The scorching July sun blazed in the sky, and the daytime temperature in Moon City was ridiculously high, while the nights were freezing cold. Starting this week, Luoye crossed four streets every day and made her way to a hillside adjacent to an abandoned construction site. She carefully caressed the clump of plants growing densely in the stone crevices, where white flowers bloomed like stars among the light purple branches, their light fragrance sprinkling tenderness in the scorching summer.
"Is this the Starlight Hibiscus you've been waiting for?" Ku Yue squatted beside her, holding a weed in his mouth, and gazed at the unremarkable little wildflowers.
"Yeah!" she nodded happily and sniffed, "They will be in full bloom in three days at most."
"You're determining the flowering period based on their fragrance?" Ku Yue fiddled with the tiny, snow-white flower buds, "What makes these flowers so special?"
Luoye raised her face, feeling the lingering warmth of the setting sun, and said, "Don't be in a hurry. Look at them again after the sun goes down."
"All right," Ku Yue lay flat on the grass, waiting for the arrival of the night.
"You really look like an idler with nothing to do. Your Little Long's whereabouts are still unknown, right? Why do I feel like you're less and less anxious about finding him," Luoye remarked as she sat down beside him.
"Finding a person requires fate. Maybe the Heavens have decreed that Little Long won't return to his mother," Ku Yue turned the weed in his mouth as lied without batting an eye.
Luoye held her legs with a hint of sadness, her chin resting on her knees, murmuring, "Mother... I'm quickly forgetting what my Royal Mother looked like..."
Royal Mother[1]? This girl calls her mother "Royal Mother"? Ku Yue removed the weed from his mouth and turned to look at her, with obvious doubts in his eyes.
Perhaps realizing she'd made a slip of the tongue, Luoye straightened up in a bit of panic and quickly said, "Oh, I mean mother, not royal mother... I..."
"Alright, you don't even know how to cover up," Ku Yue chuckled, "King has already told me all of Moon City's secrets. You don't need to be so flustered. I know you're not human. Even though everyone is a supernatural being, you're different from the other 'residents' of Moon City."
"He told you everything?" Luoye stared at him with wide eyes.
"Yeah," Ku Yue replied bluntly, "Maybe King also thinks I'm not a bad person, heh heh."
After a moment of silence, Luoye let out a sigh of relief, "Well, I can tell that King not only takes good care of you but also trusts you a lot. Although it's rare, I know he must have his reasons for it. I am indeed a supernatural being." She chuckled, "Or rather, a particularly useless one."
He could sense the aura of various supernatural beings, and the scent of Luoye clearly told him that she was a butterfly, the same as him and Jin Feiyu – a butterfly demon.
The scent of butterflies was something he was more familiar with than anyone else. It was just that Luoye's scent was a bit strange when compared to others of their kind.
"You..." he sat up straight and carefully examined the extremely ordinary girl beside him, "Are you a descendant of the Snow Butterfly King?"
"That was many, many years ago," Luoye stuck out her tongue at him like a bystander, "I don't remember much anymore. I only remember my Royal Mother holding me in her arms and feeding me with the sweetest honey. No flower can ever match my Royal Mother's scent."
"Your mother was the most beautiful in the Snow Butterfly clan," Ku Yue gazed at her puzzled for a moment, teasing, "But look at you; it seems you didn't inherit any of your mother's strong points."
"You're a butterfly demon too?" Luoye first looked surprised, then punched Ku Yue hard and pouted, "I'm just too lazy to dress up!"
Ku Yue laughingly said, "Alright, alright, I'll believe for now that one day you'll be as beautiful as your Royal Mother..." He paused and suddenly changed the topic, "But from what I know, your parents were eaten by a ghost-faced spider, and King saved you and raised you."
"I'm not entirely sure. I was very young at the time," Luoye sounded a bit bewildered. "King told me that he once fostered me with a human couple for a while. That day, we somehow attracted the archnemesis of us butterfly demons, the ghost-faced spider. Even though King arrived in time, he couldn't save them." As her memories unfolded, a tinge of sadness gradually appeared on Luoye's face. "I vaguely remember that couple protecting me with all they had until the end when that monstrous creature attacked, even though they could've just abandoned me and fled."
Ku Yue's expression momentarily stiffened, but fortunately, Luoye couldn't see his unusual reaction. He quickly returned to his usual demeanor and asked, "Do you remember what happened to your Royal Father[2] and Royal Mother?"
Luoye shook her head, "My most complete memories start from when I wandered with King until we settled in Moon City. I really don't remember much from before that."
"True," Ku Yue smiled self-deprecatingly, mumbling under his breath, "You were too young back then. Besides, such a scene... it's better you don't remember."
"What did you say?" Luoye leaned in to ask.
"Nothing," he instantly changed the subject, pointing to the Starlight Hibiscus, "Hey, they're glowing!"
Upon hearing this, Luoye grinned proudly and said, "See, I told you that when the sun goes down, you'd understand the uniqueness of the Starlight Hibiscus. They are my favorite flowers in Moon City. Although I can't see them, I can feel their petals with my fingertips…" She gently placed her fingers on the unopened white flower buds. "Well, I feel hope."
Ku Yue looked at the clusters of flowers, one by one, emitting a faint glow in the night. They were like starlight fallen to the mortal world, waiting to be held in the palm of someone's hand and placed in their heart.
"Over all these years, I've known that King hasn't really been happy," Luoye retracted her fingers with a touch of melancholy. In that moment, she was suddenly no longer the madcap girl sitting on the rooftop, but like a genuinely mature woman who held a man in her heart.
This sudden change only lasted for a short moment as she giggled and said, "So that's why I need to finish his birthday gift as soon as possible and give it to him. It'll surely make him happy!"
"Yeah. Birthday gifts always bring joy. Keep up the good work!" Ku Yue patted her head.
Considering his seniority, he could easily be considered an elder to Luoye. Ku Yue smiled bitterly, and his violet eyes seemed to stir up with deep emotions as he fell into the most instinctive memory of an old incident.
Footnotes:
[1] 母后 (mǔhòu): term of address for the empress used by children of the emperor.
[2] 父王 (fùwáng): term of address for the emperor or king used by his children.
Translator:
🎆New Year's Eve! 🎆 Are you ready to party?🎉🥳
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