"Uh... what?"
Lin Jin's hesitation had never been so obvious. Every gaze converged on him, as though he were a mirror reflecting light.
"I want you."
Radiance repeated herself, her expression unchanged.
Wyrm and Grimm both fell silent.
Aside from their initial shock, the two Higher Beings seemed to have reached an understanding: wait and see.
The bugs around them seemed to have heard a perfectly ordinary answer.
That only made Lin Jin seem like the abnormal one.
Unable to bear the awkwardness any longer, Lin Jin could only ask, "Uh, why?"
"You don't mean what I think you mean, do you?"
Radiance frowned and decided to explain in greater detail. "I would like your help. I don't want to stay here anymore. I know you come from another realm. Can you take me there?"
"You want to leave Hallownest?"
Lin Jin immediately sank into thought. Radiance's decision wasn't without reason.
After all, Radiance couldn't beat Wyrm in a real fight. Even if she unleashed an Infection through dreams, dead bugs couldn't reproduce. She would still disappear in the end.
The only difference was between throwing her life away and taking everyone down with her.
Now, Radiance wanted to choose a third path.
Leaving.
It sounded simple, but Radiance's very nature had made it impossible from the start.
Reaching somewhere new took time, never mind how vanishingly small the chances of encountering civilization in the endless Wilderness were.
Throughout that time, Radiance would have no way to gain more followers.
A short journey would be fine, but if it took too long, she would eventually disappear even if only half the bugs forgot her, let alone all of them.
That was how things would normally go, but having a clear destination changed everything.
"You want to come to the Flame