"We should stop here!" Ivor screamed at the top of his voice when he realised that the sun was going down. His concerned gaze was focused on Mane, but Mane knew that the concern in it wasn't meant for him. Ivor's concern was directed at the sleeping Lily clinging to Mane's back. It was actually because she had fallen asleep that Ivor suggested that they take a break. There was a slight smile of satisfaction on her face and a bit of saliva had found its way out of her mouth and onto Mane's shoulder.
Mane nodded his head at the man' suggestion, and slowly grinded to a halt. He tilted his head slowly to make sure he didn't wake Lily up, for her head lay peacefully on his shoulder. Then he carefully wiped the drool off her lips. He didn't want her to be embarrassed if she woke up in the process of transferring her off the horse.
"Steady Roxanne," Mane patted the tired Red Maned Horse. He infused Edict into his palms and guided his inner energy into the horse. Roxanne grunted with pleasure as her fatigue was quickly wiped away. Her eyes glistened in excitement and she almost neighed in joy. If it wasn't because Mane had asked her to tone down her excitement, she would have caused a ruckus and woken Lily up.
"Good girl," Mane smiled seeing Roxanne being so obedient. This was a trick he learnt in Zandor. It was Butler Fin who taught him how to ride a Red Maned Horse, and when the man was teaching him, he told Mane about the Edict trick. Red Maned Horses had a special physiology, and this special physiology allowed them to accept another's inner energy without any real problems. Usually, only a Scholar would be able to share inner energy with another person because they would be able to sense the intricacies and differences in physique and apportion the energy accordingly. But that wasn't an easy process and took a lot of concentration to achieve. So although Mane was a Scholar, it would be very difficult for a Low Level Scholar like him to do so. Luckily, Red Maned Horses didn't require such delicacy. Their bodies could handle another's inner energy and convert it into energy for them. So that was what Mane did. However, this world's inhabitants didn't seem to know much about Edict, so he doubted that the horses had ever received the blessing of Edict from another.
Mane handed Roxanne a sugar cube which she gobbled greedily, under the envious gazes of the other Red Maned Horses, and then he gently got down the horse after placing Lily in a suitable position so that she wouldn't fall off without his support. Once he landed on the ground, he gently picked her up and then sighed a breath of relief seeing that she was still asleep.
"Such excellent footwork." Ivor was secretly observing Mane, so he saw how Mane got off Roxanne. It looked simple, but the way Mane got off wasn't as simple as it looked. It was almost like Mane glided onto the ground. And when he landed, he didn't make a sound. It was akin to a hair strand falling onto the ground – silent and unnoticeable. However he didn't appreciate Mane's landing for long. When Ivor saw him carrying Lily in his arms as she slept peacefully, a frown automatically found its way onto his face.
He wanted to offer to carry her, but seeing how tightly she held onto Mane's shirt, he gave up. Besides, he wasn't sure that Mane would hand her over. After all, her brother Lam was here and he was silent. He, Ivor, had no right to Lily. Looking at Lam who was rubbing his eyes groggily, Ivor smiled faintly. He then proceeded to take out some tents from the bags and set them up.
"Do you need any help?" Lam approached Mane and asked. He felt gratitude for Mane who was taking so much care to make sure his sister slept peacefully, and wanted to be of assistance. He didn't think Mane would be able to set up tents when his hands were full.
"Don't worry. You should do yours first. Then you can come and help me." Mane replied with a smile. He understood that Lam was willing to help him set up Lily's tent so that he could 'offload' Lily and then set up his. But there really wasn't any need. Lily wasn't heavy, and with Mane's strength, he didn't even feel anything. Besides, he could still set up his tent without Lam's help. He refrained from saying so since Lam would have assumed that Mane was only saying that to get him to leave. So he would show him instead.
"Okay. I would be quick." Lam nodded and quickly left to set up his tent. He had never done it before, but he was a smart boy. He observed Ivor and followed whatever the man was doing. Soon, he had set up his tent, and so had Ivor. Just when both were ready to assist Mane, they stopped dead in their tracks.
"That's amazing," Lam commented genuinely, and Ivor nodded in agreement. Next to Mane a fully set up tent stood, and Mane was in the process of setting up the other. Holding Lily close with one arm, he only used his other arm to set up his tent. Like a kite in the wind, he moved gracefully as he worked. His movements were delicate and light, and didn't disturb the sleeping beauty in his arms at all. Soon, he was done setting up his tent as well.
"Are you not worried that he would grow wary of you once he sees your abilities?" Hildegarde flew next to Mane and asked worriedly. Mane was acting as if he was the only one here, and that contradicted his guarded nature.
"I am," Mane admitted. "But I don't want to disturb her," he smiled slightly as he held Lily closer and whispered to Hildegarde's hearing. He was getting a hang of his abilities, so now he was able to send his voice to Hildegarde only, and the others wouldn't have a clue. He only had to make sure they didn't see his lips move, or else they would be suspicious.
"Hehe," Hildegarde laughed pleasantly upon hearing Mane's reply.
"He moves like a Control Type," Ivor thought silently to himself. He didn't think Mane was a Control New Type because he didn't think that Mane obtained his abilities from a New Type Potion. If he did, then his abilities would be purely physical. Yet the energy that threatened his very existence when he held Mane's hand that day was not something that one could get from taking a New Type Potion. So he was left wondering what exactly Mane's specialties and abilities were.
"He doesn't need our help. We should take out the sleeping bags." Ivor instructed Lam and proceeded to search through his bag pack for his sleeping bag. Lam nodded and did the same.
Soon, all three were done with what they were doing. The three sat around a small bonfire as they ate their supper.
"She would be hungry when she wakes up," Mane stated as he tore into the flesh of a Magical Beast's carcass that had been roasted.
"Yeah. We should wrap up some of the food and leave it in her tent just in case she wakes up in the middle of the night and needs some food." Ivor suggested as he munched on his meal. His hands held onto a large roasted leg of a Magical Beast and his mouth was soiled with oil. His eyes traveled to the tent placed strategically in the middle of the other three as he spoke. Next to the tent in the middle were the four Red Maned Horses munching on some grass.
"I'd do that," Lam offered. Lily was his sister so he was the only one qualified to enter her sleeping quarters at this time. He carefully packaged the food prepared for his sister and sent it to her tent.
"You saw the clip of the various fights," Ivor suddenly spoke to Mane once Lam was gone. "What did you think of the other teams? And how do you think the Orange Team would fare against them?"
"The Orange Team is definitely strong. They showed that in the last round. But the others aren't weak either. Each Captain is on about the same level as Vital Orange, and their teammates aren't weak Thrashers either. But Orange Team is at a disadvantage because they are the only team to have lost one of their members in the last round. And one of their strongest assets at that." Mane answered simply as he ate.
"With you as part of the team, what do you think their chances would be?" Ivor asked.
"I don't know. But it should be better than having Orange Monk in the team." Mane replied. Ivor nodded his head at the boy's remark.
He would have rubbished it as arrogance before, but seeing Mane's exceptional control and strange movements, he was inclined to believe that Mane was indeed stronger than Orange Monk. He naturally assumed that Mane wasn't taking Orange Monk in the Soul-Bound state into account since that move was very costly. But he was wrong. Mane wasn't saying he was stronger than Orange Monk's base level, but that he was stronger than Orange Monk even with Soul-Bound taken into consideration! But Mane didn't explain this. There was no need to. No matter how strong he was, he was no threat to Ivor.
"You should get some rest," Ivor advised as he left to go into his tent. Soon Lam returned, and he and Mane chatted for a while before both of them left for their respective tents after extinguishing the bonfire.
Mane sat within his tent in a meditative position. His breathing was slow and regular, expression serene. As he meditated, he selfishly drew Edict within the air into his body. He confirmed yester night that Darkness elements did indeed exist at night, although they weren't much. But it was still better than nothing. So he was greedily absorbing them into his body.
Earth
Wind
Darkness
These were the three elements he was devouring now, and he had been doing so for the last few hours. Suddenly, Mane felt a disturbance around him and opened his eyes. A curious expression filled his face as he parted his lips and spoke,
"Interesting"