It has been more than four hundred years since I last saw everyone. Kiana's accounts of my two students alone is enough to make me wary. It did not help that there are also others who gave off similar impressions as them.
Wendy is one of them.
I determined it during our first meeting. She appeared to be meek. A tad bit unsociable, too. But I caught it in her eyes. The same madness I saw on Mei during her heart demon possession.
Coupled with her status as an eighth-grade diviner, I have a feeling she would turn out to be a stalker.
And she did.
"Let's leave this matter aside. It's been a long time since we last met. Care to drop by a cafe or something of sort?"
"A-alright…"
Wendy kept on avoiding my gaze, like a child who did something wrong, but she did not decline my offer. She followed me out of the alley, joining the sea of people. One thought from our minds reduced our presence to the bare minimum. Seeing her shakiness, however, I spent another portion of my mind to upgrade her presence concealment to the maximum. She visibly relaxed as it happened before her eyes widened. She directed that shocked look towards me, something I met with a smile.
"Do you know a good spot around here?"
"A-ah?! Wait a moment…"
Instead of pulling out google and the likes…
She divined her way out of it.
Unsurprisingly, Wendy pinpointed the best cafe around this block. I did not have any qualms in this regard, finding her behavior rather cute.
The cafe itself isn't very populated. The doorbell attached atop rang as we entered, bringing forth a sense of serenity. The warm atmosphere inside made us slightly hesitant to speak in loud voices. Hence, I switched to the divine sense communication—telepathy, in other words.
The cafe did not employ the typical self-service kiosks I have seen during my brief travels. Instead, there is a middle-aged man acting as a cashier whose realm sat at the pinnacle of the Foundation Establishment Realm. One look in his eyes foretold a lengthy story.
I walked up to his desk and asked:
"What are the best-sellers here?"
"It depends on what you feel. Longing, regret, anticipation, love…" He continued to talk about a plethora of emotions. "There is so much a cup of coffee could convey."
His words made me freeze momentarily. There was a complex look present in his eyes. No doubt I could have pried through it with my divine sense, but I chose not to. This man reminded me of the time I had an epiphany during a rainy day.
"Reunion… and love."
The man seemingly understood my words. He glanced at me and Wendy with a knowing look. My peripheral vision caught the latter's sickly obsessive look.
"Two glasses?"
"Hum."
After paying a reasonable tab, we received a receipt and sat down on one of the empty tables. Only now did I get a closer look at Wendy. Her dark green hair is kept consistently at her shoulder. Their tips held a natural light green highlight, its vibe reminiscent of gusts of wind found at a mountaintop. Her light green irises held a look of wisdom. A habit developed by diviners ever-so-often.
The outfit she wore caught me off guard the moment I saw her. It is similar to Aglaea's pure white attire, but instead of a single slit at her legs, there are two. The gown stuck closely to her, blocking the sight of her legs. Bright golden rings are strapped on both her legs, her feet remaining barefoot.
"Love… why did you say it as such?"
Curiosity could not be hidden from her voice. Layered beneath it, however, is her expectations. She wanted to know why I did that.
The answer's simple.
"Because I wanted to understand more of you."
*****
Wendy's connection to Shi Tian has been that of a parasocial. Her feelings were one-sided. She is fully aware when it comes to this regard, though she was helpless to do anything to fix it.
Three hundred years ago, there had been a top-secret meeting which involved fifteen of the twenty-one Divine Transformation Realm experts. Only the ones belonging to the generation of the Honkai knew about it. As such, Wendy caught wind of it.
The first thought that came to her mind was disappointment.
What did others have that she did not?
She felt she could assist Shi Tian as much as others could do. However, she was not chosen.
'Was it his trust?'
'Did he think I am not strong enough?'
'Maybe others are more important to him…'
It started out as brief bursts of frustration. Centuries are enough to transform these frustration into deeply-rooted resentment, however. Wendy did not resent Shi Tian for not choosing her. She resented herself for not being strong enough. For not being reliable enough.
That was why she did one crazy thing, something huge enough that sent her three-hundred-years' worth of dark thoughts down the drain. Wendy wanted to meet up with Shi Tian, not only because she wanted to properly confess, but also to warn him about it.
Her plans fell apart, however, when her 'automatic Tian diviner' went up. It was designed to flare up the moment Shi Tian left seclusion. Wendy received the automatic notice, his location, and the opportunity to meet him. She did not expect, however, for her stalking to be seen right through. The 'accidental encounter' Wendy cooked up was destined to be never used.
Fortunately, things turned out right in the end. Wendy stared at Shi Tian. Words could not escape out of her mouth.
'He wants… to know more…'
She did not expect such a direct approach to the point she felt lost.
"I… At that time, I took it for granted. My current life. I did not think much of the canceled project from the higher-ups."
Wendy began telling her story from the beginning. She likened her past self to a clueless fool who averted a disaster by doing nothing. Back then, Shi Tian traded the Second Divine Key for the Fenghuang Down and the Gem of Desire in Otto's possession. It was a losing deal, yet he carried it out. Part of it was to push the Second Divine Key to Otto. Only with it in his possession would his plans progress forward.
Fenghuang Down then went back to its rightful owner, Fu Hua. She utilized its power along with the Water's Edge to fend Kevin off during the time Shi Tian, Kiana, and Seele were gone.
The Gem of Desire was more of a sudden addition in Shi Tian's side. He was confident he could heal Himeko's honkai corruption. Anna's transformation into the Herrscher of Ice, and then Rhinestar, was indirectly prevented by his transformation into the Herrscher of Ice. Only Wendy's case was left, so he acted on it.
This small amount of kindness resulted in something big when Wendy discovered the entire story. She saw the future that she could have gone down to—turning into the very Herrschers they were educated to kill. The scourge of the world. The false gods who bring nothing but slaughter.
Seeing herself become a monster like that sent chills down her spine. Though that future was averted, Wendy developed an obsession towards the person responsible for it. The person who never asked for anything in return. The person who wouldn't even speak of it to Wendy.
'Shi Tian…'
*****
A/N: GGZ Wendy is the main reason why I had to put her in Tian's harem...