Chapter 133: The Reason the Eyes Were Sealed

"Mmm." Following a gentle tug on her sleeve from Baiji, Tachibana Kanade nodded placidly. Her personality made it difficult for her to defy school regulations, but if it were for Yechen, she wouldn't mind breaking them for once.

"No, thank you." After giving Baiji’s suggestion some serious thought, Yechen declined.

There were two reasons for this decision. First, it would be inappropriate to leave his Blaze partner alone in the dormitory on the very first day; it would make him seem dismissive. Furthermore, Yechen intended to spend today getting to know his partner better, as her constant staring had been weighing on his mind.

"Eh~!" Baiji let out a surprised cry, puffing out her cheeks with a childish pout. "Yechen has changed! You used to agree to whatever I asked."

"I did not agree to everything!" Controlling his strength to the absolute minimum, he lightly tapped Baiji’s fair forehead. Suddenly, his gaze caught a glimpse of a sword bag on the small round table less than half a meter away. A tiny, cute figure was peeking out from behind it.

Upon realizing she had been spotted, the figure immediately tried to shrink back, but Yechen wouldn't let her escape so easily. Utilizing his peak speed, he grabbed her by the collar, and with a startled shriek, she was pulled out into the open. Thanks to the passive bonuses of his sword-drawing technique, Yechen completed the entire motion in less time than a blink.

Baiji and Kanade reacted with confusion, staring at Yechen. As Baiji observed his actions, her eyes narrowed in realization. She turned her gaze to the round table, as if she could see something in the empty air, and asked, "Yechen, is it them?"

Although it was a question, Baiji’s tone was certain. After being pulled out, the black-haired girl sat obediently on the table, making no further attempts to flee. Yechen released his grip on her collar and nodded to Baiji. "It's Ruochen."

"Ruochen?" With amber eyes filled with curiosity, Tachibana Kanade stared at the table, which appeared empty to her save for the teacup. She tilted her head, her natural disposition leading her to pour a cup of tea for this invisible friend.

"Thank you." Even though the other party couldn't hear her, Ruochen maintained her impeccable manners. She thanked Kanade with a flawless gesture, picked up the teacup, took a sip, and remarked with surprise, "This is excellent!"

The sight of the teacup floating in mid-air confirmed Ruochen's presence to Baiji. She asked in an unfriendly tone, "You know exactly what we want to ask, don't you? Care to explain?"

The dormitory fell silent as the three waited for an answer. Yechen had also wanted to find Ruoxing and Ruochen to understand the situation, but they had vanished from the space within his sword. Even Yechen, who spent at least seventeen hours a day in that space practicing, had seen no sign of them.

When he had questioned the system, it had ignored him entirely. If not for the fact that he could still access the system interface, Yechen might have thought it had disappeared. Now that he had caught her, he had to get to the bottom of this.

Ruochen tried to stay calm as she sipped her tea. The gentle girl inwardly complained about her sister’s irresponsibility in pushing her out to explain, while she pondered how to answer in a way that would satisfy them. Although Yechen trusted them deeply as their savior, Baiji—a nine-tailed celestial fox of extraordinary wisdom—was not someone who could be easily fooled.

"Is telling the truth my only option?" As she finished her tea, Ruochen made up her mind. Yechen’s trust did not mean he lacked other thoughts, and it would be catastrophic if this incident caused them to lose that trust permanently.

"Actually, the system's purpose in doing this is to help Yechen." Finally, Ruochen spoke. Realizing that only he could hear her, Yechen used his abilities to create a mental link with Baiji and Kanade, allowing them to feel his perceptions.

"Go on." Listening to her voice and perceiving the room through Yechen’s mind, Baiji saw Ruochen for the first time—a girl about Kanade’s age, possessing a traditional, gentle grace rarely seen in modern girls.

With a voice like celestial music, Ruochen continued. Baiji needed to understand the full story before deciding on her stance, provided the girl wasn't lying. Otherwise, she would immediately urge Yechen to remain forever vigilant against them.

"You grew up with Yechen, so you know exactly what his eyes are capable of. It could be said that most of his current strength stems from them, right?" Since she had decided to be honest, Ruochen intended to speak without reservation.

"That's correct." Baiji recalled that while Yechen’s abilities hadn't vanished after his blindness, they had seemingly all been acquired through those eyes in the beginning.

"In reality, Yechen's power isn't limited to his eyes. It's just that they were so prominent and powerful that it was easy to assume everything originated from them. Yechen’s constitution also possesses immense power, yet only a fraction of it has been tapped into so far."

"Besides, his over-reliance on his eyes wasn't healthy. After the system sealed them, it forced him to reduce that dependence. Hasn't he started learning to perceive his surroundings with spiritual energy, and haven't his hearing and sense of smell improved?"

Everything sounded perfectly logical, though the method—the car accident—was undeniably bizarre. Baiji could detect no signs of deception in Ruochen’s performance or language. After a moment of silence, she decided to provisionally trust her, though she kept her suspicions alive.

Aside from C.C. and Yexingchen, everyone was a potential subject of suspicion in her eyes—even Tachibana Kanade, whom she quite admired. Baiji asked, "Since you say the seal on Yechen’s eyes is temporary, it can be undone, right? Can it be removed at any time, or are there restrictions?"

"Umm, according to the system, the seal will remain until Yechen meets certain requirements, at which point it will lift automatically. However, considering the potential dangers he might face, the seal may be lifted if his life is in immediate peril." Under Baiji’s intense, pressuring gaze, Ruochen felt overwhelmed and hung her head, answering timidly.

"It’s only a 'possibility'?" Baiji’s eyes narrowed into slits, casting a cold, scrutinizing gaze at Ruochen. Hearing this, Ruochen lowered her head further, nearly burying it against the round table.