Night fell, and Bai Ling felt oddly worn out.
Angelina and Jelperta had dragged him all over Valley No. 4 all day, delivering letter after letter.
And because Angelina had used Originium Arts to fly, Bai Ling managed to obtain her status panel.
[Servant: Angelina][Class: Caster][Parameters: STR C / END C+ / AGI B / MANA A / LUCK A / Noble Phantasm: Anti-Gravity Field (B)][Skills: Courier (B) / Originium Affinity (C) / Turn Misfortune Aside (EX)][Noble Phantasm: Anti-Gravity Field (B)]
Now he sat at the entrance of his temporary residence, holding a bottle of soda and sipping it slowly.
In the distance, the Hub District's lights glimmered. The night breeze carried a faint industrial tang—unpleasant, but not enough to bother him.
Inside the room, the oversized hug-bear sat quietly in the corner. The pink fuzzy ball inside the drawer still leaked a weak glow through the crack.
Angelina and Jelperta had returned to the Dijiang.
After studying Angelina's panel, Bai Ling realized that "Courier" and "Independent Action" were part of the same line of abilities.
So even if Angelina wasn't by his side, it wouldn't cause any problems.
As for Eldera—she was back at the ore-vein source zone, catching up on the research she'd postponed. He likely wouldn't see her for the next couple of days.
Bai Ling didn't find being alone boring.
He lifted the soda bottle, lining it up with the distant lights. The black liquid inside fizzed with fine bubbles under the glow, like some mysterious potion.
"Drinking alone?"
A voice came from behind him without warning.
Bai Ling's hand jerked; the soda almost spilled.
He turned—and saw Yvonne standing in the moonlight, a bag swinging from her hand, a smug smile on her face.
"Why are you here?"
"What, I'm not welcome?" Yvonne shook the bag. "I brought something good."
Without waiting for an answer, she walked over and sat down at his side.
Close—too close.
But Yvonne didn't seem to notice at all.
"Look." She opened the bag. Inside were several glass jars. "Fruit brew. I made it myself—something I do when my research hits a dead end."
Bai Ling looked down.
The color in the jars was beautiful—a pale pink, like sunset clouds.
"You can brew alcohol?"
"Of course!" Yvonne puffed out her chest proudly. "What can't I do?"
Bai Ling glanced at her and said nothing.
Yvonne opened one jar and offered it, voice lowering. "Try it?"
Bai Ling took it, hesitated, then drank a small sip.
The taste was light: wild-fruit sweet-and-sour, with a faint trace of alcohol. It barely felt like booze—more like a special kind of juice.
"Well?"
"Not bad."
"Not bad?" Yvonne puffed her cheeks. "I brewed this carefully!"
Bai Ling took another sip—bigger this time.
"…Yeah. It's pretty good."
Yvonne stared at him for a moment—then snorted out a laugh.
"Mr. Bai Ling… you really don't know how to compliment people, do you?"
Bai Ling didn't argue. He just kept drinking.
Moonlight spilled down, stretching their shadows long. Far away, the lights flickered like someone blinking.
After a quiet moment, Yvonne spoke again.
"Bai Ling."
"Mm?"
"I actually came today… because there's something I wanted to ask you."
Bai Ling turned to look at her.
Under the moonlight, Yvonne's face was faintly flushed—maybe from the fruit brew, maybe from something else.
"What is it?"
Yvonne lowered her head, fingers gently rubbing the rim of the glass jar.
"It's about… what you said before. That 'gift from a friend'…"
Bai Ling froze, then remembered the conversation with Angelina and the others.
"You mean that."
"Yeah." Yvonne nodded, voice shrinking smaller and smaller. "You said it was 'from a friend'… so… are we friends?"
Bai Ling looked at her.
Moonlight traced a soft silver edge along her face. Her eyes were bright, full of hope—and a little nervousness.
"…So you didn't think we were friends?"
Yvonne lifted her head, eyes widening in disbelief.
"Huh?"
"Then what were we?" Bai Ling repeated, forcing his tone to stay flat. "You redecorated my room, gave me this and that, and you even came all the way out here to bring me fruit brew—if that's not a friend, what is it?"
Yvonne went still.
She stared at him for a long time—so long Bai Ling started wondering if he'd said something wrong.
Then she smiled.
A smile so bright it outshone the moonlight.
"…Right." she said softly. "We're friends."
She raised her jar and tilted it toward him.
"Then, friend—cheers?"
Bai Ling lifted his jar too.
"Cheers."
The two glass jars clinked together with a crisp, delicate sound.
Under the moonlight, the two sat side by side—sometimes talking a little, sometimes drinking in silence—
Until they'd finished an entire bag of fruit brew.
Yvonne's face was rosy, her gaze slightly unfocused. She leaned against Bai Ling's shoulder, mumbling something.
"I'm telling you… Tata is really amazing… it can detect… detect… hnn…"
Bai Ling glanced at her.
The adorable little dragon girl had already closed her eyes, breathing steady.
She'd gotten tipsy.
And fallen asleep.
He sighed, carefully shifted her head to rest against the chair back, then stood up.
After thinking for a few seconds, he went inside and dragged out the giant hug-bear.
It was soft and plush—leaning against the wall like an enormous cushion.
Bai Ling helped Yvonne up and let her sink into the hug-bear. She mumbled once, found a comfortable position, and kept sleeping.
Moonlight washed over her sleeping face, softening her features.
Bai Ling stood there for a moment, then went back inside, brought out a blanket, and gently covered her.
Still… it didn't feel right to just leave her sleeping out here alone.
So he fetched another blanket, set up a lounge chair beside the bear, and lay down too—keeping her company as they slept outdoors.
Yvonne, nestled against the hug-bear, wore a faint smile at the corner of her lips, as if dreaming something sweet.
Far away, the Hub District's lights still burned bright.
Bai Ling woke to a fragrant smell.
He sat up and rubbed his eyes—only to realize the little figure on the bear beside him was gone.
"Good morning!"
The sudden greeting made him blink.
It was Yvonne.
She'd already tidied herself up—and gone out to buy breakfast.
Handing him a paper bag, she smiled.
"Worker's Home buns—fresh out of the steamer. If you drink at night and don't eat anything, you'll feel awful."
Bai Ling took the bag and looked down.
The buns were still steaming, the dough white and soft.
He looked up—and met Yvonne's face, practically screaming Praise me.
"…Thanks."
Yvonne's smile bloomed even brighter.
"You're welcome! Then… I'll head back first? Tata's still waiting for me."
"Be careful on the way."
"Mm!"
She turned to leave, then suddenly looked back.
"Bai Ling."
"Mm?"
"Last night… what I said—do you remember?"
Without even a second of hesitation, Bai Ling answered immediately:
"You said Tata is really amazing."
Yvonne froze—
Then her face went crimson.
"N-not that! It's… it's…"
She stammered for ages, but in the end she still couldn't force the words out.
"I'm leaving…"
She turned and bolted, the pink tip of her tail swishing in the morning light.
Bai Ling stayed where he was, watching her run off. Then he lowered his head and took a bite of the bun.
The fat from the meat filling melted on his tongue, carrying a faint soy fragrance.
It was really good.
He wasn't made of wood. He knew what Yvonne had wanted to say.
"I want to be your 'friend'… but you clearly don't just want to be 'friends.'"
At the corner in the distance, Yvonne stopped, covering her burning face.
"Idiot…" she muttered softly. "Who was asking that…"
If Tata were here, it would probably display:
(^-^)
Sadly, Tata wasn't here.
But that was fine.
Because today's sunlight felt especially warm.
Tata was curled up on its charging dock, its screen-face cycling between "-v-", then "^^", then "><".
It didn't understand why its owner still hadn't come back.
But it did know one thing:
Its owner seemed to be in a very good mood.
Because before leaving, her tail had been wagging all day.
....
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