"Rover, my butt hurts. Can we slow down a bit?"
"Who told you to keep being improper, always saying weird stuff." Rover pouted. Even though she sounded unwilling, she still slowed her pace, strolling along the Black Shores with Zane.
Time seemed to freeze at this moment. The aurora in the sky was doing its best to record the beauty and warmth of the two people below.
"Where do you think the 'Flower Girl's' remains would be?"
"Didn't Cameliya just say she woke up in a karst cave? How about we go check that cave?"
Rover thought for a moment, then nodded. Speaking of caves on the Black Shores, there just happened to be one not far from them.
Before long, the two arrived at the cave entrance and walked toward the depths.
On both sides of the cave, all kinds of corals and strange jagged rocks shimmered faintly in the dim space.
These were glowing corals and stones.
If he threw them into the system, who knows how many star sounds he could exchange them for.
Besides, even if he didn't directly throw them into the system for star sounds, he could knock them down, sell them in Jinzhou for more materials, then toss those into the system for star sounds…
"These are all star sounds..."
Zane wiped the drool from the corner of his mouth. Just as he was about to grab a few pieces of coral to try tossing into the system, Rover grabbed the back of his neck in one swift motion.
At that moment, Zane seemed to regain the innocence of his childhood, even his gaze turning clearer.
Only, at this time, Rover didn't actually plan to do anything to Zane… of course, she had already observed that this cave could avoid everyone's line of sight, and no one would disturb them for a while.
Here, even if Zane screamed his lungs out, no one would notice.
But very quickly, Rover had to give up that thought.
Because she had already found the 'Flower Girl's' remains.
"…Stop messing around. Look over there." Rover let out a quiet sigh, her tone carrying a hint of regret.
Following the direction of her finger, Zane saw a flower lying quietly in the corner. Under the glow of the cave's corals, it faintly shimmered.
"This black flower is…"
Rover released Zane and crouched in front of the black flower.
However, just a second before she was about to touch it, Zane's expression suddenly changed. His swift blade left its sheath, and with a sharp clang, he knocked away a sudden attack.
The gourd hanging at Rover's waist also flashed with a glaring red light.
"Be careful. These remnants aren't like the usual ones." Zane held his blade across his chest and slowly stepped back, standing back-to-back with Rover.
"Mm."
Rover frowned, not quite understanding why remnants would appear in a place like the Black Shores.
'...Could it be because of this black flower?'
Rover glanced at the black flower on the ground without drawing attention, her amber-like eyes blinking.
At that moment, the TD standing opposite her had already drawn its bow. A lightning-wrapped arrow shot straight toward her face with a piercing whistle.
"Watch out."
Along with Zane's shout, Rover's vision went dark for a moment. The lightning arrow that had been right in front of her was already shattered by Zane's quick reaction.
"Sorry, just now…"
Rover was about to apologize for losing focus, but Zane gently shook his head. Then a teasing smile appeared on his face.
"Didn't expect our famous Rover to space out on the battlefield one day. But honestly, you shouldn't be making this kind of mistake… are you feeling unwell somewhere?"
As he spoke, Zane ignored the remnants that had already surrounded the two of them. He frowned and reached out, placing his hand on Rover's forehead.
"Hmm… you're not running a fever?"
Seeing Zane get so tense just because she spaced out for a moment, Rover smiled silently, warmth spreading in her chest.
'...The reason I spaced out… is because you're here, idiot.'
More than a dozen remnants watched as these two humans completely ignored them, even flirting right in the middle. For a moment, being remnants suddenly felt a bit dull.
TD No. 1: 'Hey bro, why do I suddenly feel full?'
TD No. 2: 'Don't even start, man. I've been a remnant for over ten years and haven't even held the hand of the Cloud Sea Fairy next door. You just feel full, I'm the one suffering inside.'
TD No. 3: 'Stop daydreaming. Can you even swim?'
TD No.4: Or… should I play them some music to set the mood?
———
Just like that, the two people and a group of remnants fell into a strange balance. Rover noticed this subtle equilibrium, thought about it, and quickly understood the situation.
As everyone knows, remnants feed on human frequencies. And as everyone also knows, emotions are a kind of frequency emitted by humans.
So you could say this group of remnants were born gossip-watchers. Their lives as remnants were either spent watching drama, on the way to watch drama, or evolving… so they could watch even more drama.
So right now, this group of remnants was truly full.
When Cameliya, who knew nothing, followed the scent of the destined seed to the scene, the first thing she saw was more than a dozen remnants gathered around Rover and Zane, watching the drama.
Even Cameliya, who loved excitement, started doubting her life for a moment.
But since it was the destined seed, there had to be a reason. And with Zane here, there had to be something seriously wrong with him.
Cameliya quickly accepted it.
But as Rover's number two fangirl on the Black Shores, she couldn't completely calm down.
"Ah~ so amazing. As expected of her. Beautiful, powerful, intoxicating. Even without lifting a hand, she can subdue remnants… powerful, abundant, overflowing with strength…"
As she muttered, the white hair on her head quietly turned red. A brilliant camellia bloomed within her blood-red eyes.
Zane, surrounded by remnants, noticed Cameliya lying on the ground and felt a bit surprised. Why is this girl sleeping here?
Rover noticed Cameliya as well.
The next second, her swift blade rang as it left its sheath, carrying endless sharpness. Light flowed faintly along the blade.
In just a few seconds, golden light flashed in Rover's hand as she cut down the gossip-watching remnants one by one.
She sheathed her blade and hurried toward Cameliya.
"If it had been me dancing that dance with you just now…"
Rover, '??'
Hearing that slightly trembling murmur mixed with a hint of twisted excitement, Rover felt puzzled but still came to Cameliya's side. Seeing her eyes open, she reached out her hand.
But in the next second, a vine wrapped around Rover's outstretched hand and pulled her down.
Losing her balance, Rover instinctively supported herself with both hands to avoid falling directly onto Cameliya.
But then she suddenly realized her hands were braced on either side of Cameliya's head, the two girls entangled in an extremely ambiguous position.
Startled, Zane quickly took out the Pangu Terminal to record this moment.
"…" Rover tried to break free and applied a bit of force, only to realize this "kabedon" position made it hard to exert strength. The only way she could stand up was by using her legs.
But at this moment, her legs were also wrapped by vines.
"I was trying to pull you up."
Rover's breath brushed against her face. The red in Cameliya's eyes deepened, and a gentle yet slightly crazed smile appeared on her face.
"I know, hehe… I'm just too happy… cough!"
A violent coughing fit interrupted Cameliya's emotions. A delicate yet eerie flower was slowly blooming from her chest… growing… growing…
'How did she… overclock?'
Standing nearby, Zane felt his scalp itch, like his brain was about to grow.
'Could this trigger overclocking?'
He was already starting to doubt whether this world had gone mad, or Cameliya had.