Boom!
"Wow! Tendo, Caroline, look! It's so beautiful!"
The park's fireworks soared with pale-gold trails, exploding into a brilliant nighttime spectacle.
Pale-gold light particles drifted down like shooting stars, eventually dissipating into the dark night sky.
In the glow of the fireworks, Jing Liuli, holding the cotton candy she had managed to snatch back from Tendo, pointed excitedly at the display overhead.
Liuli, with her childlike temperament, was completely unbothered—one second she was shouting, 'Tendo is a big meanie, I won't be friends with you anymore,' and the next she was dragging them to watch the fireworks.
Caroline delicately wiped a smudge of sugar from Liuli's mouth with a handkerchief, smiling, "Mhm, I see it."
Tendo stood half a step behind the two. His azure eyes did not look at the brilliant fireworks but settled on Caroline's gentle profile, illuminated by the light.
This was because, just a short while ago, Tendo had taken the time to finish watching the plot of 'Star Generals Season 3: Star Glare.'
In the original plot of this third season, Tendo unexpectedly discovered Caroline's greatest 'secret,' one he hadn't known before.
[Star Source Era Year 89, Embers Base]
[4 years before the official start of the Star Generals Project, 6 years before the final assessment]
In a cold metal corridor, eight-year-old Caroline followed behind the Doctor (Dragon). Like other little girls who loved sweets, she clutched half of an unfinished strawberry biscuit.
Looking at Dragon's cold, imposing back, Caroline hesitated for a moment and whispered, "Father, can I... rest for a day?"
"My head felt a little dizzy when I was practicing Star Energy control yesterday. I wanted to..."
Dragon stopped and turned around.
His face was devoid of expression, his silver robotic glasses reflecting a cold light.
Seeing the expressionless Dragon, eight-year-old Caroline nervously lowered her head.
After a long moment, the Doctor spoke calmly.
"Caroline, you do not have time to rest."
"Neither do I," he added, his gaze falling on the newly healed modification scar on the back of Caroline's neck.
"You were already a 'dead person.' If not for the Star Core transplant, you would have left this world at birth."
"Even so, the limited time I fought Death to get for you does not mean you are the same as others."
"Therefore, every single moment you have now is an extra gift. You should use it to search for that one-in-ten-thousand 'Miracle,' not waste it on so-called 'rest.'"
"Because for you, rest is the greatest luxury in this world."
Hearing these words, Caroline buried her head lower, her voice hoarse, "What if... I can't find it?"
The air in the corridor suddenly grew still.
Dragon looked at his daughter, who barely reached his waist. The lenses of his robotic eye twitched slightly, showing a rare, human-like softness.
He reached out and gently stroked Caroline's head, the movement clumsy but carrying an unprecedented tenderness.
"Don't worry. If you can't find it, I will find the person who can."
Dragon's voice was very soft, as if making a profound vow.
"And what you need to do is to help him as much as possible after that, because helping him is helping yourself."
"So, don't think about resting, Caroline. Your time is more precious than anyone else's."
"I understand, Father."
Caroline looked up. The distress was gone from her face, replaced only by a calmness unsuited for her age.
This was the 'secret' about Caroline that Tendo saw in Star Generals Season 3: Star Glare.
A person who should have died long ago was forcibly kept in the world of the living.
And he, a person who should not have appeared, 'miraculously' showed up in this world where he didn't belong.
Tendo didn't know what his arrival meant.
But he felt that since he had already changed the destiny of the Season 1 protagonists, he should also be able to change Caroline's original destiny this time.
This... is the meaning of his existence.]
Boom!
As the last firework burst across the night sky, the colorful light stretched the three shadows long and thin.
Jing Liuli, having finally finished her cotton candy, licked her fingertips, then promptly hugged Caroline's arm.
"Caroline, can we come back here to watch the fireworks again? The fireworks here are the most beautiful!"
Caroline's body stiffened for a moment, then she returned to her gentle smile.
She stroked Liuli's head, but a flicker of imperceptible sadness crossed her eyes.
"Okay, then when..."
Just as Caroline was about to say something, a black jacket was draped over her shoulders.
The jacket carried a gentle warmth, perfectly shielding her from the slightly cool evening breeze.
Caroline looked at Tendo in surprise, clearly not expecting him to do this.
In response, Tendo spoke calmly while naturally adjusting the jacket's collar around her neck.
"It's cool tonight, don't catch a cold. Also..."
"We should head back. We have to catch the boat back to the City of Crimson Mist tomorrow; we shouldn't miss the time."
"Mhm."
Looking at Tendo, who seemed to understand everything, Caroline gently agreed, completely forgetting that she was still maintaining her 'amnesia' persona.
Perhaps she hadn't forgotten, but she felt that even with amnesia, she wouldn't refuse the kindness coming from Tendo.
The three followed the crowd toward the park exit. Liuli skipped ahead, humming an off-key tune, her voice as clear as a wind chime.
Tendo and Caroline walked behind, their pace slow.
As they walked, Caroline suddenly spoke out of the blue.
"Tendo, you didn't seem to watch the fireworks much just now."
Hearing this, Tendo suddenly stopped and turned to look at her.
His azure eyes, capable of seeing the future and destiny, held none of his usual cunning, only solemnity and seriousness.
But the 'light' radiating from those eyes was brighter than any firework.
In response to Caroline's question, Tendo seemed to think for a long time, yet it also felt like only an instant.
Under Caroline's questioning gaze, Tendo suddenly smiled—a smile carrying a gentle tenderness she couldn't quite grasp, along with a certain unconcealable burden.
"Because for me, you are my best fireworks."
Hearing this, Caroline's heart skipped a beat.
She stared into Tendo's eyes for a moment, then quietly lowered her head, afraid to meet his gaze again.
The seriousness and tenderness in those eyes not only reminded her of her father's promise but also made her inexplicably afraid.
Afraid that she... might not wait for that 'Miracle' to arrive.
Thinking this, Caroline clutched the lapel of the jacket on her shoulder and whispered, "...Idiot."
"Hm? What did you say?"
Before Tendo could press for an answer, Liuli suddenly called back, "Hurry up, you two!"
She was also wearing a jellyfish hairband she'd bought sometime earlier, clumsily but endearingly cosplaying a deep-sea jellyfish.
Tendo nodded at Jing Liuli, then naturally took Caroline's hand.
"Let's go. Don't keep Liuli waiting."
Caroline showed no 'resistance' to Tendo's action.
Because for her, Tendo was also the best fireworks in her eyes.
But even the most beautiful fireworks eventually fall and extinguish.
Just like the time her father borrowed for her, there would always be a day to pay it back.
She just wondered if her miracle would arrive before that day came.
Watching the scene where Tendo, in a rare move, actively held Caroline's hand, the uninformed Tendo-Caroline shippers immediately grew excited.
In their eyes, this was nothing less than the official endorsement from the Star Generals production team!
After all, neither a certain red-eyed girl nor the purple-haired pop star cosplaying the deep-sea jellyfish in the scene received this kind of treatment.
Victory!
-----------------------------------------------
-----------------------------------------------
I handpick only the finest and most captivating novels for you. Don't forget to check out my other novels!
p@treon HongMengZi