Upon identifying the clothing shop, Guang let out a joyful cheer. Although unlike the timeless restaurant, time had clearly taken its toll on the shop. The walls had faded in colour, the broken signboard was hanging off by a thread and the display glass was murky to the point that it was opaque. Seeing the shop's sorry state, Guang's joy deflated. Was the shop even open?
However, Guang had no time to think about that. Considering his limited options, he had to grab hold of whatever opportunity he had. There was no legible sign that said the shop was closed, so Guang assumed that meant that he was free to enter. Determined, Guang pushed open the creaky door and stepped foot into the clothing shop.
The crisp tinkle of bells, an echo of the past, welcomed his presence to the dilapidated shop. Next came the nasty smell of mold. Guang yelped, quickly squeezing his nose shut. The smell was so pungent that it penetrated his nose like an awful sword jab. The air felt heavy, weighing upon his body like a thick blanket. Obviously, the shop hadn't been ventilated for a long time. Guang understood now why Bo stressed the importance of opening his window every day. He wouldn't want his room to smell and feel this terrible.
When the door closed behind Guang, the loud cacophony of the outside world suddenly became muted background noise. All sound became insignificant in this realm where the boundless, solemn silence was omnipresent. Guang shuddered at the eerie sensation exuded by the shop. It felt as if he had been transported into a different dimension.
Gulping, Guang carefully waded into the shop.
His breathing and his footsteps sounded like firecrackers in his ears. Across his eyes, dust danced merrily like fairies, spotlighted by the little sunlight filtered through the murky display glass.
Memories surfaced from the depths of his mind as he observed the shop. The racks of clothes, the shelves stacked with clothes and the model figurines - they were oh-so familiar. He could almost hear the distant voice of Sui helping him to pick his clothes, the prickly coldness of Sui's skin against his and the warmth that blossomed in his chest when Sui was by his side.
Alas, all of that was nothing but remnants of the past. Now, only the shabby shop remained, a place abandoned by time.
Guang eyed the model figurines. Faceless, with their crumbling skin, eternally posing with the clothes that were donned upon them many years ago. For some reason, Guang felt as if they could spring into action at any moment.
When they continued to remain stubbornly frozen, Guang tore his eyes away from them. For now, he should be safe. He ran a finger along a clothes rack to find a fine layer of dust coating them. It really does seem that the shop had been deserted for months, if not years. Damn it, was he too late? He was hoping that he could at least meet the shopkeeper from fifteen years ago or their successor to ask them about Sui, but there didn't seem to be a single living soul in the shop. Was this another dead end for him?
Then, from the corner of his eyes, he saw a shadow move.
It was just a brief second, but something had flitted deeper into the shop in the direction of the changing rooms. Just his luck, that something had retreated into the place untouched by sunlight. No matter how hard Guang squinted, he could barely make anything out. With no choice, Guang raised his hand, a fireball flickering to life between his fingers when something grabbed his arm.
It felt like a human's hand.
Instinctively, Guang knocked the air out of the person and quickly pinned them against the wall. All of this was done in one fluid motion, so fast that the assailant had no time to react.
Threateningly, Guang demanded, "Who are you? Why did you try to attack me?"
Frightened, angry eyes met his. It was a middle-aged lady with long locks of grey hair. Despite her age, she was still gritting her teeth, kicking her legs and clawing at his arm against her throat.
Suddenly, the lady paused. In fact, she stopped struggling, as if she had gone slack. Guang thought she had passed out, but then, the lady spoke, and her next words took Guang aback.
Voice trembling, she said, "Master Guang?"
Something was wriggling in the corners of his brain. This lady recognised him, and truth be told, she appeared somewhat familiar as well. Wait, could she be...
"Shopkeeper?"
The lady nodded rigorously. Instantly, Guang brightened up like a Christmas tree. He let go of the lady who plopped down wordlessly, staring at him as if he was an illusion.
"That's you, right, Master Guang?"
Guang placed both his hands on his hips and puffed out his chest. "The one and only! Shopkeeper, I've been wanting to talk to you!"
The lady blinked. Then, lowly, she mumbled to herself, "So it's true. The notice that the Ministry of Intelligence sent just now, it's true..."
Guang, however, couldn't really understand what she was talking about, so he said, "Huh?"
As if remembering something, the lady shot up onto her feet and grabbed his shoulders. Guang nearly flipped her over again, but seeing the look in her eyes, he stopped himself at the last second.
"We don't have much time, Master Guang, so I'll keep it short," the lady mumbled. Then, gripping him tightly, she ordered, "Abandon Alca and escape to Naylen right now. The situation has changed, and now, you're in great danger. The Black Lotus are on their way to your rescue. So whatever you do, do not look back."
Well, not only did she appear deranged, but her words were completely nonsensical too.
Chuckling nervously, Guang tried pushing the lady off of him. "Miss, what are you- I can't do that. My family's waiting for me at home and I have my duties to uphold-"
"Don't trust anyone from the Dragon Manor!" she shrieked. "I can't explain it now, but this is your only chance. Now, go!"
There was the sharp sound of glass being smashed into a million, and the next thing Guang knew, he was lying down on Verdant Street drenched in water and surrounded by tiny fragments of glass. People were shocked at his appearance, but Guang paid no attention to them. When he got up, the shopkeeper had disappeared, leaving him with more questions than answers.
What just happened? Who was the Black Lotus? Why did they have to rescue him? Why did the shopkeeper tell him to abandon Alca and head into Naylen, the den of the demons itself?
Even more shocking was her advising him to not trust anyone from the Dragon Manor. Does that include his parents, his brother, and his valet? He couldn't fathom what the lady was thinking in telling him all that nonsense. But what's even more infuriating was that he didn't even get any information about Sui. He groaned, brushing back his wet hair back.
Great, just great. He had one golden opportunity to ask about Sui and he flopped it. He wondered how much time he had left outside. Judging by the darkening sky, he doubted he had much time, but just to be sure...
He took out his phone and groaned even louder.
It was 6:33pm. He really had to get back home now.
Just as he got up, his phone rang. He was confused when he saw that it was a call from Jin. That brother of his who disliked calling was calling him for once? What was so important for him to call him instead of sending the usual texts?
Picking up the call, Guang chirped, "What's up, bro?"
He should have known something was wrong the moment he received a phone call from Jin. On the other end, there was a great commotion. Guang's smile dropped. Mingled in the commotion were shrill screams and heavy explosions, and they didn't sound like the screams of joy or explosions of fireworks.
Desperately, Guang yelled into the phone, "Jin, what's going on?!"
Why was his brother staying silent? Why couldn't he say anything?
There was another ear-splitting boom, this one sounding much closer, and Guang felt his heart drop.
"Jin? Hello? JIN?"
Without warning, the call hung up. Guang froze, staring at words blinking on his phone with disbelief.
[Call Disconnected]
He called Jin again, even his parents, his valet Bo and the servants Maria and Joseph, but every single time the call would fail to go through and the same annoying message would pop up on his phone.
[Call Disconnected]
[Call Disconnected]
[Call Disconnected]
[Call Disconnected]
He screamed, nearly smashing his phone into the ground in frustration. Damn it! Just what was going on at the Dragon Manor? Wasn't everyone busy preparing the feast tonight?
Even though he had no idea what was going on, he had a bad feeling about all this.
He could feel it. Something was happening. Something big was awakening, unfurling its wings and eagerly baring its fangs to the world.
And it was waiting for Guang at the Dragon Manor.