"What the?" Mu Wei screamed out; he didn't expect Lu Beiyi to suddenly grab his wrist when he let his guard down. Lu Beiyi suddenly lunged at him and grabbed his wrist without warning.
Just moments before Lu Beiyi could pull the man closer, he was suddenly hit by a wave of light that momentarily blinded him. This caused him to pause for a moment and release his hold of the man. He looked amused at this and could feel a faint cut on his cheek where blood started to drip down.
As the white-haired man balled his hands into a fist, Lu Beiyi quickly stabled his footing and grabbed both hands of Mu Wei.
After doing this, Lu Beiyi flipped the two of them over and crashed into the ground with Mu Wei below him. The cold and hard stone collided with Mu Wei's soft and supple skin as he was pinned strongly to the ground. He was completely overpowered in terms of physical strength.
"Shit. What the hell do you want?" He let out a sigh of frustration. The moment Mu Wei used his ability, he was already prepared to face the suspicions of his rank. However, at this moment he was contemplating whether he should continue to use his powers more but hesitated instead.
This time Mu Wei couldn't control his frustration, and his eyes screamed with a murderous intent at the man who was supposedly his guild master. A vein popped in the white-haired man's forehead as he helplessly tried to release himself from the tightening grip. He couldn't escape from the man above him and writhed.
The man with a frightening grip suddenly gave a small laugh as his golden eyes eerily stared into Mu Wei's eyes. "That was a futile attempt, Mu Wei. Although I must say that ability didn't seem so F-rank of you. I guess we all have secrets, right?"
Mu Wei gritted his teeth as Lu Beiyi's weight pressed him into the cold stone beneath. His arms were pinned above his head, and no matter how much he struggled, the guild master's grip wouldn't budge.
"Let me go!" Mu Wei growled, his voice dripping with venom. His chest rose and fell with labored breaths, frustration and panic coursing through him. For the first time in years, he felt a sudden feeling of helplessness as his eyes became cloudier from his struggle.
Lu Beiyi, still holding him down, tilted his head with an unsettling smirk. "Let you go? After that little stunt? You think I'm just going to walk away like nothing happened? Do you not realize that if I didn't dodge in time, I would've been nothing but ashes?"
"That was self-defense!" Mu Wei shot back, glaring up at him. His white hair splayed messily across the ground as his crimson eyes burned with defiance. "You're the one who came at me! What do you expect me to do? Sit there and let you kill me? Why would you even grab my wrist in the first place?"
Lu Beiyi's golden eyes narrowed. "Kill you?" he echoed, his voice low and dangerous. "Don't flatter yourself. If I wanted to kill you, you wouldn't even have time to lift a finger."
The threat sent a shiver down Mu Wei's spine, but he refused to show fear. Instead, he spat out, "Then why don't you do it? Go ahead! Show me how much of a villain you really are!"
For a moment, the air between them was suffocatingly tense. Lu Beiyi's expression darkened, and Mu Wei swore he felt the temperature drop. The guild master's face was so close now that Mu Wei could feel the faint breath of the man, this level of proximity suddenly made Mu Wei feel even more cloudy and could feel heat rising in his face.
Then, just as suddenly as the tension rose, Lu Beiyi laughed. The sound was low and sharp, cutting through the silence like a blade. Just as Mu Wei was hesitating whether to use his powers, he suddenly stopped for a moment. He was confused about the sudden mood swings of the man and looked at him with a weird expression.
"You've got guts," Lu Beiyi said, his grip on Mu Wei's wrists tightening slightly before he released them. He stood up, brushing off his suit as if nothing had happened, though his golden eyes remained locked on the man beneath him. "I'll give you that much. But guts alone won't save you, Mu Wei."
Mu Wei scrambled to his feet, his fists clenched and his entire body on edge. Despite Mu Wei's murderous glare, he was drenched in sweat and looked like he just came back from a strenuous exercise. He glared at Lu Beiyi with a mix of fury and suspicion. "What the hell do you want from me?"
Lu Beiyi didn't answer right away. Instead, he reached into his pocket and pulled out a sleek black handkerchief, dabbing at a faint cut on his cheek—probably from the earlier flash of light. He looked almost amused as he said, "I should be asking you the same thing. That little ability of yours wasn't something a mere F-rank should have, was it? You even had the audacity to use it on your guild master."
Mu Wei froze, his heart skipping a beat. "I don't know what you're talking about. That was just a stroke of luck."
The moment he used his ability; Mu Wei already knows he exposed himself. However, he simply couldn't bring himself to admit to this and was testing the waters by feigning ignorance.
"Oh, don't play the sheep now," Lu Beiyi said, his voice dripping with condescension. "That light—it wasn't just a random fluke, was it? No ordinary ability user can summon something like that, let alone on instinct. You even managed to cut through my skin with it, any ordinary F-rank wouldn't even dream of being able to do this."
"I said I don't know what you're talking about," Mu Wei repeated, his tone colder this time. The atmosphere dropped again and the two looked at each other for a long time.
Lu Beiyi smirked, clearly unimpressed. "Fine. Keep your secrets. But don't think for a second that I'll let my guard down around you again. Whatever you're hiding, it's only a matter of time before I figure it out."
"Funny," Mu Wei shot back, crossing his arms. "I was going to say the same thing to you."
The words hung in the air like a challenge. For a brief moment, neither of them moved, their gazes locked in a silent battle of wills.
It was Lu Beiyi who finally broke the silence, his expression shifting into something more neutral—though the predatory gleam in his eyes never completely disappeared. "You're an interesting one, Mu Wei. I can see why Min-Ji seems to trust you so much."
At the mention of Min-Ji, Mu Wei's anger flared again. "If you know something about her, then stop playing games and just tell me!"
Lu Beiyi's smile faded slightly, replaced by something more serious. "Min-Ji is..." He trailed off, as if carefully choosing his words. "Let's just say she's in a situation far more complicated than you realize. And if you keep poking your nose where it doesn't belong, you're going to end up in the same place she is."
"Complicated?" Mu Wei repeated, his voice rising. "That's not an answer! What happened to her? What did you do to her?"
Lu Beiyi raised an eyebrow, clearly amused by the accusation. "What did I do?" he echoed, his tone mocking. "You think I'm the one pulling the strings here? Don't be ridiculous, you can't seriously be that stupid, right?"
"Then who is?" Mu Wei demanded, stepping closer despite the warning bells ringing in his head. "You clearly know more than you're letting on, so stop dodging the question."
At Mu Wei's step, the distance between the two suddenly felt too close for comfort. However, the white-haired man doesn't seem to notice just how ambiguous the two looked from this distance.
Lu Beiyi sighed, running a hand through his dark hair. "You're persistent. I'll give you that." He turned away slightly, his gaze drifting toward the entrance of the guild. "But some answers aren't worth knowing, Mu Wei. Sometimes, ignorance really is bliss."
"That's a load of crap," Mu Wei snapped, his voice filled with frustration. "If you're not going to tell me the truth, then stop wasting my time."
He turned to leave, but before he could take more than a few steps, Lu Beiyi's voice stopped him in his tracks.
"You really hate me, don't you?"
Mu Wei froze, his back still turned to the guild master. This sudden question completely stopped the white-haired man. Truth be told, Mu Wei was unsure of what he thought about this man. Sure, he's suspicious of him but when asked if he hates him, he really didn't know if he did or didn't.
"Ever since you joined the guild, you've been looking at me like I'm the villain in your story," Lu Beiyi continued, his tone oddly calm. "And maybe I am. But you know what's funny?"
"What?", Mu Wei slowly turned to face him; his expression guarded. His defense being the highest level at the moment. He was prepared for the second round of their fight this time.
"I can't bring myself to hate you for some reason," Lu Beiyi said, his golden eyes locking onto Mu Wei's once more. "If anything, I find you fascinating. Annoying and sometimes stupid, yes. But fascinating."
Mu Wei's lips curled into a bitter smile. "Well, congratulations. The feeling isn't mutual. If I ever find you fascinating, I was probably brain-washed."
Lu Beiyi chuckled softly. "Oh, I'm well aware. But we don't know what the future holds, right? Who knows, maybe you'd even beg me for my help someday."
Mu Wei's eyes narrowed. "Don't flatter yourself."
"I'm not," Lu Beiyi said simply. "I'm just saying, don't be so quick to make enemies. Sometimes, it's better to see them as friends."
The tension between them was palpable, a mix of animosity and something more complex simmering beneath the surface. Mu Wei really doesn't understand the man in front of him. He was too complicated to understand.
"Whatever," Mu Wei muttered, turning away again. "I don't have time for your games. If you're not going to help me, find Min-Ji, then stay out of my way."
As he walked off, he could feel Lu Beiyi's gaze lingering on him, heavy and unyielding.
"You'll see eventually" Lu Beiyi called out, his voice carrying an edge of certainty. "And when the time comes, you'll come running back to me for help, like you always do."
Mu Wei felt shivers down his spine at the last sentence. He hurried his pace more and kept repeating the lines Lu Beiyi said.
'Like you always do' What the hell does he mean by that? Does he know something about me? Or was it just a bluff?
He was racking his brains about their interaction and wanted to find someplace where he could think about this. He wanted a place with no people in sight.