"We're here." Obsidian came to a halt, pointing at a rather modest-looking inn nearby. "Compared to other inns, this one's relatively safer."
"No problem at all. We'll follow your lead," Tianlang replied with a smile. "You're the host—whatever you decide is fine."
The two entered the inn first. Suddenly, Zhao Heng's eyes sharpened as he scanned the surroundings.
"What's wrong?" Mo Yan asked.
"Probably just my imagination…" Zhao Heng glanced toward a shadowy alley near the street, where several figures lurked, occasionally peeking out. But given this was Sin City, he couldn't be sure of anything.
Better stay alert, just in case, he thought.
"Come on, let's go in." Zhao Heng turned back and followed Mo Yan into the inn.
Night fell. While the others gathered in one room, discussing ways to find Evilbane, Kaelin and Zixuan had long since gone to bed in the next room.
Kaelin slept like a rock, even murmuring in her sleep. By contrast, Zixuan lay still, serene as a pond.
The accommodations were modest but strangely comforting—unlike the opulent but sterile Moon Sanctuary, which always felt a little too foreign.
Creak…
The window slid open. A gloved hand reached in, quietly pushing it wider. A figure in a hood crept inside, landing lightly on the floor. He turned back to pull his partner in through the window.
The two exchanged a hush and quickly began rummaging through the room.
But after turning the place upside down—they found nothing.
"You sure this is the right room?"
"I'm positive," the hooded thief whispered. "I watched all afternoon. It's definitely these girls."
"Well, we've found squat so far."
"Doesn't make sense. They're travelers—they should be loaded…" the hooded man murmured. "Could it be the guys next door are holding their valuables?"
Then Kaelin rolled over in her sleep, and the glint of the ring on her finger caught the eye of one of the thieves.
"Hey, check that ring. Looks pretty fancy, don't it?"
The two crouched beside her bed, inspecting the ring on her right hand.
"Yeah, that's gotta be worth something," whispered the leader. "We came all this way—we're not leaving empty-handed."
His partner reached carefully for the ring, fingers trembling as he slid it off Kaelin's hand.
"Yes!" he whispered in excitement.
"Who are you?!"
A clear voice cut through the silence. Zixuan had woken up.
The thieves jumped in shock and spun around. Zixuan was already standing, staff in hand, ready to fight.
"Huh...? What's going on?" Kaelin blinked awake, rubbing her eyes. When she spotted the two masked men in her room, her expression went blank—then screamed.
"PERVERTS!"
The shout reached the room next door.
Startled, Kaelin instinctively reached for her gun—but her ring was gone. She stared at the thief in disbelief.
"My ring?! You bastards, you're thieves!"
"Boss, we've been made—what now?" the masked thief asked in a panic.
"We run, you idiot!" the hooded one snapped.
They dashed for the window—only for Zixuan to slam it shut with a wave of her staff.
"Going somewhere?"
"Tch! You're asking for it!" The hooded thief gritted his teeth and lunged at Zixuan with a folding knife. She didn't flinch, raising her staff to meet him head-on.
The other thief didn't stay idle either. With their escape cut off, he drew his own blade and went for Kaelin.
But without her ring, Kaelin was unarmed and had no choice but to dodge. The room was cramped and in disarray from the earlier search, leaving her little space to maneuver. A near miss left her sleepwear slashed open.
"Ugh, seriously?!" she growled, furious.
Seizing a split-second opening, she spun and kicked the blade from the attacker's hand. If only she'd been wearing shoes—she might've broken his fingers with her heel alone.
"Tch, you've got some guts, girl."
The thief shook his hand, undeterred. He charged again, this time aiming low. Out of instinct, Kaelin blocked—only to fall for the feint. The thief faked low, then knocked her off-balance.
"Ah!"
"Kaelin!" Zixuan cried out.
"Worry about yourself first!" her attacker barked.
The hooded thief stabbed again. Zixuan failed to dodge in time and took an elbow to her side, collapsing to the floor.
"Zixuan, are you okay?!" Kaelin shouted.
"I'm fine… But don't let them get away!"
The thieves staggered toward the window, now bloodied but still mobile. Kaelin tried to get up, but her body wouldn't cooperate fast enough.
Then—
Crash!
The paper window burst open as a glowing blur slammed into one of the thieves, punching him straight back into the room.
"Boss!"
The remaining thief turned furiously toward the window—only to freeze.
A silver-haired boy stood bathed in moonlight. He wore a black hooded shirt, and his violet eyes gleamed like a predator's in the night.
Those eyes alone sent a chill down the thief's spine.
"P-please. Just some punk kid trying to act tough!"
Desperate to save face, the thief grabbed a fallen blade and charged.
"Watch out!" Zixuan called out.
The boy didn't move.
Just as the knife closed in, he casually caught the man's wrist mid-swing.
The blade dropped with a clang.
"Wha—? Gah!"
A solid punch to the gut dropped the thief unconscious.
Kaelin and Zixuan were stunned. The wind stirred the curtains, carrying the scent of steel and moonlight. By the time they recovered and turned to thank their savior—he was gone.
"Who was that guy?" Kaelin murmured. "He felt like something out of a wuxia novel. Do people like that really exist here?"
Zixuan shook her head. "I don't know… But we should tie these two up first."
She pulled a rope from her bag.
"Good idea," Kaelin agreed, glaring at the fallen thieves.
But just as they were about to start tying them up—Bang!
The door flew open.
"Kaelin! Zixuan! Are you alright?!"
Mo Yan, Zhao Heng, and Tianlang burst in, frantic.
But what they found wasn't chaos or a fight scene.
What greeted them… was a pair of girls in shredded sleepwear, the aftermath of a close-quarters struggle.
Zhao Heng and Tianlang immediately turned and exited the room without a word.
Mo Yan, however, gave a dramatic thumbs-up.
"Wow~"
Kaelin's fist clenched.
"THIS IS A GIRLS' ROOM! NO BOYS ALLOWED!"
She marched over and bodily shoved Mo Yan out of the room.
~~------------------------
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