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Xiao was a cold person who wouldn’t easily show her feelings. Even though the Liu consists of those who only face forward and never express any emotion in battle, Xiao was especially hard-edged above the rest. I came to wonder if she was capable of possessing emotions at all. Her tone was dry in the most upsetting situations, and she seemed apathetic to the loss of several colleagues. Never showing her emotions in response anything, but thoroughly looking after herself. That was my impression of Xiao. I thought the path Xiao was walking was completely different from mine. We disagreed on every aspect, from strategies to personalities; I thought my relationship with her would stay a formal relation between two coworking directors of an association.

I don’t remember when and how we got so close to each other. I couldn’t be bothered to push away the person who naturally came to my side. We started spending more time together outside of work; people intersect one another somehow. Though, I have no clue how our paths managed to converge, or what about the paths led them to cross… One thing I can say for certain is that… our relationship isn’t a superficial bond between two directors. We need each other because we cherish each other, not the other way around; can you really call it love if you only cherish your significant other because you need something out of them? At the very least, I don’t think of Xiao as an object of exploitation nor gratification.

However, I know that preaching love is utterly meaningless in this City. A Fixer should never be carried away by emotion. I know well that a person at a position as high as mine should be extra careful. I’ve seen countless Fixers who brought private matters to the official grounds, only to meet undesirable results. The moment you get swayed by something you cherish, you lose yourself; you neglect your own safety. When a human, a creature that always puts itself above all else, loses their edge because of what they hold dear and places higher priority on it over their own life… The consequences will be grim in any case. Knowing this, I decided to remind ourselves of one thing when we plighted our troth: Whatever happens to each other, we won’t put ourselves at risk. As I thought, Xiao agreed plainly and rightly. I could trust in Xiao, and I was glad to have this person as my lifelong partner. It was reassuring to know that Xiao wouldn’t throw away her own life if I ever died. Focus on my own survival, even in a mortal peril. Perhaps my heart has grown stronger since I met her. Having her next to me was already a great help to me at that point.