As the two walked through a noisy stretch of street and turned into a comparatively quiet alley, a small public garden came into view at the far end.
There was a pool of clear water, several artificial rockeries, and a few old plum trees. Though it lay in the middle of the bustling city, the garden had a quiet, ethereal air all its own. Sunlight filtered through the sparse plum branches, scattering flecks of light across the pool and making its surface shimmer. Now and then, a koi or some kind of spirit fish leaped from the water, sending ripples spreading outward.
"..."
In that tranquil atmosphere, Lin Daiyu suddenly stopped again.
This time, she didn't look at some exasperating little girl of a master. Instead, she gazed blankly at the koi gliding leisurely through the pool and asked in a voice softer than before, yet tinged with an indescribable sharpness and certainty:
"Master..."
She paused, as if weighing her words, but eventually spoke.
"Have you..."
"Been hiding something from me all this time, without ever telling me?"
She didn't know why she was asking. She just had a feeling—a strange, mysterious feeling she couldn't quite explain.
"??"
Annie was crouching by the pool, trying to tease the unafraid koi with her fingers. At Daiyu's words, her fingertip froze mid-motion. Only after the little fish darted away in fright did she look up, a little guiltily. She forced a bright, slightly exaggerated smile and asked in return:
"No?"
(*^▽^*)
"How could I be? Why would you suddenly ask that?"
(.)
She tried to make her expression look natural, but the fleeting guilt in those clear, candid green eyes didn't escape Daiyu's perceptive gaze.
"..."
Fortunately, Lin Daiyu didn't call her out. She simply turned around and looked into the distance.