She bowed slightly. "I'm sorry, that's not part of my job."
"Then what would it take for you to give it to me?" The young man's voice suddenly rose.
The girl didn't answer. She simply turned and walked away.
"What kind of service attitude is this?" The young man was instantly worked up, slamming the table. "Get your manager over here!"
The students nearby all glanced over, but none dared step in to intervene.
Oh, but Arthur would.
In broad daylight, and someone was still harassing a girl?!
Arthur walked straight over, his voice even more overbearing than the young man's.
"Hey, who do you think you are, acting so full of yourself?"
Seeing Arthur looking like some kind of thug, the golden-haired young man frowned. "Mind your own business."
With two heads of yellow hair squaring off against each other, everyone in the shop instantly perked up, ready to watch the show.
Arthur tucked his hands into his pockets, his cowlick swaying with the motion, and deliberately leaned in close to the young man's face, his tone thoroughly nonchalant. "My business? Someone's causing trouble on my turf, and you call that none of my business?"
He pointed at the girl who was about to leave, raising an eyebrow. "The lady clearly turned you down, and you're still pestering her. Where's your shame?"
The golden-haired young man's face darkened, a note of impatience creeping in. "It's not up to some snot-nosed brat to lecture me on what I do. Do you know who I am?"
Comparing backgrounds?
Arthur immediately perked up. "Well, do you know who I am?!"
"You're a student of Shrek Academy, aren't you? I bet with one word I could get you expelled."
Ya Li had his back; his standing was equal to the Outer Court Dean's. Was this brat really trying to throw that around?
"You!" The golden-haired young man had never met anyone this arrogant and was about to blow up.
Just then, the shop manager hurried over. "Both of you, please stay calm."
Then, turning to the young man, she apologized. "I'm sorry, we can't disclose our employees' private information."
"Then how do I get it?" the young man pressed.
"There's no way, under any circumstances. Please don't put us in this position." The manager's tone was polite but firm.
A flash of golden light crossed the young man's eyes as an invisible pressure spread outward. "Get your boss over here."
Oh?
Arthur let out a cold snort, scattering that pressure instantly. The manager shot him a grateful look before hurrying off.
At the same time, the Red Dragon Furnace Heart within Arthur's body pulsed, and with each rhythmic beat, a terrifying Soul Pressure made the young man's face change abruptly.
With a muffled grunt, the young man was on the verge of collapsing to his knees.
A middle-aged man suddenly rose from not far away, and in the next instant appeared at the young man's side, steadying him.
The middle-aged man rested a hand lightly on the golden-haired young man's shoulder, a warm, gentle Soul Power flowing out slowly, though it did little good.
His expression turned to shock, and when he looked at Arthur, his eyes carried both scrutiny and confusion.
Arthur showed not the slightest sign of backing down, and the two of them simply stared each other down.
After a long moment, just as everyone thought the two were about to clash,
the middle-aged man's face suddenly lit up with delight. "Arthur? Young Master Arthur?"
Young Master Arthur?
The crowd was stunned. Was there a twist coming?
But some had already caught on to the name Arthur and began studying him more closely.
Wasn't this the uncrowned king of the Young Genius Rankings? Ranked second, though everyone agreed he ought to be first.
A few of the freshmen also recognized him, this was the senior who had scored their entrance exam, remarkably kind and approachable, and had given them far higher scores than either Old Li or Zhuo Shi had.
The young man looked up at the steward in disbelief. Why are you switching sides on me?
"Do I know you?"
Arthur looked somewhat puzzled.
"This humble one is Sun Bo. You should have met me when you were a child, young master."
As a child?
Arthur's mind whirled. After racking his brain for a while,
it suddenly clicked.
He remembered now. He had gone to his mother's side of the family a few times back then.
Namely, the Holy Angel Family.
Sun Bo was one of the stewards within the clan.
"I've got some impression of you." Arthur nodded thoughtfully, then turned to look at the young man.
So this meant...
Arthur narrowed his eyes, studying the golden-haired young man. The longer he looked, the more he noticed that unmistakable "born with holy light" air of the Holy Angel Family in his features. He suddenly clapped his hands. "Oh, I remember now! You're that kid, Yue Zhengyu, aren't you?"
Yue Zhengyu's face changed drastically. He remembered too.
That was a memory from many years ago.
Every time Arthur had come to visit the clan, he had been the nightmare of all the younger children.
None of the kids could ever outplay him.
He had a real talent for tricking children, undeniably the little demon of the family.
Yue Zhengyu's face flushed a deep liver red as he suddenly remembered something else: by generational rank, Arthur was actually a generation above him.
He was supposed to call Arthur "Granduncle"!
That was how big clans worked. No one could ever be sure whether some random kid in the family might actually outrank them in seniority.
The owner, summoned over by the manager, walked up and asked, "Is there something I can help you with?"
Yue Zhengyu stayed silent, his mind currently a complete mess.
Arthur, on the other hand, waved a hand with a cheerful laugh. "It's fine, it's fine, nothing to see here, quite the misunderstanding, turns out we're practically family."
He withdrew the Soul Pressure he'd been exerting on Yue Zhengyu and stepped forward to grip his shoulder. "Sorry about that, kid, your uncle didn't recognize you just now. Let me apologize."
"You!" Yue Zhengyu's eyes went wide.
"Hm?" Arthur tilted his head. "What's with all this 'you, you, you'? So rude. What are you supposed to call me?"
Yue Zhengyu ground his teeth for a long moment before finally squeezing out a voice smaller than a mosquito's whine. "Grand... granduncle..."
"There we go~" Arthur drew the words out, deliberately patting his shoulder, hard enough to make Yue Zhengyu wince and bare his teeth. "Good nephew, so obedient. And don't blame your uncle for roughing you up a little, harassing a girl like that was wrong of you."
Sun Bo hurried forward to smooth things over. "Young Master Arthur, Young Master Yuezheng is still young and doesn't know better. Please don't hold it against him."
"Of course I won't hold it against him." Arthur turned to the owner. "It's all sorted now, boss. Just a little misunderstanding."
The owner nodded quickly. "Good, good, as long as it's all sorted."
Arthur hauled Yue Zhengyu, half dragging him, toward the table where his friends had originally been celebrating. "Come on, everyone, let me introduce you. This is my dear nephew, Yue Zhengyu, young master of the Holy Angel Family."
Yue Zhengyu struggled to stand up, but Arthur held him firmly in place. "Hm? Not giving me any face?"
Left with no choice, Yue Zhengyu had to sit obediently.
Xie Xie held back a laugh and extended a hand. "Hey there, hey there, I'm Xie Xie."
The others nodded and greeted him as well.
Gu Yue merely gave him a light glance, which counted as a greeting.
"Alright, go apologize to that girl later, and we'll call it even." Arthur shook his head with a sigh. "Lucky for you you're my nephew. If it were anyone else, I'd have flattened them already."
"No way!" Yue Zhengyu panicked.
"Why not?"
Yue Zhengyu hesitated for a moment before saying, "I suspect she's an Evil Soul Master."
An Evil Soul Master!
Arthur had to admit, for a split second, he tensed up.
Who's an Evil Soul Master? I'll end their life with a single sword strike.
But he calmed down almost immediately after.
After thinking it over, Arthur called out to the girl not far away, who had gone back to work. "Yuanen Yehui?"
The girl's hand froze on the tray she was carrying, and she turned around. "Is something wrong?"
Just as he thought.
"No, never mind."
Arthur reached out and patted Yue Zhengyu's head. "Don't overthink it. I know her. She's not an Evil Soul Master."