Infinite Realm

"You are…" Hayami asked as she stared at the young man before her.

"Wu Shiyi, a frie-, an acquaintance of your brother." Wu Shiyi smiled, ignoring the error he almost made while introducing himself.

After taking on the mission passed onto him by his master, Wu Shiyi made use of his forces and influence to track down Sato's location. This wasn't difficult since Sato was never secretive about his movements. The only reason it took Wu Shiyi this long to make contact was that he had other things that occupied his time. It was only now that he was able to catch a breather and make his move.

"Okay…" Hayami gave him a weird cold look.

"Well, my brother's busy right now so could you come at a later time?"

Wu Shiyi massaged his brows as he heard that. He had finally gotten a break and was able to initiate contact but the target was not available. Wu Shiyi had other things to do and he didn't know when next he would be free to meet Sato again. If he kept on delaying the mission, his master would inevitably be annoyed at him.

"Where did he go? How long will it take him to be back? If he won't be back anytime soon, can you tell me when next I can see him?" Wu Shiyi fired question after question at Hayami.

"Wow. Chill, kiddo. You don't have to be so anxious." Old Juro commented as he walked in on the duo in the living room. 

"That little twerp is probably still gaming. If I remember correctly, he should be going offline in a while. If you plan on waiting for him, there's no problem with that. However, since we weren't expecting a guest at this time of the day, there's no table for you at the dining area, sadly."

"No problem about that." Wu Shiyi hurriedly stood up as he greeted Old Juro. 

"Old man don't be rude. There's still some time before breakfast so I could make a new plate for the kid. He did say he is Sato's friend right? I haven't seen his face before so I'm guessing he's a new one. You shouldn't treat your grandson's friends like this okay?" Alice lectured from the kitchen.

"Hai, hai. Little Hayami, go help your grandma in the kitchen." Old Juro glanced at his granddaughter.

"Alright." Hayami left the area for the two men.

Meanwhile, Wu Shiyi still kept his eyes on Old Juro.

Even though Old Juro looked like a middle-aged man, Wu Shiyi could feel an aura that entailed the vicissitudes of life from him, and together with the light in Old Juro's eyes, Wu Shiyi believed that he was much older than he seemed. Apart from that, there was this suppressed aura he felt from him that sent shivers down his spine.

'Grand-master?!'

Wu Shiyi became alert. He never expected that upon coming to Sato's household he would come face-to-face with a grand-master. Though he wasn't sure whether Old Juro was one, the feeling he gave him was almost the same as his master.

It should be known that grandmasters weren't cabbages one could find on the streets. They were high-level martial arts practitioners with fame tied around them. Wealth, influence, strength, you name it. Most grandmasters never lacked any of these unless they were the ascetic types. Even Wu Shiyi's master who followed the path of asceticism now, still possessed a large sum of wealth.

'He might not be a grandmaster but he should at least be a peak level master.' Wu Shiyi analyzed.

Old Juro noticed that there was a special light in his eyes and also saw the way Wu Shiyi stared at him but he paid no heed to it.

"You said Sato's still gaming. May I know which game that is?" Wu Shiyi suddenly put forth a strange question.

"Oh? If I remember, it should be Infinite Realm." Old Juro replied.

"Infinite Realm…" Wu Shiyi pondered. 

He recalled that his master had also said there was something strange about the game. A lot of conspiracies and plans seemed to be tied with it. While it might look simple now, it would eventually reveal its fangs. The earlier one started playing the game, the higher the benefits they would gain when the time arrives. These were his master's exact words.

'Guess I will start playing too.' Wu Shiyi decided. However, that was a matter that would be left for the future. He still had some things to settle here.

"How long will it take for Sato to be done?" Wu Shiyi asked politely.

"How long it would take him?" Old Juro repeated the question. "Probably an hour or two."

Wu Shiyi released a sigh of relief as he realized that the time was within his free period.

"Say…" Old Juro glanced at his from head to toe.

"You're a martial artist aren't you?"

"Senior could say so but this junior's attainments aren't anything to boast about." Wu Shiyi humbly replied. His current personality was a stark difference from the haughty young boss Sato had seen him as. If Sato were here, he would have found it difficult to believe that this was the same Wu Shiyi he had fought.

"Hehe. Don't use such humble silly words with me. Your gait, posture, and aura all say the same thing. You should at least be at the Master rank." Old Juro smiled, his eyes looking as if he had seen through Wu Shiyi. There was no underlying tone in his words same as when one was probing a person, instead, there was a firm declaration in them, as if he were stating a mere fact.

'This man, he's dangerous…' Wu Shiyi surmised.

"You know, I have a private dojo at the back. It would take a while till Sato's up and for breakfast to be ready. Why don't we go exchange a few pointers huh?" Old Juro said as he stood up. 

Using the momentum as an elder and the host, he made his words firm. While it looked like he was just making a suggestion to Wu Shiyi, he was just sharing his decision with him. There was no chance for Wu Shiyi to deny his proposal as it would seem disrespectful. If that were to happen, Old Juro could simply drive him out of the house and there would be nothing wrong with it.

"This man…' Wu Shiyi twitched his lips. Eventually, he let out a sigh.

"Alright."