Chapter 25: Tu Mi

That was the day of Anya’s funeral.

Dark clouds filled the sky, cold winds blew in gusts, and a misty drizzle fell incessantly.

Lin Yun held a black umbrella, eyes fixed straight ahead, unaware even as he stepped into puddles. The lonely umbrella drifted in the wind like a black mandara flower.

Water splashed from beneath his leather shoes, scattering across the ground; he looked forward, where a woman was waiting for him.

She stood in the rain without an umbrella, the fine threads of rain and the slanted wind lashing against her, streaming down her hair.

The woman was in her twenties, and because it was a funeral, she wore a black women’s suit. Her facial features were somewhat sharp, giving her a rather heroic air.

Seeing Lin Yun approach, she looked up, water streaks still lingering on her pale face.

"I’m sorry."

She mumbled, her voice hoarse: "We were late."

Lin Yun said nothing.

He did not know what to say, or perhaps, what he wanted to hear was not "I’m sorry."

Every person who knew Anya said "I’m sorry" as their first words upon meeting him; everyone seemed to take the blame for Anya’s death upon themselves, and more importantly, their grief was genuine.

But if Anya’s death was their fault, then what was the murderer who killed her? And what was he, who could only offer powerless apologies in the face of such emptiness?

With apologies like this every time they met, to whom could he pour out his unvented emotions?

At 16, he might have wailed; at 26, he might have shed tears. Now, having passed 30, as the last remaining master of this house, he had no room left for tears in front of his daughter and the guests.

All that remained was silence, and it could only be silence; after all, even saying one more word might lead to choking up—how could he bring himself to speak?

Yet, just because he did not speak did not mean the woman before him would stop.

"We trusted and relied on Senior Sakura too much... or rather, we underestimated the enemy too much, to the point of letting our guard down."

The woman clenched her fists, her face full of remorse: "She said, just like always, that 'one person is enough,' and told us not to get involved. We all felt that a magical girl as powerful as her couldn't possibly have any accidents, but in the end..."

Don't say any more.

Lin Yun wanted very much to tell her this; he had absolutely no desire to hear how Anya died, but he understood that this was impossible.

"When we arrived, Senior Sakura had already been... and the enemy escaped right before our eyes."

Her voice grew lower, her mood somber: "I’m sorry, we couldn't do anything, we were completely useless. As her companion, I am a sinner."

The sound of rain continued.

Lin Yun took a step, walking toward the woman.

The woman stood still, but her hands clenched tighter, and she closed her eyes.

To have abandoned a comrade while being a comrade-in-arms, and to have let a senior who had often looked after her die alone—such a despicable act meant that even being met with violence from the family would be normal; she was prepared.

But Lin Yun did not do that.

He simply extended the umbrella over her head, hugged her gently, and patted her shoulder.

"Don't blame yourself; you did your best, Tu Mi."

He spoke, and though his voice was dry and his expression indifferent, it carried a gentleness: "From here on, just do what you must do."

The woman called Tu Mi stood under the umbrella, first widening her eyes in a brief daze, then tears burst forth: "Cornflower..."

"Don't say it."

Lin Yun shook his head, interrupting her: "I don't like that codename."

"...Then, Senior Larkspur."

Tu Mi tried her best to hold back her sobs, covering her mouth in silence for a moment. After a long while, she took a deep breath, looked at Lin Yun, and kept her words steady: "No, Mr. Lin Yun."

"We intend to leave Fang Ting City."

Clearly, this was what she truly wanted to convey.

Lin Yun’s fingers twitched, but his face remained expressionless; he merely nodded: "When?"

"Probably within this week."

Tears were still sliding down Tu Mi’s face, so she reached out to wipe them away: "Although we let the enemy escape, we judged from their appearance and behavioral logic that the one who killed Senior Sakura was not a Remnant Beast, or at least, not just a Remnant Beast."

Not just a Remnant Beast.

This sentence caught Lin Yun’s attention.

"There should be some mysterious organization behind this that the Kingdom has been investigating; they seem to have some means of cooperating with Remnant Beasts."

Tu Mi sniffled, a look of determination gradually appearing in her red eyes: "So we will join the special investigation team organized by the Investigation Institute, follow the murderer's tracks, and root them out."

"...Is it dangerous?" Detecting a hidden meaning in her words, Lin Yun lowered his eyes and asked.

"It seems so; it appears to be the investigation team with the highest attrition rate at the Investigation Institute."

Grinning, Tu Mi forced an ugly smile: "But if we don't do this, I'm afraid we will never be able to face ourselves again."

"After we leave, new Sowers will come to Fang Ting City. It will select new magical girls, and the newcomers will protect this city. It is time for us old ones, who don't have much time left in our terms, to step aside."

"And Senior Morning Glory... she retired many years ago. Her real name is Hong Siyu, and as a staff member of the Extraordinary Strategy Bureau, she will also be transferred to Fang Ting City."

She rambled a bit, listing everything she knew, item by item, as much as she could.

Lin Yun listened to her for a long time, neither expressing an opinion nor interrupting her.

"I wish you success."

Only when she finished did Lin Yun nod and hand the umbrella in his hand to Tu Mi: "Take it with you."

Tu Mi did not take it.

She looked at Lin Yun, gave a bitter smile, and shook her head.

After a long gaze, Lin Yun understood her meaning; he silently closed the umbrella, took one last deep look at Tu Mi, and turned to leave.

"...Mr. Lin Yun, you don't need to respond to what I say next."

Yet, after he had walked two steps, Tu Mi’s voice came from behind him.

This time, there was a certain hesitation in her voice: "After I applied to join the special team, someone found me, claiming to be an official under Lord Golden Green Cat's Eye."

Hearing that name from Tu Mi, Lin Yun’s pupils constricted.

But Tu Mi had said no response was needed, so he did not turn back, simply listening quietly with his back to her.

"She told me that this matter now involves very deep reaches; in fact, just this week, a Lord certified by the Flower Cards has already gone missing during an investigation. So, let me convey a message from Lord Golden Green Cat's Eye to you:"

—"'Think clearly about what you are carrying now, and do not do anything impulsive.'"

After this sentence, there was no more human voice behind him.

Realizing this was the sign that it was over, Lin Yun paused in place for a long time, ultimately following Tu Mi’s request and still making no reaction, simply stepping forward to leave.

After he left, a pale yellow flow of magic erupted from an empty corner, and a faint rainbow light shot into the sky, masked by the overcast rain.

A year later, Tu Mi joined an extra-institutional investigation squad of the Investigation Institute and encountered an unknown enemy during an investigation operation.

After a fierce battle, in order to protect the intelligence and ensure its delivery, she took the initiative to cover the retreat and sacrificed herself in Binhai City.

After her death, her teammate, who was also from Fang Ting City, took her place and began a new round of pursuit.

But regarding this, Lin Yun was not yet aware.