Three weeks of rest began the next day. Cj along with Miya and her disciples left the island for a bit to begin preparations for the next round. CJ was more comfortable in his basement than on an island where his movement is restricted. Fei thought about visiting his sister on his break. "The first round couldn't have been easier for me. Hopefully, things stay the same way for the other two" said Fei happily. In the end, he decided not to visit his sister but to scout the competition. Fei doesn't know any of the fellow participants and he's suddenly determined to change that fact.
Fei left his room and entered the living room. He expected to see one or two people but only one person was there. It was a tall, blonde-haired man in a grey robe as if he had just come out of bed. The man was boiling water in the kettle to make tea for himself. Fei looked at the clock and saw that the time was 9:22 am. Most people would have already eaten breakfast by that point. Fei walked up to the man and greeted "Good morning Sir. How are you doing this fine morning"?
"Not so well my boy. I just got rejected by my little girl. Good morning to you also" the man replied.
"Sorry to hear. What's your name mister? Your face looks familiar. Have you been on TV or magazines before?" asked Fei.
"Ronald Matar. The Archaeologist, The Video Game Designer, and most of all the director of the long-running series Repetitive Arts. If that doesn't draw your memory then nothing will" said Ronald confidently.
"Whoa! Ronald Matar is standing before me. I'm not leaving this island before I get your autograph. My name is Fei Fong. I'm the guy who's going to win that special potion everyone's hyping up" said Fei. Ronald laughed when he heard Fei. He patted him on the head and looked straight into his eyes. "Oh my god. There's no way!" Ronald shouted surprised. He picked up his phone and dialed a number.
Ring! Ring! Ring!
"Yo Ronald. What's up?" a voice answered. Ronald replied, "Harriot you're a piece of shit you know that. There's a boy who looks exactly like you. He's your son isn't he? Why didn't you mention him to me? Thought we were friends".
"Uhh, I saw no reason to tell you about my kids while you hid yours from the world. I know full well that you have a daughter and she's participating in this Dragon Hunt" said Harriot. Fei heard his dad's voice so he joined the conversation. "Dad how are you doing?" asked Fei loudly.
"Fine, I have no time for this. Sue is calling for me now. Bye," Harriot said before hanging up. "Sue? He has a daughter too. I gotta see her" grinned Ronald. Ronald made tea for Fei, himself, and his daughter. "Alisa doesn't want to see me right now for some reason. She's been ignoring me since yesterday. She won't open the door for me so could you do the honors. Give her this cup of tea for me. She hasn't left her room since morning" said Ronald worriedly.
Fei happily replied, "Of course. I have a sweet jacket that I'm going to need your signature on later. Give me her cup". Ronald gave Fei two cups of herb tea and told him the directions to Alisa's room. Her room was across Fei's room coincidentally. Fei knocked on her door and called out the name Alisa.
"ALISA! Open the door please" Fei said with a wide smile. "I'm about to see a celebrity's daughter. I wonder what she's like. I bet she's great just like Ronald" thought Fei.
"Who's there?" the girl asked from the other side of the door.
"Fei Fong. I'm the guy who's giving you tea your father made. Open up" Fei replied holding in his excitement. The door slowly opened up for Fei to enter. When Fei saw Alisa the first thing that caught his attention was the bed sheet covering her. "She's hiding something" Fei instantly concluded. The next thing Fei noticed was her eye. They were the color of the ocean, unlike her father. The other thing he took note of was her eye patch covering her right eye. "I didn't know what I was expecting," Fei thought. Alisa stood at the doorway with no intention of moving.
"Can I go in?" asked Fei.
"Sorry I can't do that. Hand me my cup and leave" replied Alisa. She pulled out her hands for the cup shaking the whole time. Fei smelled the scent of blood coming from Alisa. Fei stared at the sheet around Alisa's body curiously. Fei gave Alisa her cup of tea and asked "Are you okay?" Alisa neglected to answer and quickly closed the door. She sighed and turned around relieved. "My chest hurts. That's all I had to say just now. Can't believe I froze up like that" said Alisa frustrated.
"Ooooh, are you still injured from yesterday's round? That's strange" said a voice in Alisa's room. Alisa felt someone holding her neck so she turned around to see the same green-haired boy. "How did you get in here?" asked Alisa. "I stepped in before you closed the door on me. I'm fast that way" replied Fei.
"The name's Fei by the way. What's wrong with your chest?"
Alisa took off the sheets and showed Fei the small hole at the center of her chest. It was bleeding at an astonishingly slow pace. "It hurts like hell," said Alisa. "Tell your dad then. He's worried you know" advised Fei. Alisa looked at Fei's body and saw that he had little to no injuries on him. "Was the first round that easy for you? Doesn't look like you got a scratch" said Alisa impressed.
"I suffered injuries of course but they aren't life-threatening as yours. Plus let's not forget about Mr. Gordon. His gift can save you. I advised you to find him immediately before the day ends" Fei said before leaving the room. Fei imagined Ronald's daughter to be a rude little girl who's full of herself. "She must have endured a rough childhood. Her presence alone gives off a frightening amount of solitude. I didn't know that was possible" Fei thought.
Later on that day Fei strolled around the island and found himself at the beach. Most of the Golden Circle were swimming and relaxing there. Fei thought about holding a conversation with them. "These are the most powerful individuals in the world. Some of them I don't even know. I know King Almon, Gordon, Ronald, Kars but who else" said Fei. He sat beside a woman in a black bikini with a towel covering her eyes. "Good afternoon Miss. Could you tell me your name?" asked Fei.
The woman lift the towel off her face and took a good look at Fei in regular clothes. "You should get changed. I hope you aren't planning on swimming in your clothes. My name is Aoi Quin. You wouldn't know about me" said Aoi. Fei never heard the name Aoi before on television or in his personal life. "That's a splendid name. Where are you from? What do you do for a living? I'm very curious" asked Fei casually. Aoi knew the smile on Fei's face was nothing but a facade. She covered her eyes again and told him "Listen boy I don't know who you think you are but get this in your cranium. Don't try to extract personal information from me" said Aoi.
"That midget over there is The Head of HEP. Human Evolution Program. Have you ever heard of that institute before son?" said the man walking towards Fei. The man was none other than The King of Arcland King Harriot. "Excuse me, geezer. Call me midget again and your blood will leave your body in a matter of an instant" Aoi threatened. Fei bowed and apologized to Aoi for starting a short conversation with her.
"It's hard to speak to this one. What a shame? At least I know her better than before" thought Fei. He tried to initiate a conversation with every Golden Circle member that was still on the island. Some went smoothly while some went out of control. "Ronald, Gordon, Dailus, Reggie, and Almon are nice but the others are mean" Fei deduced. He stayed at the beach not knowing what to do next. So he started meditating on the hot sand.
"I wanted to be friends with these guys but that didn't work out. I wonder how the other participants are doing" he thought.
SMACK!
Aoi slapped Fei on his back and shouted "You must be begging to get your skin roasted. Go indoors if you want to meditate geez!" Fei left the beach with his back aching. He looked around for the other participants and realized something important. He searched the island three times but only five out of the fourteen participants were present. "Did everyone seriously leave the island? That's just... That's just ... Damn it" he complained.
Fei tried befriending four out of the five participants but none of them cooperated. One of them even drew on his face with a permanent marker. It goes to show that in the competition making friends is a waste of time. Especially in the competition where only one person wins in the end. "The Golden Circle and the fellow candidates are out of my reach. That injured girl is the only one left and she's locked up in her room" sighed Fei.
Ring! Ring! Ring! Ring!
Fei's phone began to ring so he quickly answered it. "Hello".
"It's exhausting watching you go all over the island. What are you trying to do?" asked Sue upsettingly.
"Make friends duh. I can't go anywhere without making at least two friends" said Fei happily. "You better cut that shit out if you want to win. Last round you were lucky to have survived that blow you took. Not everyone is going to choose a game over combat. Go train your mind and body while you can. Stop idling about. I know it's the first day but this is very important to me" said Sue. Fei laughed and told his sister to calm down. "Sweet of you to be worried but I'm basically invincible with my speed. We all know this. Your recovery is inevitable" said Fei confidently.
The day ended with Fei having dinner with Ronald and his daughter Alisa in the living room. They were eating curry with cornmeal. The meal was Fei's idea. Ronald has never eaten curry before so he decided to try it at least once today. Alisa was the same. The three sat around a small table in awkward silence. Fei couldn't help but feel the tension in the air. Ronald and Alisa tried their best not to look at each other.
"What do you two think of curry now?" asked Fei curiously.
"Meh, expected more to be honest. It's such a famous dish" sighed Alisa. Alisa finished her plate before the other two and headed to her room. Ronald and Fei were left alone to eat. "She's still ignoring you. That's cold" said Fei. "She's being lied to. She has the wrong image of me now and doesn't want to talk to me. What a mess" said, Ronald.
Fei offered to help. He suggested, "I can help you fix your relationship. She and I are the only ones in our age group. We should stick together. If I get to date her then maybe I can patch things up with you two". Ronald immediately stood up and grabbed Fei by the collar. "We're done here," he said strongly. He left the table with an angry look on his face.
"Hmmm, he didn't say no"