[CYM] 31 – The Young Master’s Demons

“That boy on the right, the band around his head is made of a precious fabric woven from the bark of a plant that only grows in the Yuliu country.”

            To him, they gathered like normal people. No, not just Yunhu, but also the young master’s eyes. He was walking arm in arm with those black blobs as if they were close friends.

            “Is it really invisible to you?” she asked incredulously.

            “Why are you acting like this?” he questioned.

            The damned demons, mimicking humans, casually started conversations with the young master and even burst into raucous laughter. How could her expression remain calm? Beads of cold sweat formed on her forehead.

            “Who are these people? Which family’s young gentlemen are they?” she inquired.

            “I don’t know. Beodeul, are you hurt? What did you see to cause such a fuss?” he asked with concern.

            “Let’s go ahead,” she insisted.

            She shook off the annoying hand that was holding hers and chased after the crowd.

            They walked along the bustling streets, crossed the cloud bridge, passed by the octagonal pavilion’s pond, and moved through the crowded marketplace without a single person casting a doubtful glance. Those who recognised the young master greeted him, and he acknowledged them in return.

            Conversations and laughter blossomed continuously, as if at a noble’s pavilion.

            As they passed through the dark alleyways, a couple of shadows clinging to the young master’s side suddenly disappeared. Then, as they emerged back onto the bright main road, the shadows reappeared by the young master’s side, as if by magic.

            It was a dirty trick. The young master, oblivious to any suspicion, turned around with a smile, playing along with their mischief. She couldn’t stand to watch this any longer.

            “Young master!” she called out.

            She stood in his way in the secluded alley, arms spread wide. The young master had long been aware of her presence. Their eyes met, and yet he acted as if he was seeing a stranger for the first time, causing her heart to sting with betrayal.

            The young master looked her over indifferently and then mockingly mirrored her own words from the feast day.

            “Should I really be blocking the gentleman’s path?” she echoed his own words.

            She was out of breath from running. Bent over and panting, she felt the gaze of five pairs of eyes upon her.

            Blood-red pupils focused on her, the obstacle. Red eyes without exception belonging to demons. A chill ran down her spine at the overflowing malice.

            “Young master, wait, just a moment. Let’s talk for a moment,” she pleaded.

            “I have nothing to say to you,” he dismissed her.

            “It will only take a moment,” she insisted.

            “Then speak, now,” he commanded.

            “Could you please send away your, uh, friends? I would like to have a word with you in private,” she requested.

            The eerie shadows undulated threateningly closer. She noticed their grotesquely long fingernails, like the branches of a tree. Her heart pounded fiercely.

            One of them looked at her as if she were a meal to be devoured, while the other two whispered slyly to the young master. She heard nothing but a buzzing noise, but it seemed as if the young master could understand them, occasionally frowning or nodding slightly in response.

            She had to leave due to her busy schedule. It seemed the conclusion had been reached that her words were not heeded. She wondered if she had fallen for the cunning of the adorable goblin. She couldn’t just let them go, especially since they followed around in dark crowds. Moreover, one of them was coiled around the young master’s shoulder like a kudzu vine, whispering into his ear with a pointed tongue, yet he seemed unaware.

            “Move aside.”

            “Young Master!”

            Her desperate voice seemed to have been absorbed, as the young master raised his eyebrows in annoyance. He glared at her for a while, and then, as if she was a nuisance, gestured to his friends to step aside for a moment.

            Even in that brief moment, she couldn’t lower her guard. She knew the goblins would pounce at the first sign of trouble.

            “Speak.”

            “Where did you meet these people?”

            “At the private school.”

            “Which family’s children are they?”

            “Why should I tell you?”

            “Do not associate with them.”

            The young master blinked his large eyes, and soon his red lips parted and stretched into a long smile. Ha, haha. A hollow laugh followed, as if he was astonished.

            His eyes conveyed disbelief, his lips were coldly twisted.

            “Why?”

            “They are—”

            “What are you to say.”

            They were just waiting for an opportunity to dig into the young master’s body.

            The words stuck in her throat. It wasn’t just because the young master’s words pierced her inside; if she uttered those words now, five creatures would surely pounce all at once, and they both might end up as the goblins’ meal.