Stonegate was loudest in the hour after the arena closed.
The broad street outside the Great Spirit Arena had become a river of people, all flowing in different directions at once. Some still clutched betting slips in their hands, shouting about wins, losses, fixed matches, impossible odds, and referees who had clearly been blind. Food stalls worked furiously beneath hanging oil lamps, their owners roasting meat, frying dough, and pouring cheap wine for fighters and gamblers who were either celebrating their luck or trying to drown it.
Caravan workers pushed through the crowd in groups, laughing loudly as they hauled crates toward the merchant quarter. A few injured Spirit Masters limped past with bandaged arms and bruised faces, wearing their wounds like proof of honour. Every so often, someone glanced at Su Yan, recognised him, then quickly looked away once they noticed the two women following behind him.
Su Yan strode through the crowded street with a spring in his step, Nihilister and 2B following close behind.
Every few steps, his hand drifted back to his pocket.
The thin gold card was still there.
It had been issued by the Great Spirit Arena's settlement office after their final accounts were cleared. Strictly speaking, it was not a bank card. The arena was not a bank. But with how much money flowed through its betting counters every day, the difference had become thin enough that most people no longer cared.
As long as Su Yan brought the card to an affiliated arena or money house, he could withdraw the gold soul coins recorded under his name. Larger withdrawals would require a proper arena branch, but for travel, inns, supplies, and ordinary expenses, it was more than enough.
That small card now represented almost ninety percent of the money Su Yan, 2B, and Nihilister had earned over the past month through matches and careful betting.
The rest had been taken in physical gold soul coins.
At 2B's suggestion, the loose coins had been divided between the three of them. Su Yan had agreed immediately. After all, carrying so much himself was rather unwieldy.
The fragrant smells drifting from the nearby stalls eventually proved too much for Su Yan to ignore.
What began as a simple taste from one stall became two, then three. Before long, Su Yan found himself slowly making his way down the street stall by stall, buying whatever happened to catch his eye.
He made sure to buy portions for 2B and Nihilister as well.
In typical Nihilister fashion, her favourite seemed to be the meat skewers. She devoured several at a time with immense gusto, barely giving them time to cool before tearing into the next batch.
2B, by contrast, ate much more neatly, taking small, measured bites. Even so, Su Yan noticed that she seemed partial to meat as well, particularly the crispy fried chicken pieces he had found at one stall.
As for Su Yan, his sweet tooth remained as strong as ever. He enjoyed the savoury food well enough, but more often than not, his attention drifted back toward the dessert stalls.
His favourite of the night was perhaps the fried glutinous rice cakes filled with sweet bean paste. The outside was crisp from the oil, while the inside stretched softly when bitten, warm and sweet enough to cut through the lingering spice from the skewers.
By the time the streets began to wind down and the crowds started to thin, Su Yan finally turned back toward the rented property, his money pouch now slightly lighter.
He patted his full stomach and decided it was worth it.
Looking back, he saw Nihilister walking with the lazy satisfaction of someone thoroughly fed. As for 2B, Su Yan was not an expert at reading her yet, but even he could tell that she seemed fairly comfortable.
The last lingering light of dusk caught 2B's face, and that was when Su Yan noticed it. There was still a faint smear of oil at the corner of her mouth.
Without thinking, he took out the clean cloth he kept folded in his sleeve and reached over to wipe it away.
2B froze stock-still.
By the time Su Yan finished and realised what he had done, he froze as well.
"Er… you had a little something on your face," Su Yan said, indicating the spot he had just wiped.
Then he grimaced.
"I was just wiping it off. Sorry. I shouldn't have done that out of the blue."
2B raised a hand to the spot he had wiped and stayed silent for a moment.
"It's fine," she said at last, shaking her head. "I don't mind."
Then, after another brief pause, she added, "Thank you, Su Yan."
There might have been the ghost of a smile on her face when she said it, though Su Yan could just as easily have imagined it. By the time he looked again, it was already gone.
"Hey, are you two coming or what?"
Nihilister's voice cut in from several paces ahead.
Su Yan blinked, then quickly looked away.
"Right. Let's go."
He jogged forward to catch up with Nihilister, while 2B followed quietly behind him.
When Su Yan finally reached the rented property, he immediately noticed something was wrong.
He distinctly remembered locking the front door when they left, but the moment his hand touched the latch, it gave way without resistance.
His brow furrowed.
The next instant, he kicked the door open and rushed inside.
Crossing the courtyard in a few hurried steps, he reached the inner rooms and was greeted by a rather peculiar sight.
Pod floated calmly in the middle of the room.
Beneath it, a man lay prone on the floor, his limbs trembling slightly.
Su Yan froze.
The man's head snapped up at the sound. The moment he saw Su Yan, his eyes filled with tears and desperate hope.
"Young master! Please, help me! That thing keeps—"
He tried to crawl forward.
A sharp crackle of electricity filled the room.
"Gyaaaah—!"
The man collapsed again, twitching.
Pod remained hovering exactly where it was.
"Alert: subject attempted movement."
Su Yan stared at the man on the floor.
Then he slowly looked up at Pod.
"…Pod?"
"Report: unauthorized intruder was detected within the property."
Nihilister and 2B had already arrived at his side, both staring at the scene in silence.
Before Su Yan could decide what to do, the sound of heavy footsteps came from the courtyard.
Several of them.
Su Yan's expression tightened.
"Pod, keep him from moving."
Pod bobbed up and down once in acknowledgement.
"Please… no more…" the man pleaded from the floor. "I won't move anymore…"
Su Yan heard him begging as he turned and walked back toward the courtyard.
He was met by eight men flanking the landlord who had rented him the property. Standing beside them was another man, taller than the landlord, dressed in scholar's robes with his hands clasped behind his back and a self-important air about him.
Su Yan immediately had a bad impression of him.
He reminded him far too much of a certain fraud of a Grandmaster.
Letting out a small breath, Su Yan recentred himself and spoke.
"What can I do for you fine gentlemen tonight?"
The landlord stepped forward at once.
"You can give my servant back. If you have hurt him, then you will have to pay compensation."
Su Yan's eyes narrowed.
So this was their game.
"If you mean the thief who broke into our house, then he is in there," Su Yan said, indicating the inner room.
In the dim light, the man could just about be seen lying prone on the floor.
"But I do believe you owe me an explanation."
The scholar-robed man stepped forward.
"Landlord Fu generously sent his man to check on you and see how you were all settling in. In return, you injured him and detained him against his will."
Su Yan had not thought Landlord Fu would hold a grudge for so long. It had already been a month. He had assumed the man would have given up by now, especially on something this transparent.
Su Yan sighed.
"Let's pretend for a moment that he was actually here for what you say he was. Why did he enter when we were not here? Surely, if he only wanted to check on us, he could have come another day."
The scholar-robed man scoffed.
"The servant was merely overzealous in carrying out his duties. Yet your people injured him so cruelly. Either you pay suitable compensation, or I, as a righteous Spirit Elder, will have no choice but to beat some sense into you."
Another sharp crackle sounded from the inner room.
It was followed by a pained yelp.
The scholar-robed man's expression twisted at once. He pointed a trembling finger at Su Yan.
"And you are still hurting him even now! If I do not teach you a lesson, then where is the justice in this world?"
He swept his sleeves in a dramatic gesture.
Three Soul Rings rose around him.
Two white. One yellow.
As he opened his mouth to continue, Su Yan saw a flash of red.
The next moment, the Spirit Elder was sent flying. He smashed into the wall beside the entrance hard enough to crack the stone, then slid down into the rubble, unmoving.
A very low moan of pain escaped him.
Where the man had been standing, Nihilister stood with one fist extended.
"You talk too much."
The remaining men froze as if they had suddenly found themselves standing before a predator.
Landlord Fu's legs were outright trembling, his earlier bluster nowhere to be seen.
Nihilister slowly swept her gaze across the men as she lowered her arm.
"They say exercise after eating is bad for you."
A feral smile grew on her face.
"But I doubt you lot would count."
Then she moved.
She dove into the group and began her violent work.
The courtyard filled with dull impacts, pained cries, and the heavy thuds of bodies striking stone.
Su Yan stood to the side, watching for a moment before letting out a small sigh.
"Try not to kill anyone."
Nihilister did not answer, but Su Yan knew she had heard him.
After all, she stopped herself just short of slamming the thug she was swinging like a club into the ground.
Instead, she turned and used him to knock down two of his companions.
2B approached his side, Virtuous Contract held in her right hand while Virtuous Treaty hovered silently behind her.
"Shall I assist?"
Su Yan shook his head.
"No. Thugs like these do not need both of you."
Su Yan watched a moment longer as Nihilister caught two men, spun once, then sent them flying into several of the thugs trying to flee.
"Besides, I think she is having fun with this."
Su Yan did not feel much sympathy for the thugs. They had come here to threaten him in his own courtyard. If a few broken bones taught them to choose their employers more carefully, then so be it.
Speaking of their employer.
Su Yan looked to the side and saw Landlord Fu crawling toward the courtyard wall. The man was desperately trying to climb over it, but the heavy frame that came from years of decadence made the attempt almost pitiful.
Su Yan smiled.
"Landlord Fu, leaving so soon?"
Landlord Fu froze.
Then, slowly, he turned back to face Su Yan.
His face was wet with tears and snot, his earlier bluster nowhere to be seen. After all that false courage, he now looked utterly pathetic.
"Ahaha… Young Master Su," Landlord Fu said, forcing a fawning smile onto his face. It was not very convincing, especially with sweat, snot, and tears running down his cheeks. "I hope you do not take my actions to heart."
He swallowed.
"I was only worried about my servant, you understand. A moment of panic, nothing more. This lowly one merely lost his head for a moment. I hope Young Master Su can be magnanimous and forgive my small trespass."
Su Yan tapped his chin in an exaggerated thinking gesture, letting Landlord Fu stew for a few breaths.
"Hmm. Tempting."
Landlord Fu's eyes lit up with desperate hope.
Su Yan smiled.
"But I think not."
By this point, Nihilister had finished dealing with the rest of the thugs. When she slowly turned her gaze toward Landlord Fu, the man's face went pale.
She began stalking toward him.
Landlord Fu's panic broke completely.
He threw himself to the ground and began kowtowing.
"I am sorry, Young Master Su! I am sorry I tried to scam you over the rent! I am sorry I tried to steal from you! I am sorry I tried to scam you again! Please forgive me! I am sorry!"
Su Yan was curious how much more the man would confess if given the chance.
Unfortunately, Nihilister was less patient.
Landlord Fu's begging turned into a strangled yelp as she reached him.
Su Yan let out a quiet breath and looked up at the night sky. The moon had risen above the rooftops, and beyond it, countless stars scattered across the dark.
All things considered, he decided, today had been a good day.
A crack rang out across the courtyard, followed by a scream of pain.
Su Yan ignored it.
A good day, he insisted.