Satan barely made it in time when he registered for this year's exam at the East City branch of the Martial Association—the deadline was fast approaching.
Today was November 8th, and the exam officially began on the 11th.
"This is your number tag. The exam location is also marked on it. In three days, little guy, just take this to the designated spot for your test," the receptionist girl said with a playful smile as she handed him the tag.
Though all kinds of people took the Martial Association's exam, someone as young as Satan was a rare sight.
Satan took the tag, which bore the number 233. Flipping it over, he saw a miniature map—the location seemed to be somewhere in the eastern outskirts of East City? Stuffing the tag into his pocket, he pouted, "Pretty lady, don't call me 'little guy'!"
"Oh, but you are a little guy!" The girl giggled behind her hand.
Of course, not all staff at the Martial Association were actual martial artists—many were just ordinary people handling administrative work.
Satan rolled his eyes. "Tch. Just wait till I pass the exam, become a member of the Martial Association, master supreme martial arts, and then win the World Martial Arts Tournament..." His voice trailed off as he realized how ridiculous that sounded. 'Damn, even just making it through the five regional qualifiers to the global finals would be tough, let alone winning the whole thing?' Sure enough, when he looked up, the receptionist was grinning.
"Alright, alright, I won't laugh," she said, though she clearly still found this eight-year-old boy amusing. She couldn't help but warn him, "But little guy, you should be careful. I heard this year's examiner for East City is… Son Gohan himself!"
Satan nearly jumped out of his skin. Son Gohan's reputation was legendary—even those who didn't care about martial arts knew his name, let alone a kid like Satan who had idolized him since childhood.
"W-Why would Son Gohan be an examiner in East City?" Satan stammered, clutching his exam tag in confusion. 'Hadn't the old man retired and gone into seclusion ages ago?'
The girl tilted her head. "Who knows? Maybe he was traveling the world and just happened to pass through here when the exam came up. Either way, even if it makes the test harder, it's a rare opportunity. You seem sharp—make sure you give it your all in front of Son Gohan!"
Satan blinked, unsure why she was being so nice to him.
Dazed, he left the Martial Association branch. At the entrance, he spotted an enormously tall, muscular man—easily over two meters in height. 'Damn, that's terrifying!'
With a kid's sharp eyes, Satan noticed the giant was holding… a number tag? 'Was he also taking the East City exam?'
As he got closer, he overheard the man muttering to himself, "…If I can get into the Martial Association and learn some real skills… heh, maybe Daisy and our unborn kid can live a better life."
"Hey, mister! Are you taking the Martial Association exam too?"
The giant turned at the voice, looking down to see a scrawny little boy. Scratching his head, he replied in a deep, rumbling voice, "Yeah. How'd you know, kid?"
Satan pulled out his 233 tag with a grin. "Because you've got one of these too!" 'If I can get on this absolute unit's good side, maybe he'll help me out during the exam… Hell yeah!'
"Oh! Heh… You're taking the test too? What's your name, kid? You're pretty impressive!" The giant scratched his head sheepishly.
"I'm Satan. What about you, mister?"
"Heh, name's Nanda…" The big guy kept scratching his head, coming off as simple and honest.
And so, the mismatched pair walked off together, agreeing to meet at the exam site in two days. They cheered each other on, dreaming of passing the test, joining the Martial Association, learning incredible techniques, and reaching the pinnacle of life… The only downside? They were both broke, unable to afford any of Virtual Earth Network's virtual pods. Otherwise, they could've added each other as friends online.
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November 11th. Exam day.
East City, outskirts.
Over two hundred examinees had gathered—young and old, scrawny and muscular, lifelong martial artists and complete beginners, even a few beast-like demi-humans with strange appearances. Following staff instructions, Satan pinned his number tag to his chest and glanced around, spotting Nanda towering above the crowd.
"Hey, Uncle Nanda…" Satan walked over, noticing a vibrant red bird perched on the giant's head. "Whoa, what kind of bird is that? It's so pretty and clever!"
"Heh, you made it, kid… No idea. It just flew over." Nanda rolled his eyes upward, trying to glimpse the bird without daring to raise his massive hands, afraid he might accidentally crush it.
'Huh? Why's this bird looking at me like that?'
Satan felt inexplicably judged by the little red bird's gaze. Then he realized—it was looking down on everyone like this. 'What the hell? A damn bird acting all high and mighty?' Satan grumbled internally.
Before he could dwell on it, the bird flapped its wings and flew off, disappearing into the nearby forest.
The crowd waited for the exam to begin.
"Hey, Uncle Nanda, they say Son Gohan himself is proctoring this exam… Man, I'm so nervous! How about you?" Satan rubbed his hands together, trying to steady himself.
"Really? Heh…" Nanda just scratched his head, his voice a deep rumble.
Suddenly, the murmuring crowd fell silent. Satan's eyelids twitched. He turned—
A figure was flying toward them from above the trees.
An old man with an immortal's grace, hovering in midair.
"It's really Son Gohan…"
"No way…"
"Is this for real?"
"Son Gohan…" Satan couldn't help but whisper along with the crowd. Even though he'd known beforehand, seeing the legendary martial artist in person sent an uncontrollable surge of excitement through him.
Only Nanda seemed unfazed, merely impressed that the man could fly.
Son Gohan, now nearly eighty, had the vigor of a man half his age. His white hair and beard contrasted with his youthful energy as he floated above the examinees. His gaze swept over them, lingering for a moment on the exceptionally massive Nanda.
'Hm. Natural-born strength.'
A flicker of surprise crossed his face before he looked away.