134 Hina, Haru, and the Dinner Party (1/2)

Shocked by the force of the blast, Ed hurriedly covered himself in a protective layer of purple mana. Fortunately, his body was extremely strong, allowing him to withstand the blow easily. But whenever something like this happened, he always thought back to his 2nd awakening where he had inadvertently killed over a dozen espers due to the mana his body released. 'I wonder if this is her first awakening or her second?' He thought to himself. As far as he was aware, there wasn't really a way to tell the difference if two awakenings happened back to back, though he had never actually heard of such a thing happening before.

As the mana faded away, Hina's body began changing. Her skin turned a light green color, and her hair turned dark green. She soon opened her eyes, revealing them to have also changed to an emerald green color.

”Interesting.” Ed rubbed his chin as he examined her. 'Why's she green? There's not even a hint of wind in her mana-core?'

Hina trembled as she looked around the room, but she didn't panic. It seemed she was aware of the general situation due to having been conscious for the past month. ”Who are you?” She gulped.

”Ed. Also known as Forge.” He replied. He walked towards her and grabbed her wrist, aiming her hand towards a wall. His mana flowed into her body. ”Feel that?” He asked. ”Try to sense your mana and direct it that way.”

”Okay...” She timidly agreed in a quiet voice. Suddenly, a green light shone from her hands and shot towards the room's wooden wall. And then the light vanished, causing no damage as if it had never existed.

'That's it?' He wondered as he walked to the walk to examine it. But upon closer examination, he saw moss rapidly growing from the wall. It was as if a tiny bud of the moss had been blessed with extreme levels of life and fertility, causing it to rapidly spread. 'That's unique. Is her power related to plants? Or maybe life in general? It warrants further testing.' Turning around, he smiled. ”Congratulations, Vegetable. Your power seems to be related to plant life or something. It's a pretty unique power to say the least.”

”Vegetable?” She murmured, hung up on that word as opposed to the rest of the sentence.

”Right.” He nodded. ”You look like a Vegetable, so it's a fitting nickname, right?”

”A vegetable...” She looked at her hands and froze in place. ”AHHHHHH!!!” She shrieked in shock at seeing her green skin. Soon, she passed out from shock and fell to the floor unconscious.

Bang! The door to the room slammed open as Rubi rushed in. ”What happened?!” She hurriedly questioned.

”Queen of the green beans passed out after seeing her new powers.” Ed grinned while pointing at Hina. ”Take her somewhere else so I can focus on Haru's surgery.”

”You... you actually managed to save her?!” Rubi's voice cracked as she trembled.

”It was mostly luck. Now let me work.” He waved his hand, shooing her away dismissively.

”Thanks.” Rubi whispered as she left the room, gently closing the door behind her.

”Just you and me now, Haru. Lucky you. Your survival odds just shot through the roof.” He set to work, already knowing what he needed to do after having memorized the looks of Hina's mana-core. Again, several hours passed and he finished his work.

Unlike with Hina, there was no strange blast of mana, and the boy still looked exactly the same. He opened his eyes and looked around the room. ”Thanks.” He nodded towards Ed.

An awkward silence fell upon the room as the two sat there quietly. After several moments, Haru spoke in surprisingly good English. ”So, we're headed for China.”

”Right.” Ed nodded, wondering why the Japanese child knew English. ”How'd you know?” He asked, pretending to have been unaware of them being awake while they were in their comas.

”I could hear everything ever since the bat attacked me.” He admitted. ”You're the one that beat it and saved me. You must be strong, right?”

”Strong?” Ed smiled. ”I wonder...” There were times he confidently declared himself strong to others, like the recent time with Rubi. There were other times he thought of the President and OP Baldy, feeling himself weak in comparison. Not to mention the nightmares that he could barely hold a candle to. His answer at any given time mostly depended on his mood and the situation.

Suddenly, the boy stood up from the bed and knelt on the floor with both knees. He bowed his head towards Ed while placing his hands on the ground. ”Please, train me to be strong!” He earnestly shouted.

”...” Ed stared silently at the boy for a moment, his eyes wide. ”What?” He asked, not feeling entirely sure he had heard correctly.

”Train me!” Haru looked up pleadingly, desperation in his eyes. ”I never want to be treated like that again! A mere tool for the elite! I want to get stronger!”

”No way.” Ed shook his head. ”I don't need a brat following be around all the continents I plan on traveling through. It'd be weird.”

”I won't hold you back!” The boy promised. ”I can be useful! I just awakened, but my powers are stronger than the others! I have potential!”

”Look, kid.” He sighed. ”I'm busy enough trying to get strong myself. I can't help you, and you'll probably just get killed following me.”

”No, you're already strong!” Haru protested. ”Let me follow you! I'm willing to take on the risks!”

Slowly, Ed's eyes grew dull as he grew annoyed with the boy. He spoke in a monotone voice. ”Hey. I know this great guy. Strongest esper in the world. OP Baldy. Really nice. Close personal friend. How about I get him to train you?”

”You know OP Baldy?!” Haru's eyes widened in shock.