Chapter 151: The Nightmare Becomes Reality

For the past few days, Ye Mu had dreamed of Ye Bai almost every single day. It felt like a continuous, serial dream—starting from opening a door in the dream to running into Ye Bai and Shangguan Yan, then to the amusement park, and then to that grassy field where she and Ye Bai used to fly kites when they were little...

Almost every wish that Ye Mu longed to fulfill in reality was granted one by one during these past few days. However, the black lotus haunted her like a shadow, appearing every single night.

Saturday, the last day of the school week, was also the sixth day she had encountered Ye Bai in her dreams.

"Ah, haha~"

Ye Mu pulled her arm out from under the blanket and stretched lazily. Sunlight streamed through the window, striking the girl's face and making her smile even more radiant.

Suddenly, the girl turned her head to look at the alarm clock on the nightstand. Her smiling face abruptly froze. In the next instant, she frantically stripped off her pajamas and threw on the clothes she had laid out the night before.

"Ah~"

"Why didn't you go off?" The time on the alarm clock clearly read six-twenty.

"Good morning, Grandpa Butler." After a hasty wash, Ye Mu grabbed her schoolbag and ran toward the front gate. The breakfast already neatly arranged on the dining table in the hall, along with the old man sitting beside it, looked at Ye Mu with a smiling gaze.

"Why are you running a bit late today?" The old butler stood up as he spoke and pulled out the chair opposite him, urging Ye Mu to have breakfast.

However, Ye Mu didn't linger in the hall and dashed straight past.

"Hey, Mu'er, you haven't had breakfast yet. Come back and eat first before going to school."

"Grandpa Butler, I won't eat breakfast today. You don't need to worry about me. Mu'er will eat at school later!" Ye Mu's voice drifted back from the front door. By the time the last word reached the old butler's ears, she had already vanished.

The old butler shook his head, placed the breakfast back into the basket, and muttered to himself, "How wonderful it would be if this child could always be like this."

"Ring, ring, ring." As the final bell rang, a pink figure rushed through the classroom door and sat down at her seat by the wall.

"What's wrong with you today? You almost were late." Ye Mu's deskmate, Fatty Sun, leisurely pulled his textbooks out of his schoolbag. In Fatty Sun's impression, Ye Mu had never been this late to school. On the contrary, she was always one of the earliest arrivals every morning. Being late was the kind of thing only a slacker like him would do.

Ye Mu hurriedly tidied her desk, pushed Fatty Sun's books back to his side, stuffed her schoolbag into the desk belly, and took out her textbooks before replying to Fatty Sun: "I don't know what happened this morning. The alarm didn't go off, and I almost was late. Thank goodness, that was close."

Her cheeks were flushed from running, paired with the mist lingering in her hair, making her look exceptionally adorable. However, Fatty Sun, who was utterly obsessed with video games, failed to notice any of this. Instead, he caught onto something else.

"Ye Mu, why do you feel a bit different to me today? And you've been getting more and more different all week." Fatty Sun's round eyes kept scanning Ye Mu up and down, trying to figure out what had changed.

"Is that so?" Ye Mu used a textbook to shield her head and whispered back secretly, taking cover behind the reading voices of the other students.

"Yes, indeed!"

"Ah, don't!"

In her heart, Ye Mu lamented having such a pig-headed teammate. Every time Fatty Sun got excited about something, he would unconsciously start gesturing and dancing around. Right at that moment, the head teacher happened to notice. Ye Mu lowered her head deeply, hiding behind her book. Her face was now even redder than when she had first arrived, and she wished she could dig a hole in the ground and crawl inside.

"Fatty Sun!" The sudden shout from the podium froze Fatty Sun in his tracks.

"T-Teacher..." Fatty Sun slowly stood up.

The chorus of reading instantly died down, and every student turned around to stare at Fatty Sun.

"If you aren't going to study, don't bother Ye Mu. If her grades drop because of you, go copy the text a hundred times, do you hear me?" The head teacher stood at the front, feeling a tinge of anxiety. Initially, she had placed Fatty Sun near Ye Mu hoping she would be a good influence and keep him from leading her astray.

"What are you all looking at? Hurry up and read! And you, don't let me catch you doing this next time. Sit down."

Fatty Sun sat down gingerly, and the reading voices gradually swelled again. Only then did Ye Mu raise her head, casting an apologetic look at Fatty Sun. Fatty Sun smiled to signal that he was fine, and a moment later, a small note was passed over from his hand.

"Ye Mu, you're getting more and more mysterious."

Ye Mu glanced at Fatty Sun, ignored the note, and began to read her book.

The morning classes passed by amidst Fatty Sun's continuous yawns and Ye Mu's intermittent focus. It wasn't until midday that the arrival of a single person completely upended the life where Ye Mu had just started to notice subtle changes.

Just before the noon class was about to begin, a tall, handsome boy walked into the classroom. "Who is Ye Mu? The head teacher wants to see you in the office."

"Looking for me?" Ye Mu pointed at herself. Could it be because of what happened this morning?

"Teacher, did you look for me?" With noon break approaching, there weren't many people in the hallways, and Ye Mu reached the head teacher's office without taking much time.

"Come, come, come, step over here." The head teacher motioned for Ye Mu to approach. "This is the person you were looking for."

Only then did Ye Mu notice that someone else was sitting across from the head teacher.

"Ye Mu? Your older brother is Ye Bai, at Purple Star Academy?" The man was middle-aged and rather unremarkable in appearance, but his eyes looked extremely sharp, and the armband on his sleeve featured a dark green Qilin.

Instead of answering the middle-aged man's question, Ye Mu looked toward the head teacher.

"Hehehe." The head teacher gave an apologetic smile and said, "She's just a child and doesn't know any better. Please don't mind her."

Then, turning back to Ye Mu, she said, "Ye Mu, this is an official from Green Forest Main City, belonging to the Jade Qilin Army. Answer whatever questions he asks honestly, and don't be afraid."

"Mm." Ye Mu looked at the middle-aged man, signaling that she understood.

"There is a letter here for you, sent from Purple Star Academy."

"A letter from Purple Star Academy?" Ye Mu's eyes instantly lit up. Her intuition told her it was written by her older brother. She reached out and took the letter, only to see the large red seal of the Purple Star Academy's Academic Affairs Office stamped upon it.

"Alright, I'll be leaving now. Sorry to intrude." The middle-aged man didn't drag his feet at all. Once the letter was delivered, he turned and walked away.

The head teacher wanted to say something, but he was already gone. In the end, she could only tell Ye Mu, "Go back to class for now."

"Ye Mu, what's wrong with you? Did the head teacher bully you?"

Ye Mu hadn't been gone long. Fatty Sun hadn't even fallen asleep yet before she returned, but her appearance startled him badly.

Her face was no longer radiant with smiles, the corners of her eyes were stained with tears, and she held a letter covered in mottled creases. Ignoring Fatty Sun—hearing not a single word he said—Ye Mu buried the letter beneath her hands on the desk, buried her face, and burst into bitter sobs.

She had no idea how she had walked back from the administrative building to the classroom. Her mind was buzzing endlessly, refusing to believe that her brother was dead.

She clutched the letter tightly in her grip, her fingernails piercing her palms, but the irrevocable reality refused to change.

*'Respected family member of Ye Bai: Greetings. As confirmed by the academy, student Ye Bai lost his life while executing a mission outside. Please accept our condolences. Academic Affairs Office, Purple Star Academy.'*

Ye Mu did not lift her head for the entire afternoon. The teachers didn't question her, and Fatty Sun didn't either. Perhaps Fatty Sun had gone to ask the head teacher, or perhaps the head teacher had come to check on her, but not a single person disturbed Ye Mu.

Nor did Ye Mu want anyone to disturb her. She wanted to sleep, because in her dreams, her older brother was still alive and still playing all the games she wanted to play with him.

"Class is over." After who knows how long, Ye Mu felt a gentle tap on her shoulder. Gradually, the classroom grew quiet, and the school grew quiet.

Ye Mu finally raised her head. The letter in her palm had been stained red, blurring the text, but every single word of it was deeply etched into her heart.

"When did this place become as quiet as home? Is only Mu'er left now?" Ye Mu murmured as tears streamed down her face. Her voice lost its ethereal clarity, turning raspy instead, sounding like someone who hadn't drank water in days.

"Did big brother abandon Mu'er? Hehe." Sitting alone in the classroom, Ye Mu forced an ugly smile.

Suddenly, Ye Mu stood up abruptly. The textbooks for the first class of the afternoon were still lying on the desk, and her schoolbag was tucked in the desk belly, yet no one reached for them. "That's right, I just saw big brother. He's waiting for me to go back. Yes, big brother is waiting for me to go back."

Like a walking corpse, Ye Mu walked out of the classroom. Not a single trace of her former vibrancy could be found on her anymore.

"Is she really going to be alright like this?" Suddenly, a voice came from around the classroom corner.

"What else can be done? This isn't the first time something like this has happened. Besides, is that place somewhere we can just step into?"

As the voice trailed off, a sigh followed. "The most we can do is strive to secure a bit more welfare for her at the school."

The old butler sat alone in his master armchair, opening his eyes from time to time to glance out the door, then gently closing them again when he saw no one entering.

"What is wrong with this girl Mu'er? School has been out for so long, why hasn't she come over to eat yet? She should have been here ages ago." The old butler muttered to himself, beginning to worry about Ye Mu, when suddenly the sound of crying drifted into his ears.

"What is this?" The old butler knew there were no children nearby. "Could it be..."

The master armchair was still rocking against the floor, but the old butler had already vanished.

"Mu'er?!" The old butler couldn't remember the last time he had felt this anxious. He hurried over and scooped Ye Mu up from the ground.

Ye Mu opened her swollen, red-rimmed eyes, her voice terribly hoarse: "Grandpa Butler, Mu'er can't go home anymore. Big brother is waiting for Mu'er. If I don't go back, he won't play with me anymore."

"Big brother, Ye Bai?" Catching sight of the letter clutched in Ye Mu's hand, the old butler let out a sorrowful sigh and understood everything in an instant.

He gently patted Ye Mu and said, "Don't worry, Mu'er. Big brother is just playing hide-and-seek with you. He'll be back when it gets dark."

Speaking softly, the old butler carried Ye Mu back toward the Li residence, using his hand to smooth down his bangs—stiffened and matted from tears or sweat. Cradled in the old butler's arms, Ye Mu drifted into a deep sleep.

"Alas, such a tragic child... Her mother disappeared, and now her only brother too... If she doesn't mind, the two of us grandfather and granddaughter will just depend on each other from now on." The old butler gently laid Ye Mu down on the bed.

However, the next day brought something the old butler could never wrap his head around.

Ye Mu had actually vanished.