"Hmph, who do you think you are, hugging me like that." Na'er shoved Arthur away. Never mind that she had been the one to throw herself at him first. Blaming others before they could blame her was a skill she had picked up from watching Xu Xiaoyan in action. "You think you can just hug me whenever you want?"
Arthur stood there awkwardly. He had to admit, the whole thing did look like he had been the one who reached out first.
He changed the subject, turning to Mu Xi. "Who are these people?"
Mu Xi he recognized. She was the prodigy who had recently joined the Blacksmith Association and would be competing in the forging competition at the Skysea Alliance Tournament.
"I'm also entered in the youth division team battle," Mu Xi explained. "Our Class Zero came together."
"You're all competing?" Arthur pressed a hand over his mouth in surprise. "What about Arthur... wait, I mean Su Qiu... I mean..." She caught herself. "What about him?"
"Yes, he's competing too," Tang Wulin said with a nod, his voice full of confidence. In their eyes, as long as Arthur was there, victory was a given.
"This is so pointless." Mu Xi puffed out her cheeks. "Both the forging competition and the Spirit Master event have Arthur in them. What's even the point of me coming to the Skysea Alliance Tournament?"
"Just to watch from the sidelines?"
"What do you mean?" Tang Wulin looked puzzled. "Is Arthur really that good at forging too?"
"You didn't know?" Mu Xi thought for a moment, then it clicked. "Oh right, I guess you and Arthur never actually crossed paths at the Blacksmith Association."
"By the time you joined, he had already stopped coming in."
She cleared her throat, her tone brimming with admiration. "Arthur completed Spirit Forging a long time ago."
"A lot of my forging ability, beyond what my father taught me, I owe to him. Every time I hit a wall, one word from Arthur was enough to break through it."
Spirit Forging?
Tang Wulin's eyes went wide, his face flooding with shock. He understood exactly what that meant.
He had always known Arthur was a powerhouse as a Spirit Master, but he never imagined Arthur was this accomplished in forging as well. His respect for the man went up another notch.
"I had no idea. I never realized he kept such a low profile about it."
Low profile?
"If he were really keeping a low profile, he wouldn't have entered the forging competition."
Mu Xi immediately thought back to a conversation she had accidentally overheard between her father and Arthur, and the corner of her mouth twitched.
He was about to make himself very visible, very soon.
Before long, everyone had gathered.
"All students and faculty from Eastsea City Academy, please board now!"
Led by their teachers, the group climbed onto Bus No. 6, one of the maglev transit coaches.
Na'er clung to Arthur's side like she was guarding a meal, refusing to let him out of her sight. Her intent was obvious: she was sitting next to him, full stop.
Xu Xiaoyan, swept along with the crowd into the bus, knew she had no chance of outmaneuvering Na'er. That terrifying strength of hers made it impossible to get anywhere near Arthur.
Still, her eyes flickered, and she decided to try anyway. She slipped into a seat, patted the one beside her, and was just about to call out to Arthur.
The next second, Xu Xiaoyan's older brother appeared out of nowhere and dropped into the seat next to her, beside his sister, as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
Siblings sitting together on a trip. Same as always.
"Xiaoyan, are you feeling alright? You look a little pale."
Xu Xiaoyan drew a slow breath, squeezed her fists, and barely held back the urge to throw her brother off the bus. She fixed him with a smile that didn't reach her eyes and mouthed something at him silently.
"Hm?" Xu Xiaoyan's older brother frowned. "Were you just cursing at me?"
"You're really picking up bad habits lately."
Xu Xiaoyan bit down and said nothing, cheeks puffed up tight. Out of the corner of her eye, she spotted Na'er already settled comfortably beside Arthur.
Na'er seemed to sense the glare, and deliberately made a smug face at her.
"Hmph!" Xu Xiaoyan nearly exploded on the spot. She let out a sharp huff, spun around, and gave her brother the back of her head.
He was completely baffled. He hadn't done anything. So why was his sister throwing a fit?
Nearby, Tang Wulin caught the whole silent exchange, and he and Xie Xie exchanged a glance, both of them finding it hard to keep a straight face. "They're really... lively, aren't they."
Wu Changkong also glanced at Gu Yue sitting beside him, then looked over at Arthur, and after a moment's hesitation, asked, "You sure you want to sit here?"
Gu Yue gave him a sideways look, mildly puzzled. She thought to herself: this seat sits squarely in Arthur's line of sight. Where else would I sit?
"Understood," Wu Changkong said, nodding slowly.
He mentally filed Gu Yue under "too proud to admit it," and quietly adjusted his estimate of her chances downward.
Conversation inside the bus stayed low and murmured. In that atmosphere of quietly competing intentions, the maglev coach eased out of the plaza and picked up speed, rolling out of Eastsea City toward the venue of the Skysea Alliance Tournament.
The Federation's technological development had taken some peculiar turns. Most things were roughly on par with the modern world Arthur remembered from his past life, but the highways ran on maglev technology.
Yes, the highways.
It was deeply strange.
Inside the bus, everyone sat with their closest friends, some buzzing with excitement, others quietly watching the scenery drift past the windows.
There was something oddly warm about the air.
Skysea City, like Eastsea City, sat on the coast, but its position was even more favorable. It was home to the largest port on the Douluo Continent, which meant a Federation naval base was stationed there, and massive warships were visible to the naked eye.
In the Alliance, ordinary citizens were required to serve in the military at eighteen, and Skysea City's naval force was the top choice for recruits.
None of that had much bearing on the Spirit Masters aboard the bus, of course.
What Arthur did find puzzling was why the Federation, a colossus that had unified the entire Douluo Continent, still maintained compulsory military service for civilians at eighteen. It defied easy explanation.
Upon arriving in Skysea City, the Eastsea delegation checked in with the local organizers. Class Zero was assigned to a luxury hotel, with ocean view rooms included.
The male students shared one room, the female students another. Wu Changkong informed them that the opening ceremony and draw for matchups would be held the following day, after which the tournament would officially begin.
Before Xie Xie could start dragging Tang Wulin out to explore the city, Arthur was already on his feet. "Let's go, Tang Wulin."
"Where?" Tang Wulin asked.
"There's a meeting for the forging participants from Eastsea City. Just a chance to get acquainted."
Tang Wulin nodded. "Alright. Xie Xie, I'll come find you when I'm back."
Arthur walked out first, and Tang Wulin followed.
"Arthur, will this meeting only be Eastsea City people, or will there be others too?" Tang Wulin asked as they walked, curiosity getting the better of him.
He was eager to meet other forgers, especially ones skilled enough to compete at the Skysea Alliance Tournament.
Arthur kept walking, his pace steady. "This one is just for our Eastsea City group. After the opening ceremony, we'll get to meet forgers from the other cities."
He paused, glancing over at Tang Wulin. "Relax. I've heard about your forging from people at the Association. For your age, it's impressive. Making the top three should be no problem at all."
"Really? Ha, thanks." Being praised by Arthur, who had already achieved Spirit Forging, put a genuine smile on Tang Wulin's face.
They had been talking all the way to the elevator.
The doors slid open, and standing inside was Mu Xi. She lit up the moment she saw them. "You're here. I was just about to come find you."