In an alley

As I was heading home, I couldn't help letting out a long sigh.

It really was a long day after everything that happened.

In the end, the instructor didn't get a chance to explain as Wang Teng's father demanded that he be arrested and punished for what happened to his son.

At the same time, Wang Teng's father demanded that all of the monsters that harmed his son be hunted down for what they did.

There was a part of me that felt sorry for the Gale Wolves that had helped me take care of this, but I didn't do anything to help them. It was the same reason why I didn't defeat the boss of this dungeon.

It would have drawn too much attention to me.

Since I had remained lowkey, Wang Teng's father ignored me after finding out that I had a 9th Class Low Grade Familiar. He didn't think that I was capable of harming his son with the tools at my disposal and he wasn't interested in dealing with me.

Though I did know that he would want to deal with me when the time came.

But when that time came, I would certainly be strong enough to take care of that.

After all, I knew what kind of power my familiars had and the best way to become stronger. I could see hope for my future after seeing the Echo Bat in action, I just needed time to develop.

Even though I was tired, there were many different plans that were running through my mind as I thought about what to do after graduation.

But before I reached my house, I was suddenly stopped by someone.

This person caught me off guard since I didn't expect to see them waiting for me like this, but as soon as they saw me…

"You're finally here! I've been waiting for you!"

After saying this, she immediately ran over and grabbed my arm, holding onto it as if we were some kind of couple.

Since we were in the middle of the street, there were a few people that looked over when she did this. 

However, they only looked over to show that they were envious of this.

They were like single dogs that had just been fed dog food with the way that they looked over and they didn't seem like they wanted to keep eating this dog food.

So they all quickly left the area instead of watching any further.

I was relieved that everyone left instead of making a commotion, but this wasn't the place to stay. 

While she was holding me, I walked over to an alley and then pulled my arm away.

Xia Xue looked disappointed when she saw me pull my arm away and wanted to grab me again, but I just stepped forward and raised an arm to pin her against the wall of the alley.

Xia Xue looked surprised at first before saying with a teasing voice, "Did you bring me to a secluded place just to do that? I never thought that you were that kind of person."

Then reaching a hand up, she touched the part of her shirt that was on her shoulder and brought it down a bit to show her skin, as if she was trying to entice someone.

With the same teasing smile on her face, she said, "If you want to do it here, then…"

"Enough of that." I didn't let her finish her teasing as I directly cut her off. Then after a pause, I continued by saying, "I already told you not to contact me after what happened today."

At this, Xia Xue pouted her lips and said, "I missed you. Also, I saw the way that you were with that Long Tang Tang, so I couldn't help feeling jealous."

There was a trace of bitterness that filled me when I heard this, but I didn't say anything in response.

That was because I was the one that had caused her to act this way in the first place.

After taking care of Wang Teng and his lackeys, I had the Echo Bat put a special kind of hypnosis into Xia Xue. This was a kind of hypnosis that wouldn't break once she was away from the Echo Bat, this was a permanent kind of hypnosis.

What I did was make her think that she was in love with me.

That was why she had helped me earlier when we came out of the dungeon.

But now…

There was a problem if she was seen with me.

If people were to notice the relationship between us, there was no doubt that someone might get suspicious.

If it attracted the attention of Wang Teng's father…

So I still had to be firm with her.

"I told you before, do not contact me. I will contact you if I need something."

Xia Xue once again pouted her lips, but she didn't argue this time.

With a sigh, I said in a stern voice, "You did good, but make sure that you don't slip up in the future."

Xia Xue slowly gave a nod before asking, "What about my reward? Won't you give me one since I did good?"

There was an awkward look on my face when I heard this.

But eventually I said, "You'll get one when you deserve it. You're one of the ones that put me in danger in the first place, so it isn't as if I've forgotten that."

Xia Xue lowered her head when she heard this before softly saying, "I've already apologized and made up for that."

"You'll have to do a lot more in the future for me." I said in a firm voice.

Xia Xue slowly nodded in agreement, but then she looked back up and said, "Then next time, will you give me a reward?"

I looked at her in silence for a bit before giving a nod.

It still wasn't the time to throw her away yet.

Xia Xue had her uses, so it was better to use her for now.

But the most important thing was…

She had information that would be dangerous to me, so I had to keep her at my side until I got rid of her.

Until then, I couldn't let her go.