CHAPTER 40: CHAPTER 40: CHILDHOOD FRIENDS

Moreover, Miaomiao isn’t just a bookworm; she’s deeply interested in trends among young people, like fashion, games, photography, and so on. She’s even written guides such as "Holiday Pastime Recommendations for Middle School Students," "Must-Have Niche Fashion Items," and "How to Capture Hidden Spirit Beasts in ’Simulated Spirit Beast’," which she shares with interested classmates.

Some say that if Miaomiao spent as much time studying as she did on her hobbies, her grades wouldn’t be any worse than Lin Guang’s.

Lin Guang was a little curious about how she could be so unhurried even after the class bell rang, and why she was holding an umbrella in such warm weather. Still, he didn’t bother to satisfy his curiosity since they really weren’t familiar with each other.

However, at the intersection, after seeing Lin Guang, Miaomiao smiled, raised her arm, and waved enthusiastically, "Hello!"

"...?"

Lin Guang paused for a moment.

After a slight pause, he nodded politely, "Good morning."

Putting away her long umbrella, Miaomiao took small steps to walk alongside Lin Guang. A light, fresh scent of grass wafted into Lin Guang’s nose.

She put her hands behind her back, tilted her head, and slightly leaned forward. Her long waterfall-like hair and bangs gently slipped downward with gravity. This posture allowed her to see Lin Guang’s face directly, and it also allowed Lin Guang to notice the slight curiosity on her face.

"Even though the class bell rang a while ago, why are you so relaxed? Are you skipping class, just like me?"

"..."

Miaomiao’s overly familiar manner made Lin Guang pause again. He pushed his glasses and replied out of courtesy, "I have something to do at the school clinic."

"Oh, what a coincidence, I’m also going to the school clinic."

Didn’t you just say you were skipping class... Lin Guang thought to himself but held back the urge to tease.

"Hey, you really haven’t changed at all. I thought you’d become a bit sunnier."

"...?"

This time, Lin Guang couldn’t keep a calm expression, a look of thought and confusion flashed across his face, and Miaomiao, who had been watching him, didn’t miss this change.

"Eh?" Miaomiao was also stunned for a moment, then widened her beautiful golden eyes, "Eh? Eh—! You didn’t, you didn’t forget me, did you?!"

"...!"

From the moment Miaomiao greeted him, Lin Guang had felt a vague sense of discord, but the source of that discord was unclear.

And at this moment, he finally remembered something — this was likely the source of that discord.

Because the Miaomiao in front of him was not just someone overly familiar but someone he actually knew.

In this instant, Lin Guang’s brain started to work rapidly, pushing forward through his life.

Of course, there was no need to dwell on middle school; his memories weren’t yet covered in dust, so he quickly ruled out the possibility of having met Miaomiao in middle school.

Then came elementary school. Although it was a bit difficult, he reluctantly ruled it out because back then, he was somewhat introverted and had no friends around him.

Pushing back further...

Suddenly, a flash of lightning seemed to cross his mind, and Lin Guang’s eyes widened slightly as he tentatively said, "Are you... the Miaomiao from Room 202 back then?"

"Correct answer, ta-da-da-da~"

Miaomiao’s tone was light and high-spirited, and the strange interjection at the end seemed like the sound from a quiz show when someone passed a test.

"But unqualified!"

The next moment, Miaomiao raised her hands and made a big X in front of her chest, pouting slightly, "I’m probably the only one named Miaomiao in all of Zhen Sheng City, yet you almost forgot me!"

"...Sorry."

Lin Guang shook his head with a wry smile.

The two of them were neighbors until ten years ago and could barely be considered childhood playmates.

For some reason, his childhood memories had already been covered in a deep gray; Lin Guang couldn’t recall his interactions with his parents at all, let alone what happened with Miaomiao. All he remembered was that she was his childhood playmate, and if it weren’t for her unique name — one that doesn’t sound like a name from Great Xia — Lin Guang likely wouldn’t have recalled this neighbor at all.

Lin Guang was already prepared to face Miaomiao’s "barrage of complaints," but unexpectedly, she suddenly fell silent, pursed her lips, and slightly turned her gaze away: "...No, no matter what, I’m the one who should apologize. I’m sorry for leaving without saying goodbye back then. And... for bringing back painful memories."

Back then...

Lin Guang furrowed his brows slightly.

Ten years ago was when the last Sea Beast Tide from the South Sea attacked the city.

This was nothing unusual, as humans in this world were already accustomed to it.

But no one would have expected that an elite Demon Race army would take advantage of this opportunity to open a spatial rift on the outskirts of Fenghai Province, invading Great Xia.

The Spirit Master combat power, which should have been more than enough to deal with the Sea Beast Tide, was caught off guard by the unexpected attack from the Demon Race and suffered heavy losses.

The battlefield was even forced to shrink to the outskirts of Zhen Sheng City. The High-Star Spirit Masters and the enemies of the same level had such great power in every move, resulting in significant damage to the city, and Lin Guang’s parents died in this calamity.

It seems that not long after that, Miaomiao’s family moved out of Room 202 in Building B of Haiyue District.

Recalling this, Lin Guang paused for a moment of silence, then shook his head, "It’s okay, I’ve already moved on."

Miaomiao carefully watched his face, seemingly trying to determine if Lin Guang was pretending to be strong, and after a moment, she let out a soft sigh of relief.

Lin Guang rubbed his brow, "Speaking of which, why did you only just now... Um, sorry, that might be a bit rude to say."

"I didn’t recognize you, but you must have recognized me a long time ago."

"Look who’s talking."

Miaomiao rolled her eyes slightly, "I never see you in the cafeteria, and when I do, you’re always in such a rush with a gloomy aura. Once our eyes met, you had no reaction at all, so I thought you were still angry with me, not realizing you simply didn’t remember me."

"...Sorry."

Regardless, the two of them were neighbors and childhood friends, and even though there were reasons, forgetting her was still something he ought not to have done.

The two of them walked and chatted, mostly reminiscing about their memories from when they were younger—though it was primarily Miaomiao doing the talking.

What surprised Lin Guang was that Miaomiao remembered even the details clearly, as if she were telling a story. But when Lin Guang inquired further, she was always able to quickly provide answers, making Lin Guang internally joke if Miaomiao was a Transmigrator with Innate Wisdom from childhood or perhaps the reincarnation of Andersen or something.

Looks like I’ve embarrassed the veteran transmigrators.

As they chatted, they arrived at the "Integrated Research Center Station" and soon entered the lobby of the research center together.

Miaomiao raised her hand to press the button for the third floor in the elevator, then turned her head, her golden eyes blinking as if they could speak.

With a slight hesitation, Lin Guang nodded, "I’m going to the third floor too."

"Huh?"