That night, he had already told her clearly that he did not need her to wait for him. The message was still in her mind, but she still waited dumbly for him to return.
She had stolen away to take a peek at him by camping under his company, just as she had done when she first reached out to him to help Song Empire. However, unlike that time, she did not rush forward to block him whenever he appeared.
Instead, she would scurry behind the trashcan, behind the telephone post, behind the street lights, deadly afraid that he might spot her. There were two times when he walked past her hiding place, and she was close enough to him that she could hear the familiar footsteps and voice. Both times, the palpitation in her heart made her attention waver, and she stood there for a long time before she was herself again.
In spite of everything, they still accidentally came across each other that one time.