FATE: Target of Grand Master

"Who?"

Xia Yan jolted awake, opened his eyes, and looked around, but saw no one.

"Were you asleep just now?"

Xia Yan patted his face, trying to clear his head.

After taking two deep breaths, Xia Yan got out of bed and left the infirmary.

"Huh? Ms. Xia? What are you doing in the infirmary? Is Sakura here?"

Xia Yan had just stepped out of the infirmary when he encountered Sakura's older brother, Matou Shinji.

"Sakura isn't here."

Xia Yan gave a brief answer.

"She's not in the infirmary?! This is unbelievable! Wait, why is she always in the infirmary? Isn't she my sister? Shouldn't she be a student? No, no, all of that is wrong. I, Shinji Matou, am an only child. I don't have a sister at all!"

Shinji Matou suddenly clutched his head, looking as if he had a splitting headache.

"Then why would I think Sakura is my sister? There must be something wrong here!"

As if to confirm something, Shinji Matou turned and ran towards the other end of the corridor without looking back.

Seeing that Shinji had almost the same symptoms as him, Xia Yan unconsciously followed after him.

"Ms. Xia, you shouldn't be running in the hallway. As a teacher, you should set a good example."

Just as Xia Yan was chasing Shinji across the hall, a figure coming down the stairs grabbed Xia Yan's shoulder.

Xia Yan turned around and saw a gloomy-looking man in black.

Teacher Ge Mu—that was the only title Xia Yan had in his mind; he didn't remember the other person's full name.

"I heard you weren't feeling well, so you shouldn't be doing strenuous exercise. The director asked me to tell you that he's approved your leave, allowing you to leave school and go home to rest. Come back to school tomorrow."

"Thank you for informing me, Mr. Kuzuki. I will be leaving the school shortly."

Xia Yan wanted to check on Shinji's condition first, but found that his shoulder was being held tightly by Teacher Ge Mu, and he couldn't move.

"The director asked me to take you to the school gate."

Under the imposing presence of Teacher Ge Mu, Xia Yan could only walk step by step toward the school gate.

The moment Xia Yan stepped out of the school gate, he felt time fly by. When he regained consciousness, it was already the next day when he entered the school gate.

The headache was a little better than yesterday, but it still came on intermittently. However, what Xia Yan found even stranger was that he had absolutely no memory of the period between leaving school yesterday and entering the school gate today.

What is my home address?

do not know.

What did I do after I got home?

do not know.

It was as if there was no action taken after leaving school, and that one immediately returned to school after leaving.

It hurts!

Headaches would inevitably strike whenever Xia Yan started thinking about these unease-inducing questions, as if some kind of law was preventing him from questioning his surroundings.

However, the more obstacles there are, the more determined Xia Yan becomes to uncover the truth.

Having learned from yesterday's experience, Xia Yan decided that he had to act as normally as possible today, no matter what.

As a student teacher, Xia Yan did not have the duties of a homeroom teacher. During the morning assembly, she patrolled between the second-grade classes.

By checking the class roster, Xia Yan confirmed that Shinji was a student in Class 2-A. However, during his rounds, Xia Yan did not see Shinji in the classroom.

"Oh, Ms. Xia, are you feeling better?"

Xia Yan and Ying met again in the corridor.

"I'm much better, thank you for your concern."

Xia Yan tried his best to appear as if everything was alright.

"Really? That's great. If you feel unwell again, please don't push yourself. You can come to the infirmary anytime."

Sakura's gentle voice was like a warm breeze.

"Yes, I will."

"By the way, if Teacher Xia is confused, why don't you take a look at the end of the corridor on the other side of the first-floor infirmary? You might find something there."

Xia Yan, who was about to get rid of Matou Sakura, stopped and turned around to ask her a question, only to find that Matou Sakura, who should have been behind him, had already disappeared.

At the end of the corridor on the first floor.

Yesterday I wanted to go in that direction but was stopped by Mr. Ge Mu. How could I have overlooked such an obvious problem?

We must investigate that place!

Xia Yan quickened his pace, but just as he reached the corner at the end of the first-floor corridor, a familiar figure blocked his way.

"Teacher Xia, the director wants to see you."

Teacher Ge Mu's gloomy face reappeared in front of Xia Yan.

"I'll be there in a bit."

Xia Yan replied naturally and then walked around Ge Mu to continue forward.

"Stop right there, the director wants you to go right now."

Ge Mu reached for Xia Yan's shoulder again, but Xia Yan nimbly dodged it.

"I told you, I'll be there in a bit."

This action startled Ge Mu, but he immediately turned to face Xia Yan and warned in a very cold tone, "Teacher Xia, if you take another step forward, don't blame me for being impolite."

Xia Yan narrowed his eyes and looked at Ge Mu.

"Mr. Kuzuki, are you threatening me? What secret lies ahead that makes you keep obstructing my path?"

"What happened before is not something you should know. If you knew everything, our peaceful life here would be destroyed. Are you sure you've thought this through? If you go back now, I'll pretend nothing happened."

With his hands behind his back, Ge Mu slid a dagger out of his sleeve, ready to attack Xia Yan at any moment.

"A secret is a secret not only because of its content, but also because it cannot be known by others. Once people know of its existence, it loses half its significance as a secret. So, stop joking around. Things have come to this point; do you really think you'll let me go?"

Having his intentions exposed by Xia Yan, Ge Mu snorted and then raised his right hand, pointing the dagger at Xia Yan's heart.

clang!

Ge Mu's pupils contracted, because Xia Yan had suddenly produced two short swords, one black and one white, in his hand. At this moment, the black sword was blocking his dagger, while the other white sword was stabbing towards his neck.

Ge Mu immediately stepped back, watching Xia Yan warily.

What's wrong with this person?

His combat skills were in no way inferior to those of the assassin himself.

Xia Yan himself was also a little surprised.

In that instant, Xia Yan felt a tremendous sense of crisis. Then, as if his body had a memory, it automatically summoned the black and white twin swords that looked very familiar but whose names he couldn't recall. He then skillfully executed a defense and a counterattack.

Ge Mu gripped his dagger tightly and charged forward again, aiming straight for Xia Yan's face.

Without thinking, Xia Yan still relied on his body to act, and his body did not disappoint his brain. He swung his knife and deflected the dagger again, then kicked Ge Mu in the abdomen, causing the gloomy man to stagger back several steps.

Xia Yan spread his arms and threw out the black and white swords in his hands, which flew towards Ge Mu in two arcs.

"Assassin!"

Sensing danger, Ge Mu let out a low shout.

Clang! Clang!

A young man with red hair, dressed in a matching red robe, appeared in front of Ge Mu and easily knocked Xia Yan's twin swords away.

Without a moment's hesitation, the moment Xia Yan saw the young man who exuded a murderous aura, his body reacted faster than his brain.

run away!

This is not an opponent he can handle!

Even a moment's hesitation could mean the sudden death of one's own.

Xia Yan naturally fled towards the dead end of the corridor. Even when faced with a life-or-death situation, Xia Yan maintained sufficient rationality.

He had no choice now. If he ran towards the hall, Xia Yan was certain that the young man would kill him as soon as he appeared in front of others. His only way out was to run in the direction that Ge Mu had been blocking his way.

The dead end of the corridor looked like a solid wall, but Xia Yan, with a confidence that seemed to come from nowhere, rushed past it without slowing down at all.

"Assassin, kill him!"

Ge Mu issued another order, and almost at the same moment, the red-haired youth appeared behind Xia Yan in a flash.

Even without looking, Xia Yan could feel the murderous intent emanating from behind him that made every hair on his body stand on end, but he still ran towards the wall as fast as he could.

Just as Xia Yan was about to crash into the thick wall, a door resembling an emergency exit appeared on the wall.

Xia Yan, sprinting at high speed, burst through the door. Just as he broke through the door, a powerful punch landed on him.

He instinctively twisted his body slightly and used his left arm to block, which barely saved his life.

Even so, Xia Yan still felt intense pain coming from his left arm and left sternum.

Xia Yan, who was blasted into the room by the red-haired youth, rolled three or four times on the ground until he crashed into the wall on the other side and came to a stop.

"Cough...cough..."

Xia Yan looked at the blood he coughed up from his palm, but his eyes became clearer and clearer.

The unease and discomfort, as if false information had been forcibly inserted into his brain, disappeared, and Xia Yan finally remembered everything.

His name is Xia Yan, and he is one of the many Masters who were pulled into the Master Trial by BB. At this moment, he should be in the "Special Trial" that BB temporarily added.