Five days later...
[System message skipped]
"Hey! What do you think you're doing, brat?" Living Buddha Sage swatted his hand away like he was shooing a pesky mosquito.
"Ow! Ow! That hurt! Sage Grandpa, why'd you smack me?" Aiden Chen clutched his hand, rubbing it furiously and whining like a drama queen.
Living Buddha Sage huffed, "Men and women shouldn't just touch each other, okay? Seriously, stop poking her hand like it's a game—it's super rude!" He grumbled, then went right back to checking her pulse, all business.
Aiden puffed up, waving his arms. "Pfft, men and women, whatever! If Eli hadn't saved her, she'd be toast! And if he hadn't picked those ultra-rare, spirit-boosting Comfort Blossoms for her every single day, her finger would still be a dead noodle! Those flowers only bloom once a century, and there's like, five of them! Eli never even picks them for himself, but this girl? Jackpot!"
"Alright, alright! Enough with the chatter, you're gonna make my ears bleed!"
"Yeah, I'm loud! Super loud! You're driving me nuts—arghhhh!" Aiden shouted, cranking up the volume like he was auditioning for a banshee role.
"Mm..." A faint noise made Living Buddha Sage freeze mid-grumble, then he ninja-grabbed Aiden's mouth to shut him up.
"Shh!" He shot a deadly glare at Aiden, the classic 'zip it or else' look.
"Mm..." The sound was louder this time. Aiden froze, mind flashing to all those webnovels where saving someone meant you owed a life debt. Was he about to witness a legendary repayment scene?
Aiden practically tripped over himself getting to the bedside, eyes glued to Ivy as her fingers twitched and her eyelids fluttered. Living Buddha Sage swooped in to check her pulse, then did a dramatic beard-stroke and finally broke into a grin. "She's finally waking up!"
"Wait, she's actually waking up?" Aiden's eyes went wide. After babysitting her for ages, any sign of life was basically a party.
"Quick, get some water—stat!" Living Buddha Sage barked, going full ER mode.
"Oh! On it!" Aiden dashed to the table, snatched up a cup, and handed it over like he was passing the Olympic torch.
Living Buddha Sage scooped up a little water with a spoon and gently touched it to Ivy's lips, feeding her like she was a precious porcelain doll.
"Uh..." The water hit her lips and she licked them like a thirsty kitten. Next thing you know—bam!—her eyes popped open.
"Whoa! You're awake! You actually woke up!" Aiden nearly did a victory dance, shouting with pure joy.
"Ugh... everything hurts..." Ivy opened her eyes and tried to move, but it felt like her bones were about to snap into a million pieces. Oof.
"Don't move!" Living Buddha Sage warned, going full stern grandpa. "Your body is basically a miracle—surviving all that trauma? Legendary! But you're still super busted, so just chill and don't wiggle, okay?"
Hearing this, Ivy Shen frowned slightly, glancing at him and then around the room. "Where... is this?"
"This is Violet Heart Valley," Aiden quickly replied.
"Violet Heart Valley?" Ivy repeated the three words softly. She'd never heard of it before. "Uh... then who are you?"
"He's the legendary Living Buddha Sage, and I'm Aiden Chen, Sage Grandpa's trusty assistant!" Aiden declared, nudging Sage Grandpa with his elbow. "Right, Sage Grandpa?"
"Yep, that's right," Sage Grandpa chuckled, agreeing.
But Ivy Shen just frowned harder at their answer. A moment later, she looked at them and asked again, "Then... who am I?"
"...?!" That question made both men—who'd just been celebrating—freeze on the spot.
"Who am I? Do you know? Huh? Who am I?" Ivy anxiously reached up and pressed her aching head, but her mind was a total blank. Who was she? Why was she here? Why did her whole body hurt so much?
"Sage Grandpa, how come... how come she forgot who she is?"
"Girl, don't panic! You suffered serious injuries and fell from a huge height—losing your memory is honestly pretty normal. But don't worry, Sage Grandpa will figure out a way to cure you." Sage Grandpa hurried to reassure her. (Though honestly, he wasn't sure he could. Just dragging her back from death was already a miracle; maybe forgetting was even a blessing. Otherwise, what could've hurt her so badly?)
"Ugh, my head hurts..." Ivy Shen was still obsessing over who she was, but no matter how hard she tried, her mind felt completely hollow—absolutely no memories at all.
"Don't worry, miss! With Sage Grandpa here, you'll definitely get better. I mean, you were basically dead and he saved you—fixing a little memory loss is nothing!" Aiden grinned.
Hearing that, Ivy could only nod.
"Alright, girl, stop overthinking. You just woke up, your body is still weak. Later, I'll have Aiden catch a wild chicken to make some soup for you. As for your memory, Sage Grandpa will work on it—just rest for now."
"Okay." The mention of rest made Ivy feel tired again, so she closed her eyes and started to sleep.
Seeing this, Sage Grandpa left the room with Aiden in tow.
***********
Ten days later
Day by day, Ivy Shen's injuries healed under the Living Buddha Sage's care. She could already walk around, though her left chest still ached faintly—but it was no big deal anymore.
"Little Bird! Little Bird!" Aiden came running over with a grin. "Little Bird, where are you off to?" Ever since Ivy lost her memory, Aiden had called her 'Little Bird' nonstop—said she fell from the sky like a bird with broken wings. Whether Ivy liked it or not, he just kept calling her that every day.
"Gossip Girl, what do you want?" Ivy Shen shot him a look. She hated the 'Little Bird' nickname, but this guy was stubborn. Fine, if he called her Little Bird, she'd call him Gossip Girl!
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"You're the Gossip Girl! I'm Aiden!"
"Who cares!" Ivy ignored him, stood up, and walked to the windowsill. She reached out to touch a cluster of white flowers. "Wow, they smell so nice!"
Seeing this, Aiden came over and said, "Of course! That's a Comfort Blossom—it blooms only once every hundred years. The Young Master has taken care of it all this time, and you got lucky, it just bloomed. Every day, he personally picked some for you to help you wake up!" Aiden grumbled a bit, "His legs aren't great to begin with, and he still insisted on picking flowers. So unfair."
"Where is he? I see the flowers every day, but I've never seen him." Ivy was puzzled.
"The Young Master only comes when you're asleep. He says he's afraid of disturbing your rest," Aiden explained quickly.
Hearing that, Ivy said, "I want to meet him." She'd been here so long and still hadn't seen him. What kind of person was he? Supposedly, his white crane had saved her?!
"Huh? Meet the Young Master? Why do you want to see him? What's your real motive?" The moment Aiden heard she wanted to meet Eli, he got nervous—even though he'd grown close to Ivy, he was still a little wary.
"Motive?" Ivy tilted her head, then suddenly smiled. "Of course, I want to thank your Young Master! Didn't you say his spirit beast was badly injured saving me, almost died even? Such a rare kindness—I have to repay him, don't you think?"