"I'm not angry."
Yu Yachen said, her face blank.
"It's just that your reasoning is completely unconvincing."
"I... I'm sorry..."
"Don't apologize."
Yu Yachen continued, "Aside from your love for self-sacrifice, I want to ask: you made me spare those Infected, but what if they go on to hurt other people one day?"
As she spoke, she leaned in even closer to Alina.
"You can forgive them. But what about the people who are harmed by them because of you? Are they not innocent?"
Alina's pupils contracted. The moment, which should have been heart-pounding, instead made her breath hitch from Yu Yachen's icy words.
"I'm sorry..."
"..."
The Elafia woman's nervous apology made Yu Yachen even more disappointed. Her strong interest was extinguished, like a bonfire doused with cold water.
It seems Alina isn't the 'special one'. I was overthinking it. She pulled back, breaking the intimate distance.
Just as she was about to turn away in disappointment, Alina spoke.
"I think... those Infected are just like the children we were with. They weren't born evil. They just... haven't learned to tell right from wrong."
"That's enough. I'm tired of hearing excuses for their evil actions," Yu Yachen said coldly.
"I'm sorry, I don't mean for you to forgive them, and I'm not trying to romanticize what they did. I just mean..."
"I believe that every person's life has value."
Alina said, her voice earnest and firm.
"Miss Yu, the possibility you mentioned does exist, and I can't prevent it. Those Infected you spared... they might continue to do evil. I... I know that malice doesn't just disappear. But kindness... kindness needs soil to sprout. We can't guarantee what everyone will do, but I just..."
"I just think they're pitiful. At the very least, we shouldn't be the ones to so casually decide if they live or die."
"..."
Yu Yachen was silent for a moment.
"Not everyone deserves to be saved, Alina."
"I know. But we should try—"
Before Alina could finish, Yu Yachen suddenly leaned in again. The cold indifference from moments before vanished, as if her anger had dissipated with it. The white-haired woman took off her gloves as she moved, and her long, slender, pale fingers gently cupped Alina's cheeks.
"I'm just worried about you, Alina."
She said, her voice gentle.
Yu Yachen remembered that before she came to this world, probably back in school, she used to have the same ideas as Alina.
"You're too kind. And kind people live very hard lives."
They were so close they could hear each other breathe. A blush rose on Alina's face, spreading like a drop of dark ink in water.
Their lips were abnormally close. Warm breath, carrying a faint fragrance, brushed against her mouth. Alina's breathing unconsciously quickened.
"M-Miss Yu is also very kind. You... you seem cold on the surface, but you've been quietly looking out for me."
She was confused as to why she was feeling this way about another woman. A few strands of white hair fell from behind Yu Yachen's ear, landing on her face. The slight tickle made her want to scratch, but her face was being held.
"..."
"Miss Yu—!"
Just as their lips were about to touch, a sudden shout shattered the intimate atmosphere.
Yu Yachen smiled lightly. She placed her hands on Alina's shoulders, politely creating distance.
She had never had her first kiss. Yu Yachen wasn't interested in romance just yet. Since the favorability had already risen to 65%, there was no need to continue.
They both turned. A young man in a hooded mask was panting as he ran up to them.
"Hah... hah... Miss Alina, you're here too."
"What is it? Why are you in such a hurry?" Yu Yachen asked.
Wait, do I know this person?
"Uh... well..." Although he had seemed frantic, when asked for the reason, the young Ursus man began to stammer.
"Everyone said... that you two know how to read."
"So..."
He scratched his head, embarrassed.
"Can you... can you teach me how to write my name?"
"They... the guys in the camp, they all laugh at me. They say I can't write."
At this, the young man's face turned bright red, as if not being able to write was a source of great shame.
"Pfft."
Perhaps because she was in a good mood, Yu Yachen laughed out loud.
"Don't laugh!"
The young Ursus man's face turned even redder.
"Alright. What was your name again?" Yu Yachen asked, covering her mouth, amused.
"Ivan! My name is Ivan! We just met, Miss Yu! You have such a bad memory!" the young man complained.
"It's okay. It's nothing to be ashamed of, not knowing how to write. We all come from poor backgrounds," Alina quickly comforted him.
"Um, your name is Ivan, right?"
She picked up a nearby branch, crouched down, and wrote a string of Ursus letters in the snow. The young man naturally leaned in to watch.
"That's how you write 'Ivan'?"
"Mhm. That's right."
"Thank you, Miss Alina!"
"Sigh. I grew up in the mines."
Ivan crouched down, his fingers clumsily tracing the letters in the snow, leaving a wobbly line. "Before I came here, I... I never could have imagined I could study like a normal person. Reading, writing... haha, not that I can do it now."
"But Mr. Patriot and the others rescued me from that place! I've always wanted to say a lot to him, but... he's a little scary... hehe. Sorry, I'm rambling."
Ivan scratched the back of his head.
"From the looks of it, you're very interested in reading and writing?"
Yu Yachen looked at the dark marks on the ground.
"It's alright. I... I've always admired college students like you, Miss Yu!"
"Teacher Alina, maybe you should talk to Talulah about starting an 'Infected Education Group.' Life in the tundra must be very boring, right? Learning something would make life more fulfilling," Yu Yachen suggested.
"Please stop calling me teacher! But... I will bring it up with Talulah."
Alina smiled at her.
"Infected Education Group? Will Miss Yu be joining, too?"
Ivan asked, pleasantly surprised.
"Me?"
Yu Yachen raised an eyebrow.
"Maybe. If it's possible, I'd like to teach you all with Alina."
This was, of course, a lie.
"That's great! Miss Yu is a college student, you must know so many things!"
"More importantly, have you learned how to write your name yet?"
"Oh, oh! I've pretty much memorized it. Sorry to bother you two. I'll get going now."
Watching the young man leave, Yu Yachen glanced at the transparent system panel floating in the air.
[System Notification: Alina's favorability is 70/100 (Her affection is overflowing!)]
-------
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