“Oh? Not even a replica?”
Sitting cross-legged, Lin Sanjiu studied the leaf that was talking. There were still buds of shimmering water droplets on its body that looked like its eyes. However, what made Lin Sanjiu curious was that the bed remained dry despite the four “brothers’ sitting on it.
“Nope. I can’t create anything that can breathe.” Lin Sanjiu sighed with a frown. “There’s no use for me to create a body that can’t move either.”
“Let me get this straight. First, no humanoid object, and second, no living object?” Another leaf said in a serious tone, “Considering our origin, I have an idea, but…”
“Well, let’s hear it,” said Lin Sanjiu as she secretly stretched her finger out to reach for it.
“Do you still remember the tea you drank just now?” the leaf said, keeping its head low to study the forms. It did not notice the finger that was nearing its head. The remaining three leaves stared at Lin Sanjiu’s finger with their mouths agape. “You can try to create an item that can extract your soul out of your mortal body. For example, after you kill yourself, your soul will manifest in the other place. Then, you can take the advantage to mislead the bad guy—”
Before the leaf could finish its sentence, Lin Sanjiu retracted her fingers and flicked its head. The leaf shouted and flew away.
Even though they were ghosts, she could physically touch them.
“What a lousy idea,” Lin Sanjiu declared, pouting her lips, “Do you work for the bad guys?”
It seemed to her that the leaf could not feel pain. The leaf was stunned for a while before it struggled to get itself up like an overturned turtle. Chuckling, Lin Sanjiu went forward to help it get to its feet. As she caressed its head, she thought for a moment and said, “I have a friend who can control puppets. Perhaps, I can create a puppet, no, argh…I can’t create a humanoid object.”
The group then fell silent. After a short while that seemed like an eternity, a leaf sprang up and said, “I’m the third brother. I have an idea.”
“What is it?” Even though the leaf had told Lin Sanjiu that it was the third brother, she still mixed them up as they all looked the same.
“You don’t have to make a puppet!” the third brother chirruped, “You can make something to control a puppet like a thread—”
“Or radio waves!” another leaf chimed in. All four brothers suddenly became extremely excited as they began to voice out their opinions one after another.
“What else can we use to control the puppet?”
“How about a controller? For example, we just need to press a button and the puppet will raise its arm.”
“Perhaps we can try to make a Special Item that allows you to use your voice to control the puppet,” Mrs. Manas suggested.
This seemed like a good idea.
However, after a short bout of rumination, she realized something very crucial that rendered the idea useless. She sighed. “I can create something like that, but where should I find a puppet that looks like me? Besides, the [Party B’s Designer] can only make one Special Item.”
She did not want to crush the four brothers’ confidence, but there was one more problem with this idea.
Even Puppeteer’s puppets looked very awkward. They did not have any expression on their face when they were talking or walking. If somebody could tell it was a fake Lin Sanjiu from a first glance, then Lin Sanjiu would rather not waste her time on something like this.
In other words, the appearance, the walking pattern, and most importantly, the fake one must look very similar to the real deal. Those are the requirements that needed to be achieved with a Special Item that was full of limitations. It was just impossible.
After she told everything to the four brothers, they fell silent.
Just as Lin Sanjiu thought that they were thinking about another idea, the four brothers put their “heads” together and whispered to each other.
“How come I didn’t know we need to do so many things?” the third brother said.
“Right? I heard from the others that we only need to accompany them and make them happy.”
“Besides, she’s so demanding,” another leaf cut in.
“Right! We are just tea leaves…” Another sighed. “Just what does she thinks we tea leaves can do? She’s pushing us too hard…”
Lin Sanjiu’s expression turned grimmer and grimmer. Just as the brothers felt like they had such bad luck to have been her drink, she snapped and pulled the form back as she glowered, “Didn’t you say you were here to help me?”
The four brothers nodded again. Then, somebody sighed.
“So, the bad guy must see you?” a leaf said dejectedly, “You can just show them a part of your body. Like your shadow.”
“Yes, yes. Imagine this: the bad guy sees your shadow disappearing around the corner, but when he goes after you, you’ve disappeared. How dramatic is that?”
“You can use the shadow to mislead the bad guy as well! What a brilliant idea! You are so clever, elder brother.”
“Besides, it’s easy to control your shadow. All you need to do is find a way to peel it off your body…”
The elder brother chuckled and beamed brightly. “Right? You have to think outside the trough.”
“It should be ‘you have to think outside the box’,” Lin Sanjiu said, “I’m not a pig. Why do I need a trough?”
Nevertheless, this might be the best idea she had right now.
She walked closer to the window. The sun was high in the sky. The rays flitted through the window and cast a long shadow on the floor.
Looking at her own shadow, Lin Sanjiu was engrossed in her thoughts. The leaves had said something about the soul and then the shadow. She felt there was something that she could use in between. What was it?
Soul? Shadow? What kind of Special Item could satisfy her requirements?
After what seemed like ages, she suddenly clapped her hands and caused the four brothers to jump. They leaped down from the bed and gathered around her. Sitting on the windowsill, they raised their heads and looked at her with keen eyes.
“What are you four doing?” Lin Sanjiu glanced at them and then turned to pick the form up. Then, she walked around the room to find herself a pen.
“Do you already have an idea?” the four brothers asked. Lin Sanjiu had no idea how, but she could see the curiosity on their faces.
“Yeah.” Lin Sanjiu chuckled. “Although it wasn’t your idea, I have to say, you inspired me.”
“What’s that?” The four brothers pressed forward.
Lin Sanjiu did not reply as she lay the form on the windowsill. The four brothers all gathered around, their beady eyes staring fixedly at the tip of her pen.
“The name and the appearance of the Special Item,” she murmured before filling in the column.
[3D Physical Projector].
