Violita returned right on time, pushed in his wheelchair by Marg.
Seeing Bai Ci, he curled his lips slightly into a warm smile. “Miss Lora, I am back.”
“Welcome back,” Bai Ci replied reflexively. “Did you finish your business?”
After speaking, she felt a subtle, inexplicable awkwardness in having such a conversation in this setting.
“More or less,” Violita replied.
As for what Violita had done after getting off the train, Bai Ci did not pry. It was his personal business.
“By the way, I just found this vine on the window. I'm not sure what kind of plant it is. You're well-traveled, so could you take a look for me?” Seizing the opportunity, Bai Ci pulled the vine from her handbag and held it out to Violita.
Why rack her own brain when there was a perfectly good NPC she could use?
Violita took the vine, touched the leaves, and observed it closely for a moment.
After a brief pause, he spoke slowly, his tone holding a trace of certainty. “This is a wisteria vine.”
“Wisteria?” Bai Ci maintained her composure, but alarm bells immediately went off in her head.
“Ah, so it's a wisteria vine. I recognize the flowers, but I've never looked closely at the vines. No wonder I didn't recognize it.”
“It's just strange. The train has been moving this whole time, so how did a wisteria vine end up caught on the window?”
Wisteria—the trainmaster. His name literally translated to wisteria.
With that connection, she didn't believe for a second that this vine had ended up on the window by chance.
“Perhaps there are wisteria patches in the mountain forests along the way, and the train accidentally brushed against them while moving,” Violita said flatly, seemingly finding nothing unusual about it.
“Wisteria is very common this season. You often see vast patches of them in mountain forests, with their vines tangled together. They're quite beautiful when they bloom.”
Bai Ci nodded and said no more, taking back the vine Violita handed her.
It was already known that Wisteria's current form was a False State; he was not human.
Could Wisteria be some kind of wisteria spirit? Was this vine an extension of his body?
Bai Ci let her imagination run wild with these baseless guesses, until she began to feel as if the vine in her hand was a bit too hot to handle.
Of course, it was only a psychological heat; in reality, it still had the cool, natural temperature of a plant.
She looked out the window again. Outside, the endless mountain forests were still shrouded in mist, showing nothing but stretches of deep green trees.
After a moment, unable to shake her unease, Bai Ci stood up and walked toward the rear carriages, carrying her handbag.
She walked very slowly, as if careful not to bump into anyone. Though her gaze seemed casual, she was actually scrutinizing the edges of the windows in every carriage.
The carriages were filled with long-distance travelers. Since there was still a long time before the next station, most passengers were resting with their eyes closed.
The further back she went, the more crowded the carriages became. The quiet atmosphere gradually gave way to a low din, and the air grew somewhat heavy and stale, thick with various scents.
To her horror, as the number of passengers in the carriages increased, more and more green wisteria leaves were sprouting from the edges of the windows.
Carriage One had only three people—herself, Violita, and Marg—and there had been only a single vine on the window.
Carriages Two and Three had few passengers, and only a few scattered green leaves dotted the edges of their windows.
Carriage Four, likely because it was the dining car, showed no green leaves at first glance.
But by the time she reached the windows of Carriage Five, the green leaves along the edges had visibly multiplied, and there were even a few thin vines clustered in the corners.
When she reached Carriage Six, Bai Ci ran into Arbiter and Yan Zheng.
A wise person does not stand under a crumbling wall. As a "weak woman," there was no need for her to personally venture into the chaotic rear carriages when perfectly good helpers had just practically delivered themselves to her.
“My soulbound ally, what grand design of fate has brought you here? Could it be that you sensed my aura and traversed the tracks of destiny to seek me out?” Arbiter began, as usual, with a convoluted sentence.
Bai Ci stopped and walked over to them. A look of hesitation crossed her face, and after opening her mouth to speak several times, she finally let out a sigh. “It's nothing. I was just walking around to stretch my legs.”
Hearing this, Arbiter shook her head emphatically, her tone brimming with conviction. “Cease using these hollow words to shroud your true heart, my soulbound ally.”
“As the Arbiter who commands the rifts of destiny, how could I fail to perceive the discordant vortex churning in the river of your fate? The worries that entangle your heart, though veiled in mist and obscured from sight, have already etched their mark in your eyes.”
She took half a step forward, her tone growing even more solemn. “You and I share a bond forged by a fated covenant, companions who cannot be severed even across worlds.”
“No matter what plight ensnares you, whether that worry is a hollow illusion or an ordained trial, I shall stand by your side to disperse the mists and shatter your shackles.”
“No need for concealment, no need for hesitation. If you have a need, lay it bare to me. My power exists solely to protect the one ordained by fate.”
Bai Ci felt genuinely touched.
She truly lived up to her status as a powerhouse player. Even when her speech was restricted to this chuunibyou style, what she said was still incredibly sweet and heartwarming.
Lora was deeply moved by this, never expecting someone she had only recently met to make such a promise to her.
As for Bai Ci herself, she took mental notes—she had just learned a new way to utilize a persona.
If a character with a normal persona told someone they barely knew, "You are my best friend," it would trigger suspicion.
But if it came from a chuunibyou girl, no matter how exaggerated the words were, they would seem perfectly normal.
Bai Ci put on a touched expression, though she still seemed a bit hesitant. “It really is nothing. Maybe I'm just overthinking things.”
Hearing this, Arbiter laughed instead. “There are no useless thoughts in this world. Even a baseless worry is a genuine reflection of your heart, so how could it be considered a mere nuisance?”
What should have been a very heroic and magnanimous statement looked more like a child desperately trying to mimic the easygoing nature of an adult when Arbiter delivered it.
“I am currently unburdened by any trials of destiny, nor am I bound by any cosmic missions. Whatever your worries may be, dispersing them is a welcome amusement to me.”
“Come, my soulbound ally. Tear away the deceptive mists that shroud your true heart and speak freely.”
Seemingly swayed, Bai Ci finally nodded. “Arbiter, let me treat you to some pastries. Let's talk somewhere else.”
The three of them went to the dining car, placed their orders, and sat down.
Bai Ci fell silent for a moment before speaking. “I noticed something. I don't know if it's just a coincidence or if there's really something wrong, but it's been making me feel very uneasy.”
Taking a deep breath, Bai Ci slowly began to recount her discovery in detail. “Just now, I found a wisteria vine on the window of Carriage One.”
“At first, I thought the train had just accidentally caught it while moving, but then I noticed the same thing on the windows of other carriages. What's more, it seems that the more passengers there are in a carriage, the thicker the wisteria grows around the edges of its windows.”
“Of course, I only had time to check up to Carriage Six where you two are. I haven't looked at the ones further back yet.”
Rate on N.U.
