"Not bad."
Mobius placed her chopsticks together beside her bowl. The rice and dishes had been completely finished.
Lin had also finished long ago. To him, without a sense of taste, everything tasted the same. Once he confirmed he was full, he stopped eating.
"It's indeed a bit worse than before, but the difference isn't that great."
Mobius stomach was aching.
It wasn't like that at all. This meal was the worst she had eaten since leaving home. Lin remembered how much seasoning to put in, but his hands didn't allow him to perform such delicate operations. Coupled with the lack of touch, he sometimes instinctively put seasoning in while his head was down and wasn't even sure if he had done so.
In the past, Lin would taste a bit before serving to see if anything was missing; now, he skipped that step entirely.
This resulted in Lin dishes being a hodgepodge of seasonings—either too salty or too sour. Two completely different flavors would clash in a single meat gravy. In comparison, even instant noodles could be considered a delicacy.
Although she had been mentally prepared, Mobius hadn't expected the loss of senses to have such a large impact on Lin cooking.
"Anyway, your cooking wasn't that great before, so it's about the same now." Mobius placed her hands under the table, clutching her stomach. "Remember, I'll come to see you every day. Remember to cook ahead of time like before and wait for me."
"...Alright."
"Also." Mobius hesitated for half a second, but spoke anyway. "As for visiting Sakura home, I'll go along too."
"...What?"
"Didn't you invite me? I also happen to have some things I need to leave Fire Moth to do, so I'll use this as an excuse to go out." After thinking it over, Mobius looked at Lin with a cold smile. "Just think of it as me using you all to leave headquarters."
"But I've already..."
"I'm telling you to go, so go. Understand?" Mobius ruthlessly interrupted Lin protest. "I've granted you the privilege to leave headquarters. You can go out if you want. Of course, this is for convenience later... but it doesn't matter if you just want to go clear your head and be a loser somewhere."
"..."
"Got it? You can go out as long as you notify me in advance... this is for my own convenience."
She emphasized it again, tirelessly.
...
Elysia stood in a corner of the ballroom being decorated. Unlike the lively atmosphere, she—who always loved excitement—rarely hadn't put on an evening gown to prepare to meet more good friends.
She just wore her uniform, standing quietly in the shadows.
"Elysia... you look like you have a lot on your mind. That's not like you."
"My dear Eden, can't I have some sentimental thoughts? Am I that dim-witted in your heart?"
Elysia turned her head to see Eden, dressed in a dark red gown, walking gracefully to her side.
After the Seventh Honkai Eruption, Eden was taken in by Fire Moth as a survivor. Elysia became acquainted with her. Unlike with Lin, the speed at which Eden was moved by Elysia made one feel they were born to be best friends; they quickly became confidantes who shared everything.
Now, as a special guest, Eden would perform a song for the warriors of Fire Moth at the ball, which was why she was here in a gown.
"No, it's just that you usually say it directly, unlike now..." Eden came to Elysia side, gazing with her at the hall being decorated.
It was truly beautiful—crystal decorations, white iris flowers, silk ribbons... It was as if they had stuffed every beautiful decoration they could think of into this ball, wanting to make it grander than any previous one.
"You're right. I should speak my thoughts." Elysia unique smile appeared on her cheeks as she took Eden's arm. "Actually, I was thinking... whether I should go find Lin and Kevin."
"Why not go?"
Eden had already heard from Elysia about the matters between her and Lin. From their subtle acquaintance to their later emotional connection and their multiple heart-to-hearts, Eden had heard every word.
These two were like different sides of the same person—similar, yet completely different.
"...Eden, do you know? There are two gyms in the headquarters. Almost no one went to the second one at first because of its remote location and because an unsociable person was there."
Elysia gradually retracted her smile.
"At that time, the second gym was simply unnoticed. Its existence served only one person, but that wasn't the hope when the gym was built."
"But now, people know about the existence of the second gym because of another person. Still, no one goes there, because there is also a person there—not because he is unsociable, but because he can no longer integrate into the crowd."
"The gym hasn't changed. It's still the same equipment, the same space. The only thing that changed is the person using it, yet it finds itself in the same situation at different times for different reasons."
The first unsociable person was Lin. Because of him and the fact that few knew about it, the second gym went unused.
The second person who couldn't integrate was Kevin. Because of him, the second gym became well-known—it was the gym used by the hero—but because he emanated a freezing chill, no one approached it.
"Elysia... are you pitying them?"
"...Pity? I don't know, but what they are enduring is perhaps not something this ball can alleviate."
Saying this, Elysia still put away her sorrow, her eyes sparkling. She turned and smiled: "Eden, I'm looking forward to your performance."
"Looking forward...?" Eden shook her head helplessly.
The pain those two were enduring was something Elysia couldn't experience.
Losing a close one, versus being unable to embrace a close one—which is more painful?
Perhaps they are incomparable, because for Kevin and Lin, they wouldn't compare such things.
So Elysia made a decision.
She always made decisions quickly. This time was no exception.
...
"I ended up coming in somehow..."
Pardo stood shivering in the hallway, now dressed in a Fire Moth uniform. She didn't quite understand why all these people were walking around so joyfully—had something good happened?
Her journey to get here had been rough, and strangely... she had joined Fire Moth through official channels.
"Right, Brother Lin... where would Brother Lin be?"