“How come? Don’t you have to go to the fighting arena ten times to get ten points?”
Nalt continued by putting his hand over Mel’s shoulder as if knowing he would get such an answer.
“Yes, he has to be in the arena ten times, but he doesn’t have to fight ten times. Look, let me give you an example. Watch that arena on the right!”
“Which one? Is it the one with the boy holding a long sword in his hand?”
“Yes, let’s watch him. The one who wears yellow clothes and holds the sword is Sim, heir to a large family of merchants. His fighting skills are known by everyone.”
“Who is the other person?”
“That guy? Well, he is my friend. His abilities are not bad, but his family cannot support him. He cannot use his potential to the fullest. Now watch carefully what he will do!”
Mel focused his attention on the arena where the fight would take place and opened his eyes wide in order not to miss the smallest details.
“I give up!”
The moment the referee gave the signal to start, the boy with an old and short sword gave up. Nalt’s friend quickly descended the stairs, not daring to be late for even a second. The boy with crooked hair saw this and called out in that direction.
“Florin, hey Florin!”
Hearing the sound, the boy suddenly turned to that side, and when he saw Nalt, he began to walk towards him.
“I got off cheap. If I was a little late, he could swing his sword!”
Florin had a smile on his face in contradiction with the words he said. He put one hand into the belt that he wrapped around his outfit and grasped the old-looking sword with the other hand.
“You always know what to do. Let me introduce you first, this is my friend Mel!”
Florin looked at the stalwart young man next to Nalt for a while. Then he held out his hand in a friendly manner.
“My name is Florin, nice to meet you. Where did you meet?”
Mel seemed to be surprised by the boy’s warm and informal demeanor. Nalt answered instead of Mel.
“We met at the Plant Department Exam!”
“Will you be a Herb Gatherer with this physics? Come on, I can understand Nalt, but you have a real fighter stance!”
Florin was a bit garrulous. However, Mel simply remained silent.
“Did you just say ‘Herb Gatherer’? I think it would be better for you to keep your mouth shut. Mel made ten buds of the Ten-Buds Ghost Orchid bloom, equalizing the hundred-year-old record today!”
“What did you say?”
“You heard what I said. Mel will probably be a Botanist. Therefore, watch your step!”
Aside from Florin, some other people around them had heard this dialogue. But after a few seconds, they returned to their own business. Probably, they didn’t take the conversation of these three kids, who were in ragged clothes, seriously.
“Never mind them, so what have you done?”
Florin spoke by displaying the two large teeth in his mouth. He was just as mediocre-looking as Nalt.
“I made eight buds bloom. But most importantly, all of the children coming from lower-class families got at least six points in the first test!”
Florin’s face grew a little longer. He had to use his hand to pick up his falling jaw. The people around them turned to the trio once again, but this time they would not remain unresponsive.
“Brat, what are you blathering about for an hour? You say ‘he opened ten buds’, ‘they all got at least six points from the first test’. Are you crazy?”
A burly man stepped forward and scalded Nalt. But the young boy with crooked hair did not back down.
“If you don’t believe me, ask those over there. They are nobles like you. Maybe you believe them!”
The man, wearing a brown vest inside his jacket, poked the boy next to him with his hand and sent him to the place Nalt pointed. The boy was moving through the crowd like a snake. In less than two minutes, he came back.
He covered his mouth with one hand and whispered to the well-dressed man’s ear. That was when the man’s arrogant gaze changed. He slowly turned his head towards Mel and began to speak, while not minding his slightly hunched back.
“Guys, this uncle of yours didn’t know what he was saying with the excitement of the fights. When you have time, come to my shop in the square and I will gift you a few items. If you ask for Big Joe’s shop, whoever you ask will show you its place!”
When his speech was over, he walked away with the people beside him while Mel kept his silent stance he had taken from the beginning.
“Ha ha ha, how he turned into a poodle!”
Florin let out a big laugh that was followed by Nalt’s laugh. The two friends were laughing while slamming each other’s back.
“Nalt, what’s going on here?”
Mel was like a fish that just got out of water. Finally, he could open his mouth and say a few words.
“I’ll tell everything but first let’s watch the fights. We have plenty of time until tomorrow. You are with us tonight; I will not let you leave!”
“Look, look! This kid is in our group and has got three wins in three fights so far. He is from a distant town and is a guy like us!”
“His name is Edgan. He’s so strange. In the first three rounds, he took the children of noble families down one after another. One of them was Sim, the guy I had just encountered.”
When Mel looked at where Florin had just got out, he saw someone familiar. With his long hair and handsome posture, it was Edgan, whom he met at the entrance of the city.
“How come? Everyone knows that Sim has reached the second level of Discovery at this age. How did this boy beat someone who had the energy of nature circulating in his body?”
Nalt shouted in amazement. He was bewildered by the question he did not know the answer to. But the answer he was looking for was going to come immediately.
“So what, my brother can’t beat your hero? Who cares if he is in the second phase of Discovery? You all saw it. My brother didn’t even use his weapon!”
A beautiful-faced girl with her hand on her waist was walking towards the trio while one of her eyebrows was up. Nalt’s words seemed to anger her a little bit.
“Marvina, are you here too?”
The girl was just about to scold Nalt more when Mel’s voice was heard. At that moment, the angry expression on Marvina’s face had softened and then disappeared.
“Mel, what a surprise this is! What brings you here?”
When the young girl ran and hugged Mel, the other two people in that place gaped at this scene. Marvina was really beautiful and none of them, including Mel, knew what to do in the face of her sudden act.
“After the Plant Department test, my friend and I came to watch the fights. But I never thought I’d run into you here.”
As Mel was expressing himself, howls started to rose from the arena next to them.
“He beat his opponent with one punch again!”
“Who is this boy?”
“Winner is Edgan!”
When the referee announced his name, Edgan saluted his opponent lying on the ground and began to walk down the stairs.
“Brother, come here!”
Marvina called her older brother to the place where Mel and his friends were. The long-haired boy, who could not predict where the sound was coming from, would find the new place thanks to Mel since the record holder of the Plant Department immediately attracted his attention with his large body.
