Despite Quiyu now being free of his 'tryout period', he hasn't changed much since. He'd still butt heads with Monkey at every opportunity he had, and vice-verca. (Y/n) did notice however that the overall atmosphere has gotten lighter, which made her genuinely happy.
"I'll have you know," Monkey said, puffing up his chest. "that when I knocked on my first master's door, I introduced myself, told him where I'm from why I left and why I was here. I laid all my cards on the table. You should take a page outta my book." he nudged Qiuyu.
"Except you're no master of mine." he smiled.
"Just you wait you pink bastard! I'll have you on your knees!"
"Don't say it like that!" Nian Zhen shoved him, although he didn't move an inch. "How are you not embarrassed?!"
"Sometimes he just doesn't think before speaking." (Y/n) smiled, her eyebrows furrowed. "...Most of the time."
"Hey!"
"One day, you'll say something stupid to the wrong person." Qiuyu said.
"Is that a threat?" Monkey glared.

"And anyway," he changed the subject. "nevermind me, what about her?" he nodded towards Nian Zhen.
"What?!" her eyes widen, tense. "Why am I suddenly at the center of this?!"
"You don't know anything about her either, right? Same goes for the Horse."
The Horse tilted his head.
"The Horse doesn't talk though..." (Y/n) said. "And we do know enough about Nian Zhen. She felt forced to work with the Three-Horned Demon Lord because she believed she had no other options in life." she sniffed, getting emotional. "The poor thing didn't understand that one doesn't have to resort to terrible life choices, even if it all seems hopeless."
"Stop talking about me like I'm not even here!" the young demon said, her cheeks dusted with pink.
"Sure," Qiuyu kept looking at (Y/n). "but what about her life *before* that-"
"Let me put it in a stupid way, so that you can understand." Monkey stopped, making everyone stop in the process. "She's got more adventure points than you. You've only been with us for only a couple of days, you really think we're gonna be besties?"

"I'm just sayin'." he shrugged. "Who knows, maybe one day will come where you trust me more than her."
"You keep making those ominous predictions..." (Y/n)'s eyebrows furrowed. "And you're being very casual about them all."
"Yeah, we can do that too!" Monkey exclaimed and thought for a second. "One day... you will cry a river and go on a apologetic monologue about how you're *nothing* without us!"
"Wukong..." Nian Zhen sighed. "please."
"She's right Monkey," (Y/n) tapped him on his arm. "you have to be less categorical and more vague. Like..." she thought for a moment as she faced Qiuyu, though her gaze wandered as she choose her words. "One day... you might realize that, maybe... you yourself won't be enough, and you might feel forced to open up, even if it hurts, even if you don't even know what the result will be."
There was a moment of silence.
"Holy shit, (Y/n) that was creepy!" Monkey cackled.
"Even creepier than anything these guys said!" Nian Zhen pointed at the two men.
"Really? I didn't mean it that way." she scratched her cheek, flustered.

Qiuyu blinked twice and chuckled.
"You can't see it 'cause my arms are covered but I got goosebumps all over 'em." he said as the group began walking again.
The human huffed, assuming she was being made fun of.
"Well, that's how it feels!" she crossed her arms.
Seeing the grumpy look of her face, Monkey wrapped an arm around her, pulling her closer to him.
"You're cute when you're angry." he quietly said.
"I know Monkey," she sighed. "you say that everytime. I wonder what I should do to make you understand next time I get genuinely angry at you."
"That'll never happen because I'm the perfect boyfriend and I love you too much for you to get angry." that made her frown. "Come on~ can you really stay mad at this handsome fella?" he gestured to his bright smile.
She grabbed his collar with both her hands and quickly kissed him. The unexpectedness of it made him woozy a bit, then he snickered.

"Knew it!"
"Shut up."
"I know you~."
"I know you're a jerk."
"And you love me for it."
"I wanna break up."
"No you don't."
"Is *anything* I say going to break your spirit?"
"In this moment of bliss, with you? Nope!"
She blushed and rolled her eyes with a smile.

Our group of protagonists stopped when they came across a large river, with no bridge in sight to go across. It wouldn't have been a problem if Monkey and (Y/n) haven't pointed out the fact that neither of them could swim.
"Wait." Nian Zhen stopped everyone. "You guys don't know how to swim?"
"Don't need to." Monkey shook his head. "I can breath underwater."
"I never swam in my village's river," (Y/n) explained. "I didn't want to disturb the fisherman, and I used to be scared of scaring the fish away." she chuckled.
The young serpent demon was left speechless, she turned to Qiuyu.
"You know how to swim right?"
"That depends." he held his chin. "What do you qualify as swimmin'?"
"Swimming...in water."
"In that case..." he inhaled through his teeth, avoiding eye contact. "Not exactly."
She gagged in disbelief.

"So I'm the only one here who knows how to swim?!" she faced the whole group.
There was a moment of silence, then the Horse neighed.
"You don't count!" she pointed at him. "You're a horse!"
"Hey now." (Y/n) said as she patted the animal. "I'm sure there are plenty of people who don't know how to swim."
"But not heroes, it kinda takes away from the 'legend' aspect of the character. '(Y/n), new Golden Cicada," she spoke in a solemn voice. "savior of the world, she didn't know how to swim.'" she snickered. "Like, what?!"
"I'm no legend though, so it's okay."
"Speak for yourself!" Monkey puffed his chest. "Any flaw I have I make up for it by being a thousand times better than anyone at anything else!"
The human chuckled, while the young demon rolled her eyes.
"I say we go find a bridge already." Qiuyu said. "Unless the kid wanna give us free lessons?" he smirked with a raised eyebrow.
He received a glare from Nian Zhen.
"I agree with that first part, let's go." (Y/n) said as the group began walking along the river.

They did at some point find a village with a harbor. Lucky for them, one of the bigger boats was getting prepared to sail out. But, when asked for a ride, the captain gave a prise that made (Y/n)'s face paler. She excused herself before dragging her companions away with her.
"What's wrong?" Monkey tilted his head.
"Um... here's the thing." she looked at her newest companions. "When it was just me and Monkey, things were manageable when it came to money. He doesn't eat human food after all, so that helped. But...Now there's five of us. I alone can't afford us to get on that boat. So..." she began thinking.
"I wish I could help," Nian Zhen said, glancing to the side. "but my dad doesn't allow me to touch the family's money. Said I have to make my own money." she frowned. "And you know how my first and last job worked out."
"Right... Maybe if I ask as a nice gesture?" she touched her japamala. "The journey to the West is a pilgrimage after all."
"Have you seen how fast he said the prise?!" she whispered harshly, leaning a bit closer. "He even charged more for the horse!"
"If I may suggest," Qiuyu raised a hand. "I've never paid for anything my whole life and it was splendid. I say we sneak in."
"No." (Y/n) immediately said. "Just because we're poor does not mean we have to resort to a dishonest lifestyle."
"Plus, I'm pretty sure the Horse can't sneak...anywhere." Nian Zhen added.
"Then I got nothin'." he rolled his head.

"Guys guys guys~." Monkey wrapped an arm around (Y/n)'s and the Horse's neck. "You're not seeing what's right in front of your dumb ugly faces- Not talking to you of course you're lovely." he looked at his beloved and kissed her on the head. "And you were on the right track. As she said: we're on a pilgrimage. We're the ultimate pilgrims!"
"Yeah, 'cause fighting an insane delusional old man in the rain feels very much like a mission towards enlightenment." Nian Zhen rolled her eyes.
"Just watch." he smirked before going back to the captain.
"Oh boy." (Y/n) mumbled before speaking to the others. "We should go with him, this will result in a fight for sure."
"Will it now?" Qiuyu smiled. "Then I *gotta* see this."
They joined him in a hurry.

"Sun Wukong?" the captain raised an eyebrow. "On the journey to the West?"
"Yeah, we're back at it again! With-" he turned around, seeing that his companions have joined him, he took (Y/n)'s hand and pulled her to be beside him. "With the wise monk."
"I'm not a monk-"
"The horse that's actually a dragon." he gestured towards the Horse. "And the other two!" he pointed at the other two behind him, who both frowned.
The captain looked at each of them for a moment before smiling.
"Why, oh me oh my, how have I not realize this?" he raised his hands to the sky. "Come on on Mighty Monkey King and company."
"See?" Monkey looked back at the group. "Told you."
He began walking towards the ship, but then the captain raised his arm to stop him.

"You can't be thinking I was being serious."
"Excuse you?" Monkey frowned.
"Everybody and their mother knows the journey to the West is over and done with. And that the group of pilgrims either achieved enlightenment or retired. Do you have any idea how many time I had to deal with importers like you lots- Your pig demon isn't even ugly!" he pointed at Qiuyu. "That's one handsome fella!"
Qiuyu nodded as a silent thank you.
"Hey! I'm the handsome one here!" Monkey pointed at himself.
"And your monk is clearly fake! That's a woman!"
"That's true, I'm not a monk."
"Even *she* denies it!"

"You want proof?" Monkey straightened his back, his glare growing darker.
"Okay now." (Y/n) stood between the two men, placing a hand on her boyfriend's chest. "There's no need for violence. We're really sorry sir." she bowed her head, to which the man huffed.
"Where did you even hear this story?" Nian Zhen asked.
"Everyone knows about it."
"Someone out there is telling fake stories." she whispered to (Y/n). "That's...That's weird, right?"
"Huh..." she tilted her head. "You know what, that is weird-"
"Don't worry sir." a woman who was already on the boat said. "They're with us."
"That voice..."
(Y/n) and Monkey both gasped and looked over to see...
"Jia!" (Y/n)'s face lit up.
"Long time no see." the woman waved, leaning on the ship's rail. "Hey guys! Guess who's here?!" she looked back.

"You know her?" Nian Zhen whispered.
"She's part of a traveling band." she explained. "We met on our travel to Guan Yin's Island, they gave us a ride for a little while."
"Ooooh damn!" the rest of the band joined Jia.
"Well well well," Dishi, her husband, looked down at Monkey. "if it isn't our coach."
"If it isn't the Old Man band." Monkey smirked. "You looked even older now, how's the bald spot?"
"Screw you!!!" he glared, while the twins Wei and Wen burst out laughing.
"Oh my Lord, how are you?" (Y/n) asked, delighted to see a familiar face. "How have you guys been?"
"Good good, we got a loooot to talk about." Lim smiled.
"But we can talk about that once you join us." Jia looked back at the captain. "Let 'em in sir."
"Fine." the man rolled his eyes. "If they're your friends."
"You guys are VIP here?!"
"We're the reason this boat is sailing out in the first place!" Dishi puffed up his chest.
"Is it going across the river?" (Y/n) asked.
"Down and across yeah."
"Then we'll gladly go with you!" she smiled, then thanked the captain for letting them through.

Once on the ship there was a nice reunion where (Y/n) hugged everyone and Monkey shook their hand. Meanwhile, the three newest companions stood awkwardly in their corner, though Qiuyu was the first to move, making his way to the rails to watch the scenery, resting his forearms on it.
"So how have you two been?" Jia asked. "Your eyes are blue now!"
"Yeah!" she laughed. "We've been well, very well. Monkey has his power back, we're now on our journey to the West-"
"Uh yeah more importantly!" Monkey picked her up by the waist with a huge smile. "We've declared our undying love for each-other!"
"R-right!" she blushed, smiling. "And now we're together."
"Booya!" Jia looked at the twins. "I told you this would happen! Gimme!"
They groaned and gave her some money while she did a happy little dance.
"You guys betted on our relationship?!" Monkey frowned. "And you didn't tell me?! I would've robbed you guys blind!"
"Hey!" (Y/n) hit him, making him drop her.
"And how long have you guys been a thing?" Dishi asked.
"Um... Only a couple of weeks I think?"
"Haha~!!!" he nudged his wife. "Gimme that!" he said as he took the money from her.
"What did you bet exactly?!"

"So." he ignored her. "You got your own horse now."
"Ah! Yes!" she turned towards Nian Zhen and the Horse. "These are our new traveling companions. That's Nian Zhen."
"Hello." she made a quick wave.
"That's, we don't know what his name is, so we just call him Horse. But he seems happy with that."
The Horse neighed, enthusiastically nodding his head.
"And that's Qiuyu over there." she pointed at him. "He just recently joined us, but so far we're getting along."
"Yeah, that's a word for it." Monkey folded his arms.
"Say," Lim looked at him. "where's your staff?"
With a smug smile, he took it out of his ear, throw it in the air as it changed back to its regular size, jumped to catch it mid-air and landed with a flip. The band (except Dishi) clapped, he chuckled proudly while (Y/n) and Nian Zhen exchanged a look.

Once the ship left shore and started to cruise down the river. The two groups sat together to talk and catch up some more, except for Qiuyu, who was still a certain distance away from everyone. Our protagonists got to learn about the band's rise to fame. They weren't "famous" yet, but they got to a point where people would actively seek them out to hire them.
"And there's a local festival in the town we're going." Jia finished explaining.
"Oh that's amazing!" (Y/n) clapped lightly. "I'm so happy for you guys! You deserve it!"
"You gotta check out the festival!" Wei exclaimed.
"Yeah!" his brother nodded. "You *gotta* see our progress!"
"Oh yeah," Monkey tilted his head, looking up. "we never actually got to see the act you gave to (Y/n)'s blood family."
"Of course we will," she beamed. "there's no way we'd miss that!"

With these words, her three newest traveling companions looked at her, each one for different reason. The Horse neighed with delight and hopped around, shaking the boat around, Monkey had to calm him down.
"What do you guys say?" she turned towards them.
"Well..." Nian Zhen shifted uncomfortably. "As long as I can stay in the crowd with no attention on me, I'm good."
(Y/n)'s face lit up and she looked at Qiuyu, who's had a blank stare this whole time.
"How long will we stay there?" he finally asked.
"Oh, we can just stay the night. Then we'll be back on the road."
His eyes wandered a little bit, he took a deep breath through his nose. Then he smiled faintly.
"Ai'ght."
She and the twins cheered. He turned away from everyone and towards the horizon. He took the blade of grass out of his mouth to look at it, making it do slow spins in between his fingers. He frowned.
'I haven't been to this parts.' he thought. 'I'm sure of it.'
That made him feel a bit better.

(Y/n) looked around with a spark of wonder in her eyes. She couldn't help but giggle as she saw the town's folks preparing for the festival, putting up decoration, setting up stands and cooking food.
"I want to go help out!" she jumped up and down.
Monkey laughed wholeheartedly at her excitement and ruffled her hair.
"You don't live here, let them do their thing." he said before gently pulling her head closer so that he could kiss the top of it.
"But it feels weird to just watch them work so hard! It reminds me of the festivals back in my village, everyone would put in the work."
He laughed again.
"You really are a country girl, you know that?"
"How...How am I supposed to take this?"
"As an 'I love you' of course."
She blushed and laughed.
"I love you too!"

"You know what," Jia whispered to her husband. "they kinda remind me of us."
"...Do they now?" he said with a blank stare. "Never noticed."
"You gotta pay more attention honey." she patted his shoulder.
He sighed.
"Oh look, look!" she pointed, catching everyone's attention, at a large stage in the middle of a large space, the center of the festival. "That's the stage we'll play on!"
"Woah~! Can I?" (Y/n) pointed at it.
"Go ahead!"
She rushed to stand on it then looked at the space that will soon be filled with people.
"Wow... So cool." she said to herself.
"Yeah~! (Y/n)!" Monkey clapped. "Do a lil dance!"
"Huh?! Uh..." she scratched her cheeks, embarrassed. "No, I'm good." she said as she came down and joined the group again. "Man, I felt pressured, is that what it's like to be in a band?"
"Yep," Dishi nodded. "that time twelve."
"Wow..."

"Alright." Jia said as her band began to set up the stage. "We'll see you guys at the festival, we could get dinner together after we're done. Our treat."
"Oh yes! Thank you so much!" (Y/n) bowed. "Can't wait!"
Our group of protagonists then left for the inn, but (Y/n) wanted to take this opportunity to scout out what was in store for the festival.
"That way, we'll know where we want to go and we won't fet lost!" she said with a look of determination.
"You know what, that's actually a good idea!" Nian Zhen took out small pieces of parchments to scribble a list on one of them. "We could plan out a route and everything!"
"That's a great idea Nian Zhen! So first-" and she began to list up a few stalls that have picked her interest.

The afternoon was coming to an end and more people outside of the town have came for the festival. As they approached the inn, Qiuyu sighed through his nose and (Y/n) noticed that he's been walking closer to the group than normal.
"Are you okay?"
The sound of her voice seem to have startled him. He didn't flinch, but he looked at her with raised eyebrows.
"Mmh?"
"It's just... You haven't said anything since we got here."
"Ah." he smiled, and rubbed the back of his neck. "I'm just too used to be by myself in the middle of nature is all."
"I see..." her eyebrows furrowed. "If you don't feel like going out, you can just stay at the inn, it's okay."
He bit the inside of his cheek, fighting the urge to cuss at her. He knew better than to do that. Instead he forced a tight smile on his face.
"Nah~ come on now." he tilted his head. "Don't think you're getting rid of me just yet."

"I'll take you up on that offer." Nian Zhen raised a hand. "I'll check out the cool placed then I'm going back to the inn."
"You're not going to see the performance?" (Y/n)'s eyes widen a little bit.
"No offense, but I don't know these guys."
"Oh, yes that's understandable. But you will join us for dinner though, right?"
"Yeah sure. But you're gonna have to pick me up, I'm not doing all this way by myself."
"What are you, five?" Monkey frowned.
"It's alright, we'll come get you then." she smiled.
This whole conversation made Qiuyu look away, as he did, he could've sworn someone was looking at them. He stopped for a moment, his eyes narrowed, before the human called for him and he continued following the others.

"Holy smokes holy smokes holy smokes." the two rat demons pressed their backs onto the house's wall. "It *is* her!" one of them whispered to the other. "That's the Golden Cicada chick we've heard about!"
"Bro, we came here for scouting our future targets and we found this. You could say we found a *golden* opportunity."
"Oooohohoho!" they pointed at each-other, then he gasped. "Do we tell the boss?"
"'Course we tell the boss! You crazy?!"
"But, Sun Wukong's right there with her!" he pointed behind him with his thumb. "We're dead if we even come close to her."
"Which is why we'll need a plan."
"I see..." he slowly nodded. "So what's the plan?"
"I dunno, the boss' the one with the brain. Come on!" he hit him in the arm before leaving in the rush, his friend not far behind.

Jia, Dishi & co booked two other rooms for our group of protagonists. They joined them not long after they've arrived. As everyone was setting their luggage down and getting ready to go out again, Qiuyu simply just stood by the window, watching as the sun came down. He thought that maybe this little break would make himself feel better, but he was only left with a certain sense of dread for what was about to come. He sighed, rolling his shoulders.
"You good?"
He looked over to see Monkey on the other side of the room.
"If I say no, would that bring you joy?" he raised an eyebrow, smiling.
"You've been less of a pain in the ass these passed few hours, which makes you more suspicious actually." he narrowed his eyes. "Are you planning something?"
"I'm planning to have a good time." he looked back outside. "Who knows, maybe I've planned my own route, away from y'all."

"Well wouldn't that be convenient." he scrunched up his nose. "The question is: for who?"
Qiuyu looked at him again. He lightly shook his head and shrugged.
"You tell me, you're the one who said that."
"But you're the one with answers." he pointed at him.
"You sure like to sound poetic huh?" he smiled.
Monkey just glared.
"Relax~." Qiuyu waved a hand as he started to walk out. "I'm not gonna ruin you guys' night." he gave him a side-eyes look. "Not on purpose at least."
Before he left the room, he glanced at him one last time. Monkey, with two fingers, pointed at his own eyes, then at him. Qiuyu blinked a few times before sighing again.

The festival was celebrating the town's founding, there was a lot of neat and fun traditions such as wearing the "last flowers of Summer", in your hair, on your clothes, wherever you choose. Monkey tucked a bunch of them in (Y/n)'s hair so he could kiss her everytime he did; Nian Zhen attached one on the side of her glasses; Qiuyu put one in his mouth, letting it hang beside the blade of grass, and the Horse did the same. People were giving them weird looks for bringing a horse to the festivities, but it was very well behaved - even if he could get a little too exited sometimes, almost knocking over a stand once - so they didn't complain. Besides, when the musical band came in and started their concert, they stole the show. Monkey felt very proud of them, and (Y/n) was so happy to see them performing their craft.
"They're so good!" she said to Monkey, having to scream so that he could hear her within the cheering crowd.
"Yeah! You're welcome!" he laughed.
Being in the middle of the crowd, Nian Zhen would often have people blocking her view. She was noticeably pissed so the Horse offered her to get on his back.
"No thanks!" she said. "I told you, I don't wanna catch any attention-"
"I'll take that offer!" (Y/n) smiled. "Are you sure Nian Zhen? I can try and make myself bigger so that no one even notices you're there!"

"...That sounds mean out of context!"
"Oh! I'm sorry, I didn't mean-"
"You go first then help me up!"
(Y/n)'s face lit up and did just that. Her and the Horse happily cheered while the young demon quietly enjoyed herself.
"Hey!" people behind them complained. "We can't see shi-!"
"Then move!" Monkey raised a fist as a threat, making them yelp and go away in a rush.
He huffed with a satisfied smile and turned back to the concert. He was enjoying it just as much as the other three, which was good for Qiuyu, since he was beginning to lose it right now. No attention was on him and he knew it. Y in this moment, he felt at the center of everything, and it overwhelmed him.
'This is completely different.' he kept thinking over and over. 'This is nothing like before. The people are having fun.'
And yet, there was one commun factor: the noise. So much noise that it echoed in his mind. So much so that it gave him a headache. He clenched his fists so hard that his nails were dug into his palms. He kept staring at the people on stage without really looking at them. He wasn't even registering what he was hearing, all that matter was the volume of what he heard. He wanted to leave, but he knew that if he did, he would be at odds with everyone and he didn't want that. He thoughts went back and forth in a vicious circle.

"That was amazing!" (Y/n) said after the band's performance. "Our dinner reservation is in an hour, that gives us time to go with our route."
"I've already seen what I wanted to see before the concert." Nian Zhen said. "So we'll see you guys later, come on Horse."
The Horse shook his head.
"You're...You're staying?"
"Did you want him to accompany you?" (Y/n) asked as she hopped off his back.
"Well yeah but... I thought he'd stay at the stables."
The Horse neighed.
"The Horse's a party dude!" Monkey wrapped an arm around his neck. "I like that!"
Nian Zhen shifted a bit, humming in her hesitation.
"Then, I guess I could stay a bit longer... I guess." she mumbled.
"Aww~ Nian Zhen!" (Y/n)'s eyebrows furrowed. "You don' have to if you don't want to."
"It's fine!" she frowned, her cheeks dusted with pink. "What if I spot cool stuff that I haven't seen before?!"
The human's face lit up and she ruffled her hair.
"Gah! Don't touch me!"

Seeing their interaction, Monkey chuckled. Finally, he turned over to look at Qiuyu and his expression dropped. He didn't have any expression on his face, only his eyes were wide open and his face was paler.
"You look like you've seen a ghost dude." his remark was met with only silence. "Hey."
He reached a hand with the intention of placing it on his shoulder when-
"And now! Time for the *real* show to begin!"
Everyone looked around, confused. The crowd which was beginning to disperse now regrouped around the stage again.
"Did they change announcers?" Nian Zhen asked with a raised eyebrow. "Where even is that guy?"
"I don't know, but I am intrigued." (Y/n) smiled, facing the stage again, clapping her hands lightly.
"An act you're sure to never forget!" the voice continued.
A cloud of smoke began to slowly spread across the stage as the beat of a single drum was heard. Gradually, everyone clapped along, (Y/n) and Nian Zhen included. Another drum came in, going faster and faster and Qiuyu felt even worse. Finally, three figures appeared into the fog, two small and one bigger in the middle. The latter of which made the cloud dissipate with a movement of their arm. Three rats demons struck a pose and the crowd cheered. The drums, played by the two rats, stopped.

"It is I! The Rat King!"
"That is the coolest name I've ever heard!" (Y/n) exclaimed, the Horse seemed to share similar feelings.
That made Monkey frown.
"Thank you thank you!" the Rat King bowed a couple of times. "Ladies gentlemen and beings of all kind, we've come from far away with only one purpose!" he pointed up, illustrating his words very dramatically and really enjoying himself in the process. "To entertain, to charm... To hypnotize!" as he said that, he clapped his hands, creating a small explosion of smoke and sparkles.
An 'oooh!' echoed through the crowd following with clapping.
"How did he do that?!" (Y/n) whispered, her eyes filled with eyes.
Monkey folded his arms. To his disappointment, she was too focused on the new act to notice his sulking.

"Let us begin with an disappearing act that will fill your mind with questions about our very world!" he spun around to stand at the edge of the stage, looking over the crowd with a hand over his eyes. "Now~ now now! I am going to need an assistant from the crowd, who would like to travel to another place instantly?! Think of your dream house! Back home if you're feeling homesick! Or better yet, another realm entirely!"
A bunch of people raised their hands, shouting to get the Rat King's attention as he scanned around the crowd, all the while the two rat drummers started playing again. After a moment, the Rat King's face lit up.
"You!" he pointed, and the drums stopped on cue. "Young maiden with eyes like the sky!"

"M-Me?!" (Y/n) pointed at herself, shocked.
"Yes! Come to me child!"
"No thank you!" she spoke loudly so that he could hear her from all the way over there. "I'd rather watch!"
"Oh? But it is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity: standing besides the Rat King!" he struck a pose.
"I know, and I thank you for this opportunity! But if you don't mind, I want to *see* the act and not perform it!"
"Wha..." his expression fell.
The two rats at the back of the stage looked at each-other, panicked, before the Rat King cleared his throat.

"Yes but, this teleportation act becomes quite special when used on a young maiden with bright blue eyes."
"That's...quite specific!" she tilted her head, frowning slightly.
"The way of one's powers is mysterious like that!"
"I can have blue eyes!" he squeezed his eyes shut before opening them again, now the same color as (Y/n)'s. "Make *me* come up there! I wanna join!"
"N-no! That's cheating! It has to be her!""
"Just pick someone else!" Nian Zhen exclaimed. "She said she doesn't want to! Also *no* one here has blue eyes except her, that's not a thing you naturally find!"
The Rat King thought of something to say for a moment before groaning.
"Plan B boys! Get 'em!"

Suddenly, rats demons jumped out from every direction, every hiding spot imaginable. They all seemed to really enjoy scaring people.
"Rampage the place!" the Rat King pointed around. "And take the girl!"
"Finally!" Monkey's face lit up. "A valid reason to hate this guy!"
"Keeeh!!!" the two small rats yelped.
"Ah shit!" the Rat King ran away.
Monkey cracked his knuckles and cackled with excitement as he made his way to the stage. Meanwhile, the people panicked, screamed and ran, pushing anyone out of their way. Someone pushed Nian Zhen so hard she fell down.
"Nian Zhen!" (Y/n) exclaimed, going against the current of the crowd to get back to her.
She extended a hand as far as she could, grabbing her by the back of her collar and pulling her up.
"Horse!" she hurriedly placed her on his back. "Get her somewhere safe quick!"
He noted before running away.
"Everyone!!!" she shouted. "Follow the horse!"

Most people listened, but now that the place has cleared up a bit, the rat demons could more easily get to her. Seeing some of them coming for her, she took a fighting stand.
"Qiuyu, we-" she looked over and her eyes widen when she saw the look on his face.
He was clenching the fabric of his robe, over his heart. He was shaking. Now, this was exactly like before, people screaming and running. Why did he think this wasn't gonna happen? They're a traveling group, they were bound to go through civilization. Why did he think this would go smoothly? He hated this. Everything about this and every person involved. He wanted either to disappear or make the world around him disappear. But he knew he wasn't strong enough for that.

Knowing she didn't have much time, (Y/n) rushed over and smacked his back. He quickly faced her and took a step back.
"Snap out of it!" she exclaimed. "Either help me or help them!" she pointed at the people who were still running away.
He looked around for a moment before nodding.
"A'ight." he said under his breath, facing the rat demons with her.
Maybe, under these circumstances, helping could make him feel better.
The rat demons weren't strong nor were they much of a threat, but their number and their high energy gave them an advantage. The hardest for Qiuyu however was to match (Y/n)'s level. He didn't want to go all out like he did when fighting Monkey.
'Holding back really ain't my thing it seems.' he clicked his tongue.
"Qiuyu!"

He looked at her, she nodded towards something. He looked over to see a group of rat demons leaving with a whole carriage of loot. (Y/n) was surrounded and so couldn't get to them. Qiuyu nodded and rush over to block their way. They hissed at him and he just raised an eyebrow in response. Given their heights, he didn't even have to use his hands and just kicked them away, leaving only the only with the oil lamp to guide them and he was stepping back, shaking like a leaf. He smirked, but before he could do anything, another one jumped on his back form behind. They bit his shoulder and he quickly grabbed their head and launched them at the one holding the lamp. The two of them fell over and the lamp flew in the air before landing beside one of the now empty stands. It caught on fire. The screams became louder and that was the last straw for him. Images, memories flashed before his eyes, like he was reliving the past. He covered his face with his hands. His mind almost went blank, focused solely on one things: he wanted this to stop.
(Y/n) gasped as she punched a demon unconscious then frantically looked around for a water source to stop the fire before it spread. Then she heard the rats panic and shouting in confusion. She and the others around her looked over and all stopped what they were doing.

"...Qiuyu?" she whispered, her eyes wide open.
Where Qiuyu once stood, there was now a giant motionless ball of thorns, like the shell of a chestnut. From underneath it grew thick thorny vines, which moved to destroy the stand, they then took anything they could find and threw it at the fire to smother it, that included living things, thankfully the people and the demons all ran away in time.
"S-screw that!" one of the rats exclaimed. "We're outta here!" he gestured his fellow demons to run away.
And they left in a flash. Meanwhile, a few blocks away, Monkey finally caught the Rat King. He cackled maniacally as he held him up by his collar.

"Now what, rat?" he tilted his head. "You're gonna make me disappear? Use one of your puny lil sparkle explosion? Do you know who I am?"
"S-Sun Wukong?"
"I'm the *Monkey King*!" he shook him. "And that is a *way* cooler name!"
Then, he felt something and looked back. He saw the black smoke rising in the air, coming from the stage area.
"What the hell...?"
Taking advantage of this diversion, the Rat King was able to slip out of Monkey's grip and run away. He stopped at a certain distance and faced him
"Mark my words King: you've made a new enemy today!" he struck a pose. "This isn't the last you'll see of... The Rat King!" and with that, he threw something on the ground and disappeared in a cloud of smoke.
Monkey clicked his tongue, but when the smoke dissipated, he could see him run away.
"I can see you! Your act sucks!" he made sure to let him know before running back to where (Y/n) was.

The fire was eventually smothered and (Y/n) let out a heavy sigh of relief. She checked for any injured, who she then helped sit comfortably in the same spot so that a doctor can look at them all. Some people started clapping and it made her flustered. She looked over and saw that Qiuyu hasn't came out of his dome yet.
"Qiuyu!" she called out, going up to him. "They're gone now, you can-"
She gasped when one of the vines suddenly went to grab her. She created a barrier to stop it, but it was so power that it still knocked her over. She fell with a dry cry. The vine tried to grab her again, thankfully she managed to jump out of the way in time. The people started screaming again.
"Qiuyu! It's over! You can stop now!" she exclaimed. "Qiuyu?!"

Her heart dropped when she realized that it wasn't just her, the vines would push anyone away if they were too close. She realized that when one of them went after a little biy. (Y/n) dashed towards him and pulled him in her arms. She turned and ran away, dodging the attack, but one of the thorns got in the back of her shoulder. She contained her cry of pain in her throat and focused on getting the child to his mom, the woman shouting for him.
"Here!" she placed him in her arms. "Go!"
"Bless your soul!" she quickly said, her voice full of gratitude, and bowed before running.
"(Y/n)!!!" two shouted shouted, along with a neigh.
She looked on either side of her, Nian Zhen and the Horse and Monkey joined her by her sides.

"Are you okay?!" Monkey asked.
"I'm fine, we have a bigger problem here!"
"Everyone's back in- What the hell is that?!" Nian Zhen pointed at the ball of thorns.
"That's... That's Qiuyu." she panted, holding her bleeding wound. "I don't know what happened. He turned into this when the fire started. But it's like he can't distinguish friends from enemies."
Monkey frowned.
"Did he start that fire?"
"Y-yeah, but it was an accident!"
"...I know what's wrong with him."
"What is it?"

He didn't answer. He didn't want to say it. He's been in a similar situation once. Centuries ago, when he went back to Flower Fruit Mountain with his newfound powers, he wanted to show them off. But he got carried away and his monkeys got scared.
He recognizes guilt when he sees it. But this seemed to be rooted into something deeper than just what happened today. Monkey looked around and noticed a stand selling instruments.
"Anyone here knows how to play music?"
"Music?" the two women repeated, confused.
"Trust me. It's gonna help."
"I'll do it!"
Everyone turned over to see Jia, running towards them with her instrument. Dishi was running being her, telling her to stop being reckless.
"What do you need?" she asked while her husband needed a moment to catch his breath.
"Something soothing. You guys stay here, I got this."

"Please don't hurt him." (Y/n) grabbed his hand before he left. "I don't know what's wrong with him, but if he's hurt, we have to help him."
Monkey smiled softly and squeezed her hand.
"You always had a sixth sense for these things." he kissed the back of it. "Don't worry, I'll bring him back."
He put his staff back into his ear and stepped closer to the dome of thorns as Jia started playing. The vines went after him but he successfully dodged them.
"Guys this is madness!" Dishi finally said. "You really think you can defeat that thing with the power of music?!"
"You go and play too, do *something*." his wife glanced at him.
"If Monkey says he has a plan, then I trust him." (Y/n) said.
Although, Nian Zhen noticed she was nervously clenching the edge of her tunic. Dishi gulped and went to get a nearby flute before playing besides Jia. Monkey kept dodging in every direction, so much so that the vines entangled with each-other. As they struggled to break free, he walked up to the dome and placed a hand in between thorns.

"Hey." he quietly spoke. "Listen, whatever happened, it must've been pretty bad, that's all we need to know. I get it, I've experienced it too, you're not alone. If we really are the same on this, then maybe, just like me, you'll warm up, and open up again. Don't worry, no one is asking you to empty your bag. I just want you to know and understand this. You are now with people whose intentions are good, and whose hearts are honest. And, if you're honest yourself, they will welcome it, and they'll welcome you... It's okay."
The more he spoke, the less the vines struggled. Eventually, them and the dome shook. Monkey took a couple of steps back as the thorns went back in and the surface became smoother. The dome twisted, changing its form and color, it went from green to pink, from a chestnut shell, to a flower bud, which then open into an explosion of petals and disappeared. Qiuyu stood there, his face still covered with his hands, his back facing Monkey, who had a grave expression on his face. Meanwhile, Jia and Dishi have stopped playing, everyone was speechless.

"He's a nature spirit." Nian Zhen said under her breath, the most dumbfounded of everyone.
"It would seem so." (Y/n) looked at her. "What's wrong?"
"N-Nature spirits are kinda like Earth Gods, they're tied to a specific area. But nature spirits have a different kind of bond, they're born *with* the land. They're not supposed to be physically able to leave." she looked back at Qiuyu. "If that's the case... What the hell is he doing here? We've already traveled pretty far and he said he's been doing that for a long time."
With no answers, they just kept looking. Qiuyu removed his hands, small pink petals slipped through his fingers as he looked back at Monkey. His eyes were a bit red and puffy, and when he saw Monkey's sympathetic look, he turned away again.
"What happened to you man?" he asked, not expecting an answer.

Qiuyu clenched his fists. On the ground he saw his blade of grass, he picked it up and held it tight. He began walking away.
"Where do you think you're going?" Monkey said. "You wanted to join so badly and now you're walking away?"
"...Sorry pal. Overestimated myself on that one."
Monkey huffed and jumped to land in front of him.
"If you want to leave, give a formal letter of registration." he leaned closer. "Tell them you're leaving, I dare you."
He nodded behind Qiuyu, who looked back to see (Y/n), Nian Zhen and the Horse, looking at him from afar, not able to hear them. He huffed and walked up to them.

"Qiuyu!" the two woman exclaimed, along with the Horse's neigh.
He flinched and stopped. They rushed up to him and he was caught off guard by that. Now that they were closer, he could see the worried look on their face.
"I have so many questions!" Nian Zhen held her head.
The Horse made circles around him to check for any injuries. Qiuyu gently pushed his face away and noticed the blood on (Y/n)'s arms.
"Sorry 'bout that." he quietly said.
"Nevermind me, are you okay?! Are you hurt anywhere?" she looked at him up and down.
"And...the fire."
"That wasn't your fault!" Nian Zhen huffed. "It's those damn rats!"
"Who could've known this would happen?" (Y/n) sighed, her eyebrows furrowed. "The Rat King seemed so nice."
"That's just you!" she pointed. "You're alone on this one!"

Qiuyu huffed a smile, but it quickly faded. There was a moment of silence. Seeing him expressionless didn't sit right with (Y/n), or any of the group for that matter. She inhaled.
"Are you guys hungry?" she exhaled.
"I am *starving*!" Monkey rested an arm on Qiuyu's shoulder. "Nothing like a good meal after some good ol' demon ass-kicking!"
He glanced at Qiuyu, who glanced back.
"Well, we can still make it to dinner, right?" she looked at Jia and Dishi.
"Y-yeah, of course." Dishi nodded. "They might even offer us the meal, since we saved the festival"
(Y/n) smiled and she looked back at Qiuyu.
"Are you hungry Qiuyu?"
He opened his mouth and took a moment to answer, but he gave an answer.
"Let's go."
Her face lit up.

"The rats are gone?!"
"We're saved!"
"These guys saved the festival!"
The inhabitants came back, cheering as they approached the group.
"Uh..." (Y/n) glanced at Qiuyu before stepping away from him. "Yes! You're welcome!" she spoke loudly, to keep everyone's attention on her. "Now why don't we go back to the festivities huh?! The band can play for a second round! Since you've all been very cooperative!"
She sent Jia a pleading look.
"Yeah sure!" she nodded. "We'll group up in just one second!"
"Yeah, we need to take out all this stress!" her husband added.
The crowd cheered again. (Y/n) mouthed 'thank you' and the musician couple nodded.
"Come on, let's go quick." she whispered to the others.

Our group of protagonists sat at their table, indeed they were offered dinner. They were by the window, a portion of food on the windowsill so that the Horse could eat from outside. No one has said a word since they've arrived and they just ate in silence. Qiuyu was usually used to the silence, but it never felt this awkward before. To (Y/n), a meal without a warm environment is no good meal, and so she has hardly touched her food.
"I can't take it anymore!" she slapped a hand on the table, catching everyone's attention. "Here's what we're gonna do, everyone take turns to say... something about yourself, that not a lot of people know about. Could be big or small." she looked at each of them, looking for any sign of refusal and not seeing any. "...Alright I'll go first." she shifted in her seat. "So... Throughout my childhood, I would practice climbing on top'of the monastery rooftops, and I broke my bones a few times. Well, I'd keep tab on how many times by carving on the wood of my bed, because I used to think it made me cooler the more it happened."
Monkey cackled.
"How many times?" Nian Zhen asked, smiling.
"I stopped at thirteen." she blushed, embarrassed.
"Oh my lord!" she leaned back, a hand on her forehead.

"What about you Nian Zhen?" she tapped her arm. "Do you have anything to share?!"
"O-okay..." she thought for a moment. "My dad hates any kind of wasting, but you know, making artefacts is hard, and sometimes they break. So when I practiced at homes, there would be scraps everywhere-"
"Not just then," (Y/n) tilted her head. "I've seen your workplace."
"Hey!"
Everyone laughed, even Qiuyu chuckled.
"The point is! I didn't want him to find my mess, so I would use the scraps to make easy-to-make small toys and gadgets for my little brother."
"Aww~!" she placed a hand on her heart. "You have a little brother?"
"Yeah, he's great!"
"That is so cute!" she paused. "...Makes me realized that I could've chosen a better thing to say."
"One that doesn't make you look dumb?" Monkey smirked.
"Shut up!" she kicked him under the table and he laughed.

"My turn!" he said. "Like I said before, I don't need to learn how to swim. But I also refuse to, because I wanna show people that, even if you lack a, quote-on-quote 'basic' skill' you can still be cool in many other ways."
"Oh~ that's a great message Monkey!" (Y/n) nodded.
"Be for real, I got something better!" Nian Zhen leaned forward. "You were super jealous of the Rat King!"
"Jealous?!" he scoffed.
"Monkey!" (Y/n)'s eyes widen. "Is that true?"
"No- But speaking of which!" he fully faced her. "What was up with that?! He clearly wasn't *that* cool!"
"It's the stage presence, he had a certain charisma to him." she smiled. "I just think he's neat."
"But I'm neatier."
"That's not a word." Nian Zhen exclaimed.
"I'm the neattiest."
"Stop saying stuff that don't exist!"

(Y/n) and Qiuyu laughed.
"And what about you Horse?" Monkey looked at him. "You got something juicy for us?"
The Horse neighed.
"Woawoawoa!" he leaned back, acting like his mind was blown. "What?!"
"That's insane Horse!" (Y/n) went with it.
"Too much information dude!" Nian Zhen added before everyone laughed.
They kept joking around and Qiuyu noticed how, so far, no one's asked him to say anything. He could tell they didn't want to force him, given the little glances they'd give him sometimes. He smiled.

"My turn."
Everyone looked at him. He took the blade of grass he placed somewhere on the table and held it up. With a flick of the wrist, it changed size and became rigid, turned into a sword.
"Woah!" Nian Zhen exclaimed as (Y/n) gasped.
"During my first battle with Wukong, I did use my powers." he made it change size again and stuck it to the table like a knife. "Used this lil guy." then he waved a hand above it and it became normal again.
Monkey slammed his fists on the table.
"I knew it!!! You cheated!"
"You cheated too!"
"But at least I was honest about it!"
"That defeats the whole purpose of cheating!" Nian Zhen exclaimed.
"You're really not as slick as you think you are." Qiuyu added with a smirk.

They kept bickering and laughing. Now (Y/n) felt like eating again. Dinner was noisy, but Qiuyu didn't mind it this time.

[Just so you know how it's pronounced: it's ✨ The Rat King! ✨]