In the blink of an eye, they arrived at the Xianzhou Luofu.
Before Tingyun had even had a chance to savor being held in Su Ran's arms, he had already let go.
That fast?
Looking at the bustling streets around her, she reluctantly accepted reality.
"Benefactor..."
"Can you tell me now?"
"Now that we're on the Luofu, surely you can tell me whose funeral we're attending?"
At this point, there was nothing she could do even if she knew.
"Come with me."
"You'll find out soon enough."
Even now, Su Ran refused to tell her.
That only made Tingyun even more puzzled.
Still, she chose not to ask further.
She simply followed him to one of the starskiff ports.
From a distance, she immediately spotted Yukong.
Seeing that Yukong was alive and well, Tingyun quietly breathed a sigh of relief.
At least it isn't Lady Yukong...
Then she noticed the pink-haired girl standing nearby.
Lady Fu Xuan was there as well.
So...
Could it be General Jing Yuan?
The General was already quite advanced in years.
It wasn't impossible.
A starskiff slowly drifted away from the harbor.
Tingyun had no idea that it was carrying all of her belongings.
"Benefactor..."
"Can we go over now?"
Instead of answering, Su Ran walked straight ahead, passed the surrounding crowd, and stopped beside Yukong.
Then he pulled her into his arms.
The sadness Tingyun had been carrying instantly gave way to confusion.
...Wait.
Something's not right.
What's going on between Benefactor and Lady Yukong?
Still baffled, she slowly walked toward a gray-haired girl.
Stelle sensed someone approaching and glanced over.
That single glance left her completely frozen.
Seeing the astonishment on Stelle's face, Tingyun merely smiled politely, thinking nothing of it.
Being hugged in public, Yukong looked somewhat embarrassed.
Yet the grief weighing on her heart eased considerably.
"I'm not a child."
"You don't have to comfort me like this."
Even so, she didn't reject the embrace.
"I've treated people thousands of years older than you like children."
"So why not you?"
"It's just a hug."
"It's not like I'm singing you a lullaby."
"Is there something wrong with that?"
"...If you keep this up..."
"I'm going to get used to it."
After lingering for a moment, Yukong gently slipped out of Su Ran's embrace.
They were, after all, in a public place.
If tomorrow's headlines became:
"Helmswoman Yukong Finds Love Again in Her Later Years"
she would never hear the end of it.
If they were going to hug, it would be better done in private.
Nearby,
March 7th stood watching with her camera in hand, looking disappointed.
"...Sigh."
"Why does it feel like the romance between Helmswoman Yukong and Su Ran isn't exciting at all?"
Compared to all the gossip surrounding Herta and Su Ran, this relationship felt...
almost too ordinary.
Stelle repeatedly nudged March with her elbow, trying to get her attention.
"Come on, stop making me look at—"
"...Huh?!"
March's complaints vanished the instant she saw Tingyun.
"Ph-Phantylia?!"
Tingyun: "..."
How did I suddenly become Phantylia?
Then she remembered.
Before coming here, Su Ran had mentioned that one of the Lord Ravagers had impersonated her.
Hearing the name "Phantylia,"
Fu Xuan also turned to look.
She froze as well,
eyes wide.
"...A dead person just came back to life?"
"My apologies, everyone."
"I am not the Lord Ravager you speak of."
"I am Tingyun, a Sky-Faring Commission representative of the Luofu..."
"...who was rescued by my Benefactor."
Hearing Tingyun call someone "Benefactor,"
Stelle felt strangely conflicted.
"Miss Tingyun..."
"How are you alive?"
If she had been alive all along...
then what exactly had all the emotions they had just worked up been for?
Only moments ago, everyone had been immersed in sorrow.
Now...
Stelle only wanted to leave the scene as quickly as possible.
After all, most of Tingyun's belongings
had already been sent away.
Watching the starskiff disappear into the distance, she couldn't help thinking...
retrieving all of that was going to be a tremendous amount of work.
"...Why shouldn't I be alive?"
"Was I supposed to die?"
Tingyun's expression nearly fell apart.
She had already arrived full of grief, only to have people react like this upon seeing her.
How could she possibly bear it?
Her eyes quickly became misty with tears.
One more sentence, and she'd probably start crying.
"...Uh..."
March scratched her head, completely at a loss.
If Tingyun had shown up just a few seconds earlier, they might have been able to save all her possessions.
But now?
The starskiff was already gone.
It was far too late.
"Lady Fu Xuan..."
"Please say something."
"Surely you don't think I deserved to die?"
Unable to rely on these two strangers, who seemed completely unconcerned with whether she lived or died,
Tingyun turned hopefully toward Fu Xuan.
"...Mm."
"It's good that you're back."
"Really... it's good that you're back."
Fu Xuan had only just finished seeing off Tingyun's belongings.
At this point, she genuinely didn't know what to say.
Nothing about this situation had appeared within the scope of her divinations.
She knew absolutely nothing.
Still, if Su Ran had brought her back, then it was almost certainly the real Tingyun.
Yukong's fox ears twitched slightly.
She cast meaningful glances at Su Ran.
She had heard every word happening behind them.
One moment, everyone had been mourning.
The next, the entire affair had become an absurd farce.
If Su Ran didn't explain himself, she wasn't letting him off today.
After all, he had been the one who first told her to prepare herself for Tingyun's death.
So what exactly was going on now?
Su Ran simply gave Yukong a playful wink.
That was enough to make her laugh in exasperation.
So you're teasing me now?
"Well?"
"Surprised?"
Surprised?
She was so surprised she almost wanted to drag him home and make him kneel on a washboard.
Though...that was only a passing thought.
"When it comes to her belongings..."
"You can explain everything yourself."
Yukong had absolutely no intention of taking the blame.
She had only been deceived because of him.
Turning around, she walked over to Tingyun and embraced her tightly.
"It's good that you're back..."
"Lady Yukong..."
The tears Tingyun had been holding back finally spilled over.
It was genuinely a touching reunion.
Yet...once anyone remembered the starskiff that had just carried away all of Tingyun's belongings, the entire scene became unintentionally hilarious.
"Was it Su Ran who saved you?"
"Yes."
"Some time ago, I was attacked."
"It was Benefactor who rescued me."
Yukong: "..."
You're still calling him Benefactor now.
Just wait until you learn the whole truth.
You'll probably be raising your fist to punch him instead.
—------------------------------
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