Chapter 23: The Old Man
Time trickled by slowly.
Before long, it was time for Night Star to meet Lianhua again.
Night Star shooed away the clingy Ghost Girl and headed off to meet Lianhua alone.
At a glance, the peaceful park displayed the adorable forms of two Lolis, always managing to catch the attention of passersby and shining brightly.
Once more, Lianhua was performing her puppet show for Night Star.
At this time every day had seemingly become her routine.
If Lianhua went a day without performing, she’d feel as uneasy as a fish out of water.
Perhaps this had morphed into her motivation for putting on puppet shows.
After all, Night Star, being her only audience, was her very source of drive!
And Night Star?
She was steadily witnessing Lianhua’s improvements; as the puppet show skills soared in greatness, the enjoyment factor skyrocketed too.
But she still remembered her purpose.
One major reason for sticking by Lianhua’s side was to protect the Little Lian puppet from any mishaps.
Yet, as of now, it looked like Night Star hadn’t found any intel or clues linking to the puppet’s potential doom.
Sometimes Night Star even pondered whether her mere presence had already altered the puppet’s fate for the worse?
If that were the case, she should’ve zipped back to the future ages ago.
But that guess was, unfortunately, incorrect.
Time zipped past, and an entire afternoon flew by in a flash.
Night Star and Lianhua parted ways, heading back to their own homes.
Before leaving, Lianhua again invited Night Star over for a visit, but it was turned down.
Because Night Star felt quite embarrassed about constantly mooching off Lianhua’s dinner.
Lianhua didn’t mind, but Night Star certainly did.
Finding comfort in guilt was just not in her nature; she was simply a shy little Loli at heart.
Plus, there was another reason—there’s a certain someone at home waiting for her.
That someone seemed terribly lonely, so she felt obligated to go back and keep her company.
After all, Night Star was a kind-hearted Loli deep down.
Eypar was just a calamity of a large fool.
…
Day in and day out.
The Night Watchers of Shanghe City had reduced their patrol intensity and were entering a phase of conserving energy for the coming battle.
Since they couldn’t find the “trigger” for the Supernova Star Eclipses, they decided to prepare for an all-out response against the impending explosion.
Yao Can had no choice but to make this decision.
During this period, Yao Can was in charge of all Night Watchers’ action assignments. Managing a horde of activities was enough to make his spirits wear thin.
His direct subordinate, Mo Yu, had transformed into the ultimate workaholic, almost on call twenty-four hours a day, with rest time not exceeding four hours.
But that was primarily because he was a natural when it came to physical tasks, keeping him busier than anyone else.
As for Ye Lan, she was still frolicking happily at Lan Feng Su Yu’s dorm, looking entirely unbothered, as if none of this was her concern.
Yao Can didn’t expect the lucky charm with the Extraordinary Star would amount to anything useful—he just hoped she would stay put.
Just the thought of that lucky charm failing to remember crucial tidbits was enough to raise Yao Can’s bl**d pressure a notch.
But when he recalled she was just a little girl, about fourteen, he cut her some slack.
Another thing raising his bl**d pressure was Mo Tu coming over from the neighboring city.
“What an infuriating guy…”
Yao Can found himself unable to sway him at all.
Right now, there were five Solar-class Night Watchers in Shanghe City. Yao Can tried to assemble the other four for an important meeting, but Mo Tu just wasn’t showing up.
His excuse? He was busy, and he could just hear what happened after the meeting ended.
Yao Can found the guy’s nonchalance incredibly irritating.
If Mo Tu worked alongside him in the same environment, he’d probably be perpetually stressed out.
However, Mo Tu’s star truly wasn’t suited for frontline combat, so Yao Can chose to selectively ignore him.
With the current situation, all they could do was go through the motions.
…
This afternoon.
Night Star, as per usual, met up with Lianhua in the park, a daily ritual by now.
It was like an unsaid agreement between the two, never failing.
After Lianhua finished performing a flawless puppet show for Night Star, she couldn’t hold back any longer.
“Um… Night Star, can I visit your house?”
“Hmm?” Night Star tilted her head, confused as to why Lianhua would say that.
Lianhua’s cheeks turned a bit pink, and in a soft voice, she said, “I want to get to know you better. Since you’ve been to my house, I’d like to visit yours… is that okay?”
Her tone held a touch of nervousness, as if fearing rejection from Night Star.
After hearing Lianhua’s words, Night Star contemplated a multitude of thoughts in a couple of seconds.
“Sure! But my house is small, so I hope you don’t mind.”
“Mm, I won’t mind!” Lianhua beamed and began tidying up her puppet props.
Night Star watched her as she organized her things, her expression slightly troubled.
Bringing Lianhua home wasn’t a problem…
But there was the mischievous Ghost Girl waiting inside, and that was where things got tricky.
Night Star was certain Eypar would play a prank on Lianhua.
While those pranks weren’t over the top, Lianhua might get a fright, making it hard to explain later.
But maybe it wouldn’t hurt to give Eypar a heads up quietly beforehand.
At the same time, she felt a bit puzzled about when this “wish” would ever come true.
She really wanted to meet her other self, longed to cuddle with Ye Lan, and craved to sleep with her; without the perfect pillow by her side, it just wasn’t quite comfy enough.
Being a Night Watcher put a sad, thick barrier between Night Star and Ye Lan.
Just as Night Star was wrapped up in these thoughts, Lianhua announced she was ready.
“Night Star, I’m all set.”
“Mm, let’s go.”
…
In the residential area.
A handsome black-haired man lounged on a rocking chair by the door, soaking up the sun, his gaze fixed on a certain someone’s usual path.
“The sun’s looking pretty nice today,” Mo Tu remarked, his tone suggesting he’d already slipped into retirement living.
Like an old man.
While other Night Watchers were strung tight, he seemed utterly relaxed.
If Yao Can saw him, his bl**d pressure might just skyrocket.
But to be fair, Mo Tu was still getting some work done.
Like his little project called “Silver-haired Loli’s Observation Diary.”
That little couch potato would only emerge from her lair for food and at three o’clock in the afternoon, and she wouldn’t even let the little Ghost Girl tag along, which was just plain odd.
As the biggest “abnormality” of this time, the bizarre happenings around her couldn’t be interpreted through logic, so maybe they could uncover some useful info.
As for what exactly… Mother Earth would eventually provide the answer.
“Oh? Back already? Today’s quite early.”
Mo Tu’s eyes flickered as he spotted the returning silver-haired Loli, accompanied by another petite girl.
Upon seeing that girl for the first time, his eyes narrowed, and a smile crept across his face, widening slowly.
“Well, well… this one seems a bit interesting.”
