"Uh..."
The boy from the other class clearly hadn't expected such a blunt rejection in front of everyone. His pride stung, his expression darkened as he retorted,
"I was just trying to be friendly. If you're not interested, fine, but why act like this?"
"Boring."
Kazusa Touma's expression remained unchanged as she continued walking forward.
But before she could take two steps, the boy blocked her path again, his words growing even more aggressive.
"Someone who sleeps through class like you is just trying to act edgy, right? Who are you trying to impress with this cold act now?"
Kazusa Touma pressed her lips together, her icy demeanour still intact, though a keen observer might have noticed a flicker of unease between her brows.
"Hey, you."
Just then, the boy felt someone tap his shoulder from behind.
Annoyed, he turned around—only to see Ye Xing's face, wearing a friendly smile.
"If she's not interested, just drop it. If you keep clinging like a cockroach, you'll only embarrass yourself further, won't you?"
The boy from the other class sensed a hint of sarcasm in those words and was about to fire back when his friend, who had been eyeing Ye Xing, suddenly paled. Leaning in, the friend whispered something into his ear.
"That's him?"
"Yeah, that's him."
After hearing his friend's words, the boy's expression twisted into something ugly. His gaze toward Ye Xing now carried a mix of wariness and fear. Gritting his teeth, he muttered,
"F-fine. I'll give you face this time. Let's go."
With that, he and his friend quickly turned and left.
"What was that about?"
Ye Xing noticed the shift in their expressions and wondered why they'd run off before he could even unleash his secret technique honed in the depths of online toxicity—the Dust Release: Mother-Disintegrating Jutsu.
What a shame.
He'd been looking forward to a good verbal thrashing.
Kazusa Touma narrowed her beautiful eyes slightly, giving Ye Xing a cold once-over. Without so much as a word of thanks, she turned and walked away.
Of course, Ye Xing didn't expect any gratitude from the other party.
"Um..."
Miko Yotsuya had held back all morning and finally caught up with Ye Xing during lunch break, cautiously approaching him to speak.
"Can we talk alone? About... those things?"
Ye Xing nodded indifferently.
"Sure."
"Then let's go to the rooftop."
"Rooftop?"
Seeing Ye Xing's carefree smile vanish instantly at the mention of the rooftop—his usually calm expression, even when facing evil spirits, now furrowed into a frown—Miko was startled and instinctively asked, "Is there danger on the rooftop?"
Ye Xing waved his hand dismissively.
"No, I just remembered an old friend who passed away years ago."
Hearing this, Miko froze for a moment before apologising. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to bring up painful memories."
"It's fine."
Ye Xing stretched lazily, yawning as he grumbled, "That guy deserved it. Too cowardly to openly have a harem but still two-timing behind the scenes. Served him right."
Miko was speechless.
She had come to realise something.
No matter the situation, she could never predict Ye Xing's next words using normal logic.
He was truly unfathomable.
On their way to the rooftop, Ye Xing overheard students in the hallway discussing the same topic.
"Did you hear?"
"Hear what?"
"Before class this morning, a male student tried to threaten a female student. Luckily, a teacher arrived in time, or things could've gotten ugly."
"Seriously? No way. I didn't see any police cars."
"Yeah, that's the weirdest part. The guy did something like that and got off scot-free. Wonder what connections he has."
Listening to the chatter, Ye Xing shook his head and sighed solemnly to Miko beside him. "What a decline in morals these days. Broad daylight, and someone would do such a thing. Sobu High has really fallen..."
Before he could finish, the students continued their gossip.
"Apparently, the guy was carrying weapons—a knife, nails, and some yellow talisman-like papers."
"Not just that. The version I heard said he had a gun too."
"Whatever the case, better steer clear. He's a first-year from Class A, black hair and eyes, around 180 cm tall, and pretty good-looking."
"The more attractive the creep, the more dangerous. Let's avoid Class A from now on."
"What a dangerous guy."
Silence.
After a long pause, Miko glanced at the silent Ye Xing and whispered apologetically, "Um... Ye Xing, sorry, people got the wrong idea about you."
Ye Xing remained silent, simply walking straight to the rooftop door.
Seeing him like this, Miko's heart leapt into her throat.
Sure, Ye Xing didn't seem like a bad person, but who could say for sure?
At the very least, someone who could devour evil spirits definitely wasn't normal.
Could it be that after bringing her to the rooftop, he was planning to silence her by killing her?
Just as Miko Yotsuya's thoughts were spiralling wildly, Ye Xing suddenly muttered to himself.
"That makes sense. I should get a gun."
"As the saying goes, beyond seven paces, the gun is fast; within seven paces, the gun is fast and accurate."
"To deal with evil spirits, we should try the American Iaido."
"Decision made—I'll find a chance to get a gun."
Miko Yotsuya sighed helplessly.
'You really want to get a gun?'
'Good grief, the other students labelling you as a dangerous person isn't the least bit unfair.'
"Ask whatever you want to ask now."
Once they reached the deserted rooftop, Ye Xing closed the door behind them and spoke those words.
"Um..."
With a thousand questions on the tip of her tongue, Miko suddenly found herself at a loss for where to begin.
After thinking for a long while, she finally lowered her voice and asked, "Since when... have you been able to see those things?"
Ye Xing shrugged nonchalantly. "About half a month ago."
Miko was stunned to hear this.
Only half a month, and he'd already completely rid himself of fear toward evil spirits and spectres?
Back when she first awakened these Mystic Eyes, she hadn't dared to go out at night for nearly a month.
Was she just too timid...
Or was Ye Xing simply not normal?
Miko steadied herself and then asked curiously, "Then... how many of those things have you eliminated so far?"
Ye Xing grinned and uttered a sentence that sent chills down Miko's spine.
"Do you remember how many slices of bread you've eaten?"