81 Let's Fight!

"Beautiful, isn't it?" Lucas happily remarked while looking at Greyson's expression of admiration. Greyson simply nodded. It was a truly remarkable looking city.

"It's only another day's walk to get to the city gates. If we hurry, we should be able to get there before they lock the inner gates. Otherwise, we might have to wait outside for the night at local inn." Yvette explained. Hearing her words, Greyson furrowed his brows before glancing at the siblings once more. After thinking through it once more, he decided that even if they had bad intentions, they themselves were not a threat to his safety. A bright flash appeared outside his chest before a loud roar rang out. Yvette and Lucas quickly covered their ears in shock before getting knocked backwards from the sudden gust of wind. Opening their eyes once more, they saw a beautiful silver dragon in front of their faces. Careful purple eyes were observing them back. It was of course, Zephyr. After the last fight, his wing and side were seriously injured, however, after such a long time of recuperation, he was completely healed now.

"Grey... Greyson, is this your partner beast?" Still slightly in shock, Yvette stuttered.

"Yes, this is my partner, Zephyr." Smiling, Greyson intimately pet the dragon's neck. Zephyr responded by rubbing his face against Greyson's before licking his face. Laughing, Greyson felt extremely happy to see his partner healed.

"Zephyr, these are two new friends I have met on the way, Yvette and Lucas." Greyson gestured to the two beside him. Turning towards the strangers, his clever purple eyes blinked in hello. Unconsciously, both the siblings felt flattered by the acknowledgement. This was their first time ever seeing a dragon as most of them were almost extinct and lived in the deep recesses of the Beast Empire. They barely ever showed their faces towards other magic beasts, let alone humans. Although, the one in front of them was still a spirit form partner beast, it was still a dragon. Nodding back in hello, they could not keep the obvious awe from their eyes.

"Okay, well, don't resist you guys!" Greyson remarked before leaping onto Zephyr's back.

"Resist wh...!!" Both of them felt confused before they were suddenly grabbed by Zephyr's claws and flown up into the sky. Shouting out in surprise, it took them a couple seconds to calm down and enjoy the view. With Zephyr's speed, it only took them an hour before they were only a couple hours walk away. Greyson decided for Zephyr to land still a little far away from the city so that he would not make a large commotion. Giving a little whine in complaint, Zephyr still disappeared back into Greyson's body.

"I know, buddy. I will try to let you out more often." Sighing to himself, Greyson could not help but feel guilty. Usually, people would let out their partner beasts daily, however, a dragon just drew way too much attention and was an easily recognized trait. Glancing over to the sister and brother pair, he could not help but laugh. They could not block the wind during the flight, so their hair was thrown everywhere, all their clothes were disordered, and they were still sitting on the ground completely dazed as if they had not snapped back to reality yet. They had completely lost all their earlier noble and elegant semblance. When they heard his laugh, Yvette and Lucas both blushed before finally getting back their bearings. Bolting up, they began fixing their clothes and smoothing out their hair. Awkwardly coughing, they tried to pretend their earlier look was all Greyson's imagination.

"Haha, it's no big deal anyways. Let's head out, we don't want to get locked out tonight." Greyson tried his best to hold in his laughter and keep a serious face. Quickly nodding, they both sped off towards the distance so they would not have to keep facing Greyson. Still chuckling when he thought back to their earlier state, Greyson slowly followed after. Maybe because they were blowing off steam after feeling embarrassed, the siblings led Greyson to the gate at a much faster pace than before. It took much less time than Greyson expected before he could see a bunch of people and carts lined up before the gate. Per usual, Greyson moved to stand and wait in line for his turn. Only to realize that Yvette and Lucas were giving him an odd look.

"What?" Instinctively, he touched his face and hair before looking down at his clothes looking for anything out of place.

"We are just shocked that you are lining up. I guess we just assumed that you were from another noble family from around here. Nobles of a city never have to wait in line and just use their identity to go through." Yvette finally stopped staring and elbowed her brother as well realizing she was being rude.

"Ah..." Scratching his head, Greyson realized that he really never experienced any special treatment before. "No, actually, I am just a commoner. However, I was luckily born with high talent for magic and joined a magic academy. I do not have any spectacular origins." After hearing his words, the siblings looked shocked before an almost imperceptible change occurred in their attitude. If Greyson was not paying attention, he might not have noticed the swift look of disdain that passed through their eyes. It disappeared almost as quickly as it appeared, but Greyson knew exactly what he saw. A slight chill ran through his heart. Maybe, everything that man earlier said was not completely wrong. Greyson's attitude also took a colder turn after feeling their change. His background had never once made him feel inferior, nor did he see it as something to feel embarrassed about. Even if he really was royalty according to what Eden said, it did not change who he was or how he was raised. Throughout his short life, there were not many people he loathed. However, those who looked down on others due to their powerful families and no accomplishments of their own were of the few that caused instant dislike. They had powerful families? So, what? Obviously, these siblings still had to beg for rescue from him, a commoner, due to their own personal weakness.

Feeling the atmosphere cooling slightly, Yvette brought the polite smile back to her face. Before leading Greyson and Lucas to the front of the line at the gate. Before the guard could even say a word, she flashed her family insignia. Stopping in his tracks, the guard saluted and quickly cleared the way for the three people. Regaining some of their confidence finally after seeing the guard's deference, both Lucas and Yvette straightened their posture and assumed a new stance.

"Greyson, why don't you follow us back into our estate and we will ask our father to get that permit and identification for you." Although her tone was still polite, the awe and respect were no longer present.

"Okay." Taken aback by the sudden change, Greyson only coldly nodded. Glancing at the cat on his shoulder, he could not help but wonder if the prediction was correct. Their attitude really did not inspire any good feelings in him.

"What are you doing just standing there? Are you expecting us to walk home?! Quickly, call for a carriage!" Lucas impatiently shouted at the saluting soldier. His face sinking even further, Greyson could only keep the discomfort in his heart. After he received the permit and identification, he would quickly leave. Associating with people like this really made his mood drop. Panicking, the guard called for a carriage to come as quickly as possible. Barely a minute passed before a carriage arrived. Lucas and Yvette gracefully boarded with Greyson following after. Slightly fascinated by the inside, Greyson glanced around before his eyes landed on the middle ball in the middle. It was made out of some sort of crystal that he did not recognize. The siblings quickly placed their hands on the ball and allowed their mana to flow through it. Lighting up, the ball powered up before long and the carriage began to move. Unable to hide his surprise, Greyson looked closely at the ball before realizing that this carriage must be another Magic Mechanic's handiwork.

Noticing Greyson's inexperience with such a carriage, the disdain grew in Lucas and Yvette's eyes. Looking back, they felt embarrassed they treated such a country bumpkin with so much reverence. But no matter what he did save their lives and was extremely strong so they could not openly express such an ungrateful attitude. Hopefully, this person would just take his reward and leave. If he saw their wealth and decided to cling to them for favors, what would they do? When this thought crossed their minds, they both could not help but glance at each other feeling worried. Little did they know that Greyson could not wait to leave them at the fastest possible moment. The dislike was completely mutual.

Each person sat inside the carriage with different thoughts weighing down on their minds. Thankfully, the awkward atmosphere did not last long before the carriage stopped in front of a large gate. It was exquisitely made with sturdy wood and beautiful flowers growing around it with a large tree insignia painted in the middle. Just one glance was enough to connect these to the Greentree last name. Excited by the sight of their home, Yvette and Lucas quickly leaped off the carriage and almost ran into the house. Greyson followed closely behind while they bypassed the guards and other servants near the gate. They headed straight towards a side house of the estate. From the doors of the house exited a well-built middle-aged man who looked fairly similar to the siblings followed by some servants.

"Father!" Almost as if answering Greyson's thoughts, the brother and sister duo quickly called out to the man. The man turned in surprise at the familiar voices. Yvette and Lucas both burst into tears upon seeing his face and ran over to hug him. Shocked, the man did not know how he was supposed to react and looking over and seeing Greyson's unfamiliar face, he felt embarrassed by the immature showing of his children.

"Stop! How old are you both that you are causing such a scene? I thought you both were going to the neighboring Spring City to represent our family at the City Lord's birthday. Yvette, you know how important that engagement between you and the first son of that family is for us. How could you back already? They could possibly misunderstand our intentions like this!" Pulling the children away from him, he kept his voice stern as he was sincerely confused as to why they were back already. It was only at this moment that he saw the state of their clothes. Although, they were still neat-looking, it could not hide the wear and tear that occurred while they were running in the forest. Seeing their distressed and tired looks, his expression turned ugly and he seemed to understand.

"What happened? Where are the prepared gifts and the guards?"

Finally holding in her tears, Yvette explained everything that had happened. With each word, her father's face sank deeper and deeper. When he heard of Greyson's deeds, he could not help but glance over at the young boy in surprise before turning back towards Yvette and Lucas.

"The gifts?" He asked again.

"After the guards died... We could not take, take them with us... so we left them... and... ran..." Slightly shaking, Yvette drew her chin down towards her chest with each word and losing confidence. Irate, her father quickly slapped her hard. Even Greyson winced after hearing the loud sound.

"Stupid thing! You know how much money and preparation went into those gifts to solidify the marriage alliance. What will we give now? All that money and effort is completely wasted now! You should have at least carried away the most important one. It was not even heavy, you could have easily run away with it as well!"

"I'm sorry, father. I did not think of that in my moment of panic." Lowering her head, Yvette bit at her lower lip trying to hide her feelings of disappointment. Though Greyson did not like her much, he could not help but feel pity for Yvette and Lucas at this moment. Glancing at the father, he felt disturbed by the sheer lack of concern for the lives of his children. If he were to say the same things to Sister Lily, she would surely burst into tears and pray to thank God that we came back safe instead of worrying about some gifts. Just as he was thinking this, Greyson heard a loud shriek and crying coming from the doorway. Moving his attention in that direction, Greyson noticed that a beautiful older woman came running out in a panic. She was just like an older Yvette, so Greyson could guess at her identity easily.

"Boris! What kind of father are you?! The children almost died and the gifts is all you can think about? What would the gifts matter if you had no daughter to marry over!? The engagement would go to another branch!" Running over and embracing her children, the siblings' mother looked over at their father with a hard glare. Seeing their mother finally taking their sides, Lucas and Yvette began crying again in distress telling their mother of all their struggles. Watching all this drama, Greyson could finally see where this brother and sister get their nasty personality from. A father that is strict to the point of almost doubting blood relation creates resentment while the mother is indulging on everything her kids do. Pretty much they have one parent that gives them anger with nowhere to vent and another parent who would cover up any wrongs they might commit while venting that anger on someone else. He was not even participating in this over-dramatic scene personally and he was already exhausted just listening. Rolling his eyes, he decided to lightly cough to assert his presence once more. Otherwise, who knew how long he would be left standing here.

Just as he hoped, both the parent and children glanced over at him. Seeing those icy blue eyes filled with slight satire at their family show going off, all of them could not make another noise. Looking around at the servants surrounding them as well, they all shut their mouths for a couple seconds before looking at each other and blushing.

"Ahem, well, I am glad that you both are back safe and sound. I must discuss with elder brother what to do about the lost gifts and how to explain the situation correctly. Why don't the both of you and your mother invite your savior in to eat and rest." Softening his facial features, he almost could play the part of a loving father if not for that fact that everyone had already seen his earlier performance. The fake expression on the man's face disgusted Greyson to the point he loathed to look at his face for another second. Taking advantage of this moment, Yvette, Lucas, and their mother quickly got up and brushed off their clothes before smiling at Greyson to invite him in. Inwardly sighing in relief, Greyson immediately followed them in to prevent any further hold-up. In the end, they led him a richly decorated guest room with plenty of space for a large family to live in. Looking around, Greyson could not help but bitterly think of the suffering orphans back at the church all cramming together on the floors of the bigger room while only the older ones could get their own tiny room. Tightening his hands into fists, he vowed to use the money he earns to build a humongous estate where the church is to help house orphans. Nothing too fancy with unnecessary decorations like these noble houses, just something simple and large that holds everything they made need and the space to house everyone.

It actually was not until the next morning that someone knocked on Greyson's door calling him for breakfast. He decided against going to eat with the family and just asked for his food to be sent to his room. Going and eating with that strange family was just asking for drama to occur. The same servant returned with his food and a message that the head of the family would like to meet with him after breakfast to give him the requested rewards and to thank him personally for saving Yvette and Lucas. Nodding his head, Greyson dismissed the servant and began to eat while thinking of what the Greentree family head would be like. Going by relations, he was Yvette and Lucas' older uncle and their father's older brother. Thinking back to the middle-aged man he met earlier, Greyson grimaced and hoped that the reason the older brother became the head was due to a better personality and not just his age.

After he finished breakfast, Greyson called in the servant outside the door to lead him to meet the head. They both quickly made their way through the side mansion and made their way to the main mansion in the middle of the estate. Walking in, Greyson could tell that this mansion was definitely a step above the earlier mansion he stayed at. Saying nothing of the larger size and richer decorations, just the fact that there was a dense mana presence in the mansion impressed Greyson. He felt it must be caused by a Mana Gathering array which is very difficult and expensive to keep running for long period of time throughout such a large area. While he continued admiring the house, Greyson unknowingly had arrived at the door to the main hall. The double doors opened in front of him only for him to see a single chair in the middle with two side chairs. The middle chair sat a good-looking older man with the same green hair and green eyes as Yvette and Lucas. A younger man was also present on the side seat with similar looks to the man in the middle and the woman who sat to the other side. Thinking back to the information he received during the journey to Iris City, Greyson assumed that this young man must be older cousin that the siblings mentioned. The double element magister level magician who was also the young master of the Greentree family. Sensing the power behind the young man, it was not hard for him to feel the higher-level pressure given off by the young master's magister level. At first, Greyson saw him as a very dignified and calm person with an apathetic expression. However, when he laid eyes on Greyson, his eyes lit up with passion and enthusiasm that put off Greyson immensely. The young man even got up in excitement and moved towards Greyson. Each moment he got closer, Greyson's expression sank in anger. Until the new person was already in front of him and grabbed onto Greyson's hands. Shivering in disgust, Greyson tried to pull his hands away to no avail.

"Let go!" He spat. Why was this happening again all of a sudden? Most people no longer mistook him for a girl lately. He felt depressed by this sudden return.

Instead of letting go, the young master looked at Greyson in excitement and finally said a sentence.

"Let's fight! I heard you are very strong and I have not had a suitable opponent in ages." Eyes glowing, he looked at Greyson expectantly.