– Lunchtime, School Cafeteria –

I waited in line to collect my food, with Qing Yue right behind me. But in front of me…what awaited was-

“Huh? Why did you follow me all the way here?” a feminine voice asked harshly.

“Hey now…this is where I always eat,” I replied.

Yes – this unfriendly individual is known as Feng Mian, a divine beauty and the new transfer student in my class at Shenzhen Magic High School. She had stormed off earlier after being annoyed at my cold attitude towards her…yet here she was, directly in front of me – also waiting to receive her lunch.

“Even so, does that explain how you ended up right behind me in line?!” she exclaimed loudly. Several eyes turned to look at us. “And don’t give me ‘It was a coincidence’!”

After several seconds that felt like an eternity of thinking, I came up with the best reponse in this situation-

“…It was a coincidence.”

Hearing this, Feng Mian looked even more angry than before and looked as if she was about to kill me right then and there. But – seeing all the curious eyes directed towards us, she ultimately decided against it. She puffed out her cheeks and turned back around, ignoring us. Qing Yue covered her mouth in an attempt to hide her laughter.

It was a failed attempt, however. Feng Mian sent a ‘death glare’ towards us, and Qing Yue immediately shut up. Soon, Feng Mian received her food and left. We got ours shortly after and looked around for a free table. Surprisingly enough, today the cafeteria was filled to the brim with people…possibly because of Feng Mian – all the other students (boys, mainly) were eager to get a glimpse of her angelic beauty. Therefore, most of the students here had seen Feng Mian head in this direction and did their best to arrive before her so they could savor the view while eating.

Hence…there was but one empty table. And it was the table directly beside where Feng Mian was sitting, in the corner of the cafeteria. All the boys were anxious as they glanced at the spot with longing. Yet – not a single one of them dared to move. They knew – they would become the center of attention, and not the good kind. Feng Mian, however, didn’t seem to notice all the lecherous stares directed at her and ate her lunch nonchalantly.

And as the students intently watched on, a particular duo took the place right next to the goddess that had just arrived in the school today-

“What-?! Where did he come from?!”

“How dare he sit next to our goddess?!”

“Fei Wu Kai?! Goddamn…I’ll teach him a lesson later!”

-And thus, we attracted all of the aforementioned attention…and not the good kind. But that wasn’t all. Feng Mian noticed our presence and immediately stood up, furious:

“Y-You again! Why are you still following me?!”

I merely ignored her and began unpackaging my chopsticks. Qing Yue followed. Seeing our ignorant appearance, Feng Mian continued.

“Hey! I’m talking to you! Why are you sitting beside me?!”

I sighed and looked towards her…and my eyes naturally shifted towards her bust. “Look around you. Where else are we going to sit?”

“U-Um…Still! That doesn’t mean you can just follow me here! A-And what are you staring at?!” She shrieked, quickly covering her breasts using both hands.

“…Are you even listening to yourself?” I scoffed. This girl might be pretty, but that’s about it.

“Big Brother Xuan Kai, let’s just finish eating and get out of here,” Qing Yue said, tugging on my sleeve over the table.

“…You’re right,” I replied, agreeing with her completely.

And so – ignoring the protests of Feng Mian beside us as well as the envious stares of the crowd – we began eating our meal.

*****

– After School, In a Certain Dark Alleyway in the City of Shenzhen –

Feng Mian hurriedly ran in the dark. She looked around and muttered to herself.

“This should be it…”

Then, suddenly, a deep male voice spoke from behind her.

“You’re here.”

Feng Mian immediately twisted around to face the masked man.

“What do you want?” Feng Mian asked impatiently. “You called me out here – why?”

“I just wanted to see your beautiful face, Ms. Feng.”

“Stop joking around. What did you really need me for?”

“Ah…can’t hide anything from you, can I?” the man clucked disappointedly. “Well then, I’ll get straight to the point. How are you doing with locating the stone pendant?”

Yes – this man was the person who captured Feng Mian’s parents, and threatened her with that in order to make her do his dirty work. Feng Mian hated him to the bone, yet couldn’t do anything – the powerlessness she felt was something too cruel to be described with words.

“…I’m working on it.” Feng Mian replied curtly.

The masked man let out a little laugh. “Kukuku…I’ve heard that the stone pendant belonged to a boy named Xuan Kai – son of Qing Ruo Lan and Xuan Ying, correct?”

“..Yes.” Feng Mian answered truthfully, knowing full well that lying wouldn’t do any good against this man.

“However, it seems that you are not able to locate it in his dormitory.” his tone turned cold.

“…Sorry, I am not as skilled as you think I am.”

“Hahaha!” The man let out a loud laugh. “An Ice and Shadow dual element magic user, ‘not skilled’? What a farce.”

“…”

The man, sensing no reply from Feng Mian, continued. “The reason you aren’t able to find the pendant isn’t because you aren’t skilled enough.”

“…Huh?” Feng Mian appeared confused.

“…It’s because there’s the possibility that it was never in his dorm in the first place.”

“What?!” Feng Mian exclaimed, clearly bewildered.

“Well, that’s just a possibility. Hmm…from what you have told me, Xuan Kai isn’t outstanding at all. He shouldn’t have been able to tell that you entered his room, much less set up traps for your next excursion. Because of this, there’s no way he could’ve taken the pendant elsewhere.”

Feng Mian felt a chill climbing up her spine – that was exactly what Xuan Kai had done, except this person just didn’t know. Indeed, she had lied to this evil man that had the very lives of her parents in his grasp. She didn’t know why she did so – her parents would be wiped from existence if this man ever found out she was lying to him. However, before she could finish processing this thought-

“Unless…you were lying to me about his capabilities.”

Feng Mian went still. A cold air emitted from the masked man, shrouding her in fear and despair. However, despite all this, she still had a strong heart. Taking a deep breath to calm down, she refuted his accusation.

“I was not. He is merely a piece of trash that cannot even perform the slightest of magic.”

The man, seemingly satisfied with this answer, turned away. “Very good then. Keep searching for the pendant. If what you say is true, then the pendant should still be somewhere within his room, and my guess was false.”

As the man began to walk away, Feng Mian realized something and blurted out a question before she could stop herself.

“What do you intend to do with that stone pendant? Is there anything special about it?”

The man stopped walking, tilted his head slightly, and sent a piercing stare towards where Feng Mian was standing.

“That’s not something for you to know, my little beauty,” he rasped menacingly.

“I’m not your ‘little beauty’.” Feng Mian said coldy.

“Hahaha! Well – you will be soon enough,” the man replied with a laugh. He began to walk away once more, then looked back one last time.

“Remember, don’t overstep your boundaries.”

While it seems like a mere warning, Feng Mian knew that it was in reality, a threat. What he really meant was ‘don’t ask unnecessary questions, or your parents will be killed’. She shuddered at the memories of his piercing gaze and walked the other way, planning to return to the dormitories.

However, just as she was about to exit the dark alleyway, she was stopped by a group of boys.

“Well well well…what do we have here?” an arrogant voice called out.

Rounding the corner, Li Yi Fei and two of his lackeys appeared. They blocked off Feng Mian’s exit and immediately closed in on her.

“H-Hey! What are you doing?!” Feng Mian shrieked in surprise and fear. She still hadn’t gotten over the terrifying stare she had received earlier, and now three boys are jumping her.

“Hey boss, she’s not such a cool beauty now, ain’t she?” the boy on the left of Li Yi Fei said.

“Haha! I agree, Pang Zi!” Li Yi Fei replied.

His name was Pang Zi, which was pronounced almost the same way as “fat kid”. And he did indeed have a slightly ‘wide’ figure, so Li Yi Fei addresses him by Pang Zi (fat kid) affectionately.

“Yeah yeah, look at that face she’s making. So scary! Hahaha!” a third voice chimed in.

This was the boy on the right side of Li Yi Fei, namely Zhang Zhe Rui. He had a slim figure, wore glasses, and was the ‘brain’ of the group, usually the one to come up with all the evil plans.

“Hehehe…Why don’t you come play with us for a bit, Lady Feng Mian?” Li Yi Fei said with a lecherous grin.

Feng Mian sighed, recomposed herself, and calmy replied:

“Would you mind not addressing me in such a courteous manner while saying something so repulsive?”

“Tch. And boss was trying to treat you nicely too…play with us, little bitch.” Pang Zi replied in Li Yi Fei’s stead.

“I refuse. Step aside if you don’t want to get hurt.” Feng Mian said dangerously.

“Heh…you think you can defeat all three of us?” Zhang Zhe Rui scoffed.

“I’ll at least take down two with me.” Feng Mian stated confidently.

Truth to be told, Feng Mian was actually not confident at all. She was merely bluffing in the hopes that they would let her go. She might be able to beat one, but unless you were amazingly talented, going up against three mages of the same stage at once is equivalent to seeking death. In this case, both Feng Mian and Li Yi Fei had two innate elements, so they were around on par with one another. However…Pang Zi and Zhang Zhe Rui aren’t going to be just standing around doing nothing.

“Hehehe…then let’s see how well you do,” Li Yi Fei sneered as a purple lightning sparked in his hand.