The VIP room fell silent for a few moments.
Outside the window, a cruise ship was passing under an arched bridge. The lights on the bridge shattered into a shower of stars overhead, casting flickering light on the two people.
Lin En stared at the slip of paper with the answer written on it, his mind buzzing. "He died first"—these three words felt like a heavy punch to his head, leaving him feeling suffocated.
"Cough cough."
He coughed twice to cover his embarrassment. He had never thought about this before. Ronava was the shadow of Heavenly Principles's Principle, with an infinite lifespan, while he was just a mortal, destined to...
Turning to look at Ronava, she was still holding her teacup, her gaze fixed on the window. Her profile was softly and quietly illuminated by the lamplight, but the tips of her ears were red, a blush spreading from her earlobes to the tips of her ears.
Her little finger was slightly curled, as if she was trying to control something.
The staff placed a special gift on the coffee table—a pair of handcrafted rings from Fontaine, engraved with the ripples of the canal and the outline of the opera house's dome, with a line of tiny words engraved below. "For those we meet on our journeys."
The staff member then tactfully withdrew and closed the door behind them.
Only two people remained in the VIP room, along with the flickering light outside the window.
Lin En opened his mouth, as if to say something, but his throat seemed to be blocked by something. Ronava spoke first.
Is what you wrote true?
Lin En looked at her and nodded.
"Hmm. And you?"
Ronava didn't answer. She placed her teacup on the coffee table and turned her head to look at him intently.
His golden eyes appeared exceptionally deep in the dim light, reflecting his image, the lamplight outside the window, and some other things he couldn't quite make out.
"I have lived for six thousand years."
She said it with a hint of disappointment in her voice.
"I've seen too many people return to the Ley Lines, and I've experienced countless partings and deaths. When I was still in the Ruler of Death, it was just a routine little thing that happened every day."
She paused.
"But I have never been afraid, because I know it is inevitable. Death is a power I hold, and separation is something I am used to. I will not stay for anyone, and no one will stay for me."
Lin En continued listening without interrupting.
But you're different.
Ronava's gaze fell on his face.
"You were different from the start. You said you wanted me to be happy, but I couldn't understand your thoughts. Now I know what I truly feel in my heart."
She reached out and gently touched the back of Lin En's hand with her fingertips.
"So I'm scared. I'm scared that one day I'll turn around and you won't be there."
Lin En looked at her, and outside the window, the cruise ship slowly passed under another bridge. He reached out and gently took her hand in his.
"I won't be gone."
"You've promised that many times."
"When have I ever failed to keep a promise I made?"
Ronava looked at him, remained silent for a few moments, and then smiled slightly.
Lin En saw it all clearly. She pulled her hand out of his palm, picked up the pair of rings, looked at them, and handed one of them to him.
"Take it."
Lin En took the ring; it felt slightly cool to the touch. The surface of the crystal was engraved with fine ripples, which shimmered with a pale blue light under the lamp.
Ronava picked up the other one and said.
"Hand."
"Hand?"
Lin En paused for a moment, then understood what he meant. He stretched out his hand, palm up, his fingertips trembling slightly.
Ronava lowered her head and pointed the ring at his ring finger.
Her movements were slow and light, as if she were doing something that required precise calculation. Her silver hair slipped from her shoulders and fell onto Lin En's wrist, exuding a fragrance.
As the ring slid across his knuckles, Lin En felt a cool touch, and then the crystal band engraved with canal ripples was securely placed on his finger.
Ronava didn't immediately withdraw her hand. Her fingertips paused for a moment at the base of his finger, gently pressing the edge of the ring, as if to make sure it wouldn't fall off.
"Your turn."
She said.
Lin En looked down at the ring on his hand, then at Ronava's outstretched hand in front of him.
Her fingers were long and slender with distinct knuckles. He held another ring between his fingers, aimed it at her ring finger, and slowly pushed it up.
As the ring slid in, Ronava's finger curled slightly.
Lin En looked up and met her gaze. Her golden eyes were calm as water in the dim light, but something was gently churning deep within them, like an undercurrent stirred up at the bottom of a deep pool.
"It looks great."
Lin En said.
Ronava looked down at the ring on her hand; the crystal surface shimmered with a pale blue light under the lamp, perfectly matching her silver hair.
She turned her hand over and over again, looking at it for a while.
"Um."
The two sat like that, their hands hanging at their sides, their fingertips occasionally touching before separating again.
The cruise ships outside the window have already passed the most bustling section of the waterway, and the lights on both banks are beginning to thin out, leaving only a few streetlights casting slender beams of light on the water.
The ship gradually slowed down and approached the dock.
The staff knocked on the door to let them know they could disembark.
Ronava stood up and packed her bundle.
Lin En followed behind her, and as they passed the doorway, her fingers unconsciously touched the ring on her ring finger; the touch was cool and solid.
After disembarking, most of the people on the dock had already left.
A night breeze blew from the river, carrying moisture, as the two walked back along the stone path, streetlights passing overhead one by one.
Lin En kept thinking about what Ronava had said on the ship.
You said you wanted me to be happy, but I couldn't understand your thoughts. Now I know what I truly feel in my heart.
What were her "inner thoughts"? He could roughly guess, but he wasn't entirely sure.
He wanted to ask, but felt he had already said and asked too much tonight, and that asking any more would only break the fragile, quiet atmosphere of the moment.
It was quite late when we got back to the hotel.
Ronava Lin En lay on the bed, staring at the ceiling.
" Ronava."
The sound of running water came from the bathroom, followed by her voice, muffled through the door.
"What's wrong?"
"I've written down all three answers you wrote down today."
The sound of water stopped, and a few breaths later, Ronava pushed open the door and came out, her silver hair wrapped in a towel, her face still damp from washing.
She walked to the bedside, looked down at Lin En, and asked with a slight smile.
Why are you writing all this down?
Lin En reached out and grasped her fingers that were hanging by her side.
"Just remember that and I'll do it in the future so you won't worry."
Ronava looked at him for a few seconds, then withdrew her hand, untied the towel, and let her silver hair fall over her shoulders.
She walked to the other side of the bed and lay down, her back to him. Lin En thought she wouldn't answer and was about to close his eyes when he heard her voice coming from the other side of the pillow.
You'd better keep your word.
Lin En chuckled; as expected, Ronava was a tsundere.
Moonlight filtered through the gaps in the curtains, falling on her silver hair as if covered with a thin layer of frost.
"Good night."
He said.
Ronava didn't reply, but Lin En noticed that her shoulders relaxed slightly and her breathing became a little slower than usual. He closed his eyes and quickly fell asleep.
The warmth of her fingertips and the slight coolness of the ring still lingered in my hand.