The Celestial River

Sera gently picked up a stack of thin paper and a bundle of bamboo ribs, then tore the paper into five pieces.

She worked skillfully, even chatting with Miss Herta while manipulating the bamboo and paper in her hands. The mischievous bamboo was remarkably obedient in Sera's hands.

"Have you ever made a sky lantern?"

Miss Herta raised an eyebrow, looking at Sera's skillful hands with some surprise. That effortless confidence was undeniable; Sera must be very proficient at making sky lanterns.

"No, rather, this is my first time actually making a sky lantern."

"My proficiency is only because I was bored last night, so I practiced using data simulation for a while."

Sera turned her head to look at Miss Herta, but her hands didn't stop; she continued pasting the paper onto the bamboo frame. Miss Herta's movements weren't clumsy either; from the initial stiffness of making a sky lantern for the first time, she quickly became incredibly fast thanks to her strong ability to get started.

With the pine resin in place, the sky lantern was almost finished. All that remained was to write down the wishes, but that proved to be a bit tricky. Sera had already written on the prayer plaque once, and she was now unsure what wishes to write.

Haven't decided what to wish for yet?

Miss Herta hadn't practiced like Sera, so even counting the few seconds it took her to look at the instructions, she finished the sky lantern a little slower than Sera.

"No."

Sera shook his head, his right hand gently touching his chest. He had no desires in his heart. He might have had them in the past, but those had long since been fulfilled. Now, Sera had only one goal in his heart: to save them.

"Then entrust your wish to me."

Miss Herta reached out towards Sera, her eyes carrying a meaning Sera couldn't yet comprehend.

"OK."

Without hesitation, Sera handed the sky lantern to Miss Herta. Herta took the lantern but didn't touch it; instead, she waved it in front of Sera.

"I've thought it through. Once I've given it to you, I can't go back on my word, and I can't see what your wish is."

"It's alright, I trust the Herta."

Sera's expression remained unchanged; after all, he knew perfectly well what kind of person Miss Herta was.

He didn't really care what her wish was; as long as Miss Herta was happy, Sera would be happy too.

Without the slightest surprise on her face, Miss Herta smiled, took the sky lantern in her hand, walked to the table next to her, and picked up paper and pen.

Sera turned her head away at that moment, and Miss Herta didn't look, because she knew Sera wouldn't break her promise. Herta's pen tip lightly traced a line, and elegant words appeared on the specially made paper, but the words on the paper stopped abruptly. Herta turned her head, took her own paper, and wrote the rest of the content.

Only when the two of them are together is the wish complete, and Miss Herta wanted that, so she did it.

As for what wish Miss Herta wrote down on the paper, only Herta herself probably knows the answer.

Heh~

Miss Herta couldn't help but smile. She folded her wish into a heart shape and placed it in the sky lantern, doing the same for herself.

Let's go.

Miss Herta stood up, walked behind Sera, and whispered in his ear.

He pushed the finished sky lantern into Sera's arms. Sera gently held it in both hands, lifting the lantern with her left hand and extending an invitation to the beautiful girl beside her with her right.

Miss Herta rested her left hand on the ground, carrying a sky lantern in her right hand as she walked side by side with Sera. The staff watched from a distance as the two headed towards the brightly lit center of the market.

Only after the two men had left did the staff member quietly breathe a sigh of relief. Heaven knows how tense and uncomfortable she had been! These two important figures were finally gone; she couldn't have done anything wrong to displease them, could she?

Sera took Miss Herta's hand and stepped into the bustling crowd. Perhaps feeling uncomfortable with so many people, Miss Herta's eyebrows furrowed slightly. Sera noticed this and turned away.

Passing through the lively yet warm crowd not far away, a person carrying a sky lantern walked to a quiet corner of the street. Although there was no one in this place, the crowd not far away and the Milky Way of lights in the sky were clearly visible.

"This is a good place."

Miss Herta seemed to be marveling at how wonderful the place was, yet no other destined people came to visit, but her eyes held a smile of satisfaction that no one else was disturbing their time together.

"Really."

A thoughtful smile appeared on Sera's face as she glanced discreetly at No. 0 and the other dolls hidden in the distance.

Miss Herta noticed this, scanned the area with her senses, felt the connection between the puppets, shook her head and chuckled softly.

So that's what happened! Oh, it was you kids who did it~ I guess I'll have to give you a good reward when we get back.

In the distance, couples who were destined to be together gazed at each other, as if even if stars fell and the night were as bright as day, their eyes would only see each other.

Sera wasn't looking at the crowd at that moment; to Sera, none of that was as beautiful and warm as the scene before her.

Let's release sky lanterns!

Miss Herta's eyes met Sera's image. She tilted her head slightly, and the gentle girl from the Xianzhou before her hung high in Sera's heart like the most dazzling star.

"Then, 3...2...1..."

After saying this, Sera and Herta lit the sky lanterns together, released their hands, and the lanterns floated into the sky, approaching the starry sky and the bright moon along with the Milky Way in the distance.

As if she had thought of something, Sera's eyes curved into a smile, and her gentle voice echoed through the quiet alley.

"As long as the paper doesn't tear and the pine resin doesn't extinguish, the sky lantern can fly very high."

"Where did you hear that? It doesn't sound like you at all."

Miss Herta was puzzled again. She stared at Sera for a moment, captivated by Sera's eyes under the fireworks, eyes that made even jewels seem insignificant.

"Perhaps it's... one of me?"

Sera simply smiled and said nothing.

"However, I'm really happy to be able to release sky lanterns with you, Herta, on this special day tonight."

Sera spoke softly, leaning forward slightly. Her smiling eyes met those of Miss Herta Miss Herta, who turned her face away, her ears turning red and her cheeks flushing as well.

"Well... that's natural. You should be secretly thrilled to be able to release sky lanterns with the Herta on Qixi Festival."

However, Miss Herta quickly looked at Sera again, her voice unusually gentle, and a warm smile bloomed on her face.

Tonight, let us stroll together, light sky lanterns, and enjoy this beautiful night together. I, too, will share in your joy.

Having said that, Miss Herta curtsied.

He raised his head again.