The Night Rose

Chapter 19

When the doctor had gotten halfway through his story Timothy came in and asked immediately, "John, is Arwin at the condition to walk now, or do I have to wait?"

"She's fine to walk; she just finished eating also, but take it slowly first and no fights or anything, okay?" The doctor replied curiously. It was interesting to see Timothy act urgently.

“I can’t promise that, but I’ll make sure Arwin won’t be back here getting treatment from you today.” Timothy smiled mischievously

The doctors smiled as he shook his head in disappointment.

"Okay. Arwin, I think I found your pistol, but they refused to sell it to me, saying that you are the only one who can buy it directly. They were snickering and clearly looking down on you. They said you have this week to buy it before the auction as per rules. I have your papers here, and we can go there and demand your pistol. They even dare to laugh at my face when I said your name. They said I am a friend of wannabe female mechanic, among other things that I don't want you to hear." Timothy said furiously. Despite that, he secretly wanted to believe in Arwin's skills.

"They dare say that?! Very good. I wanted to pay back to those people anyway, and now is a good time for it," Arwin said confidently, her eyes glinted sharply as she looked forward to how to deal with the people who dared look down on her. She got up from the hospital bed, a little wobbly at first, but soon found her balance.

She started to walk towards the door and managed to get out with great effort. Behind her was Timothy; he was confirming that she won't fall down.

Arwin says, “Don’t worry too much. I learned something from my previous defeat.”

Timothy was shocked. It wasn’t simply overconfidence nor pride. It was sincere. Arwin was determined to prove her worth.

It did not take long for her to reach her destination. She finally stood in front of the same stairs, where she was thrown out before and lost consciousness. Arwin could still see the small spot of dried blood at the steps, precisely her blood.

Arwin was already fuming inside, furthermore when she realized that they haven't even cleaned it out! As If they were waiting for her to come back and see her failures for herself. Arwin was used to being belittled or underestimated because of her small frame and gender, which is why hiding it seemed like a better option.

But Arwin smirked; she thought to herself, ‘Nothing beats an opponent’s expression just as they experience defeat BEFORE the hands of the person they underestimate.’

Without waiting for Timothy, Arwin walked towards the entrance and opened the doors once again.

When she got inside, the buzzing stopped, and some who recognized her started to whisper while some were loudly talking and pointing at her. They were calling her the rumored wannabe mechanic was back even when she was thrown out already once.

'She really dared to show her face here again?'

'That's her, the female mechanic… Really, shameless…'

'Oh? What does she want now?'

The murmurs and whispered continued, but Arwin ignored them and strode towards the counter, where the weapons or items they had lost were placed.

When the clerk saw her, "Oh, the one who said she is a mechanic and an airship captain is here! The clerk said and then laughed.

Arwin glared at the clerk and said, "How much? I want my weapon back." She demanded.

Arwin was furious, but she knows it Will get her nowhere; they were clearly at a disadvantage here- they were outnumbered.

"Really? It costs ten gold coins. But… I know it is impossible for you to have that much money. I have an offer. If you pass the mechanic test. I will give it to you for free. You can also have other weapon or an item of your choice. Luckily for you, I'm an elder here. I can bring you there immediately if you want. I am really curious and want to see your rumored amazing skills in repairing ships. However, we cannot test the flying skills, at least not now, so you only have to show your skills in one field. Do you dare accept this offer?" The clerk offered without sincerity, clearly mocking her. Just with the way the clerk was trying to hold out his laughter, it proved enough.

The clerk was waiting to see a good show, just like everyone else in the guilt. They all wanted to see Arwin turn down the offer so that they could start to laugh out loud finally.

However, no one expected her response, "Is that it? Wonderful! You won't go back to your word, right? You are the elder and should have something that is called dignity." Arwin said with a mocking smirk.

"Of course! Everyone here is a witness to this promise. I will also call the other elders to judge. So let's proceed. The task is to repair a small version of an airship; it's only for test use." The elder said with confidence. He then walked towards a room.

“That’s great.” Arwin remarks

Arwin followed the elder; when she entered the room, she saw a small airship. Some parts of the engine were missing, and all of the missing pieces were neatly placed next to the airship.

"As you can see, we need you to build this airship. There is also a list of problems that you have to solve relating to it. We have provided every tool you need and every item you also need next to it. You have four hours to finish this. As for the judges, your friend can confirm that they are our guilds top mechanics so that the judging will be fair. So are you ready, or do you want to give up immediately?" The clerk asked with a smirk after explaining the rules.

"I'm ready. You can start the time." Arwin said with indifference as she looked at the airship.

Timothy, who was watching, was both thrilled and nervous about how the situation suddenly developed. This is the best opportunity for him to see if Arwin was a hoax or not. He was really anticipating this test like a small child in a candy shop wanting his favorite candy.

At the same time, he also feared that Arwin really didn't know what she would be doing. In the end, he planned to put his trust in her.

"Your time starts now! Remember, you can give up at any time you want." The clerk said, and Arwin went towards the ship and started first to inspect it.

Everyone was laughing at what she was doing, waiting for her to fail horribly. Some of them even had the audacity to bring their own snacks and drink, while some also started to sell food and drinks as it turned into a public event now.

Arwin found herself smiling from excitement. She felt at home the most when she’s presented with an airship. She looks at it like a kid looks at a new toy- with such excitement and joy.