People's fear of things usually comes from the unknown.
Not knowing the other side's power base. Not knowing their capabilities. Not knowing what they want. Not knowing whether you'll survive.
Countless pressures born from uncertainty—without warning, without reason—crash down like a landslide and crush people's emotions and cognition. It becomes easy to lose composure. Especially when you realize the other party holds real authority and real strength. That is where "pressure" comes from.
The Rat King. The Gray Forest. The underground emperor of Lungmen.
If Lungmen had two halves—the sunlit side represented by Wei Yenwu, Lady Fumizuki, and the like—then in the gray side of power there was only one true existence.
Rat King Lin.
The ignorant are fearless; the knowledgeable fear even the shadow.
But Li Lin was different.
He was cheating.
Truly cheating.
Because when you know someone's bottom line—their conduct, their logic, their soft ribs and the dreams they crave—then it becomes difficult to call them a threat. A gentleman can be manipulated through propriety; and while Lin looked ruthless—was, in fact, ruthless—on some level he was also a gentleman.
Li Lin understood that. And with Emperor as an unstable variable in play, he also knew the Rat King wasn't going to do anything to him. At worst, the Rat King would come to look, to observe what exactly this sudden "unstable factor" was.
After all, the ruler of Lungmen's shadow did not like unexpected influences. Li Lin had known this day would come the moment he dared to speak names aloud.
So he held his umbrella and calmly walked toward a quiet corner.
A corner suitable for burying a body.
Rain hammered down. The Rat King wore a wide cloak and walked ahead with a cane. Li Lin could clearly see raindrops fall toward him—only to be caught precisely by pale yellow grit, bounced away, and scattered.
And yes: if Li Lin failed to explain himself, or if he showed enough danger, then as Lungmen's shadow the Rat King would press him into the ground right here, at any cost. Because their dream and their home—Lungmen—could not allow a threat like that to exist.
But again: Li Lin was cheating.
"Mr. Lin."
At the mouth of the alley, Li Lin stood with umbrella raised, looking calmly at the short elderly man.
"This is far enough. Any deeper and we may drag other people into it. I prefer to speak one-on-one. I never intended to speak with many at once. That would be disrespectful to me—and to you as well."
"Heh. Then let it be so. The host follows the guest's wishes. Tell me, Mr. Li—how have these months in Lungmen treated you?"
"Very well."
He turned the strange umbrella in his hand. In the darkness, the polygonal edges folded and bloomed like a metal flower.
The umbrella—finely forged by Raythean Industries—looked sharp and angular, yet its fit was perfect. Interlocking facets sealed every gap, blocking the rain completely. Not a single drop slipped through to the ground beneath.
And under that largest black curtain of canopy, it was impossible to see the man's expression. Only his slightly hoarse voice carried through the empty alley—strangely magnetic, leaving the listener with an involuntary sense of trust and goodwill.
"However, if you'll forgive me, this is a young city full of vitality. In other words, what comes next won't be our era—it will be theirs. What old men can do is pave the road for the courage of the young. Wouldn't you agree?"
"Heh…"
The Rat King chuckled softly, both hands resting on his cane, staring straight at the umbrella-bearing man.
"I'm genuinely curious, Mr. Li Lin. Exactly how much do you know? How much do you understand about Yan, about us?"
"I know only what I know, Mr. Lin. As for Lungmen, Yan, and everything you fear or pursue—I don't care. But please believe me: the only thing I want is peace and quiet. That is my sole request. Beyond that, I want nothing. With absolute sincerity, I assure you: I bear no ill will."
"Mr. Li… that is difficult to believe—"
"Londinium is raining. Victoria, do not cry for the red dragon."
"…!"
The Rat King's composed smile froze. He snapped his gaze to the young man beneath the umbrella.
If expressions could kill, the figure under the umbrella would have been carved into a thousand pieces. But the logic was simple: if he lacked confidence, would he dare to reveal such things first?
The former shadow of Lungmen stared at the young man, mind racing. The surrounding sand rose and fell with his emotions, betraying the fierce struggle hidden beneath that steady exterior.
Even the roar of wind and rain seemed to quiet. The alley's atmosphere became solemn—murderously still.
And in the end, it was the young man's slightly hoarse voice that sounded again.
"I will say it one last time. I have no ill will."
His voice remained calm.
"You are not like me. You pursue an order you create. I only want to watch you live inside the order you build in ignorance. If you saw what I have seen, you would be the same."
"…A Cyclops?"
"You possess a deep reserve of knowledge. You're close—but not quite. Or rather, what I've seen is far more important than that. So I abandoned every possibility and came here, seeking a stable death. Lungmen may fall into chaos later, but it is still more suitable for my survival than anywhere else."
His voice drifted through the rain like something fated.
"Sometimes, knowledge is a curse. Once you learn the truth, nothing you see remains what it once was. I witnessed it. I learned the answer. So I chose today's peace. Safety is joy. You should understand, Mr. Lin. I will assist. I will help. But I will never intervene personally. That is my principle."
Because I can't win. I have no skills.
If I had Arts, I'd have stopped eating beef a long time ago—would I be in this sorry state?
Aside from exploiting information gaps to bluff, I can do nothing. But refusing to act while maintaining the pose—this too was part of the persona.
Li Lin looked at the Rat King, believing the man would give him the answer he wanted.
The reason was simple.
He had a wife and a daughter.
He had family.
He couldn't afford to gamble.
And Li Lin was gambling entirely. He didn't want to be thrown into a cell someday for some inexplicable reason, and have everything exposed. That was intolerable—so he could only gamble now.
At this moment, he needed not only the Guard Department's help, but proof from the shadows as well.
"…Impressive, Mr. Li," the Rat King finally said after a long pause.
The sand walls around them faded and collapsed. The Rat King clapped lightly and smiled at the umbrella-bearing figure.
"Lungmen welcomes everyone—including lost souls like you. But it is not without price. I have a daughter, and she is at the age where she longs to see the world. When the time comes, you may speak with her more often."
"Of course. That is what I should do. You may trust me."
"Good. Then I won't disturb you further."
The Rat King vanished into the alley's shadow. Li Lin likewise turned without hesitation, umbrella raised, and walked toward his rented apartment.
Abusing connections and cheating your way through relationships really is satisfying, he thought as he walked.
But if someone had been watching carefully, they would have noticed: on the ground where both men stood, there was not a trace of rainwater. Yet within the circle where the Rat King had been, there was a faint hint of sweat-damp moisture.
Ten-plus minutes later, inside the rental room.
"You're so slow! And you didn't even buy apple pie! Texas, say something to him!"
"Uh…"
When did people get here?
And when did I agree to buy apple pie?
Li Lin pushed open the door and froze, staring at the crowded figures jammed into the tiny thirty-square-meter room, suddenly suspecting he'd walked into the wrong apartment.
....
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