowned. Their hands around the containers of the Ten-Buds Ghost Orchids were now on both sides of their bodies.
“Is this really where my grandfather asked me to go? Head of Department is directly helping noble children!”
Mel also left the test and was examining the children on his side. On his face; there was an expression of surprise peculiar to people who could not understand what was happening and why.
“Don’t give up, peasant boy! Try to make the buds bloom at least as many as the other nobles. As long as you do your best, ten Ten-Buds Ghost Orchids will be yours!”
Hanry was trying to give morale to Mel. He must have interpreted Mel’s confused state of mind as a sign of giving up just like other kids coming from lower classes.
By the 40th minute, Mel saw that he had five buds and his friends from the public had three buds each. He stood up slowly and, with everyone’s gaze upon him, came near Grumpy Hanry.
“Master, can I borrow your knife?”
Hearing the young boy’s request, the middle-aged man did not understand what was happening at first. But before he could wait any longer at Mel’s insistent gaze, he held out the sickle-shaped blade in his belt.
“This knife was gifted by the Head of Department when I entered the Green Shadow Academy. I worked with this all day when I was a young herb collector. Make sure you don’t damage it!”
Mel nodded, hinting that he understood, grabbed the knife in the shape of a crescent, and walked back to his place. As he sat in his chair, he rolled up his sleeves, then, with all eyes on him, he made two cuts on his palms and poured his blood into the soil of the Ten-Bud Ghost Orchid.
When he was done, he put the knife down gently on the table, and with his bloody hands, he began to caress the unopened buds of the plant. A minute later, the sixth bud opened, and the seventh in less than five minutes. Mel continued the test, ignoring his bleeding palms.
Then he felt a hand reaching his desk. When the ugly boy, who had previously broken his nails with anger, took the knife and imitated Mel, a faint smile appeared on Mel’s face.
“My old friend, it’s your turn. You can transfer energy to the plants of those who cut off their hands and pour their blood into the plant! Don’t let them use their own blood essence!”
All this was built to cover up the theatrical phenomenon. Mel chose to fight, rather than keeping silent, in the face of injustice.
If he only thought of himself, it would be very easy. But he found it appropriate to move forward by taking the children of the people with him at the expense of shedding his blood.
“Sir, this is against the rules! These children are feeding the plants with their own blood!”
Louise couldn’t stand it and speak. The Head of Department seemed to forget the rule Louise was talking about. He began to roll his eyes as if thinking of something until a roar from the other side was heard.
“Against the rules? I heard a lot of silly words today, but this is by far the worst. So, it is okay when children of noble families use sap distilled from the sap of nutritious herbs, but it is against the rules when others use the essence of their life energy, huh?”
