Chapter 262: Happy Birthday

Lin Xiaolu's second video call came shortly after Lin Yun took his seat.

The bar at this hour had quite a few customers; while the surroundings were not particularly rowdy, they were certainly not quiet either. However, Lin Yun had no choice now, so he put on his earphones and tapped the answer button on the screen.

— "Ah, it connected... hello, hello, hello, can you hear me?"

After he answered the call, half a palm blocking the camera appeared on his phone screen, and Lin Xiaolu's voice followed: "Why didn't you answer the phone just now?"

"Little Lulu?"

Lin Yun did not answer this question immediately. Instead, acting as if he had just received this call, he asked with feigned surprise: "Is that you?"

"It's me, it's me."

Lin Xiaolu did not suspect anything; in her view, her surprise plan was flawless, and her father should know nothing about what she was about to do: "So, why didn't you answer when I called you just now?"

This was actually what she cared about more.

"Sorry, Little Lulu, it's a bit noisy around here, I didn't hear it just now."

Lin Yun made excuses without changing his expression: "I put my phone aside and didn't notice the screen."

"Eh... at this hour, where are you?"

Lin Xiaolu also noticed the slightly noisy voices in the background: "Still working overtime? Socializing with people?"

"At a bar."

On this point, Lin Yun did not hide the truth, because he knew he couldn't hide it anyway; it was better to be open so people wouldn't think he had something to hide: "I originally came here with a colleague to discuss business, but he went out for something and said he'd be back in a while."

"A bar? A colleague?"

Lin Xiaolu immediately became alert: "Could it be Hong Siyu? Did she ask you out on Valentine's Day evening?"

"Not her, it's another colleague."

Lin Yun was somewhat speechless: "And it has nothing to do with Valentine's Day or not; we came out to discuss work."

"Not her? Then who is it, male or female?" Lin Xiaolu continued to press.

"... Of course it's a man," Lin Yun said helplessly.

"Really a man?"

Lin Xiaolu was somewhat skeptical, but soon she found a reason herself: "Oh, is it that your colleague is helping you celebrate your birthday?"

"Celebrate your birthday? Hmm... in a way, yes."

Lin Yun felt it was better to go along with Lin Xiaolu at this moment, so he continued to spin an endless story: "Just a casual wish while drinking, nothing too formal."

"Hmph, I see."

Lin Xiaolu nodded: "Then, do you guess why I'm calling you now?"

"Why?" Lin Yun continued to play dumb: "I remember you sent me a message during the day saying you'd give me chocolate? Are you going to show me the result now?"

"Not that, it must be something related to you!" Lin Xiaolu corrected.

"Then what else could it be? Did you meet your ex's Fang Ting City Magical Girl over there?" Lin Yun kept speculating.

"How is that possible? Why would you think in that direction? I already said it's because of you, I'm calling you!" Lin Xiaolu got a bit anxious.

"Hmm? Oh."

Seeing the timing was right, Lin Yun suddenly had a "realization": "Could it be because today is my birthday?"

"That's right!"

Lin Xiaolu's tone suddenly rose: "Look at what I prepared for you!"

Lin Yun followed her voice to look at the screen, but he could still only see half a palm blocking the screen; moreover, compared to when the call first connected, the palm covered even more.

Even though he already knew what was on the other side of the screen must be a cake, he couldn't possibly state the answer as if he had X-ray vision, so he could only answer truthfully: "I can't see it."

"How can you not see it? I clearly turned on the camera?" Hearing this, Lin Xiaolu began checking her phone with some confusion.

【Hand, your hand is blocking it.】 Xia Liang's voice came from the side.

"Ah? Ah, so that's it!"

Lin Xiaolu quickly moved her hand away from covering the camera, then re-aimed it at the counter nearby: "This should be fine now, come take a look!"

As she said, now, a cake appeared on Lin Yun's phone screen.

It was no different from the form he saw before leaving the Rainbow Wetlands; only back then the cake hadn't finished its final decoration, whereas what was on the screen now was a true finished product.

The pure white cream surface was covered with scattered petals, decorating it in five colors and seven hues; rectangular chocolate pieces were tightly attached to the sides of the cake, complementing the patterns outlined around them. And on top of the cake, candles shaped like numbers were now inserted, forming the number "37".

As this number represented, this year marked the thirty-seventh year since Lin Yun came to this world.

"We three made this together, how is it? Does it look good?"

On the other end of the call, Lin Xiaolu was in high spirits and continued explaining: "Making this took much longer than the chocolate; it was really super hard."

"Hmm, it's great, it looks very good."

And even though this "surprise" had been leaked in advance, when he truly saw the birthday cake his daughter had made for him with her own hands, Lin Yun still couldn't suppress the joy in his heart, staring blankly at the phone screen in his hand.

It was completely different from the feeling when he received the chocolate crown as Senior Cuique; this cake was truly a gift given by Lin Xiaolu as a child to him as a father. If receiving the chocolate crown filled his heart mostly with guilt, nostalgia, and emotion, then now, the emotions in his heart were almost entirely relief and warmth.

He could even still remember Lin Xiaolu lying in her crib, or in swaddling clothes, held in his arms. That small child back then, at some point, had grown up, become sensible, and could even give gifts on his birthday.

Lin Yun knew very well that his past self as a father was not entirely qualified. Because his own father was an somewhat unserious, somewhat idle person who died young. So when Lin Yun himself became a father, he once insisted that he must be strict with his child, even if it meant sacrificing some harmony between parent and child, to be responsible for the child's future.

Back then, he did not want his child to contact matters related to magic, and even less wanted his child to become a Magical Girl and face those dangerous things. So even though Anya would say soft words like "Being a Magical Girl isn't so bad, I will protect Little Lulu," Lin Yun still insisted that he should raise Lin Xiaolu to be a standard corporate white-collar worker.

So, back then, whenever Lin Yun and Lin Xiaolu were together, the topics discussed would be studying, would be performance at school, would be cram schools. As time went on, even Lin Yun himself didn't know what else he could communicate with his daughter about, leaving only topics like "Did you finish your homework?" and "Why didn't you do well on the exam?"

Later, Lin Xiaolu, who had been very clingy and loved to act spoiled when she was little, gradually distanced herself from her father.

And without a doubt, all of this was Lin Yun's own fault.

He once forced his own avoidance of the past, and his alienation from the identity of a Magical Girl and everything related to it, onto his child. Even for his daughter's safety, even if he didn't want her to contact magic-related matters, he shouldn't have used such a harsh attitude to hurt his daughter's feelings.

He didn't even notice that if it weren't for Anya always acting as the glue holding the family together, his relationship with Lin Xiaolu would have cooled down even faster.

And then later, after Anya passed away, the father-daughter relationship dropped to freezing point.

At that moment, when he realized that the only close relative left in his life was Lin Xiaolu, and when he began to re-examine his relationship with his daughter, he found that it was too late to regret.

Even if he regretted it even more, even if he blamed himself even more, the harm done to his daughter would not be wiped away; the bond of kinship was on the verge of snapping, and at this moment, no matter how he tried to make amends or curry favor, it would all be in vain.

He had even once resigned himself, given up, believing that Lin Xiaolu would never be willing to get along with him properly again.

So, compared to that darkest moment, this cake now, and the candlelight atop it, seemed so dreamlike and dazzling.

"Thank you, Little Lulu."

Lin Yun pressed his lips together, forcing out a somewhat awkward smile: "Dad... I'm sorry for the past."

Unrelated to her identity as a Magical Girl, this was something he said to his daughter simply as a father.

"Hmm... ah? Why apologize suddenly?"

Lin Xiaolu scratched her head in some confusion, then as if realizing something, pouted: "Oh, you mean the past? Well, the past is the past. If we're really talking about it, actually, I was wrong too."

Just like Lin Yun, Lin Xiaolu at this moment was also speaking to her father very normally, simply as a daughter.

"I told you before, only after I actually became a Magical Girl did I realize that some of the things you said and did back then weren't entirely without reason."

She gradually lowered her hand from scratching her head, changing to rubbing her hair tips with her fingers: "If I hadn't been lucky enough to meet Senior Cuique, I probably would have encountered something very dangerous by now, or even already died. So, I probably understand why you were so unwilling to tell me about Magical Girls; your worry... wasn't without reason."

The words were spoken too openly, and both of them fell silent instead.

Because although the relationship had eased, Lin Yun and Lin Xiaolu still couldn't be said to be close enough; having spoken the plain truth, continuing would require heartfelt words, warm words, even mushy words. But obviously, Lin Xiaolu couldn't bring herself to say them yet.

Fortunately, the strange silence didn't last long; soon, Lin Xiaolu actively changed the subject:

"Ah, speaking of which, this candle actually isn't an ordinary candle."

She didn't look at the camera anymore, but pointed stiffly at the cake beside her: "When we bought it, the clerk specifically recommended it to us; they said it was a magic tool, using some kind of... Heart-Cutting Spell?"

【It's Astrology.】 Xia Liang's voice came from off-screen again.

"Oh, Astrology, and a bunch of other miscellaneous spells; anyway, very high-tech. And then, it has a very magical function."

Lin Xiaolu followed the flow, continuing the thread Xia Liang had passed: "They said this candle doesn't need to be lit; as long as the birthday person gets close, it will ignite on its own and then start playing the birthday song."

She moved her phone closer toward the cake: "Just right, let me test if it's true or false now."

In the phone screen before Lin Yun, only the cake remained.

A waiter nearby happened to approach carrying a tray, placing a wine glass before Lin Yun, bowing and saying "Your Silver Moon Spring Butterfly," then slowly walked away.

Lin Yun picked up the wine, took a sip at his lips; the not-too-strong alcohol scent rushed into his nostrils accompanied by the crisp aroma of lemongrass, a slightly sweet aftertaste lingering in his throat, making him feel refreshed.

Just as he was drinking, Lin Xiaolu pulled the phone screen away from in front of the cake, saying somewhat strangely: "This candle isn't reacting? Did they trick me?"

【I think it definitely won't work through the phone...】 Now it was Bai Jingxuan's turn to speak from off-screen.

"Won't work through the phone? Then is Astrology a bit too useless?"

Lin Xiaolu still didn't give up: "Um... Dad? How about you say a couple of things to it through the phone?"

"Hehe, forget it."

Lin Yun didn't plan to do something stupid like talking to a cake candle, so he could only chuckle dryly: "No need, Dad just knowing your feelings is enough."

"But it won't light up like this, what do we do?"

Lin Xiaolu still wasn't resigned: "For a birthday, the cake candles definitely have to be lit."

【Anyway, since you plan to mail it back, you might as well just stick it on like this and mail it back; it'll light up then.】 Xia Liang offered a suggestion from the side.

"Oh, that actually makes sense."

Lin Xiaolu slapped her arm: "Then, Dad, I'll mail it back to Fang Ting City in a few days; remember to receive it."

"Forget it, no need."

Lin Yun was somewhat at a loss between laughter and tears: "Why make it so troublesome? You might as well just divide it up right now."

"How can we do that?"

Lin Xiaolu raised an eyebrow: "It's a birthday cake made especially for you; if you can't even eat it, how is it a birthday? Although mailing it back to you now means you'll eat it a few days late, I thought about it carefully before; compared to calling a cake shop in Fang Ting City to order a cake and have it delivered today, making it myself has more value!"

"Really no need. Dad is at my age now; I don't want cake that much, and such a big piece, if I eat it alone, I won't finish it. I know you made me a cake, and even specially called to wish me a happy birthday, that's already enough to make me happy."

Lin Yun smiled at the screen: "Next, rather than having you mail it back, I'd rather watch you guys eat it; seeing how you look while eating cake will make me happier."

"... What do you guys think?"

Undoubtedly, Lin Yun's final statement somewhat convinced Lin Xiaolu, so she started looking around, seeking help from her two teammates.

【I think we can leave a piece for Dad... Uncle, and mail it back separately.】 Bai Jingxuan said so.

【I also think it's fine; just remember to leave a piece for Junior Senior, that way everyone can eat.】 Xia Liang suggested this.

"No need for you to say it; if we really divide the cake, I'll definitely leave a piece for Senior Cuique."

Lin Xiaolu rolled her eyes at Xia Liang, then brought the phone back in front of her, facing the camera: "Then, Dad, shall we really eat it?"

"Yeah, divide it up."

Lin Yun took another sip from his wine glass and made a toast gesture toward the screen: "It's already enough; thank you all, I'm very happy."

"Alright, then let's do as my dad said; bring over the included cake knife!" Lin Xiaolu no longer hesitated and gave this order.

"This one?"

Bai Jingxuan's voice gradually became clear, and then she walked into the screen holding a plastic cake knife: "It was just lying nearby."

"Since Uncle said he wanted to divide the cake just now, I already took it out of the packaging."

Xia Liang also leisurely swayed into the frame from the edge of the screen, then smiled at Lin Yun through the camera: "However, actually, I guessed this might happen too."

So Lin Xiaolu took the cake knife, Bai Jingxuan held the cake tray, and Xia Liang took the phone, flipping it over so that all three were contained within the phone screen.

The three juniors exchanged glances, and then as the cake knife fell, laughing and joking, they shouted in unison:

— "Happy Birthday!"