Witch’s Night: Chapter 2 – The Other Side of Hua Qingling
The first time one rides a lifeline, the sight of a lone train traversing the desolate wasteland is a marvel. People living in mega-cities rarely see the Endless Wasteland; their world is confined within the city walls.
But sadly, over fifty percent of the Wasteland remains forbidden territory, and even the explored areas are filled with danger, civilization and wilderness coexisting in an uneasy balance.
The once-thriving civilization of the Old Era, after the Calamity Tide, was reduced to scattered embers, stubbornly clinging to life.
Witnessing these strange and wondrous sights makes one appreciate the comforts of the mega-cities.
Anna, however, wasn’t seeing the Wasteland for the first time. As a former refugee, she was no stranger to its harsh realities.
But the lifeline was a novelty, a marvel of human engineering. She peppered the Holy Knight-Captain with questions, clinging to his armor.
“Yes, yes, little girl, but I don’t know much about these things,” the Knight-Captain said, glancing at Elise, who had suddenly closed her eyes, seemingly meditating. He sighed and continued to humor Anna. “If you’re interested, I believe the… what was it called… the Cardinal Council’s… one of their departments… will have the answers you seek.”
“Don’t you know, mister?” Anna asked curiously.
“M-Mister? Well, that’s a new one,” the Knight-Captain shifted uncomfortably in his armor. “As you can see, I’m a knight.”
“…Don’t knights know anything?”
“I…”
The Knight-Captain was speechless, looking pleadingly at Elise.
Unfortunately, even Elise found Anna’s chatter annoying and left the Knight-Captain to deal with her.
“These are relics from the glorious Old Era, only those fellows in the Cardinal Council understand them,” the Knight-Captain shrugged. “We knights just use them; we don’t research them.”
“Oh, okay.”
To his surprise, Anna stopped questioning him and sat back down obediently.
At the same time, Elise opened her eyes and resumed looking out the window, her chin resting on her hand.
Holy Knight-Captain: “…”
Oh, my Saint…
However, he was still puzzled by the Saint’s decision to bring this seemingly ordinary little girl to Noah as Yan City’s representative.
Anna was just an ordinary person, not even an ability user.
If it was simply because she was a friend, as her “Elise” persona claimed, it didn’t seem sufficient. The Knight-Captain believed the Saint understood the gravity of the situation.
Of course, he wouldn’t question the Saint’s decision.
The Holy Knights’ duty was to carry out the Saint’s will, and after the Saint’s passing, the Twelve Saints were the highest authority of the Holy Church.
“We’ll be seeing Miss Luo Yan in a few days. How are you feeling?”
Elise suddenly asked Anna.
“Huh?” Anna was caught off guard. She fidgeted nervously. “I… I don’t know.”
She truly didn’t know how to face Miss Luo Yan now.
Yan City hadn’t revealed the full truth, but as their representative to the Grand Council, Anna knew some things.
And knowing these things had left her confused.
She remembered how Miss Luo Yan had tricked her into cooking, then slipped away.
And after that, the news of Luo Yan’s death had filled Anna with guilt.
If she hadn’t gone to cook, if she had stopped Miss Luo Yan, would the outcome have been different?
She had cried, even though she had experienced many such losses as a refugee.
Only after learning that Miss Luo Yan was still alive had her guilt subsided slightly.
And then she learned the partial truth about Miss Luo Yan, leaving her feeling even more confused.
Her excitement on the lifeline had been partly due to the novelty, and partly to mask her anxiety.
Was the current Miss Luo Yan… still the same Miss Luo Yan she knew?
The Miss Luo Yan from those stories, from the incident at the Ember Furnace… She felt… unfamiliar.
Elise saw this and understood Anna’s confusion, but she still found her slightly annoying…
So, she only spoke to Anna after she calmed down.
“Elise, I know you’re an important person, that you know many things, but I’m just… not very smart,” Anna scratched her head. “I only know how to make clothes, and that Miss Luo Yan is beautiful and kind, but other things… I don’t understand.”
“She is indeed a beautiful and kind girl. Knowing that is enough,” Elise looked at Anna intently. “Do you know why I chose to bring you to Noah? Even though Yan City is in ruins, they could have found a more… suitable representative.”
“Wh-why?” Anna asked, also puzzled by this. “It can’t be because… we’re friends, right?”
The Holy Knight-Captain also listened intently, his curiosity piqued.
“What else could it be?” Elise smiled. “I really like the clothes Anna makes…”
The Knight-Captain shuddered almost imperceptibly.
“…The clothes,” Elise glanced at him, then patted a nearby box filled with clothes Anna had designed for her. “Even if Yan City hadn’t agreed, I would have brought you to Noah, if you were willing.
“Of course, there’s another, secondary reason. On this long and boring journey, Miss Luo Yan also needs a companion, doesn’t she?”
“That… seems reasonable.”
Anna nodded thoughtfully (or rather, dazedly).
The Knight-Captain was speechless. The “secondary reason” was clearly the main reason!
To prevent any unexpected incidents with Miss Luo Yan, they had chosen a companion for her, right?
Other candidates, like Hua Qiling and Qin Wen, were unavailable, so only Anna remained.
Poor Anna, played like a fiddle by Elise.
Of course, the Knight-Captain didn’t dare say this aloud, his helmet hiding his expression.
“Little Anna is so cute.”
Elise pinched Anna’s cheek, then resumed looking out the window.
No matter how many times she saw it, the Endless Wasteland was still…
A chilling sight.
…
Unexpected things always happen at the most unexpected times. Like when Luo Yan opened her window to wash her face and saw a rather unusual visitor perched outside.
A thin figure clung to the wall, its dark blue nightclothes making it difficult to discern its shape.
And its face was completely covered by a black cloth, its eyes concealed by some kind of illusion, erasing all distinguishing features.
However… he didn’t seem to notice Luo Yan’s approach, and when she opened the window and their eyes met, he was clearly startled.
Luo Yan looked at the figure and waved.
“Hi?”
“Hi…”
He replied instinctively, then immediately covered his mouth.
At the same time, Hua Qingling’s voice came from behind Luo Yan.
“Miss Luo Yan, who are you talking to?”
Hua Qingling, still sleepy, walked over, rubbing her eyes, her pajamas revealing a bit too much, a large teddy bear clutched in her arms.
Sometimes, prying too much into someone’s private life could shatter their image.
Especially Hua Qingling’s “big sister” image, which had completely crumbled during her time living with Luo Yan.
She liked to sleep in, she was grumpy when woken up, she needed a teddy bear to sleep, and her sleeping posture was… questionable.
She was also completely useless in daily life, unable to do laundry, clean her room, and sleeping until noon (or rather, early afternoon)…
Luo Yan had been taking care of her like a mother, almost like her former life as a maid.
Even her younger sister, Hua Qiling, didn’t know about this. After all, Hua Qingling had already been an adult when Hua Qiling was born and rarely stayed in Yan City.
And whenever she returned, she would maintain her usual “big sister” and elegant noblewoman facade.
Since Luo Yan now knew all her secrets, Hua Qingling had given up on pretending, indulging in her laziness to the point that even Luo Yan thought she shouldn’t be called “Sister,” perhaps “Little Sister” would be more appropriate…
Luo Yan tugged at Hua Qingling’s messy pajamas, then turned and pointed towards the window.
“Look, over there… eh? He’s gone?”
The spot where the figure had been was now empty.
“Was that… an intruder?”
Hua Qingling’s drowsiness vanished, and she pulled a short sword from her teddy bear.
…Don’t ask why there was a weapon inside; when adventuring alone, even sleeping required constant vigilance, and Hua Qingling simply kept her weapon with her most comforting item.
“It felt more like… someone peeping, not an intruder,” Luo Yan recalled the figure’s reaction. “But who would peep on us? Lannister?”
The figure had clearly been an expert at concealment; even Luo Yan, with her heightened senses, hadn’t noticed him until she opened the window.
And after he fled, she couldn’t find any trace of him.
“I’ll question Lannister,” Hua Qingling’s expression turned serious. “They arranged this place.”
“There’s no need, we’ll just ask,” Luo Yan shook her head and closed the window. “But peeping is indeed rude. If Lannister doesn’t want to investigate, we can simply leave.”
After all, the recent chaos in Lannister had been her fault, which was why she had agreed to wait here.
But if they were being secretly monitored…
Even surveillance… if they were honest about it, like Yan City, explaining their concerns about her potential danger, Luo Yan could understand.
But doing it secretly… that was different.
“By the way, Sister Qingling, why are you up so early today?” Luo Yan looked at Hua Qingling, who was clearly still sleepy, her eyelids drooping. “You usually sleep another four hours…”
“Well, I didn’t want to…” Hua Qingling forced herself to stay awake, walked over to the sofa, and practically collapsed onto it. “Grandma Zoya sent me an invitation, to a Lannister noble’s banquet… A ‘Destruction’ level ability user’s invitation… I can’t refuse.”
“Really… did I get one?” Luo Yan pointed at herself.
“Miss Luo Yan, do you really think you would?”
Hua Qingling asked, her expression strange.
“…Right.”
It made sense. Lannister probably wanted her to stay put in the apartment; an invitation to a banquet was unlikely.
Not wanting to cause trouble, Luo Yan had been staying in the apartment obediently.
But this peeping incident… It made her suspicious.
“Does the invitation specify how many people can attend?” Luo Yan suddenly asked.
“You actually want to go? I wouldn’t even bother with those stuffy events even when I was in Yan City…”
“I’m curious. Although there was a banquet hall in Natalie Manor in Ghost Town, you know the situation there… I’ve never been to a real banquet,” Luo Yan smiled faintly. “Things I haven’t seen before… are worth seeing, aren’t they?”
But if you go, the Lannister higher-ups will be in a frenzy, especially Norian.
Miss Luo Yan seems to be learning bad habits… she was so innocent back in Yan City.
Hua Qingling sighed inwardly, then said,
“There’s no limit on the number of attendees. As long as you have the invitation, you can bring as many people as you want, even your entire family—of course, no one who receives such an invitation would do something so unrefined.”
She saw Luo Yan looking at her with a strange expression.
“…And neither would I!”
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