[So there's a glitch: if you're reading this on your phone and the app, chapter one isn't shown. Try reading it via internet or another device. I apologize for the inconvenience and hopefully Wattpad fix it soon]

As the duo was finally leaving the mountains and entering the bright green meadows, Monkey was grabbing various long sticks to try and use them as a staff. Since his own has been stolen by the demons who trapped him in the mountain, he was being very dramatic when he searched for it at first, even calling out to it like it'd respond.
"I didn't know you could be such a drama queen." (Y/n) said, waiting for him with her hands on her hips.
"You don't know my pain" he pointed at her. "Those bastards! Stealing from *me*! They will pay!"
The woman sighed, he reminded her of that one time she lost her doll and searched the entire monastery and village for it. She was seven.

And so after whining a bit and projecting his frustration on the poor trees nearby, Monkey gave up and has been trying to find alternatives ever since. He'd try a few techniques but they'd always end up flying out of his grasp.
"What's wrong? Did you forget how to fight or something?" (Y/n) asked at some point.
"'Course not." he sighed, dropping his latest one. "They're just *way* too light for me, so it's very hard to use them as weapons." he sighed. "I miss my Gold-Banded Cubgel! It was the ultimate staff! My one and only, my weapon soulmate!" he looked up at the sky with his fists close to his face.
"Geez why don't you marry it?" (Y/n) sent him a weird look.
"Well I bet that if it was a girl, she'd at least be pleasant!"
They glared at each-other before looking ahead again.

"If I remember correctly," she said. "your Gold-Banded Cubgel can expand and shrink at your will only?"
"Yep." he nodded.
"So does it have a mind of its own?"
"I don't think so, at least not to the point where it's sentient. More like it was made for me I believe."
(Y/n) puffed a chuckle.
"Who's got an ego now?"
"Still not me, 'cause when it served as one of the four pillars supporting the ocean, it would start glowing once every thousands of years. And when I busted in the king dragon's place, looking for a weapon, just then did it start glowing. And after I tried the entire royal weapon gallery, the dragons thought 'maybe that has something to do with him'. So the king let me check it out, I took it and it shrunk as a staff at my will. So I do believe it was made for me, since I'm also the only one who can lift it."
"It also chooses who lifts it?"
"Nah, it's just really heavy, like 8 tons."
She thought for a moment.
"How did the demons do to steal it then?"
"Glad you ask! I have a theory!" he pointed at her, suddenly very invested in the conversation. "The whole demon army tied ropes around it and pulled it with them back to wherever they put it. And as the years passed, the trail it left became a path in the mountains, meadows and forests."

After he said that, (Y/n) looked down at the narrow path they were taking through the meadow. Monkey noticed.
"Don't worry, that is just a happy coincidence." he smiled.
"You're taking me to your staff aren't you?" she bluntly asked, looking at him with a neutral expression.
"I mean, it would be cool if I had it." he mumbled.
She frowned.
"Guan Yin's island really is that way." he explained. "If I had my staff, fighting would be a million times easier and so we'd get there faster. Like you said: our interests aligned here." he grinned mischievously.
She just hummed and walked ahead of him. Monkey started to whistle, thinking this was another win for his team.

They followed the path for a while but then it suddenly stopped nearby a cliff.
"Huh." Monkey said with folded arms.
"Do you think they flew away?" (Y/n) looked up.
"They could have. But it's more probable that..." he walked over to the edge and looked down. "It fell."
She stood beside him and looked down. There was a town at the bottom.
"So that's where it is! Come on let's get down there!"

Monkey took a few steps back and made a run for it, but as soon as his feet left the ground, she grabbed him by the collar and used all her weight to pull him back, making them both fall on the ground.
"Not like that!" she exclaimed. "We take the long way down!"
Monkey groaned like a child who's been grounded. Nevertheless he still lead her to the town without taking the cool way there which bummed him out a bit.

"Come on now, don't sulk. You're about to get your staff back!"
"We don't even know if it's there! Maybe they dropped it because it was a quicker way to get it down there. Because obviously going around the hill and descending the cliff would be a complete waste of time." he glared at her.
"Well, not everybody can survive that fall Monkey! I'm sorry I didn't eat all peaches of immortality, drank all the wine of immortality and practiced an almost illegal technique that makes me immortal."
"I know you're saying this to try and get back at me, but all you're doing is giving me a boost of self-confidence." he smiled to himself, bumping his chest.
"Oh lord, like you need any more of it." she shook her head with a hand on her forehead.
"It's what makes my charm."
"It's what makes you annoying." she picked up the pace, mostly so that she could leave the conversation on that burn.
And Monkey knew that was why she did it.
"...shit." he harshly whispered. "I don't care! It's still two to one!"
"You keep scores?" she looked back at him.
"Only when I'm winning, and oh look at that!" he looked at the palm of his hand like it was written on it. "I'm winning!"
(Y/n) rolled her eyes and turned back.
"So childish too." she whispered, wondering if he really was Sun Wukong.

After a couple of hours, they finally reached the little town. It seemed like there was an event going on, there was music being played, stands of food and merchandise, and people were excited about "the contest" that was apparently starting today. But even with the joyful atmosphere, the duo got their fair share of glare by the passersby. Monkey was used to it, but (Y/n) contemplated the idea of taking off her japamala. But she shook her head.
She asked a food stand owner what this "contest" was for.

"Why the annual contest to see who gets the poll house of course!"
"The poll house?" her and Monkey frowned in confusion.
"You see," the man leaned closer. "years ago, this poll fell down from the sky and got stuck in the ground, right in the middle of the backyard of that house." he pointed at it, it was the fanciest looking one of all. "Demons tried to get it out but they eventually gave up." Monkey burst out laughing, as he discovered that his theory was correct but not in the way he expected. "So now, this poll is a sign of good luck and every year, someone gets to live in the poll house. It was abandoned and all busted before, but now look at it!"
"What if someone gets to get it out of the ground?" (Y/n) asked as Monkey kept laughing.
"Well, if such a thing is possible, then I suppose they'll get to keep it. But they'll have to win the contest first, the house is guarded like royalty these days."
Monkey let out a long sigh, (Y/n) thanked the stand owner and bought a bag of sugar-coated peanuts before standing beside him

"Man I overestimated those demons like crazy." he said as he took some and ate them. "Well then, let's go get my staff."
"What? No!" she stood in front of him before he could walk away. "You heard the man, the house is guarded."
"Doesn't mean anything, it'll be a breath." he went around her.
"It'd be stealing." she stopped him again. "We are not doing anything illegal, not to humans. The only way to get your staff back-"
"Don't tell me we'll have to enter this contest."
"-is by entering this contest."
He groaned like a child again, his face towards the sky.
"It's such a waste of time~!"
"It will be if you keep complaining and we don't get a move on. Come on."

"Next!" the man in charge of inscription exclaimed.
"Yes, hello." (Y/n) stood in front of his desk and placed her hands on it, Monkey behind her. "We want to get in the contest so we can take the poll for ourselves."
"Heh, like you're the first one to try. Lucky for you there's a place left. Here, fill out this form." he handed her a piece of paper, but retracted it when Monkey stepped closer to grab it. "The monkey can't participate."
"Huh?!" they both exclaimed.
"And why's that?!" he asked, containing his anger.
"You're a demon, you have magic and powers, it'd be cheating. Humans only."
The duo looked at each-other, knowing that this was not playing to their advantage. (Y/n) took the form.
"Is there really no way for him to enter?" she asked in a little voice.
"...I suppose he can be your teammate for round 1."
"Round 1?"
"Yes, there's the qualifying round, where you can be in teams of two, and then there's the real contest."
"I see." she looked down at the paper. "I suppose it's fine then." she mumbled before looking up and smiled. "Thank you sir."
"Your welcome. It starts in a couple of hours so be sure to give me the form back by then."

"We can still go and steal the staff if you want." Monkey quietly said. "There's still time."
"No thank you." she said as she filled out the form. "We'll earn it fair and square."
Monkey looked around, noticing how bigger the others contestants were.
"You know there's no way for you to beat them right?" he asked.
"That's okay." she looked up at him. "You can wear them out during the qualifying round."
He sighed.
"I guess. Still think it'd be easier to just steal it."
"Come on~." she smiled as she went to hand the form back. "It'll be a breath."

"Welcome folks to this year's contest!" the host exclaimed as the crowd cheered. "Now the qualifying quizz show round is about to begin!"
(Y/n) and Monkey sat there astonished, neither of them were expecting that one. They, along with a dozen of other contestants, were sitting at a table on a stage facing the crowd with one cymbal in front of them fixed on it and the other at their disposition so they could hit them together if they find the answer.

"Now, as the rules say:" the host said. "the oldest contestant gets to choose the subject of the questions."
A very old man, the teammate of a beefy guy (who picked him just because he was old), slowly started to raise his hand but then Monkey suddenly stood up, his whole arm raised.
"Me!" he exclaimed.
"Mmmh." the host looked at him up and down. "You look like you're in your twenties."
"I am literally centuries older than all of you."
"He is a demon." (Y/n) added. "They're not immortal but they do live longer than humans."
The man sighed while the beefy guy on the other side of the stage huffed and folded his arms. Monkey sat back down and leaned back on his chair, a satisfied grin on his face.

"Alright then. You have: 'The Han Dynasty: golden age of Chinese history';" Monkey's smile faded as the duo felt themselves sweating. "'Cuisine: the different facets of spices'; 'The Monkey King: the myth, the legend';" their eyes widen. "'Guzhens, from choosing the wood to-'"
"The Monkey King!" the two of them exclaimed.
"Oh my, enthusiastic. I suppose you'd be at an advantage since he's part of your monkey-culture."
"No it's 'cause I am the Monkey King."
The host laughed.
"Monkey humor, I get it!" he said, making the crowd laugh. "Now. Question number one: how many transformations does the Monkey King have?"
(Y/n) hit the cymbals.
"Seventy-two."
"Good answer!"
"What? No it's not." Monkey frowned. "I can turn into anyone I want, that's one of my main strategy to sneak around."
"Ssssh, that's what the stories say." (Y/n) discreetly nudged him.

"Question number two: why did the Monkey King ate almost all the peaches of immortality?"
Monkey hit the cymbals.
"'Cause those damn fruits were asking for it!" he answered immediately.
"Incorrect!"
"What?!"
"It's because he loves peaches!" (Y/n) tried to save it, but the host shook his head.
"That's what I said!"
"No you didn't! Even if you did that's a horrible way to put it!"

"Question number three: what is the Monkey King's birthday?"
(Y/n) leaned back, thinking this one was in the bag. But Monkey stayed motionless. She frowned and before she could ask him what was wrong, the very old contestant hit his team's cymbals. He then recited a poem, something about the morning dew and moss growing on mountain rocks.
"That is correct!" the host pointed at him.
"What gives?" she nudged Monkey, whispering sharply. "You don't know your own birthday?!"
"Like I said, I'm centuries old." he whispered in a similar fashion as they glared at each-other. "You think I'd keep tabs on that stuff? Back in Flower Fruit Mountain, we celebrate our birthday when we feel like it."

(Y/n) sighed.
"Your my fan, how come *you* don't know my birthday?!"
"You think my child brain cared about that?! I only cared for the cool stuff!"
He clicked his tongue.
"Understandable." he mumbled.

You can imagine how the rest of the quiz went. They got most of the simpler ones down but the rest of the time, either Monkey was too personally invested to answer properly, or the question were so damn specific that neither of them knew the answer. And before they knew it, the qualifying round was over. Thankfully they barely passed, but they did have the least points out of the remaining contestants.
(Y/n) had her forehead pressed onto the table, groaning.
"Well," Monkey said, feeling a bit bad for her. "maybe if you're lucky they'll go easy on you."
"Now that the quiz is over, it is on to the contest!" the host said. "As the rules say: the person who came in last in the qualifying round gets to choose which category they want the contest to be."
"What?!" they both exclaimed as (Y/n) suddenly sat up, a red mark on her forehead.
"Here." he handed her a list. "Boy aren't you the lucky one! Choose one of these."

She read through the list, her eyebrows furrowed as she did. She could only imagine what hell she'll go through with each categories: Martial art; Marathon; Acrobatics; Cooking; Poem battle; Knife swallowing. Finally, her eyes widen.
"Climbing!" she exclaimed, pointing at the word.
The host took a moment to briefly look at her, wondering why she choose that one with her average figure.
"Very well!" he smiled and turned towards the audience. "Then I bid you farewell for the day while we take the necessary measures to install the climbing field. I will see you at the bottom of the cliff tomorrow!"
As the crowd cheered and began to leave, (Y/n) sighed. She was a bit relieved to at least compete in a familiar sport. Monkey on the other hand was looking at her like she's gone insane.

"You cannot be serious!" he said as the two of them explored the town since they didn't have anything else to do until tomorrow. "Climbing requires strength and balance. You gotta use all the muscles in your body. Why did you choose that one?!"
"To be perfectly honest, I'm not a hundred percent confident either." she casually said as she looked at the merchandise displayed on a stand. "I just saw something I knew how to do and I picked it. I never competed in climbing, but I'll do my best."
"You won't even get a foot off the ground with your frail body."
"Hey. I'm the best climber in my village."
"That's not saying much." he frowned. "You sure you don't wanna give up."
"What?" she looked at him.
"I said you sure you don't wanna give up?"
"Come again?" she leaned closer.
He frowned, getting worked up.
"I said-!"
"Mmh nope, sorry, I don't know those words." she shrugged. "Probably because they are not in my vocabulary."
He rolled his eyes.

After the day, they were given a discount at the inn, both to celebrate this annual event and for being a contestant, so it cost them almost nothing. While (Y/n) was peacefully sleeping, Monkey was staring out the window, most specifically at the poll house. He couldn't sleep when his dear staff was right next door, so close yet so far. He looked at her across the room and sighed through his nose. There was no way she'd win tomorrow, not when she was competing against actual athletes, and the fact that she refused to even try his method still ticked him off.
"Screw it." he stood up and opened the window. "I'm taking it anyway." he said before hopping out.

The next day, the crowd gathered at the bottom of the cliff just as instructed. (Y/n) and the other contestants were standing in front of the tall wall. While the others were stretching or flexing their muscles to please their fans, she was staring up at the wall and covering her hands with flour, which only resulted in her getting strange looks from people, Monkey included.
He didn't change his mind of course, but he couldn't help but smile imagining the look on her face when she'll find out the staff was safely hidden in their inn room. He supposed he'll tell her when she'll start to get desperate.
"As the rules say:" the host said. "the one who won the qualifying round get an advantage."
He gestured to the beefy guy from the other day, standing on top of a platform going up to three meters.

"The goal here," he continued. "is to climb up and get the flag, then bring it back down. If you fall on the mattress we installed, it's game over for you." he pointed at a red cloth hanging by a hook around twenty meters high off the ground, then at the giant mattress the contestants were standing on. "Contestants, on your marks!"
(Y/n) clapped her hands together, creating a little white cloud of smoke.
"Get set..."
She took a deep breath as she grabbed the rock and crouched.
"Go!"
She jumped and used her grip to add strength to her jump, she quickly expanded an arm so that she'd get the highest grip possible and pulled herself up. Within the first seconds, she was already two meters off the ground.

Needless to say, the crowd was impressed, including Monkey, who was simply speechless.
'Is she part monkey or something?!' he thought.
The contestant next to her was caught off guard and fell. Another couldn't get a hold of the rock and couldn't leave the ground. The one with the advantage was lucky to get a part of the wall that wasn't so steep. But while the others were struggling and stopping every time they'd gained a arm-length, (Y/n) kept going upwards. At this point, there was only her and the beefy guy left, and they were halfway through, neck and neck. The crowd was now split between these two. But Monkey hasn't payed attention to anyone but her since the beginning.

At some point, she stopped.
"Why did she stop?" someone asked.
"I see," Monkey said, not looking away. "before starting, she was looking over the wall and figured out a proper way to go in advance. But now it seems like she's out of options."
(Y/n) frantically looked around. Then she looked up at a particular rock to her left that was standing out from the wall, but it was much more higher than the others.
"Don't." Monkey shook his head. "It's way out of your reach, don't."
She briefly glanced down at her feet and relaxed her arms. She let her body swing a couple of time to gain momentum. At this point, everyone was staring at her. Finally, she leapt up and completely let go of the wall. She managed to grab the rock with one hand, but as she set her foot, it slipped and she gasped, along with the whole crowd. But she kept the grip of her hand and so her body was dangling above nothing.

"How?!" Monkey exclaimed. "There was no way she could hang on with her whole body weight being-" and just as he said that, he answered his own question. "The flour!"
"Oh~ so that's why!" someone next to him said. "It must help having a stronger grip. Man, she knows her stuff!"
"And the way she climbs," someone else said. "it's almost as if she's flying!"
"Come on! You can do it!"
"Go for it!" Monkey joined on the hype.
(Y/n) positioned herself before climbing again without hesitation. The beefy guy passed her and gain a couple of meters, but she managed to catch up with him. Seeing that he grew closer to the cloth, she used all her energy on this last move. She grabbed the guy's shoulder to then use him as leverage for one final leap. And as she was in the air, she grabbed the cloth.
Monkey let out a big 'Oooooh!!!' as the crowd cheered.
'It's not over yet.' she thought as she took a hold on the wall. 'Now I have to get down.'

After wrapping the cloth around her wrist, she started to descend. The beefy man was baffled that he lost. His fist clenched.
"I won't allow such a tiny human to beat me!" he said as he turned into an ogre.
(Y/n) gasped as the crowd panicked and ran away.
"A demon has infiltrated the contest!" the host exclaimed.
"If it's the staff you want, why don't you just steal it?!" (Y/n) asked as she frantically climbed down, the ogre after her.
"And let you win?! No way in hell!"
'This guy's driven by his competitive spirit!'
Sadly, going down was way harder than going up, and so (Y/n) was being a lot slower than before. But luckily, so was the ogre, though he was catching up to her. She reached the tall platform and climbed down the ladder.

"That doesn't count!" the demon exclaimed. "She's cheating on the last meters!"
"Well technically:" the host said. "the rule only says that you have to bring the cloth back to win. Anything is fair game on the way down. So she wins."
He roared.
"I will destroy you!"
(Y/n) finally reached the ground and was about to run away when Monkey went passed her and towards the demon. He jumped and swung his staff down, right on top of his skull. The ogre fell down, dead on the spot.

"Oh my baby~!" Monkey hugged his weapon, teary eyed. "How I missed you!"
"Monkey!" (Y/n) exclaimed as she went up to him. "You stole the staff?!"
"Last night yeah." he casually said as he began to rotate it around and do a few tricks with it.
"Wha-You had it this whole time?!"
"Yeah. I really didn't believe you were gonna win."
"Why didn't you say anything?!"
"For fun I guess" he quickly said, refusing to admit that he was actually impressed by her knack for climbing. "but look at you now!" he stopped. "Mmh, it doesn't change size. Maybe it doesn't recognize me without my powers."
(Y/n) was about to scold him on his lack of trust but then the town gathered around them and cheered, thanking them. They even offered them to live in the poll house forever. But of course they politely refused, so instead they were given a cash prize and some food before they went on their way.

"Wait a second!" (Y/n) suddenly looked at Monkey. "You can see through demons' disguises right?"
"Mh-hmm." he nodded.
"So you knew the beefy guy was a demon! Why didn't you say anything?!"
"Because the rule saying demons can't participate is complete and utter nonsense."
She sighed.
"I cannot believe you."
"Why does it matter? You still won. Hell, you should be even prouder to have beaten a demon!"
He nudged her, which to her felt like a real push.
"You're right." she said as she rubbed her arm. "I get double points for that one, so now it's two to three."
"You remember the score?"
"Only when I'm winning. And oh look at that!" she looked a her palm then showed it to him with a smirk. "I'm winning!"
He knew she made this callback to make him mad, but he couldn't help but chuckle. And the fact that this was not the reaction she wanted out of him made her huff in slight annoyance.