Hello, Boss Xiao

"You really were here."

Luo Yan was lying on a horizontal branch of the old locust tree, his face covered by the large leaf that had become his signature gesture.

Hearing the voice, he removed the leaf and looked down.

Xiao Wu stood beneath the tree, looking up at him.

The rabbit-ear ornament in her hair trembled slightly in the wind. Her cheeks were a little flushed, and her lips were pressed tightly together.

"Hm?" Luo Yan rolled over and sat up, his legs dangling from the branch as they swung lightly. "What is it?"

"Come down. Fight with me."

Luo Yan tilted his head, not in any hurry to jump down. "Who are we fighting?"

"Xiao Chenyu."

Xiao Wu spoke quietly, but she enunciated every word clearly. "That sixth-year student. He blocked Wang Sheng today, shoved him to the ground, and said the work-study students in Dorm Seven all needed to learn the rules."

Luo Yan's expression did not change. He merely gave a soft "Oh."

"That's it?"

"What do you mean, 'that's it'?"

Xiao Wu glared up at him. "That idiot Wang Sheng may not be much, but he's from Dorm Seven! Dorm Seven is under my control now!"

Luo Yan looked at her eyes, which were faintly gleaming with anger, and suddenly asked, "Is Tang San back?"

"No! If he were, I would've called him already!"

Xiao Wu stamped her foot. "Are you going or not?"

Luo Yan said nothing.

He folded the leaf in his hand and casually tossed it down.

The leaf spun twice in the wind before landing beside Xiao Wu's feet.

"I'm going," he said.

Then he leaped down from the tree, landing even more lightly than the leaf.

Xiao Wu froze for a moment, apparently not expecting him to agree so readily.

She had been holding back a whole stomachful of words to urge him on, but now they were all stuck in her throat.

"You... aren't you going to ask anything else?" she could not help asking.

Luo Yan shoved his hands into his pockets and was already walking toward Dorm Seven. "Ask what? You came to ask me to fight. If I asked two more questions, you'd probably treat me like Wang Sheng—throw me down first, then talk reason."

The corners of Xiao Wu's lips curled up despite herself, and she jogged after him. "At least you know what's good for you!"

The two crossed the academy path. Before they had gone far, they saw several work-study students standing at the entrance to Dorm Seven, all of them dusty.

Wang Sheng sat on the steps, a patch of red on his forehead and a terrible look on his face.

When he saw Xiao Wu arrive, his eyes lit up. Then he saw Luo Yan behind her, and his expression gained several more degrees of confidence.

"Big Sis Xiao Wu! Brother Luo Yan!"

He stood up, sounding aggrieved. "Xiao Chenyu's group said they'd wait for us behind the training ground at dusk. If we don't show up, we're turtles."

"Turtles?"

Luo Yan chuckled softly. "Pretty creative. They're giving us options in a fight."

"Brother Luo Yan, how can you still laugh?" Wang Sheng grew anxious.

"Don't worry."

Luo Yan swept his gaze over the angry, frightened little faces at Dorm Seven's entrance. "Your Big Sis Xiao Wu is already ready to accept the 'battle.' If she doesn't hang them from the streetlamps after beating them, that'll count as her being kind by nature."

He paused, revealing a meaningful smile.

"I have a feeling tonight's sunset will be beautiful."

Xiao Wu did not understand, but for some reason, Wang Sheng suddenly felt a chill run down his back.

Dusk came quickly.

The horizon burned orange-red, as though someone had dumped an entire basket of persimmons into the west.

The sixth-year students were already waiting in the open space behind Nuoding Academy's training ground.

The youth at the front stood half a head taller than Wang Sheng. He had his arms crossed, with five or six students behind him, each holding their chin high.

As Luo Yan followed Xiao Wu over, the setting sun shone from behind them, stretching their shadows long and straight.

Xiao Chenyu spotted Xiao Wu from afar and raised a brow. "You're that new little girl from Dorm Seven?"

Before Xiao Wu could speak, Luo Yan opened his mouth first. "She isn't some little girl. She's Dorm Seven's one and only officially certified boss, Xiao Wu."

Xiao Chenyu snorted and looked Luo Yan up and down. "And who the hell are you?"

"Me?"

Luo Yan pointed at himself, smiling with exceptional sincerity. "I'm just passing by. You guys fight, I'll eat sunflower seeds."

With that, he really pulled out a small handful of sunflower seeds from his pocket.

But no one noticed his fingertips lightly rubbing through the seeds.

Ignoring Luo Yan, Xiao Wu stared at Xiao Chenyu, her voice fierce and bright. "You bully work-study students and think you're something special? If I don't kick your legs limp today, then my name isn't Xiao Wu!"

Xiao Chenyu burst out laughing. "The little girl's pretty cocky, huh?"

"Didn't anyone tell you who I, Xiao Chenyu, am? In Notting City, even if I walked sideways, no one would dare stop me—let alone inside the academy."

"Walk sideways? What are you, a crab?"

Luo Yan cracked sunflower seeds as he sized Xiao Chenyu up and down, his gaze like he was picking fish at a market. "And even if you did walk sideways, nobody would stop you. They'd just think you were taking up too much space."

Xiao Chenyu's face darkened. "Say that again?"

"No."

Luo Yan waved a hand and sighed. "Talking costs me sunflower seeds. If you love hearing it so much, pay me back a handful first, then we can continue."

The nearby sixth-year students exchanged looks. Clearly, they had never seen a fight begin with someone being toyed with like a monkey.

Before Xiao Chenyu could flare up, a thin-faced boy at his side lost his patience first.

"Kid, you're only tough with your mouth right now. Don't cry later."

Luo Yan looked at him and blinked. "I won't cry. I'm used to watching other people cry."

Xiao Wu had already become impatient. She rolled up her sleeves. "Enough nonsense! Xiao Chenyu, come out and take your beating!"

Xiao Chenyu sneered and was about to step forward when Wang Sheng suddenly squeezed out from behind them.

"Big Sis Xiao Wu, you don't need a butcher's knife to kill a chicken!"

He puffed out his chest. The injury on his face had not even healed, yet he was unusually tough this time. "Let me go first. Liu Long—I'll fight him!"

Xiao Wu glanced at him. "Can you handle it?"

"I can!"

Wang Sheng stiffened his neck. "He shoved me today. I'm getting it back myself!"

Luo Yan stopped cracking sunflower seeds and turned to look at Wang Sheng, a flicker of surprise passing through his eyes.

"Interesting," he said softly.

Liu Long was the thin-faced boy.

Hearing that, he snorted. "Wang Sheng, did I not knock some sense into you earlier? With that trash Martial Soul of yours, you dare challenge me?"

Wang Sheng ignored him and walked to the middle of the open ground, clenching both fists.

His Martial Soul was the Battle Tiger. Although he did not have a Soul Ring, his strength was not bad among children his age.

"Enough talk. Come on!"

Liu Long did not hold back either, raising his staff as he charged forward.

The two quickly collided.

Relying on his build and momentum, Wang Sheng threw several powerful opening punches, even forcing Liu Long back two steps.

But Liu Long was clearly more experienced. His short staff did not clash with Wang Sheng head-on. Instead, it repeatedly struck at his wrists and knees from tricky angles.

After several exchanges, Wang Sheng was starting to fall behind.

"Wang Sheng." Xiao Wu called out with a frown.

"Don't call out."

Luo Yan leaned against the horizontal bar, his gaze becoming more focused. "He can still hold on. We just watch."

As soon as he finished speaking, Liu Long struck the bend of Wang Sheng's left knee with his staff. Wang Sheng's body tilted, and he dropped to one knee.

"Wang Sheng is still too impulsive. In a direct confrontation, he can't get close, and only by getting close does he have any chance of defeating his opponent."

Just as Xiao Wu's frown deepened, a low voice suddenly sounded beside her ear. Turning her head, delight flashed in her beautiful eyes. "Little San, you're back."

The one who had come to Xiao Wu's side was Tang San. After crossing the academy's back mountain, he had spotted the scene in the woods. Without saying anything, he quietly made his way to Xiao Wu's side. He was not tall, and Xiao Chenyu's side had not even noticed his arrival.

Tang San looked at Xiao Wu, wanting to say something, but he held it back.

Xiao Wu noticed his hesitant expression. "What? Want to say I was impulsive?"

"No. I mean, we could've waited until I got back before arranging the fight. You, me, and Luo Yan—three Soul Masters. Wouldn't our chances of winning have been better?"

"Ah, that's where you're wrong," Luo Yan said, somehow having appeared beside Tang San. He patted Tang San's shoulder.

"I count as about half of one."