Hupo and Alana followed Coco to another neighborhood. It was as noisy and crowded as the previous one. A musty stench hung in the air. The roads, narrow and unpaved, were congested with people. There were no carriages to avoid, so they walked in the middle of the path. Merchants lined the sides of the busy road, advertising their goods and services. Some of them had their own stalls, but just as many of them had their wares laid out on the ground for display. Shabby-looking shops of all shapes and sizes stood behind them.

Coco stopped at a run-down building. “This is where Papa and I had stayed when we visited the capital.”

‘Cheap Inn’ was painted on the crooked sign above the door. Hupo sincerely hoped that the inn's name reflected its prices. Its appearance certainly suggested so. The exterior of the inn could be summarized in one word - godforsaken.

The front doors squeaked as he opened them, begging to be oiled. The inn's interior wasn’t any better than its exterior. It smelled like old socks and body odor. The yellowish white paper covering the walls was peeling in many places. Everything looked in need of repair, including the people inside.

There was no one at the front desk, which was a plank of wood supported by two wine barrels. Two men were having an arm wrestling match at a small table next to it. Surrounding them was a crowd of spectators.

A tall, burly man, from among the spectators, approached Hupo. "I'm Gus, the owner of this place. What can I do for you folks?"

"How much for two rooms?"

"Normally, it'll cost twenty-four copper coins. But I give discounts to fine women, and I see you've got one.” Gus winked at Alana. “So I'll charge your group twenty copper coins."

"No fair boss! Why didn't you give my sister a discount when she was a guest here?" asked one of the arm wrestlers.

"I said fine women. Your sister is a woman, but she’s certainly not fine." Gus shook his head.

Laughter erupted from the crowd of spectators.

Hupo thanked Gus and left the inn with Coco and Alana. "I don't think it'll get any cheaper than this place. But even here, we only have enough money for two nights. The Combat Tournament starts in two days and lasts for at least another two days, so we’ll need more money."

Coco lowered her head. "Sorry. I wish my village could've given you more money."

"Don't be. I was the one who refused to take any more."

"But what are going to do now?"

"I've got an idea."

***

Coco helped her masters search the neighborhood for a place to set up shop. Finding one was not easy. Most of the spots on the side of the main road were already occupied by merchants. After a lot of walking, she eventually found a suitable location. With help from her masters, she set up a table and two chairs. Master Hupo sat in one of the seats.

Coco placed a large signboard that read ‘Arm-Wrestling Contest’ in front of the table. Next to it, she placed a bag of money.

She made an announcement. "Do you have what it takes to beat our champion in an arm wrestle? For five copper coins, you can challenge him for the jackpot! The current jackpot stands at ten copper coins!"

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Many passersby looked with amazement at Alana, but none took up the challenge. The jackpot amounted to a measly ten copper coins, which was all the money they had left after buying the props. Any challengers at this point would likely be doing it to test their strength, rather than to win the jackpot.

Not wanting to disappoint her masters, Coco continued emphatically advertising the contest with her voice. “If you think you’re strong, then come test your might! Is there anyone brave enough to try?”

Still no takers. I need to try a different strategy.

She looked around for the most heavily built man she could find. "You there, Mr. Macho!"

The man she was shouting at turned toward her. "You talking to me?"

"Of course! Do you see anyone else here with bigger muscles?"

A big smile spread across the man's face.

Got you now! Time to close the deal.

"Would you like to test those big muscles of yours by challenging this mighty warrior?" Coco gestured toward Hupo.

The man looked at Hupo, from head to toe, as if to size him up. "Mighty? I wouldn't be so sure about that."

"That'll be five copper coins to enter. Winner takes all."

The man approached Hupo and dropped money into the bag next to the signboard.

"Good luck to you." Coco gave the challenger a thumbs up.

Hupo and the challenger sat across from one another. They each placed an elbow on the table and gripped the other's hand. The challenger's hand was so big that it seemed to swallow Hupo's.

Coco raised her hand into the air. "All set? Go!"

She brought her hand down.

It appeared to be a close battle. The number of spectators grew quickly as the contest dragged on. Both arm wrestlers appeared to be giving their all. They grunted loudly and their arms trembled.

The challenger appeared to be overpowering Hupo. He had a smirk on his face, as if to say, "I've won."

Just as the back of Hupo's hand was about to touch the table, something miraculous happened. He seemed to catch his second wind. Their arms began moving in the opposite direction, eliciting gasps from many of the spectators.

A look of disbelief appeared on the challenger's face. The tables had suddenly turned and now he was the one being overpowered. His face became even more strained and turned tomato red. Eventually, the back of his hand touched the table. The match was over.

Coco announced the result. "And the winner is... Hupo!"

Loud cheers erupted from the audience.

The man who had just lost got up from his seat and walked away with his head lowered.

"Now, who's next?"

No one in the crowd responded to Coco's challenge.

"Nobody has the guts to try?"

Many of the spectators looked away when her gaze fell upon them.

When she saw a man leaving the crowd, she pointed at him. "Oh? You're fleeing in fear?"

The man turned around. "What'd you say?"

You just fell into my trap.

"You heard me. You're too afraid to challenge my friend here, even though he's clearly tired from the last match. Just how much of a coward are you?"

Coco didn’t actually believe her own words. She knew that her master was just putting on a show for the audience. After all, who would dare challenge him if he looked like he could beat one challenger after another without even trying?

The man approached the table and dropped five copper coins into the jackpot. "I'll show you!"

When Coco saw that they were ready, she said "Go!"

Again, the challenger initially appeared to have the upper hand, only to have his fortunes reversed at the last moment.

Once the match was over, Coco patted the loser on the back. "Thanks for participating!"

Yes! The higher jackpot will attract more participants.

"The jackpot has grown to twenty copper coins! Anyone want to give it go?" Coco gestured toward the bag of money.

A man with brawny arms approached the table and threw five copper coins into the jackpot. "That money is as good as mine!"

"Ready? Go!"

The match ended like the last.

After losing, the man slammed the table. "What? How can you have so much strength left, after all those close matches?"

"No one likes a sore loser. Now buzz off!" Coco gestured for the man to leave.

The sizable crowd of spectators burst into laughter.

She didn’t wait for the laughter to die down before issuing her next challenge. "Who's next?"

People lined up one after another to challenge Hupo. As the jackpot grew, so did the number of participants. After winning twenty matches in a row, he signaled to Coco that it was time to change the location.

"Alright, that's all for today folks! Thanks for coming!" Coco smiled, then gave a bow.

Hupo arm wrestled one hundred challengers throughout the course of the day, without losing a single match.