Baojing Taiyo felt a powerful force strike him, sending his entire body flying backward. He crashed against the courtyard wall behind him, making a heavy thud.
"Ugh!"
A mouthful of blood spat from his mouth. At this moment, Baojing Taiyo felt as though his internal organs had been displaced — there was pain everywhere.
"It hurts!"
Unable to contain himself, he screamed. This person dared to hit him? Unforgivable!
"Master! Master..."
Several large men who had been standing by Baojing Taiyo quickly rushed to help him up.
With their support, Baojing Taiyo barely stood. Feeling the pain coursing through his body, resentment swelled in his heart.
"That guy hit me?"
"Get him..."
Almost without hesitation, he ordered the tall and burly men around him. These men were thugs his father had hired. They might not be able to fight ten against one, but three against one? That should be easy.
"Kill..."
The thugs charged toward Sam Miller.
However, before they could even react, Sam moved. The men who had rushed at him were swiftly knocked back, sent flying through the air just like Baojing Taiyo had been.
Seeing this, Baojing Taiyo's face turned pale. He realized he might have just provoked someone far more dangerous than he'd anticipated.
Sam walked slowly toward Baojing Taiyo.
With each step Sam took, Baojing Taiyo felt his heartbeat quicken in fear. A wave of regret washed over him — he'd made a terrible mistake.
The boy in the bamboo hat finally stopped in front of him, staring down with golden eyes.
"You seem to have provoked someone you shouldn't have," Sam said coldly.
"Thud..."
Almost instinctively, Baojing Taiyo dropped to his knees.
Under the bamboo hat, those ghostly golden eyes made Baojing Taiyo feel as if his heart might leap from his chest in terror.
Sam patted Baojing Taiyo's shoulder, and without a word, an invisible force flowed into Baojing Taiyo's body — a chilling sensation that seemed to sink deep into his heart, like a ticking time bomb waiting to explode.
What was certain was that Baojing Taiyo wouldn't be living much longer.
"Makomo, come here," Sam called softly.
"What?"
Startled, Makomo instinctively hurried to Sam's side.
Baojing Taiyo watched in confusion. Why was this boy suddenly calling Makomo? But before he could dwell on it, Sam reached out and pulled Makomo into his arms.
Suddenly, Sam's arm was wrapped around the slender waist of the beautiful girl.
Jealousy.
Such a delicate, innocent, and beautiful girl... held tightly in his arms.
"She's mine," Sam said softly — as if he was speaking to Baojing Taiyo, but also to anyone nearby who might have been eyeing Makomo.
The next second, Sam clenched his fist and struck the ground beside Baojing Taiyo.
"Boom..."
The ground trembled as if an earthquake had struck, and a deep crater formed where Sam's fist had landed.
"Is that...human strength?"
"Can a person really be that powerful?"
The onlookers who had previously been staring at Makomo with lust now stood frozen, cold sweat dripping down their foreheads.
At this moment, no one dared to covet Makomo anymore.
"It suddenly feels like the world is much quieter," Sam muttered.
Feeling the unwanted gazes disappear, Makomo suddenly felt much more at ease.
Seeing everyone's attention fade away, Sam's expression softened. He finally turned his gaze toward the girl in his arms.
Makomo's face.
Pretty and youthful.
Naturally, Sam let her go, and Makomo stood beside him with her head lowered, her face redder than a sunset — as if it were about to burn.
"You... you... you must be joking just now, right?" Makomo whispered shyly.
Feeling her heart race, she couldn't stop thinking about Sam pointing at her and confidently declaring, "She's mine."
Makomo's face felt hot.
Not from anger.
From embarrassment.
How could he say such bold words — and in front of so many people? It was... so embarrassing. She wanted to find a hole and crawl into it.
Looking at Makomo's flustered face, Sam couldn't help but raise an eyebrow.
Makomo... so shy?
"Joking? I never joke about things like this," Sam said naturally, meeting her gaze. "I like you, so I want to make you mine."
In an instant, Makomo's face turned crimson, her cheeks practically glowing.
H-he... he... actually said that.
Her lips parted in shock, and her beautiful, gem-like eyes practically shut in embarrassment.
"M-Mu... Mujiang, please don't tease me like that," Makomo stammered. Her small hands tugged at Sam's sleeve nervously.
Over the past few days, Makomo had started to understand Sam's personality — he often spoke boldly and playfully. She had often witnessed him teasing Shinobu in Kyogiriyama, watching with amusement as Shinobu's face turned bright red.
But now, she was the one being teased.
Makomo wasn't sure if she could handle it — it was just too embarrassing.
Such bold words... how could he say something like that so casually?
What if a girl took it seriously?
Seeing that Makomo was clearly overwhelmed, Sam chuckled and shrugged.
"Alright, alright. I won't tease you anymore," he said with a grin.
"W-what?"
Makomo blinked blankly. But for some reason, her heart felt a small pang of disappointment. His words had seemed so sincere... how could they suddenly be a joke?
"But... if Makomo takes it seriously," Sam added, "then I can be serious too."
He smiled warmly. "After all, you're so cute. I really do like you."
"M-Mujiang, please don't joke like this..." she stammered softly, her voice barely louder than a whisper.
"Alright," Sam said with a gentle smile, giving Makomo's head a light pat. Then, he turned his gaze to the sky.
"Now, our job is to explore this town," he said.
A ghost that devoured young girls was rumored to be hiding here. If that ghost spotted someone as beautiful as Makomo, it would be hard for it to resist.
"Okay..." Makomo nodded quietly, following Sam like a shy shadow. Her little head remained low, though she occasionally peeked up at him. Whenever Sam's eyes met hers, she quickly looked away — like a thief caught red-handed.
Sam noticed her glances and couldn't help but feel that he had made things too complicated.
He suddenly realized that the playful words he treated as casual jokes might not be so casual in this conservative world — especially to a sweet, innocent girl like Makomo. At her age, feelings were often the purest yet most delicate.
Once sparked, such feelings could burn fiercely... until they consumed everything.
And girls like Makomo — sincere and pure — were the ones you should never hurt or let down.