Suddenly, an eagle’s cry pierced the sky, shattering the warm atmosphere.
Luo Yao shuddered, her body trembling slightly as a flicker of fear flashed in her eyes.
After a mont’s hesitation, she quickly grabbed Lin Ran’s hand and hurried toward their secret hideout.
Her footsteps were rushed, as though sothing terrifying was chasing them.
Only after the two of them slipped inside did Luo Yao finally let out a relieved sigh.
"No one knows about this place," she said, her eyes glimring with a trace of relief.
This was her last sanctuary, the only safe place she and Lin Ran had left.
"Luo Yao, I’m sorry for leaving without saying goodbye last ti," Lin Ran said guiltily, knowing how much his sudden departure had hurt her.
Little Luo Yao looked up at him. "You promised you’d marry when we grew up. They say only husband and wife can stay together forever."
Her eyes sparkled with hope, bright as the most radiant star in the night sky.
Lin Ran nodded, his gaze steady as he t her eyes. "I didn’t just say it—I’ll make it happen."
[Little Black: "Oh—" Shut up.]
"But… do you have a wife now? I heard that marrying soone ans taking a wife," Luo Yao asked, her brow furrowing in confusion.
Lin Ran was taken aback, not expecting such a question from her.
He smiled softly. "If you nod, then I do."
His eyes brimd with affection, looking at Luo Yao as though she were the most precious treasure in the world.
Luo Yao didn’t quite understand at first, but after a mont, realization dawned, and she nodded emphatically.
The two stayed in the hideout for a while longer before Lin Ran checked the tir in his hand.
"This ti, I can stay with you for six more hours. And I brought you so things."
He thought it was only fair to tell her exactly how long they had, but he never imagined he’d break that promise so soon.
Luo Yao’s face fell instantly. The hopeful light in her eyes dimd, like a brilliant star plumting into an abyss of endless darkness.
Her head drooped slightly, her lips trembling, her shoulders slumping as if all the life had drained out of her.
The joy of their reunion, so vibrant just monts ago, shattered like fragile bubbles against the harsh reality.
"Luo Yao, the reason I ca to see you this ti is to tell you… you have to be brave in the days ahead. I’ll be waiting for you soday in the future."
Lin Ran’s voice was gentle yet firm, like a faint light kindled in the dark.
His eyes were filled with reluctance and heartache, every word wrenched from the depths of his soul, carrying his deep longing and hope for her.
He knew they might not et again for a long ti, but these were the only words he could give her for strength.
If he could, Lin Ran would have taken Luo Yao away right then—far from this cruel, rciless world, away from this place steeped in bloodshed and slaughter.
Every breath of air here reeked of death; every shadow concealed unseen dangers.
But he only had a few hours. In such a short ti, escaping with her was impossible.
Ti hung over him like a rciless blade, a constant reminder of his powerlessness.
Besides, Little Black had warned him from the start—no one else could cross ti with him.
It was an uncrossable chasm, a cruel shackle fate had clamped around him.
Lin Ran’s heart ached with helplessness and pain. He despised his own weakness, yet there was nothing he could do to change it.
This ti, Luo Yao didn’t have an episode. Instead, she seed to be struggling to suppress the storm of emotions raging inside her.
"I call this place the Star-Gazing Cave. You’re like the stars in the sky—appearing and disappearing without warning. Stars are beautiful… but they’re also despair."
Night had fully fallen. Lin Ran looked up and saw the starry sky through the opening above them.
"Stargazing from a well… One day, you’ll stand under the open sky and see the most beautiful stars."
Luo Yao glanced at the stars, then at Lin Ran, and for a mont, happiness felt simple.
Lin Ran: "Do you have a wish?"
At his words, Luo Yao seed to rember sothing.
"I do."
"What is it? Tell . Maybe I can help make it co true."
Little Luo Yao reached behind her neck and untied a cord.
"This wish… only you can fulfill."
The cord looked worn but well-preserved, as though it carried sothing priceless.
"Last ti, you vanished without leaving anything," she murmured, her voice tinged with sorrow—the kind born from endless nights of painful mories.
"This ti… you have to leave sothing."
Hanging from the cord was a small vial, glimring faintly in the dim light.
Lin Ran recognized it instantly. The familiar sight made his heart skip a beat.
[So… it was written at this ti?]
But inside the bottle, there seed to already be a note.
Luo Yao carefully opened the small bottle, her movents as gentle as if she were handling the most fragile treasure in the world.
She softly pulled out the note inside—it was slightly crumpled, clearly having been unfolded and read many tis before.
She lifted her head, her gaze firm as she looked at Lin Ran, her eyes shimring with longing and anticipation.
Lin Ran froze for a mont, staring blankly at the note in Luo Yao’s hand, a surge of complex emotions rising in his chest.
So this was the context in which the note had been written. Every crease seed like a mark of Luo Yao’s lonely waiting, every word brimming with her yearning for him.
Slowly, he raised his head and looked up—sure enough, the night sky was filled with stars, dazzling and magnificent like an enormous painting. Yet to Lin Ran, there was an indescribable eeriness to it.
So this was the well from his dreams. Everything around him felt surreal yet undeniably real, making him question whether he was still dreaming.
"Big brother, will you do it yourself?"
Luo Yao’s voice pulled Lin Ran back from his thoughts.
Lin Ran saw the words Luo Yao had written on the note long ago, though he didn’t know when.
"[When I grow up, I’ll marry]—" The rest was left blank.
The handwriting was crooked but brimming with childlike innocence and hope, every stroke looking as though Luo Yao had poured her heart into it.
"Don’t call ‘big brother.’ Call A-Ran."
Lin Ran forced a faint smile, trying to lighten the heavy atmosphere.
"A… Ran."
Luo Yao murmured the na softly, and the way it rolled off her tongue carried an unusual tenderness.
"Yao Yao!"
Lin Ran responded, his voice warm and affectionate.
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