"What is..." Yunmei trailed off, her eyes daring across the plaza. "What's this shaking?"
Hang shrugged as he kneeled down on the floor to place a his hand on it. "A disaster."
"What if it's a fluke? It could just be the general making a mistake..." her voice faltering as she spots Cloud Knights springing into action. "I have to check in on something."
Hang looked up. "Okay. Nice meeting you."
"Who said this was the last time we're meeting?" She grinned. Reaching into her robes, she pulled out a device. "Here. A phone."
"Phone... oh. Those inventories accessors and communicators."
"That's yours," Hang said bluntly. "Who needs two accessors?"
"One works fine," he thought.
"Inventories..? Whatever... and no, it's not mine," Yunmei said, shaking her head. "It's a new one. I set it up earlier today."
Hang tilted his head.
Yunmei sighed.
"It was for my sister. I had just gotten her it, but it wouldn't hurt her if she didn't know where it went~" She teased. "Plus, she doesn't even know I got her one."
"If it's set up—"
"Just change the settings to your name. My number should already be in it."
Yunmei dropped the phone into his hand, before turning heel, heading off into the distance. "Don't break it now!"
Hang stood there, watching her run off. "Is she rich?"
Who gives phones away for free? Unless phones had no value in this world, Hang could have sworn people weren't this generous.
Letting a quick breath out, Hang turned the phone on. The screen turning blue.
"Initializing inventory... Please wait!"
Hang almost forgot this inventory existed.
Inventories were a key feature to you when you are an adventurer. After you get your license, you would get a chip insert into your hand.
This chip would be your personal ID for your inventory, able to be accessed using any smart electronic device.
Hang never used this himself. He never saw the use for having it, and he never carried any smart device on him anyway.
His inventory only got to see the light of day when Lian decided that she wanted to stuff random things her inventory couldn't hold into his when they met ever so often.
"Initialization complete! Welcome back, Diào Rén!"
A list appeared on his screen. His inventory was filled to the brim with random items. Some statues made of gold, masks made from tree bark, and many other items.
If he so wanted, with the press of a button, the item would appear beside him. A unique technology that Hang had yet to uncover the truth behind.
The ground shook again, forcing Hang to look away from the device. The plaza was practically deserted now, not a soul in sight.
Movement caught the corner of Hang's eye.
His head snapped, the edge of a coat moved ever so slightly into an alley, just a few meters away.
His brown eye brightened. Echoes formed, revealing a mysterious woman in a suit and coat who had moved quickly from the stairs to the alley.
"Suspicious," Hang thought, but made no move to follow. "There's no reason to follow."
Hang watches as the echo moved away into the alleyway, his brown eye dimming.
As he turned away, a duo of Cloud Knights ran down from the same steps the mysterious woman came from, entering the same alley.
"..."
Hang decided to follow.
As Hang ran through the alleyway, he placed the phone into his pocket.
Bursting out from the alleyway, Hang ended up inside a courtyard. Around the courtyard were trees, leaves falling from the branches onto the cobblestone.
The same pair of Cloud Knights stood in the middle of the courtyard, unresponsive.
A quick glance from Hang told him nothing, but taking a closer look he noticed something interesting.
The Cloud Knights searching for the child didn't have glowing purple thread attached to them.
Hang moved closer to the pair to get a closer look at the threads.
Suddenly, purple threads erupted from the rooftop of the buildings around the courtyard.
Hang jumped backwards immediately.
His brown eye dimmed, and his blue eye started to glow.
An area of 5 meters around him suddenly slowed down. The threads moving at astonishing speeds slowed down to a snails crawl.
Hang moved away from the threads, his blue eye dimming.
Just as they dim, the threads return to their original speed, slamming into the area he was at moments ago.
"Hm. Where do you think you're going?"
A voice echoed from the rooftop. Hang glanced up, his eyes meeting magenta eyes.
The same lady from before, in a suit and coat, her red-wine colored hair tied into a ponytail.
To the question, Hang pointed pointed over towards the idle Cloud Knights. "That's you?"
The lady pulled back slightly. "And... if it was?"
Most people flinched under her gaze. This one only blinked.
Hang shrugged. "Was that explosion you?"
The lady gave a small grin. "It was part of the script but it wasn't us necessarily."
"Where's your team?"
"Now," The lady purred. "Why would I tell you that?"
"Then the shaking."
"Are you really sure you're allowed to be making demands right now?"
Hang's eyes narrowed, ever so slightly. "Questions."
"I didn't hear any question in your ask."
A quick tug from the lady's fingers, and the Cloud Knights below suddenly sprung into action.
They rushed towards Hang, their glaives outstretched. One swung downward, the other swung from the side.
Hang snatched a rope from his clothing, rolling off to the side to avoid the initial attacks.
Unfurling the rope, he snapped it at the knights.
With a tug from the thread, one Cloud Knight braced for the strike, the other pushing forward.
His blue eye glowed, the rope suddenly slowing it's speed.
Hang yanked the rope away from hitting the knight who braced for impact, aiming it at the rushing knight.
His blue eye dimmed, the rope moving at its original speed, whipping the Cloud Knight straight in the neck.
He moved a slight amount, dodging the strike from the other Cloud Knight narrowly as his elbow struck the solar plexus of the knight.
As the soldier fell to his knees, a quick downward strike from Hang's rope knocked him unconscious.
Looking back up to where the lady was, Hang could see a small hint of interest within her gaze. "Slowing down speed... or perhaps time?"
"Name," Hang asked bluntly, putting the rope back onto his shoulder.
"Stellaron Hunter," the lady said slowly. "Kafka."