Farewell

"Laila?" Neph paused, then quickly remembered who she was. "Oh no-I think I might know why she disappeared."

She listened for a moment, then spoke under Klein's puzzled gaze:

"If you were a female pirate, and you woke up to find yourself aboard Vice Admiral of Ailment Tracy's ship, with a private room and pretty good treatment..."

"...I think I understand too." Klein raised a hand to his forehead.

They tacitly dropped the subject. Neph resumed persuading Klein to pray to her. It was a perfectly reasonable suggestion, and Klein agreed, taking the opportunity to give her the paper crane Will Auceptin had left him through a sacrificial ritual.

On March 4, Klein was served noodles tossed in chocolate sauce. The sailor who set them before him told him that his mother had specifically ordered this the day before.

Klein realized that Neph probably knew it was his birthday. Still, brimming with questions, he sought her out and asked in all sincerity:

"What made you think of mixing noodles with chocolate sauce?"

"I saw it online once." Neph spread her hands. "I've always wondered what it tasted like, but I never had the courage to try it myself. Did you eat it?"

"At first glance, I almost thought you'd had someone poison me-" Remembering the noodles, Klein wore a decidedly strange expression. "Unfortunately, I lacked the courage to try it, just like you. You might have to ask whoever ate it."

He then told Neph which pirate had eventually eaten the noodles. Neph finally learned what the bizarre concoction tasted like and earnestly invited Klein to the Pure White Space to try some.

Klein firmly refused. To change the subject, he asked, "When's your birthday?"

"Do you mean by the solar calendar or the lunar calendar?" Neph asked.

"You actually