On Zachary's return to his disciple dormitory, he saw Chandler hauling around a massive stone that he had clearly uprooted from somewhere. He was evidently struggling as he was sweating bullets all over the place.
"Zachary! You're finally back. Elva was looking for you," Chandler immediately told him, setting the huge stone down.
"Really? Where is she right now?" Zachary raised an eyebrow and asked curiously.
"She just stepped out with Bruce actually. You've just missed her," Chandler replied with a smile.
"I wish I'd known; I wouldn't have left otherwise. Bruce is really good at finding excuses to whisk her away, isn't he? Oh right, I need to go find Master Sara and ask her to take me to Master Katrina," Zachary murmured to himself.
"Who's Master Katrina?" Chandler blinked curiously. He felt puzzled and wondered to know who was Zachary referring to.
"Oh, nothing!" Zachary hastily beat a retreat and headed back to his room. As he shared quarters with Chandler, he didn't have an opportunity to enter the system. He just opted for a sleep until the night drew over them.
It wasn't long before it was late into the night, everything in stillness.
After training and practicing all day, Chandler, exhausted, was in a deep sleep in his bed. Zachary lay with his eyes closed, and, sensing his roommate's steady, even breathing, opened his eyes. Casting a glance at Chandler, he got up and crept out of the room with a bag in hand. He left the disciple dormitory and headed for the north of the Freshmen Zone.
Before long, Zachary reached a pine forest in the north of the Freshmen Zone, and he snuck into it with all the silence and stealth of a thief in the night.
Then he set a simple tent up within the depths of the forest, which was on the flat ground by a pond and was made by some long, thick branches.
"This should be alright for now. If anyone stumbles along, they'll just think I'm camping," Zachary muttered to himself, as he finished his work, brushing his hands clear of dirt. After stepping into his tent, he started the Treasure-hunting Compass and entered the system.
Wandering into the Peach Blossom Forest, he came upon the Blazing Roc. The creature had already built a shelter in the forest, and was now resting on its stomach, safe and sound.
"Hello, Blazing Roc! Were you waiting long? Did you miss me?" Zachary chirruped in greeting as he went up to the roc.
The Blazing Roc raised its great head and took a look at Zachary, acknowledging him but just barely. Then it haughtily set its head back down, ignoring him completely, and was cl
warriors, the cream of the crop among the freshmen, to specially train them," Elva explained patiently.
"Finally! I've been itching for a fight for ages, and my fists are getting weary of disuse." Chandler grinned, clearly excited by the prospect of this competition.
"Seriously? Is there a way I can just skip this?" Zachary rolled his eyes. His least favorite thing right now was to take part in some troublesome competition, unless, of course, there was a significant treasure as a reward to pique his interest.
"Of course you can't! This is mandatory. Every incoming new disciple is required to participate in the freshmen contest," Elva replied, shaking her head.
"Oh very well. Let's join in, then. It's not like I have a choice," Zachary shrugged absently, as he honestly couldn't really do much about this.
"Oh you think you're so important, do you? It doesn't matter if someone like you participates or not. With your so-called strength, you'd only be part of the body count," Bruce snapped disdainfully, narrowing his eyes at Zachary's aloofness.
Zachary replied with a cold smile, "Don't get ahead of yourself, Bruce. You might even not be able to be as good as me in the coming contest."
"Oh is that right?!" Bruce started to rise to his feet.
"Yeah, you know what? Let's make this a little more interesting with a bet. The loser between us will strip naked and streak around the Freshmen Zone. How about it?" Zachary grinned with a glint of mischief in his eyes.
Bruce's jaw dropped at such a ridiculous stipulation. He was fairly confident he'd be able to defeat Zachary, but he did have some misgivings. After all, Zachary did show off an excellent performance and skill in magic just before.