Zi Zan cast a glance towards Sun Yunso.
"I'll tell you when we get the time. I'll answer all of your questions."
Sun Yunso said nothing.
"I need to go back to HQ. While I originally planned on capturing Huo Shuzoh, seeing as he wasn't here, that didn't work out. But at least we got Nishizi so that's an upgrade, so by your permission Captain Zi Zan, may I go back to HQ?"
Zi Zan rubbed his chin.
"Yeah, sure."
Mischa nodded.
However, just as she was about to leave, Zi Zan turned to look at Yunso.
"You wanna to come back with us?" He asked.
Sun Yunso blinked.
"Why?"
Zi Zan stared and he then sighed.
"Don't you remember? You had questions to ask me plus there are some more questions you had."
Sun Yunso knew exactly what Zi Zan meant, he looked over at Lokei, who was sitting nearby and had a sad look on their face as they stared at the ruins of the auction hall. Sun Yunso walked over and sat next to them. Lokei turned his head.
"What's up with you?"
Sun Yunso looked at their faces and smirked.
"You're gonna start crying?"
Lokei immediately frowned.
"What'd you just say?!"
"Relax, I'm just asking."
"Asking, you're trying to get back at me for making fun of you dumbass!"
Sun Yunso laughed lightly and waved a hand.
"Whatever. So what's your next move?"
Lokei took a deep breath, calming down, his gaze turned back to the ruined auction hall. A few seconds passed before he answered Yunso's question.
"My next move, huh. Honestly, I have no idea. But it's pretty clear I've made enemies with the Yoshe Clan. If they find out I killed my father and sister, as well as destroying Heishi which was their main source of income...I'll certainly be exiled. I may even lose my surname. So yeah, I have no idea what I should do"
Sun Yunso just stared blankly at him.
Lokei looked up at him.
"Those colorless eyes of yours make you seem so emotionaless. I can tell you aren't feeling anything for me, they make you seem like you don't give a damn about what I'm talking about or even that I'm boring."
Sun Yunso's eyes widened.
"Wait, really? Do my eyes do that?" He said as he rubbed the back of his head, looking a little sheepish.
"Damn. I'm sorry. I am feeling something. Something that shouldn't happen in the first place."
Lokei gazed at Sun Yunso.
Does this guy really lie?
Well, knowing Yunso, it'd probably just be a waste of time so he decided to just let it go.
The next day.
Sun Yunso slowly blinked his eyes open.
He stared at the strange ceiling for a few moments before sitting up.
"...Where the hell am I?"
"Good morning!"
Sun Yunso quickly looked towards the cheery voice. Nearby, was Anyu Feng. He looked way too happy.
"Whilst you guys were being cute, you both collapsed whilst sitting down. It was honestly insane. I have never seen anything like it. You must have been tired. But I'm sure I healed you all."
Sun Yunso glared at Anyu.
"...You didn't have to say that first."
Anyu ignored him.
However, Sun Yunso looked to the other side of the room and there was Mischa and Anyu playing a strange game that looked suspiciously like air hockey.
There was a scoreboard next to the table.
MISCHA: 3 ANYU: 12
Mischa was holding onto her stick with great determination.
"Come on! I need one more, that's all!"
Anyu lazily flicked the puck back, Mischa jumped forward to try and catch it, however the puck slipped past her stick and flew towards her goal and she barely blocked it.
"HA! Did you see that?!"
"What?" Anyu asked innocently.
"That save obviously!"
"Oh right."
Mischa frowned, she was determined to win this game then she noticed that Sun Yunso was sitting up in his bed.
"Oh, you're awake, ya dumbass!"
She looked towards him and with that distraction Anyu Feng scored again.
MISCHA: 3 ANYU: 13
Mischa slowly looked back at the scoreboard and frowned.
"What the actual….You cheated!"
"I didn't! You were distracted!"
Sun Yunso watched as they argued and he was already beginning to regret waking up after only five minutes.
Zi Zan checked the timer.
"Time's up."
Mischa went stiff.
She slowly turned her head towards Zi Zan.
"What?"
"The timer! Time's up!"
She looked at the scoreboard once again.
MISCHA: 3 ANYU: 13
Mischa squeezed the striker.
"Are you fucking kidding me! Who the hell is this guy?!?"
Anyu put a hand on his chest.
"I'm Anyu Feng. A healer and volunteer. But most importantly, the best air hockey player in the world."
"Shut up!"
As they were bickering, Sun Yunso's attention was drawn to the swords next to his bed.
"Anyway. What happened to The Nishizi? Where are my other two swords?"
Mischa finally took a breath to try and calm herself. She walked over to Yunso's bed and tapped the two swords.
"The Abyssal Sanctum has been given to some of my colleagues, if that's the correct word for them.It's on its way to Armada HQ as we speak."
Sun Yunso looked at the swords as he nodded in agreement.
Anyu Feng looked at the sword that was white hilted.
"That's quite a nice sword you have there Elsa. You have great taste. But I know the other one a lot better because you made it yourself."
It went quiet. Zi Zan looked at Sun Yunso, Mischa's eyes widened and even Lokei looked shocked.
"You actually make your own sword?!" Mischa exclaimed, pointing at Yunso.
Sun Yunso was confused by their reactions.
"Yes. What's so shocking about that?"
"What do you mean 'What's so shocking'?!"
Sun Yunso winced at how loudly Mischa was shouting.
"I got the sword and it was already made. I just finished it off."
Anyu laughed.
"That's still pretty cool."
Sun Yunso shrugged.
"It's not really."
Zi Zan looked around.
"So I guess this is where we stop having conversations and get back on the road."
As expected, everyone looked ready but Sun Yunso remembered.
"Oh wait, what about Sa Wayong and Chu Runar ?"
As if on cue, the door opened.
"Was gud ya'll!"
Chu Runar popped his head round and looked as lively as ever. Sa Wayong was slightly more timid.
"Hey."
Sun Yunso looked at them and blinked for a little while then sighed. He'd been worried about them since the auction hall. But seeing them come through the door with no real issues after everything that had happened in their fight against Anzo put his mind at ease, at least everyone was safe.
The group finally finished talking and got ready to leave.
Outside there were a few carriages ready for them. Once they were all settled they set off towards the Armada Headquarters.
They divided into two groups, one consisting of Zi Zan, Lokei and Sun Yunso. And the others had Anyu Feng, Mischa, Chu Runar and Sa Wayong.
Inside the carriage Zi Zan was sat across from Yunso and Lokei.
"Before we get there I should explain what will happen when we get to the Armada Headquarters. I'll give a report. Or rather Mischa will give me a report on what happened at the auction. It gets a bit complicated but you will understand when you see for yourself. Once the report is given, I'll introduce you both to the others. Just so you know, all the higher ups are complete assholes and can be a pain to deal with."
Lokei raised an eyebrow.
"Sounded nice."
"Don't let it fool you. In order to get on their good side you'll have to prove yourselves to them. Also note to yourself to not give away any personal information. Otherwise they will get suspicious and start digging into your background."
Sun Yunso said nothing and took it all in.
"Okay, that was all I needed to explain. Any questions?" Zi Zan asked.
Lokei raised his hand.
"Actually, there is. What happened to Huo Shuzoh?"
Zi Zan looked over.
"Huo Shuzoh?"
"Yeah. Because you're part of The Armada you would have got the same mission as Mischa did. The one where we arrest him."
Zi Zan shook his head.
"No. But I have heard about the Guo Wedding Massacre. Huo Shuzoh is suspected. They found out from a notable source or eye witness. But you look like you know something... Something."
They both looked quiet.
"You might have been involved, right?"
Sun Yunso instantly nodded.
"Yeah."
Zi Zan stared.
"...You could have at least taken your time. Okay, what did you two actually do?"
"Nothing major. We were just bodyguards. Until an incident occurred and the wedding went from zero to hundred in mere seconds."
Zi Zan furrowed his brows.
"I'm not sure what you mean with a certain event"
Lokei raised his shoulders.
"It's really complicated. Like how you said the higher ups of the Armada are."
He looked thoughtful for a moment. Zi Zan leaned his chin on his palm.
"Hmm, well, since it is going on going I could try asking the witness. Since you two were bodyguards for the Guo Family you would know her."
Sun Yunso instantly knew who they were talking about.
"Guo Yuxuan?"
Zi Zan gave a nod.
"Mhmm. And I will toy with her fearful mind so I can hope to gain some info but we can do this later. We need to focus on why we are going to the Armada HQ."
The boys nodded.
The trip took longer than expected and It was to be expected. Afterall, they were currently in Yokai City and from what Zi Zan told them, Armada Headquarters was a long way away. They thought they were heading back to Meizou but apparently, they rode on and on along the road until they reached a city called Jamishihoro.
It looked quite similar to Yokai City. It was full of people walking around the streets, shops along the roads and various buildings but there was something different about it. Sun Yunso couldn't help but take a look around and he saw something similar back in Yokai City but seeing it again still shocked him. The level of development back in Nasura wasn't anything similar to this. Most of what he knew back home was pretty basic and the architecture looked very old but since coming to Yokai City, and now Jamishihoro, he realised something.
He was very old fashioned.
He briefly thought about his master and the more he thought about it, the more he started to hate Su Qing but this begged the question, was he really that sheltered that he didn't even know places like this existed?
Sun Yunso kept looking around.
However, unlike Yokai City which had a more traditional appearance in certain areas, Jamishihoro had a very different look, many buildings were lined up side by side, some had unique designs and there were also many multi story buildings with large windows reflecting the light from the afternoon sun, people were walking around carrying various items and there were many vendors shouting to passers-by and there were also a few strange looking carriages.
They drove off and he looked elsewhere and honestly he wasn't sure what to be surprised about anymore, this made him sigh. Lokei sat next to him and saw the look on his face.
"What's wrong?"
"Nothing."
"But you look like the end of the world has come."
He looked at him.
"Have you ever heard of a place called Nasura?"
"Nope."
"Okay."
"Why?"
"Nothing. Just wondering how many places like this there are."
"There are plenty. More than you'd think."
"That didn't help in the slightest, it looks like there's still a lot I don't know about this world and unfortunately I think my master is partly to blame."
The carriage kept driving through Jamishihoro but this time they weren't in a rush. They had been on the road for a while so Zi Zan decided to have a small break and eventually they stopped near a busy road.
"We're having a short break. Get anything you need but don't go too far."
Zi Zan was the first to get out, followed by the others. Sun Yunso was last to get out and as soon as his feet hit the floor his eyes drifted to the shops. There were a lot more people than he expected. Some were wearing unusual clothing whilst others wore basic travelling clothes. A few even had weapons on show and nobody seemed to mind. He looked at a shop, there were many weapons outside, from basic swords to odd metal things and this made him stare.
"You're not going to buy anything are you?"
"Nah, I'm just looking."
"Okay."
He gave him a suspicious look and walked past. Sun Yunso ignored him and looked back at the shop.
"Maybe I should take some time to look around the world." He muttered to himself.
There was obviously a lot more to see but unfortunately they were in no position to sightsee.
"Yunso."
He turned to the familiar voice.
Zi Zan was standing a short distance away waiting.
"We should get going. We won't be here for long."
He looked at the shop one last time and followed.
The group met up later and the carriages travelled along the road after they headed away from bustling land. They reached wherever it was soon afterwards. The carriages continued to slow the faster they were going, so they soon came to a stop.
Sun Yunso tilted his head towards the front after glancing out the window and he caught sight of it.
They were here and the Armada HQ.
He blinked hard as he stared, utterly impressed, as the headquarters looked far more like the property of one of the great families. Looking at how far apart the walls stretched out and how there were multiple big buildings within, including the grand security entrance, that had plenty of guards wearing identical uniforms.
"This is almost quite large."
In particular, this was nothing compared to Lokei's house.
"They aren't that different."
Turning to the individual at his side he asked.
"Lokei. Don't you think this place is pretty impressive?"
Lokei peeked out the window and peered at the Headquarters then gave an indignant shrug.
"Is it?"
"Really."
"What?"
"I didn't expect you to be shocked."
He did nothing but stare impassively at the other. Sun Yunso looked out the window again.
'This guy…'
Sure, Lokei was quite hard to impress, however he should have at least shown some kind of reaction but he gave the impression that this was just an ordinary roadside Inn. Maybe because of his background; having been of the Yoshe family. He looked quite confident that the Yoshe manor would be much larger and richer, from the expression on his face.
Zi Zan spoke.
"C'mon everyone. Let's get going."
The chorus of carriage doors opened, and they stepped out one-by-one. Sun Yunso was next to step out, planting his feet on the ground, he tipped his head back yet again.
Eventually they made their way to the entrance and as they neared the entrance a few guards approached them.
"Stop."
They stopped and immediately one of the guards looked them over and then looked at Zi Zan.
"State your business."
Zi Zan said little as he reached into his clothing and took out some ID. He handed it to the guard. The guard looked it over and handed it back.
"Understood. You're authorised to enter."
"Thanks, oh and also they're coming with me."
"Very well. They may enter."
The gates opened and they went inside.
As soon as they were inside Sun Yunso couldn't help but take a look around. It was definitely much more impressive inside.
There was a large path leading off into well kept gardens. There were multiple buildings dotted around the area. The buildings looked nothing like the standard ones he saw in Jamishihoro.
Everything looked organised, the people walking around also knew exactly where they were going. Sun Yunso looked over to one of the buildings and another and another.
'Just how big is this place?'
He couldn't help but think, although it definitely was something else compared to the outside. He looked over to Lokei.
"So?"
Lokei looked at him.
"Hmm?"
"Isn't this place impressive?".
"Hm. It's alright."
Sun Yunso stared at him.
"Stop trying to act like me, go back to being a charismatic ass hole."
"What'd you just say?"
Before Sun Yunso could answer, Zi Zan spoke up.
"Enough with the sightseeing. We didn't come here to admire the scenery. Come on."
Zi Zan carried on walking and they followed. Sun Yunso looked around at the buildings one last time. Looks like he would have to save his questions for later as of now, they had somewhere to be.