Failure 2

"Well, thank you," Ember whispered still. The boy called him pathetic so what? It wasn't his first time to be called that so there was no point getting upset about it.

But as if he hit on the boy's anger button that the latter suddenly halted and turned around. His once calm expression turned into something else and those around him felt it as the air around him suddenly became thick.

"Thank you?" The boy grunted while pointing his finger at Ember. "You are quite aware that you are magicless and you had the guts to come here? What did you come here for? To showcase your stupidity to us? Or to make us feel pity towards you? Have you no shame at all? And even if you don't have, did you not think about your family at home? Did you not think that coming here will only put shame on their faces? You are a fool! An incompetent! Look at the proud look on your face, what is there to be proud of, huh? Look at you running around like a child beggar running away from dogs after stealing their food. Let me tell you, leave! You have no place here! Go back to your village and be of help to your family, not wasting your time here rubbing shame on your face!"

The atmosphere was dense as the boy berated, sending hurtful words over and over to Ember. The latter's shoulders were dropped, his head bent downwards like he was counting the sands on the ground. He never wanted to take in whatever the boy was saying to him but eventually, the truth began to dawn on him.

He began to think about the boy's words and soon, he realized that he had been a fool to think that everything would be easy simply because it was his dream.

"What are you waiting for? Leave!" The boy yelled and Ember raised his head and glanced at all the kids there. Some were secretly grinning at him, some shaking their heads, some were mumbling among themselves while someone truly didn't care about what was happening — it was as though they weren't part of the whole thing.

"Fine," Ember said, his voice barely above a whisper. "I'll leave but this isn't the end. I don't care what any of you think or say about me, the thing that matters is determination. I am determined to change my fate and I will do it! This is not the end, I will come back again and when we meet..." He paused and faced the boy directly. "When we meet again, I'll make you eat your words!" After he was done speaking, he turned and went away from that place.

"Tsk! We'll see about that!" The boy mumbled and a smirk curved at the end of his lips though it was not that obvious.

Meanwhile, after Ember walked away, he had nowhere to go so he was left wandering around the roads of the capital. He was also getting hungry but unfortunately, he had no money to buy food. Tired, he went to a quiet corner and sat down on the boulder there. It was already evening and many people had left the streets already.

"I may have failed now but I will not fail a second time. I am going to prove to them that anyone can be just what they want," he said to himself. "But first, I have to find something to eat or I will end up dying a failure," he said while rubbing his grumbling stomach.

He soon stood up from where he had been sitting and began to wander again. His stomach kept grumbling as he walked and the more it did, the more weakened he became. Soon after, he got to an eatery and rushed in at the smell of food that came out of the place.

"Mister, what do you want?" A young girl came to him and asked.

"Can I get a plate of food, I'm starving here," he replied.

"A plate of food is a gold coin," the girl told him.

'What! 1 gold coin for just a plate of food? Where do I get that kind of money from? If I have such an amount of money, I won't be starving in the village' Ember thought to himself.

"Hey, mister, did you hear what I just said?" The girl asked him.

"Ah... Well, bring it. I don't mind," he replied.

"Okay, have a seat while I go get it," the girl said and left.

Ember sat down on a table and began to wonder how f he made the right choice by telling her to bring the food.

'I don't even have a copper coin, where do I get a gold coin from?' he asked inwardly while looking around the room. 'Well, since it has come to this, I might as well...'

"Here, mister. A plate of nicely cooked meal for you," the girl appeared in his front carrying a plate of food and a glass of water. "Enjoy!" She said to him and then left to continue her thing.

"Smells nice," he mumbled after the girl had left and began to eat. He ate the food quickly and gulped down the entire glass of water. "The food didn't go a halfway in satisfying me but this should carry till the next day," he mumbled and began to glance around. "I think it's time," he said and stood up.

He made for the entrance but before he could get to the door, the girl rushed to him and blocked his path.

"Mister, where are you going?" She asked him, sounding very polite.

"I-I just want to empty my bowels, that's all," he replied, trying to hide his shock. 'How is she so fast? And I can feel the energy radiating from her, she's pretty strong. Damn, what did I get myself into?' he thought to himself.

"I did not ask you not to do your thing but before you will do that, you must pay for your meal!" The girl said to him, her voice no longer gentle.

"I will give you money, just let me go and do my thing. It's urgent," Ember replied.

"If it's that urgent, why don't I come with you?" She asked him, raising a brow.

"Huh? Hell no! You are a girl and I am a boy!" Ember said waving his hands. "Just wait for me for a while and I'll be right back," he said.

The girl stared at him for a while and then agreed. "Fine, I give you five minutes. If after five minutes you don't return, I'll find you!" She told him.

"That's enough for me," Ember said and hurried out of the eatery. As he left, he felt the girl's burning gaze on him and he quickly turned and went South. Immediately the girl's gaze on him was no more, he began to run as fast as he could.

"I need to run away from here quickly, five minutes should be enough for me to—"

"And where do you think you are going?" A voice asked and someone appeared before him.