Before Zheng Qing woke up, the atmosphere inside the Sakura Tavern was harmonious and peaceful.
Slender vines hung from the ceiling, covered in swarms of Firefly Beetles. Their swollen bellies cast dappled light below. Glowing fruits dotted the leaves and stems, each bearing a thumb-sized cricket fairy clutching a tiny lute or harp, playing elegant, shy melodies.
Some scholars gathered with three or five friends, quoting widely and speaking grandly. Some outsiders sat alone in corners, pouring themselves drinks and making pairs with their own shadows. Plenty of idle guests clustered around tables, holding juice or light drinks as they watched sugar figurines wrestle and fight on plates. Every so often, they cheered and tossed in a few silver horns or gold beans, gambling for harmless little prizes.
Then.
The fight broke out abruptly and fiercely.
As cries of alarm rang out, the other members of the You Zui Hunting Team snapped back to their senses.
Though they had no idea what madness had seized their captain, the tacit understanding forged over countless hunts made them draw their spellbooks and weapons without a second thought.
Lan Que had been drinking nothing but water, so he reacted the fastest. Before Zheng Qing's Binding Spell had even flown from the Copper Plate Book, he had silently appeared behind the gray-robed school worker. His cloth-wrapped longsword rested rather impolitely on the man's shoulder—by a Starry Sky Academy student's instincts, he had chosen the most threatening person at that table.
"Don't move." The swordsman was forever sparing with words.
Feeling the faint but unmistakable sharpness against his neck, the gray robed school worker obediently raised both hands and cried, "Is there some misunderstanding? We're all from the same school... Let's talk this out!"
Dylan followed close behind.
A vampire's natural agility gave him speed