The conversations went on. But occasionally Kalina would break away from the conversation to cast a glance at Alex.
Alex was happily barbecuing the meat while being surrounded by kids. He was busy in his own world. And unknown to him, he was smiling heartily. Unlike his usual self, this smile was different. It was genuine. And Kalina realised it.
She was seeing a different side of Alex that she never knew existed.
Most of the time, Alex was a man with a purpose. Every one of his actions was calm and composed delivering the best result possible. He often faked his expressions like a businessman or at times, hide behind a horrible personality.
His action often fooled her to think he was a middle-aged man with many life experiences. In simpler terms, he was unapproachable as a person.
However now, he was completely different. The genuine relaxed expression and smile gave a different feeling to his action. He didn't have an impregnable defence around him like usual.
This was the genuine Alex.
Without knowing, Kalina was letting out a smile capable of mesmerising anyone. And this captured the hearts of the youths around her.
Meanwhile, someone else was observing Kalina. Like everyone else, he was thrilled to see her smile. But when he followed her gaze, he was disappointed to see Alex.
For Thee, this was a hard-hitting fact. Kalina was more interested in Alex. He was being ignored while he was talking.
Thee was sure that Kalina likes Alex. Like that, a bud of jealousy bloomed inside his mind.
"How about a sparring match? Can you give me some pointers?" Kanal who heard the battle stories of Kalina spoke. She was far too excited to let the day end there. Getting guidance from a tier 4 warrior like Kalina was her dream. So, she grasped the opportunity and asked Kalina to a sparring match.
"I don't m…" Kalina couldn't complete her sentence. She wanted to say 'I don't mind.'
Before Kalina could reply, Thee interjected. This was his chance to show off his skill. Rather than letting Kanal spar with Kalina, he was going to let everyone witness his marvellous skills. So, he subtly nudged for another outcome. He was going to spar with everyone.
"Kanal, don't waste the princess's time. She doesn't have enough time to spar with all of us. So, how about you guys spar with me one by one? The princess can judge our skills and give pointers that way." Thee said with a smile.
Realising her mistake, Kanal agreed with Thee. She didn't think properly and asked the princess for a spar. It was her mistake. Kanal thought.
However, Kalina was not offended by the over-enthusiastic Kanal. She would have happily agreed to spar if not for the intervention of Thee. He didn't give her a chance to reply. This kid was slowly getting on her nerves. She was twenty-one this year, yet this fifteen-year-old was cutting her off. Although fifteen years olds were considered adults in this world, she saw them as some kids. Without even realising it, she seems to have forgotten that Alex was their peer.
Poor Thee who didn't realise that stood without a change in his smug expression. He was excited to showcase his skills and woo the princess. She was just five years older than him, he had a chance to woo her. Now, he might be weaker than her. But six months later, he would win the champion's tournament and win her over. Thee decided.
From a young age, Thee had seen no one that could be close to him in talent. And that was a fact, and that was the reason for his confidence.
In the meantime, Alex had already prepared the barbecue and plated some for his young friend. The kids jumped in and began to eat it.
When he returned to call the others to eat dinner, he saw them warming up for a spar.
'What happened here?' He thought.
'Kalina, are you going to beat them up?' Alex looked at Kalina and thought. But Kalina shrugged her shoulders. She didn't know how to explain what just happened.
"Ah! Meru, you are here. Do you want to spar with us? You can come after Poka." Suddenly Thee asked. He was excited to get one more punching bag. There was no way Meru was going to win against him. So, he could use this chance to beat up Meru and show off his skills. This way, he could also gain the attention of Kalina and at the same time humiliates Meru. He was not going to let this chance pass by.
After all, Meru was getting on his nerves for the past few months. His meteoric rise was dampening his mood. Thee felt like Meru was the reason that he was not appreciated. But with this match, he could grab back his right to be looked upon by the general populous.
"Hm…" Alex didn't know how to reply to that question. But soon, he realised the motive behind Thee's words. So, he asked back casually. "Are you going to spar with each of us? Wouldn't that be taxing on you?"
"No, don't worry. I can spar against you guys for hours before it will become tiring for me." Thee said with a small smile.
It didn't take a genius to figure out that Thee was looking down on everyone. Even his friends, Charam, Poka and Kanal gave out an awry smile. But what can they do, he was the strongest among them. That was the truth.
It was true when he said he could spar against them for hours. After all, Thee was infinitely close to becoming a tier 4 warrior. They stood no chance against him.
At first, Alex didn't want to waste time by sparring against them, but now that Thee was looking down on him, he decided to act. The faster he resolves this problem the better it was for him. After all, Kalina was also involved in it.
"Oh! If so, I don't mind sparring against you. But consider this a friendly warning, I am not the same me from a couple of months ago." Alex stated.
—------
Alex and everyone moved to the training ground. It was almost six in the evening. The summer sun was still shining. They might have an hour of daylight before the world darkens.
Kanal, Charam, Poka, Alex were the contenders. Thee was already standing on the sparring platform.
The sparring platform was circular and thirty feet in diameter. Thee stood proudly at the centre while looking at the contenders.
"If you can beat me, I will give you a tier 2 herb which I got from my father." Thee said with a smirk. He began to show off his wealth too. Tier 2 herb was not something anyone could have in the Stone head tribe. The few people who would have a tier 2 herb in the whole tribe were the leader-level warriors, the chief, Mupan or Dhairya.
'Did they give his father the tier 2 herb. I know they are related, I didn't think he would give something like that to Thee's father. It might be due to his talent?' Alex thought.
But Kalina broke his reverie by jabbing him from his side.
"Take out the golden mushroom. I want to use it as the prize." She whispered to him.
"I thought you forgot about them. Why didn't you ask for them at an earlier time if you remember it?"
"Hm… I just need one. Give it to me." Kalina didn't want to ask for the golden mushroom. After all, he helped her much more than she could repay. But this time, she couldn't let the kid show off anymore. Thee was really getting on to her nerves.
"Okay! Wait a minute." Alex replied and took out the golden mushroom from his interdimensional farm warehouse. For a second he had to blink in and out of existence, but no one noticed it due to him moving away from the crowd.
"Here, take it. But wouldn't you be disappointed if he wins it?" Alex threw the golden mushroom at Kalina.
"Are you not participating?" She asked back immediately.
"Ha…ha…" This made Alex laugh.
"This is a tier 4 herb. A golden mushroom. The last one standing will get this as the prize." Kalina said loudly grabbing everyone's attention.
A tier 4 herb?
They had never even seen a tier 3 herb, much less come in contact with a tier 4 one. So, the winner gets it!
This raised the stakes of the sparring match. A fire burned in the contenders' eyes. Thee, Who stood atop the sparring platform didn't know how to react. But he felt lucky to have the opportunity to get the tier 4 herb.
He believed Kalina was serving him the herb on a silver platter. After all, she knew he was the strongest among them. If she had taken it out, wouldn't it be for him?
'Look Meru, I have already grabbed her attention. You won't be able to surpass my talent and strength.' Thee thought with a smirk.
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