“You want to skip class?”
Li An looked up, a bit surprised.
She didn’t know why he was saying this.
‘This guy always acts on impulse.’
Ailundun’s erratic thinking annoyed her.
Because she could never predict his next move.
As she thought this, a hint of mockery curled at her lips.
“What? Not afraid of my family splitting us up now?”
“No. I’m not part of the Sage Institute anyway, so skipping doesn’t matter. And since you didn’t bring your books, how about we leave together?”
Ailundun’s lips curved into a smile.
“Leave together?”
Li An was silent for a moment. Her heartbeat slowed.
She had to admit—
At least right now,
she kind of appreciated Ailundun’s erratic thinking.
Because… she didn’t really want to attend class either.
Especially with Ailundun sitting right next to her.
“Hmph. Fine.”
Li An curved her lips, flipped her jet-black hair, and snorted.
They stood up in unison and headed for the back door.
Several surprised gazes immediately fell on them from all around, but no one said anything.
They walked through the classroom and stepped outside.
Beyond the Sage Institute building, the view opened up wide.
Basking in the warm morning sun and crisp air,
“Whew.”
Ailundun let out a long breath.
“Where are you going?”
Ailundun thought for a moment, then looked at Li An.
“I don’t have to tell you.”
Li An raised her chin, finally getting a small victory over Ailundun.
She felt pleased.
“Alright.”
Ailundun nodded.
Just as he turned to leave,
a voice from behind caught his attention.
“Li An, what are you doing here?”
He turned around.
Standing beside Li An was a straight-backed middle-aged man with a hawk nose.
Seeing Li An there, the man’s expression darkened.
Li An’s face also turned cold, but she bit her silver teeth, unsure what to say.
“Heh, you always like to control me…”
“Control you? Are you saying the Lei-yadon Family hasn’t given you what you wanted? Isn’t everything you have now from Lei-yadon?”
The middle-aged man’s expression was flat, as calm as if stating an obvious fact, but his aura was imposing.
“…”
Li An’s face sank.
Facing this man, she suddenly didn’t know how to answer.
Her expression flustered, she simply lowered her head.
“After you join the team, you know what to do. Advance your rank as quickly as possible—that’s what you should be doing. Don’t think about defying us.”
There was a hint of contempt in his eyes.
He didn’t believe Li An could resist him.
“I know.”
Li An clenched her fists but couldn’t force out any words.
Though anger filled her heart, she couldn’t think of any defiant reply.
“You’re Li An’s family? I still think family should just talk things out. No need to make such a big deal.”
Ailundun stepped forward with a smile.
“…I thought you’d left?”
Li An looked at Ailundun, stunned for a moment.
She hadn’t expected him to come back, let alone stand right beside her.
Ailundun winked at her, looking innocent.
“I heard you arguing, so I came back to mediate. You know, I never like conflict—I only like resolving it.”
He paused, then smiled at Li An.
“Like you and Luofulei—you got along well, didn’t you?”
Got along well?
Li An was slightly taken aback.
Then,
something occurred to her.
She lowered her head in front of Ailundun, twisting the hem of her uniform like a lost little girl.
It was the first time she had shown such embarrassment in front of him.
An expression he had never seen in their previous encounters.
“Luofulei?”
Hearing that familiar name, the middle-aged man shuddered involuntarily.
“Li An, are you still in contact with Luofulei?”
“Uh… Sir, are you getting too worked up? I believe the Lei-yadon family values harmony and love among members. That’s how my own family taught me.”
Ailundun took a deep breath and looked at him with some confusion.
“Don’t you have a family?”
“…”
Yasi-Lei Yadun’s face turned even darker than before.
He stared directly at this clueless brat.
The other’s expression remained unchanged, unreadable.
Even Li An couldn’t help but glance at Ailundun, only to see him winking back at her with pure eyes.
For a moment, she couldn’t tell if Ailundun was being intentional or accidental.
“You’re that Ailundun—Ke Lan De? Luofulei’s teammate during the examination?”
Yasi’s voice was as icy as a winter wind, a warning in his eyes.
“I wasn’t going to bother with that person’s affairs, but since you insist on bringing it up, you’d better give me a reasonable explanation.”
“I might also be Miss Li An’s future teammate for the Secret Realm examination. I hope you don’t forget that.”
Ailundun snorted.
“Hm?”
Yasi looked at Li An, only to find she made no attempt to argue.
She just kept her head down.
She neither refuted nor tried to explain.
From time to time, she glanced at Ailundun, worry in her eyes.
“…Li An?! Are you going to follow Luofulei’s example?”
His eyes blazed with unprecedented fury.
He whirled around and glared at Ailundun.
He had thought Li An was the most obedient in the family.
But ever since she came to this academy, everything had changed.
Recently, she even dared to openly defy him.
He had assumed it was Luofulei’s influence.
Now it seemed it was mostly this brat’s doing.
“Fine. You’ve successfully angered me. You’ll never join a good team again. No team in the Empire of Wen Er Dun Academy will take you in. I swear it on the honor of the Lei-yadon Family.”
Yasi sneered, looking down at Ailundun as if waiting for something.
He couldn’t wait to see Ailundun break down in tears.
He knew what students at this academy cared about most.
Nothing more than a good team and the right to challenge Secret Realms.
And good teams always included experienced upperclassmen.
That was the lifeline for lowerclassmen trying to challenge Secret Realms.
With this statement, he had essentially stripped Ailundun of his right to challenge Secret Realms for the next four years.
Any ordinary student would be terrified upon hearing that.
“And Miss Li An’s?”
Ailundun couldn’t help but laugh.
“Hm? Stripped as well, of course.”
Yasi frowned, sneering, unsure why he asked.
He wanted to intimidate Li An.
To make her understand that without Lei-yadon, she was nothing.
Then she would come crawling back to him.
After all… not everyone was Luofulei.
“Alright. You’d better keep your word.”
Ailundun suppressed the grin threatening to spread across his face, trying not to look too happy.
And Li An couldn’t help but look up at Ailundun.
A wave of absurdity surged in her heart.