"I want this one!"
"I want that one!"
At the stall, two little ones, unable to wait any longer, excitedly squeezed forward, eager to exchange for the prizes they had set their eyes on, instantly breaking the eerie silence between the two adults.
Seeing the two little fellows cling to the table after receiving their items, staring greedily at the other prizes, Luo En and the silver-haired young lady couldn't help but exchange a smile, very much in tune.
"So?"
"Continue?"
Upon reaching a consensus, the two stepped forward, and Luo En, following a gesture from the silver-haired young lady, took out the fifth question from the urn.
"It is the most nimble yet the hardest thing on earth, for it can trap powerful humans in one place. What is it?"
And the mont the conundrum hit their eyes, two voices chid in unison once more.
"— Doubt!"
"— Enigma!"
Doubt and enigma can cause powerful individuals to fall into hesitation and difficulty, becoming psychological shackles that prevent them from moving forward.
At this mont, the two contestants looked at each other in surprise, and under a brief exchange of gazes, a sense of admiration seemingly sparked between them.
When evenly matched, the ga becos all the more interesting.
"My turn."
Then, without any reservations, the silver-haired young lady took out the sixth question on her own initiative.
"I do not exist in the past, yet I am forever in the future. Every living, breathing being pins their hopes on . What am I?"
As she gazed at the riddle before her, the silver-haired young lady was montarily stunned, clueless, and frowned in contemplation.
"— It's 'tomorrow'."
Then, a thoughtful murmur from behind broke the stalemate, as Luo En, with his arms folded, revealed a serene and confident smile.
Tomorrow? So that's it...
With a bit of thought, the young lady's frown relaxed.
It was a riddle posed from a human perspective.
Only because tomorrow exists do these fragile lives wait and hope, endure the sufferings of the present to keep moving forward, overco countless obstacles, and create miracles.
"Your turn!"
The silver-haired young lady dropped her piece of pottery, stepped back, and gestured to Luo En. This ti, however, she stood rigid, eyes firmly fixed on the mouth of the urn, clearly feeling the pressure.
Luo En nodded, turned his body to the side, and extended his hand towards the urn's opening to let the participant behind him read the riddle at the first opportunity.
Seeing this thoughtful little gesture, the silver-haired young lady behind him felt a stir of admiration in her eyes.
Soon, the seventh question was taken out, presented before both of them.
"What is it on a person that diminishes every day but will never disappear completely?"
Breath? Life? No...
For a mont, Luo En, too, was deep in thought, unable to break through.
"— Hope, it's hope..."
At that mont, a deep and pleasant whisper ca from behind as well.
Suddenly, Luo En had an epiphany, and the haze in his mind was lifted.
Indeed, for ordinary people, only hope will be gradually worn down by life yet never completely vanishes.
Because once hope no longer exists, even if a person is alive, they are just an empty shell without aning, no longer an "ordinary person."
It seems I was a bit lost in the ga.
Luo En turned to look behind him, and the contemplative silver-haired young lady, despite having just correctly answered, oddly showed no joy of success. Instead, she gazed upon the Minosians moving back and forth in the streets, beaming with happiness, her cherry lips pursed in a silent sigh.
She rembered so past events that had made her unhappy.
However, the silver-haired young lady quickly recovered from her reverie and, with an apologetic smile, turned to the silently waiting figure in front.
"Sorry, I spaced out there."
Luo En smiled and nodded in understanding, then made a "please" gesture with his hand.
"For the last question, we can't monopolize all the riddles and prizes, can we? We should leave so joy for the others."
"That's true."
The silver-haired girl pursed her lips into a smile, stepping forward to present the eighth and final riddle.
Luo En, under the pathetic gazes of the two little ones, chose their favorite food and toys for them, respectively.
In reality, the outco of this ga was no longer important to him.
Because what he sought from the beginning wasn't the al after winning or losing, but rather to use this opportunity to turn hostility into friendship with the mysterious silver-haired girl opposite him, to dissolve her dislike for him, and thus avoid an unnecessary conflict.
Now it seed his goal had been achieved.
So, it was ti to bring this entertainnt to an early end.
After winning over the affection of the two little ones, Luo En voluntarily stepped forward to observe the riddle posed by the silver-haired girl, putting on a show of facing it with all his might.
However, one minute... two minutes... a full three minutes passed.
The pair in front of the riddle fell into an odd silence, neither of them speaking up.
Seeing this, the two little ones grew curious, tiptoeing to peer at the puzzle inscribed on the clay shard.
"—I cannot be bought, but I can be stolen with one glance. I am worthless to one person, but priceless to two. What am I?"
"Is this question very difficult?"
The two little creatures blinked, looking confusedly at the two adults who had been winning one after another just monts before.
"Ahem..."
Luo En and the silver-haired girl coughed almost simultaneously, with a flash of embarrassnt in their eyes.
The riddle wasn't difficult; in fact, for the two of them, it was excessively simple.
But the answer...
Finally, after a brief stalemate, the silver-haired girl lost to her own competitive spirit, turned her head away, and coughed before speaking.
"It's love..."
In fact, to speak more precisely, the riddle described what should be love between two people.
At this mont, in such a setting and atmosphere, the answer was a bit awkward.
"Ah, it seems I have lost."
To avoid further embarrassnt, Luo En quickly spoke up, breaking the silence and asking with a smile.
"So, what would the two of you like to eat? It's my treat."
"There's no hurry for that..."
Having been given an out, the silver-haired girl didn't rush to take it but instead looked at Luo En with interest, speaking leisurely.
"You don't seem like soone who makes a living at sea?"
"Can't help it, people need to eat, it's all for a living."
Luo En gave a dry laugh, insincerely explaining, and felt vaguely guilty under the scrutiny of those purple eyes.
At that mont, a richer smile appeared on the silver-haired girl's face, as if she had been prepared for this, she spoke.
"Even though it's all for making a living, casting your talents into the boundless ocean is simply too wasteful. How about this: I can introduce you to a job at the temple, so not only can you have endless snacks, you would also earn a handso reward."
Free als and lodging? Plus money to take?
Thinking of the delightful flavors of the temple's snacks lingering in her mouth, Little dusa's eyes lit up.
However, before the excited little head could pop up, it was pressed back down.
"Thank you for your kind offer."
Luo En maintained a courteous smile on his face as he politely declined.
"Even though the food and pay from the temple can fill the emptiness of my body, it cannot resolve the troubles of my spirit. I prefer a vaster world to being bound within these narrow confines."
A job in the temple? What a joke.
The Minosians were already on shaky ground; getting mixed up with them, who knows when so lurking god might sweep him away.
If this ship was destined to sink, why would he blindly leap into a pit of fire?
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