The first ray of morning sunlight passed through the window and fell across the sleeping girl's face.
Silver strands of hair draped beside her cheeks, the corners of her crimson lips curled slightly upward, and her long eyelashes trembled faintly.
Looking at the face sleeping so close to him, Zane couldn't resist reaching out and poking her cheek.
It was soft and delicate, like a sweet pastry, skin tinged with pink, as though traces of last night still lingered there.
Jinhsi opened her eyes. The moment she saw the person before her, her moist eyes curved into crescents as she gazed gently at the one she loved.
The faint red traces at the corners of her eyes still remained, stirring an irresistible sense of tenderness.
"Um… does it still hurt?"
The girl smiled, nodded, then shook her head. She took his hand and gently placed it against her chest.
"It's warm here."
As she spoke, she propped herself up with one arm to get out of bed, but the movement seemed to pull at the wound, and she let out a soft hiss.
"Careful."
That tiny cry of pain carved itself into his heart like a brand, making him hurriedly pull her into his arms.
Jinhsi naturally rested her head against his shoulder. This girl, who had always been selfless for Jinzhou's sake, finally allowed herself, deep down, a little selfishness and greed.
"Sis Jinhsi?"
"You're still calling me Sis Jinhsi?"
"Then… Jinhsi…"
"Mhm…"
The two held each other quietly, savoring this brief moment of peace. Neither wanted to break the beauty of it.
In the end, Jinhsi was the one who gently shattered the silence first.
"You're leaving, aren't you?"
He couldn't see her expression, but the sound of her breathing beside his ear struck heavily against his heart, making it tremble.
"Leaving where?"
"Rover didn't tell you?"
Jinhsi looked a little surprised, then quickly understood.
Rover hadn't wanted to interfere with his choice, so she had delayed telling Zane where their next destination would be.
As if realizing something, Zane wanted to explain. But before he could speak, a warm little hand pressed against his lips, stopping the words that followed.
'My Zane can't stay trapped in a tiny place like Jinzhou forever. His stage is much bigger. It's all of Solaris.'
'If you stay, I will be very happy, because I can stay by her lover's side every day.'
'If you leave, I will still be very happy, because that means more people can be saved. It means countless people in this world will get to stay beside the person they love.'
'I still know which matters more.'
Feeling the dampness on his shoulder, Zane didn't know how to put his emotions into words. All he could do was hold her tighter, as though he wanted to melt her completely into himself.
"And… help Rover more. She's very lonely…" There was a trace more worry in Jinhsi's voice.
If Rover had really walked alone for all this time, then what did the places behind her, the places beyond her reach, look like?
"Even though she's very strong, one person's strength is still limited. She can protect a small town, a city… but she can't protect everything."
"Maybe one day, her enemies will unite and bully her. Everything she protected could turn to dust, and even the people she wanted to protect might betray her…"
"So I hope that when that moment comes, you'll stand firmly at her side and protect her."
"Okay?"
Zane stayed silent for a long time before nodding firmly.
Seeing him agree, Jinhsi nestled quietly in his arms and raised a hand to smooth his messy white hair. For a long while after this, she wouldn't be able to feel the warmth of this embrace anymore.
"And bring Jue with you. Not long ago, the head of the Fisalia family from Rinascita came to Jinzhou asking for help, saying they needed the Sentinel's aid… but at the time, Jinzhou could barely protect itself, so naturally we couldn't help them."
"So when you go to Rinascita this time, bring Jue along. She'll help you solve a lot of trouble."
"Oh, and… there won't be anyone taking care of you out there, so make sure you eat on time…"
———
Like a wife seeing her husband off on a long journey, she kept rambling on with endless reminders.
Then, draped only in a thin outer robe, she dragged her exhausted body around helping him pack, smoothing the wrinkles from his collar.
Looking at the man before her, Jinhsi smiled.
But as she smiled, tears slipped down her face again.
"Alright, go already. If you stay any longer, I really won't be able to bear letting you leave."
As she spoke, Jinhsi took out a letter and shoved it into Zane's arms. Before he could ask anything, she pushed him out the door.
As he stepped across the doorway, Jinhsi's gaze met those golden eyes. After a long moment, Jinhsi gave Rover a slight nod, and Rover answered with a firm look.
Jinhsi: 'Take care of him.'
Rover: 'Leave it to me.'
No words were needed anymore.
As they started down the mountain path, Zane turned back. The figure standing at the doorway seemed to have finally made up her mind and turned her back to him.
But whenever he looked away, that burning gaze would quietly fall on him again, silently watching his retreating figure grow farther and farther away.
Until they had left Peach Blossom Spring entirely.
"He's already gone…"
Changli's soft sigh suddenly sounded beside her ear. Jinhsi nodded, closed her eyes, and took a deep breath.
But the instant she turned toward her master, the girl could no longer hold herself together. Her legs gave out, and she collapsed into her master's arms, crying uncontrollably.
"Master… Zane… Zane…"
"You foolish child…"
Changli sighed helplessly and could only gently stroke her disciple's silver hair. The mountain breeze softly wrapped around them. Without that noisy voice nearby anymore, things suddenly did feel a little lonely.
———
Meanwhile, Rover walked beside Zane, her golden eyes fixed on him the entire time. She remained silent for a long while.
Only when the ferry dock was already close at hand...
"You…"
Before she could finish speaking, Zane suddenly grabbed her hand, leaving her staring at him in surprise.
"Did something happen to Abby?"
His words startled Rover immediately. How did he know about that?
"During a festival as lively as the Moon-Chasing Festival, that gluttonous Echo never showed up. That's strange."
"And from what Sis Jinhsi said earlier about Rinascita, I guessed you probably wanted to go there, to the nation of Echoes, and look for a way to solve Abby's problem."
After hearing his reasoning, Rover nodded.
"A little earlier, Shorekeeper sent me a record that had been stored in the deepest layer of Tethys' space."
"What did it say?"
Rover stopped walking and looked toward the docks in the distance.
"It was a record left for me by the 'me' from the past. She told me to go find Imperator."
"Imperator…" Zane repeated the name. As far as he knew, Imperator was Rinascita's Sentinel.
"So you're going to… Why did you stop?"
Only then did Zane realize that no matter how much he tugged on her hand, Rover remained standing there, refusing to take another step forward.
She stood beneath the shadows cast by the trees, head lowered, her bangs hiding her eyes so completely that he couldn't read her expression.
"This is my problem…"
Zane froze for a second, then answered firmly, "Your problems are my problems too!"
"Abby is my Echo…"
"Then she'll be ours in the future!"
"Rinascita isn't Jinzhou. It's not your territory…"
"Then I'll make Rinascita my territory!"
At that moment, Rover suddenly lifted her head and met his gaze head-on without backing down. Her golden eyes were clouded with turmoil. She didn't know whether what she was doing was right.
"Are you sure…" Her voice paused.
She was terrified he might reject her, yet at the same time she wanted him to stay somewhere safe. But when she met those emerald-green eyes, she gathered her courage again.
"Are you sure you want to give up the peace of Jinzhou and wander together with me?"
Hearing that, Zane burst out laughing.
"Listen to yourself. You make it sound like we'll never come back." As he spoke, he caught Rover off guard and scooped her into his arms despite her struggling.
"What are you doing~ Put me down already~"
Rover kicked her legs furiously, but Zane had no intention of letting go. Instead, he held her even tighter.
"I know what you're thinking. You're my girlfriend, so there's no way I'd let you face those dangers alone. So…"
"Hehehe… why don't you just give in to me already… ow!"
Out of nowhere, Stelle sprang out from a nearby bush and chopped Zane on the head with a hand strike, making him cry out in pain.
"I built this road, I planted these trees! If you want to pass through here, leave Rover behind!"
Seeing Stelle fooling around like this, the Doctor standing at the end of the road couldn't help sighing.
"Since when did Rover become toll payment?"
Beside him, Jue crossed her arms while the two buns atop her head bobbed up and down.
"Exactly, exactly. All of Jinzhou belongs to the Magistrate. How could she possibly be something as shallow as toll payment?"
Bright sunlight poured over Rover. She looked up at the people around her and suddenly felt a little foolish.
She had known his answer from the very beginning, hadn't she?
She had never needed to bear everything alone. Whether she wanted it or not, there would always be some fool standing beneath the sunlight, reaching out a hand toward her.
She didn't need to trap herself in overthinking anymore.
After all, wasn't his wife also her wife?
The knot in her heart finally loosened, and a smile once again appeared on Rover's face.
"Let's go. To Rinascita."
———
Elsewhere, inside a luxurious villa in Rinascita, a pair of long, flawless legs rested one over the other, mismatched stockings rubbing softly together. The woman looked at the letter in her hand, and a faint smile curved across her scarlet lips.
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