I walked through the packed Coastal Metropolis, pulling my hood over my face. I pulled out my phone and sent Mei Gui a message, since I wasn't sure if telepathic communication would work, depending on how far away from me she was.

[Mei Gui, where are you right now?]

A second later, she was already typing in response. Damn, you're quick.

[The first floor, Master. I am in a weapons store called Silverfang Smithery. Flaria is with me.]

Hm...Flaria? O-Oh wait...I forgot about her again...yeah...I have an earful waiting for me when I see her. Whatever. But still...a weapons store...? Huh, guess Mei Gui's picking out some weapons for herself. Sure, she had an overpowered flaming spear imbued with Chaos energy, but sometimes, a less...conspicious weapon would come in handy. I still had those daggers she used when we raided the Xuan residency, but those were pretty worn down and weak, to say to the least.

I quickly texted back a response. [Got it. I'll come to you.]

[Understood, Master,] she then sent, and I put my phone into sleep mode after that.

Looking around, I searched for the best method of transportation. Hmm...the escalators are too full. Guess the staircase it is, then.

I headed to the stairway leading down, following the signs. They were different from the one leading up to the Administrative Floor, as that one was restricted and locked. On the contrary, this staircase was one everyone could use...except no one did. In fact, no one was even remotely close to the staircase entrance. The reason for that...

I opened the door and the first thing that I realized was a fist flying towards me. I ducked immediately, and thanks to my inhuman reaction speeds, I was uninjured. The door clanked shut behind me.

"Oh? You're pretty fast, kid," the man who had thrown that punch at me shook his fist a bit and looked me up and down. Several others, his gang members I assume, also stopped what they had been doing and all glanced at me in contempt.

I stared at the first guy straight in the eye. "...What do you want?"

He narrowed his eyes. "What the hell is that look, huh?! You wanna die?!"

Saying this, he arched his arm back in preparation for another hook, but I instantly closed the distance between us, gripping his neck and slamming his entire body into the wall.

"Ngh-!"

I spoke quietly, but menacingly. "That's quite the weak threat...against someone who has actually killed before."

The man's gang members all drew pocket knives from their jeans, but I wasn't fazed in the least. They were too afraid to use magic in this small space, as that would create far too much noise and they would be busted for sure if they were found out by the security staff of the mall or something. The only reason they attacked me was because I looked like a weak nobody, and just a mere 14-year-old at that. They thought they could just jump me for fun, rough me up a bit, then threaten me to keep my mouth shut about what happened, and I would do exactly what they told.

...But they were so, very wrong.

Back when I didn't have magic, I had already trained my physical body to human limits. And these punks think they can take me on? What a farce. In fact, I was overwhelming their boss so hard he couldn't even use his hands to take out a weapon of some sort. The instant he stopped trying to pry my hand off, he would be choked to death.

I tightened my grip around his neck. "Look. I have things to worry about, and don't have time to deal with maggots like you. Understand? Now...you and your lackeys. Stay out of my way, and we won't have any problems."

"I-I got it! U-Ugh...c-can't breathe..." he croaked, tapping my arm relentlessly to get me to stop choking him. I glared at him for a while longer, then finally released my hold on him after making sure he wouldn't fight back the instant I loosened my grip.

I straightened my black cloak, then shoved my hands in my pockets. Then, scanning the rest of the gangsters, I merely walked directly through them. After seeing how their boss was completely dominated, none of them had the guts to actually make a move, despite their drawn weapons. After I was out of their sight, I heard one of the gangsters walk up to their boss.

"Boss, do we just let him go like that...?"

"...Don't go after him. Not if you want to get killed...and I ain't lying here. When he glared at me with those bloody red eyes of his...I felt like I was staring death straight in the face."

*****

After the incident with the gangsters, I continued my journey down the Coastal Metropolis. On the way, I didn't encounter any more punks in the staircase. I assumed the various gangs strolling around in these stairways had an agreement or something not to trespass on each other's territory. The mall security knew the gangs were here, of course, and knew full well they were up to no good, loitering around. But unfortunately, they had no evidence the gangs were actually doing anything illegal. Since there weren't any strict rules about prohibiting loitering inside the staircases, the security staff couldn't do anything about them.

Besides, normally, the escalators and elevators are so much faster and more convenient than the staircase that there was literally no reason why you would use the stairs instead. However, today the mall was completely full because of this disaster. By this, I don't mean there wasn't any space at all and everyone was suffocating, but the transportation methods like elevators and escalators are all jammed with people.

I soon arrived at the first floor, and began heading in the direction of Silverfang Smithery, passing through the massive crowds of people. Soon, I arrived near another stairway entrance, where no one was around. I appreciated that, since I needed a breather. I wasn't good with crowds, after all. After several minutes, I continued walking. On the way, I saw Feng Mian resting on a bench. Zhu Yong, the male teen from before, was with her. She seemed very uncomfortable with him beside her, but she couldn't exactly shake him off when her leg was still injured.

Self-consciously, I pulled my hood over my face even tighter and picked up my pace. I prayed in my heart she wouldn't notice me.

Then, suddenly, I was called out from not far behind.

Shit...she saw me after all.

"K-Kai Xuan!" she yelled. I froze for a moment, but quickly recomposed myself.

...Sorry, Feng Mian. I'm not ready to face you yet...

I kept on walking, pretending to have not heard her.

"H-Hey!" I heard her get up and began heading my way, limping a bit since her leg hadn't fully healed yet. "Wai- ah!"

Suddenly, she let out a yelp, and I immediately turned around to see her right behind me, about to fall. Before I could react, she toppled on top of me, and we crashed onto the ground together.

"Ngh..." I muttered, opening my eyes. There was something heavy on my body, and I looked down to see Feng Mian lying directly on top of me, hugging me tightly.

What the hell...wait, what is this soft feeling in my hand...? Oh...shit. I've felt something like this before, back when I first awakened magic...please don't tell me I accidentally grabbed her...things again.

To verify, I squished my hand a bit, and heard a gentle moan coming from Feng Mian.

"Mnn~"

"S-Sorry!" I quickly apologized out of instinct, and removed my hand...or at least I tried, except my entire body was pinned down under her and I wasn't able to move at all. So instead, the more I moved, the more I was touching her generous bosom.

"Ungh~Xuan Kai, s-stop..." Feng Mian whispered weakly, and quite frankly, it was turning me on a bit, especially since she had resorted to calling me by my real name.

Despite this not being the time or place, I felt my precious member beginning to...well, become stimulated.

I-I can't help it, okay?! I'm a healthy 14 year old boy...how can you expect me not to become like that when thrust into this situation?!

"F-Feng Mian, I kinda can't move with you on top of me..."

"H-Huh? A-Ah! Sorry!" she quickly got off of me after fully waking up from the shock of falling - though she couldn't stand up since her leg was still injured - and I took a couple of deep breaths to calm down. I also instinctively covered my 'symbol of the male race' because being seen with a boner in public was not exactly very good for my reputation. Once it had calmed down again, which thankfully didn't take long, I got up from the ground and helped Feng Mian up as well, then let go the instant she was standing on her own again.

I then noticed Zhu Yong staring at me with pure bloodlust, fists clenched. Since I really didn't want to deal with this right now, I ignored him and prepared to leave.

But before I could escape the situation, Feng Mian locked her arm around mine, preventing any escape.

...Damn it.

She looked up at me, and whispered with a blush. "You promised back when we were texting...you would tell me your true feelings. I won't allow you to escape before then."

I stiffened. "...Can we talk about this later? There's a guy that wants to kill me in front of me right now."

Feng Mian glanced at Zhu Yong, and sighed with a nod. "...Let me deal with him. I'll show you that I'm not the weak girl you have to look after."

My eyes widened. "Hold on...you're injured. You can't fight like thi-"

She stared me right in the eyes, and spoke quietly with a knowing smile. "Xuan Kai...not every battle needs to be fought with violence."

I opened my mouth to say something, but closed it again. Seeing my reaction, Feng Mian smiled and slowly let go of my arm. She then began walking towards Zhu Yong, who quickly rushed towards her in worry.

"Are you alright?!" he asked, and I was honestly kind of shocked at his genuine care for Feng Mian.

"I'm fine," Feng Mian replied briskly, and swatted away his arm that was about to help support her. Despite still having an injured leg, she still faced Zhu Yong with full confidence. That was a strength I admired.

Zhu Yong then turned to me, seething with anger. "You...what did you do to her?!"

"What I do to her is none of your business," I replied calmly.

"Wha-! Damn you..." Zhu Yong muttered in frustration, then began walking towards me.

However, Feng Mian stepped in between us, blocking his way.

"What...?" Zhu Yong blinked a few times in confusion.

Feng Mian sighed. "Look...I'm not dense like a certain someone."

Why are you looking at me while saying that?

Feng Mian then turned back to Zhu Yong, and continued. "I can tell that you have feelings for me, but...I cannot return them. As for the reason...there's already someone I love."