Chapter 300: Sol

Chapter 300: Sol

"It's okay, I'm fine." Xiu waved his hand dismissively, though his slightly shaking body betrayed his attempt at nonchalance. He quickly steadied himself.

Although Rinko didn't continue speaking, one could clearly see the worry etched in her eyes. "It's time to eat. Come down and eat first," she said gently.

"Is it so late already?" Xiu raised his head and looked out the window. It was dusk, and the sky was rapidly getting dark.

"Let's go, let's go down then." Xiu didn't particularly care. It didn't matter to him where he ate.

When they went downstairs, they saw Chen and Mei in the kitchen, actively helping with meal preparation. This surprised Xiu.

"If they insist on helping, there's nothing I can do to stop them," Rinko explained with a wry smile, noticing Xiu's confusion.

This attracted Mei's attention. She smiled and waved her hand from the kitchen, saying, "You two go sit in the living room for a while. Dinner will be ready soon."

Xiu didn't particularly care either way; he was too tired and preoccupied to fuss about such things now.

When Rinko and Xiu went out to the living room, they saw Sol sitting alone on the sofa, her face devoid of expression. She looked like a delicate porcelain doll.

Xiu simply sat down next to her and began to talk to her.

"Are you used to living here with your sister Rinko?" he asked, his voice gentle, a faint smile on his face, as if he was afraid of scaring the quiet child.

Sol didn't say anything, but she turned her head to look at him, her gaze unnervingly direct.

Knowing that she might have some condition that affected her speech, Xiu didn't press the issue and just added casually, "It's okay. You'll be able to go home soon."

But to Xiu's profound surprise, Sol actually spoke in the next second. Her voice was ethereal, almost otherworldly, not like that of an ordinary child. "Are you feeling unwell?"

Hearing this, Xiu was stunned on the spot— but Sol did not stop.

Instead, she stretched out her small right hand towards Xiu and placed it gently in front of his forehead, not quite touching.

Then, a faint green light emanated from her palm and seeped into Xiu's forehead.

The moment the light made contact, the throbbing pain in his brain was swept away by an incredibly refreshing, cool sensation— a feeling of pure, natural vitality instantly enveloped him.

Xiu suddenly felt as if his mind had leaped to another dimension, a higher plane of existence.

Everything around him seemed to lose its mundane meaning. Some of the difficult, complex problems that he had been unable to figure out before were now effortlessly solved with this newfound, razor-sharp clarity of mind.

He even vaguely felt as if he had touched upon a higher level of understanding, a glimpse of something profound…

But before he could feel more, the sensation was gone in the next second.

In an instant, he was like a god cast down to the mortal world, stripped of his omnipotent power. He even felt a little uncomfortable, disoriented by the huge, jarring gap between that momentary enlightenment and his normal state.

Sol's little hand, which had been held beside his forehead, dropped limply. Then, she slumped to the side with a look of utter exhaustion.

With the lingering afterglow of that incredible mental clarity, Xiu reacted immediately, reaching out to catch her before she could fall off the sofa.

It was only at this moment that Rinko, who had been watching, finally reacted, a small, shocked exclamation escaping her lips. "What's the matter!"

She quickly ran over and sat on the other side of Sol, reaching out to support the small girl. However, Sol, looking slightly weak but conscious, shook her head slowly, showing no intention of speaking.

For some reason, Sol's inexplicable action and her subsequent exhaustion, touched the very depths of his soul.

An unfamiliar, sharp sense of guilt stung him, and he was so startled by this alien emotion that he instinctively let go of Sol's hand. His face showed an unprecedented panic.

You have to know, Xiu was a man who believed he had completely abandoned his conscience and ties towards his previous life, a man who prided himself on his pragmatism and emotional detachment.

And Sol, this quiet little girl, could actually make him feel guilty!

It actually made him feel guilty!

"What happened just now?" Xiu looked at Rinko anxiously, then hurriedly tried to explain himself, his voice uncharacteristically flustered, "I didn't do anything! How could she be…"

Rinko was also a little confused about the situation. She had been present throughout the whole exchange. She had only seen the two of them chatting quietly, and then Sol had reached out her hand towards Xiu, while Xiu had simply sat there, looking somewhat blank.

It was only two or three seconds later that Sol had collapsed like this.

"Alas…" At this time, a long, soft sigh interrupted the awkward, tense atmosphere between Xiu and Rinko.

Xiu suddenly turned around and saw Mei standing by, watching them with a knowing, sad expression.

"You saw what happened just now," Xiu said to Mei, his voice urgent. "Can you explain what happened to Sol?"

As if wondering why his wife hadn't reacted for so long and why the living room had gone silent, Chen, still wearing an apron, came out from the kitchen.

He looked at the strange situation – Sol limp between Rinko and Xiu, everyone looking distressed – and asked, "What's the matter?"

"Let's eat first," Mei said, her voice calm but firm. "We can talk after we're done."

She walked towards Sol, gently took her from Rinko's supporting arm, and then carried her small daughter into the dining room.

Xiu and Rinko looked at each other, a silent question passing between them. They could only stand up and follow. Chen looked at the reactions of the few people with some surprise but also walked back towards the dining area.

What should have been a joyful, companionable meal became a little awkward.

Everyone just ate in silence. Chen, who originally didn't understand the situation, seemed to realize something was amiss from the somber mood, and his expression became a little solemn.

The only one who was not affected among all the people was Sol. She was eating peacefully, as if nothing out of the ordinary had happened.

Xiu had also lost his appetite. He ate a little, then excused himself and retreated to the living room.

Although he didn't know exactly what Sol had done to him, his headache was indeed significantly relieved. Although there was still a slight, lingering pain, it was not as outrageous or debilitating as before.

He hadn't been sitting in the living room for long when Rinko also came out. "Are you okay?" she asked softly.

Xiu didn't respond verbally, but just shook his head slightly. Suddenly realizing that his curtness might be quite rude, Xiu forced a smile and tried to explain. "It's okay. I'm just a little curious about what's going on with Sol. What was that green light just now?"

Rinko stopped asking those repetitive questions about his well-being and sat next to Xiu— but there was still some worry in her eyes when she looked at him.

Xiu's behavior today was too abnormal. He was completely different from his usual smart, capable, and composed self.

Instead, he had seemed weak, on edge, and almost neurotic at times.

A moment later, the Chen family came out and sat in the living room. No one wanted to speak first. After a while of uncomfortable silence, Xiu couldn't help but ask.

"What happened with Sol? Just now, she stretched out her hand towards me, and then a green light came out from her palm, and then she just… lost her strength." Xiu briefly explained what had happened from his perspective, bringing up the topic directly.

"That is Sol's unique ability…" Mei began, seeing that she couldn't hide it anymore. She then proceeded to explain Sol's situation in general terms.

To put it simply, a strange, colored light had fallen from the sky on the day Sol was born.

Simultaneously, a brilliant, unnatural light had burst out over the Viridian Forest. This incident had been big news at the time, though no one could explain it.

At first, neither Chen nor Mei realized that their newborn daughter was connected to the phenomenon. It was not until they brought her home that they noticed the potted plants in their house were growing wildly, at a very strange, accelerated speed. This attracted their attention.

Moreover, Sol was born incredibly intelligent— she was eloquent and demonstrated clear, logical thinking by the age of three, she could also somehow send her thoughts directly into other people's minds in a way they couldn't understand, directly skipping the limitations of language.

Of course, they were afraid of such a bizarre, inexplicable thing.

Although they were terrified of what it might mean, they did not abandon their daughter, nor did they publicize her unusual abilities.

Instead, they kept it a closely guarded secret.

Chen and Mei were constantly worried that Sol's unique nature would attract unwanted attention from dangerous people or organizations, so they did not dare to let her go to school alone or interact too freely with strangers.

Fortunately, both Chen and Mei were highly educated and intellectual, so with fortunate circumstances, their individual salaries could cover their cost of living.

But for the sake of her daughter, Mei had given up her original job and dedicated herself to staying at home, taking care of Sol, and providing her with the education she deserved in a safe, controlled environment.