Space station 17: Kafka - Su Qing's Fish and Bear's Paw, Both Desired

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[Three years might barely be enough for an average apprentice demon hunter to just complete their assessment.]

[But for you, it was sufficient to advance from silver badge to gold badge.]

[Naturally, the journey wasn't without its challenges.]

[However, once you decisively defeated a moderately ranked gold-badge demon hunter head-on, things suddenly became much simpler.]

[Additionally, among Tianyi-5's few gold-badge demon hunters, several were nearing the end of their peak performance.]

[Your emergence, undoubtedly, served as a powerful boost, lifting the morale of the demon hunters.]

[With favorable timing, resources, and support aligning, within less than five or six years, you achieved the highest honor for a demon hunter.]

[Becoming a gold-badge demon hunter, you embarked on an even more relentless killing spree.]

[With this status, obtaining information became significantly easier. Even a dedicated group of demon hunters was assigned to gather intelligence specifically for you.]

[You began targeting and hunting down renowned demons with greater precision.]

[These demons were more powerful, cunning, and often carried traces of Stellaron energy, making them key sources of chaos.]

[Every demon with some notoriety who dared to show its face faced your relentless pursuit. They either met their demise or suffered severe injuries.]

[Such joyful and straightforward days continued for a while.]

[However, over the past few months, as if breaking a delicate balance, signs of demonic counterattacks emerged.]

[Rumors circulated about occasional sightings of the Star Core Demon, supposedly indulged in pleasure.]

[Despite this, the cities surrounding you remained relatively peaceful, forming a circle with you at its center. Few intelligent and formidable demons dared to appear within a day's travel distance from you.]

[On another note...]

[Since avenging her loss and regaining her composure, Kafka has undergone significant changes over these three years...]

This was an open-air restaurant.

On both sides of its pathway, there were about a dozen tables, each shaded by sun umbrellas.

Kafka, her hair tied back in a ponytail, sat at one such table.

Dressed in a white blouse and a long coat, her slender legs were encased in purple stockings, complemented by brown knee-high boots.

Compared to three years ago, her demeanor had significantly transformed.

Holding a sleek silver coffee spoon, Kafka gently stirred her coffee with graceful movements.

A subtle smile graced her lips, adding an aura of mystique to her presence.

Not only had her demeanor changed dramatically, but so had her physique.

Kafka always possessed a curvaceous figure, which now exuded a mature allure.

Underneath her white blouse, her full curves seemed ready to burst forth, straining against the front buttons.

Her waist was delicate, while her thighs appeared slightly squeezed beneath her attire. The contours of her hips, accentuated by the tight pants, were undeniably perfect.

Even sitting quietly, Kafka exuded an elegant charm reminiscent of a sophisticated urban woman.

[Qingque: Sigh, some people change drastically over six years, yet others remain unchanged after centuries...]

[Fu Xuan: Hmm?]

[Qingque: I was talking about myself! (sorrowful)]

[Fu Xuan: Hmph, superficial appearances cannot measure a person's worth.]

[Himeko: Indeed.]

[Natasha: Very true.]

[Black Swan: Absolutely.]

[Hanya: Grand Diviner speaks wisely.]

[Fu Xuan: You all... (surrounded by four tall figures) (looking up)(can't see even a sliver of sky)]

[Fu Xuan: ... (clenching fists) This is going too far!]

The young woman greeted a familiar staff member and headed to the nearby mall.

Kafka's gaze fell upon a table not far away.

A man sat there, tapping his foot incessantly, appearing quite agitated. After a moment, another man joined him at the table.

They began discussing in hushed tones, "Now? Right here?" "To create chaos, we must... At least take out a few..."

[Stelle: Whispering loudly about their sinister plot.]

[Bronya: Their voices may be low, but they should've finalized their plan before coming out.]

[Herta: Just a pair of expendable lackeys rushing to their doom.]

Setting down her coffee spoon, Kafka took out a photograph for comparison. Confirming it was them, she stood up, holding her sword with her right hand behind her back. The blade concealed beneath her coat hugged closely against her waist and hips.

She approached, calmly passing by the table where the two men were seated and smiling at the little girl nearby.

Seeing a pretty older sister smile at her, the fearless child waved enthusiastically.

Kafka positioned herself between the two tables and gently placed her gloved left hand on one of them. "Excuse me, sorry to interrupt."

The man seated on the right looked up impatiently. "What? I haven't even ordered yet."

Softly parting her red lips, Kafka abruptly asked, "Tell me, are you a demon?"

"I am, of course... Uhgh, aaah..." As soon as he began speaking, he clutched his throat hoarsely, with the tip of a sword emerging from it.

In agony, he collapsed onto the floor, transforming into an ugly quasit demon.

"You—!" The other man stood up, instantly revealing his demonic true form as well.

He intended to attack but, upon meeting Kafka's calm gaze, suddenly felt inclined to retreat. Turning around, he tried to flee.

Casually, Kafka commanded, "Listen to me, trip your own left foot over the right."

Thud!

Obediently, the demon's left foot tripped its right, causing him to crash to the ground.

[Seele: Ha-ha?]

[Stelle: Laughing so hard, can you use it like that?!]

[Kafka: Word Spirit Technique, isn't it fascinating?]

With swift sword strikes, Kafka ended the lives of both demons.

They barely managed to escape beyond the table's vicinity.

Despite this, customers across the aisle still panicked—some fled while others screamed, causing minor chaos.

Only the nearby little girl, remembering her mother's words, stayed seated with wide-eyed alertness, completely motionless.

[March 7th: Don't be so obedient at times like these!]

Kafka glanced at the little girl. After a moment's thought, she turned around, took the ice cream from the trembling server on the ground, and leaned down to hand it over. "Here you go."

The ponytailed little girl seemed quite fearless, showing no signs of fear as she happily accepted the treat. "Thank you, Big Sister!"

Smiling, Kafka gently patted the girl's head.

At that moment, footsteps approached from nearby.

The little girl noticed the gentle and beautiful sister standing before her, her eyes lighting up. Then, she got up and quickly walked towards the newcomer.

Kafka approached and softly asked, "How did things go on your side?"

Su Qing nodded. "It's taken care of. And here?"

Kafka replied, "It's resolved here too, with no injuries."

"Good job," Su Qing acknowledged.

With her hands clasped behind her back, Kafka leaned slightly forward. Instinctively, Su Qing patted her head, eliciting a contented expression from Kafka.

The little girl licked her ice cream.

Until she noticed something on Su Qing's shoulder and looked up at his face.

Wow, it's the gold-badge demon hunter I've seen on TV!

[Gold-Grade Demon Hunter Epaulette: When worn, provides suppression against demons, fiends, and similar entities, increasing damage dealt by +30%.]

[Fu Xuan: A one-third bonus? That's impressive!]

The golden epaulette was an enhanced version of the previous two, but unfortunately, only one could be active at a time.

[Bronya: This makes sense. Otherwise, if there were even more badges, someone might end up wearing a whole row on their shoulders, scaring demons to death just by sight.]

Ignoring instructions again, the little girl ran over with her ice cream, "Sir Gold-Badge Demon Hunter! Could you give me an autograph?"

Su Qing glanced at Kafka.

Kafka shook her head, "I don't know her; she just happened to be eating here."

Su Qing looked down and replied kindly, "No."

The ponytailed little girl seemed struck by lightning, asking incredulously, "Why not?"

"I'm a demon hunter, not a celebrity," Su Qing responded. "Why should I give you an autograph?"

Upon hearing this, the little girl had an epiphany and became excited again. "That makes so much sense! Truly befitting of a gold-badge demon hunter!"

[March 7th: Ha ha, how adorable.]

[Stelle: This silly kid.]

[Kafka: (gentle gaze)]

[Himeko: (gentle gaze)]

[Stelle: ...Wait! Why are you all looking at me like that?]

[Stelle: Do I really come across as similar to her in your minds?!]

[March 7th: From what I've seen when you're rummaging through trash bins, you don't seem much smarter than her.]

[Stelle: Impossible, absolutely impossible!]

Noticing the little girl's adoring expression, Kafka smiled. "Go ahead and sign for her; she's quite cute."

With Kafka's encouragement, Su Qing didn't hesitate. "Alright."

He took a nearby ordering notepad from another table, tore off a sheet, and signed his name on it.

"Yay!" The little girl accepted the signature, held it up triumphantly, and appeared genuinely delighted.

They then returned to their previous seats near Kafka.

Kafka picked up her cookie, remarking, "You're quite famous now, encountering fans is inevitable."

Su Qing shook his head. "I'm mainly concerned about affecting our mission. On one hand, there's a risk of being recognized by demons. On the other, if a crowd gathers, it could lead to casualties."

Kafka, holding her cookie, leaned slightly closer to him and nodded. "Yes, that makes sense. You always think things through thoroughly."

Su Qing looked at Kafka.

Sometimes, he would feel that Kafka had grown up and matured.

But then, in fleeting moments when she turned back,

he would also perceive that Kafka seemed unchanged from a few years ago, with little difference.

This conflicting sensation, he experienced quite often recently.

On the side,

the little girl licked her ice cream while observing them curiously.

Why did this beautiful big sister suddenly seem like a different person?

Just moments ago, she was so cool and formidable fighting the demon.

Now, however, she resembled their family's pet cat. Following closely behind the older brother, she appeared as though wanting to rub against his leg and be stroked on the head, clearly seeking affection.

Children's instincts are often accurate.

Kafka, noticing the little girl's curious expression, smiled. With a wink from her lovely purple eyes, she gestured a shushing motion:

[Stelle: Oh!]

[Silver Wolf: Now I understand.]

[Fu Xuan: Now I understand. +1]

[Himeko: Now I understand. +2]

[Kafka: What are you guys talking about?]

[Firefly: It's saying that your current appearance aligns more with the image everyone has of you, right?]

[Firefly: Elegant, mature, mysterious, and such...]

[Kafka: Can I take that as a compliment?]

[Stelle: Absolutely, it's a strong praise!]

[Himeko: Same here, now I finally feel like, "oh, this is truly her."]

[March 7th: Although Kafka appears more mature now,]

[March 7th: Why was she pretending to be childish just moments ago in front of Su Qing?]

[Himeko: Rather than that, what I'm more curious about is, where's the coffee??]

[Himeko: Kafka only took cookies; why isn't she having her coffee?]

[March 7th: Sister Himeko, your focus is quite peculiar.]

When the cleanup crew arrived, Kafka followed closely by Su Qing's side, and they left together.

Long ago, she had similarly trailed behind Su Qing step by step when departing from the psychological clinic.

Back then, she had nowhere else to go.

Now, however, the world before her had become clear, presenting numerous paths for her to choose from beneath her feet.

Yet, she still walked along her favorite path.

The little girl's mother emerged from the nearby mall and was startled by the scene before her eyes. She hurried over, embracing her daughter tightly.

"What happened?!?"

Holding an ice cream cone in her left hand, the little girl raised her right hand with a signature. "Just now, there was a beautiful big sister who swiftly took down the demon. Then another Gold Chapter Demon Hunter brother appeared..."

Upon hearing about a Gold Chapter Demon Hunter, the young woman assumed her daughter was making it up and didn't take it seriously. Instead, she focused on hugging her closely, checking her over and gently patting her, relieved that her daughter wasn't harmed.

***

At Katherine's psychological clinic:

"Alright, alright, Su Qing, please go to the main hall first. We don't want everyone crowded here; it's too cramped."

Katherine directed Su Qing to the lobby, also instructing the group of curious demon hunters around them to follow him away.

With only a dozen or so Gold Chapter Demon Hunters on the entire planet, they invariably drew attention.

Slightly reluctantly, Su Qing left the room, allowing Katherine to finally close the door behind him.

"Here." Kafka produced some cookies and placed them on the table. "These are the cookies you asked me to bring from that specific shop."

"Thank you!" Katherine accepted them, opened the package, and took a bite. "Delicious! Only those from that particular shop have this taste."

"By the way," Katherine said after eating two cookies, "have things between you and him remained the same lately?"

Katherine and Kafka generally interacted as friends, with only a small age difference between them.

"Pretty much," Kafka replied, seeming reluctant to discuss this topic.

"Haha, as expected." Katherine teased with a smile, "When you heard about his guardianship ending, you appeared so confident. Yet even now, there's been no progress at all?"

[Stelle: She rhymed again.]

[Sparkle: Katherine: Will he win? Kafka: He will.]

[Silver Wolf: Tough situation.]

"Heh." The corners of Kafka's mouth curved slightly into a smile, "At least I'm doing better than you."

Katherine immediately stopped smiling, somewhat irked. "If you keep pretending like this, I fear he'll always see you as just a little girl."

Kafka's smile also faded instantly.

As they continued eating the cookies, both fell into silence.

Katherine recalled her previous conversation with Su Qing.

Earlier on:

Su Qing: "Kafka won't demonize again due to someone's death now, right?"

"No, she won't. Don't worry, her mental strength has significantly grown." Katherine furrowed her brow, then added, "You're not planning...?"

Recently, demonic activities had become increasingly frequent.

She assumed Su Qing was contemplating some foolish solo infiltration mission.

Su Qing shook his head, "No, I'm not."

With a hint of sentimentality, he said, "How should I put it? As time goes by, I feel more and more attached to certain things."

"Now that Kafka is with me, I can't be as reckless as when I first started this line of work."

Returning to the present moment.

Katherine picked up a cookie and popped it into her mouth.

As expected.

Just as she had anticipated before, the timing was now different. Between these two individuals, there seemed even less room for anyone else's involvement.

Kafka's reliance on Su Qing had evolved into a deep attachment.

The more she liked him, the greater her fear of change; the stronger her attachment, the more she feared losing him after any alteration.

Kafka consistently avoided showing a mature side in front of Su Qing, likely out of fear that he might think she should be independent, no longer needing to live together or maintain their previous closeness.

Yet at the same time,

Without a doubt, Kafka also didn't want Su Qing to constantly treat her like a little girl.

What a truly contradictory situation.

[Himeko: From this perspective...]

[Himeko: Katherine lost right from the starting line, while Kafka never even entered the race.]

[Himeko: Truly unfortunate, @Kafka]

[Kafka: Hmph, I don't need your sympathy.]

Echoing the chat, Katherine smiled, having reached a similar understanding.

Seeing her smile,

Kafka raised an eyebrow and grabbed several cookies from the bag, as if determined to finish them all, which were originally bought for Katherine.

This only amused Katherine further.

In truth, it wasn't so bad, was it?

As long as Su Qing was by Kafka's side, she would forever remain like a young girl, dependent on him.

And with Su Qing present, Kafka would always preserve within her heart that youthful innocence deep down.

Such a state of mind is envied by many but unattainable for most.

***

Upon returning home,

Kafka pondered over her conversation with Katherine earlier that day.

It became clear:

The fish represented the unwavering closeness with Su Qing, similar to past years, which she still desired.

The bear's paw symbolized being treated not as a little girl anymore by Su Qing, something she also wanted.

So here arose the question:

Is there a way to have both the fish and the bear's paw? Can I truly have it all?

The answer was equally evident.

Yes.

After days of contemplation, Kafka finally devised a plan.

Later at night.

Su Qing had turned off the lights and was just about to sleep when he heard a knock on the door, "Can I come in?"

"Sure, come in."

The door opened.

Kafka appeared at the entrance, wearing only a white shirt with its collar unbuttoned, revealing her smooth thighs enticingly under the moonlight. The toy bear she held conveniently covered the lower part of her partially unfastened shirt.

With some hesitation and concern, Kafka asked, "I can't sleep tonight. Can I join you?"

[Upon witnessing this scene, the chat erupted in shock.]

[Silver Wolf: Is she teasing him?]

[Silver Wolf: Showing both innocent fear and sultry allure at once, huh?]

[Seele: Wow, how did Kafka even come up with this?]

[March 7th: It's the power of love! The power of love knows no bounds!]

[Stelle: Alright, enough.]

As Kafka took two more steps forward, revealing her alluring figure under the moonlight...

[Firefly: Th-this... This is not quite appropriate, right?]

[Silver Wolf: Woo-hoo!]

[Silver Wolf: Time to sit up for a better view.]

[Stelle: My Kafka mama is so risqué; I...I...]

[Seele: Embarrassed again?]

[Stelle: No, (blushing) just feeling a bit shy.]

[Sparkle: Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha (bursting out laughing)]

[Kafka: ...]

[Kafka: @Black Swan, please cut away from this scene, thank you.]

[Black Swan: Apologies, but there's only one live feed channel.]

[Himeko: Ahem, speaking of which. @March 7th, @Stelle, I recently bought some delicious treats. They're available at the train's dining car—feel free to help yourselves.]

[March 7th: Sister Himeko! Fine, Stelle can be treated like a kid, but must you include me too?!]

[Stelle: What do you mean "let's skip me"?]

[Himeko: How old are you both?]

[Stelle: One year.]

[March 7th: Three years.]

[Seele: ???]

[Silver Wolf: So we're counting our ages from when we woke up, right?]

[Despite the playful banter,]

[the live stream viewers eagerly awaited Su Qing's reaction to see what she would do.]