"Sister Lumina, Madam Ruan Mei, we're leaving now!"
After Himeko, Welt, Qingque, and the others arrived, the atmosphere at the port livened up once more.
But the liveliness didn't last long. Fu Xuan, her face dark, dragged Qingque away by the ear. It was sure to be an eventful day for Qingque.
Having delivered the items Ruan Mei had requested, Himeko and her group had no further business.
After a quick group photo, it was time to part ways again.
March 7th and the others waved goodbye to Lumina and Ruan Mei.
Little Swarm, her eyes filled with reluctance, also bid them farewell.
Soon, the once-bustling port was left with only Lumina and Ruan Mei.
"Are you leaving too?" Lumina asked, turning her gaze to Ruan Mei after watching March 7th and the others disappear from sight.
Ruan Mei's expression remained as placid as ever, prompting Lumina to wonder: What could I do to shatter that calm facade? What could I do to make Ruan Mei show an expression she would never normally reveal?
Hearing the question, Ruan Mei turned to face Lumina directly. A faint smile touched her lips as she chuckled softly. "What's this? Are you reluctant to see me go?"
"Hmm... If I said I wasn't reluctant at all, that would be a lie, wouldn't it?" Lumina mused. After saying that much, claiming I'm fine with Ruan Mei leaving would just sound insincere.
"Then..." Ruan Mei drew out the word, her voice lingering, piquing Lumina's curiosity.
Just as Lumina leaned in, anticipating what Ruan Mei would say next, Ruan Mei opened her arms and embraced her.
?
The sudden move caught Lumina off guard for a moment, but she quickly recovered. Ruan Mei's gone this far. It would be rude not to respond, right?
With that thought, Lumina opened her arms and hugged Ruan Mei tightly.
Instantly, their soft bodies pressed together, their scents mingling. The scene seemed to blush a faint pink, and even the air grew sweeter.
Perhaps this was the inherent beauty of beautiful girls—their every move capable of transforming the surrounding environment and atmosphere.
As always, Ruan Mei leaned close to Lumina's ear, continuing her drawn-out word. "Are you reluctant to see me go, or reluctant to lose all the things I do for you?"
"I'm reluctant to see you go, of course. We've spent several days together, after all."
Faced with Ruan Mei's somewhat fatal question, Lumina's expression remained unchanged as she answered calmly.
It's both, but is there really a difference?
Of course not.
Being reluctant to lose all the things Ruan Mei does for me is the same as being reluctant to lose Ruan Mei herself.
So, Lumina had no reason to feel guilty or even think twice. She simply answered truthfully.
"Heh..." Ruan Mei's faint smile didn't waver at Lumina's response, as if she had known all along what Lumina would say.
Unfazed, Ruan Mei leaned even closer, until her lips nearly brushed against Lumina's ear.
She whispered, her warm breath sending a tickle through Lumina's ear that spread throughout her entire body...
A moment later, just as Lumina was about to lose her composure and push Ruan Mei away, Ruan Mei spoke.
She posed an utterly fatal question.
"Compared to Herta, are you more reluctant to lose me, or Herta?"
Lumina: ?
The question struck Lumina dumb. Even the tingling sensation that had coursed through her body vanished in an instant.
Seriously, girl? Is this some kind of girlfriend interrogation?
How can a question be so deadly?
One wrong word, and it's off with my head...
However, that was a dilemma for ordinary people.
Lumina was no ordinary person. Naturally, she wasn't fazed by Ruan Mei's lethal question.
After only a brief moment of stunned silence, Lumina regained her composure.
"Hmm..." Her sparkling eyes darted around as she pondered for a moment before answering Ruan Mei's question. "They can't be compared."
Lumina released her embrace, and Ruan Mei did the same.
They returned to facing each other, Ruan Mei staring calmly at Lumina, awaiting her full response.
"Farewells are sacred; they cannot be compared."
"If I were bidding farewell to someone I would never see again, my heart would be filled with sorrow."
"If I were bidding farewell to a friend, a dear friend, or my best girlfriend, I would eagerly anticipate our next meeting."
Lumina spoke with a faint smile, her words carefully chosen, completely sidestepping a direct answer to Ruan Mei's question.
There was no way around it. Answering that question directly would have been disastrous!
"So, whether it's you or Herta, I look forward to our next meeting."
"After parting comes reunion."
"Hmm..." Ruan Mei stared at Lumina for a moment.
Pfft...
"Heh."
Then, a soft chuckle echoed in the air as Ruan Mei burst out laughing.
"Hehehe, you're truly interesting."
Ruan Mei pressed her slightly curled fingers to her lips, letting out another light laugh.
Initially, Ruan Mei had merely been observing, curious to see what charm Lumina possessed that could make the proud Madam Herta so jealous.
But now, Ruan Mei understood.
Lumina was indeed fascinating.
"I'm very interested in you—in every aspect."
Ruan Mei reached out, her hand moving toward Lumina's face.
But instead of touching her cheek, she gently brushed aside a few strands of Lumina's hair.
"To have piqued the interest of Madam Ruan Mei, Member #81 of the Genius Society, is my honor," Lumina said with a smile, reciting a familiar phrase.
That's right. Lumina had adapted the phrase from what she'd once said to Herta: "To have piqued the interest of Madam Herta, Member #83 of the Genius Society, is my honor."
"Heh... You've probably said that to Herta too, haven't you?" Though Ruan Mei framed it as a question, her tone was utterly certain.
"Nope. I said something different to Herta," Lumina lied with a straight face.
Well... it wasn't entirely a lie. After all, one was Member #81 Ruan Mei, and the other was Member #83 Herta. There was a tiny difference, wasn't there?
"Is that so?" Ruan Mei withdrew her hand and took a step forward.
Though they weren't pressed against each other, the distance between them had become dangerously close.
"Before we part, is there anything you'd like to do to me?" Ruan Mei stared calmly at Lumina, her serene and indifferent expression making it impossible to read her thoughts.
"I..."
"Anything at all is fine, you know."
Just as Lumina was about to speak, Ruan Mei added, "Whether it's here or back in the room, I'll satisfy whatever you desire."
Ruan Mei delivered the line with her usual calm, flat, and indifferent tone.
As always, Lumina couldn't decipher what was going on in her mind.
But it didn't matter. Reading her thoughts wasn't the point.
In fact...
This display made Lumina's heart flutter with anticipation.
What kind of expression will she make after I do... that?
Will it be... or maybe...?
Filled with this eager curiosity, Lumina finally voiced her request:
"Then... let me pat your head."
Without a doubt, patting Ruan Mei's head was the one thing Lumina wanted to do most.
"Huh?" Hearing this, Ruan Mei visibly froze.
It seemed Ruan Mei had never imagined that this was the one thing Lumina wanted to do most.
And indeed, she hadn't.
Ruan Mei had guessed Lumina wouldn't do anything untoward, and she'd also guessed Lumina might offer a perfunctory answer just to get it over with.
But she had never expected Lumina would actually want to... pat her head.
However...
"You truly are interesting. I'm starting to grow fond of you."
Snapping out of her surprise, Ruan Mei broke into a radiant smile. Her already stunning face, now adorned with this expression, was enough to captivate most of the Cosmos.
Lumina was, naturally, one of them.
"Go on, pat it." After her smile faded, Ruan Mei lowered her head slightly, bringing it closer.
She even gave it a little shake in front of Lumina, as if urging her to hurry up and place her hand on it.
A fragrant scent wafted over, pulling Lumina from her daze.
Gazing at the silky strands of hair before her, Lumina reached out with eager anticipation and placed her palm on Ruan Mei's head.
Hmm... This feels different from any other beautiful girl I've patted before, Lumina silently assessed.
But that makes sense. They're different people, so of course it would feel different.
"You're quite skilled at head-patting," Ruan Mei remarked. Feeling the gentle touch on her head, even she couldn't help but close her eyes in comfort, savoring Lumina's "massage."
"I learned it online. This is my first time trying it."
"Heh, I bet you say that to everyone."
Ruan Mei still wore that faint smile, but compared to before, it now held a distinct touch of warmth.
Perhaps it was because Lumina's head-patting technique was just that good.
"No, really, this is the first time." The sensation from her palm resting on Ruan Mei's head was so pleasant that Lumina found herself getting lost in it.
But she didn't forget to answer Ruan Mei's question.
After a moment, she added, "Well... the first time today."
"Heh..."
Ruan Mei didn't reply, merely chuckling softly.
-
"Alright, that's enough for now."
After who knows how long, Ruan Mei's voice broke the silence. Lumina reluctantly withdrew her hand.
"Heh, if you were so unwilling to stop, you should have used that 'absolute command' of yours to make me stay by your side forever," Ruan Mei said with a smile, taking a few steps back to put some distance between them. She watched Lumina's subtle expressions and saw right through her thoughts.
"Eh? I could have done that?" Lumina froze, then asked with a hint of regret.
If she had known that was an option, she definitely would have...
...still chosen the head-pat.
Using an "absolute command" to bind a beautiful girl to her side forever was something Lumina would never even consider, let alone do.
Even if the girl herself were willing, Lumina wouldn't do it.
Because she wasn't willing.
Besides... a member of the Genius Society, someone as proud and aloof as Ruan Mei? Lumina didn't believe for a second that she would truly stay by someone's side forever just because of a so-called "absolute command."
So, based on her own suspicions and Ruan Mei's recent actions, Lumina came to a conclusion.
Ruan Mei is clearly just trying to mess with me!
"Of course it was..." Ruan Mei, unaware of Lumina's thoughts, drew out the word, as if deliberately teasing her.
"...a lie."
In the end, it was just as Lumina had suspected: Ruan Mei was simply playing with her.
But...
Ruan Mei wasn't at all like the rumors or their previous encounters suggested—a being whose humanity was faint and whose divinity held sway.
At least, in Lumina's eyes, at this very moment...
Ruan Mei's humanity definitely outweighed her divinity.
Her behavior right now was no different from that of a normal "person."
Just as full of little schemes...
"What? Is my personality a bit different from what you expected?" Noticing Lumina's expression, Ruan Mei let her smile fade, her face returning to its usual aloof mask, as if nothing in the world could interest her.
"Yeah, you could say that," Lumina nodded, answering truthfully.
Ruan Mei's personality had indeed caught Lumina completely off guard.
After all, everything Ruan Mei had done recently was utterly different from the person Lumina thought she knew.
Surely the influence of 'faint humanity, dominant divinity' wouldn't transform a scheming individual into someone who practically gives herself away, right?
Ruan Mei smiled and spoke slowly, answering Lumina's unspoken question. "I pay no mind to things that don't interest me."
"But if something does interest me, I will..."
Though Ruan Mei didn't finish her sentence, she stepped forward until she stood before Lumina. She extended a finger and gently lifted Lumina's chin.
"Do you understand now?"
"So, should I feel honored that Madam Ruan Mei has taken an interest in me?" Lumina, understanding Ruan Mei's implication and unfazed by the gesture, asked with a smile.
At her words, Ruan Mei shook her head and murmured something cryptic.
"It is I who should feel honored..."
Ruan Mei's soft voice reached Lumina's ears, sending a tiny ripple through her heart...
-
"Goodbye. I look forward to our next meeting."
"Mm, goodbye."
Lumina waved farewell to Ruan Mei, watching her figure disappear into the Starskiff. She kept her gaze fixed on the vessel as it gradually vanished from sight, an inexplicable emptiness blooming in her heart.
It feels like... something is missing.
With a soft sigh, Lumina tilted her head back, gazing at the azure sky above the Starskiff Jetty. The lingering reluctance to part with an old friend began to fade.
Shaking her head, Lumina turned and walked away from the port.
I should leave the Xianzhou Luofu now, too...