Teacher Dan Heng: I Kind of Don't Want Cloud-Piercer Anymore

The spear plunged into the snowdrift, but instead of the hardness of frozen earth, Bai Luoming felt it pierce flesh and blood.

A moment later, an utterly agonized scream erupted from beneath the snowdrift.

"Aaaargh—!!!"

The entire snowdrift exploded, spraying snow everywhere. A blue-haired man clutched his butt and sprang out of the snow like a cat whose tail had been stepped on, hopping up and down on the spot, his face twisted with pain.

The sudden sight startled March 7th into taking half a step back, and she instinctively raised her bow. Dan Heng tensed, already assuming a combat stance. Stelle was even more direct, holding her bat across her body to protect her vital points.

Only Bai Luoming remained where he was. He even tilted his head slightly as he watched the man jump up and down, the corners of his mouth curling up as though he had expected it.

He pulled Cloud-Piercer out of the snow with one hand, held the spear level, and turned to hand it back to its owner.

"Teacher Dan Heng, here's Cloud-Piercer."

Dan Heng reached out, but his movement stopped the moment his fingertips touched the slightly heavy shaft.

His gaze fell on the spearhead. A few strands of gray-blue fabric clung to Cloud-Piercer's tip, and there was even a trace of blood on it.

This was... Cloud-Piercer, which had just stabbed someone in the butt.

Dan Heng fell silent for a moment.

In the end, he still took the spear. Before pointing it at the uninvited guest, he turned his wrist and drove the tip hard into the snow, kicking up a small spray.

Only after completing this cleaning ritual that he alone could understand did Dan Heng point his spear steadily at Sampo and say coldly, "Don't move."

His expression was as calm as ever, except that both hands holding the spear had shifted three inches farther back than usual.

March 7th recovered from her fright and quickly backed away, drawing her bow halfway and aiming at Sampo, who was hopping on the spot with his hand over his butt.

Stelle, without needing a word, circled around behind Sampo's flank, her bat resting on her shoulder. Together with Dan Heng and March 7th, she formed a triangle around him, blocking off every escape route.

Sampo recovered from the intense pain, his eyes darting around the circle. His expression shifted from pain to embarrassment, and finally, his gaze landed on Bai Luoming.

Of the four, only this person was empty-handed, standing outside the circle with both hands in his pockets, like a bystander who had nothing to do with the situation.

By rights, he was the best opening.

Sampo stared at Bai Luoming.

The young man clearly wasn't doing anything. He wasn't giving off the slightest aura, hadn't assumed any kind of stance, and didn't even have hostility in his eyes.

Yet the moment their eyes met, every hair on Sampo's back stood on end. For some reason, he felt certain that something bad would happen if he attacked Bai Luoming.

Run?

Several options flashed through his mind.

Rush the empty-handed young man? No, every cell in my body is resisting the idea.

Run into the snowfield? Weapons have me covered from three directions.

Play dead? I just jumped so high that lying down now would be too fake.

He took a deep breath. His left hand remained clamped tightly over the wound on his butt, while he raised his right hand very slowly and very deliberately, fingers spread and palm facing outward.

"I surrender, I surrender! Stop hitting me!"

When Dan Heng saw him raise his right hand, his gaze sharpened. Unsure whether Sampo was surrendering or preparing to pull something out, he thrust Cloud-Piercer's tip half an inch forward, aiming at Sampo's butt.

This wasn't out of some perverse amusement. That spot was closest to Sampo's left hand, so Dan Heng could react fastest if he made any sudden moves.

Dan Heng's voice was utterly flat. "Your other hand. Raise it too."

"Don't make any sudden moves!" March 7th called in support, drawing her bowstring a little tighter.

Sampo's face scrunched up completely, showing grievance and pain so genuine they hardly seemed possible to fake.

"Brother, sister, didn't you hear what I just shouted? That friend of yours stabbed me right in the butt! I'm holding the wound right now! If I take my hand away, I'm afraid blood will come spraying out!"

The corner of Dan Heng's mouth twitched almost imperceptibly.

He glanced down at Cloud-Piercer's tip. Although the traces on it had already been washed clean in the snow, he couldn't shake the feeling that Cloud-Piercer was still a little dirty.

Dan Heng closed his eyes and took two heavy breaths. In the end, he didn't press the issue. He simply moved the spearhead sideways from Sampo's butt to his shoulder.

It was an unspoken acceptance of Sampo's explanation.

Bai Luoming, who had watched the whole thing from the side, finally spoke. There wasn't the slightest apology in his tone as he instead commented on Sampo's movements:

"Hmm, judging by how quickly you reacted, the bone shouldn't be injured. You could jump that high, so your muscles and ligaments are fine too. Just as I thought, my aim was right."

His tone was flat, as though he were presenting some kind of academic report.

Sampo stared at him wide-eyed, unsure for a moment whether he should be angry or grateful for the "diagnosis."

Seeing their murderous intent ease slightly, Sampo immediately put on a flattering smile and ventured a question:

"None of you look familiar. Might I ask if Commander Gepard sent you to catch me?"

His voice was ingratiating, and though he wore a fawning expression, his eyes stayed fixed on their slightest expressions without blinking.

March 7th froze for a moment. Her bowstring slackened a little without her noticing, and she blurted out:

"Who?"

Seeing that March 7th's reaction didn't seem fake, Sampo breathed a sigh of relief and said loudly:

"So you don't know him. You gave me a scare." He patted his chest, putting on a vivid performance. "I thought Commander Gepard had sent people to catch me. You don't know him, but that commander is a real stickler. Dealing with him is worse than spending the night out on the snowfield."

Bai Luoming listened, the corners of his mouth lifting slightly.

But he was a little puzzled. Gepard's position was clearly that of a guard officer, so how had he become a commander in Sampo's account? Come to think of it, wasn't Bronya supposed to be the commander?

At that moment, Stelle stepped out from Sampo's side, lowered the bat from her shoulder, and planted it on the ground.

She spoke as casually as if she were listing dishes on a menu:

"We're not from Jarilo. We're Trailblazers from beyond the sky. We came on a train."

Bai Luoming nearly lost it.

Even March 7th wore an expression that said, "I can't watch this," frantically trying to signal Stelle with her eyes: Is it possible we don't need to be this honest with a stranger?

Stelle didn't pick up on it at all, and even added, "The train's parked on the tracks."

March 7th took a deep breath and silently labeled Stelle a "social hazard" in her mind.

Dan Heng remained expressionless and didn't stop her. He could also tell that whether they spoke or not, the man before them would find a way to dig the information out. Rather than wait passively, they might as well take the initiative.

"Trailblazers from beyond the sky..."

Sampo repeated the words, and his whole demeanor subtly changed.

His eyes lit up. Even the hand covering his butt loosened a little as he leaned forward, a note of barely containable excitement entering his voice.

"Then does that mean you're the visitors from beyond the sky that the Supreme Guardian is looking for?"

This time, everyone froze.

The Supreme Guardian? Looking for visitors from beyond the sky? We only just landed on this snowball, and this is the first living person we've even met. How could the Supreme Guardian know about us?