God's Descent in the Magical City

Chapter 38: Pursuit on a Rainy Night

Alai and his companions returned to the inn and explained their situation to the welcoming innkeeper.

Upon hearing that they had missed the last bus, the innkeeper quickly served them tea and sunflower seeds, asking them to wait in the lobby while he arranged their rooms.

Fangfang noticed two men sitting at a table in the corner, behaving suspiciously. They were smoking and drinking tea, occasionally glancing over at their group. She quickly whispered to Alai, "I saw those two at the bus station. They brushed past me and even tried to take advantage of me. I didn't expect them to follow us here."

Alai dismissed her concern with a chuckle, "With the Thunder God by your side, what are you afraid of?"

A short while later, the innkeeper led them upstairs and opened two adjacent rooms—Room 007 and Room 008. After settling them in, he went back downstairs to tend to his other tasks.

Downstairs, the innkeeper politely approached the two men in the corner and said, "It's getting late, and the weather's turning bad. It's about to rain. You should head home soon; we're closing up for the night." He started placing chairs on the tables, preparing to clean up.

One of the men sneered, "What, you trying to kick us out?"

The other man coldly added, "Give us a room next to those monks, the one in Room 007."

The innkeeper's heart sank. He replied calmly, "I'm sorry, but all the rooms are taken."

The first man's eyes flashed with anger as he stood up. "I'll smash your place up if you don't find us a room!"

The innkeeper, realizing he had no choice, quickly tried to appease them. "Let me check again."

The second man grabbed the innkeeper's hand, slipping a ten-yuan note into his palm. "No need to check. We want Room 007. I like the number, and the location is perfect. It's an excellent room, so make it happen."

Seeing the innkeeper hesitate, the man handed him another ten-yuan note.

With no other option, the innkeeper quietly went back upstairs and knocked on Alai's door, explaining the situation.

He told them that these two men were local troublemakers, known for being idle and causing problems. The innkeeper didn't want to provoke them.

Alai, though irritated, didn't want to cause trouble for the innkeeper either. He sensed that these two men were up to no good and, for safety, decided to let Fangfang take his room while he and the monks shared the other room.

Since Alai, Miyuki, and Mirei would be meditating through the night, he suggested that Fangfang stay in his room for the night.

The innkeeper, relieved that the issue was resolved, happily went downstairs and signaled the two men to follow him. He then settled them into Room 007.

After finishing the cleaning, the innkeeper noticed the wind picking up outside and quickly closed the door.

As he was locking up, he spotted several shadowy figures lingering near the entrance. They vanished as soon as he shut the door.

Suddenly alert, the innkeeper quietly went to the back courtyard and locked the small iron gate.

Just then, a flash of lightning lit up the sky, revealing several men crouching nearby. Startled, the innkeeper quickly closed the gate and rushed back to the lobby, gulping down some tea to calm his nerves.

He couldn't shake the feeling that Alai had gotten himself into trouble again and was now being targeted. He feared that something terrible was going to happen tonight.