Zero's World (Continued)

Emerging from the bamboo grove in the courtyard, the pale pink fox leaped onto the tea table he had brought over, picked up a cup of slightly cooled tea, and drank it all in one gulp under the man's gaze, letting out a joyful chirp.

"... Has someone come?" The man understood the fox's meaning. He gathered his cascading long hair, tightened his cloak, and stood up from the floorboards he used to enjoy the spring. He smoothed the wrinkles in his clothes in the warm and cold wind, picked up a black mask from the table, and walked into the inner room.

The mansion is decorated simply yet stylishly, with a spacious hallway that is refreshing and pleasing to the eye. The styles of various countries blend together harmoniously without appearing jarring, creating an atmosphere of solitary elegance.

However, the blurry group photo hanging in the main hall disrupted the overall harmony, but for some reason no one took it down.

While the man was lighting the heater, the fox cleverly wiped its paws clean on the doormat and followed him through the main hall to the door.

He put on the mask, the ceramic mask covering his face perfectly, and then reached out to open the door, letting in the first breeze of the new year.

"Lin, Happy New Year." Appearing behind the door was a pink-haired girl wearing a cherry blossom kimono. She arrived with a delicate fragrance. Her long hair, which used to flow freely, was now tied up. Her capable demeanor was transformed into a gentle and tender woman's charm, and her smile was like a pink cherry blossom blooming in a garden.

With her slender hands carrying the gift, she skillfully placed it on the shelf by the door.

"Are you alone?" The man stepped aside to let her pass. Sakura shook the rain off her wooden clogs in front of the door and stepped into the warm house in her white tabi socks.

"They said they need to make some preparations, probably to buy fireworks." She followed the man back to the courtyard. Along the way, the pink fox would occasionally rub its soft fur against Sakura's legs. After entering the courtyard, it skillfully climbed onto her shoulder and used its tail as a scarf to keep the girl warm.

A warmth welled up from the bottom of her heart. Sakura gently stroked the fox's head and said to the man who had boiled water again to make tea, "Thank you for taking care of it for me. I'm sure you've had a lot of trouble."

The man glanced at the fox, who was yawning and even had tears streaming down its face, but said nothing.

Sakura strolled through the courtyard, gently inhaling the fragrance of flowers. It had been a while since she had been here. No matter when, this mansion always possessed a reassuring tranquility that could calm a restless soul amidst the flowing water and birdsong.

Perhaps that's why this man lives here?

In my memory, he was a man of few words, but with a sharp and piercing aura, like a fine piece of forged steel. Now he has changed. He is still not very talkative, but the sharpness of his past has been washed away, and he has become as mature and composed as his long hair.

To make a long story short, after the man poured tea for Ying, the doorbell rang, and the impatient nature of the visitor made him guess who it was.

"Lin! Mobius told me to tell you she'll be here later! That crazy woman is always so slow!" The man wearing a mask that was the opposite color but similar in style to the man's mask stopped knocking on the door and shouted loudly to the silent man, "Who's here?"

His suit and tie made the man feel a little uncomfortable, but even his refined appearance couldn't hide his inner boldness. The man was just a little curious as to why he dressed like this.

The man pointed to the inside of the house with one finger. "Sakura."

"She came pretty quickly. I'll go in and sit for a while. Call me when you're cooking." Chrono stretched his right arm. His ill-fitting suit was almost torn apart, which looked really out of place and left one wondering how to describe it.

"...Last time you and Kevin ruined the kitchen, so this time the vote is for Mobius and Sue to cook." The man brushed the fallen leaves off Chrono's shoulder, crossed his arms, and spoke calmly.

Chrono Jie froze, his hand nervously resting on the doorknob, his fingers tapping on the wooden door. "Who organized the vote? Why didn't I know about it?"

"Kevin cast his vote while you were in the bathroom after you finished eating the meal you made yourself."

"..."

Perhaps because he rarely had similar experiences and feelings, Chrono's movements were somewhat exaggerated and exaggerated.

The man shook his head, and with a regretful Chrono, Qianjie walked into the courtyard, asking as he went, "Do you need me to find you a bathrobe?"

"Huh? Why?" Chrono stopped and glanced at the group photo in the main hall, then asked.

The man looked the body, its muscles seemingly bursting out of the fabric, up and down. "Didn't you say you had no clothes to wear?"

"I do have one." Chrono was a bit simple-minded, but her mind worked quickly. After noticing that the man was looking her up and down, she said casually, "I wore this on purpose. I heard from Hua that Shenzhou attaches great importance to the New Year's customs, so I borrowed a suit from Kosma."

"... What about Kosma?"

"He was wearing the same thing."

The man could roughly imagine what the courtyard would look like in a little while.

The lively atmosphere brought a touch of life to the once quiet courtyard, creating a unique ambiance. The man leaned against the sliding door, while the water accumulating on the eaves pattered gently, forming lines that flowed from the cracks in the stone path into the channel, turning into a trickle.

Sakura and Chrono chatted casually. The man exhaled a warm breath, tilted his mask to cover half of his face, revealing only his lips, took out an old briar root pipe from the drawer of the table outside the door, rubbed the tobacco, lit a match, and stood in front of the door, where smoke billowed.

With his eyelids half-closed, his clear pupils reflected the silhouettes of the two figures. Amidst the sweet aroma of smoky tobacco mingled with a hint of spiciness, a warm feeling flowed through his entire body.

He held the slender stem of the pipe with one hand, tapped the finely grained wood of the pipe, maintaining a proper rhythm, and then leaned on the hand holding the pipe, looking up at the sky and exhaling.

He doesn't like smoking and doesn't have the habit, but he will occasionally smoke for a while when he has nothing to do as a pastime.

Others also dislike smoking, but they enjoy watching him smoke, or rather, they admire it.

In Elysia's words, his smoking movements were natural, and his demeanor was completely different from his usual self, giving him a kind of beauty that seemed to have stepped out of the screen and into reality.

After taking a few puffs of his pipe, the doorbell rang again. He put down his pipe and went outside.

New Year Special: Dappled Shadows in the Forest

"Whoosh—"

A sharp screech cut across the sky, adding a touch of fireworks to the otherwise cold and gloomy air. The man paused to listen to the distant sound of fireworks rising into the sky before slowly approaching the main gate.

"Clatter".

Half of her face was illuminated by the dazzling fireworks.

"Hey~ Lin, is this what they call 'half-hidden face'?" The person outside was taken aback by this unfamiliar look, then winked and smiled as they picked up the plastic bag in their hand, "I brought back some barbecue, want some?"

The man's dark pupils lingered on the person outside. He remembered that she was wearing ordinary casual clothes when she went out today, not... a light pink yukata embroidered with little mask figures.

He had seen her wear all sorts of clothes: Shenzhou style, Western style, Japanese style, traditional style, modern style... What she wore depended entirely on her mood. Whenever she was in a good mood, she would try on new clothes, like a colorful rainbow rose with vibrant petals. Occasionally, she would also drag others down with her, such as Mobius.

Incidentally, she was in a good mood almost every day.

However, in the man's memory, she had never worn a yukata, perhaps because she felt that wearing a yukata was not appropriate or convenient for everyday life.

But today he saw her in a yukata, just like ever before, as transparent and beautiful as Crystal Flower, seemingly unreal in this world.

The hot air from the barbecue box collided with the cold air from the plastic bag, creating a hazy mist. The girl held the cheap foam box and plastic bag in both hands, her quirky smile seemingly unchanged.

"Why are you staring at me?" After waiting for a while without receiving a response from the man, the girl realized what was happening when she saw his unmasked dark eyes scrutinizing her clothes. "I had this made by someone else. Doesn't the person on it look like you?"

Upon closer inspection, the mask was indeed his, so this must be his chibi version.

Unlike the ice cube, this masked little man was cheerfully stretching his arms and yawning.

"Sakura and Chrono are already here; they're having tea." Without offering much comment, the man said casually, "Come in; it's cold outside."

"Is there any for me?"

"I can make it for you."

He turned and walked into the house, the girl following behind him.

This time, they didn't have to wait long, as they had all chosen this time to arrive. When the man opened the door again, there were three people standing in front of it.

A woman with long, wine-red hair, wearing a fur coat, took off her goggles, wiped away the rain, and smiled serenely, "Long time no see, my dear friend."

"How are you doing performing?" The man rarely showed concern. He reached out to take Eden's luggage, but she gently waved him away, indicating that she should do it herself.

"Hmm... it went somewhat more smoothly than expected, but that's part of the charm of art, even if..."

"Can't you go inside and talk first?" The tall, green-haired woman raised her delicate eyebrows and urged impatiently.

The man glanced at her attire. "The impatient always arrive too late."

"... Did you go with Vill-V to cultivate your so-called poetic sensibility?" The woman could tell he was mocking her procrastination today, but she couldn't be bothered to argue.

"Lin, do you need my help with the setup?"

The last person was Aponia, dressed much like usual. Her beige sweater and updo made her look warm and virtuous, and her unchanging smile made the man nod subconsciously.

Eden and Aponia changed into indoor shoes and walked arm in arm into the room. "Let's chat again later, I haven't seen everyone in a long time..."

However, one person remained motionless. Her mottled snake eyes, like two exquisitely carved topaz, emitted a dim light. Having long since shed her white clothes, she placed her hands on the slit of her cheongsam, where emerald green patterns were embroidered with night-blooming magnolias on the jade-white fabric.

Men noticed earlier than anyone else that Mobius actually wore light makeup and altered her clothes, albeit on a small scale, so almost everyone thought she was focused on her work and didn't care much about her appearance.

But today, contrary to her usual self, she wore a cheongsam and light red eyeshadow, looking charming and alluring.

"... Aren't you going in yet?" The man didn't budge an inch.

"I'm waiting for Klein." Mobius had his back to him, his slender neck appearing exceptionally white in the warm light.

"... Here, take this."

Mobius felt a weight on her shoulder, and when she turned around, she saw a man in plain clothes draping a cloak over her back.

"... It's not cold." She said that, but she still shrank her neck and pulled the cloak, which was warmed by the man's body heat, to make her stiff body, which had been exposed to a lot of cold wind, feel warmer. "You can go in now."

"I'll chat with you for a while while we wait for them."

Mobius glanced at his black mask. "Hmph... you've really changed a lot."

The man gazed at the rising, bright moon and said softly, "Perhaps."

"Hahaha... Sorry, I got stuck in traffic after I finished checking the parts for Klein."

The woman, her face covered in grease and still wearing her work clothes, carried Klein in one hand and smiled apologetically at the two waiting men.

"Klein, are you alright? What did Vill-V do to you?" Mobius snatched Klein from Vill-V's hand and glared at the smiling Vill-V.

"I'm fine, Doctor..." Klein covered her dizzy head with the long sleeves of her small hands, "It's just that Dr. Vill-V was very shaky when she rushed over..."

"It seems we're not too late."

The four of them walked together from the pitch-black night into the moonlight. Kosma supported Sue, whose face was still slightly pale, while Griseo and Kevin followed behind them to the door.

"Su, how have you been lately?" the man asked Su, who, despite appearing weak, maintained an ethereal air with her eyes closed.

Su's long braid moved slowly up and down. "Not bad, it shouldn't be long."

Kevin glanced at the people present and the shoes on the shoe rack. "Is everyone here, Lin?"

"And Pardo and Hua, they went to buy fireworks."

"Magnificent..."

"Kevin."

The man stopped Kevin from continuing, and after a moment of silence, Kevin nodded and didn't bring it up again.

Today is not a good day.

No, it's just that he cares about it.

"I brought ice cream, let's eat it later." Kevin picked up the bag in his hand, and judging from its thickness, it contained quite a lot of things.

"Eat at this time?" The man hesitated, glancing at the chilly street outside the door, where a light rain had just fallen.

Kosma stared silently at the ill-timed ice cream in Kevin's hand for a while—

"Cool."

"Brother Lin, this is for you."

Griseo handed the man a rolled-up painting that was placed in a paper tube.

The man didn't open it immediately, but simply asked, "What's that drawing?"

"Kosma told me that if you ask, you should say you don't know, and don't tell me that he actually drew it," Griseo said blankly. "Oh, right, Kosma also told me not to say that."

"..."

You can't read the man's expression from Kosma's face, but you can guess his subtle feelings.

"Phew... Mission accomplished! Brother Lin! The fireworks Hua and I bought today are enough to keep the fireworks going all night!"

A truck pulled up in front of the door, and movers unloaded enough fireworks to fill a warehouse. A brown-haired girl, dressed in thick winter clothes, gave the man a funny salute, her face beaming with smiles.

"Lin, I've already told Phyllis not to buy so much..." The gray-haired woman in martial arts attire and red-rimmed glasses sighed and said to the man, "It's a waste of money, time, and energy; it's really not worth it."

The man didn't show any displeasure. He picked up one of the boxes of fireworks and said, "It's alright, let's go. They're waiting for us."

New Year Special: Under the Mottled Shadows

With Vill-V's enthusiasm, the main hall was transformed into the desired effect in the blink of an eye.

"So, today's magic trick is—Extreme Explosion! With just a snap of your fingers, fireworks will launch that can blow the entire building into the sky!"

The lights at Vill-V will shine precisely on her wherever she goes; enjoying the spotlight on stage is fundamental to becoming a Great Magician.

Dressed in an evening gown, she stretched out her arms, bathing herself in the gaze. "How about some applause?"

"..."