**Chapter 135: Hey, Haven't You Eaten Yet?**
"Ha!"
"Hah!"
In the Unicorn Proving Grounds, Tina and her instructor, Margaret, were locked in a fierce battle.
Their lances sliced through the air, the gleaming spearheads leaving trails of light. The new skills from the [Knight] class, part of the second expansion pack, amplified their immediate combat effectiveness.
With each exchange, [Charge with Horses], [Slashing], [Returning Carbine], and [Unity of Human and Horse] were unleashed in rapid succession.
The strength of both women clashed fiercely, white and golden energy flaring with every impact, causing the very air around them to tremble. Had the ground beneath them not been specially reinforced, it would have shattered long ago.
Standing nearby, Su Yu watched with intrigue, his expression calm but focused.
Before the duel began, he'd switched to first-person mode, intending to record the battle and later upload it to the official game website. This footage would reveal he was progressing in two main storylines, which might expose him to some players. But he figured the secret would come out eventually—particularly since the later parts of Tina's storyline would involve massive battles. So, he decided to give everyone a sneak peek...and maybe make some extra coin on the side.
As he observed the fight, Su Yu took out a bag of melon seeds and began munching, clearly enjoying the spectacle.
*[Likes watching two women fight.jpg]*
After a while, he glanced at the young girl beside him. "Hey, haven't you eaten yet?"
The girl flushed, her frustration flaring. "You're going too far!"
Her anger channeled into her bowstring, she fired a series of rapid arrows at Su Yu's [Earth Shield]. The arrows struck with a loud scraping sound, creating friction against the shield.
…
Meanwhile, it wasn't only Tina and Margaret who were battling. Su Yu himself was facing off with the young girl named Ai, Margaret's knight attendant.
The trial rules were clear: while the knight and instructor dueled, the knight's squire and the instructor's squire had to fight as well.
If the knight lost, she'd forfeit her eligibility to join the Unicorn Knights. Similarly, if the squire lost, the knight would face consequences on their behalf—and potentially fail the quest.
So, as Tina and Margaret fought, Su Yu squared off against Ai.
Ai was a level 26 archer specializing in swift attacks. Right as their battle began, she shot arrow after arrow with impressive force.
But Su Yu wasn't easily intimidated. Before the duel, he'd carefully built up his mana reserves and cast a 25-layered [Earth Shield]. His armor was a complete set of level 21 cloth armor from the Queen's line, significantly enhancing his physical defense.
Ai's arrows, despite their power, only created ripples on the [Earth Shield x25]. They couldn't penetrate it.
So Su Yu continued eating his melon seeds, unperturbed, completely ignoring Ai's attacks as he watched Tina's duel.
Irritated, Ai seethed, especially after hearing Su Yu's comment: "Hey, haven't you eaten yet?" The remark seemed like a direct insult to her power, like he was implying she couldn't even break his shield.
"You're too much! Are you saying I'm too weak to break a barrier?" Ai shouted, her anger boiling over. "I'll shatter it today, just you wait!"
Channeling all her energy, Ai unleashed a barrage of arrows on the shield.
Su Yu raised an eyebrow, realizing her misinterpretation. "Oh, that's not what I meant." He clarified, "I was just asking if you wanted to eat some melon seeds. I've got plenty here."
With that, he pulled out two more bags of melon seeds from his backpack and tossed them her way.
The bags landed at Ai's feet, one of them scattering seeds across the ground after being torn by an arrow.
Ai stopped, staring down at the seeds scattered around her feet. Her face went through a spectrum of emotions—indignation, embarrassment, and finally, something akin to defeat.
"Auntie, I can't take it! This is so humiliating!" she wailed, finally cracking under the pressure. Dropping her bow, she turned and ran off, hands covering her face.
"Waaa…" Ai's sobs trailed off as she fled the grounds.
Meanwhile, Margaret, still engaged in a close fight with Tina, noticed her squire—who also happened to be her niece—running off. But she couldn't afford to be distracted; Tina was exerting intense pressure, forcing Margaret to stay fully focused on defending herself.
Just then, Su Yu received a notification:
**"Ding! Quest update: Fifth phase of [The Maiden of Oran City] completed. You have gained 1,000 experience points."**
Su Yu smirked, shaking his head. "Kids these days, no resilience under pressure. It was just an innocent question—why take it so hard?"
He bent down to retrieve the still-sealed bag of melon seeds. As for Ai's discarded bow, Su Yu left it on the ground. It was just a rare item, something he wasn't particularly interested in. Besides, he thought picking it up might make Tina look down on him.
At that moment, the battle between Tina and Margaret was nearing its end.
Although Margaret was a formidable level 56, Tina—level 50 and blessed with a powerful god-tier bloodline—had the strength to take on enemies far above her level. The mere six-level gap was almost negligible for her.
With a loud clash, Tina's lance deflected Margaret's and landed a powerful strike on her midsection, sending her flying off her horse.
Margaret hit the ground hard, a trickle of blood escaping her lips as she lay there, defeated.
The duel concluded with Tina's victory.
But even Tina wasn't left unscathed. The battle had depleted most of her stamina. Staggering, she lost her balance and fell from her unicorn.
"Neigh—"
Sensing its master falling, the unicorn twisted around to catch her. But Su Yu was quicker.
In an instant, he teleported to Tina's side, catching her just before she hit the ground.
However, he didn't try to catch her in his arms like some hero from a drama. Tina's armor, reinforced with [Kelly's Enchantment], weighed several hundred pounds. With his level 26 mage physique, Su Yu simply couldn't manage it.
Instead, he set her down gently and leaned over with a look of concern. "Tina, are you alright? You're bleeding a lot! Let me clean up your wounds."
Switching off his first-person perspective, Su Yu pulled out tissues from his backpack and began carefully wiping the blood from Tina's face.
Anna, Tina's unicorn, also reacted, the horn on its head glowing as it prepared a [Healing Spell].
But seeing this, Su Yu quickly lobbed his bag of melon seeds at the horn to interrupt the spell.
"Anna, you've expended a lot of energy during the battle. Don't overextend yourself. Here, have some melon seeds, I'll tend to Tina's wounds."
The seeds scattered, but Anna, unaware of Su Yu's real motives, happily nibbled on the seeds.
"Thank you, Nemesis," Tina said softly, her voice full of gratitude.
"It's nothing," Su Yu replied with a smile, continuing to treat her wounds.
Then Tina looked over at her instructor, her expression resolute. "Instructor, I won this trial."
"You did." Margaret lay there, visibly weakened, her face pale.
It pained her as an instructor to lose to a new recruit, but she could only marvel at Tina's potential.
"Tina, congratulations on completing the trial." Margaret's tone was soft, tinged with respect. "The entrance to the [Trial Secret Realm] is beneath this proving ground. Follow me."
Just then, Su Yu received a quest update:
**"Ding! Main storyline update: [The Holy Maiden of Oran City (6/100)]**
**Quest Objective:** Accompany Tina in clearing the [Trial Secret Realm].
**Quest Reward:** Rewards vary based on performance."
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(End of Chapter)