Xian Wu piggyback attempt #2

Xian Wu had a headache.

It wasn't from drinking alcohol either.

People kept bursting into his office one after another. For one, those guards that were assigned to the outer gateway to his mansion.

"Sect Master Xian, we apologize for the intrusion, but it's about that Miss you recently brought back…"

Xian Wu rubbed his temple. He was already really tired of hearing everyone call Lai Yiteng 'Honored Mistress' and 'Noble Lady'. No matter how it was said, it felt weird by the pure amount of times he'd heard Lai Yiteng swear.

"Yes, what happened?" he asked.

"It seems that Qiu stole something from her, and Miss Lai was chasing her down! The last we saw was the two jumping the sect wall and going into the forest."

"….."

Xian Wu wanted to face-palm.

"I specifically told Ke Mian not to mess around with…her."

Ke Mian was the short and simple real name of 'Qiu'. After all, Qiu by itself was not a proper name, but it was the name that Ke Mian earned for herself by causing trouble for everyone else.

No matter how many times Song Zhenxi had the girl punished by copying righteous sayings or making her do push-ups on the courtyard in the sun, that pest-like little girl had a hyperactive imagination and inhuman energy levels. It was so bad that even after all her training she'd be bored enough to hassle others just to get a rise out of them.

Anyway, so the guards had told him about THAT. The fact she stole something of Lai Yiteng's and he was chasing after her.

Xian Wu could only guess that it was something important, otherwise, Lai Yiteng would not go to such efforts. He felt cold sweat forming down his neck as he worried if and what Lai Yiteng would do to the young girl in revenge.

That, and…he wasn't supposed to be running around!

Xian Wu sighed heavily. He'd specifically told Lai Yiteng to take it easy the next few days. What does he do but completely disregard any care for his health. Typical.

Stacking a few papers away, Xian Wu quickly got up from his seat in his office and went out the door. He was going to try and find Ke Mian and Lai Yiteng before things got ugly.

* "Sect Master Xian, what would you like us to do?" asked a guard, scratching his head.

The sect master looked a lot more serious than he'd expected him to. Of course, neither of the guards knew that the 'miss' Xian Wu brought back tended to…act out.

Xian Wu shook his head. "You both continue to guard the gates. I'll go after them myself."

"Y-You…personally?!" the guards stuttered in sync.

"Yes."

This was truly rare. Usually Xian Wu was lazy and composed when he could be, and wouldn't go after someone like this. After all, Ke Mian was annoying, but it wasn't like she ever harmed anyone!

Xian Wu left the guards behind him as he strode outside, through his garden and out the courtyard, exiting the gate of his abode.

 A guard trailed behind him, then pointed to a spot on the outer wall.

"See there, that's where Miss Lai and Qiu jumped over."

Graceful Dragon Sect was designed like a small town, with certain facilities and residents clustered in some spots, walls built around each section. But the spot Lai Yiteng went was one that was hilly, with a vast forest.

Xian Wu stepped up to the wall then vaulted over it in a graceful motion.

He landed on the other side cleanly but took a moment to re-smooth his hair, a habit that he could not get rid of.

Now then, where could Yi'er and Ke Mian be-

Xian Wu's eyes went wide. Lai Yiteng was standing in front of him, staring with what seemed to be slight interest. See, the events of the chase between Qiu and Lai Yiteng didn't take more than a couple of minutes, then the whole scene with Mildew another two. So by the time Xian Wu reacted, Lai Yiteng was already on his way back to the sect.

"You-!" Xian Wu sputtered. His heart felt relief. "There you are…and Mildew? Huh? Why is Mildew…"

Xian Wu saw those dark feathers with a hint of rust—unmistakably the missing Mildew.

Lai Yiteng nodded calmly. "Mildew was on the forest floor, ill. Sleeping now. I chanced upon her while chasing down that thief."

"O-Oh." Xian Wu pretended like that made sense, then felt a bout of anxiety. "…so about that thief…her name is Ke Mian, and can I ask where she is?"

Lai Yiteng rolled his eyes. "It seems that although you aren't quite as bad as the rumors say, you still are not the best at controlling your sect disciples, gege. This girl had the nerve to steal my personal item." In the blink of an eye he pulled out his knife. "I can't say where that girl is, but I made sure that she won't pester me again."

Xian Wu almost choked on his own breath.

Although Lai Yiteng was purely thinking about how he threatened Qiu to keep quiet, Xian Wu had an irrational -or perhaps not that irrational- fear that Lai Yiteng had already killed her and buried her in the forest!

Xian Wu managed to force out the words, "Don't tell me that you…I mean. You didn't hurt her, did you? Remember the contract I made you sign? It wasn't to force you to put up with things, but just that I didn't want you to kill anyone without thinking twice!"

"What?" Lai Yiteng was confused a moment, then finally understood what Xian Wu was saying. "I didn't harm her. She just ran off before me, so I don't know where she is."

Xian Wu leaned over and let out a huge sign. He hadn't even realized how tense he'd been.

"Okay. In any case," he stepped over and put an arm around Lai Yiteng's shoulders, "you weren't supposed to be running around."

"I only did so because my knife was stolen. That girl should be properly disciplined."

"Yes, yes, I am sure her shifu will properly tell her off. Come, let's go back." Xian Wu still had a mountain of work to get through, he ushered Lai Yiteng along, then jumped a top the sect wall.

Lai Yiteng was following after him without any more complaints, but his steps a bit slow from fatigue. In fact, that was why he'd been standing on the outside of the sect wall. He'd jumped over it easily enough earlier, but now his legs felt strained, he hadn't been sure if he could make the jump.

He stared at the wall before him, at least six meters tall, and hesitated.

Of course, Xian Wu noticed. His expression was quiet and with hints of doting as he stared down at Lai Yiteng on the ground before jumped down from the wall.

He went beside Lai Yiteng and said, "Yi'er…it seems that you aren't wearing any shoes."

Lai Yiteng paused with surprise, as though only just noticing that himself. But after that he just frowned.

"So what if I do?"

"Hm," Xian Wu approached this topic delicately. "Why don't I carry you back?"

Lai Yiteng almost squeezed Mildew too hard in his arms from anger.

"Don't be ridiculous. That's shameful."

"It's not…you can't help the fact that you are ill or tired, it has nothing to do with upholding honor. And think of everything we've done together by now, anyway. We're quite close, don't you think? So, it's really not a big deal."

"No."

Xian Wu leaned in toward Lai Yiteng with an unreadable expression.

"I…" Lai Yiteng felt pressured. Although Xian Wu hadn't said anything yet, he just knew that he was going to complain about him being too difficult again.

Instead, Xian Wu said something that caught him off guard.

"Oh? What is this dark smudge on your palm?" Then his brow wrinkled. "Did you cough up blood again, but don't say anything?"

…the black smudges left on Lai Yiteng's palm were of course from the tiny salamander monster in the pouch at his waist. What should he say?