Night had once again fallen over Meizou.
The streets glowed beneath rows of hanging lanterns, their warm light reflecting across the stone roads as countless people enjoyed the peaceful evening.
Laughter echoed from restaurants.
Musicians played gentle melodies in the distance.
It was just another ordinary night.
A beautifully decorated carriage rolled leisurely through the streets.
This caravan was different from the ones used by merchants, it was made for people to be comfortable in, not just for carrying goods.
Inside sat a young couple.
A girl leaned her head gently against the window, looking out at the city with its lanterns shining brightly, and a warm smile spread across her face as she watched the world go by.
Her name was Yana.
The young man sitting across from her was really handsome and he was wearing fancy robes, his name was Xan.
He poured himself another cup of tea, then handed one to her.
Yana accepted it with both hands.
“Thank you.”
She gazed over at him, a smile spreading across her face that she just couldn’t seem to hide.
“Tonight has been absolutely perfect, the most romantic night of my life.”
Xan chuckled.
“I’m glad.”
He leaned back comfortably.
“It was all for you.”
Yana’s cheeks flushed slightly.
“You didn’t have to go this far.”
“I wanted to.”
The carriage continued rolling peacefully through the quiet streets.
Xan smiled quietly as he looked at Yana.
For a moment, he said nothing, his thoughts drifted back to the life he had once lived.
A life stained with blood, a life filled with robbery, murder, and betrayal.
He was just a guy who had been in trouble with the law, moving from one place to another, thinking that someone like him could never turn his life around.
That was until he met Yana.
She never pried into his past and didn’t judge him for whatever had happened.
She did something unexpected, giving him another chance, something he never thought he was worthy of.
He gently took her hand, giving her a warm smile.
“I’ll do whatever it takes to keep us happy.
I really want to start a family with you, no matter what happens.”
Yana laughed softly.
“I’d like that too.”
Xan turned fully toward her.
“…Yana?”
His smile froze.
“…”
His pupils shrank.
She was still sitting in front of him, but her head was missing.
“…Huh?”
Suddenly, a hand exploded out of his chest from behind, the shock of it happening so fast he didn’t even have time to let out a scream.
Thud.
Blood splattered all over his robes, and his body started shaking really hard.
A soft voice filled the carriage, belonging to a young person, probably not more than twenty-two years old.
“You really thought you could run away?”
Xan slowly looked up, sitting across from him where Yana had been only moments ago was a young man dressed entirely in red and black.
He leaned his head against his hand, just watching quietly.
Xan’s eyes widened in absolute horror.
“Z-Zyrikyss…”
The young man let out a deep sigh, stood up from his seat, and got out of the carriage.
Once he was on the street, he said something without even bothering to turn around.
“Don’t use my real name, dumbass.”
He snapped his fingers.
The hand still lodged inside Xan’s chest suddenly swelled with violent energy.
BOOM!!
The whole carriage just blew up in a huge fireball, sending wooden splinters and debris flying everywhere.
The streets were suddenly filled with people running and screaming, total chaos.
Zyrikyss looked back over his shoulder at the burning mess that was left of the carriage, the flames still raging out of control.
“Damn, I didn’t mean to use one of her explosive hands.” He said as he shrugged.
“Whatever, like she’d do anything about it anyway.”
Two days later, the streets were busier than ever, with people from neighbouring towns and cities pouring into the bustling city.
Everywhere Sun Yunso looked, conversations revolved around only one thing.
The upcoming wedding.
After asking around the city over the past two days, he had finally arrived at his destination.
The Guo Residence.
A long line had already formed in front of the estate.
Men and women of all ages waited patiently, many carrying swords, spears, or bows, some looked like seasoned mercenaries and others appeared to be wandering cultivators searching for work.
Sun Yunso slipped quietly into place at the back of the line.
His colourless eyes swept across the crowd.
‘There are a lot of them.’
He hadn’t expected so many applicants.
Well that’s reasonable, after all, they were merely recruiting temporary guards for a wedding.
His eyes turned back to the Guo Residence again.
“They must be expecting something.”
It just didn’t make sense, he thought to himself, why bring in so many people if it wasn’t absolutely necessary.
As he stood there, the line inched forward, and his mind kept wandering back to this one nagging question, refusing to let go.
Whatever was about to happen at this wedding was important enough for the Guo Family to prepare for the worst.
Sun Yunso rested a hand lightly on sword.
“All I have to do is get inside.”
After waiting for almost an hour, Sun Yunso was finally next in line.
Sun Yunso trailed behind the group as they made their way through the estate, finally arriving at a massive open area used for training.
Weapon racks lined the edges of the arena.
Training dummies stood neatly arranged in rows and several Guo Family guards watched from the sidelines with folded arms.
At the very centre of the training ground stood a single man.
He appeared to be in his early forties.
He had a strong presence, with broad shoulders and a straight back that commanded attention.
As he stood still, his eyes scanned the room, taking in every detail of the people standing before him.
“…”
After a long silence, he finally spoke.
Hi, I’m Yo Chomai, and I work as the Captain of Security for the Guo Family.
His calm voice echoed throughout the training ground.
If you’re interested in working as a guard at the wedding that’s coming up, there’s just one thing you need to do: pass a test.
A faint murmur spread through the crowd.
One applicant frowned.
“Only one?”
Yo Chomai slowly raised his right hand.
“Correct.”
His expression never changed.
“All you have to do is withstand me.”
The applicants looked at one another in confusion.
“That’s it?”
“Seriously?”
“That doesn’t sound difficult.”
One young man laughed confidently before stepping forward.
“I’ll go first.”
He didn’t hesitate, reaching out to take Yo Chomai’s hand in a firm grasp.
At first, nothing seemed to happen, and the crowd just stood there, looking at each other in confusion.
“Is this some kind of joke?”
Then the young man’s confident smile disappeared.
His pupils violently contracted, his breathing became erratic.
“N-No…”
His entire body began trembling uncontrollably.
An overwhelming pressure crashed into his mind like an avalanche.
It felt as though an enormous beast had opened its eyes directly before him.
His legs gave way and he crumpled to the ground, wrapping his arms tightly around himself, as if trying to hold himself together and prevent himself from completely falling apart.
Sweat poured down his face and his breathing became frantic.
He couldn’t even bring himself to look at Yo Chomai anymore.
Several applicants instinctively took a step backwards.
“W-What just happened?”
Yo Chomai slowly withdrew his hand.
“Next.”