Erald Sparrow gave an answer that, in her perception, was akin to evasion.
Unexpectedly, Mo He didn't seem emotionally affected upon hearing it.
"So, that's how it is after all."
She calmly muttered to herself, leaning her back slightly, fully reclining into the driver's seat:
"That's why I felt there was no need to say it... Because I had a hunch earlier that the Captain wouldn't agree today."
"I'm sorry."
Erald Sparrow repeated once more: "I'm very grateful that you value this much."
"No, this isn't about the Captain; it's my fault."
Mo He stared straight ahead at the road, though her gaze was slightly unfocused: "I perford terribly today—causing trouble nonstop, inviting the Captain to dinner, yet making you pick up the tab. With such an impression, anyone approached would think I am unreliable."
Since leaving the restaurant, aside from discussing her team and ideals, Mo He had been mostly dispirited. In her view, the day's plans had been thoroughly ruined by her own doing.
Not only had she failed to showcase a dependable side of herself, but she'd also asked several questions that left the Captain visibly irritated and kept causing mishaps and breaking things. It was clear she hadn't managed to leave a positive impression—neither for herself nor her team—in the Captain's eyes.
"This is my failure." Mo He critiqued herself thusly.
—"I don't think your performance today was problematic. The decision I made actually has nothing to do with that."
Yet Erald Sparrow denied Mo He's perspective:
"I wasn't indifferent to your rationality. It's rely that my life is already burdened with many obligations. I doubt if I still have the capacity to make additional commitnts to another."
"So, I need to think it over."
Erald Sparrow summarized her thoughts: "Perhaps you could elaborate on your plans or talk about your 'friends.' That way, I'd have more to consider."
"Talk about 'friends'... is that it."
Black Cat muttered to herself, easing up on the accelerator, slowing the vehicle: "Captain, would you want to hear about those things?"
"Yes, I'm genuinely curious."
Erald Sparrow didn't hide her intentions and candidly revealed her purpose: "I want to know your experiences over the years—what kind of friends you had and the things you've done."
"Is this a kind of Investigation Bureau Patrol Envoy interrogation?" Mo He turned her gaze towards Erald Sparrow.
"As of now, it's just the curiosity of old teammates. After all, you seem to know quite a bit about my life these past years, yet I hardly know anything of you now."
Erald Sparrow locked eyes with her: "If I were interrogating you as a Patrol Envoy, I might say sothing like, 'Hey, you! How dare you secretly establish your own faction outside the Kingdom! Hurry up and spill the beans regarding your base in the Material Realm and your team mbers!'"
She was deliberately imitating the tone of the Sheriff they encountered earlier in the Magic-free Zone. Although her pitch lacked fluctuation, Mo He could easily recognize whom she was mimicking.
The statent managed to pull a grin from Mo He's previously glum face.
"But the Captain didn't ask."
She remarked belatedly: "It's been just talking all this ti, and yet you haven't interrupted."
"Because there was no need."
Erald Sparrow's tone was calm, as though discussing sothing unrelated: "If I asked you now, would you be willing to tell ?"
Mo He froze for a mont.
"Captain, I actually..."
She opened her mouth, intending to admit she didn't need to hide anything, but the nature of her team and organization restrained her. Words she had prepared seed to get stuck halfway through.
The car was now moving so slowly that no external noise could disrupt their dialogue or thoughts. Yet Mo He's emotions were more tangled than at any other point.
"... If the Captain is willing to join us soday, then I could tell you."
After a long pause, an almost painful effort forced the words out of her: "But for now, I… perhaps… cannot..."
—"You cannot say because doing so might betray your companions."
Erald Sparrow earnestly articulated for Mo He: "From your descriptions, your team's activities seem to exist in a gray area, but if the Kingdom learned of them, they would likely be forbidden. This isn't the kind of thing that can be discussed openly."
"For instance, I imagine you're aware of the organization 'Claw Mark.' They betrayed the Kingdom and are now considered fugitives across the Kingdom and the Material Realm."
Erald Sparrow continued speaking about the issues Mo He might not have ntioned—or even fully thought through: "Does your team have a na similar to Claw Mark? Or… do you have connections with them?"
In Erald Sparrow's understanding, the "holand" Mo He described undoubtedly didn't resemble the actions of Claw Mark. Still, if a group of Magical Girls was genuinely trying to establish a base in the Wilderness of the Material Realm, Claw Mark would logically seek them out.
Thus, even if Mo He's team and Claw Mark took divergent paths, it was unlikely for them not to have so degree of association.
Erald Sparrow's hypothesis was confird by nothing but Mo He's silence.
Just silence—yet even that spoke volus.
"… I think I might understand what the Captain has been pondering all this ti."
Her next words ca only after a long interval, but they revealed her inner contemplation had never ceased: "Even though I deeply want to lay everything bare and know what you truly think of … I've realized this kind of thing is incredibly difficult."
"I never intended to doubt you."
Erald Sparrow leaned back in her seat, gazing out at the scenery outside: "Magical Girls shouldn't trust anyone recklessly, but neither should they ever doubt their companions. So, for , these questions don't need answers."
"... Mm, that's how it is." Mo He sighed, as if coming to a profound realization.
"To the Captain, I'm still special."
For reasons unknown, she declared this with certainty, even a trace of comfort, embedded within her words: "But at the sa ti, to the Captain, I'm no longer as special as I once was."
"Because I've changed."
Erald Sparrow stopped looking at the window and turned to gaze ahead alongside Mo He: "Now, you finally believe it, don't you?"
Mo He stayed fixed on the road ahead, silent for a long while.
Shortly afterward, she regained her composure. Then, when she spoke again, it was no longer about the earlier topic but about her life events over the years.
She ntioned her wistful thoughts on opening a Magic Tools shop after the war and what kind of odd jobs she had considered to save money.
She recounted her search for a holand after leaving the Kingdom and the hardships encountered during the process.
She revealed how so accidents led her to attend a Material Realm school because she needed education and knowledge to develop that barren land she'd chosen. Relying on Magic Tools alone was far from sufficient.
She shared so much more…
Her stories continued all the way as they drove out of the Magic-free Zone, through the Erald District, and back to the Colorful Cloud Wetland.
And when the car finally ca to a halt, they both knew it was ti to end the conversation.
The Colorful Cloud Wetland looked as serene as ever: velvety grasslands, quietly flowing springs, warm and gentle air that intoxicated the senses.
—"Happy birthday, Captain."
As they got out of the car, Mo He suddenly said this.
"This isn't sothing I deduced. If you still rember, it's sothing you told back when we still held special places in each other's hearts."
She bent slightly, reached out to lock the car doors, then lifted her head. Her amber, cat-like pupils reflected the Blue Moon in the night sky:
"Perhaps, in your heart, I'm no longer as special as before. But please believe—this, to , is a truly special blessing."
Moving her hand away from the car, she adjusted her knitted sweater, then bowed towards Erald Sparrow before turning to leave.
Her swinging ponytail resembled a tail as it swayed behind her, with the ribbon tied at its base standing upright like ears. Using a seemingly casual yet graceful stride, Mo He gradually moved away. Her dark outfit blended seamlessly with the nocturnal wetland, and her light steps stirred no sound, as if she were truly a Black Cat lting into the shadows of the night.
"Good night, Captain."
Even her abrupt backward glance to bid farewell—despite almost vanishing from sight—was as enigmatic and elusive as a feline.
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