Xie Sen ran as fast as he could, but Maine was no longer in sight. He made his way through the corridor and out of Kes's house.
A beam of light suddenly lit up in the parking lot to the right of Kes's house—the light of a night shuttle starting up. He looked over and saw Maine's shuttle take off.
He quickly hailed a bus and pointed at it, which was about to disappear from view. "Driver, catch up with him as fast as you can."
The driver immediately sped up, glancing in the rearview mirror. "Why are you chasing him?"
Xie Sen, guessing the driver was worried he was stalking someone, replied simply, "He's hurt and angry."
Seeing Xie Sen's anxious eyes and his thin figure, the driver jokingly said, "He had a fight with his boyfriend."
Xie Sen was in no mood for jokes. Thinking of Maine's injuries and his final expression, his heart ached, and he couldn't help but worry.
"Can you go faster?" he urged.
"That's the maximum speed. Don't worry, we won't get lost. He can only go this fast."
Xie Sen activated his bracelet to contact Maine, but all his messages and communications fell on deaf ears. There was no response, and the shuttle ahead didn't slow down at all.
The two shuttles raced forward, one in front of the other, overtaking countless others along the way. Twenty minutes later, the driver frowned, "Where does your friend live? If we keep going, we'll be out of the city. Public shuttles can't leave."
Xie Sen grew even more worried, hoping Maine would stop in time. Outside the city lay a vast, desolate forest, and entering it at night was too dangerous.
His hopes were dashed. Maine's shuttle, pausing briefly at the city gate, then sailed straight out, forcing his own shuttle to park in a parking lot at the edge of Star City.
Xie Sen paid and hurriedly exited the car, completely ignoring the driver's warnings behind him about the dangers of leaving the city at night.
He ran to the city gate but was stopped. "You can't leave."
"I have a permit!" Xie Sen anxiously glanced outside, producing proof.
"A junior, right? To leave the city alone, you need not only a permit but also the necessary skills. You need at least three Beast Masters of D rank or higher." The officer checking his ID glanced at him. "To go out alone, you need at least a B-rank contracted Beast Master."
Xie Sen thought to himself, "What a close call!" He pulled up his ID information: "I'm a B-rank!"
The officer looked surprised. After reviewing his information, he looked him over. "Are you sure you want to go out alone? It's dangerous at night. Your safety is entirely your responsibility when you leave the city."
Xie Sen's patience was almost exhausted. "I'm sure. Can I go out?"
"Yes." He met the requirements and his attitude was firm. The officer had no reason to stop him, so he nodded.
Xie Sen took two steps outside and turned back to ask, "I saw someone drive a shuttle in. Where will they park it?"
A shuttle couldn't be driven in the forest, so there must be a place to park it.
"After you get out, go right. There's a parking lot at the edge of the forest. Hunters usually park there."
"Thank you," Xie Sen said, turning on the flashlight on his bracelet and running to the right.
Outside the city gates lay a vast expanse of flat land, a protective zone between the city and the forest. If a wild animal emerged from the forest, it would be immediately visible, with no place to hide.
It took Xie Sen fifteen minutes to reach the parking lot. There were few shuttles in the lot, and he immediately spotted Maine's shuttle near the edge of the forest.
He ran over, but Maine wasn't in the shuttle; only a trail of blood had been left on the ground.
Panting, Xie Sen followed the trail into the forest. A moment later, a bird suddenly flew overhead, shrieking. He jumped, his heart racing.
The night forest had a quiet clamor, the strange chirping of birds and insects making Xie Sen's mind wander. He called Maine's name as he walked.
"Maine..."
"Maine..."
The forest seemed like a gaping mouth, swallowing his calls whole. He received no response.
Xie Sen walked for another twenty minutes, feeling extremely tired. Although he had lights, it wasn't as good as during the day, and he tripped over tree roots several times along the way.
He followed the trail of blood when suddenly, his steps abruptly stopped. His face paled, and he instinctively took two steps back.
Not far ahead stood a black-skinned, ferocious-looking beast. It stood about a meter tall, sturdy, with sharp teeth and a pair of green eyes staring at him.
Xie Sen's heart nearly stopped, and he instinctively held his breath.
The beast stared at him for a moment, then lowered its head and licked the leaves on the ground. It continued forward, gradually closing the distance between them.
Xie Sen's eyes widened. It was licking Maine's blood!
He bit his lip, trying not to scream, and slowly moved to the side. The beast glanced at him, then lowered its head again, occasionally raising it to lick the surrounding leaves, which were stained with Maine's blood as he passed.
The beast continued along the trail of blood, returning to the path Xie Sen had come from, without attacking him.
Xie Sen's face gradually regained its color, and he returned to his previous position, searching for any trace of Maine's blood, but found no trace of blood.
He turned back to glare at the retreating beast. If he had the strength, he would have rushed over, grabbed its neck, and yelled, "Spit it out!"
He wiped his face, turned his head to look at the dark forest in the distance, and put his hands to his mouth, shouting, "Maine, Maine! Get out, get out!"
He shouted, his heart aching and his anger tinged with anger. "Asshole, do you know I'm worried!"
He continued to walk forward, knowing that this was dangerous, but he couldn't control himself. The desire to see Maine was too strong.
He had a deeper worry. Maine's final frenzied appearance clearly showed that what happened tonight was the cause of Maine's dark turn.
Maine had been hit hard, and a person would only become more obsessed with it. He worried that Maine would fall into paranoia.
Gradually, his pace slowed, and he looked around in confusion at the almost identical scenery. He had no idea which direction to go.
He lowered his head, opened his bracelet, and tried to call again, but there was still no response.
Anxious and angry, he sent ten messages in a row.
Looking at the unresponsive bracelet, he dropped his hand in frustration.
Suddenly, the shrill howl of a wild beast came faintly from the left. The sound was already very weak when it reached him, obviously some distance away.
The howling continued, and then suddenly disappeared.
Xie Sen looked in that direction, his eyes suddenly lit up. There was a light there!
He ran in that direction without thinking. Maybe it wasn't Maine, maybe it was the hunter, but even if there was only the slightest possibility, he couldn't let it go.
The light grew brighter, and Xie Sen's eyes grew brighter. Finally, he ran to his destination, panting.
The surroundings were in chaos, blood everywhere. A huge beast lay silently on the ground, already dead.
Not far away, Maine leaned against a tree trunk, head lowered, his whole body exuding a dark aura, and his right hand held a dagger, scratching the ground again and again.
The moment Xie Sen saw him, he almost wanted to cry. He supported himself on his knees and gasped for breath.
After slowing down, he walked over to Maine and squatted down. Maine, who had been maintaining the same posture, suddenly attacked the moment Xie Sen squatted down. The dagger was against Xie Sen's neck. With just a little force, Xie Sen's life could be ended.
"Main!" Xie Sen looked at Maine in astonishment. "Are you crazy? I was worried about you to death. I ran into the forest to find you like a fool. What do you mean by this?"
"Worried about me?" Maine's delicate face was expressionless. His eyes were dark and emotionless.
"Nonsense, why else would I look for you?" Xie Sen said unhappily.
Maine stared at him, his eyes suddenly filled with shocking waves. He pressed down the dagger against his neck: "Liar, all of you are liars. I saw you smile at him!"
Xie Sen frowned in pain, confused: "Who did you smile at?"
Maine sneered neurotically: "Who else could it be? What they said is true. You will regret it after you know his identity!"
Xie Sen thought for a moment: "You are talking about Master Qiao? What a joke. You pushed me to the ground and he helped me up. I was just thanking him politely!"
He pointed at the dagger: "Let's talk it over. Put this down first. If you accidentally use too much force, I will die." Seeing Maine's cold face and motionless, Xie Sen was annoyed, "If you want to kill me, you need to keep holding the dagger? Isn't your hand tired?"
Maine hesitated for a moment and put the dagger down. Xie Sen looked at the wound on his shoulder and softened his tone a lot, "Let's go out first. You have to deal with your injuries first."
Maine did not react, but just stared at him, his expression did not change.
Xie Sen, helpless, grabbed his arm. "I know you're sad, and it's hard to let go right now, but you have to know you're not alone. I'm here with you."
Maine's eyes flickered, and he pressed the dagger to Xie Sen's neck again. Xie Sen glared at him.
What's wrong with him again? He recalled what he'd said. Nothing was wrong!
Maine leaned forward, his voice soft and dangerous. "Accompany me? That's all a lie. He said he'd accompany me when we were little, too, but he's changed. Only when you die will you truly stay the same."
Xie Sen's scalp tingled, and a sudden chill ran down his back. "Nonsense! If I were dead, I'd be the biggest liar. What's the point of accompanying someone even if
I'm dead!" "You're such a jerk! I risked my own life to come find you, and you still don't trust me!"
Maine stared at his furious face and sneered. "Trust? Ridiculous."
The two were so close, Xie Sen's nose was filled with the scent of Maine's blood. Seeing his cold eyes, the look of someone who didn't trust anyone, Xie Sen thought of Sokto and wanted to beat him to a pulp.
He said sincerely and seriously: "I said that we are brothers for life. I will not lie to you. If you don't believe me, there is nothing I can do. But... I think you should give me a chance. When you find out that I have lied to you, you can kill me. Anyway, you are fully capable of doing so."
"You..." Xie Sen saw that his expression was slightly relaxed, and was about to persuade him again, but his right hand raised uncontrollably and touched Maine's face.
At the same time, he moved his head closer to Maine who was in a daze. Their breaths entangled together. A little closer, and they were about to kiss.
Xie Sen's eyes widened. Oh my god, why did he suddenly lose control? It was already 9:20!
He had calculated the time long ago. He would wake up at 1:20 after his nap at noon, so he would be able to do it within eight hours.
Before attending the party, he and Maine agreed to return to the apartment before 8:30, but who knew that plans could not keep up with changes.
Xie Sen wanted to cry but had no tears. Four words emerged in his mind: God wants to kill me.
Now, Maine will definitely kill him!