Kou was not dumb. She had quickly understood that Li Zhi would want to be somewhere else, so she quickly pulled the girl away. It might have been a little rude to Xie Kiel, but she would come back later to talk to him properly.

They, however, did not get too far. The boy, Fu Tengfang, was quickly catching up, and he and the twins rushed in front of them to cut off their path, an action that brought Kou to stop and narrow her eyes. She knew this kind of person. On the streets, there was always that one "smart" kid that got some huge grunts with him and started to command everyone in his self-importance. In the end, it was always the weak that would try to force their own wills on the weaker, well at least in Kou's head.

"You stop right there, street-rat. Give me the weapons. I shall compensate you with 50 spirit stones for it, so you can bugger off afterward." He sounded like he was doing her a great service with this, for her it sounded like, "You may eat a few crumbs of the bread you stole but the loaf is mine, hand it over or I'll punch you."

She just stood there for a while, looking at him as if he were a bit stupid in the head before she spoke to him for the first time. "These daggers are made for me. They are made for my hands... so," She looked at the boy. He was smaller than the twins but still bigger than Kou, at least half a head bigger, like most children her age were.

Then she silently looked down to his hands. "You... must have really tender hands for a boy."

Her words left the boy stunned. Li Zhi opened her mouth and closed it again, the corners of her lips twitching, and the twins had trouble to keep their laughter down. Just to hammer the point in even further, Kou raised her left hand, it was small and seemed very delicate.

Fu Tengfang's face went from red to green and back to red. He stamped his feet on the ground. What was he supposed to say now?! "I... I'm buying these for a girl of course! So, hand them over! Now!"

Kou rubbed the back of her head looking at the boy. Why was he so angry about all of this? Whatever the reason, her stubbornness kicked in and she shook her head. "Not giving." She then simply passed by the three of them. The street was wide enough that he would have needed at least three more sets of twins for her to not get by.

Fu Tengfang quickly got in her way. "You will give them to me! You dirty rat, stealing is all you can do after all! I challenge you to a duel!"

The peace period was still not over – it would last for another few weeks – but that did not mean children could not fight at all. There were official duels from time to time, overseen by protectors who would stop the fight before it got out of hand.

Kou's left eyelid twitched and her golden eyes focused on the boy for a moment. From what she could tell he was just like her: at the very top of the first realm, maybe already half a step into the second. The two of them fighting would come down to who had the better arts, a fight Kou would probably lose.

She cut him off before he could go any further in his explanation of the "duel." ... "Fine, I accept." The boy’s eyes shone, but he was quickly put down by her next words: "I forfeit... congratulations you won." These words stunned Fu Tengfang. He stood there, eyes wide. How could anyone just do that! Was her face worth nothing to her? It was so shameful!

As Fu Tengfang's world view was crumbling, Kou used the chance to grab Li Zhi who just timidly stood by the side, and made a dash for it. The two twins didn't do a damn to stop her as their little leader was just standing there stunned.

"Interesting girl, eh, Bro?" one of them whispered.

"Ay, I think little Master will probably die of anger if he keeps this up." The other brother grinned. They had been fond of Yun Kou for a while now. She was one of the only girls that still kept up with the hard physical training, after all. She also did not seem to be someone that would go after boys.

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This time they managed to escape. Once they left the Market, Li Zhi spoke up quietly, "I'm sorry I was not of any help there. My family... I can't really be rude to that person."

This was something Kou did not really understand, but she heard the frustration in Li Zhi's voice and that was enough for her to understand that the other girl was genuinely wanting to help but could not.

She curled her nose a little and smiled awkwardly. "I don't get people like him, but I can handle them on my own... you are a big help... as you are, you don't need to fight my battles for me, yes?" It was the same thing she had told Hei Tian before. Her friends seemed to have the weird misunderstanding that Kou was helpless in this world.

Kou had realized that she was not particularly intelligent compared to her peers. She was quick-witted and had streets smarts but she had no idea of the complicated things that were social interactions. Unlike her peers, she acted very foolishly and childlike from time to time. Therefore, she had mastered the ability to cover it up with her silent exterior. She was cold to most people, and that made the world just a little bit simpler.

She didn't like complicated social interactions or how people fought with each other for favors. How material possessions, appearance, or just the family someone came from seemed to make out all the worth that person had. And the gazes, sometimes full of pity, sometimes of ridicule.

She liked to cultivate, immerse herself in it and get stronger on her own. She would never be the "Street-Rat" again; would not let people take advantage of her! That was her goal – to have a peaceful life and not be dragged about by the currents of the noble houses and sects. It required one to become strong. She had understood that.

Still Kou was thankful for the few friends she had, Li Zhi among them. The girl was awkward at times – sometimes timid and shy, and at the next moment flared up in temper. It was honestly fun to be around her, and she was a lot more knowledgeable than Kou herself.

Their first interactions might have been awkward, and her being part of the group just sort of happened, but Kou valued this girl just as much as she valued Xiu Shihong or Hei Tian. For her, these people – together with Shi Shi – were maybe not family, as Kou was unable to comprehend what exactly that meant, but ... it was something close, that was for sure.

Li Zhi let out a rare smile and nodded. "I will keep that in mind, but sometimes you need to have your friends help you. That is just how friends work in the end. Everyone needs someone to rely on - even Miss Yun Kou"

Kou simply nodded and they parted ways. Kou actually felt a lot better right then, her head not hurting much anymore. Maybe the fresh air and a bit of excitement were just what she had needed. But right then there was something she had to do.

She passed by her house and vanished into the back yard. Her eyes darted around for a moment to make sure nobody was looking before she looked at her daggers properly for the first time since she got them.

They were a lot heavier than her current training weapons, and longer too. They were also rather thick - she could probably block with these without having to fear to break them – and they had small arm guards as well.

Taking each of them out of their sheaths surprised Kou a little. The blade of one of them was pitch black while the other one was white. They were expertly crafted, at least in her opinion, and it felt amazing to hold them. She playfully stabbed in front of her a few times. "Haar.. Take this! And that! Stupid spider!" She was having fun! Her ears stood tall and she grinned happily.

Still, she had to go back tomorrow and ask Kiel what they actually did. She never had gotten to that part...