Bai Ziye Is Here!

(Sun Yao)

"Mm—ngh—ah!"

"Ceruno, don't make weird noises just because you're eating shaved ice."

Sirius gave her a reminder like that.

The shaved ice entered her mouth along with a rush of cold that shot straight to her brain. The sensation made her squint involuntarily, and even her cerebellum seemed to ache along with it.

On a southern island with a pleasant climate, after a lavish lunch, having a cup of soft, delicate shaved ice was so sweet and refreshing that she couldn't stop eating it.

Her mood was absolutely perfect!

"Hehe~ Hawaii really is the place to eat this."

Yin Wei swirled the ice sphere in her glass, making it clink crisply against the sides. She spoke as though she wanted to discuss it.

"You can eat shaved ice in Skyreach City too. It's such a simple combination of fruit, syrup, red beans, and ice that no matter how it changes, the taste won't differ much. So the excitement you're feeling right now comes more from Hawaii than from the shaved ice."

Even in Skyreach City, I'd feel great eating shaved ice in forty-degree weather, but it was true that I wouldn't be unable to stop like I was now.

"I think doing the same thing in different situations feels different too, because your mood is completely different... And Hawaii isn't that hot either."

At my words, Miluno rested her chin on her hand thoughtfully.

"It's the same when different identities face the same person."

She seemed to mutter something, but with the music playing in the restaurant, I didn't hear it clearly.

"All right, Ceruno, eat slowly. I'll take Miluno upstairs to rest first. Once I come back down, we'll go to the dock to welcome that boyfriend of yours."

"Wait, he's not my boyfriend!"

Yin Wei put on a surprised expression.

"He isn't? Heat Haze said you two were..."

"She got it wrong, or she did it on purpose. Don't believe her!"

Still, I had just received a roaming text from Yezi saying that he had arrived at Honolulu International Airport. Judging by the time, he should be boarding the yacht soon.

I wanted to invite Miluno to pick up Yezi with us, but she was injured after all. She would probably need to recuperate quietly for the next couple of days, so it wouldn't be appropriate to disturb her.

Miluno left the restaurant with Yin Wei supporting her.

Sirius watched them leave, but there was something strange in her eyes.

"Ceruno, that boyfriend of yours..."

Why was Sirius saying that too?

"He's just a male friend, my best bro!" I hurriedly corrected her.

"Has that male friend of yours shown any unusual behavior lately?"

"Hm?"

I didn't quite understand what Sirius meant. Or rather, I didn't understand why she was asking this.

"Nothing unusual. We're still like we were in the past."

Sirius twirled a lock of her golden hair around her fingers, then held it before her eyes and flicked it.

"Isn't that lack of anything unusual the greatest abnormality? Your gender and status have both been turned completely upside down, yet he can still treat you as he did before. Do you think that's reasonable?"

"What's unreasonable about it? He even gives me advice for my battles, like a tactical officer."

"But Ceruno, generally speaking, tactical officers and magical girls aren't equals, you know?"

"He... he's my best bro. How could he distance himself from me just because I became a magical girl?"

"Of course he could. Don't think humans are so reliable. I've seen far too many cases like yours."

"..."

Sirius's words instinctively frightened me. Yezi was my final anchor, the vessel that carried the identity of "Sun Yao." If I lost him... then I would only be Ceruno.

I didn't want to become that.

"Ceruno, let's go to the dock."

Yin Wei, having removed her suit jacket and wearing only a white shirt on top, stood at the restaurant entrance and called to me.

"Your friend will be here any moment."

(Bai Ziye)

The reason Yin Wei had brought so much luggage to Hawaii was that it included Bai Ziye's share. Inside the huge rolling suitcase was a smaller one, stuffed with plenty of men's clothes, even a razor, electric toothbrush, handheld console, and the like...

Wait, why was there even some kind of lubricated rubber sheath in here? How could I possibly need something like that?

I curled my lip. "You really prepared thoroughly."

"You flatter me. Helping you conceal your identity is part of my job as well. I'll go downstairs and call Ceruno. Take this luggage to the dock pier."

"Got it... But Sirius..."

Concealing it from Ceruno was one thing, but I really wasn't confident I could hide it from everyone.

Yin Wei turned back and sighed. "You don't need to worry about her. Although she is one of the Association's founders, she doesn't agree with the Association as it is now... nor with the long-term strategy laid out by the Tactical Division chief. In a sense, the two of you are on the same side. Even if she sees through your identity, she definitely won't expose it."

"If their relationship is so bad, SpiCa still sent us here?"

"If you really come under repeated attack, Sirius is strong enough to ensure both your safety. This private island is also far from Hawaii's main island, so even if a fight breaks out, it won't cause much damage... It's about time to go."

Yin Wei closed the guest room door and headed downstairs to call Ceruno.

Dragging the rolling suitcase, I leaped down from the second-floor balcony, then dashed out through the mansion gates. I maintained tenfold speed throughout the entire process, running at nearly 120 kilometers per hour. There was no way anyone could notice me.

Still, today's battle made me realize my own shortcomings.

I wasn't fast enough. Far from it.

Tenfold time flow was my comfort zone, and over the past year or so, I had never managed to step beyond it... I had been far too complacent about my strength. Looking at Ceruno's growth through these four battles, I was the one who should have been ashamed for making no progress at all.

"Sigh..."

The sea breeze blew over me, leaving me somewhat melancholy.

There was nothing on the dock. Standing here with a rolling suitcase, I had become the most out-of-place thing in this breathtaking scenery.

I canceled my transformation and, after a long time, became Bai Ziye again.

Ceruno and the others still needed at least a few minutes to come down from the mansion halfway up the hill. I left the suitcase on the pier, took off my shoes, and jumped down onto the beach to collect shells.

Besides all kinds of shells, there were conches and starfish on the beach too. Whenever I found any still alive, I tossed them back into the sea.

I couldn't throw every starfish back, but saving one was better than saving none. It was the same for magical girls. I only needed to do what I could. Asking me to save the world... I couldn't do that, and it wasn't realistic.

I picked out a few pretty shells, washed them with seawater, and tucked them into my pocket. Later, I could put them in a bottle and add some fine sand as a souvenir from this trip to Hawaii.

Unfortunately, I hadn't found any pearls. Were those things really that rare after all?

"Yezi!!"

A pink figure came racing down the path from the hill.