"Why?" Li Wu asked.
"Why else? Without you, I don't want to go alone..."
Anna answered subconsciously.
Seeing Li Wu frozen in place, she realized something and quickly added an excuse, "Observing you is my mission, after all. If I delay the mission because of my own desire to play and get caught, I'll be punished... You know I care about my rating."
Anna's words were a bit rushed.
Li Wu was stunned. His mouth opened, but he couldn't utter a single word.
He remembered the conversation they had in the morning while leaning against the window, looking at the grand scenery—"As long as you are willing, no matter what we encounter, I will take you to see the bigger world together."
Li Wu hadn't treated that as a spur-of-the-moment joke. What was vaguely in his heart, what he said with his mouth, and what he did with his hands were often not the same thing.
Just like a child, whose thoughts often have nothing to do with what they say. Saying they will definitely study hard next and become their parents' pride.
But persistence also requires willpower. When truly faced with a choice, one occasionally wavers, especially when facing what one truly desires. The heart wavers immensely, contemplating whether to continue studying hard or indulge in a brief moment of abandon with friends.
Whichever choice is made, neither is wrong.
Up until now, Li Wu had believed so.
Don't let childish people make promises. Even if she says it, you can't take it seriously, because once you do... either you hurt yourself or you hurt the other person.
Should the mature her be made to fulfill a promise made when she was childish? Should she be blamed if she can't do it?
It's naturally good to wish for it, but still, don't pity overly high expectations.
But judging from the present, Anna seemed to have taken it seriously, and was making this promise a habit...
The weather was a bit hot. Li Wu felt his throat was a bit stuffy. He picked up the watermelon juice beside him and drank it all, swallowing the heavy saltiness in his heart along with it.
For a long time afterward, Anna really didn't leave. She just lay quietly on the white beach chair next to him, occasionally turning her head to look at the sea, the sky, or... him.
While playing various entertainment projects on the beach, Li Wu could catch glimpses of the light in her eyes. It was very, very bright; Li Wu had never seen such bright eyes before.
Just like...
A grand stage, everyone cheering. Dozens of high-power spotlights focused all their brilliant rays on the heroine on stage, and that heroine was looking only at you.
No matter how blazing the skylight, it couldn't hide the passion in her eyes.
A young girl's joy came too fast, like a tornado, hard to parry.
"Yeah, I have to fully cooperate with you. After all, I took advantage of you so much..."
"Stupid Li Wu! Your ice cream got on me!"
The two chatted idly.
As the sun moved closer to the western mountains, the crowd on the beach gradually thinned out, only to be filled by a new batch of tourists, remaining a sea of people.
Past 7:00 PM, approaching dusk, Ireland Beach still hadn't welcomed the night. The setting sun was dying, and the sky burned with a brilliant vermilion red.
Facing the twilight glow, the two worked together to close the sun umbrella. Stepping on the soft sand, they walked aimlessly along the coastline.
Walking very, very slowly, yet time passed very, very quickly.
The sea breeze was salty and warm, making Li Wu sniffle involuntarily and turn his head to look back at their original spot.
A sweet scent drifted from afar, along with a heart-wrenching cry: "Waaah waaaaah!!"
Just a few steps away, next to an ice cream stall, a boy of about ten was squatting on the ground, his arms hanging naturally, shoulders heaving, crying out of breath.
Anna rushed over almost reflexively. Stopping halfway, she looked back at Li Wu. After receiving Li Wu's nod of affirmation, she continued forward, squatted beside the little boy, and asked gently, "Little friend, what's wrong? Did you run into some trouble? Tell big sister, and big sister will help you, okay?"
The little boy looked up at Anna, then cried even more piercingly, "Waaah, Mom... I want Mom! I want Mom!"
Mom?
Anna judged that the child was lost, so she comforted him, "Don't cry, don't cry, big sister will help you find her! Do you remember your mom's phone number? Uh... or tell big sister where your mom was when she left!"
Anna was flustered, trying to ask for some useful information, but the little boy couldn't say anything except crying "I want Mom." Her pink eyes were filled with helplessness, and she couldn't even organize her language clearly.
Li Wu watched from behind for a few seconds, sighed, walked up, and patted Anna on the shoulder.
"Leave it to me."
After speaking, he pulled Anna aside, then took his phone out of his pocket, unlocked it, and squatted in front of the little boy.
Without asking, he just stared fixedly at the screen, making the little boy lean closer. In the process, he deliberately turned the phone away from Anna so she couldn't see the content on the screen.
"Kid," Li Wu's voice didn't have much comforting tone; instead, he sounded like a hooligan on the roadside. "Here's the phone, you play with it first. This big sister will watch over you here. I'll go find your mom for you."
Sure enough, the little boy stopped crying, his attention focused on the phone screen. Li Wu swiped on the screen and opened a mysterious app. The little boy's eyes widened like copper bells, staring unblinkingly at the phone screen.
"Tell me your name first, or I'll take it away." Li Wu made a gesture as if to take the phone back.
"Wang, Wang Zichen!" The little boy immediately said his name without any hesitation.
Yo, such a familiar name.
Unexpectedly, he's from Shenzhou. Li Wu laughed dumbly, but it wasn't important.
"Okay, Wang Zichen, you play for a while. I'll go find your mom." Li Wu turned around, gave Anna a "watch him" look, and then walked towards the outskirts of the beach.
Anna looked at Li Wu's back in confusion, then at the instantly quiet and excited little boy, three big question marks appearing above her head.
???
Anna Schariac.
Before Li Wu left, Anna grabbed his hand and asked, "What did you show him?"
"Heaven." Li Wu answered truthfully.
Anna understood. He lit up just by watching a video of Heaven? Do such small children still believe in religion?
"I don't believe you. Explain clearly."
"You wouldn't understand even if I told you. It's a necessary path for men's growth; you girls wouldn't get it. If you're really curious, go look for yourself. I'll go help him find his parents first. If nothing unexpected happens, it'll be done in ten minutes."
"Ten minutes?" Anna looked back at the dense and increasing crowd on the beach. "With so many people, how can you possibly find them in ten minutes? Don't lie to me; I'm not a child..."
"What if I do find them within ten minutes? What do you say?" Li Wu turned around, rubbed his chin, and stared at Anna with interest.
"Let's make a bet. It's no fun if the stakes are too small... It must be something I need. I don't need money for the time being. How about this: if I win, you use your loudest voice to shout three times to everyone on this beach: 'I am a beautiful idiot.' How about it?"
Anna's small face instantly turned red. "Stupid, stupid Li Wu! I didn't expect you to be so bad. Fine! If I win, you shout 'I am a handsome idiot' three times to everyone on this beach!"
Li Wu almost laughed out loud.
This girl, didn't grow a single bad bone in her body. Did she put all her IQ points into combat?
He could shout "I am a handsome idiot" a hundred times right here without panting.
"Thought it through? Don't go back on your word if you lose." Li Wu looked confident.
"Hmph! Just wait to lose face in front of so many people! Stupid Li Wu!" Anna puffed up her cheeks and took out her phone, facing the screen towards Li Wu. "I've started timing!"
Li Wu smiled, said nothing more, turned around, and continued walking forward, his pace still unhurried.
Anna watched his retreating figure, feeling very conflicted.
She both hoped she would win and Li Wu would lose...
And hoped Li Wu would win so he wouldn't have to lose face...
Harboring extremely complex feelings, Anna watched Li Wu walk into a shop selling tourist souvenirs and miscellaneous goods. He came out less than two minutes later, holding a megaphone in his hand.
Anna's heart skipped a beat.
The next second, Li Wu pressed the switch, brought the megaphone to his lips, and a loud voice echoed over the beach:
"Attention Wang Zichen's parents—Attention Wang Zichen's parents—Your child is currently being beaten—Repeat, your child is currently being beaten—Please come to the ice cream stall immediately to collect him—Come claim him immediately—"
Anna: "..."
The megaphone announcement played on a loop three times.
In less than three minutes, a couple looking to be in their forties with anxious expressions ran over hurriedly, shouting as they ran, "Zichen! Where is Zichen?"
The subsequent explanation, identity verification, and returning the child went smoothly.
After thanking them, the parents dragged away the little boy who was still looking back every three steps, thinking about "Heaven."
Anna was still in a dazed state of "that's it?"
"How... how did you know they sold megaphones there?" Anna couldn't help asking.
Li Wu played with the megaphone in his hand, his smile very casual. "There are so many people, yet no public broadcasting system is set up. If the resort wants to clear the area or issue a notice at night, do they expect the staff to shout at the top of their lungs? Use your brain and you'll know the most effortless way is definitely to use auxiliary tools. If there were a broadcasting room, I would have contacted the staff long ago. Unfortunately, there isn't, so I made a 'broadcast' myself."
Anna was speechless, but her face slowly turned red.
She lost.
"Give it to me." Anna bit her lip, snatched the megaphone from Li Wu's hand, looked at the curious gazes around them drawn by the megaphone sound, and wiggled her white toes in the sand.
"I was joking with you. Even if you don't say it, it doesn't matter." Li Wu advised.
"I do what I say." Anna took a deep breath, closed her eyes, and as if risking it all, shouted at the top of her lungs towards the entire beach, "I am a beautiful idiot! I am a beautiful idiot! I am a beautiful idiot!"
After shouting, she immediately squatted down and buried her burning face in her knees, wishing she could dig a hole in the sand right there and bury herself.
"..."
However, the expected ridicule or the awkward scene of being alone didn't last.
A louder, clearer voice, even carrying a hint of "joy," rang out immediately, continuing her statement: "I am a handsome idiot! I am a handsome idiot! I am a handsome idiot! ..."
Li Wu shouted loudly, straining his voice.
Not just three times; he shouted a full ten times, articulating clearly, as if afraid someone couldn't hear.
Anna jerked her head up, her face still flushed and sand on her mouth. Her pink eyes looked incredulously at Li Wu beside her, who had finished shouting the awkward lines ten times and was acting like nothing had happened.
A strange... never-before-felt sensation, just like when diving a few hours ago, warmly flooded her chest, making it somewhat hard to breathe.
Thump, thump, thump...
Inexplicably, her heart pounded clearly.
"Why? You clearly... won..."
"Who says if you win, you can't do things that only the loser has to do?" Li Wu turned to face Anna directly, the light of the setting sun covering his face.
"But... don't you think this makes you lose face?" Anna whispered.
"Face isn't lost just by saying a few jokes." Li Wu turned his head, looking toward the horizon where the sky began to reflect on the sea. "I just felt that if a joke made you embarrassed alone, then all the good mood of today would probably be ruined. If because of me, your happy mood turned terrible... I would feel bad about it, so might as well 'lose face' together. This way, in each other's eyes, there is no distinction of who is high or low, who won or lost, right?"
Li Wu said lightly, his smile heartless.
But in Anna's wavering eyes at this moment, that figure standing in the afterglow of the sunset with a slightly silly smile was clearer than ever before.
"Alright, don't think so much. Didn't you want to work hard without complaint? Did you check the number for me?"
"Mmh..." Anna responded in a low voice, sounding muffled. "Idiot."
The last sentence fell silently into the sea. Anna suddenly turned around, her back to Li Wu, saying nothing.
Looking at that brocade-blue sea, she fell into confusion.
It's become strange again...
Her body suddenly started to burn hot, not the kind from sunburn. It was like when Li Wu took advantage of her in class, but countless times more intense than back then.
Sour and swelling, her heart felt blocked.
The seawater, distinct in clarity and orange-red, perfectly reflected the burning sunset sky and Anna's excessively flushed face.
The girl's blush was like silence, her gaze like intoxication, stealing glances at the boy with her back turned, her heart full of secret joy.
Since she could remember, Anna had never experienced such a mood.
Although she liked playing around, like skiing, surfing, trying various entertainment projects, preferably with a vacation feel.
Criticizing Akamola back then was actually reminding herself. But no matter how much she reminded herself, like is like. Fish can survive briefly out of water, but you can't force yourself to live on land, right?
But...
Anna carefully turned her face slightly, stealing a glimpse of Li Wu behind her out of the corner of her eye, her heart indescribably complex.
Why?
Why is it that just staying by his side makes me very happy? Even if we do nothing, just being with him is satisfying?
Is it because the mission is relatively relaxing?
Anna began to think.
No, this isn't my first vacation. No matter who I was with, it was far less lingering than this time, making me wish time would stop forever.
I'm probably really an idiot.
Only an idiot can make an idiot happy, right?
On the way back, harboring an unprecedented mood, Anna added many details and contents unrelated to the mission in today's mission report. She deleted all those possible fragments, leaving only emotions that seemed meaningless to the auditor but were indeed true outpourings.
"What did you write in the mission report?"
"Not telling you~"
Anna stuck out her pink tongue and made a face at Li Wu.
How could Li Wu not know the girl's thoughts?
Just...
Li Wu's gaze suddenly swept across the surroundings, finally locking onto a woman with a graceful figure.
When unfreezing the Blood Wolf Mercenary Group, Li Wu had developed anti-reconnaissance skills and would actively pay attention to the surrounding environment and people.
From the moment he and Anna entered the beach, that woman had always been somewhere not far nor near them.
Although she almost never cast her gaze towards Li Wu when he was observing, appearing within his field of vision for several hours was abnormal in itself.
Li Wu naturally didn't think it was a coincidence.
But he couldn't show it.
"Whatever you say. Finish the mission early and return to Chiba Academy early. Hope everything goes smoothly." Li Wu put on an appearance of urgently wanting to return to school.
Anna pursed her lips. The topic was abruptly shut down by someone. She gave a "Mmh" and said nothing more.
Even so, the eyes she looked at Li Wu with were still more magnificent than the dusk. The warmth like burning clouds seemed ready to jump out of her eyes and wrap Li Wu layer by layer.
And when Li Wu returned her gaze, it was gentle like water, breakable by a blow.
The following six days of vacation.
Every day Anna would receive a new mission—
June 22nd.
Visited the world's largest aquarium in Saint Dilya with Li Wu. The variety of fish schools in the aquarium was vast, swimming back and forth like a starry sky.
However, sometimes Anna would freeze in front of the glass cover, extending her finger to feel the cold temperature on it, staring blankly at the fish schools in the aquarium, especially the performing sea lions and beluga whales, marine creatures with higher intelligence.
It is said that they were not bred, but captured and brought to the aquarium by humans through various means.
Undergoing training day after day, the only ones they could rely on were the trainers beside them.
Not worrying about food, drink, or freezing, and having no natural enemies, but unable to return to their hometowns to see family and friends. Locked in cages, whether they liked it or hated it, they tried their best to cooperate with the performance.
Seeming to share a telepathic connection, a beluga whale swam slowly and leisurely, coming to Anna through the glass cover.
It couldn't speak; it just watched Anna quietly. Its heavy mouth moved up and down, seeming to say something, yet no sound came out.