[Lumina: Herta, I got the timing wrong earlier. The Wardance Ceremony won't start for a few more weeks.]
[Herta: Oh, I see. Anything else?]
[Lumina: I wanted to chat with you for a bit. Does that count?]
In the hotel room, Lumina sat on the sofa, listening to the sounds of the shower coming from the bathroom. She didn't engage in any lewd behavior.
After glancing at the bathroom door, she pulled out her phone, opened the chat app, and started texting Herta.
Ding-dong~ Ding-dong~ Ding-dong~
Ding-dong~ Ding-dong~ Ding-dong~
Herta initiated a video call.
"Um..." Lumina glanced at the bathroom door again, surprised by Herta's direct video call.
The bathroom door was made of high-quality material, completely obscuring the interior.
After a quick glance, Lumina looked away.
Tilting her head in thought, she clicked "Accept" after a brief pause.
Hmm... March 7th, being a beautiful girl, probably wouldn't shower this quickly, Lumina thought to herself.
Even if March 7th came out, Lumina could still continue the video call with Herta.
But Lumina felt a strange, subtle emotion stir within her.
She didn't know where this feeling came from, but she knew she had to heed it.
After all, this feeling might just be her subconscious trying to help.
"Hey, hey, can you hear me?"
Before Lumina could dwell on it further, a familiar voice echoed through the room.
A voice that was calm, yet carried a hint of genius arrogance—remarkably pleasant to the ear.
"I can hear you," Lumina replied, snapping out of her thoughts. She nodded at Herta, who was wearing her signature pointed Witch Hat on the screen. "Why do you wear that Witch Hat all the time? Doesn't it get hot on your head?"
"Are you seriously asking an Emanator of Erudition about heat?" Herta's face on the phone screen instantly morphed into an expression of incredulity, as if she were staring at an idiot.
Lumina: ...
Though Herta hadn't uttered any overtly insulting words, her undisguised gaze and subtle microexpressions spoke volumes. Lumina could practically hear what she was thinking:
Is this Little Lumina brain-damaged or something?
"I..."
"Hm? What's going on over there?"
Understanding the meaning behind Herta's gaze and microexpressions, Lumina parted her lips to speak, but before she could say a word, Herta, as if sensing something, furrowed her brow.
To confirm her suspicions, Herta leaned closer to the screen.
"..." Staring at the peerless beauty looming so close on the screen, Lumina's breath caught in her throat.
After a moment, Herta pulled her face away, returning to her original position.
With a firm expression, she said, "I hear water running on your end."
"Is that the sound of someone showering?"
"Are there others in your room, and are they showering right now?"
"Are you in someone else's room, or is someone else in yours?"
Before Lumina could even respond, Herta rattled off several rapid-fire questions, leaving Lumina wide-eyed and momentarily speechless.
Girl, how did you even hear that? The shower's barely audible, and it's coming through a phone! Are you super-hearing or something? Lumina thought with a twitch of her lips.
Regaining her composure, Lumina gazed at Herta's expressionless face on the screen, revealing no trace of emotion. Without concealing anything, Lumina explained, "It's March 7th. She's apprenticing on the Xianzhou."
"After a day of intense training, she's drenched in sweat and her bones are aching. She needs medicinal baths to help her recover."
"But March 7th is a bit scatterbrained and forgetful, so she needs someone to supervise her."
"Naturally, that responsibility fell to me."
Since it wasn't anything particularly embarrassing or something she felt she needed to hide from Herta, Lumina saw no reason to conceal the truth.
Hmm?
Why did I say 'something I felt I needed to hide from Herta'?
As Lumina pondered this, a puzzling question arose in her mind.
"March 7th? The pink-haired girl on the Astral Express?" Upon hearing this, Herta on the other end of the screen pondered for a moment before realizing who Lumina was referring to.
Without dwelling further, Lumina snapped out of her reverie and said, "Stop calling her 'pink hair, pink hair' all the time. She has a name."
"Her name is March 7th. Got it?"
"Oh, I got it." Hearing this, Herta's small mouth formed an "O" shape. Her expression remained utterly impassive as she answered Lumina's question in a perfectly flat tone.
"Your expression is so bland," Lumina commented. "It's like my words are going in one ear and out the other."
"Hmph, if anyone else said that, their words wouldn't even have the privilege of entering my ears," Herta scoffed coldly.
If these words hadn't come from Lumina, Herta wouldn't have even bothered listening, let alone let them pass through one ear and out the other.
"So I should feel pretty honored?" Lumina chuckled, completely missing the hidden meaning in Herta's words.
"Exactly. You should be groveling with gratitude." Herta nodded, her tone utterly casual.
"Heh heh heh," Lumina chuckled, choosing not to press the matter further.
"..."
As Lumina's voice trailed off, a sudden silence descended upon the room. Lumina stared at Herta, and Herta stared back. Neither spoke, yet their silent exchange conveyed more than a thousand words after their long separation.