"Is this the village of Green Hill? If it weren't for the accident, I wouldn't have heard of this place," said a tall young man with short black hair, riding on his horse, his sharp eyes scanning passersby with disdain.
His companion, an elderly bearded man, calmly responded, "Investigating such cases is the task of the main family, and there is no harm in examining the youth, as we may find a talent or two to join the institute."
The young man with sharp eyes forced a smile and replied, "Do you think you will find any talent in a place like this? You are indeed an optimist."
The villagers were at their best, as news of a member from the Shin family, a family of which they are one of its branches, had arrived. The most excited were the youth, if they were lucky, they would move to the city and open up new horizons.
Throughout the morning hours, they prepared for the competition, except for Jin, who sat eating his seventh dish of black noodles, unconcerned about the competition.
"The bill, please."
"One hundred and twenty silver coins, sir," replied the waiter,
as if he had been waiting for the question. "One hundred and twenty? Why, do you think I ate grilled fear and didn't even know it?"
"Sir, this is the bill for three consecutive days," the waiter pointed to the accumulated plates, "and you truly have a great appetite."
"Not today. My appetite is low. Here's 20 silver coins," he turned to the table behind him and shouted, "Doctor, don't forget to pay my bill too, it's 100 silver coins".
He looked at the waiter, while his finger was still pointing to the doctor, he siad:
"He will pay".
The food fell from the doctor's mouth as soon as he heard his words, for a person like him, he preferred death over such torture.
'How much does he think I earn in a day to ask me for 100 silver coins every time he sees me? Enough is enough. There is no discussion. I am leaving this village'
the doctor thought to himself, of course he didn't dare to say it out loud and continued to curse Jin secretly.
As soon as Jin left the restaurant, he found someone blocking his way, and anger was obvious on her face.
"Where do you think you're going without fulfilling your promise?"
A girl with two braids stood in the middle of the road, crossing her arms and puffing her cheeks.
Her actions made her look more gentle and cute. "Brother, didn't you promise me that you would defeat Luna's brother? All you do is eat and laze around."
Jin bent down and in one motion, Mei was on his shoulder.
"My princess, it's not appropriate to wander outside. You'll make your mother worry about you".
The girl ignored his warning and pointed her finger where many people gathered. "Luna's brother is there, quickly go and take care of him."
"As you wish, my princess. Let's go."
Jin mimicked the sound of a horse and ran towards the square, while his sister screamed of joy.
In the village square, a rectangular platform was set up to be the fighting arena for the young men. The men from the main family would choose the first and second ranked to join the external court of the martial arts institute.
All eyes were on "Dou Bai", the thirteen-year-old brown young man with blond hair. He was definitely the first candidate, since he had won two matches and was preparing for his third match against a girl.
The tension was evident on the girl, but somehow she managed to gather her courage and prepare for the fight.
"Get out of the way a little." A strange hand pushed the girl aside, and a white-haired boy approached "Dou Bai" and asked him, "Are you Luna's brother? I have to defeat you because I promised my little sister".
"Dou Bai" was surprised and so was the crowd, as Jin had not registered to participate in the competition and showed no interest in joining the institute, being absent for years. It was natural for no one to take him into account.
Finally, the blond boy woke up from the shock and smiled, saying, "Oh, you're little Mei's brother. Listen, I know the whole story. My sister loves to tease other children. But as you can see, I'm busy today."
"Dou Bai" approached Jin and whispered, "Don't you see the beautiful girl behind you? It's my chance to show off in front of her. What do you think if we postpone the fight until tomorrow, and I promise to pretend to lose in front of your sister?"
"No need to postpone or pretend. We'll end this here and now." Jin rolled up his sleeves, ready to fight.
His actions were considered rude, especially in the presence of representatives from the "Shin family". The village chief wiped his sweat and forced a smile, trying to justify Jin's behavior to the guests.
"He's a reckless young man, he was a prisoner of the Oris and no one taught him how to meet nobles. I'll intervene to stop him."
The old man combed his beard, the mention of the Oris caught his attention.
"Isn't he the same boy who was reported the killing of "Monroe" ?"
The leader of the village nodded in agreement. "Let this be. Let's see what he's capable of"
Dou Bai sighed and refused to take a fighting stance. "Listen, I'm three levels higher than you and I am about to break through to the world of soul. It'll just end up embarrassing you in front of your sister and all these people, why don't we solve this matter later when we are alone?"
Jin wants to end the matter, as he won't escape his sister's anger if he withdraws. So, he turned to the girl who took his place and said, "Close your ears for a moment, you shouldn't hear this".
"Hey, you blond son of a *****, you ******, why not *****?"
Although he lowered his voice and those outside the ring didn't hear anything, the girl was close enough to hear it and ran out of the ring with a tomato-red face.
"You coward, I'll break that cursed mouth!"
Dou Bai's eyes turned red with anger, and he unleashed his power, gathering a crimson energy around his body and throwing a heavy fist at Jin's face. Even from afar, it was possible to see the ripples in the air due to the force of his blows.
The elderly man smiled, "That blond is not bad, he's about to enter the world of soul"
"From the ripples in the air, I can say that his strength has surpassed his level. He seems to be in a state of rampage."
"The leader's eyes widened as if he was stung by a scorpion. The difference between "Jin" and "Dou Bai" is significant, but since "Dou Bai" became in a state of rampage, the situation may get out of control. And he doesn't want to see a boy from his village being harmed.
"We have to stop the fight, Jin is just a beginner".
The village chief was about to go down to the ring but stopped when he saw the look of surprise on the old man's face, and he signalled him to wait.
"Impossible, this skill!!, Autumn Leaf"
In the middle of the ring, a torrent of fast punches and kicks aimed at Jin's body, but all this was for nothing.
All those strong and fast attacks ended up in the air, as Jin moved with amazing agility and lightness, avoiding everything his opponent threw at him.
After a while, the disturbance found its way to Dou Bai's heart, that he couldn't touch Jin with such an attack, and his opponent did nothing but dodge and smile.
With all that tension, his movements became clear and expected. "What's happening exactly? How is it possible that I can't touch him? Hm!What is this blue color? What happened? Why do I see the sky?"
Silence engulfed the place, and no one understood exactly what happened. In an instant, the roles were reversed, and the attacker was thrown out of the ring.
"Yay, my brother won! Brother, you're the best!"
Because of Mei's cheering and jumping, everyone woke up from their astonishment. He won simply by avoiding his opponent's punch, grabbing him by the arm, and throwing him off his shoulder.
"He's out of the ring, and according to the rules of the fight, Dou Bai lost the match."
One of the spectators spoke, no one expected such a result, although they witnessed the battle, they were still not believing what just happened.