"I know~" Nik, who was standing nearby, suddenly twisted his waist and spoke, his orchid-like fingers swaying alluringly. "If you want to know, little brother, I can…"
"Nobody asked you," He Xi Qian Yu interrupted him unceremoniously, his tone icy. "If you have nothing to do, scram, don't be an eyesore here."
"Oh my, how heartless~" Nik drew out his words, feigning sadness, but his syrupy voice only made one feel more nauseated.
He Xi Qian Yu felt his hairs stand on end upon hearing it. Fortunately, Nik seemed to sense the danger and dared not pester him further, leaving only an uncomfortable silhouette as he quickly disappeared outside the broken doorway.
"He is?" Dong Xiang frowned, looking in the direction where Nik had disappeared, her voice carrying a hint of imperceptible disgust.
"The math teacher's rumored boyfriend. Oh, you might not know Gecko," He Xi Qian Yu paused, adding with a look of disdain, "In short, he's even more disgusting than Yue Shan Xi."
Yue Shan Xi at least had a layer of elegant pretense as a "gourmet," but Nik, this guy, exuded a perverted aura that caused physiological discomfort from the inside out.
Shuichi Banjou, seeing Nik leave, hastily motioned for his three terrified subordinates to follow Nik's footsteps.
Just then—
Crash! Bang!!!
A piercing sound of glass shattering suddenly erupted. A large window on the side of the coffee shop was completely smashed, and countless sparkling fragments flew in all directions like hail.
A figure with short dark blue hair, wearing a black jacket, walked in slowly, stepping on the shattered glass with an arrogant posture. He had a trace of impatient haughtiness on his face.
"Wan Zhang," Wu Dao Xiangdu's gaze swept over the startled Shuichi Banjou, his tone clearly displeased. "I told you to go gather information on Kamishiro Rize… Why are you dragging your feet for so long? And making such a big commotion?"
"Is there no end to this…" He Xi Qian Yu sighed helplessly, looking at the newly added pile of shattered glass on the floor.
The moment Dong Xiang saw the newcomer, her pupils suddenly constricted. She almost instinctively rushed in front of Wu Dao Xiangdu, her voice filled with disbelief and suppressed anger: "Ayato?!"
"Yo," Wu Dao Xiangdu's lips curved into a slightly mocking arc, his gaze lazily falling on Dong Xiang. "Long time no see, you stu—pid—big—sis."
"Where have you been messing around all this time, you bastard!" Dong Xiang's voice rose.
"Of course, I've been… 'learning about society'." Wu Dao Xiangdu sneered, his tone flippant, his gaze carrying the rebellion and aloofness of a young man.
"Is this your younger brother?" He Xi Qian Yu looked the flamboyantly dressed young man up and down with interest, raising an eyebrow, openly teasing, "Tsk, why are you dressed like a trendy young punk? Is this style popular in Bronze Tree?"
"What did you say?!"
Wu Dao Xiangdu suddenly turned his head, his handsome features instantly contorted with anger. His dark red Kakugan instantly lit up, like burning charcoal. His Ukaku behind him suddenly unfolded, the edges of his dark blue wings suddenly glowing with an eerie and dangerous red light, and a sharp killing intent instantly locked onto He Xi Qian Yu.
"Stop it! Ayato!" Dong Xiang's heart tightened, and she immediately stepped between the two, sharply shouting, "Stop it now!"
"Oh?" Ayato looked at his sister standing in front of him, then at the nonchalant man behind her, a hint of surprise flashed in his eyes, immediately replaced by deeper malevolence, and a malicious smile spread across his lips, "It seems… this foul-mouthed guy is quite important to you…"
The red glow from his wings intensified, vibrating at high frequency with a piercing hum.
"Then I'll just… tear him to shreds for you to see!!"
Before he finished speaking, Ayato's figure shot out like an arrow from a bowstring. His dark blue wings carved a deadly trajectory in the air, their edges shimmering with sharp cold light, carrying the power to tear everything apart, heading straight for He Xi Qian Yu's throat, moving so fast that only an afterimage remained.
Facing Ayato's attack, He Xi Qian Yu didn't even bat an eyelid.
Just as that enchanting red glow was about to touch his skin—
Whoosh!
Several crimson tentacles, as if having anticipated it, instantly shot out from behind him, wrapping and locking onto the base of the Ukaku that Ayato was attacking with, with even greater speed and precision, holding it firmly like iron clamps.
Ayato's certain-kill blow was abruptly frozen in mid-air. His forward momentum sharply halted, and he was forcefully pinned in place by a powerful force.
"What?!"
The ferocious grin on Ayato's face instantly froze, his eyes filled with shock.
He frantically urged his Kagune, trying to break free. However, the crimson tentacles wrapped around the base of his Ukaku possessed unimaginable strength. No matter how he struggled, his Ukaku remained motionless, and instead, a tearing pain emanated from the intense resistance.
"Kid," He Xi Qian Yu's lazy voice rang out, "When speaking to your seniors, you should be polite. And…" He glanced at the newly added shattered glass on the floor, "Damaging public property requires compensation."
"Let go of me!"
Ayato was filled with shame and indignation. His other wing suddenly unfolded, its red glow surging, ready to attack again.
"Don't waste your energy."
He Xi Qian Yu yawned, and with his movement, several more crimson tentacles shot out from behind him, precisely wrapping around the root joint of Ayato's newly unfolded other Ukaku, just like the tentacles that had previously bound the first Ukaku.
In an instant, both of Ayato's wings were firmly restrained. He stood rigid in place, like a moth pinned in the center of a spiderweb, his arms forcefully pulled apart and fixed to his sides, in an extremely humiliating posture, unable to even move a step.
"You…!" Ayato tried to activate his Kagune to struggle, but the terrifying force wrapped around the base of his wings made it difficult for him to use his Kagune smoothly.
The crimson tentacles wrapped around Ayato's wings suddenly loosened, retracting behind He Xi Qian Yu like a receding tide.
Ayato, freed from his restraints, staggered. He stared intently at He Xi Qian Yu, seemingly wanting to say something harsh, but in the end, he just gritted his teeth fiercely, letting out an unwilling growl.
"Don't look at me like that. You made the first move," He Xi Qian Yu met Ayato's defiant gaze. "This counts as self-defense."
Dong Xiang looked at her younger brother, then at the unperturbed He Xi Qian Yu, her expression complex, finally dissolving into a barely audible sigh.
"Hey," He Xi Qian Yu suddenly asked, "When does Bronze Tree plan to attack Kukulia?"
Ayato's pupils suddenly constricted.
"How did you know?!"
Tatara had only just told him about this; logically, only Bronze Tree executives should know.