Chapter 52: Chapter 52 : Temi
Thank you SinEater for the golden tickets.
The young man walked toward the entrance.
The moment he stepped inside, people noticed.
Conversations became quieter.
Several cultivators looked over.
Some immediately straightened.
Others stopped what they were doing.
A few looked excited.
The young man’s entourage entered behind him.
The butler remained close.
The young man didn’t acknowledge the attention.
He simply walked.
His eyes moved across the training ground.
The change was almost immediate.
People began trying harder.
A young man who had been lazily swinging a wooden sword suddenly attacked the dummy with everything he had.
Another cultivator began throwing spells much faster.
Someone who had been sitting down jumped to his feet and started practicing his technique.
A few young women began whispering to one another.
Some of the young men glanced toward the newcomer, clearly trying to see whether he was watching them.
The atmosphere had shifted.
People wanted to be noticed.
Tolu noticed it.
Ore noticed it.
Akin noticed it.
Temi noticed it.
But none of them cared enough to stop training.
Tolu continued practicing.
Ore continued shooting.
Akin and Temi continued sparring.
The young man walked past them.
The butler watched the reactions of the people around him.
"Interesting."
"What?"
"Some are already trying to impress you."
The young man smiled. "I expected that."
They continued.
A young cultivator unleashed an impressive-looking technique.
Another began showing off his swordsmanship.
The young man watched for a few seconds before moving on.
Then he heard something.
Crack!
He turned.
The sound had come from the sparring platform.
Akin and Temi were still fighting.
Neither had even looked at him.
The young man’s eyes narrowed slightly.
They were surrounded by people desperately trying to attract his attention.
Those two weren’t.
Instead, they were completely focused on each other.
Temi attacked.
Akin blocked.
She stepped left.
He followed.
She suddenly accelerated.
Akin barely reacted.
Their wooden weapons collided.
The young man watched. "Who are they?"
The butler looked toward the platform. "Novices, judging by their equipment."
"They don’t move like beginners."
"No."
The young man watched Temi.
She was aggressive.
Not reckless.
There was a difference.
Every time Akin defended, she pressed.
Every time he created distance, she closed it.
She wasn’t simply trying to hit him.
She was trying to overwhelm his ability to respond.
Akin blocked one attack.
Temi immediately attacked from another angle.
He blocked again.
She attacked again.
Again.
Again.
The young man’s attention remained fixed on her.
Temi suddenly feinted.
Akin reacted.
She changed direction.
His guard opened.
Her wooden weapon stopped an inch from his chest.
Silence.
Temi lowered it. "I win."
Akin stared at her. "You cheated."
Temi blinked. "How?"
"You knew I would react."
"That’s not cheating."
"Feels like cheating."
Temi smiled. "Then get better."
The young man smiled faintly.
The butler noticed. "You found someone?"
"Maybe."
The young man watched Temi for another moment. "Find out who she is."
The butler nodded. "Immediately?"
"Before we leave."
He looked back at Temi.
"Her."
The butler studied her. "What interests you?"
"Her aggression."
He paused. "She doesn’t have much power."
"No."
"But she doesn’t hesitate."
The young man watched Temi pick up her weapon again.
"Find out her name, where she came from, who she trains with, her cultivation level, her affinity, and anything else relevant."
The butler bowed slightly. "Yes sir."
The young man turned.
His entourage followed.
Before leaving, he looked back once more.
Temi was already sparring again.
She hadn’t even noticed him leave.
The young man smiled.
Then he walked away.
Behind him, the training ground slowly returned to normal.
And the four young adventurers continued training, unaware that one of them had just attracted the attention of someone far beyond their current world.
...
The room was quiet.
A large window overlooked one of Ilebi’s inner districts, where the city remained alive even after sunset. Lanterns illuminated the streets below, merchants were still closing their stalls, and the distant noise of carts and voices drifted upward through the glass.
The young man sat behind a polished wooden desk.
Several documents lay before him, though he wasn’t reading any of them.
He was waiting.
A knock came at the door. "Enter."
The door opened.
The butler stepped inside and closed it behind him. "Sir."
The young man looked up. "You found something?"
"I did."
The butler approached the desk and stood respectfully before him. "The young woman you asked about is named Temi."
The young man leaned back. "Temi."
"Yes, sir."
"And?"
"She arrived in Ilebi approximately two months ago."
"From where?"
"A small town several days from the city."
The young man raised an eyebrow. "Several days?"
"Yes, sir. It appears she came here with three companions."
"The other three?"
"All Novices as well. A young man named Tolu, another named Akin, and a young woman named Ore."
The young man nodded slowly. "Family?"
"No, sir. There is no indication that they belong to any prominent family."
"Academy?"
"None."
"Faction?"
"None."
The young man’s fingers tapped lightly against the desk. "So they’re independent."
"Yes, sir."
The butler placed a small report on the desk.
"They have been operating as independent contractors since arriving in Ilebi. They take ordinary Novice-level contracts, mostly involving gathering, hunting and other work appropriate to their strength."
"How long have they known each other?"
The butler glanced through the report.
"There isn’t a complete record, but they appear to have known one another before coming here."
"And Temi?"
"She is a Novice."
"I know that."
"Of course, sir."
The butler continued. "Her affinity is fire."
The young man nodded. "Fire."
"Yes."
"Anything unusual?"
"Nothing that would immediately indicate an exceptional bloodline or inherited technique."
The young man smiled slightly.
"Is that all?"
The butler smiled.
"Yes sir."
The young man became quiet.
He remembered the sparring platform.
Temi’s movements.
The way she had attacked.
She wasn’t particularly powerful.
Her spells weren’t impressive.
Her weapon wasn’t expensive.
But she had attacked with an intensity that was difficult to ignore.
"How does she perform on contracts?"
"According to the people we’ve spoken with, competently."
"Only competently?"
"She’s improving."
The butler paused.
"The four of them have apparently become considerably more capable over the past two months."
"That explains their movements."
"Yes, sir."
The young man leaned forward.
"What about their finances?"
"Modest."
He laughed softly. "I expected that."
"They aren’t poor enough to be desperate, but they’re nowhere near wealthy. They appear to live entirely from their contract earnings."
"And no one sponsors them?"
"None that we could find."
The young man stared at the report.
Four Novices.
No family.
No academy.
No powerful sponsor.
Independent contractors.
And yet one of them had caught his attention.
"What about their cultivation?"
"They’re all Novices."
"Any indication that they’re close to advancing?"
"Not enough information to say, sir."
The young man nodded.
"Did anyone speak highly of Temi?"
"A few people mentioned that she is particularly aggressive during sparring."
The young man’s lips curved slightly. "I noticed."
The butler looked at him.
"That was what interested you?"
"Partly."
He picked up the report.
"Most people were trying to impress me."
"Yes, sir."
"They changed their techniques as soon as I arrived. They increased their speed. They used stronger spells. Some were practically throwing themselves at the training dummies."
The young man shook his head.
"But she didn’t even look at me."
"Neither did her companions."
"No."
He smiled.
"They were too busy training."
The butler nodded."Which suggests that their behavior wasn’t staged."
"Exactly."
The young man placed the report down.
"Bring them in."
The butler paused.
"All four?"
The young man thought about it.
"No."
His eyes returned to the report.
"Temi."
The butler waited.
"Invite her the next time I visit the training ground."
"Personally?"
"Yes."
"Would you like me to offer her something?"
"Nothing yet."
The butler nodded."Just an invitation?"
"Exactly."
He leaned back in his chair.
"I want to see whether what I saw was simply enthusiasm or whether she actually has potential."
"Understood, sir."
"And don’t make it sound important."
The butler smiled.
"I understand."
"She’s a Novice from a small town. If she believes some great opportunity has suddenly fallen into her lap, she’ll become nervous."
"Or suspicious."
"Exactly."
The young man looked toward the window.
"Keep it simple."
The butler bowed.
"Of course, sir."
Before he could say anything else, there was another knock.
The butler turned toward the door.
"Enter."
A young guard stepped inside.
He bowed immediately.
"Sir."
The young man looked at him.
"What is it?"
The guard hesitated for a moment.
"Lady Shewa is here to see you."
The room became quiet.
The young man closed his eyes briefly.
The butler’s expression remained perfectly composed.
"Where is she?"
"Waiting outside, sir."
The young man smiled.
"Of course she is."
The butler took a step backward. "I shall take my leave, sir."
"Arrange the invitation."
"Of course, sir."
The butler left.
The door closed behind him.
The young man remained seated for several seconds.
Then he looked toward the guard.
"Send her in."
The guard bowed.
"Yes, sir."
The door opened again.
And somewhere outside, footsteps approached.
The young man leaned back in his chair.
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