Why Do All the Villains Look at Me Like This? - Chapter 51

No… How could Su Xian possibly be here?

And in… this state?

Su Xian was dressed in the uniform of a Human Livestock attendant, its style virtually unchanged from before, his expression as cold and aloof as ever.

Normally, Meng Xuexiao would have grabbed him immediately, seizing the chaos to escape together and celebrate their narrow escape. After all, Su Xian was practically his only acquaintance here, someone he could even call a friend. As fellow Human Livestock, they were truly brothers in misfortune.

But now, explosions rocked the banquet hall one after another, waves of heat rolling through the air. Half of Su Xian’s hem had been burned away, the fabric seared into a sharp crescent shape still smoldering.

The charred edge swayed in the scorching air like a battle flag, even the corners of his tightly pressed lips seemed to carry the scent of gunpowder.

And it was real gunpowder.

Meng Xuexiao could smell it, that intensely pungent odor that clung only to those who had directly handled explosives.

Had Su Xian orchestrated this explosion?

Wait… this wasn’t the script of an ordinary person!

In this perilous novel world, this had to be a minor boss, at the very least.

And this was a small boss who dared to directly provoke Huai Sui…

Meng Xuexiao’s mind raced through the faces of several minor antagonists from the original novel who had dared to challenge Huai Sui.

Not a single one of them was easy to deal with!

Meng Xuexiao remained uncertain whether to follow Su Xian.

Why does this kind of misfortune always find me?!

Just then, Su Xian’s voice suddenly deepened, “Watch your step!”

A Giant Ape crashed to the ground before them. Instinctively, Su Xian bent down, slipped his hands beneath Meng Xuexiao’s knees, and gently lifted him into his arms. With ease, he leaped over the ape’s massive body.

Meng Xuexiao’s legs instantly dangled in mid-air, the sensation of weightlessness engulfing him.

He had no time to think. Instinctively, he grabbed the nearest object.

Almost simultaneously, he felt a steady pulse throbbing beneath his palm—strong, rhythmic beats that seemed to push against his hand.

Only then did he realize what he had done…

He was clinging to Su Xian’s neck.

Then, Meng Xuexiao felt something shift beneath his hand—a smooth, rounded shape, not small, protruding slightly. Sweat glistened on its surface, tracing the blue veins beneath, creating an indescribable allure.

It was… Su Xian’s Adam’s apple!

The moment Meng Xuexiao realized this, the prominent Adam’s apple bobbed again, drawing attention to its presence.

Meng Xuexiao froze instantly.

In normal circumstances, he would have probably laughed it off awkwardly. Among guys, accidentally brushing against sensitive areas wasn’t a big deal, it was something easily forgotten over time.

But the man before him was no longer the “ordinary” friend he once knew.

Even in their peaceful world, the Adam’s apple was considered a forbidden zone—partly because it was so personal, and partly because it was a vital point.

Even in modern times, where people generally refrained from attacking each other, touching someone’s Adam’s apple would still make them uncomfortable. How much more so for the bosses living in this turbulent era?

For more volatile bosses, this could be interpreted as a provocation or even… a form of assault.

Damn it.

Meng Xuexiao couldn’t decide whether to withdraw his hand or not.

The Adam’s apple was already a forbidden zone. By repeatedly touching it and then pulling back, wasn’t he practically confirming his “provocation”?

For a moment, he felt like a koala frozen in place, clinging motionless to the spot.

Su Xian noticed Meng Xuexiao in his arms suddenly go completely still, even his eyelashes stiffening like a cat’s fur standing on end.

Meng Xuexiao must be terrified, Su Xian thought, caught between the Manor Lord and Huai Sui.

The patience Su Xian had shown earlier in discussing tactics for dealing with the Giant Ape with Meng Xuexiao had been precisely to prepare him for situations like this.

Su Xian didn’t belong here, he would eventually have to leave, whether due to his mission or other reasons.

Even if he personally didn’t want to.

His profession had led him to wander through countless high-risk zones, and such a nomadic life of hardship wasn’t suitable for Meng Xuexiao.

So, in the limited time he had, Su Xian hoped to teach Meng Xuexiao as much as possible, ensuring his survival in the Federation.

But Huai Sui’s situation had served as a stark warning.

Better to keep Meng Xuexiao under his watchful eye than risk him dying somewhere unknown.

“Hold on tight!” The crimson mecha instantly deployed, its colossal frame unfolding with astonishing speed. Within seconds, a massive cannon barrel materialized.

The cockpit popped open, enveloping both Meng Xuexiao and Su Xian.

They landed directly in the pilot and co-pilot seats, safety belts snapping out and fastening automatically.

Although Meng Xuexiao wasn’t a Mecha expert, he had enough experience with them to recognize that this crimson Mecha was no ordinary machine. Its arsenal of light and heavy weapons was astonishingly vast, even surpassing the one Shen Zekai had lent him.

During their training at the Federation Military Academy, their instructors had emphasized that the most crucial aspect of assessing an opponent’s strength was their Mecha. The machine encapsulated their financial resources, piloting skill limits, and social standing—all condensed into that high-tech ironclad construct.

A Mecha was a person’s public face and capital.

And the man before him possessed truly formidable… capital.

After meticulously examining the book, Meng Xuexiao realized that he could count on one hand the number of minor bosses with comparable resources.

A bitter smile crept onto his face. His luck was truly abysmal.

The stark disparity between himself and this boss only grew more brutal with each passing moment.

So now, where did Su Xian intend to take him?

As he pondered this, darkness suddenly enveloped him. A coarse, cotton-textured cloth muffled his mouth, its rough fibers pressing against his dry lips.

It felt exactly like the day he first entered the Federation Military Academy, bound hand and foot and thrown into the basement.

Meng Xuexiao’s limbs suddenly felt as heavy as lead, cold and numb.

A male voice came from above and to his side, “Wipe the sweat and dirt off your face.”

The voice sounded distant… yet strangely close.

It took Meng Xuexiao a moment to barely recognize Su Xian’s voice.

But… the words were nothing like what he had imagined.

The young man tilted his head slightly, and the darkness blinding his eyes suddenly shifted violently before falling away with a soft “Thud!”.

Meng Xuexiao instinctively reached out, but Su Xian was faster. Just as Meng Xuexiao’s fingertips brushed the towel, Su Xian closed his hand around it.

Meng Xuexiao’s fingers poked Su Xian’s firm, muscular back of his hand.

The man’s clenched fist revealed distinct knuckles, each bulging vein pulsing with raw strength. Most importantly, it radiated a human, fiery, scalding warmth.

Meng Xuexiao’s fingertips couldn’t help but tremble.

Holding the towel, Su Xian cupped the young man’s chin and meticulously wiped away the dust that had clung to Meng Xuexiao’s face during his escape.

The towel wasn’t thick. Through the fabric, Meng Xuexiao could clearly feel the resilience of Su Xian’s fingers and the precise pressure of his fingertips.

“Feeling better?” Su Xian’s slightly calloused fingers gently hooked, brushing against Meng Xuexiao’s parted lips to wipe away the last trace of grime from the corner of his mouth.

This time, Meng Xuexiao finally met Su Xian’s gaze.

The man’s eyes remained calm and unwavering, with a soft light deep within.

Su Xian was the type to act indifferent on the surface but possess a genuinely kind heart. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have risked criticism from others just to secure Meng Xuexiao a job in the kitchen.

Their shared experiences flashed vividly through Meng Xuexiao’s mind, too profound to be easily dismissed by a mere suspicion that Su Xian might be the boss.

He moved his lips, finally asking, “What exactly is going on…?”

Su Xian paused, and Meng Xuexiao held his breath.

It seemed… an answer he didn’t want to hear was about to emerge.

But Su Xian remained silent for only a moment. “…I’m with the Federal Military Department. My rank is Major General, and I’m here on an undercover mission.”

The Federation…?

This was far from the worst answer Meng Xuexiao had imagined. In fact, it was almost a ray of hope in his despair.

The Federal Military Department was practically a sacred institution for all Federation Military Academies, a bastion of unwavering reliability.

Moreover, it seemed perfectly reasonable for a Federation Major General to have destroyed the Alien Beasts’ lair.

Patriotism, after all, made everything seem so natural.

But was it all just a coincidence? A pillow offered just when he was feeling sleepy?

After a string of misfortunes, Meng Xuexiao found it impossible to trust this sudden turn of events.

“Where are we going now?” he asked cautiously.

Su Xian glanced at the mecha’s control panel. A beam of light scanned his entire eyeball.

[Real-person authentication complete. Welcome, Major General Su, to the Federal Network.]

It was the Federal Mecha’s biometric verification system, a technology at the pinnacle of Federation innovation. Even the most skilled shapeshifting Alien Beasts couldn’t evade it.

Meng Xuexiao’s heart sank.

At that moment, Su Xian’s steady voice cut through the tension, “I have a mission to complete here. Once it’s done, I’ll take you back to the Federation.”

Back to the Federation.

During his time at the Manor, Meng Xuexiao had imagined this moment countless times.

He knew this was likely his closest chance yet to return home.

Eagerly, Meng Xuexiao asked, “What kind of mission? Maybe… I could even help?”

If it were any other Meng Xuexiao, he couldn’t have been so confident. But he had practically scoured every inch of this area, ever since the Giant Ape had taken him and Huai Sui there at the start of the banquet.

For the first time, Meng Xuexiao didn’t mind being offered as tribute to the King.

“It’s nothing too difficult,” Su Xian said, genuinely believing it. He had completed far more dangerous missions before; killing a tribute was child’s play.

Besides, the tribute wasn’t supposed to be particularly strong.

Su Xian had initially intended to brush it off casually, thinking Meng Xuexiao had no reason to worry. But when he met the youth’s eager gaze, his Adam’s apple bobbed. In the end, he decided to lay it all out, “It’s about killing the tribute offered to the King of the Savage Beasts this year.”

Sensing Meng Xuexiao’s confusion, he elaborated, “In the past, these tributes were always inanimate objects like gold and jewels. But this year, it seems they’ve included a human.”

“Don’t worry, it’ll be over quickly.”

Su Xian began adjusting the weapons systems in his mecha. Focused on this task, he failed to notice Meng Xuexiao’s momentary stunned silence.

Wait, wait, wait. What did Su Xian just say?

Kill the Tribute?

Kill a human Tribute?

He might as well just hand over his ID number!

Meng Xuexiao immediately clamped his mouth shut.

The sense of security he’d felt upon learning Su Xian was a Federation officer vanished instantly.

Just as I thought… He was still a luckless fool, with no escape.

“Is something wrong?” Su Xian had clearly noticed Meng Xuexiao’s unusual behavior.

“N-no, nothing at all,” Meng Xuexiao stammered, shaking his head vigorously, “I just… I just didn’t expect…”

The youth’s words were cut short by a violent tremor.

The shaking came from outside the mecha. Anyone unaware would have thought a massive planet was colliding with them.

The rapidly flashing scenery outside was instantly swallowed by a dense, silvery-white mass. Fine, metallic scales scraped against the mecha’s hull, like a giant python slowly tightening its coils around its prey.

Meng Xuexiao could see the metallic sheen of each scale, their edges as thin as razor blades, and hear the rustling sound of the scales scraping against the mecha’s exterior as the creature’s muscles contracted.

In the next moment, he felt himself and the mecha being violently pressed downward. The intense sensation of weightlessness seemed to warp even the numbers on the mecha’s control panel.

In stark contrast to the previous scene, a dragon’s head suddenly rose up, towering above them and gazing down with predatory eyes.

Though it possessed the appearance of a Western dragon, its features were more akin to those of a cold-blooded reptile than an Eastern dragon.

Then, a pair of golden, bestial eyes pressed against the semi-transparent cockpit shell.

Meng Xuexiao could almost discern the intricate black patterns within the dragon’s vertical pupils.

He knew the Dragon Clan were the largest creatures in the universe, but only when this behemoth pressed close did he truly grasp the overwhelming sense of physical dominance.

His own reflection merged violently with the bestial eyes outside, his image even appearing smaller by comparison. Though still inside the mecha, he felt as if he were trapped in a cage.

“Big brother, wait for me.”

Unlike the youthful voice from before, this voice was now hoarse and deep, like a desert wind howling across the sands.

Yet Meng Xuexiao recognized it instantly.

The colossal creature before him was… Huai Sui.

Meng Xuexiao couldn’t help but shrink back slightly.

Having achieved the desired intimidation, Huai Sui’s massive bestial eyes shifted, brimming with malice. Meng Xuexiao’s heart skipped another beat, but the eyes retreated, refocusing on Su Xian.

Su Xian couldn’t help but furrow his brow.

He never expected Huai Sui to appear here.

This Silver Dragon, unlike his brother Zhuoyue, didn’t possess such a fierce territorial instinct, the kind that demanded the annihilation of any intruder. Normally, he rarely bothered chasing prey that didn’t interest him.

So why now…?

He had even transformed into his dragon form.

Instinctively, Su Xian positioned himself between Meng Xuexiao and the dragon, “Lord Duke, what a delightful whim to chase after a mere Major General all the way out here.”

Su Xian’s lips tightened imperceptibly. Though he and Huai Sui were both 2S-Class combatants, they were now in the Empire—Huai Sui’s territory. He couldn’t be certain he could safely extract Meng Xuexiao from this situation.

He glanced covertly at the mecha’s built-in escape pod.

Perhaps… I could act as a decoy while secretly launching Meng Xuexiao out.

To Huai Sui, Meng Xuexiao was merely human livestock, unlikely to draw the dragon’s attention.

Just as he was about to execute this plan, the Silver Dragon erupted into a thunderous roar of mockery, “Hahahaha! Don’t make me die laughing!”

“For you? Do all humans suffer from such delusions of grandeur? Do you think you have stars or the moon on your face?”

“I’m simply here to reclaim what belongs to me—or rather, my brother’s tribute!”