Sakura drew her spirit blade. Countless ice-cold slashes appeared in the field. Any zombie that touched the icy blue blade lights instantly turned into particles and vanished.
Mei glanced at Fu Lin's position, her gaze darkening slightly as she said, "I've already gotten used to being alone. You don't need to worry."
After finishing off a zombie, Sakura turned to Mei's side, pressing her back against hers. "Then you must have felt lonely along the way. Now, you can trust me to guard your back."
Mei pursed her lips and whispered, "…Alright."
-----------------------------
Fu Lin looked at the yawning Can in his arms and asked softly, "Can, do you want to go too?"
Can blinked with a confused expression, "Meow?"
Seeing this, Fu Lin placed Can on the ground, gestured with his hands, and pointed toward Mei and Sakura who were fighting, "Can't you get bigger?"
"Meow... meow!" Can followed Fu Lin's finger and looked in that direction. Immediately, its fur stood on end, and it darted back into Fu Lin's arms at lightning speed, revealing only two cat eyes as it trembled while staring at the scene outside.
Fu Lin's face darkened, "..." Guess I'll have to do it myself.
Mei put away her sword, returned to Fu Lin's side with Sakura, and said, "No need, Fu Lin. Dealing with some low-level Honkai beasts is still quite easy."
"And also, thank you, Sakura."
Sakura waved her hand and said, "It was just a small favor. If Miss Mei encounters any difficulties in the future, don't hesitate to ask. I will do my best to help."
Mei: "Rather than some help... I want more information..."
After some thought, Mei asked Sakura about Elysia, but only obtained fragmented information. Still, she gradually understood Elysia's intentions.
When Mei and Sakura finished talking, Fu Lin casually tossed Can into Mei's arms, then dashed to Sakura's side, tilted his head, raised his camera high, and made a peace sign, "Sakura, look at the camera."
Just as Fu Lin pressed the shutter, the cat ears brushed lightly against Sakura's face. A tickling sensation surged up her nose, and just as she sneezed, the camera shutter clicked.
"Wait, Fu Lin, first—Ah-choo!"
"Click!"
Fu Lin stroked his chin, looked at the photo in the camera, and nodded in satisfaction, muttering, "As expected of me."
After sneezing several times, Sakura took a few steps back, putting some safe distance between herself and Fu Lin. She stared at those cat ears with a resentful expression, "Ah-choo! ...Mr. Fu Lin, next time, don't get so close all of a sudden... Ah-choo!..."
Hearing this, Fu Lin's cat ears twitched slightly as he covered his face, "Sakura... I sincerely apologize."
(Author: Feels like something's missing… Maybe a cat tail...? (?＞?＜?))
He sighed internally, 'I never expected even memory Sakura to be allergic to cat fur...'
Wait, I'm not even a cat! Why is she allergic to me?!
"Miss Mei, see you later. Ah-choo!"
After forgiving Fu Lin, Sakura quickly bid farewell to Mei and then disappeared.
Fu Lin scratched his head and asked Mei, who was organizing her thoughts while Can struggled in her arms, "Did I do something wrong?"
Mei snapped out of her thoughts and smiled understandingly, reaching out to pat Fu Lin's head. A doting look flashed in her eyes as she said, "It's fine, as long as you're happy."
Fu Lin's mouth twitched as he removed Mei's hand from his head. What was that fleeting maternal glow just now?
Seizing the chance, Can escaped from Mei's grasp and leaped onto Fu Lin's head, giving Mei a disdainful glance before curling up comfortably and letting out a satisfied meow.
Mei's lips parted slightly, and she clenched her fist a little. 'Did... did Can just look at me with disdain?'
'Don't think that just because you're Pardo's cat, I wouldn't dare lay a hand on you. Back in the day, I sent plenty of cats to get neutered... One more wouldn't make a difference.'
Can shuddered all over and looked around warily. "Meow?" Who is plotting against me?!
Fu Lin turned to Mei, who was still frozen in place, and called out, "What's wrong, Mei?"
Mei waved her hand with a gentle smile, "Nothing, let's keep going."
...
Fu Lin sat on a bench, crossed his legs, and casually played with the golden wine glass in his hand.
Watching Mei busily fighting monsters in the distance, he threw all the cards Can had picked up earlier toward her.
"Mei, catch!" Mei caught the flying cards, glanced at Fu Lin, who was sitting leisurely, and couldn't help but sigh. As expected, this was still the Fu Lin she knew.
Seeing Mei's strength skyrocket after using the cards, Fu Lin sulkily took a sip of red wine.
According to Vill-V, he hadn't gained the approval of the Flame-Chasers, which was why he couldn't use the power of the cards.
Thinking about this made Fu Lin even more annoyed. He took out his camera and looked through several photos he had taken with Vill-V. Staring at one particular picture, he couldn't help but complain:
"One of her would have been enough! But all her personalities had to come out—how am I even supposed to tell which Vill-V this is in the photo?!"
"Might as well just randomly name one of them..."
Then, counting on his fingers, he muttered, "Aside from 'Kevin' and 'Pardo', the left ones are 'Aponia,' and 'Kalpas' These two are going to be tricky..."
"Help, help—!"
"Is anyone there—! Please save me—!"