“This... alright, what else do you want to talk about?”
Shizuka Hiratsuka, who had been about to hang up the phone, paused after hearing Yukinoshita Haruno's words. Her tone was a bit stiff, clearly, her mind was entirely preoccupied with her upcoming time with Su Rui, leaving no room for other thoughts.
'I'm sorry, Shizuka, what I'm doing is truly despicable.'
Yukinoshita Haruno knew that what she was doing was quite excessive, and thus felt guilty towards her friend, who was both a mentor and a confidante:
'After I'm done, I'll help you persuade Su Rui, so you can get closer to him as soon as possible. That way, I won't have bullied you for nothing, right, Shizuka?'
Burying these feelings of guilt and shame deep within her heart, Yukinoshita Haruno smiled as she climbed the mountain with Su Rui, and began to find topics to discuss with Shizuka Hiratsuka on the phone:
“By the way, Shizuka, do you know about the haunting at one of my company's construction sites recently?”
“No, when did that happen? Did you tell Su Rui? Don’t try to solve it by yourself.”
As soon as she heard Yukinoshita Haruno's words, Shizuka Hiratsuka immediately became alert and began to worry about her friend's safety, even temporarily forgetting her date with Su Rui.
“Of course, there’s nothing wrong. Actually, I’ve already asked Su Rui to solve the problem. I just wanted to tell you what I saw.”
Yukinoshita Haruno’s heart felt a pang of pain again because of Shizuka Hiratsuka’s concern for her, but she quickly convinced herself that sharing information with Shizuka was a way of thanking her.
With this thought, Yukinoshita Haruno spoke while exercising:
“I heard Su Rui say that this haunting doesn’t seem to be caused by vengeful spirits, but by a new type of energy that hasn’t appeared before. Su Rui’s guess is that there might be some problems with our world or this land.”
“Hmm~” Yukinoshita Haruno paused, then continued, “So, I want to remind you, Shizuka, to be careful. You might encounter danger when you least expect it.”
“I understand…” Shizuka Hiratsuka’s tone was hesitant, and she spoke with a hint of question:
“Haruno, what’s wrong with you? You seem a bit unwell. If you’re not feeling well, I suggest you see a doctor?”
“I’m fine. I’m exercising right now. I just sweated too much and need to rehydrate.”
“Oh, I see. Haruno, you’re too reckless. Even if you’re busy with work, you still need to rest well.” Shizuka Hiratsuka on the other end of the phone directly took over Yukinoshita Haruno’s next words and began to lecture her earnestly:
“Haruno, it’s good to pursue a good figure, but when you need to rest, you must rest well. The best is to combine work and rest.”
“Mhm, thank you for the reminder, Shizuka. After I finish this workout, *cough* *cough* *hmm*~ I’ll listen to you.”
Yukinoshita Haruno, who had choked on water again, made some uncomfortable sounds, making Shizuka Hiratsuka on the other end of the phone a little worried:
“Are you really okay?? Maybe you shouldn’t exercise for now. After we finish talking, I’ll take you to exercise together. I have a lot of experience with exercising.”
“Thanks, Shizuka. If you have time, let’s exercise together.”
Yukinoshita Haruno did not refuse, but her tone was a bit flustered, as if she was trying to restrain something:
“I’ve said pretty much everything I wanted to say here, so let’s end our conversation for today, shall we?”
“Wait a moment, I have one more question.”
“What’s wrong?” At this point, Yukinoshita Haruno didn't even want to say much, because she needed to concentrate on climbing the mountain. After all, exercise consumes a lot of physical strength and requires concentration, so she didn't have much energy to spare for conversation.
It was like someone who had run several kilometers continuously couldn't speak normally.
Moreover, Yukinoshita Haruno also needed to be careful not to make any “unpleasant” noises that Shizuka Hiratsuka on the other end of the phone might notice.
However, Shizuka Hiratsuka on the other end of the phone did not notice anything unusual, because she was thinking about what Yukinoshita Haruno had said:
“I seem to have seen some strange phenomena. It looks like someone appeared out of nowhere and is injured. I need to go check.”
“Wait, Shizuka! Let Su Rui go first!”
At this point, Yukinoshita Haruno couldn't care less about reaching the peak immediately. She quickly spoke up, not wanting her good friend to die so rashly.
“Don’t worry, I’ll definitely be careful, and with Su Rui’s amulet, my safety is guaranteed. At worst, I’ll just slip away. I’ll call Su Rui right away.”
Shizuka Hiratsuka on the other end of the phone seemed to feel the situation was urgent, and quickly hung up after finishing her conversation with Yukinoshita Haruno. Little did she know that at the same time she hung up, Yukinoshita Haruno, due to nervousness, worry, and the accumulated effort, had reached the peak.
However, the exhausted maiden at this moment couldn't care less that she could barely lift her arms. Instead, she laboriously turned around, looked at Su Rui's face, which was within reach, and tried to speak.
“Alright, I know. I’ll go check immediately.”
Without her needing to speak, Su Rui knew what Yukinoshita Haruno wanted to say and covered her mouth directly with his hand:
“You just rest well here. You don’t need to worry about Shizuka; I’ll handle it.”
However, Su Rui did not leave immediately. Instead, he carried Yukinoshita Haruno in his arms to the tatami, tucked her into the futon, and let her rest well. Only after replenishing Yukinoshita Haruno's strength with spiritual power did he get up and leave.
“I’m leaving. If you need anything, call the maidens to take care of you.”
“Yes, Su Rui, please protect Shizuka well.”
Yukinoshita Haruno watched Su Rui leave the room, and at that moment, exhaustion enveloped her like a tide. Then, Yukinoshita Haruno closed her eyes and, surrounded by worry and contentment, drifted into slumber.
Meanwhile, Su Rui had quickly tidied himself and arrived in the inn's corridor. He strode briskly to the courtyard outside, ignoring the maidens who tried to call him to put on his shoes. Upon reaching the courtyard, Su Rui directly closed the sliding wooden door, blocking their view.
The maidens looked at each other, not knowing what to do, until a moment later, after softly asking and receiving no response, they cautiously opened the sliding door, but did not notice Su Rui’s figure.
The maidens then sent someone to Yukinoshita Haruno's room to inquire, but found that Yukinoshita Haruno was already asleep.
However, before falling completely asleep, Yukinoshita Haruno, noticing the maidens, forced herself to wake up and reminded them:
“Don’t worry about Su Rui. Just do your own things.”