Shota was probably the weakest one here. After all, he was just an ordinary child.
Little Jeanne did not know how to play table tennis, but her reactions were extremely quick, and she was stronger than Shota. Naturally, she won the first match without any suspense.
With her Luck E luck, Jack drew Kanna as her opponent.
Kanna was both strong and agile. She and Jack traded blows back and forth, but Jack was clearly at a disadvantage, relying entirely on her high-speed movements and reactions to defend passively.
However, among these children, Jack was also the least concerned with winning or losing. She was more interested in enjoying the game than winning the match.
This tug-of-war ultimately ended with Kanna prevailing by a narrow margin.
The last pair was Gretel and Illya. Illya was somewhat lacking in agility, but Gretel was not much better. Though Gretel usually acted like a lady, she was not good at sports.
As Gretel looked thoroughly frustrated, Yuxian announced Illya as the winner.
Yuxian had the three winners draw lots again, and Little Jeanne once more drew the best possible lot, advancing without a match.
Yuxian secretly thought that the Luck stat was really useful. It was practically an unstoppable weapon.
Illya and Kanna's match ended quickly. Illya was not actually good at sports, only marginally better than Gretel.
The final showdown began between Little Jeanne and Kanna.
"Kanna, I definitely won't lose to you!" Little Jeanne said confidently.
"Oh!" Kanna's expression turned serious as well, and she prepared to give her all in this ultimate showdown.
Smack! Smack! Smack! Smack!
The sounds of the ping-pong ball being struck rang out endlessly. At this point, Yuxian, the referee, seemed rather unnecessary. He could not even see the ball flying back and forth between them. Those afterimages dealt him a profound blow.
A sport he considered himself good at was not even something he could match two children in.
Since he could not see clearly, he had no choice but to ask someone who could. Elkoya happened to be beside him, so he quietly asked, "Who has the advantage right now?"
Elkoya stroked her chin and answered, "Kanna should be slightly stronger in terms of ability, but for some reason, Jeanne-chan always manages to hit lucky shots."
Got it!
A lancer with Luck A++. Just tell me, are you scared or not?
Little Jeanne's luck was higher than that of most people in this world. What did a few lucky shots amount to?
Yet in the end, Little Jeanne still failed to win. Luck could not overcome strength after all. Kanna really was exceptionally talented at sports.
Yuxian announced Kanna as the final winner of this table tennis competition. He even took out an adorable charm of his own as a prize for Kanna.
Kanna was very happy, not only because she had won in the end, but also because she had truly enjoyed herself this time.
Compared with sports at school, playing with Little Jeanne and the others without having to hold back too much of her strength was what made her happiest.
"Would you like to try, Senpai?" Mash stepped forward and asked Yuxian after the children had finished.
Yuxian hurriedly waved his hands. "I'll pass."
He had originally intended to show off a little, but after watching Kanna and Little Jeanne's match, he immediately gave up on the idea. It was simply too embarrassing to put on display.
Mash tugged on him and said, "Come on, Senpai. Give it a try too."
Yuxian could not refuse Mash's enthusiastic invitation, so he stepped forward and began playing against her.
The table tennis the two of them played was normal table tennis. They did not rely on physical strength, but on technique to control the ball's trajectory.
Though it did not look nearly as flashy, Yuxian's performance still earned everyone's applause.
A Sudden Farewell
After everyone played around for a while, it was already late, so they returned to their rooms to rest.
There were no complicated matters here to disturb them, and the nights were very quiet. Logically, it should have been even easier to sleep in such an environment.
Yet Yuxian was having a little trouble sleeping. He did not know whether it was because he was unaccustomed to this environment or because he felt anxious about leaving this world soon.
He got out of bed. The children all had different sleeping postures, and they would inevitably kick off their blankets. Yuxian covered each of them up and tucked in the corners of their blankets.
Looking at their sweet sleeping faces, Yuxian could not help but smile. Perhaps this was what happiness meant.
Being loved and trusted by the children, being able to watch them laugh and play happily—Yuxian felt deeply at peace, with an incomparable sense of fulfillment.
What the days ahead would be like was not important.
The only thing he feared was that this was all a dream, that it was not real.
Was this a dream?
Of course not.
Yuxian left the room and came to the center of the courtyard, where outdoor tables and chairs had been set up for people to rest.
Sitting in a chair, he quietly gazed up at the sky. Winter nights were a little cold, but the night sky was especially clear. The bright moonlight illuminated the entire land, and even without lights, the courtyard remained highly visible.
Under that beautiful night sky, his mind went blank. He did not think about anything or do anything. He simply sat there quietly, gazing at the deep and beautiful starry sky.
Someone else came outside at that moment. It seemed Yuxian was not the only one unable to sleep.
Once he saw who it was, Yuxian softly said, "Kobayashi, you can't sleep either?"
The person who had come out was Kobayashi. She slowly walked over and sat beside Yuxian, leaning back in her chair as she likewise looked up at the stars.
Kobayashi said flatly, "I don't know why, but I just can't sleep. Maybe such a comfortable life doesn't suit an office worker like me."
The two of them stayed quietly in the courtyard, both absentmindedly staring into space.
"Yuxian, do you ever have troubles?" Kobayashi suddenly asked.
"Troubles? I suppose so. Who doesn't have troubles?" Yuxian answered reflexively.
Kobayashi continued, "At some point, I got used to living with Tohru and Kanna. Whenever things get quiet, I can't help thinking about the fact that they're dragons. I don't know whether living together is a good thing or a bad thing."
Kobayashi voiced her worries. It was an unanswerable question. Compared to dragons, humans were far too fragile. Birth, aging, sickness, and death were topics humans could never avoid.
"Yeah. Humans really are fragile."
Yuxian thought of himself. He was also just an ordinary person, in circumstances similar to Kobayashi's. One day, he too would slowly grow old and have no choice but to face this issue.
"If I grow old someday, they'll probably force me to eat some strange things to extend my lifespan."
Thinking of that scene, Yuxian could not help laughing. It would definitely be amusing.
"But would that really be okay?" Kobayashi did not doubt Yuxian's words, but she still had doubts about such an ending.
Yuxian did not know either. He could not give her an answer and could only pretend to be carefree as he said, "Who knows? What's most important is living well in the present. As long as we're happy every day, maybe there won't be any regrets."
Would there really be no regrets?
Yuxian fell silent. Who could possibly have no regrets? One only had to look at the wishes of those Heroic Spirits to understand that everyone had things they wanted to do but never managed to accomplish.
He let out a long sigh. "The present is the only thing we can hold onto."
That was what was real.
Rather than worry about an unpredictable future, the only choice was to focus on the present. Only the present was in Yuxian's own hands; the future was too distant.
"Only the present..." Kobayashi murmured, repeating Yuxian's words. She understood that too. Compared to an uncertain future, the present was what was most real.
Yuxian had not known how to say goodbye to Kobayashi. The day they would leave was drawing near, and this was a subject they had to face.
Tonight happened to be the perfect opportunity. Neither of them could sleep, so he could explain it to her here in the courtyard.
Yuxian slowly said, "We're about to leave. I've never known how to say goodbye to you."
"Leave? You won't come back?" Kobayashi turned to look at Yuxian, her eyes holding a trace of confusion.
"It isn't that we can't come back, but we can't predict when." Yuxian patiently explained everything to her. "For Tohru and Kanna, it may only be a brief separation. But you're different, Kobayashi. Human lives are short. By the next time we meet, both sides may already be old and frail."
Kobayashi fell silent.
After a long while, she sighed. "That's life."
Soon, she rallied herself and comforted herself. "Actually, compared to many people, I've already been very fortunate. I got to become family with Tohru and Kanna, see another side of this world, and become friends with all of you. Asking for more would be too greedy."
Yuxian smiled too and said self-mockingly, "Yeah, we're really being a little too greedy. We're already so fortunate, yet here we are feeling sentimental. It's honestly a bit pretentious."
Thinking of the junior who had silently supported him all this time, of how much the children relied on him, and of how much everyone at Chaldea trusted him, what more could he be dissatisfied with?
Traveling through different worlds and meeting all kinds of people—such a life could already be called wonderful.
"Mom, aren't you sleeping?" Jack rubbed her eyes as she walked out of the room.
When she found Yuxian missing from her side in the middle of the night, she instinctively began looking for him.
Her small figure, dressed in thin pajamas, walked toward Yuxian. The temperature was very low in the depths of winter night, and even a slight cold breeze could make someone shiver. Yuxian was worried that Jack would catch a cold by coming out like this.
Yuxian immediately stood and walked over, picking Jack up and holding her close to his body to shield her from the cold night wind.
At that moment, he forgot that Jack could not catch a cold at all.
In his heart, children were simply children. They needed concern and care. He would not treat them differently just because they were Heroic Spirits.
"You should get some rest too, Kobayashi." Yuxian waved to Kobayashi, then carried Jack and quickly headed back inside.
The night was already deep. It was time to return to the room and sleep.
Kobayashi watched Yuxian leave. After staring blankly for a moment, she returned to her own room. Seeing Kanna and Tohru sleeping soundly, she tucked in their blankets and revealed a reassured smile.
She gently slipped under the covers and soon fell asleep.
P.S. After finishing Abby's interlude, Awei is dead!
Become a Shooting Star!
The hot spring trip ended amid everyone's cheerful noise and laughter. Happy days always passed quickly.
Everyone reluctantly left that wonderful place and returned to their ordinary work and lives.
Yuxian had already told Kobayashi that they were leaving, so he simply told everyone else about the decision as well, letting them prepare themselves mentally.
As soon as Georgios arrived, Yuxian and the others would leave this place and return to Chaldea.
The children took the opportunity to say goodbye to the friends they knew at school. Yuxian went to explain things to the teachers, lying that the whole family was moving abroad and had no choice but to leave the school.
After learning about this, the adults did not display any particular sadness. They buried such feelings deep in their hearts. Children, however, were different.
Kanna was depressed for a long time. Over this period, she had gotten along very well with several friends. They had been especially happy playing together, so when she suddenly learned they would have to part, she was deeply saddened.
Only after Kobayashi spent a long time talking her through it did Kanna's mood recover.
Over the next few days, she stayed at Yuxian's home almost every day, spending time with everyone and savoring their final days together.
After his photography exhibition ended, Georgios announced that he was withdrawing from the public eye, causing a huge uproar in the media.
He spoke with Yuxian over the phone. He needed to return to Britannia to handle some personal matters, and once he was done, he would come over.
The sorrow of parting hung over everyone, and their moods inevitably became low.
However, at that time, something else happened that made everyone feel even worse.
Tohru was called home by her father, The End Emperor, and left this world.
Kobayashi was in terrible spirits. Yuxian comforted her, saying, "Tohru will definitely come back. Don't worry. She isn't the type to leave without saying goodbye. Trust her."
"Yeah." Kobayashi nodded mechanically. This had dealt her a severe blow. After living with Tohru for so long, she had long since become accustomed to a world with Tohru in it.
Kanna had been staying at Yuxian's home these past few days, saving Kobayashi the trouble of caring for her. With work keeping her so busy, Kobayashi truly found it difficult to balance looking after Kanna as well.
Several more days passed like this.
Tohru appeared once more. She had returned.
When she saw Kobayashi, Tohru rushed over and hugged her tightly. Only she herself knew how agonizing these days without Kobayashi had been.
The End Emperor had followed Tohru here. He was dissatisfied with Tohru running away from home again, and his words were somewhat hurtful.
"Human lives are short. You will painfully watch them grow old and die. Can you truly bear such an outcome, Tohru?"
The End Emperor's words struck Tohru's heart hard. This was also a reality she had always been unwilling to face.
Before you continue