Three days later, Silence finds Lin Yie and Ifrit having lunch in the cafeteria.

"Dr. Lin," Silence pats Ifrit's head before turning to Lin Yie, "It seems I was right. Other than me, you're the only one Ifrit can trust."

Lin Yie pauses. He's surprised to see her.

He glances at the well-balanced meal Ifrit is eating and scratches his head, "It's not a big deal really."

Ifrit lifts her head and glares at him. She wants to retort, but remembering what Lin Yie told her before, she swallows her words and lowers her head to eat her "well-balanced" nutritional food. Putting it simply, it's just a plate of greens. She wants to puke already.

"Really?" Silence ruffles Ifrit's hair and asks, "Ifrit, shouldn't you be thanking Dr. Lin?"

Ifrit clenches her teeth, "Thank you VERY MUCH, Dr. Lin!"

Lin Yie smiles awkwardly and steals a glance at Ptilopsis, but Ptilopsis is just sipping her soup as if none of this has anything to do with her.

{Rhodes Island's Psychologist}

Three days ago, Ptilopsis told Ifrit that Lin Yie knew where Saria was, and at that moment, Ifrit's attitude toward Lin Yie took a 180.

Ifrit asked him to tell her where Saria was, but he had no idea. He only met Saria once, but before he could explain, Ptilopsis cut him off, "As long as you listen to Dr. Lin, Dr. Lin will tell you where Ms. Saria is."

Lin Yie almost facepalmed. What Ptilopsis did was no different than what his mother used to tell him when he was a kid.

"If you take this medicine, mommy will bring you to the zoo."

"If you get an A in the class, mommy will let you play video games."


{Rhodes Island's Psychologist}


Logically speaking, this should only work on kids who haven't seen the world yet, but to his dismay, it worked on Ifrit. She agreed to Ptilopsis's terms without hesitation.

And so, in the next few days, no matter what Lin Yie said... no, he didn't say anything. It was just Ptilopsis using his name to order Ifrit around: "Go to bed before 11," "Get up before 9," "Don't just eat meat. Eat vegetables as well," etc.

Ptilopsis told Lin Yie that Ifrit's condition is similar to Liz's, but the difference is, Ifrit's physical condition is not stable. In order to prolong Ifrit's life, they have to make her eat a balanced diet and lead a normal life.

But...

Why did you have to use my name? Or rather, Saria's?

The answer Ptilopsis gave him was that Ifrit only listens to two people in this world: Saria and Silence.

She said, "After analyzing the situation, Ptilopsis concludes that the best way to make Ifrit listen is to use Ms. Saria's name, and you are the only one capable of doing that. Ifrit knows very clearly that I'm on Ms. Silence's side, but you are not."

Lin Yie wanted to say no, but considering Ifrit's health, he couldn't bring himself to do that.

And so, he would give his vegetables to her and take Ifrit's meat away.

Oh well, as a doctor, I have to take care of my patient.

... while eating her meat.

Anyway...

"Dr. Lin, I heard Liz left with Shining and Nearl for a mission?"

"Yeah."

"That's incredible." Silence says softly, "A month ago, she was trapped in that small room like a bird without wings."

Lin Yie can't help but smile, "That's right. She's finally free of her cage."

"It's all thanks to you."

"No, everyone did their best, not just me."

"But you gave her the chance." Silence smiles, "I hope you can do the same for Ifrit."

Ifrit shakes her head, "I'm not like that devil. My head is fine."

"Alright." Silence knocks on her head, "Finish your food. It's time to take your medicine."

Ifrit pouts.

Her expression reminds Lin Yie of Nightingale. It seems devils hate medications. No, it's kids that hate medication. But unlike Nightingale, Ifrit actually listens. Even though she doesn't want to, she still follows Silence back.

When Silence and Ifrit are gone, Lin Yie looks toward Ptilopsis. She's still sipping her soup nonchalantly.

"So, Silence is back. What should I do about Saria?"

"Operator Ptilopsis doesn't understand."

"Drop you act already." Lin Yie says, "It was you who came up with the idea."

"It was the only viable solution." Ptilopsis says, "Now, Ms. Silence is back. Our mission is accomplished. Ptilopsis doesn't understand your concern."

"But I made a promise."

Ptilopsis thinks for a moment. She says, "Operator Ptilopsis doesn't think it matters."

Lin Yie pauses, "It doesn't?"

"Because Ms. Silence won't let Ifrit meet Ms. Saria."

"So it's a blank check?"

Ptilopsis tilts her head, "If you are talking about a promise that cannot be fulfilled, then yes."

Lin Yie rolls his eyes.

"Ms. Silence forgot to tell you," Ptilopsis stands up and puts her bowl on her tray, "Tomorrow is when you depart. Please get ready tonight."

"Are we going to Lungmen?"

Ptilopsis nods, "The formal notice will be sent to your phone in one hour and twenty minutes."

"How do you know?"

"Because that's Operator Ptilopsis's job."

"..."

"Ptilopsis wishes you a good day."

Before Ptilopsis leaves with her tray, Lin Yie calls out to her.

Ptilopsis turns her head around, staring at Lin Yie with her ember eyes.

"I, um, is it possible to let Ifrit meet Saria at least once?" Lin Yie asks, "Ifrit wants to see Saria, and Saria wants to see her, so why can't we let them see each other?"

"Is that your opinion?"

"Uh, yeah."

"Ms. Silence won't approve of this." Ptilopsis says, "Ms. Silence doesn't want Ifrit to meet Saria."

"Why?"

"Sorry, you don't have the authority to access the information."

"Alright."

Lin Yie sighs.

I guess I will let them meet in secret then.


{Rhodes Island's Psychologist}


The next morning, Lin Yie takes a bus to Lungmen. There are Silence and Ifrit (Ptilopsis didn't join the group because of work), and a small group of fighters. The group's captain is Ace, a heavy Lin Yie met several times before in Rhodes Island. Originally, Lin Yie thought Ace is a pure human like himself. Many operators in Rhodes Island thought so as well, but Ace is not a human. Like Skadi, he can punch a hole in the wall with ease... Uh, maybe Lin Yie is not a human instead?

"Long time no see, Dr. Lin." Ace moves over to sit next to Lin Yie, "I heard you learned sword fighting from Yato, and you beat her after only a month."

"Oh, no, no, no." Lin Yie shakes his head, "She held back, twice."

"What?! Twice?!" Ace is shocked.

When Lin Yie is about to explain, Ace laughs, "Alright, I was just joking."


{Rhodes Island's Psychologist}


Ace is really charismatic. Lin Yie has lost track of time as he chats with Ace.

"Wait. You still don't know what our mission is?" Ace takes a quick glance at Ifrit and Silence, and whispers, "I guess Silence didn't tell you. Well, she doesn't like talking about her previous employer."

"You mean Rhine Lab? Are we going to do business with them?"

"Rhine Lab is gone."

Lin Yie pauses, "What do you mean?"

"A few years ago, Rhine Lab declared bankruptcy for some unknown reason. Their core employees resigned in droves."

"So, who are we dealing with?"

"The former employees of Rhines Lab." Ace says, "We're buying lab equipment from them to speed up our production. It was actually Silence who hooked us up for the deal."

"How much do they want?"

"They don't seem to want money." Ace says, "I think only Silence knows the details."


Draft by Demosama