The sun sank in the west, and night fell.
The chill winds of late autumn made pedestrians hurry along even faster. In a place like the East District, with no large bars or nightclubs, the streets were deserted after eight, save for the occasional police patrol car.
Outside the Leaf Restaurant, the little blackboard had been hung up early-
Closed today.
Those words were written clearly across it.
Whoosh!
One of the restaurant's doors stood open, letting the autumn wind blow straight inside.
The temperature inside immediately plummeted. Especially when certain things appeared, the wind grew colder still, piercing to the bone.
Qin Ran sat inside as though he felt nothing, leafing through that day's newspaper. The [Sharp Standard Sword] lay quietly on the counter before him.
Thud, thud, thud.
Heavy footsteps sounded at the entrance to the alley.
A tall, sturdy man approached-so massive that sturdy hardly did him justice.
Every step made a sound like a rubber tire slamming into the ground.
Those heavy impacts made him seem all the more ferocious.
Bzzzt, bzzzt!
The streetlight outside the restaurant flickered rapidly again, casting shifting shadows across the approaching man's already grim, somewhat hideous face.
He looked at Qin Ran inside the restaurant and split his mouth into a grin, revealing sharp, sharklike teeth.
"Delicious prey!"
He licked his lips and walked into the restaurant without slowing.
Creak, creak.
The wooden floor immediately groaned beneath his feet.
The hulking dead spirit paid it no mind.
It knew perfectly well how heavy its body had become in its pursuit of power.
It was only natural for these floorboards to make noise beneath its feet.
In some respects, it even took those sounds as praise. Just like the faint disdain in its eyes as it glanced over the [Sharp Standard Sword],