Tamashi, Xifulin, Annan

In this world, there will always be sudden encounters and unexpected joys. Even for Annan and Xifulin, who had anticipated this moment, the smiles in their eyes held a hint of amusement at watching the drama unfold, but mostly a genuine, heartfelt joy. Though they could glean Yaxiu's circumstances from the diary replicas and the words of others, seeing him appear before their very eyes still brought that inevitable rush of happiness at finally meeting him again. Freya had cried out his name, but the moment Yaxiu turned and met her gaze, her mind went completely blank. There was neither the fireworks-like ecstasy nor any self-pitying grievances. She only felt the ambient light turn warm and gentle, as if a bottle of fizzy lemon soda had been popped open in her heart, its tart-sweet bubbles filling her empty mind and bursting with soft little pops. Her neural reflexes had yet to respond, but her Veela body had already honestly stepped forward—only for a shadow to flash past her side, hurtling straight toward Yaxiu. "Yaxiu!" Tamashi lunged forward in a single stride and threw her arms around Yaxiu, tearing him away from Sonia's grasp. She hooked her arms around Yaxiu's neck, tears glistening in her eyes, and took a deep breath before laughing merrily. "I finally found you! I missed you so much! I'm so happy!" Everyone was momentarily stunned—especially Sonia beside them. To snatch Yaxiu right from her embrace and act so brazen about it made Tamashi the very first. Yet Annan and Xifulin were not surprised in the least. Tamashi had always possessed the blunt nature of a straight-shooter, never bothering to conceal her feelings. They were even silently giving Tamashi thumbs-ups in their minds. *Well done, splendidly done!* From the diary alone, they could clearly tell that until the Sword Princess's hegemony was ended, everyone else had no hope for the rest of their lives! *Charge ahead! We will offer you every form of support—except actual help!* "I'm really glad too." Yaxiu gently patted Tamashi on the back, chuckling. "There was nothing in the Thousand Wishes Kingdom of Heaven; I was genuinely afraid you would starve to death, Tamashi." "Tamashi?" Diya caught on immediately. Looking at the fashionable young woman before her dressed in a miniskirt and sports bra, she hastily elbowed her way between the two of them and pouted, fuming, "Yaxiu, didn't you say Tamashi was a guy?!" Yaxiu froze, only now noticing Tamashi's figure. Though he had fought side by side with Tamashi briefly just now, Tamashi had mostly had her back to him, and the situation was so urgent that Yaxiu hadn't observed closely. More importantly, this outfit suited Tamashi so well that he had accepted the appearance instantly without giving it a second thought. Or perhaps Yaxiu had subconsciously expected it. After all, someone better-looking than Igola—how could they possibly not be a woman? "I really did think Tamashi was a guy back then..." Yaxiu couldn't help letting his gaze drift downward, nearly getting sucked into the cleavage framed by her zippered bra. "B-but you can't blame me! I remember carrying Tamashi on my back before. Your chest was rock-hard back then; I was even jealous of your pecs!" "Oh, so that's why." Tamashi reached an epiphany. She looked down, cupping her lower bust with a helpless expression. "A long time ago, I despised these burdens. Later on, they got bigger and bigger, seriously interfering with my movement, so I usually bound them tightly and wore a set of chainmail over them. When you carried me on your back, Yaxiu, you were just pressing against chainmail. Sorry to disappoint you; I don't really have pecs." Diya's eyebrows twitched furiously. Naturally, she wasn't insecure about such things—she firmly believed her own figure was the most elegant and sexy—yet watching Tamashi flaunt it so casually was infuriating nonetheless. *You people, stop corrupting Yaxiu!* She really wanted to slap someone a few times! She shot Yaxiu a glare, and upon seeing that Yaxiu had conscientiously averted his eyes, her mood improved slightly. She muttered, "So it's not just Silver Lantern. Yaxiu, you have a second woman in Senluo..." "Is being a woman not okay?" Tamashi tilted her head, slightly perplexed. "If I'm a woman, will Yaxiu dislike me? Should I change back to my Black Crow look?" Seeing Tamashi's sincere confusion, Diya faltered, at a loss for how to reply. Yaxiu was about to speak when he paused, turning his head slightly to look at the Sword Princess. "Of course not." Sonia patted Diya's shoulder and smiled at Tamashi. "No matter what you look like, you will always be a companion who braved life and death with Yaxiu. How could he possibly dislike you? Whenever he talked about you, he only ever said how powerful you were and how much he admired you. That's why we misunderstood your gender all this time, which was why the Witch was so surprised. Right, Yaxiu?" *Whoosh!* Yaxiu suddenly threw a punch toward Black Crow. Tamashi instantly blocked it with her forearm, trading dozens of moves within a single second so quickly that onlookers were dazzled. Finally, their fists met, and the two smiled at each other. "I still haven't caught up to you. In fact, the gap has grown wider," Yaxiu said with a smile. "Looks like while I was making progress, you weren't slacking off either." "The gap will only get wider," Tamashi said earnestly. "When it comes to battle alone, I will never admit defeat!" "Tamashi, I know you have plenty of topics to discuss with Yaxiu," Xifulin suddenly chimed in from behind. "But step aside for a moment. There are people here who are in much more of a hurry." Yaxiu froze and stared intently at Xifulin. A bad premonition welled up in Xifulin's heart, and she took a step back. "Stop looking. You don't know me—" "222?" Yaxiu exclaimed pleasantly. "I really never imagined I'd see you again!" *Oh no, I've been recognized by this bad man!* "How did you recognize me?!" "By your voice!" "We haven't seen each other for so long. How could you possibly still remember my voice?" "How could I ever forget? You were my first friend in the Blood Moon." Xifulin was stunned. Sonia tapped Yaxiu and pointed to herself. Yaxiu spread his hands. "To be technical, you and I didn't meet in the Blood Moon. And back then, you were more like a dreamlike fairy to me, not a real person." Though she had lost another claim to fame, Sonia grudgingly accepted it given that Yaxiu's compliment was so seamless. Diya raised her hand. "What about Uncle Bogin?!" "The reason 222 and I became acquainted in the first place was because I gave Igola a brutal beating." A nostalgic look appeared in Yaxiu's eyes. "That guy really felt great to punch..." "So, 222, are you still at Shattered Lake Prison?" "No, I work as a doctor at a hospital now." Xifulin slapped Freya's head, causing Freya to jump. "I'm colleagues with this idiot." "Do you still yearn to go adventuring in other countries?" Yaxiu blinked. "I still remember saying that if I broke out of prison and left the Blood Moon, I would tell you all about my adventures along the way. If you're still interested, I've got plenty of thrilling stories." He looked toward Sonia and Diya, smiling. "When the time comes, let's reminisce together. What do you say?" Diya was exceptionally sensitive to the phrase 'first friend.' Just as she was about to flare up, Sonia held her back. The Sword Princess smiled. "Sounds great." *I know just about all of your scandalous business, and I even know things you don't...* Xifulin grumbled inwardly. She had never imagined Yaxiu would recognize her. Nor had she expected him to still remember that insignificant promise. In an instant, her thoughts were pulled back to over half a year ago: a medical officer and a death-row inmate chatting about everything under the sun, speaking of boundless dreams. The inmate wanted to escape prison, while the medical officer yearned for the bizarre, wondrous world outside. Yet a fish living in a lake could never leave the water, able only to entrust her dreams to a bird with broken wings. Who would have thought that the bird that flew away would still remember his first fish friend—and would even hold those joke-like dreams close to his heart? Xifulin originally wanted to deliver a stern rejection, but when the words reached her lips, they became, "If there's an opportunity." The moment she said it, regret and shame flooded her mind. She cautiously glanced at the Veela beside her, only to find the Veela looking back at her with touched eyes, blinking in an unspoken signal: *Xifulin, you agreed just to create an opportunity for me, right?!* Xifulin immediately nodded. *That's right, exactly!* *I knew Xifulin was the best to me!* *Stop making eyes at me and make your move already!* Right then, Sonia suddenly asked, "I'm guessing... Purple Resentment, you must be the young miss, Annan?" "Just call me Annan." Annan had no intention of hiding herself either, stepping forward graciously. "Pleased to meet you, Sword Princess." She turned to Diya, her expression dropping instantly. "Your Imperial Majesty, when do you plan on returning?" "What empress?" Diya played dumb. "Are you talking about Empress Diyin? But isn't she supposed to be a little girl?" "I've seen portraits of you as an adult!" Annan delivered a swift chop to the Witch's head. "Do you have any idea that to wipe your ass these past few months, I've had to work over sixteen hours almost every single day? Every day I lived in terror that the Gospel system would explode, jumping at every rustle in the wind thinking it was the end of the world—it would have been better if the Gospel system was just destroyed altogether! "At the very least, you could have taken me with you!" "Ow..." Diya held her head. "How dare you be so disrespectful to the empress..." "I'm sorry," Yaxiu stepped in to shield the Witch, looking apologetic. "If it weren't to save me, she wouldn't have rushed to the Starlight Kingdom all by herself—" "Wait, who are you? I'm speaking to Her Imperial Majesty. Unrelated personnel are not permitted to butt in." Annan suddenly frowned, crossing her arms over her chest as she glared at Yaxiu sternly. "Stop acting like you know me." *Huh?* Everyone was taken aback; even Diya was thoroughly confused. She waved her hand in front of Annan, her bewildered expression slowly turning fearful. "Sister Annan, has your brain finally broken from all the stress? I-I'll definitely cure you!" "Empress, stay out of the way!" Annan pushed the Witch aside, gazing intently at Yaxiu. "Shouldn't you introduce yourself?" Among everyone present, only Yaxiu understood what Annan meant—or rather, this had originally been his wish as well. He blinked at Sonia, whose eyebrows rose, clearly intrigued by what sort of trick they were playing. The corners of Yaxiu's mouth curved upward slightly. His eyes smiling as he looked at Annan, he extended his hand. "Nice to meet you. I am Yaxiu Heath. You can just call me Yaxiu." "Nice to meet you. I am Annan Dolan, First Witch of the Gospel Witch Political Establishment Bureau, Secretary-General of the Palace Liaison Office, and Chief Minister to the Empress. You can call me Annan, or you can call me Eldest Miss—if you'd like." Annan took Yaxiu's hand, her fingertips lightly scratching the palm of his hand. She added one more remark: "Unmarried." Her two earrings flared with brilliant radiance. When they first met, Annan had been an office director steeped in conspiracies, while Yaxiu was merely an uprooted traveler from a foreign land. They had learned each other's names through a contract: Annan the dominator, and Yaxiu the dominated. From the start, their relationship had been schemer and tool, master and slave, saturated with calculations and exploitation. No matter how their relationship later evolved, it had originated from a dark encounter, a cruel joke. Yet starting from this moment, they were to welcome a brand-new beginning.