Why Do All the Villains Look at Me Like This? - Chapter 79

The bustling city, the bright lights, and… the magnificent gates of the Federation Military Academy, which had only appeared in his dreams for so long.

This was a style completely different from the Empire’s.

Had he… really returned?

Meng Xuexiao felt an inexplicable sense of unreality, as if he were still dreaming.

Then, he couldn’t resist pinching his wrist.

Hisss… That hurts…

The young man’s wrist twitched. He hastily rubbed it twice before…

Subconsciously taking a few steps toward the gate.

At that moment, his emotions almost perfectly mirrored the moment he first entered the Federation Military Academy—that feeling of being about to step under the protective umbrella.

Just a few more steps…

But quickly, Meng Xuexiao’s impulsive mind regained clarity. He turned to look at the man behind him.

The Silver-Haired Man remained seated in his conspicuously luxurious wheelchair behind him. Raven walked between them, forcefully separating the two, frequently glancing back at the man.

Even Meng Xuexiao could sense the man’s vigilance and… apprehension.

Just moments ago, the apprehension in Raven’s eyes hadn’t been this intense.

Had the Silver-Haired Man said something earlier, or… done something?

But Meng Xuexiao had no time to dwell on such thoughts—

“Creak.”

The faint sound of the Silver-Haired Man’s wheelchair wheels coming to a stop echoed in his ears.

The rhythmic whirring of the wheels as they rolled across the ground hadn’t seemed particularly noticeable, but the sudden silence was jarring.

Meng Xuexiao’s heart skipped a beat. He swallowed hard and quickly retreated two or three steps, subconsciously putting more distance between himself and the Military Academy’s gates, which he had been so eager to reach.

He raised both hands high above his head, trying to project an image of compliance and harmlessness—

“This… we shouldn’t be here, right?”

Almost as soon as the words left his lips, the Silver-Haired Man lifted his gaze, meeting Meng Xuexiao’s eyes directly.

Meng Xuexiao felt even more flustered.

He couldn’t resist rubbing his wrist again, where he had pinched it red, a faint ache spreading through the area.

Even now, he still couldn’t quite believe this man had actually granted his request. But this man was no philanthropist, he must have his own motives. So… it was best to remain cautious.

Lest he inadvertently cross some Red Line and end up dead without even knowing how.

He glanced at the man warily, as if to demonstrate his complete lack of resistance, silently raising his hands a little higher, even curling his little finger inward.

Like a kitten facing a suddenly approaching human, he chose to cleverly expose his soft belly, emitting soft, whimpering meows.

For a moment, it was unclear who was trying to tame whom.

The Silver-Haired Man could clearly see the faint pinkness at the Young Man’s bent knuckles. He glanced at Meng Xuexiao’s pale face, pale with tension, then at the tightly closed gates of the Military Academy, his brow furrowing slightly.

That expression… instantly set Raven’s already taut nerves on edge.

Even now, he vividly remembered the linguistic traps the Silver-Haired Man had laid for him, which was why he remained wary and vigilant.

Just as he had inadvertently glimpsed in the Main Body’s memories, the Main Body was far more dangerous than he had imagined. Even in its current fragmented and weakened state, it remained a threat.

Moreover…

The Silver-Haired Man’s current gaze was identical to the one he had given Raven when he had defended Meng Xuexiao, questioning whether Raven had lost his mind.

Raven knew exactly what the man was puzzled by.

Earlier, Meng Xuexiao had declared his desire to return to the Federation Military Academy. Yet now, standing at the entrance, he suddenly claimed he didn’t want to go in.

This hesitation, caution, and wavering were typical of a young man—qualities the aloof Main Body had never understood.

Having stood at the pinnacle for far too long, the Main Body had never experienced the joys, sorrows, anger, or happiness of humans or Alien Beasts, nor had it ever deigned to learn or understand such emotions.

Thus, Raven, whom the Main Body had previously dismissed as mentally deficient, was now being brutally choked, his soul and spirit forcibly torn open to allow the Main Body to probe and observe.

He felt like a laboratory specimen crudely dissected.

For the Main Body showed no mercy to anyone, just as it had never shown mercy to this world.

Even Raven, a 2S-Class being, felt a dull ache in his spiritual sea.

He couldn’t imagine what would happen if the Main Body invaded Meng Xuexiao’s soul. The young man’s spirit might be utterly incinerated the moment it came into contact with the Main Body.

Instinctively, Raven gripped Meng Xuexiao’s wrist tightly, his power spreading outward to envelop the young man like a protective cocoon.

No matter what, he had to safeguard Meng Xuexiao’s soul.

Raven’s sudden movement startled the already tense Meng Xuexiao, nearly causing him to stumble.

What’s happening now?

Just as Meng Xuexiao’s questioning gaze was about to land on Raven, a flat, indifferent voice cut through the air, “You… don’t want to go in?”

There was even a hint of confusion in his gaze.

“Huh?” Meng Xuexiao, who had already turned halfway away, snapped his gaze back to the Silver-Haired Man.

The man tilted his head slightly to the side, his eyes narrowing, but surprisingly, the light in them wasn’t sharp; instead, it carried a trace of bewilderment.

He resembled a lion king, newly awakened from sleep, yawning groggily atop the highest rock.

Even… a little cute.

Wait, wait, wait—what on earth was he thinking?

Meng Xuexiao hastily reined in his thoughts. Even if he were mad, he couldn’t possibly find this dangerous figure cute!

This must be some kind of disguise, a deeply meaningful hint, or more likely, a threat—just like the one he had used against Raven earlier…

Meng Xuexiao immediately grew more tense, obsessively dissecting the man’s words, chewing them over from beginning to end and back again, desperate to catch any hidden implications.

After endless repetition, almost grinding the words to pulp, he finally caught a faint clue, “So, does that mean I could actually go in?”

Wait a minute…

Meng Xuexiao froze, startled by the hidden implication that had slipped out.

This… this… how is that even possible?

Could he have misinterpreted something?

The young man immediately clamped his mouth shut, biting his lower lip in fear of letting another sound escape.

Unbeknownst to Meng Xuexiao, the moment he asked that question, his entire being seemed to light up, as if a lively sparrow had taken residence in his eyes.

It was an instinctive reaction, impossible to conceal.

Even now, despite biting his lip and rigidly restraining himself, the slight forward lean of his upper body betrayed his true feelings.

The silver-haired man observed everything, his brow furrowing even more deeply.

So, Meng Xuexiao doesn’t not want to go in, he just assumed I wouldn’t let him?

I’ve already brought him to the gates of the Federation Military Academy. Does it really make such a difference whether he enters or not?

He had so easily placed Him in the role of the perpetrator in his mind, as if… He might bully him at any moment.

Could it be that he had been too harsh with Raven earlier, scaring Meng Xuexiao?

If he didn’t make His stance clear now, would this Human start overthinking things again?

Thus, the Silver-Haired Man slightly lifted his chin, “If you want to come in, then come in.”

After a pause, he added, “If you want to move back in and resume classes, that’s fine too.”

Might as well make everything clear at once, he thought, to prevent this Human from overthinking things further.

Meng Xuexiao’s eyes widened instantly, like freshly peeled longans, radiating a dewy, luminous quality.

The Young Man cautiously took a step forward, then quickly retreated, his eyes darting around as he asked the Silver-Haired Man again, “R-really? Really?”

He maintained his hesitant, timid demeanor, but the Young Man’s ulterior motives were now glaringly obvious.

It was like a child meticulously writing down a promised gift and pestering the promiser to sign and seal it. Later, if the promiser regretted their word, the signed and sealed paper could be produced as proof.

Meng Xuexiao thought, given the Silver-Haired Man’s power, he was likely a person of status. Such a person wouldn’t stoop to deceiving a mere F-Class human like himself, would they?

A verbal promise should suffice.

The young man’s heart pounded as his entire focus remained fixed on the Silver-Haired Man. Because of this, he failed to notice Raven’s grip on his wrist suddenly tighten.

Has Meng Xuexiao gone mad?!

Perhaps demanding a promise meant nothing to others, but to the Main Body—accustomed to absolute freedom and unrestrained by any constraints—it was a form of coercion.

The Main Body, coexisting with the world’s consciousness, inherently transcended the entire world. It needed make no promises to anyone, nor did anyone have the right to demand such promises from it.

Even the world itself was no match.

If the Main Body were to unleash its wrath…

Raven pondered for a moment before turning his gaze toward the Federation Military Academy behind him.

In the instant of spiritual communion with the Main Body, he realized there were two other fragments here. If he could devise a strategy to unite them, the three fragments might be able to restrain the Main Body’s fury.

Raven prepared to retreat slowly toward the Federation Military Academy, guiding Meng Xuexiao with him.

To execute his plan, he needed to get closer to those two fragments.

As it turned out, Raven’s intuition was correct.

The Silver-Haired Man raised his hand, and a pulsating orb of silver-blue light materialized between his palms, shimmering like rippling water.

Even from a distance, Meng Xuexiao could sense the purity of the energy contained within.

Having piloted mecha himself, he had witnessed the refinement of mecha energy firsthand. Vast quantities of energy were compressed countless times to increase its density. Yet even after hundreds of cycles of purification, it could never reach the level of purity contained within the orb in the man’s hand.

Could a mortal being truly achieve such a feat?

This… this can’t be a God, can it?!

The overwhelming energy pressed down on him, crushing any will to resist. This was absolute, high-level suppression.

Meng Xuexiao felt his consciousness sink into a deep abyss, his feet rooted to the spot.

He could only hear Raven’s futile growls beside him, “Move your legs! Just move! Come with me—”

In the next instant, a silver-blue light engulfed Meng Xuexiao’s senses. All he could hear was the “pop, pop, pop” of bubbles rolling around him as cool water gradually immersed him, flowing through his limbs and bones.

“I won’t bully you, nor will I deny my promise.”

The faint, cool voice mingled with the bubbling sounds, seeping into Meng Xuexiao’s ears. The silver-blue light gradually receded, leaving only a pair of silver-white pupils before him.

The man reached out and touched Meng Xuexiao’s collarbone, his touch icy cold.

“This is my promise.”

A silver-blue flash erupted, leaving a faint, teardrop-shaped mark on the young man’s milky-white collarbone.

A promise…?

All this grand spectacle just to make a promise?

Meng Xuexiao felt somewhat bewildered.

He had heard before that some non-human beings, when making solemn promises, would imprint a mark belonging to themselves on the person receiving the promise. This served as a kind of contract, binding the promiser and signifying that the commitment would remain valid forever.

Still uneasy, Meng Xuexiao quickly reached out to touch the location of the mark. It felt warm and smooth against his skin, leaving no particular sensation on his body.

It shouldn’t be harmful to humans, right?

Perhaps, as the Silver-Haired Man had said, it was merely a promise.

But the spectacle was still excessive, wasn’t it? It felt like having the other party’s stamp branded onto his body…

All I wanted was a verbal assurance…

“Uh, thank you…?”

Though this wasn’t what Meng Xuexiao had initially wanted, he felt compelled to express gratitude under the pressure.

At least I have to maintain appearances. If I anger him, it’ll be a greater loss, and all this frustration will have been for nothing…

Meng Xuexiao gave a slight bow, adopting a perfectly standard posture of gratitude, as if utterly honored…

But the young man’s foot, hidden inside his shoe, was nearly tearing through his sock.

Though the sounds and movements were barely perceptible, the silver-haired man heard them clearly.

It was like a kitten, pushed to its limit of frustration but unable to defy its provider, scratching and clawing at the ground in suppressed resentment.

In short… it was a bit… disdainful.

The silver-haired man paused, his gaze lingering on the mark that occupied half of Meng Xuexiao’s collarbone.

The mark rose and fell with the collarbone’s movements, seeming to come alive with each breath the young man took.

This mark was based on those of other races, whom he had studied as the world’s firstborn beings, leaving a rare, deep impression on him.

He remembered that creatures bearing these marks always seemed happier. He had hoped this mark would at least make Meng Xuexiao less afraid of him—at the very least, not see him as an aggressor.

Now, not only had it failed to work, but it seemed to have made the young man even more resentful.

“If you don’t want to thank me, then don’t.”

The silver-haired man’s lips straightened into a thin line as he shifted his gaze from the mark.

Such trivial things… they’ll never amount to anything.