Deep within Raiden Mei's consciousness, the will of Honkai was gathering. Countless purple lightning bolts flickered, and a purple-haired girl, with horns on her head, bit her right thumb tightly, as if unwilling, or perhaps simply biting her finger.
"Fine, fine. It's not like there won't be another chance. I'll just come back next time."
The voice gradually faded, and the purple lightning vanished. Her inner world then darkened, as if nothing had happened.
Outside, Lu Ze told Raiden Mei to stay put and wait for his return, while he accompanied the others.
"You must be careful. If things get too much, you can run. There's no need to get hurt for me."
Listening to Mei's囑托 (zhǔtuō - entrust, implore), Lu Ze simply nodded and left with them.
They soon reached the school gate. The security guards dared not stop them; after all, those in this school were influential, and a single misstep could cost them their jobs. They certainly didn't want to lose their livelihood.
Being a security guard at a prestigious school, one earned at least ten thousand a month, a life of leisure.
Several girls led Lu Ze to a nearby alley. Before long, several vans screeched to a halt, blocking the road ahead and behind. A multitude of burly men alighted from the vans.
Each of them wielded baseball bats, extendable batons, and even small knives. They all wore menacing expressions, clearly not to be trifled with.
"Miss, we heard someone is causing trouble for you. Which bastard is so bold? How dare they provoke our young lady? We'll beat him to death!"
The leading large man declared, and the others echoed his sentiments, eager to impress the young lady. After all, who wouldn't want to earn some money?
"Good, good. I haven't raised you all for nothing. You're all so obedient. See that kid behind me? He's the one who bullied this young lady. Beat him to a pulp. As long as he's alright, everything else can be discussed. Even if he dies, we can just pay some money."
Hearing the girl's words, all the men turned their gaze to the boy behind her. The leader, in particular, was shocked at first glance, even rubbing his eyes in disbelief. But no matter how he rubbed,
That person was still that person, the one who struck fear into Changkong City.
"Miss, I'm afraid we can't handle this! This guy is not to be messed with! We... can we just forfeit this payment?"
All the burly men retreated, consciously dropping their weapons and crouching with their hands on their heads. Their previous ferocity had vanished, and they now resembled lambs awaiting slaughter.
"What are you doing? He's just a kid who hasn't even grown up. Why are you all so scared? Get up! Otherwise, none of you will have an easy time."
Lu Ze behind them chuckled. It was a calm smile, yet it made the surrounding men tremble, as if recalling unpleasant memories.
"Stop shouting. You won't be able to move them. Xu Hu... it's been so long, and you're still a low-level thug? When was the first time I saw you? Was it last year or the year before?"
Lu Ze's words prompted the leader, kneeling on the ground, to touch his head and smile. However, it was a rather unsightly smile.
"Master Lu, you truly have a good memory for trivial matters! If I recall correctly, it was October 25th of the year before last, the day you caught me."
This made Lu Ze a little bewildered. This guy remembered it so clearly; just how afraid was he?
"Let's not talk about that for now. You decide what to do. If I'm not satisfied, none of you will be leaving here. Just like that year, I beat you till you peed your pants."
The more he said this, the more the men kneeling on the ground trembled. After all, these memories were likely the worst of their lives.
"I understand, I understand. Brothers, grab these few ladies. How dare they provoke Master Lu? Ten slaps for each of them."
The burly men exchanged glances. Those who didn't want to die scrambled to their feet, disregarding everything, and grabbed the disbelieving ladies, delivering slaps.
Lu Ze sat on a nearby brick to watch the show. The sound of slaps echoed loudly in the alley. One slap, two slaps...
After all the burly men had delivered their blows, the faces of the women were already swollen beyond recognition, looking like pig heads, even fatter than pigs.
"Master Lu, do you think this is acceptable?"
Lu Ze clapped his hands, leaped down from the brick, and walked directly towards the young women, chuckling. He pulled out a large bottle of water from nowhere and poured it all over them.
"How you bullied Mei, I will bully you. If I ever catch you bothering Mei again, don't blame me for being ruthless. You and your entire family will pay for it."
He delivered a forceful kick to the abdomen of one of the girls. Although he didn't exert much force, the physique of an A-rank Valkyrie was enhanced severalfold.
The girl who was kicked slid all the way and slammed into the wall. The man named Xu Hu swallowed, realizing that this kid's strength had grown again after so long.
"This time I won't be filming videos. After all, they are just young ladies, it wouldn't be right. But next time, I won't be so lenient. As for you..."
Mentioning the burly men, they all started to feel nervous. They immediately crouched down, clearly still suffering from the aftereffects of the beating.
"Don't be so afraid of me. I'm not a man-eating tiger. Disperse now. Go back to your homes and find your mothers. If I see you again, you'll lose at least a layer of skin."
With that, Lu Ze walked out of the alley and safely returned to the school. He quickly went back to where they had been, seeing Mei still crouching in the corner, waiting quietly.
"Mei, I'm back. Let's go, it's almost time for class."
Mei, who had been called, suddenly stood up from the corner and quickly checked Lu Ze from head to toe. Seeing no injuries, she slowly breathed a sigh of relief.
"I'm fine. We should go back, or we'll be late for class."
Mei didn't know what else to say, so she nodded and walked back to the classroom shoulder-to-shoulder with Lu Ze.
Kiana, seeing the two of them return, pouted slightly and said with a hint of unhappiness:
"Did you two go out somewhere without me? You disappeared in the blink of an eye, and didn't even take me along. Really. Do you still consider me a friend? If you don't take me next time, I'll be truly angry."
Seeing Kiana slightly displeased, Lu Ze smiled gently and patted her head, saying:
"Alright, alright. I'll definitely take you next time."
He was completely unlike the fiend he was just a few minutes ago.