My skill tree increases every day.

That tiny glimmer of light flickered faintly in Lin Yu's palm.

His first reaction was to freeze, and then he instinctively clenched his fist to hide the glow, as if to cover up a secret that shouldn't have appeared.

Fireflies typically glow during the summer, which, depending on the local climate, is roughly from late June to early August. In warmer and more humid conditions, this period may occur earlier.

May is too early.

But life is not static; there are always some special individuals who are one step ahead of others and shine with their own unique brilliance.

As expected, Chen Shuyan was lucky.

Lin Yu clenched his fist and remained silent.

As long as it's hidden, nothing will change tonight.

He wanted Chen Shuyan to continue believing that everything was going wrong tonight, to completely disappoint her, and to distance herself from him forever—wasn't that exactly what he wanted? Now everything had basically succeeded; the only variable was the firefly in Lin Yu's hand.

Just as the last straw can break the camel's back, this glimmer of hope might completely change Chen Shuyan's mind.

Don't do that, Mr. Firefly!

Once you reach maturity, you only have about 2 to 3 weeks to live. You matured prematurely in mid-May, so you won't even have the chance to mate and reproduce before you die!

Is it really worth it?

"I'm sorry you had to see this." Chen Shuyan finally composed herself, stood up, and said, "Let's go."

"Look at me like this... I've just been having such bad luck lately, it feels like everything is working against me..."

Chen Shuyan had already turned and walked out of the meadow. Her shoulders were hunched, and her figure looked very thin in the night. Her hair was a little messy, and the hem of her skirt was covered with mud and grass clippings. She had been deliberately turning her head away from the beginning, probably to avoid letting Lin Yu see her tear-streaked face.

Lin Yu stood still, his gaze fixed on his loosely clenched fist.

He remembered Chen Shuyan's outstretched hand as she climbed over the railing, her flushed cheeks after drinking the can of fruit wine, and her muffled voice when she said, "I want to make you happy."

I also remembered her curled up on the grass, her shoulders trembling.

Lin Yu's throat tightened.

He felt somewhat disgusted with his current feelings.

He loathed the fear those memories brought, loathed this feeling of walking on thin ice, loathed himself for acting like a coward, proceeding cautiously at every step. But what he loathed even more was this moment.

Looking at Chen Shuyan's back, he hesitated whether to hide this little bit of light.

Just for a "future" that may not even exist?

Just for that "danger" that might not even happen?

Just because you're afraid, you want to personally extinguish the little bit of luck that someone else has finally gotten?

Chen Shuyan had already taken a few steps, getting further and further away from him. The bright moonlight stretched her shadow long, almost melting into the night.

Lin Yu's fist suddenly loosened.

Forget everything else, I've already taken Mary! There's nothing to be afraid of anymore!

"Chen Shuyan!"

Chen Shuyan subconsciously turned her head to look at Lin Yu behind her. He stood under the moonlight, extending his open right hand towards her.

Lin Yu spread his five fingers, and a glimmer of light rose from his palm, slowly climbing towards the bright full moon.

It lit up briefly, then dimmed again, as if swaying in the night breeze.

Then, it stubbornly lit up again.

Chen Shuyan's lips parted slightly, but no sound came out. She took a step forward, then another, her eyes fixed on the slowly rising glow on Lin Yu's palm.

That tiny glimmer of light was so faint, as if it might go out at any moment.

But at least for now, it's still lit up.

But at least for now, it has been seen.

Chen Shuyan followed the firefly's light, step by step, gradually passing Lin Yu and heading towards the center of the meadow.

Then, a second point of light rose from the blades of grass in front of her.

The third one, the fourth one...

One by one, faint points of light appeared, twinkling sporadically across the dark meadow. There were only seven or eight, not enough to create a spectacular sight.

But Chen Shuyan's eyes gradually brightened.

The points of light slowly caught up with the fluorescent light in front, gradually approaching, touching, and hovering.

They slowly rose upwards, gradually merging into the starry sky.

Chen Shuyan then noticed that the seemingly boundless cloud layer had been silently swept away by the wind, and the stars in the sky were like scattered pearls on the black sky, quietly twinkling.

Lin Yu turned around, and was about to take a step forward to catch up with the girl when he saw that she had already turned around.

The girl turned around, hands behind her back, one foot touching the ground, tilting her head slightly. The mountain breeze ruffled her long hair, tied in a high ponytail. Under the starry sky, her eyes, slightly red-rimmed, looked at me, a smile spreading across her face…

This smile was unlike any of the previous ones.

"Lin Yu!"

"Um!"

"Did you see that?"

"I saw it!"

"Chen Shuyan—I saw her!"

"So beautiful!"

This is the truth, without any concealment or anything else; these are the words Lin Yu wants to say right now.

Chen Shuyan maintained the slightly tilted head posture, but her expression changed slightly, as if she hadn't expected Lin Yu to say such a thing.

She looked at him for several seconds, then slowly, very slowly, her eyes curved into a smile.

This smile didn't have a deliberately designed curve or a carefully calculated angle. The curves of the two corners of her mouth were not quite the same, with the left side being slightly higher than the right.

But this was the most beautiful smile Lin Yu had seen all day.

"Really?" she asked.

"Really," Lin Yu said.

Chen Shuyan smiled again, turned around, and looked up at the starry sky once more.

"I think so too," she said. "It's especially beautiful."

"It's time to go back." After a while, Lin Yu took out his phone and looked at it. "It's already midnight."

The way back was much easier than the way there, perhaps partly because the moon was out and lit up the path.

"Lin Yu." Chen Shuyan suddenly spoke, her voice exceptionally clear on the quiet mountain path.

"Um?"

"Thank you." She didn't turn around and continued walking. "Thank you for spending time with me today."

Lin Yu remained silent for a few seconds.

"Thank you for treating me to dinner too."

Chen Shuyan chuckled softly, "That meal was originally to thank you for treating me last time."

"Then I'll treat you next time."

The moment the words slipped out, Lin Yu himself was stunned for a moment.

Chen Shuyan paused, seemingly not expecting Lin Yu's answer.

"...Okay. So, it's settled?"

Lin Yu nodded, then realized he was behind her and she might not see his movements, so he added:

"It's a deal."

After taking a few steps, Chen Shuyan spoke again:

"Well... next time we can come on a sunny day."

"it is good."

"But we need to check the weather forecast beforehand, just in case it's like today again..."

"Then let's do it another day."

Lin Yu added.

"Any day is fine."