Between the cherry and palm trees, the birds' voices drifted gently with the midday sun as it cast its golden strands through the leaves.
Melissa walked beside Reem with steady steps, while Reem moved almost slowly, and Melissa hopped forward in quick, playful leaps.
Melissa pointed toward the trees with a smile and said,
"Look, that's the tree my brother planted five years ago."
(A tall, thick tree known as the Milo tree, with translucent greenish leaves and long, intertwined branches.)
Reem was unusually quiet, contemplating the silence more than the scenery.
Melissa continued pointing toward several shrubs and flowers.
"That's the Dragon Blossom." (A tall red flower with two long strands.)
"And that's the Piano Tree." (A hollow tree that produces music with the cold winter winds.)
"And that's a group of Children's Trees." (Small trees that emit a scent like newborn babies and speak to one another in extremely faint voices.)
Despite the beauty and wonder of these things, Reem remained quiet.
Melissa noticed.
She stood to Reem's left, facing her, her expression puzzled and astonished.
Reem noticed Melissa's prolonged gaze and said,
"Is… is something wrong?"
Melissa raised one eyebrow and tilted her lips slightly.
"What's wrong with you? You said you wanted to see it. Why do you look absent-minded, as if you're in another world?"
Reem turned her head. "Another world? Why are you making it bigger than it is? I was just thinking."
Melissa sat on the iron fence that separated the trees from the paved walkways.
With curiosity in her tone, she said, "And what could possibly be on your mind amid such beautiful scenery?"
—She gestured toward the nature behind her: waterfalls, rivers, lakes, rare and beautiful trees, and green grass—
Reem thought for a moment, then said calmly, her eyes meeting Melissa's,
"What did Eugene give you?"
Melissa's eyebrows rose in shock for a moment, then she said…
---
On the other side of the academy, Eugene and Ren arrived at the second-year students' residence.
—A large, long building, white in color with wooden windows; the scent of oud blending with floral perfumes; gray tiles surrounding the place; lamps emitting a yellowish-white glow—
"Is this the building?" Eugene asked, his eyes moving between the structure and Ren.
"Y-Yes, I think so," Ren said nervously, looking up at the balconies overlooking the outside.
(Narrator: Wait, didn't Ren, Eugene, and Reem visit Fred's apartment before?)
Eugene looked at Ren. "Why are you so tense? There aren't any gatherings here!"
He looked upward to where Ren was staring and found a group of youths—three male students and six female students.
—Their features ranged from drowsy honey-colored eyes to wheat-toned or dark skin, with freckles and hair in green, brown, or black—
"For heaven's sake, they're only two floors above us. Why are you nervous?" Eugene said, hands on his hips.
"I'm not nervous because of them," Ren replied. "But their presence means there are male and female students inside the complex."
Eugene raised an eyebrow. "So what? That's normal."
Ren, slightly embarrassed, said,
"The problem is that Fred said most of the second-year students are women—six or seven more than the men."
Eugene fell silent for a moment, staring at his friend absentmindedly, then—
"Hahaha, are you afraid of women?!" —He paused— "What difference does it make? Aren't you nervous around gatherings of men and women alike?"
Ren rubbed his neck.
"Well… no. A man is a man, and I'm a man. When it comes to embarrassment among men, it's about failure or mockery. But with women, it's different. Embarrassment can become real tension."
Eugene raised an eyebrow. "Reem is a girl. Why don't you get nervous talking to her?"
"Because Reem is just one girl, not a group," Ren replied more calmly. "Besides, she's about my age—sixteen. And she has many masculine traits: temper, stubbornness, and a love of sarcasm."
Ren placed his hands on Eugene's shoulders and nudged him forward.
"Come on, enough talk. I want to know what's inside the bag."
They entered the complex, which contained corridors, stairs, white walls with small lockers, and a few flowers decorating the place.
They climbed to the second floor and walked through hallways lined with many rooms.
Ren bit the tips of his nails quietly, his heart pounding fast.
He imagined the worst possible scenario: a large group bursting out of one of the rooms, and him slipping on a banana peel.
Eugene looked at Ren and around the place.
"All the rooms look the same."
He noticed Ren's tension wasn't helping him find Fred's apartment.
Eugene swiftly struck the back of Ren's neck to snap him out of his daydream.
"Ren, where's the apartment?"
Ren looked around and pointed to Apartment Five on the left side of the corridor.
Eugene walked toward it, Ren following.
He raised his hand to knock.
Before he could, the wooden door opened, and someone walked out, colliding with him.
Thud.
"Hey, watch where you're going…"
Eugene's eyes met the person's—it was a girl.
She was clearly a year older than him, unlike most second-year students who were two years older.
—Her silky brown hair framed green eyes; a small beauty mark rested beneath the left side of her mouth; she had a slightly raised nose and a small fang-like tooth. She wore a long brown dress, a red buttoned shirt, and shiny black shoes—
Their eyes met briefly before she passed them and said calmly,
"Oh, sorry."
She walked away the same way Eugene and Ren had come.
Ren looked puzzled, and Eugene looked surprised and slightly irritated, a bead of sweat appearing on his forehead.
"Who was that?" Ren asked curiously.
Eugene shrugged.
They entered the apartment.
—A tidy space: a sofa, a radio, a window, simple yet beautiful furniture; a door leading to Fred's room; to the left, a rectangular opening overlooking a kitchen. The air carried the scent of mint mixed with coolness; curtains dimmed the light; a music player with large yellow speakers and many records in drawers beneath—
"Whew… whew…" Eugene whistled in admiration. "Haha, I could sleep here for months."
Ren entered the room and saw Fred sitting on his bed, his right hand on his forehead, dressed entirely in white.
Fred looked up and saw Ren standing there.
He smiled faintly; dark circles rested beneath his eyes.
"F-Fred, are you okay?" Ren asked.
"Yes, yes, I'm fine. I… achoo… just have a cold."
"When did you catch it?"
Eugene entered the room, glanced around, and said with admiration,
"Great taste in apartments—comfortable and concise. By the way, who was the girl who just left?"
Fred reached for the lamp beside his bed and turned it on, lighting the room.
"That's Noor."
"Is she a doctor?" Ren asked.
Fred shook his head. "She's practically my classmate."
"She looks younger than a second-year," Eugene remarked.
"The academy follows accelerated learning," Fred said, sitting upright. "The smarter and more skilled you are, the faster you finish exams and shorten your time… achoo."
Eugene and Ren leaned back slightly.
Fred's eyes widened briefly. Then he bent down—under their curious gazes—and pulled out the bag Alex had given him during his punishment.
Ren looked at the bag. "Now your punishment's over and we're here, so what's inside?"
"Shouldn't we wait for Reem?" Eugene asked.
"Isn't Reem with Melissa?" Fred replied.
Eugene looked surprised. "How do you know she's with Melissa?"
"Melissa is her only friend besides you two. That was my first thought."
Ren nodded.
"But how will Reem know about the bag?" Fred asked casually.
Eugene took the bag.
"Melissa originally gave it to me. This morning Reem and I argued about it, and I told her it belongs to Melissa. There's a chance she'll ask her."
Eugene opened the bag under Ren and Fred's expectant gazes.
"It's…"
---
Melissa raised her eyebrows in shock.
"What are you talking about?!"
Reem raised her eyebrow. "Melissa, Eugene said the bag belongs to you. What's inside?"
Melissa whispered in irritation, "Yooougeeeene… we agreed not to tell anyone!"
"If Eugene told you it was mine, why didn't he tell you from the beginning?"
"The teacher stopped us from talking," Reem said.
"Teacher?!" Melissa exclaimed. "Did Eugene talk about the bag in front of the class?!"
"Well, not exactly… We argued quietly during the lesson… about the bag."
"Why?"
"On our way back, we went to a cinema, but we were attacked."
Melissa shivered and noticed the injuries on Ren's and Eugene's faces, and on Reem's hand.
"A-Attacked?! How?"
Reem told her everything—from the moment they left until Iron appeared.
It sounded like something from a fantasy world: the appearance of one of the Four Guardians, a third-stage cultivator, Eugene wounded in the chest.
Melissa connected the old woman's words with the egg and that organization. Guilt filled her; she hadn't expected things to unfold this way.
Her foot trembled. Her eyes reddened with tears.
"Reem… I have to apologize to you and to Eugene—to all of you."
"W-What? Why?" Reem asked.
"Because that old woman was part of the group who attacked my father during one of his trade journeys. And among the things the thieves left behind…"
"What was inside the bag," Eugene said.
Melissa was telling the same story at the exact moment Eugene told Ren and Fred.
Ren and Reem asked, "What's inside the bag?"
Eugene and Melissa said at the same time:
(Eugene takes the egg out of the bag.)
"A dragon egg."
Ren, Reem, and Fred fell silent as the sun nearly set.
"A dragon egg?!"
End of Chapter.