When Yaffir spoke these words, Ren Yuanhao was silent for a full ten seconds, making her think for a moment that the man beside her was captivated by the river scenery and the sudden gust of wind.
"Xiaotian?"
It wasn't until Yaffir saw Ren Yuanhao's face turn somewhat foolish that she realized this man seemed lost in some unrealistic dream.
Ren Yuanhao remained stunned for another four or five seconds before reacting. He replied sheepishly, "I'm sorry, I was just thinking about something rather wonderful, so..."
"No need to apologize. After all, arriving here, one needs some wonderful memories to keep going."
Yaffir, too, fell into a memory, perhaps of her own birch forest, or perhaps of those wonderful games of kicking a shuttlecock and playing jump rope that she wanted to join but never quite did. Daifeng Novels.
"I was wondering, if I hadn't followed my grandfather in those strange research projects, would I be living differently now? No, I should say I would be happier. Perhaps, if I had been braver back then, crossed that bridge and joined their games, everything might have turned out differently."
Yaffir stood at a fork in her memories. One path was the predetermined, already planned single-plank bridge, and the other was a broad, sunlit avenue shrouded in thick fog.
However, such memories and fantasies were of no use. When God gives you two paths, and you excitedly step onto one, you are already parting ways with the other, forever unable to turn back, and never to intersect again.
"So, you regret it now?"
Ren Yuanhao asked tentatively.
"Regret? No, I think it's less regret and more a fear of the future."
"How so?"
"Because I chose this path, thinking my grandfather would lead the way, clearing obstacles so I could see the situation in the fog, even the scenery at the end of it. But I found I was wrong."
Yaffir's expression turned pained. She struggled to stand up, leaning against the river embankment railing, using the flowing water as a mirror to try and see her face clearly.
However, whether it was mosquitoes or other creatures in the water, ripples occasionally disturbed the surface, making her reflection hazy and indistinct.
The sky was vast and the moon was sparse, a rare sense of breadth and contentment. Yet, for two people lost in their memories, beautiful nights so often turned into storms.
"You know, I'm completely lost and confused about the future. Every time I want to stop and examine myself, I find a pair of hands constantly pushing me from behind, forcing me forward. It feels like I'm the second hand of a clock, my actions completely driven by perfectly meshed gears, mechanical and uninteresting."
Yaffir probably felt that the man beside her was different from other men, which was why she dared to reveal her true feelings to him, daring to say things to him that she wouldn't even say to her grandfather.
"Everyone is essentially a cog or a hand of a clock. Clocks are mechanical and regular, much like society. They drive the entire society, and people are the cogs or hands. If a cog seeks freedom, it prevents the hands from functioning normally, and those who break this pattern are removed by the clockmaker until the clock resumes its normal operation."
"You mean that if someone tries to jump out of this rule, break the gears' trajectory, it might harm the current environment and lead to their removal, is that right?"
Ren Yuanhao nodded. "So, even if people dislike rules and regulations, they still choose to abide by them. At least, it makes them feel that time is peaceful and life is stable."
"But I don't want to be that obedient hand. I want to be~"
"Shh~"
Ren Yuanhao signaled her to stop. Such words were too rebellious. More importantly, he sensed someone approaching.
Moreover, this person was strong!
A few seconds later, Yaffir also heard faint footsteps. No, she was familiar with these footsteps. One deep, one shallow, one heavy, one light. The person approaching was a cripple, and behind the cripple was a man whose emotions were unreadable.
"Grandfather, what a surprise to see you here."
Yaffir seemed surprised by her grandfather's arrival and appeared somewhat flustered.
"Phil, you seem to be in good spirits tonight. And who is this?" Leviath quickly shifted his gaze to Ren Yuanhao.
At the same time, Ren Yuanhao's gaze met that of the man behind Dr. Leviath.
The man's pupils were like ten thousand years of ice, exuding a cold and殺伐 (shā fá - murderous) aura. This man, too, was the strongest Ren Yuanhao had seen, apart from the old beggar in the alley!
"Oh, this is my friend, and also the Newcomer King of today."
Yaffir introduced them somewhat nervously, as if her grandfather's gaze could see through everything.
"Newcomer King?"
Leviath's eyes became more shrewd and deep. "In just one day, to go directly from the E-class to the A-class area. It seems you truly deserve the title of Newcomer King."
Ren Yuanhao cupped his hands, about to reply, when suddenly a terrifying pressure descended upon him!
This was emitted by the man behind Leviath, and it was directed solely at Ren Yuanhao.
His subconscious told him it was best not to resist too strongly, even if he could withstand this pressure.
Ren Yuanhao's face turned ashen, his right hand gripping the railing tightly, his body trembling.
"Vitus, that's enough." Leviath placed a hand on Vitus's shoulder.
After a moment, Vitus's pressure receded from Ren Yuanhao, who then pretended to be struggling for breath, forcing air into his chest.
"Yaffir, how impolite. Haven't you met the Second King yet?"
Leviath glared at Yaffir, who reluctantly greeted them.
Vitus seemed to smile faintly only when looking at Yaffir. He stepped forward and handed a jewelry box to Yaffir.
"For me?"
Vitus nodded. "Open it?"
Yaffir understood. The moment she opened it, a light shot out like a sharp sword! Inside was a thumb-sized night-shining pearl!
"A woman like you should be like this night-shining pearl: reserved and calm as water, and when blooming, like a vast river of stars."
Vitus looked at Yaffir with a very gentlemanly gaze.
—Damn it? Is this the second of the Eight Kings? He's so eloquent? So charming?
Although Ren Yuanhao still feigned extreme discomfort, that little bit of pressure was nothing to him.