( Sophia's POV )
Sophia did not like Epita at all!
From the moment she entered the origin realm for the first time and felt dizzy due to the effects of change in mana concentration, Epita showed up and began bugging her with questions that she did not wish to answer.
Having been given instructions by her elder brother, to probe Epita on which exact pool Rocky entered, Sophia tried to reverse talk Epita into giving her what she wanted, however, the three eyed demoness refused to play her game for free and demanded sensitive information about the Olympian clan to trade for Rocky's results.
"That boys results are something that can shake up the whole Olympian clan, if you want more information on his potential, then you have to give me what I want-" Epita said, as Sophia rolled her eyes in disapproval.
" Lady, I know how this scam works, I'm Rocky's friend. I know exactly how good his potential is, but let's both be honest it's nothing tower shaking.
So if you think you can scam me out of some valuable clan information in return for Rocky's results then you can forget about it.
The most you get from me is a thank you and a smile" Sophia said, as it was Epita's turn now to roll her eyes.
Epita pitied people like Sophia who thought that they were too smart for their own good.
She had no idea if Rocky was genuinely friends with this backstabbing fool, however, since she wanted to play a smartass with her, Epita planned on conning her hard.
"Fine, you win, Rocky actually entered the lowest ranking pool, the D rank pool, not because he wanted to, but because I wanted to sabotage his bright future-" Epita said, as Sophia sucked in a breath of cold air at this revelation.
"But the D ranked pool is not even that cold.....then what was Rocky talking about?" Sophia wondered as according to her knowledge the D ranked pool was the flaming hot pool, one that felt like an extra-extra hot warm bath.
"Don't lie to me, evil demon, I already know Rocky walked into the cold pool.... It has to be the A ranked pool yeah?" Sophia asked, as Epita did not know whether to laugh or cry at this girl's delusion.
"Yes, yes, you're absolutely right, I was indeed trying to scam you, however, you caught me-" Epita said, as Sophia raised her head a bit higher in pride.
"I knew it! Brother is just doubting me for now reason, I already knew Rocky entered the A ranked pool-" Sophia said, as she self-reinforced her own delusion.
" *Sigh*, So what pool are you looking to enter? Champion Of Poseidon?" Epita asked, seemingly fed up with Sophia as she could not believe how this dumb girl was chosen as a god's champion.
"A step above Rocky, so the S ranked pool please-" she said, as Epita turned around and silently began walking towards the S ranked pool.
Her pity for Sophia was so strong that she did not even try to mislead her to enter the wrong pool, as in her mind, Sophia was already bound to either die or be imprisoned by her own clan for being a security threat soon enough.
This dual-function design allowed Buhara to seamlessly switch between casting devastating spells and engaging in close-quarters combat, making it an invaluable weapon in both areas.
"Whoa! Looks so cool-" said Erin, as Buhara tossed the staff for him to inspect, as Erin became nearly buried under its weight.
As Rocky inspected it with a smile on his face, he noticed how it was the perfect weapon for someone like Buhara as although it was a staff, it coupled as an axe, giving Buhara the ability to swing hard and make use of his natural strength when needed.
As the three friends sat down and happily chatted about Buhara's new weapon. Rocky relished this normalcy in their attitude, as he knew that relaxed days like these were going to be extremely numbered going forward.
**********
( Meanwhile, in the Shaolin Monk University, Floor Zero )
The list of candidates appearing for the customary inter- university tournament was finally out and surprisingly, the name Rocky Yadav was not mentioned in the candidates list of the University For Nourishment Of Young Talents.
"Brother Zhi, it looks like your rival is not entering this tournament. Your hardwork over the past one year might be for naught-" A young Shaolin Monk with snot running down his nose said to his elder brother, who seemed to be shaken by the news that Rocky Yadav was not entering the university tournament.
"But this makes no sense? Do the rumors not say that he soloed the entire swordsmanship class alone? That during the monster wave on his home planet, he played an instrumental role in killing a lesser god?
Although I find those rumors over-exaggerated I still believe he is the best fighter that the university for nourishment has to offer.
His absence is the most perplexing" Zhi Cook said, as he stopped meditating while balancing his weight on a single toe of his body, and got back down on both feet.
"In this entire generation, he is the only worthy opponent that I wished to face" Zhi said, as he looked towards the stars and wondered if he was not fated to fight with the legendary Champion Of Gemini.
"What is the reason behind the university for nourishment to not nominate Rocky?" Zhi asked his younger martial brother, who quickly read the instructions letter in his hand, but found no mention of the reason behind why Rocky was not chosen to represent his school.
"There is nothing mentioned here, brother Zhi, but maybe the elder knows" his younger martial brother said, as Zhi Cook began walking towards the elders residence at once.
Zhi, was the Champion Of Buddha, one of the 6 first generation gods, and the day that he was endowed with the power of Buddha, he was also told by the patron god, that he must try and always stay a step ahead of Rocky Yadav, if he ever wished to become a legendary champion.
With Rocky as his goal, Zhi trained day and night, dreaming about their first encounter with each other being at the university tournament, however, for some reason it seemed as if Rocky had not been nominated as a contestant in the tournament from his university.
It could either be his own choice to not join the university tournament, or a calculated decision by Principal Liam, however, Zhi felt discontent with this matter nonetheless.
For him, fighting Rocky was a must on his martial path to the top of the tower, as he yearned to feel, what the battle with the best of his generation would feel like?