Chapter Ten: Abilities (2)

Shu, finally realizing what had happened, couldn't help but start clapping enthusiastically, but then remembered it was already late at night and reluctantly lowered her hands. She glanced at Aiden and saw him bending down to pick up his pen, which made her feel a bit more balanced—apparently, even Aiden could be surprised.

Lily dusted off her hands, smiled, and looked at the two of them in turn. "That's all for now. It's already very late, and there's too much to explain at once. We have to get up early tomorrow to set out, so, sir, miss, it's time to get some sleep," Lily said, half-joking, half-serious.

"Oh, all right," Shu replied without protest. She was indeed curious, but it was true—they should hurry to bed.

Aiden turned and left without hesitation.

Sticking her tongue out at Aiden's back, Shu then nodded to Lily and left the room, but forgot to close the door behind her.

Lily felt the urge to call Shu back and remind her to close the door—how unladylike. But she didn't dwell on it. With another elegant one-handed cartwheel, she landed silently, walked over, and quietly closed the door herself.

The night passed without further incident.

Early the next morning, Lily, as usual, helped the youngest children in the orphanage wash up and, after handing off her remaining tasks to Ander and Ariel, took the elevator alone up to the attic on the orphanage's top floor.

Bending down, Lily once more gazed out from her usual spot into the ever-present, unchanging mist. But this time, the fear in her heart had greatly diminished, replaced by a determination to find John and to uncover the truth behind the mist.

Though the memory of her consciousness splitting into thousands of fragments still terrified her, and she sometimes felt as if a part of her had been sliced off—an unsettling sensation—she had also gained remarkable abilities.

What she had described to Aiden and Shu yesterday was only a small part of it. She had also acquired some passive skills—a term she'd learned from Ander.

Now, if she wished, her words would become more convincing, and she could more easily mislead others' thoughts and judgments when necessary.

She found herself developing a fondness for objects no longer than 25 centimeters—a trait that made Lily laugh and cry at once. Was this what Ander had called a "debuff"?

She could now sharply sense whenever an intelligent being within fifty meters was watching her, and she could also faintly detect “high-value items” within that same range.

But the subjectivity of “high-value” made her uneasy. For instance, since she liked pudding, would her passive skill consider pudding a "high-value item"?

All these abilities and knowledge had been forcefully implanted into her mind and body after she uttered that strange syllable—Myo—along with the voice in that “other world.” It had taken her several minutes in that world to adjust.

What struck her as odd was that, when she recalled the sight of the wooden horses thundering around the grand clock face atop the magnificent clock tower, she felt an inexplicable urge to join them.

It was a deeply uncomfortable feeling.

She stared at the mist for a while. Suddenly, the elevator behind her chimed. Turning, Lily saw Shu and Aiden stepping out together. Shu looked as though she’d slept poorly, with faint dark circles visible on her freckled face. Aiden’s expression was as impassive as ever, but the tight grip on his binoculars told Lily he was nervous as well.

“Let’s set our departure time for nine o’clock,” Lily said with a smile, then turned back to quietly watch the roiling fog outside.

After a moment of hesitation, Shu walked over, sat cross-legged beside Lily, and joined her in gazing at the mist.

Aiden checked his watch—it was 7:58, still an hour until they had to leave—then sat down next to Shu.

Lily glanced at the two of them, then couldn’t help but stifle a yawn… The truth was, she hadn’t slept well either. Who could sleep well under such circumstances?

Her laughter broke the silence as she saw both Shu and Aiden raise their hands to stifle yawns of their own.

Yawning really was contagious!

The three of them laughed together, and the somber mood before their departure lightened a little.

When the laughter died down, Lily winked at Shu.

Perplexed, Shu watched as Lily showed her the front and back of her hand, then reached behind Shu’s shoulder and, to Shu’s amazement, produced a coin.

It was a standard 1980 coin from the British Empire, featuring a beautiful engraving of Queen Elizabeth on the front, her full name inscribed, and St. George slaying the dragon on the reverse, with the year 1980 carved below. Its black-and-gold finish made it Lily’s favorite collectible.

Watching Lily nimbly flip the coin between her fingers after withdrawing her hand, Shu couldn’t resist asking, “Lily, how did you do that? Is that part of your ability too?”

“Secret,” Lily replied with an unwavering smile, and with a single flourish, the coin vanished.

“That’s… impressive,” Aiden couldn’t help but exclaim.

“Thank you. There are other abilities—I’ll tell you and Aiden more on the way,” Lily said.

“On the way… Wait, Lily, you’re not planning on taking me with you?” Shu suddenly realized, her face frozen in shock.

“The orphanage can’t lose all three of us at once,” Lily replied, her tone a little heavy.

“But… but…” Shu’s eyes reddened, and she was left speechless.

Aiden took Shu’s hand and said in a steady voice, “Don’t worry. We… will… definitely… come back.”

Watching Aiden take Shu’s hand, Lily understood. So that was another reason Aiden had insisted on coming.

“How wonderful…” Lily thought, a little envious.

Standing up and dusting off her imaginary dirt, Lily bid the two farewell and took the elevator down to the first-floor lobby.

She had preparations to make. Although Aiden had probably gotten supplies ready for everyone, Lily still wanted to look for a suitable “weapon” under 25 centimeters in the basement.

As soon as she stepped out into the lobby and the elevator doors opened, Lily spotted several familiar figures—Ander, Ariel, Natasha and her sister, as well as Dunn, Sandro, Stevenson, Camille, and others chosen for the team.

Puzzled, Lily walked out of the elevator, about to ask what her “dear little brother” was up to, but before she could speak, Ander raised his fist and waved.

“Happy birthday, Lily!”