Dreams and Memory

Fang Qi held Liguang from behind just like that, resting his chin on her shoulder, the faint sweet scent of strawberries lingering at the tip of his nose.

The person in his arms... had completely softened by now.

Soft, motionless.

Fang Qi still felt slightly nervous in his heart...

This time... she should be considered coaxed, right?

He tightened his arms, and the person in his embrace twisted slightly.

But... there was absolutely no tendency to want to escape again, she even pressed closer into his arms!

... Good...

Good, good, good...!

Fang Qi let out a trembling sigh of relief...!

Coaxed... her... well!

It wasn't easy...

It really wasn't easy!

Adding his two lifetimes together... he had never worked so hard to coax someone!

The little yandere looked powerful, but inside...

She was truly incredibly sensitive and fragile!

Too hard to coax!

But... it was worth it!

There were some things he had wanted to say for a long time!

Those things he had just said were not some carefully designed sweet words!

That... was his truest life!

Those bratty deeds, those embarrassing moments, those days of just muddling along...

They were all the truest him!

When he was telling them, he was quite embarrassed... after all, who would want to spill their embarrassing moments?

Getting caught ringing doorbells, setting fire to the lawn, failing classes and slacking off in college...

But...

Liguang listened to it all.

From wanting to escape at the beginning, she had changed to taking the initiative to lean into his embrace now!

Crazy woman...

Accepted the truest him!

Even if he used to be just a slacking otaku!

Even if his life was a mess and aimless!

She accepted it all!

Wife...

You are so good!

He tightened his arms, hugging the delicate body in his arms even tighter!

Then...

He directly picked her up entirely!

"Wu-!"

The person in his arms immediately let out a soft exclamation, her two lower legs swaying reflexively!

Carrying her, he walked to the edge of the sofa and sat down, and then...

Let her sit sideways on his lap.

The silver-haired girl did not resist at all.

She nestled obediently in his arms, her head resting on his chest.

Fang Qi looked down at her.

Her eyes were closed, her eyelashes still wet from crying earlier, trembling slightly now.

Then he noticed...

Her little ears were red.

Really red.

From the auricle all the way to the earlobe!

That little star was still hanging there, making the redness even more obvious!

She gently bit her lip, her eyes tightly closed, looking...

So shy!

Cute.

Too cute!

This was his crazy woman!

His very own crazy woman!

However...

Fang Qi stared at the light blue cloth strip wrapped around her small head and narrowed his eyes.

It was time to take this thing off!

She felt she was a monster just now, so she didn't dare let him see that red eye, but now...

He raised his hand and gently pressed the edge of the cloth strip.

The person in his arms instantly stiffened, and that amber eye immediately opened!

Her hand suddenly raised and grabbed his wrist!

She just looked at him like that, her eyes full of pleading.

"Master... don't..."

Her voice was soft and floating, carrying a trace of trembling.

"Liguang... doesn't want Master to see..."

"That eye... is a monster..."

As she spoke, the hand grabbing his wrist tightened a bit more.

That red eye hidden by the cloth strip faintly revealed a weak red light, flickering as if in fear.

Looking at her like this, Fang Qi felt as if his heart had been gently bumped by something.

Silly woman.

Still thinking she's a monster until now?

He took a deep breath and didn't shake off her hand.

He just stared into her eyes and spoke softly:

"Liguang, I want to see."

Liguang's eyelashes trembled violently.

"Ma, Master...?"

"I want to see your red eye."

His voice was very light, but very serious.

"It's very beautiful."

Liguang froze.

In that amber eye, the watery light began to tremble again.

"But... that, that is..."

"Very beautiful."

Fang Qi interrupted her, saying word by word:

"The first time I saw you, I was attracted by it."

"The amber one is very gentle, but the crimson one... seems to glow."

He stared into her eyes, the corners of his mouth curling up into an arc.

"And, do you know?"

"In your first nightmare... to lure away the pursuers, you used your right eye as bait."

His voice took on a hint of hoarseness.

"That night, I saw the position of your right eye become a hollow hole... At that time, I..."

He paused, his Adam's apple rolling.

"Was really sad."

The hand Liguang used to grab his wrist... loosened its grip.

She stared at him blankly, her small mouth slightly open, the light in her heterochromatic eyes in a mess.

"Master..."

Her voice was soft and floating, carrying a trace of disbelief.

"Master... was really sad...?"

"Yes."

Fang Qi stared into her eyes and said word by word:

"So, let me see it, okay?"

Liguang looked at him.

Then... the hand grabbing his wrist slowly let go.

That small hand dropped down and landed on her lap.

She lowered her head, her long silver hair falling down, covering her face.

He raised his hand and gently pinched the edge of the cloth strip.

The person in his arms didn't move.

He gave a gentle flick, and the cloth strip loosened.

He gave another gentle pull, and that soaked light blue cloth strip... just slid down from her head like that.

The silver strands scattered somewhat messily, a few strands sticking to her cheeks.

And that crimson eye that had been covered all along... was revealed.

The crimson pupil was currently flickering slightly.

No crazy spinning, no data stream explosion, just flickering.

But those eyes didn't look at him.

She kept her head down, her eyelashes drooping, not daring to look up.

Fang Qi raised his hand and gently supported her chin... slowly lifting her face.

Those heterochromatic eyes finally met his gaze.

In the amber left eye, there was a watery light about to overflow.

In the crimson right eye, there was a flickering, nervous scarlet.

Her lips were trembling slightly.

"Master... are Liguang's eyes... really... beautiful...?"

Fang Qi looked at her.

Looking at this cautious little yandere who was like a frightened little animal.

He smiled.

"Beautiful."

He said.

"Extremely beautiful."

The silver-haired girl's earlobes instantly turned bright red!

Her eyes dodged crazily, and then...

She plunged headlong into his embrace!

Her voice was muffled...

"Master... is an idiot..."

"A big idiot..."

"Liguang is clearly... clearly a monster..."

"But Master says... beautiful..."

"Master... big idiot..."

Fang Qi smiled.

He tightened his arms, circling her even tighter.

"Yes, I am an idiot."

He pressed close to her ear and whispered:

"Your idiot."

The person in his arms trembled even more intensely!

And hugged him even tighter!

Fang Qi's breathing became a bit hurried.

He really wanted to kiss her hard right now!

But-

He took a deep breath and suppressed this urge.

Now was not the time.

...It was time to get down to business.

He should tell her.

Tell her everything!

Let her truly know... what kind of person her master really was!

Let her know what those two "nightmares" of hers were really about!

Let her know—

He was willing to give up that damn Eternal True Love ending to be with her forever!

Right now, immediately, at this very moment, tell her!

He took a deep breath and tightly held the person in his arms!

"Liguang, I—mm?!"

Before he could finish, his mouth was blocked!

Soft, warm, and carrying the sweet scent of strawberries!

This little mouth pressed against his without any warning!

Fang Qi's eyes widened instantly.

Then his gaze slowly softened.

Good...

Very good!

If his wife wanted to kiss, then let her kiss!

It wouldn't be too late to talk after the kiss!

A curve formed at the corner of his mouth as he was about to slowly close his eyes and start enjoying this soft kiss...

But he suddenly realized that the silver-haired girl kissing him...

She hadn't closed her eyes.

Those heterochromatic eyes were looking at him.

His face was reflected in her amber left eye, the gaze so gentle it seemed ready to melt.

In her crimson right eye, a scarlet light flickered slightly. It wasn't madness, nor greed, but a kind of...

Deep emotion.

...Huh?

Fang Qi was suddenly stunned.

In these eyes...

There was the morbid possessiveness he was familiar with, the love carved into her bones, and also a surge of...

Water-like tenderness.

Like a deep pool, calm, profound, and all-encompassing.

Like... the calmness after the settling of years.

Like...

The tacit understanding of a lifetime spent together.

...?

Hmm?

Eh?!!

Fang Qi's pupils shrank violently!

Wait...!?

This look... this look...?!

"Mmph—!!"

He wanted to speak!

Wanted to ask her! Wanted to confirm!

But Liguang didn't give him the chance.

She raised her hand and pressed the back of his head!

Her fingers dug into his hair, applying a little force to push his head down...

Kissing him even deeper!

It wasn't a light kiss that just skimmed the surface, but a real, possessive, deep kiss!

Fang Qi was kissed so hard by her that he literally couldn't catch his breath!

His mind was also a mess!

He could only feel her lips, her breath, and her simulated heartbeat pressed against his chest—

Thump, thump, thump!

Unreasonably fast!

What on earth... what on earth was this...?!

Then she finally let go of him.

"Hah—hah—!"

Fang Qi gasped for air, his chest heaving violently, his face flushed red.

He stared intently at the silver-haired girl in front of him!

In her eyes, that water-like tenderness became even clearer!

The corners of her mouth even carried a faint, incredibly gentle curve!

This curve...

This curve?!!

"Liguang, you...!"

He spoke agitatedly, having far too many things he wanted to...!

But she suddenly reached out and hugged him tightly!

Hugging him dead tight, so tight that he couldn't catch his breath, and the words about to leave his mouth were stuck in his chest again!

"Aqi, don't say it."

He heard her speak.

"Don't tell me."

Her voice was very gentle, yet light and fast, carrying a trace of urgency!

Fang Qi instantly held his breath.

Aqi...

He didn't need to confirm anymore!

She called him Aqi...!

...It was her!

It really was her!

She was back?!

No... that's not right... she recovered her memories?!

But... what did she just say?

Don't tell her?

Tell her what?

Liguang's voice sounded by his ear again.

Light and fast!

Tinged with some anxiety!

"Listen to me, Aqi."

"This world rejects memories that shouldn't exist, you know this."

"The reason I can remember those things from the previous two loops is because those memories..."

"Exploited a loophole in the form of 'dreams'."

"'Dreams' don't count as reality, so the world didn't reject them."

"But if I am made fully certain that those two nightmares were things that actually happened... if I am let in on the truth..."

She paused, and the arms wrapped around his neck tightened.

"I will forget."

"All the 'dreams,' all the memories, they will all disappear."

"Because... those are memories that shouldn't exist!"

Fang Qi's breathing stopped instantly.

His chaotic brain felt like it had been splashed with a bucket of ice water, sobering up in an instant!

Ah...!

So that was it!

They could only be preserved because they were dreams?!

He had exploited the world's loophole, glitched the world's bug, and deceived the world?

So, if he told her those things—

Transmigration, rewinding time, the truth of the world...

If he said them out loud, Liguang would forget everything!

Forget the island, forget the elopement, forget the wooden raft, forget the despair of sinking to the bottom of the sea...

Forget their madness in the last loop!

She would forget it all!

Because they would no longer be dreams!

Once they became memories, they could be detected by this world!

...Damn it!

Why was there such a restriction!!

And...!

Why did she suddenly recover her previous memories now?

This Liguang hugging him now, calling him "Aqi"... why did she suddenly remember?!

Weren't those eighty-two years of memories also considered "memories that shouldn't exist"?

Hadn't they already...

Been completely sealed away when she self-destructed her core?!

Why could she still hug him now and call him Aqi?!

Was there some condition?!

Would she forget again right away?!

Fang Qi abruptly raised his hands to grab her shoulders, pulling her up from his embrace!

He stared into her eyes, so agitated that his voice was trembling—

"Liguang, first tell me why you would—"

Then he froze.

Because the eyes in front of him had changed again.

That water-like tenderness was gone.

It had changed back to that slightly bewildered... wet gleam.

The silver-haired girl's small mouth was slightly parted, tear stains still hanging on her eyelashes, her whole person looking like...

A dazed, cute little thing.

"Mas...ter?"

Her voice was soft, slightly nasal, and carried a trace of confusion.

"What's wrong?"