Ayase Origami also remained silent.

At this moment, a school of glowing fish swam overhead, like a flowing starry sky. The skylight of the undersea tunnel closed once again, and that sliver of moonlight disappeared from their eyes, casting everything into utter darkness.

The kimono-clad girl suddenly looked up, staring at him motionlessly in the dark, like a simple white kite.

Xia Pingzhou’s face was expressionless, not meeting her gaze. Instead, he took the lead and moved forward.

After pausing for a moment, Ayase Origami followed suit.

The aquarium was quiet.

Xia Pingzhou walked ahead, while the kimono girl silently followed behind, staring at her sandals as she slowly shuffled forward step by step. The two moved one behind the other, navigating through the dim tunnel, as the swimming fish around them concealed their figures.

A moment later, Xia Pingzhou exited the undersea tunnel and arrived at the jellyfish exhibit of the aquarium.

In the dim blue tanks, jellyfish swam amidst the mottled light and shadows, resembling a water ballet. Their tentacles gently swayed, reflecting an enchanting light.

The night lights were bright and dim in turns, and the jellyfish tanks flickered on and off, changing colors with the lights.

Xia Pingzhou merely paused to watch for a while. Without waiting for Ayase Origami to catch up, he moved out of the exhibit area. After walking quietly for a bit, Ayase Origami also followed silently, and the distance between them grew wider.

Eventually, he arrived at the adjacent dolphin theater.

This was a half-moon stage illuminated by moonlight, and the first performance of the night began shortly. Amidst the trainer’s whistle, dolphins leapt, splashing water under the moonlight like agile spirits.

Xia Pingzhou and Ayase Origami stood at the railing, separated by some distance.

They silently watched for a long time. Ayase Origami rested her hands on the railing, deeply engrossed, her dark eyes reflecting the dolphins leaping back and forth.

After the performance ended, Ayase Origami slowly walked over, taking a paper bill from her kimono sleeve to pay the dolphin trainer for a photo with the dolphins.

After paying, when she turned around to look for Xia Pingzhou in the audience seats of the dolphin theater, he was already gone, with not even a glimpse of his back visible.

The trainer, now in high spirits seeing business, patted the dolphin’s head and warmly greeted her, "Miss, are you taking a photo alone?"

Ayase Origami slowly turned back, quietly nodding to him.

Amidst the splashing water sounds, a dolphin jumped out of the water at that moment, creating a bright splash. With a "click," the photo was captured, yet the kimono girl wasn’t looking at the camera. She had her head turned as if searching for someone.

The dolphin trainer came over and handed her the photo.

In the photo, Ayase Origami stood alone in place, her head bowed, with a vacant look in her eyes.

Exiting the aquarium, Ayase Origami asked the staff for the key to the locker.

After opening the locker, she looked up and saw that Xia Pingzhou’s phone was gone, with only a cat-shaped phone charm left behind.

The plastic cat sat alone in the locker, its chain hanging down into the shadows.

This was something Ayase Origami had bought in a store a half-month ago while in London. Back then, Xia Pingzhou had fainted, and she didn’t know what to do. She spent a long time picking it out in the store, eventually buying this charm.

Ayase Origami stared at the cat charm in the locker, zoning out for a while. Then, she picked up her phone, slowly typed a message with her fingers, and sent it to him.

[KamiNeko: Where did you go?]

With a "ding," another phone in the locker rang. She turned her head to see Xia Pingzhou’s phone screen light up, displaying the message she had sent.

It was then she realized she was something of a common sense idiot.

A sudden sadness welled up inside Ayase Origami, a kind of unexperienced panic. She thought, if Xia Pingzhou disappeared just like that, how would she find him?

With her eyes lowered, the kimono girl leaned against the locker, thinking for a good while. By now, it was completely dark. Visitors gradually retrieved their belongings from the lockers and left the aquarium, brushing past her as they walked out.

A staff member turned her way, looking at her with confusion. After a moment, Ayase Origami picked up the other phone from the locker, along with the lone plastic cat. She placed the chain inside her sleeve and slowly walked out of the aquarium.

In the quiet park at night, only the illumination by the lakeside, adorned by rows of lanterns, brought light. She walked toward the lake and sat on a public wooden bench.

It was so dark around that she could only hear the croaks of frogs and the calls of cicadas. Taking up her phone, the kimono girl opened Line, again messaging the contact she had marked as "Kitten."

[KamiNeko: I’ll go with you.]

In her sleeve, Xia Pingzhou’s phone was already out of power. In the darkness, there wasn’t even any faint echo, as if there was no one left in the world to respond to her.

But after a while, the kimono girl looked up. Suddenly, she saw on the pavilion in the middle of the lake a figure standing. It was a Demon painted entirely in red and blue. Dressed like a clown from an amusement park, it wore a pointed hat and held a bright-colored box.

She was stunned for a moment, then suddenly recalled that back in Tokyo, she’d helped Xia Pingzhou defeat such a Demon.

But the name of that Demon was something she couldn’t quite remember.

Ayase Origami no longer cared to ponder over it. She lowered her gaze to the cat charm in her sleeve, daydreaming. The Demon continued its solo dance atop the pavilion, suddenly bellowing loudly and tossing the box skyward.

All of a sudden, countless flames erupted from the box, shooting straight up into the sky.

"Boom, boom boom, boom boom boom—"

Amid the deafening sounds, the kimono girl gazed dazedly at the fireworks blooming across the sky. Her pupils reflected the night sky, transforming into a resplendent sea of stars. The flying colors danced mid-air, forming a rain that fell down. At that moment, all the tourists along the distant street raised their heads to watch the grand fireworks display.

This split second, the world was as beautiful as a kaleidoscope. Ayase Origami’s lips moved slightly, softly saying, "So beautiful..."

But she didn’t understand why a Demon would try to please her this way. She watched as the clown danced on the pavilion, eventually dissolving into phosphorescent particles. After a while, Ayase Origami turned back around, realizing for the first time that someone was seated beside her.

Xia Pingzhou sat on the public bench, gazing down at the chess piece in his hand that was about to disappear.

He slightly opened his mouth and spoke softly, "It was something we found in Japan. It’s called the Fireworks Demon. Ever since I obtained this piece, I’ve wanted to show it to you... I have a friend who also likes fireworks, so I’ve wondered if you might like them too. Actually, I don’t really know what’s special in this world; I’m childish, foolish, knowing so little... But these things are everything I have, and I want to share them with you."

In the thunderous noise of the fireworks, his whispers went unanswered, as the kimono girl merely looked quietly at him. After a long while, she reached out, handing the cat charm from her sleeve to him.

"Don’t leave alone," she said softly.

Xia Pingzhou took the charm, and Ayase Origami gently held his hand.

The two sat on the bench, silently looking up at the night sky reflected on the lake where rounds of beautiful fireworks continued to blossom, painting the lake in rainbow-like colors.

Their young faces were bathed in a hazy glow as ripples spread across the water, blurring their reflections, as if journeying to a far-off place.