Chapter 180: The Reason for Battle

The winter cemetery was even more desolate than usual; stripped of the greenery brought by plants, only black, white, and gray remained to the eye. The few people walking through the graveyard wore monotonous clothes; though not strictly mourning attire, it was at least a small token of respect. Being in such an environment felt like stepping into an old, colorless photograph.

Yet within this cemetery, there was one tombstone that differed slightly from the others.

They were all gray-black rocks, all simply decorated, yet this one could be spotted at a glance among the forest of stones. Merely from its appearance, the tombstone was not eye-catching; even the offerings placed before it were sparse, indicating the deceased had not enjoyed a wide social circle. The scale of the offerings was hardly luxurious, so from that angle, there were no elements designed to attract attention.

If asked what exactly made it feel different, and that question were posed to passersby in the cemetery, the answer might well be "atmosphere."

Many people have a similar feeling in life: the "atmosphere" of a house long inhabited is different from that of a house long unvisited. Often, relying solely on this "atmosphere," people can vaguely sense whether a place is occupied.

Among the older generation in the Donghua State, this "atmosphere" is also called "human qi."

The sensation this tombstone evokes is precisely a difference in atmosphere; merely noticing it gives one an unusual impression.

Lin Yun looked at this tombstone.

His hands hung by his sides, his expressionless face tilted slightly downward, gazing silently.

The gray tombstone in the cold wind appeared harder and colder than usual, covered with a layer of whitish frost; a cherry blossom crystal necklace hanging from one corner of the side was also encased in a shell of ice, looking exceptionally bleak.

Precisely because of this, Asano Enka in her fashionable trench coat and Lin Yun in his casual wear seemed somewhat out of place.

"Shouldn't we change our clothes before coming?" Glancing around, Asano Enka, wearing sunglasses, rubbed the back of her hand. Even though she was not a local of Fang Ting City, she could feel this subtle, heavy atmosphere.

"... As long as the intention is there, it is enough."

Lin Yun's words paused slightly in his mouth, then turned into a whisper mixed with a sigh: "But I suppose if she were here, she wouldn't care about these things; in the end, it is just self-consolation."

Having already sent the girls back to the base, Lin Yun naturally had no reason to maintain Senior Cuique's form after arriving at the cemetery, so he had reverted to his own appearance as Lin Yun.

Beside him, Asano Enka slowly squatted before the tombstone, gazing steadily forward.

Since getting out of the car, the two had exchanged only these few words; after Lin Yun brought her here, there was even less else to say.

He did not know what Asano Enka was thinking at this moment, but it did not hinder his choice of silence. If it were nineteen years ago, perhaps he would have found some topic to break the ice, but now it was not that year, and they were no longer young. For adults, sometimes appropriate silence is more fitting than words.

— "So that is how it is."

After a long while, Asano Enka slowly spoke: "Seeing a friend's tombstone, so this is how it feels. Truly... it lacks a sense of reality."

"What did you think it would feel like?" Lin Yun asked.

"I thought I would cry."

She still did not look up, her expression carrying a touch of melancholy. "But after arriving here, I wasn't as sad as I imagined; perhaps it was mostly regret. It felt as if my emotions were covered by a layer of gauze, so even I couldn't see them clearly."

"After all, it has been a long time."

Lin Yun was not surprised by her words. "Besides, you haven't seen each other in a long time, right?"

"Haven't seen each other for a long time... perhaps. Eight years? Nine years? Anyway, shorter than the time you and I have been apart."

Asano Enka sighed: "When I was an examiner in the Magic Kingdom, she brought new recruits from Fang Ting City to take the exam. I never thought that would be the last time."

"Did you keep in touch privately?" Lin Yun asked.

"At the beginning, yes, but later... we had fewer and fewer common topics, so we rarely spoke alone anymore."

Asano Enka chuckled softly twice: "She knew I didn't enjoy hearing about her daily trivialities, and I knew she didn't care about the messes in my workplace. She was content being a full-time housewife, while I focused on my singing career. We both knew we were still sisters, still missed that feeling of having nothing unsaid, but... we could no longer understand the words the other spoke."

"People are strange sometimes; even though they both wish to love each other, their hearts still drift further and further apart."

Asano Enka continued: "Actually, I thought many times about whether to arrange a meeting somewhere, to chat properly and share what we've been doing these years, but every time I felt 'there is still time,' 'no rush.' Until that day, the Dean suddenly called me over and told me, 'Sakura is dead.'"

Lin Yun did not reply.

His right thumb was tucked inside his pants pocket, his exposed fingers tapping on the fabric surface; his lips moved twice, but in the end, he said nothing.

Because he suddenly remembered that a few months before Anya's passing, she had suggested to him: "Should we gather all the old teammates for a reunion?"

At that time, he was deeply immersed in his work and didn't think the remark carried any other meaning, so he merely replied, "Indeed, we could," and that was the end of it.

— No rush; there would always be a chance later.

That was his thought at that time as well.

He somewhat understood why many people in middle age get used to smoking; it must be because they are troubled but cannot speak out. Unfortunately, he had no habit of smoking, so he could only stand there like a wooden stake.

"If someone else had told me this, my first reaction would surely have been, 'Are you joking?' Because no one knows her strength better than we do. If the enemy were merely a Remnant Beast, I simply cannot imagine any Remnant Beast that could be her match."

Asano Enka's voice was calm: "Did something happen when she wasn't transformed? Or did she contract some illness? No matter how one thinks about it, she shouldn't have been killed by someone else."

"But the Dean stated it very clearly: the cause of death was not an accident... but purely murder."

Lin Yun clenched his fist.

This statement, even though he had heard it countless times and confirmed it to himself countless times, still stirred his emotions when heard again.

And two years ago, when he could not contain his hatred over the news of Anya's death, someone found him and delivered a message: "Think clearly about what you are now bearing; do not do anything impulsive."

That person was also the "Dean" Asano Enka spoke of, Jin Lu Jinlv Maoyan.

"You said earlier that she told you not to attend the funeral, or even not to come to Fang Ting City?"

Lin Yun spoke with a dry throat: "Did she tell you the reason?"

"Yes."

Asano Enka said indifferently: "You know, a command with no reason at all could not make me stop doing what I wanted to do."

"Why?"

"Because if I had come at that time, you would have been left with only one option: 'revenge'."

Lifting her head and turning her face, Asano Enka looked at Lin Yun and said: "If I didn't return, or rather, if neither I nor that old hag Su Shengzi returned, you could calm down and properly weigh the consequences of 'revenge.' But if we had come to attend the funeral back then, what would you have thought?"

"What would I have thought?"

"The Fang Ting City squad gathers again, but one member has been killed; everyone wants revenge, yet only one person has given up the power of a Magical Girl and can no longer fight."

Rising from her squatting position, perhaps because her legs had gone numb, Asano Enka stood on her tiptoes: "In such a scene, given your personality, would there really still be an option of 'not seeking revenge'?"

Lin Yun had no words to reply.

The other person was right; if it had truly become such a scene, he surely would not have hesitated at all about returning to battle.

"... Even so, what is wrong with that?"

But even so, he still had doubts: "I do not feel coerced, nor do I feel forced, because that was something I wanted to do anyway."

"Really?"

Asami Enka retorted, "Then what are you fighting for now?"

"I am, of course, fighting for..." Before he could finish the sentence, Lin Yun suddenly stopped.

Because he realized what the other person was trying to convey.

He was indeed not fighting for "revenge" now; the reason he had picked up the Heart Flower again was actually to protect his child.

"The reason for fighting is very important; merely having a different reason will make the way you fight vastly different. You should understand."

Asami Enka continued, "The Dean's thought is that the answer to the question 'whether to fight' must be answered by yourself. Only if none of us interfere can you find the reason for fighting on your own, a reason you decide yourself."

"Then what if I decide on my own to fight for revenge?" Lin Yun frowned.

"If it is entirely your own will, then no one will stop you."

Asami Enka lowered the corners of her mouth: "However, I must emphasize, I do not want you to go to your death with Anya, and the Dean does not either. You used that move during the Full Moon Festival, right? The move that damages your own Demon Armor to exchange for combat power. If you use it again, you will die."

"Just to protect a child, you are already facing this level of battle. If you knew the true culprit and chose to seek revenge, how quickly would you burn out your own life? Believe me, friend, though saying this is a bit selfish, no one wants to see that scene."

"... I know, I understood all this long ago." After hearing this, Lin Yun sighed, "In any case, I must first let Little Lulu... no, let those children all have the ability to protect themselves. Before those children can stand on their own, I will not act rashly."

"It won't work even after they can stand on their own."

Asami Enka glared at him: "Are you in such a hurry to commit suicide? Seeking revenge without even knowing who the true culprit is, do you plan to fight your way to the Black Ash Dawn stronghold and carry out a massacre?"

"This won't work and that won't work either, so what exactly are you here for? Did you come to be a guard for our Dean, my lord?"

Lin Yun replied with equal irritation: "Do I need to remind you that my rank is half a level higher than yours? Probationary Patrol Officer?"

"Didn't I say it when we first met? Of course I came to be your bodyguard, Patrol Officer, my lord."

Asami Enka laughed in a sinister and ambiguous way twice: "Let me confirm with you again. Although the 'Moth' that secretly controlled Fang Ting City was brought down, things haven't been easy lately, my lord?"

"Average." Lin Yun answered coldly.

One person smiling, the other with a cold face, they held their ground for a while, until Lin Yun took a step back first and spoke: "Indeed, there are quite a few problems."

"Who is the enemy?"

"You don't know?"

"How would I know? I just arrived."

"Didn't you ask the Jin Lu Jinlv Maoyan? Does the Investigation Bureau not even have records?"

"Records of what?" Asami Enka looked innocent.

"Who just told me they knew the progress of the matter better than anyone?"

Lin Yun widened his eyes: "So that was just empty talk?"

"I indeed know the progress of the matter, and I also know that Claw Mark sent someone over, but how could I possibly know who came?"

Asami Enka spread her hands with righteous indignation: "We are here to exchange information, aren't we? Tell me."

"... Forget it, pretend I didn't say anything. I'll take you to the Anomaly Strategy Bureau later to explain properly; once you see the relevant materials, you'll understand."

"Great, it's been a long time since I last went to the Fang Ting City Anomaly Strategy Bureau."

"I seem to remember someone not long ago saying that going to the Anomaly Strategy Bureau was boring?"

"Because I really don't want to go to the Anomaly Strategy Bureau right now. You also said 'go later', didn't you?"

Asami Enka pouted slightly: "Going straight to the local Anomaly Strategy Bureau as soon as arriving in a city is something that happens so often it's annoying."

"I'm not taking you there to play; it's not that interesting to begin with."

"Don't worry, don't worry, I understand."

Asami Enka responded somewhat perfunctorily, then suddenly as if remembering something, she lifted her handbag, reached inside, and pulled out a square thin sheet.

"What is that?" Lin Yun asked.

"An album CD, mine, the latest one." Asami Enka answered.

"Why are you taking out your own album here?" Lin Yun was confused.

But he saw the other person shake the CD in her hand and smile: "This is a custom of your Donghua Province, right? To bring a gift for the deceased."

"So what?"

"This is my gift." Asami Enka blinked her eyes.

"... You are too narcissistic."

Lin Yun put one hand on his hip and couldn't help but place the other on his forehead: "Who brings such a thing when paying respects to the deceased?"

"This isn't me being narcissistic, friend. If Anya knew, she would definitely like it."

Placing the album in front of the tombstone, Asami Enka made a gesture of worship, bowed deeply, waited for several tens of seconds, then straightened up and said: "See, she told me it sounded very good."

"Too stupid." The deceased's family member commented.

And this time, Asami Enka offered no rebuttal, nor did she even respond at all.

She just looked at the tombstone with a gentle gaze.

The tombstone would not give her any response, but in her thoughts remained the last conversation the two of them had.

— "So you didn't listen to my new song at all? I recorded it for several days to get such a perfect version. Please, sister, just listen to it."

"Hmm... even if you say that, sending me a string of strange letters, I don't know how to turn it into music."

"That's a web link!"

"You need a computer for that, feels too hard to handle... Speaking of which, Little Lulu did crafts at kindergarten today and learned to fold paper cranes. Do you want to see? Our child unexpectedly has a talent for crafts; it seems she was the first in the whole class to fold one."

"Is that so? Sounds amazing. Send it to me later to see. But my song! Remember to listen to my song!"

"Okay, okay, okay, I will definitely listen to the big star's song. I'll have Ah Yun do it when he gets off work."

"Your tone is basically saying you don't intend to listen..."

"I really do intend to listen."

"Sigh... You can't handle web links, but you surely know how to listen to a CD, right?"

"CD? Oh, like a disc? No problem—you're already releasing a CD?"

"It might still be a while before the album, but it's definitely coming—no later than two years. My songs' sales data have been great lately; if things keep going like this, the album is definitely a sure thing."

"Great, I'll buy one when it comes out."

"No need—I'll give it to you."

"I love Yuanxiang the most—I'm moved!"

"Don't say that with such a dismissive tone—it only makes people feel worse..."

"Alright, alright—I just really don't understand music or computers much, but I'll definitely buy a copy of your album to support you, even if you don't give it to me."

"Deal?"

"Deal."

"If you don't buy it, I'll personally bring the album to your house."

"Bring it to my house? Hmm... now I suddenly don't want to buy it anymore!"

"Hey!"

(End of Chapter)