Actually, an hour ago, Xia Pingzhou had the Soldier Giants use long swords to cut down a few maple trees, then shaved the wood into smooth planks, which they pieced together to make a long public bench.
Xia Pingzhou held Ayase Origami's hand and led her to sit on the wooden bench.
The two lowered their eyes, glancing at the sea under the moonlight. It was the dead of night, the moon occasionally appearing and disappearing among the fish-scale clouds, while the sea below the cliff beat against the shore, making a cold, rustling sound.
Xia Pingzhou said to her, "You can sleep for a while now, and I'll wake you later."
Ayase Origami nodded, resting her head on his shoulder.
Listening to the tide, she slowly fell asleep. Who knows how much ti passed when Xia Pingzhou suddenly reached out his hand and gently brushed her hair.
"You can wake up now."
On the long wooden bench, Ayase Origami woke up in response, slowly opening her eyes.
At that mont, the first rays of morning light crossed the vast sea, shining into the girl's dark pupils.
The sky was already slightly bright, the massive sun rose from the horizon, illuminating the port and the cliffs, dyeing the entire world in golden hues. In the distance, the wind turbines turned slowly, and the sea breeze and morning light brushed against her cheeks.
The girl gazed dumbly at the sunlit sea, and in the sunlight, the down by her ears swayed like bird feathers. Tens of thousands of hectares of maple forests swayed, like a tide of orange surging in, flooding into her pupils.
"So beautiful..." she whispered.
The response was the rustling of wind blowing through the leaves, the sunlight rushing in, casting a long shadow behind the wooden bench.
Monts later, the young man sitting beside her broke the serene silence.
"Back when we were in Bergen, didn't you say you wanted to watch the sunrise from the cable car," he said.
Ayase Origami nodded silently without turning her head.
"We overslept on the cable car then and missed it, but now we've made up for it." Xia Pingzhou shrugged, "Actually... I originally planned to show you on your birthday, but I was afraid I'd forget, I'm not great at rembering things."
"...Very happy," the kimono-clad girl said softly.
"Really?"
"Yes, taking the master to see the sunrise is a good cat," the kimono-clad girl's lips moved, whispering.
The sky was barely bright, the world still empty and lonely, the port still devoid of fishern's shadows.
After watching the sunrise from the mountain top, they descended the mountain on the Paper Dragon. The snow-white Paper Dragon flew through the swirling fallen leaves, bringing them down to the mountainside.
They retraced their steps along the coastal road, winding back into the deserted alleys, and soon returned to the interior of the underground bar.
At this mont, the entire bar was silent and still, it seed like the other mbers were sleeping soundly. Both seed slightly sleep-deprived, their eyelids drooping heavily, so they walked into their private room, closed the door, and sat down on the bed.
"Goodnight, little cat," the kimono-clad girl softly said, swaying and lying down on the bed, her face against the pillow.
"Goodnight," Xia Pingzhou said, "but speaking of which... why are you still calling that way."
"What?"
The kimono-clad girl opened her eyes from the pillow, looking up at him.
Xia Pingzhou thought for a mont, "I an, if according to the procedure we agreed upon before, shouldn't we be settling the score now?"
"Why?"
Xia Pingzhou tilted his head, eting her eyes.
He continued, "Didn't we agree that as long as I beco more capable than you, our roles would reverse? As long as I can prove that I'm more capable than you now, the promise from before should be fulfilled."
"Little cat... rebelled," Ayase Origami realized what he ant.
"Co on, how does this count as rebellion, so are you not acknowledging the previous bet?" Xia Pingzhou said, "Then I'll assu you lost."
Ayase Origami was silent for a mont, then suddenly moved her head away from the pillow, leaned closer to him, and softly whispered in his ear:
"ow."
Xia Pingzhou was stunned.
Imdiately, she closed her eyes, pressing her fair cheek against his palm, gently rubbing it like a cold-faced little cat.
Xia Pingzhou paused slightly, feeling like a delicate cherry blossom sliding across his palm, his face began to blush, followed by the tips of his ears.
A mont later, he ca back to his senses, his lips moved slightly, just about to say sothing, when the kimono-clad girl suddenly looked up at him and said first, "Just this once, I'll pretend the little cat is being pampered."
She said softly, moving her serene cheek away from Xia Pingzhou's palm.
After a while, Xia Pingzhou finally reacted. He coughed twice, incoherently saying, "Indeed, um, that's right... you've been bullying for so long, it's only fair to switch roles occasionally."
"Little cat, you're blushing."
"I'm just too tired."
Xia Pingzhou turned his cheek away.
"Does being tired make you blush?"
"Speaking of which, do you still have nightmares now?" Xia Pingzhou suddenly changed the topic.
Ayase Origami nodded.
"Still dreaming of your yakuza father?"
"Yes."
Xia Pingzhou lowered his head and thought for a mont, "Actually, I'm like you, I often have nightmares too."
"Why?"
"Because when I was little, my parents abandoned , they locked in a wardrobe. It was raining heavily that day, with thunder, and I was hiding in the wardrobe, not sleeping all night." Ji Minghuan said softly, "I thought they would co back, so I kept looking outside through the crack, for a long, long ti. Every ti there was thunder, the room would light up, and the doll on the bedside table suddenly beca grotesque."
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