10 It's All Unfair

Liu Dayuan was having a rough day.

First, some young, insignificant, weak boy tossed him across the room, wrecking his reputation throughout the entire capital of Danyan and breaking a few of his ribs, for a good measure. Then, after trailing after the young man with his group of men, determined that he would restore his reputation, the boy's teacher decided to take a visit.

Who knew that the kid actually had a teacher?

And if he was so frightening that Liu Dayuan would be tossed across the room with just a slap, how strong could his teacher possibly be?

Liu Dayuan's question was answered when he was promptly flung against the stone wall and knocked out. Before those few moments of darkness that arrived, he would faintly recall his mind being overwhelmed by thoughts of regret and anger at the unfairness of the world.

He was nearing his mid-thirties, training since he was a child and was already feared for his strong martial arts skills all over the city. By the look of the teacher in the cloak, he was definitely younger than Liu Dayuan himself, perhaps at most, in his late twenties. How could this youngster compare to Liu Dayuan? How could any of them defeat him so easily?

'What martial arts technique did you all learn to be so strong? Let me know your secret— I want to learn it too…'

Liu Dayuan, truthfully, it's not really your fault. The world is just unfair, and there's nothing about it that you can change it. Consider yourself lucky for not dying from this collision as well before hating on the world and it's unfairness…

…

While Liu Dayuan was knocked unconscious, the man in the cloak sighed. He didn't intend to get himself involved in all this mess— all he wanted to do was to test the skills of the so-called experts in Danyan. He even reminded himself to not get involved with the young man who he used as his decoy, yet it seemed like fate was forcing him to run upon this group and finish the matters he started. The alley the young man was cornered in contained the building of a shady inn he was staying in, close enough to Danyan's palace so that he could monitor the action of those royalty while still remaining in the shadows.

Why did those irritating men decide to get in his way and corner that ignorant boy here, out of all places?

Perhaps it really was fate.

So, the cloaked man decided to help the boy for his own sake as well, using the excuse as the boy's teacher to get rid of the group of men. He didn't expect the boy to come up and call him as 'teacher', but with an easy excuse like that, it was only beneficial to himself as well.

Now, while the group of men were kneeling on the floor like they should've been and the other bothersome Liu Dayuan was reduced to unconscious and barely hanging on by a breath, the cloaked man waved his hands thoughtlessly, giving a smile to the boy.

"Now then, dear disciple, what do you say? Do I need to show them what a true lesson is like?"

The boy stuttered in his speech, fear showing in his eyes. The hooded man didn't blame the younger one— of course, anyone who had witnessed him in action would act this way, especially if they've never trained in martial arts. His eyes drifted over the boy, observing him, curious how he would respond.

As he observed, the eyes of the cloaked man caught onto the thin rod that was slid through the boy's messy hairstyle, and his eyes focused, staring at it. The hair ornament— a common fashion for scholars in this kingdom— seemed normal enough, but at second glance, the cloaked man swore that it was not as average as it seemed to be. Before he could think about where he last saw the rod, the young man spoke up, interrupting his thoughts.

"I— I don't know. Just leave them?"

"Leave them be?" He raised an eyebrow. "These people picked on my precious disciple, though. How could they leave without a scratch on themselves?"

Seemingly gathering some more confidence, the boy blurted out, "Well, their leader… that man… he's nearly dead. Surely, that's enough of a lesson for them to follow that man blindly?"

"Fair enough." The cloaked man nodded. Turns out this young man had some wits after all, his logic sounding interesting enough. He snapped his fingers, and instantly, the group of men sagged, the strings that were previously holding them in place returning back to the man's fist. He gestured to the alley's entrance. "Since my disciple is compassionate enough to give you all a chance to live, what are you all still waiting for? Leave."

Hearing his command, the group of men scrambled up to their feet, eyes looking down. They were clearly not willing to spend another second in the company of this formidable and clearly strong opponent. Not a single one dared to touch the Liu Dayuan slumped in the corner.

With another smile, the cloaked man turned back to his 'disciple', waiting for the other to speak first. Surely this young man had thousands of questions to ask him.

Instead, the boy looked into his eyes for a brief moment, his posture stiff and uncomfortable. Not a single word escaped out of his cherry-pink lips, his large eyes narrowing at the cloaked man. The cloaked man looked back at the rod slid through the boy's hair, his thoughts picking up from where they were cut last time. But the boy, on the other hand, continued staring at the cloaked man, as if thinking of something important.

And, as quickly as Liu Dayuan's followers left the scene, the boy turned and dashed away.

The cloaked man sighed, watching as the boy left hurriedly. He then turned and headed in the direction of the inn entrance, stepping over the body of Liu Dayuan without a second glance to check if the man was dead or not.

Yet before stepping into the inn, he paused, a sharp whistle escaping from his lips. Almost immediately, a pure black-feathered bird— a crow— circled through the skies, diving down and landing on the outstretched arm of the man.

"Have you noticed that about him— or should I say— her?" the man whispered to the crow, a smile still remaining on his face. He bit his bottom lip, and the smile vanished. "That hair ornament is definitely made from the palace smiths. Go after her. Monitor where she returns to. I want to know her origins."

With an obedient caw, the crow flapped its wings and took off, heading in the direction the girl went off to.

'So, disguised as a man and wearing something from the palace? Let's see who you really are, shall we?'

The last thought flickered through his brain, and the cloaked man smiled again, stepping into the inn and out of sight.

…

If an outsider looked into the alley at the moment, they would see a man shrouded in black lingering in the darker depths of the alley, nearly invisible. They would notice a flutter of movement, hear a few quiet whispers, and spot the flash of movement again before the man wearing the black cloak stepped into a building in the alley.

If the outsider stepped into the alley, looking for the cloaked man, they would notice nothing but black feathers left behind.