Happy Birthday

Lin Xiaolu's second video call came shortly after Lin Yun sat down.

The bar was fairly busy at this hour, and while the surroundings weren't exactly noisy, they weren't exactly quiet either. However, Lin Yun didn't have much of a choice; he could only put on his headphones and touch the answer button on the screen.

"Ah, it's connected... Hello, hello, can you hear me?"

After he answered the phone, a hand partially blocking the camera appeared on the screen, and Lin Xiaolu's voice came through. "Why didn't you answer the phone earlier?"

"Lulu?"

Lin Yun didn't answer the question immediately. Instead, as if she had suddenly received the call, she asked knowingly in a somewhat surprised tone, "Is it you?"

"It's me, it's me."

Lin Xiaolu didn't suspect anything. In her view, her surprise plan was flawless, and her father should have no idea what she was going to do next. "So, why didn't you answer my call just now?"

That's actually what she cares about most.

"Sorry, Lulu, it was a bit noisy around here, I didn't hear you."

Lin Yun, without batting an eye, made an excuse. "I put my phone next to me and didn't notice the screen."

"Hey... it's so late, where are you?"

Lin Xiaolu then noticed the slightly noisy voices in the background. "Still working overtime? Socializing with people?"

"At the bar."

Lin Yun didn't hide anything on this matter, because he knew it was impossible to hide it anyway. It was better to be open and honest so that people wouldn't think he had something to hide, "I was originally here to talk to a colleague, but he has to go out now and said he'll be back in a while."

"A bar? Colleagues?"

Lin Xiaolu immediately became alert. "Could it be Hong Siyu? Did she ask you out on Valentine’s Day?"

"It wasn't her, it was another colleague."

Lin Yun was somewhat speechless. "Besides, it has nothing to do with Valentine’s Day or Valentine’s Day; we're here to discuss work."

"Not her? Then who is it, a man or a woman?" Lin Xiaolu continued to press.

"...Of course it's a man," Lin Yun said helplessly.

"Is it really a man?"

Lin Xiaolu was somewhat skeptical, but she quickly came up with an excuse. "Oh, is your colleague celebrating your birthday?"

"Birthday? Hmm... part of it counts."

Lin Yun felt it was best to go along with Lin Xiaolu at this point, so she continued to make up a story, "It was just a casual blessing while drinking, nothing too formal."

"Hmph, I see."

Lin Xiaolu nodded. "So, do you now guess why I called you?"

"Why?" Lin Yun continued to feign ignorance. "I remember you texted me during the day saying you wanted to send me chocolates? Now you want to show me the results?"

"No, it's not that. It must be something related to you!" Lin Xiaolu corrected.

"What else could it be? Did you run into your ex's magical girl from Fangting City over there?" Lin Yun continued to speculate.

"How could that be? Why would you think that way? I already told you it's because of you, I called you!" Lin Xiaolu said anxiously.

"Hmm? Oh."

Seeing that the time was right, Lin Yun suddenly realized, "Could it be because it's my birthday today?"

"That's right!"

Lin Xiaolu's tone suddenly rose. "Look what I've prepared for you!"

Lin Yun looked at the screen following her voice, but could still only see half of a hand covering the screen. Moreover, the hand was covering even more of the screen than when the call had just connected.

Even though he already knew that there was a cake on the other side of the screen, he couldn't possibly give the answer like he had X-ray vision, so he could only answer truthfully, "I can't see it."

"How could I not see it? I clearly turned on the camera!" Lin Xiaolu asked, puzzled, and began to check her phone.

[Your hand is blocking the way.] Xia Liang's voice came from the side.

"Ah? Ah, so that's how it is!"

Lin Xiaolu quickly removed her hand from the camera and then pointed it back at the table beside her. "This should be fine, let's take a look!"

As she said, what appeared on Lin Yun's phone screen now was a cake.

It looked exactly the same as when he left Rainbow Cloud Wetlands, except that the cake back then hadn't been finished with its final decorations, while the one on the screen now was a truly complete product.

The pure white cream surface is covered with tiny, colorful petals, while square pieces of chocolate are tightly adhered to the sides of the cake, complementing the surrounding patterns. At the top of the cake, number-shaped candles are inserted, forming the number "37".

As this number suggests, this year marks the 37th year since Lin Yun came into this world.

"This is something the three of us made together. What do you think? Does it look good?"

On the other end of the call, Lin Xiaolu was in high spirits and continued explaining, "Making this takes much longer than making chocolate; it's really super difficult."

"Yes, it's great, very beautiful."

Even though the "surprise" had been leaked beforehand, Lin Yun still couldn't contain her joy when she actually saw the birthday cake her daughter had made for her, staring blankly at the phone screen in her hand.

Unlike the feeling he had when he received the chocolate as Larkspur, this cake was a true gift from Lin Xiaolu, a child to her father. If his heart was filled with guilt, nostalgia, and emotion when he received the chocolate crown, now his feelings were almost entirely one of relief and warmth.

He could still remember Lin Xiaolu lying in her crib or in her swaddling clothes, being held in his arms. That little child from back then had grown up, become sensible, and was even able to give him gifts on his birthday.

Lin Yun was well aware that he hadn't been a very good father. His father was a somewhat irresponsible, idle man who died young. So when Lin Yun became a father himself, he insisted that he needed to be stricter with his children, even if it meant sacrificing some harmony between them, in order to be responsible for their future.

At that time, he didn't want his child to be exposed to anything Magic Side, let alone become a magical girl and face those dangerous things. So even though Anya would say things like, "Being a magical girl isn't so bad, I'll protect Lulu," Lin Yun insisted that he should raise Lin Xiaolu to be a standard white-collar worker.

Therefore, whenever Lin Yun and Lin Xiaolu were together, their conversations revolved around studying, their performance at school, and tutoring classes. Over time, even Lin Yun herself didn't know what else she could talk about with her daughter, leaving only questions like "Have you finished your homework?" and "Why didn't you do well on your exam?"

Later, Lin Xiaolu, who used to be very attached to him and loved to act spoiled when she was a child, gradually distanced herself from her father.

And without a doubt, all of this was Lin Yun's own fault.

He had projected his own escapism from the past, his alienation from the identity of a magical girl and everything related to it onto his child. Even if it was for his daughter's safety, even if he didn't want her to be involved in anything related to magic, he shouldn't have used such a harsh attitude to hurt her feelings.

He hadn't even noticed that if Anya hadn't always acted as the glue holding the family together, his relationship with Lin Xiaolu would have cooled down even faster.

Then, after Anya passed away, the relationship between father and daughter reached its lowest point.

When he realized that Lin Xiaolu was the only close relative left in his life, and when he began to re-examine his relationship with his daughter, he found that it was too late for regrets.

No matter how much he regrets it, no matter how much he blames himself, the harm he has caused his daughter cannot be erased. The bond of family is on the verge of breaking, and at this point, no matter how much he tries to make amends or appease her, it will all be in vain.

He had even resigned himself to his fate and given up, feeling that Lin Xiaolu would never be willing to get along with him again.

Therefore, compared to that darkest moment, the cake now, and the candlelight on it, seem so dreamlike and dazzling.

"Thank you, Lulu."

Lin Yun pursed her lips, forcing a somewhat awkward smile, "Dad... I'm sorry for what I did to you before."

Regardless of her identity as a magical girl, these were simply what he said to his daughter as a father.

"Hmm... Ah? Why are you apologizing all of a sudden?"

Lin Xiaolu scratched her head in confusion, then seemed to realize something, and pouted. "Oh, you mean the past? Well, the past is the past. To be honest, I did have some faults too."

Like Lin Yun, Lin Xiaolu was simply talking to her father as a daughter.

"As I told you before, after I actually became a magical girl, I realized that some of the things you said and did before weren't entirely unreasonable."

She gradually lowered her hand from her head and began rubbing her hair with her fingers. "If I hadn't been lucky enough to meet Larkspur, I probably would have encountered something very dangerous, or even died. So, I think I understand why you were so reluctant to tell me about magical girls. Your worries... are not unfounded."

The words were spoken so frankly that both of them fell silent.

Although their relationship has improved somewhat, Lin Yun and Lin Xiaolu are still not close enough. Having said the truth, continuing would require genuine, heartwarming, and even sentimental words. But clearly, Lin Xiaolu isn't ready to say them yet.

Fortunately, the strange silence didn't last long; soon, Lin Xiaolu changed the subject:

"Ah, speaking of which, this candle isn't exactly an ordinary candle."

She didn't look at the camera again, but pointed somewhat stiffly to the cake next to her. "When we bought it, the shop assistant specifically recommended it to us. It was supposedly a magical item, using something like... Spell Formula?"

"[It's Astrology.]" Xia Liang's voice came from off-screen again.

"Oh, Astrology, and a bunch of other miscellaneous Spell Formula, it's all very high-tech. And then, it has a very magical function."

Lin Xiaolu readily agreed and continued Xia Liang's words, "They say that this candle doesn't need to be lit; it will light itself and start playing the birthday song as soon as the person celebrating their birthday gets close."

She moved her phone closer to the cake. "Perfect, now I'll test if it's real or fake."

Suddenly, only the cake remained on Lin Yun's phone screen.

Just then, a waiter approached with a tray, placed a wine glass in front of Lin Yun, bowed, and said, "Your Silvermoon Spring Butterfly," before slowly leaving.

Lin Yun picked up the wine, took a sip, and the not-too-strong aroma of alcohol, along with the crisp scent of lemongrass, filled her nostrils. The slightly sweet aftertaste lingered in her throat, making her feel refreshed.

Just as he was drinking, Lin Xiaolu took her phone screen away from the cake and said, somewhat puzzled, "The candles aren't responding? Did they trick me?"

[I think talking over the phone is definitely useless...] Now it was Bai Jingxuan's turn to speak up off-screen.

"It's useless over the phone? Then isn't Astrology a bit too useless?"

Lin Xiaolu persisted. "Um... Dad? Why don't you say a few words to it over the phone?"

"Heh, forget it."

Lin Yun had no intention of doing anything foolish like talking to the cake candles, so she could only chuckle awkwardly, "No need, Dad knows how you mean it."

"But it won't light, what should we do?"

Lin Xiaolu was still unwilling to give up. "For a birthday, you definitely have to light the cake and candles."

[Since you're already planning to mail it back, you might as well just leave it stuck there. It'll just catch fire if you mail it back.] Xia Liang suggested from the side.

"Oh, it seems that's true."

Lin Xiaolu slapped her arm. "Then, Dad, I'll send it back to Fangting City in a few days. Remember to receive it."

"Forget it, it's not necessary."

Lin Yun was somewhat amused and exasperated. "Why make it so complicated? Just divide it up now."

"How can this be?"

Lin Xiaolu raised her eyebrows. "What kind of birthday is it if you can't even eat the birthday cake I made especially for you? Although it will be a few days late to send it back to you now, I thought about it carefully beforehand. It's more worthwhile to make it myself than to call a cake shop in Fangting City to order a cake and have it delivered today!"

"Really, no need. Dad, I'm too old for that much cake. Besides, it's such a big piece; I couldn't finish it all by myself. I know you made me a cake and even called to celebrate my birthday, which makes me happy enough."

Lin Yun smiled at the screen, "Next, rather than having you send it back, I'd rather see you eat it and see how you look when you eat the cake. That would make me happier."

"... What do you think?"

Undoubtedly, Lin Yun's final statement somewhat convinced Lin Xiaolu, so she began to look around and seek help from her two teammates.

[I think we can leave a piece for Dad... Uncle, and send it back separately.] Bai Jingxuan said.

[I also think it's fine. Just remember to save a piece for the junior, that way everyone can have some.] That's Xia Liang's suggestion.

"You don't need to tell me, if we're really going to divide the cake, I'll definitely leave Larkspur."

Lin Xiaolu rolled her eyes at Xia Liang, then held her phone up to the camera again. "So, Dad, are we really going to eat it?"

"Yeah, let's break up."

Lin Yun took a sip of her wine and made a toasting gesture towards the screen. "That's enough, thank you all, I'm very happy."

"Okay, then let's do as my dad says. Bring over the complimentary cake knife!" Lin Xiaolu instructed without further hesitation.

"This one?"

Bai Jingxuan's voice gradually became clearer, and then she walked onto the screen holding a plastic cake knife. "It was just lying over there."

"My uncle said he was going to cut the cake, so I took it out of the packaging."

Xia Liang slowly drifted into the frame from the edge of the screen, then smiled at Lin Yun through the camera, "However, I actually guessed this might happen."

So Lin Xiaolu took the cake knife, Bai Jingxuan held the cake tray, and Xia Liang took the phone, turning it over so that all three of them were included in the phone screen.

The three younger members exchanged glances, and then, as the cake knife fell, they laughed, joked, and shouted in unison:

--"Happy birthday!"