Bai Shi was comfortably settled in his little house, playing a game.
He was completely relaxed, enjoying his leisurely gaming session. This was his daily routine.
On the table was a Coca-Cola he had just taken from the refrigerator, along with a bag of original Lay's potato chips.
Bai Shi took a bite of a chip, then a sip of Coke, before wiping his fingertips with a wet wipe that was already crumpled into a ball.
Only after his fingers were perfectly clean did he pick up his device to continue playing.
But suddenly, a pool of blood gushed out from the device's screen.
Bai Shi was terrified; he had no idea what was going on.
He shot up from his chair and kept backing away.
But the blood gushed out faster and faster, gradually covering the floor.
A tall, grotesque figure emerged from the blood.The figure was pitch-black, its body covered in countless twisted, horn-like protrusions.
It stared at Bai Shi with a malicious gaze, then raised a finger and pointed in his direction.
"Swish—"
Before Bai Shi could even react, a spike of blood pierced through his eyeball.
Excruciating pain seared his senses.
But before he could even scream, more attacks rained down on him, tearing his body to shreds piece by piece.
—
Bai Shi awoke with a start, sitting bolt upright in bed.
He was gasping for air, his cotton clothes soaked through with sweat.
He had just had a nightmare.
He dreamt that his past self had been attacked by Mohg.
In the dream, Mohg had relentlessly torn his body apart with his attacks, just as he had during the day.
The only difference was that the Bai Shi in the dream was his past self, before he'd transmigrated, completely powerless to fight back.
Bai Shi took deep breaths, trying his best to ease the pain in his body.
After the battle with Mohg during the day, phantom pain continued to torment his body.
This agony was the very cause of his nightmare.
Although the pain had subsided somewhat and falling asleep was no longer a problem, he never expected it to manifest like this in his dreams.
Bai Shi covered his face with his hands and rubbed it.
Infinite health is powerful, sure, but the aftereffects are a bit much.
Still, I have to use it when I have to use it. It's just some pain; my life is more important.
"Bai Shi, what's wrong?"
Melina's concerned voice called out.
Bai Shi shook his head.
"It's nothing, just a nightmare."
"I see. Are you all right?"
"Yeah, I'm fine. By the way, you're still awake?"
Bai Shi had been traveling with Melina for some time now. He had once asked her out of curiosity if she needed to rest in a way similar to sleeping.
Melina had told him that while she didn't need rest at all, she would still take a break at night since there was nothing else to do.
"Yes, something is troubling me a little."
"Bai Shi, could we talk for a bit?"
Hearing this, Bai Shi got out of bed.
"Of course. At a Site of Grace?"
He didn't know what was troubling Melina or if he could even help.
If he couldn't help, he could at least be a listener. Letting Melina talk about her troubles would probably make her feel better.
But Melina declined Bai Shi's suggestion to go to a Site of Grace.
"No, there's no need to go to a Site of Grace."
"We can just talk here in the room."
Bai Shi found this a little strange. Melina could only manifest physically beside a Site of Grace, which was where they usually talked.
Why was Melina acting so unusually today?
Oh well, she must have her reasons.
"I'm fine with whatever. Let's do it your way." "Okay. Then please sit down on the bench."
Bai Shi did as she asked, sitting down and leaning against the armrest.
The wooden bench with a backrest wasn't small; it could fit two or three people.
Bai Shi sat on one side, while in the spirit world, Melina sat on the other, hugging her knees.
Melina had deliberately kept Bai Shi from going to a Site of Grace.
This way, Bai Shi wouldn't be able to see her, and thus wouldn't see her troubled expression.
Melina looked at Bai Shi, momentarily unsure of how to begin.
She had just made up her mind, but now that the time had come to speak, she found it much more difficult.
When Bai Shi noticed that Melina had fallen silent, he didn't speak, just waited quietly.
Melina was surely gathering her thoughts. Speaking now might interrupt her.
He would just be a good listener.
While he waited, Bai Shi gazed out the small window at the giant moon hanging in the sky.
Although it was mostly obscured by the Erdtree, the moon still cast its clear, cool light.
Having just dreamt of his past life, looking at this moon, Bai Shi suddenly understood why the moon was so often associated with homesickness.
Melina closed her eyes and spoke softly to Bai Shi:
"Bai Shi, I... I want to ask you some questions."
"They might offend you. If you don't want to answer, you absolutely don't have to."
"We can just pretend tonight never happened, all right?"
The tremor in Melina's voice betrayed her hesitation and anxiety.
She knew that from the moment she began, "pretending it never happened" was impossible.
Bai Shi would surely know what she was about to ask.
No matter how they pretended everything was normal tomorrow, a rift would inevitably form between them.
And that was precisely what pained her.
Why did it have to be this way?
For the first time, she had a partner she could trust, a life beyond her mission.
What should have been a very pleasant journey...
Why had it turned into this...?
Bai Shi looked toward the other end of the bench, where Melina's voice was coming from.
Even though he couldn't see her, Bai Shi knew Melina was there.
Bai Shi understood. What Melina wanted to ask about was him.
Specifically, about Fengling Yueying.
It made sense. Melina was by his side every day; she was bound to notice when he used Fengling Yueying.
After all, the effects of Fengling Yueying were so outrageous, so beyond common sense in the Lands Between.
Bai Shi had long known this day would come. Melina wasn't a fool.
Besides, it wasn't just Melina; even Erlisa had seen it.
But Erlisa didn't know him that well, so she had no reason to ask.
Only Melina, who had entrusted her everything to him, would find this so important.
He had nothing to hide from Melina. She was a poor girl with only a soul left; even if she knew his secret, she couldn't tell anyone.
Besides, Bai Shi trusted that Melina would never do such a thing.
This wasn't some filter from the game in his past life, but an understanding of Melina that he had developed from their time together.
In fact, even if Melina had pretended not to know, Bai Shi would have confessed everything to her after he had cleared out all their enemies.
Only by letting Melina know he possessed this power could he convince her that she wouldn't have to be the one to burn the Erdtree.
"It's all right. No matter what you ask, I'll answer."
"Because we're partners."
Bai Shi's voice was gentle yet firm, without a hint of hesitation.
Hearing Bai Shi's reply, Melina let out a small sigh of relief.
It seemed Bai Shi wasn't as resistant to the topic as she had feared.
And so, Melina asked:
"Bai Shi, that power you've been using... what exactly is it?"