Amusement Park Visit - Part 2

All the way there, she kept talking with Hermione, and Lin Yue indeed stopped calculating the data and various values of the amusement park rides.

Arriving beneath the Ferris wheel, Lin Yue was pulled by Hermione to stand behind the queue of people.

Lifting her head expressionlessly to look at the massive Ferris wheel slowly rotating not far away, Lin Yue realized for the first time what a real Ferris wheel looked like in daily life.

Hermione tightly held onto Lin Yue beside her, afraid that if she wasn't careful, the crowd of people coming and going would squeeze her away. Looking down at the amusement park ticket in her hand, Hermione quickly compared it against the rides she knew.

The Ferris wheel, mini pirate ship, roller coaster, bumper cars—these basic rides were all included. The only thing that required separate payment should be the haunted house.

The haunted house... Hermione lowered her eyes and thought carefully. Should she take Lin Yue there?

If they went, maybe in the haunted house's atmosphere, Lin Yue would be a little scared? Then wouldn't she experience the emotion of fear?

And if Lin Yue got scared, she would be right beside her... Hermione's mind unconsciously began to fantasize about leading Lin Yue into the haunted house, and Lin Yue, frightened by the ghosts inside, would burrow into her arms.

Just thinking about it made the corners of Hermione's mouth curl up uncontrollably, impossible to suppress.

Lin Yue stood beside Hermione, habitually turning her head expressionlessly to glance at her. When she saw the curled-up corners of her mouth, she paused.

Hermione was smiling, and it was a genuine smile from the heart. Lin Yue's brain automatically made the analysis.

Unlike when they came out of the hospital before, Hermione's smile this time was extremely natural, the muscles in her face relaxed and at ease, so Lin Yue easily reached this conclusion.

So why was Hermione smiling? Lin Yue continued to think. Books said that the reasons for smiling were generally happiness, excitement, or elation.

But why was Hermione happy? Without any hint of doubt on her expression, Lin Yue simply followed her own train of thought and posed this question.

Looking around, Lin Yue pondered in her mind and came up with what she thought was the most likely answer.

Because they came to the amusement park, so Hermione was happy. Hermione was happy to be able to play at the amusement park.

Having reached her final conclusion, Lin Yue didn't look any further. She silently withdrew her gaze and continued staring blankly at the Ferris wheel in the distance.

After showing their tickets to the staff member at the Ferris wheel, Lin Yue and Hermione sat down together in one of the cabins.

Sitting in the cabin, Hermione gently tugged at Lin Yue's sleeve. "Lin Yue, are you afraid of heights?"

Lin Yue turned her head with no change in her expression, looked at Hermione, and mechanically shook her head. "Fear of heights, commonly referred to as acrophobia, also known as a fear of heights. The basic symptoms of acrophobia are dizziness, nausea, and loss of appetite."

"I cannot feel fear, so I cannot produce the above reactions. I do not have acrophobia."

Her instinctive concern made Hermione blurt out the question of whether Lin Yue was afraid of heights the moment she spoke.

The instant Lin Yue began reciting the definition of acrophobia, Hermione regretted it. Lin Yue didn't understand these emotions yet... How could she be afraid of heights?

She was already subconsciously using her brainwaves to suppress her emotional center. How could her body easily allow these physiological reactions to appear?

Reaching out, Hermione pulled Lin Yue into her arms, lowered her head, and gently pressed her lips to the top of her head. "Don't say anymore, don't say anymore. It's my fault."

Lin Yue carefully thought about why Hermione was apologizing, but she couldn't come up with a single reasonable reason why Hermione needed to apologize.

"You don't need to apologize. You didn't make a mistake." Lin Yue spoke in a flat tone, stating the truth.

Hermione didn't say anything. She just slowly stroked Lin Yue's cheek, her gaze fixed on the window.

From now on, she absolutely couldn't speak so carelessly anymore. Hermione made up her mind. She really didn't want to experience Lin Yue mechanically explaining words a third time, or even more.

That feeling, like a computer, made her heart ache in waves.

Holding Lin Yue for a moment to calm down, seeing that the Ferris wheel was about to reach its highest point, Hermione quickly let Lin Yue go from her embrace, took her hand, and led her to the glass window of the cabin, pointing outside.

"Lin Yue, look. The scenery outside is so beautiful."

Lin Yue followed the direction of Hermione's finger. Outside the towering Ferris wheel, the entire amusement park, and even a large part of the city, lay spread out before her eyes.

This was a visual sensation she had never experienced before. In her memory, she had learned many poems about the scenery from high mountains.

She had never climbed a mountain, so she had never truly understood what the mountain-top scenery in those poems was like.

Even when faced with the translations of the poems she herself had written, her blank emotions were not enough to support her in constructing an illusory mountain.

She had never been to a high mountain, but this time she had ridden the Ferris wheel. The scenery from the top of a mountain should probably be similar to this...

Lin Yue's lifeless eyes looked into the distance. The sky far away was just like herself—silent and still, as if unresponsive to everything.

Standing beside her, Hermione looked at the scenery outside the Ferris wheel, then turned her head and looked at Lin Yue expectantly.

"Forget about getting everyone together to play this summer holiday. Next summer holiday, Mom and Dad seem to be planning to take us to France. When we go, let's climb the Eiffel Tower together! It's much taller than this Ferris wheel!"

Lin Yue's brain paused slightly. She turned her head and looked at Hermione with calm eyes. "I can go too..."

"Of course!" Hermione nodded matter-of-factly. "You're practically the second child in our family now."

"Or what," Hermione squinted her eyes in a feigned dangerous manner, "you don't want to spend next summer holiday with me?"

Hearing Hermione's words, Lin Yue followed the instructions deep within her brain and mechanically shook her head. "I don't."

"Then that's good." Hermione smiled happily and continued holding Lin Yue's hand to watch the scenery outside the Ferris wheel.

Next summer holiday... Lin Yue stared blankly out at the Ferris wheel. Could she live until next summer holiday, until the time she went to France with Hermione?

Her brain quickly analyzed it. Lin Yue judged that the probability of her living until then was extremely low.

This summer holiday, she had to invite six people, including Hermione, to go on a "vacation" with her to the villa. These six people were the ones she couldn't let go of the most.

If any one of them had a score in the bottom third, they would be... A flicker of absolute rational struggle passed through Lin Yue's eyes, but it quickly disappeared.

I don't want, I don't want them to be disposed of... Lin Yue stood still. So if any enforcement personnel came to take any of them away, Lin Yue would definitely stop them.

After that... she should have accepted the punishment for breaking the rules without resistance, but Hermione said she wanted to travel to France with her, to climb the Eiffel Tower together.

Make that happen! Just like when she agreed to Hermione earlier, Lin Yue's mind kept repeating those words, and she decided to follow the deep command in her own brain.

But after calculating, with her current abilities, even using magic under the Ministry of Magic's stipulated "emergency circumstances," she couldn't contend with an entire Executive agency.

Her power wasn't at that level—even just surviving would be difficult. At most, what she could do was buy Hermione and the others more time when things actually went down.

Turning her head stiffly toward Hermione, Lin Yue's thoughts churned as she envisioned her own inevitable death, yet her expression remained utterly unchanged.

There was no emotion in her heart either; instead, she reaffirmed that her plan would succeed, that it would definitely protect Hermione and the others.

As for what she'd just promised Hermione—going to France with her and the Grangers... she would try her best to make it, to stay alive by Hermione's side until that day.

The Ferris wheel kept turning, and the cabin carrying Lin Yue and Hermione slowly descended from its highest point back toward the ground.

Throughout the entire descent, Lin Yue's eyes never left Hermione, not once.

Not until their cabin had fully returned to the ground did Hermione, who had been stared at for so long, finally pull her gaze away from the cabin's glass window with a hint of embarrassment.

Clearing her throat, she let go of Lin Yue's hand and switched to linking her arm instead. "Ahem, stop staring. We should get off."

Lin Yue had started watching her the moment the Ferris wheel reached its peak and kept at it until they were back on the ground... She had no idea what was so worth looking at, that this girl would stare for so long.

Hermione's cheeks flushed slightly as she linked arms with Lin Yue and stepped off the Ferris wheel.

Walking out of the Ferris wheel with Lin Yue, Hermione's eyes lit up at the sight of the Merry-go-round nearby, zeroing in on one of the horse-drawn carriage seats.

Turning to Lin Yue with enthusiasm, her tone was cheerful. "Lin Yue, how about we ride the Merry-go-round together?"

Lin Yue nodded blandly, her voice flat. "Sure."

Hearing this, Hermione smiled and linked arms with her as they walked over to queue for the Merry-go-round. The line was even shorter than the Ferris wheel's, so it was their turn quickly.

Stepping onto the Merry-go-round's rotating platform, Hermione guided Lin Yue straight to the carriage and pointed inside. "How about you sit in there?"

Lin Yue's eyes were vacant as she looked at the carriage seat, nodded, and walked in to sit down.

Watching Lin Yue settle into the carriage, Hermione smiled happily, then turned and sat on the horse pulling it.

The Merry-go-round started slowly, and Hermione twisted around to look back at Lin Yue as they spun.

The girl in the carriage wore a detached expression, her eyes hollow, but her bearing and features were exquisite.

A medieval princess must have looked like this... Lin Yue really was just as she'd imagined—sitting in there, she looked just like a princess. Hermione sat steadily on her "horse," and for a moment, she almost felt like Lin Yue's Knight.

Clearing her path, protecting her for life.

If only I could really do that, Hermione thought quietly. If only I could truly protect Lin Yue, help her heal, keep her away from the painful memories of the past. If only I could protect Lin Yue, keep her safe from future dangers.

If only I could stand in front of Lin Yue, instead of her standing in front of me... that would be wonderful.

Hermione looked at Lin Yue in the carriage, took a deep breath, and plastered a big smile on her face. She raised her voice to drown out the Merry-go-round's music.

"Lin Yue! You look just like a princess! And me—do I look like your Knight?"

As she spoke, Hermione puffed out her small chest, putting on a dignified air.

Princess? Knight? Lin Yue listened woodenly to Hermione's words, her brain quickly processing the two terms.

In her memory, these words almost exclusively appeared in one type of banned book: Fairy Tale Books.

So she only knew their definitions. But seeing Hermione like this...

Lin Yue nodded blankly. "Yes. We both do."

She said this under Hermione's expectant gaze, though she couldn't see the anticipation in Hermione's eyes.

Nor did she understand her excitement now. But a voice deep in her mind told her to do this—to affirm Hermione's words.

The Merry-go-round ride ended. Hermione dismounted from her "horse," walked to the carriage door, bent down, and extended her right hand to Lin Yue.

"My princess, please step down."

Lin Yue paused for a second, then slowly reached out her right hand and placed it in Hermione's.

Gently pulling Lin Yue out of the carriage, Hermione led her off the Merry-go-round's platform.

Looking at the various amusement rides nearby, Hermione tilted her head toward Lin Yue and blinked. "How about we try them all, one by one?"

"Okay." Lin Yue nodded expressionlessly, letting Hermione drag her from one ride to the next.

On the Mini pirate ship, Hermione laughed out loud and cheered along with the other children, while Lin Yue sat beside her, listening to the sounds as if they came from another world.

Until Hermione leaned close to her ear and shouted, "Lin Yue! You should yell a bit too! Get into the atmosphere—even if it's not from fear, you can still let it out!"

Lin Yue's eyes flickered slightly. She stared blankly ahead, opened her mouth, and let out a shout devoid of any emotion.

Hearing her soulless cry, Hermione's heart ached. She closed her eyes, suppressing the heat behind them, and reached out to take Lin Yue's hand.

As if guiding her, she laughed and shouted loudly by her side.

When they got off the Mini pirate ship, Hermione's throat was already a little hoarse. Lin Yue, still linked arm-in-arm with Hermione, steered her directly toward a drink stand.

Her steps were so quick and decisive that Hermione, who hadn't even realized her own throat was dry, found it strange—there didn't seem to be any rides over there, did there?

Before Hermione could speak, Lin Yue swiftly pulled the Black Card given by the World Consciousness from her pocket and handed it to the vendor. Hermione's throat was hoarse; she needed water quickly, so she had to move fast.

"Two bottles of water, please."

The shopkeeper stared blankly at the black bank card. Buying just water—did they really need a card for that? And on this card... besides the two characters "Yue Lin," there was nothing else. Was it even usable?

Still, this was an official store in the amusement park, not a roadside stall, so it was equipped with a card reader.

The shopkeeper pressed the black bank card against the machine, and a password entry screen instantly popped up.

The shopkeeper handed the card reader to Lin Yue. Lin Yue took it and, without hesitation, directly entered her birth date.

Payment successful. The shopkeeper was quietly surprised. He retrieved the card reader and handed the bank card along with two bottles of water to Lin Yue.

Taking the card and water, Lin Yue thanked him again in a flat tone, then unscrewed one bottle, turned, and placed it in Hermione's hand.

"Your voice is hoarse. Drink some water."

Hermione looked at the water in her hand, a warmth rising in her heart, and couldn't help but smile.

Taking a big gulp, Hermione smiled at Lin Yue and said, "Thanks, Lin Yue~"

So that was why Lin Yue had pulled her away just now—she'd noticed her voice was a little rough and brought her to buy water...

This girl, even though she herself hadn't fully understood or learned about emotions yet, was still this gentle and considerate.