Chapter 86: Call to Lima
"...Who’s this?"
"Your future hubby," Zac answered without the slightest hesitation or shame.
For a moment, there was only silence from the other side.
Then Lima’s voice came again. "I’m hanging up."
"No, no, no, wait! Wait, wait, wait!"
"What do you want, Zac?" Lima asked.
"Just calling to hear your sweet voice."
"Cut the BS."
Zac laughed.
"It’s been over two weeks; you’re clearly not calling just to hear my voice."
"Oh?"
"So that’s the real issue? Are you mad because I didn’t call you sooner?"
"If you keep talking like that, I’m definitely hanging up."
"Alright, alright. I’ll behave." Zac leaned back on the couch. "I actually did have something I wanted to ask. But before that...how are my mom and sister doing?"
"Aren’t you talking to them regularly?"
"I am, but... how did you know that?"
"Well...I may have accidentally run into them, and we became friends."
"Oh? So you met your mother-in-law and sister-in-law without your future husband?"
"I’m hanging up."
"Hey, hey. I’m kidding."
"It really was just a coincidence."
"Sure, if you say so." Zac chuckled before his expression became a little more serious. "But you know how family is; even if something’s wrong, they’ll hide it from me so I can focus on the academy."
Lima was quiet for a moment. "They’re doing well. You don’t have to worry; they’re perfectly fine."
Zac relaxed. "That’s good to hear."
"Did the Richie family try anything?"
"They did at first. But after that, I paid them a small visit and warned them to stay away from your family. So everything’s fine for now."
Zac immediately caught that last part. "’For now,’ huh? That means they’re lying low. If they see the right opportunity, they’ll strike without thinking twice."
"In that case, we’ll be ready."
After a brief pause, Zac asked, "What about you? How are you doing?"
Lima was silent for a second. "Took you long enough to ask."
Zac smiled.
"I’m fine, without a certain someone pestering me and emotionally torturing me every day... My life has been much more peaceful."
Zac laughed. "Even though I’m completely convinced you secretly enjoyed every visit... I’ll pretend to believe you. As long as you’re happy, that’s all that matters."
A brief silence followed. Then Zac spoke again. "You know...I met your brother here. He also got recruited as a first-year student."
Lima didn’t answer immediately. After several seconds, she quietly replied, "I know. Even though I’ve cut off contact with my family, I still keep track of them from time to time."
"You should talk to him." The suggestion came without hesitation.
Lima remained silent.
"When he found out I was from Mellow City, the very first thing he asked me about was you and the loneliness I saw in his eyes...It was real."
"He genuinely misses you."
"I know."
"Then why don’t you call him? I can give you his number."
"No." The answer came much faster than Zac expected.
"But why?"
"It’s not as simple as you think, Zac." Her voice carried a weight that hadn’t been there before. "As much as he misses his sister...I’m also the one who abandoned him. I’m sure he has his own resentment toward me, and something like that can’t be fixed with a phone call."
Zac remained quiet for a moment. "Maybe, but delaying it will only make the crack between you wider. If you want to talk to him, do it sooner rather than later."
"As a brother with a little sister, I can only imagine how much both of you are hurting because of this."
Lima let out a soft sigh. "It’s already been years; waiting a few more weeks or months won’t make much of a difference."
Zac looked out the window. "Fair enough. You’ve got more life experience than I do. I’ll leave that decision to you."
"Wait." Lima’s voice suddenly sharpened. "Are you calling me old?"
"What? No! Not even close."
"I would never call you an older woman. You’re one of the most beautiful women I’ve ever met."
"One of the?" Lima laughed softly.
On the other end, Zac clicked his tongue.
Lima was quiet for a second before asking, "Alright. So what did you actually call me for?"
"It’s nothing much. I just... needed to know a few details about a certain place. You see, our instructor gave us an impossible task. We have to open all twelve meridians within a single month."
"All twelve in one month?" Lima asked in surprise.
"Yes, and if we fail...she threatened to throw all of us into the Summer and Winter Cell."
"So you want me to tell you what the summer and winter cell actually are?"
"I was hoping you would know."
Lima let out a quiet sigh.
"It wouldn’t be appropriate for me to interfere with academy matters, Zac. Even if opening all twelve meridians in a single month is almost impossible..."
She paused. "No! It is impossible."
"Your instructor must have his own reason for giving you that task."
"Her?"
"What?"
"My instructor is a woman. It’s ’her,’ not ’his.’"
"Oh," Lima paused. "So it’s a woman. Who is she?"
"Her name is Matilda."
The call fell completely silent.
Then Lima’s voice suddenly shot up. "What?! That psycho is your class instructor?"
Zac blinked. "Psycho?" This was the first time he’d ever heard Lima speak so badly about someone.
"Good gods...You all are doomed."
"I don’t think she’s as terrifying as you’re making her sound," Zac said.
"That’s because you don’t know her." Lima’s tone became unusually serious. "Do you think people call her the Green Witch for fun?"
"She may look calm and graceful, like a thornless rose, but trust me, Zac. She’s not the flower but a thorn and a pain in everyone’s ass."
Zac remained silent, letting her continue. "Behind that ever-smiling face is a woman who can make anyone’s life miserable."
"You talk like you’ve known her for years. Is there some history between you two that I don’t know about?"
After a brief silence, Lima answered, "She was my classmate and... allegedly my former best friend."
"Allegedly?" Zac smiled. "Now I’m really curious. What happened between you two?"
"I’m not telling you."
"So there really is a story."
"Zac." Her voice suddenly turned firm. "Listen to me carefully, other than interacting with her as your instructor...Do not, under any circumstances, get close to her."
"Understand?"
"Is it really that serious?"
"Yes, it is. Now promise me, you won’t."
"...Fine. I won’t."
He decided not to push the topic any further. At least... Not for now.
"Now then, can you tell me about the summer and winter cell?"
Lima let out a quiet breath. "I’ll tell you what I can. The academy didn’t originally create that place."
Zac immediately sat up straighter. "What do you mean the academy didn’t create it?"
"I don’t know the full story myself, but as far as I know, it’s a strange realm that’s currently under the academy’s control."
"A place where fire freezes you to death..."
Before she could finish, Zac completed the sentence. "...and ice burns you to a crisp. Yeah. Daniel already told me that much."
"Good. Rumor is, there’s an enormous treasure inside that realm, and the reason fire and ice behave opposite to their natural properties is because of that pressure."
"But what exactly is that treasure..." She paused. "The academy keeps it a tightly guarded secret. I believe even most instructors don’t know the truth."
Zac let out a long breath. "Great. Even more mysteries to solve."
[Adding that to your ever-growing to-do list.]
Lima continued, "I can only give you two pieces of advice."
"The first one is not to die in there, right?" Zac joked.
"Well... That’s good advice too. But no. If you ever enter that place, don’t overlook anything. Even the smallest pebble beneath your feet."
Zac narrowed his eyes.
"In a place like that, even the smallest detail could become the thing that helps you survive. So observe everything; before you look away, make sure you’ve truly seen it."
She paused briefly before continuing. "And second...never. Ever. Even joke about entering the Forbidden Area."
Zac frowned. "So there is a forbidden area?"
"Trust me, Zac, if you ever enter that place, even by accident... Not even Miss Armani would be able to save you."
A chill ran down Zac’s spine.
After a few moments, he finally spoke. "...Thank you."
"Don’t mention it. If that’s everything...I’m hanging up. I’d like to get back to my beauty sleep."
"Wait. Why are you already sleeping? It’s only around seven."
"Because you’re in Central City and I’m in Mellow City, inside the Eastern Alliance," Lima sighed. "Time difference, Zac."
"At least pretend to be a little smarter."
"Alright, alright," Zac chuckled.
"Wait."
"What now?"
"You’re about to sleep, right?"
"Yes, so?"
A mischievous smile appeared on Zac’s face. "So... are you wearing your nightgown?"
Silence. "What? No! Of course not. What kind of woman do you take me for?"
"Now I’m convinced you are," Zac thought. "Why don’t we make it a video call?"
[Shut up, this is what they call harassment disguised as romance.]
Zac ignored it completely.
Lima spoke again, her voice carrying a hint of annoyance. "As I told you before...I’m much older than you, and isn’t there plenty of beautiful girls at your academy?"
"So why are you still pestering me?"
Zac didn’t answer immediately. After a moment, he smiled. "Fine. I’ll stop teasing you, but before we hang up...I just want to say one thing."
"Then say it quickly."
"The thing you said about all the beautiful girls at the academy..."
"Yes?"
Zac looked out the window.
Beyond the glass, the academy lay under the night sky, its distant lights blending with countless stars overhead.
"I know this is going to sound a little cheesy. So just bear with me."
"Zac...don’t say something you’ll regret later."
He smiled faintly. "Even if the sky is filled with stars...my eyes will always search for the moon."
"Love you, my fiery moon."
Before Lima could respond, Zac immediately ended the call. On the other end, Lima stared at her VSB for several seconds.
Then a quiet laugh escaped her lips. "That little brat..." She hugged her pillow tightly and looked around the dark room. "When did he become a poet? It must be the academy’s bad influence."
At the very same moment...
Inside Zac’s house...
[Achoo!]
Zac blinked. "I didn’t know systems could sneeze."
[Neither did I. Someone must be talking behind my back.]
"Really? I’m the only person on this planet who even knows you exist."
[Then congratulations. You’re my prime suspect.]
Zac shook his head.
"Whatever. It’s time to open my first meridian."
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