"In the past—"

"'Caiyi, since you are recuperating in the rear now, I'll vent to you.'"

"'Aerial combat is not like ground combat. Although life and death are instantaneous in both, it's rare to see severed limbs, which led me to intuitively misjudge the cruelty of this war. Only recently, as the war situation became increasingly unfavorable, did the bloody reality present itself before me in an undeniably gentle manner.'"

"'People I ate with today are gone tomorrow. The new recruit I praised today is gone tomorrow. The superior I argued with today is gone tomorrow. The ground troops I encouraged today are gone tomorrow.'"

"'At this point, I don't dare to form emotional connections with anyone anymore. Maybe this person will die tomorrow, maybe I will die tomorrow, maybe we will all die tomorrow...'"

Halfway through the diary entry, the biting evening wind surged through the tent. Yukong's hand holding the pen paused slightly, and her gaze subconsciously swept over the empty bed next to her—the family photo on the headboard was still there, the child in the picture smiling. On the more distant beds, the indentations left by the occupants' heads before they left remained on the pillows.

They... would never return.

Attack on Titan—

The kerosene lamp in the Survey Corps dormitory flickered in the wind, just like Levi's mood at this moment, which was extremely heavy.

As the Captain of the Survey Corps, no one understood the pain and numbness in Yukong's heart better than him. He stood alone in the center of the room, the sounds around him sweeping over him like waves, instantly engulfing him.

...There was the sound of Petra's bones cracking as she was crushed, the dying whispers of Oruo spitting blood, the wailing of Eld as he met his tragic end... and the choking sounds of countless soldiers as they took their last breath.

Their voices could no longer be heard, but only in his dreams could he feel them all standing behind him.

"Captain Levi, we..."

Suddenly, a clear voice came from his ear, as if overlapping with Oruo's low murmur. Levi subconsciously widened his eyes and turned back sharply—

Eren just poked his head in from outside the door, asking in confusion, "Captain?"

He didn't understand why Captain Levi looked so tense even when he was alone in the dormitory.

"What is it?"

"Uh, about our training later..." Eren's voice was a little nervous.

Levi sighed and finally turned his gaze to the "hope of humanity" before him, saying indifferently, "Train with me tomorrow."

—

"'After you die, they will award me a medal. Frankly, I find this very ridiculous.'"

"'They are awarding me a medal and calling me a heroic pilot, the only reason being that I was lucky enough to survive that disastrous battle.'"

"'If you were also this lucky, we could be awarded together right now. After the award ceremony, we could both go to Aurum Alley, have a few drinks, and laugh at their absurdity.'"

"'Unfortunately, you weren't lucky enough. We won't have this chance.'"

'...'

Seeing this, Yukong's pain almost overflowed from the words, making one feel incredibly suffocated.

But just then, Master Yanming suddenly appeared and interrupted the two, scolding, "What are you two doing? The Helm Master's precious daughter is here touching things with an outsider. What kind of behavior is this?"

Master Yanming was shocked by their audacity, but fortunately, Qingni explained in time, and Master Yanming also understood her actions.

When talking about Miss Caiyi, who appeared in the diary, Master Yanming also had an impression: "Caiyi was one of the best armament officers at the time. Countless people wanted to fly with her."

"Her husband, Master Guangyuan, was a pilot. A couple piloting a battlecruiser together is truly enviable."

"However, the one she was most compatible with and most often partnered with had to be your mother. The number of times they went on missions together even surpassed Master Guangyuan. Especially after Master Guangyuan was killed in action, Caiyi almost never partnered with anyone other than your mother."

Master Yanming said sadly, "Alas, unfortunately, Caiyi was also gone not long after. That's the life of a pilot. No one knows if this flight will be the last."

Caiyi's death was a great blow to Yukong. After that battle, Yukong would often read Caiyi's diary.

Master Yanming also understood Qingni's feelings and would turn a blind eye to this matter. After he left, Star and Qingni immediately went to Yukong's desk to look for things, and they really found Caiyi's diary.

Initially, Caiyi's words and mood were also very lively. She was so excited to be able to fight in the sky with Yukong that she couldn't sleep.

Later, after Guangyuan was killed in action, Caiyi was sad but also comforted Yukong... because in trying to comfort her, Yukong ended up crying even more sadly than herself.

Later, it was Caiyi who sent Yukong a message of safety while on maternity leave in the rear and told her that she had already thought of a name for the child.

—Qingni.

Seeing these two words, Qingni felt as if she had been struck by lightning. Her eyes became dazed for a moment, and she almost dropped the diary in her hand.

Demon Slayer World—

"So Qingni is the child of a comrade... No wonder." Shinobu Kocho sighed, "Perhaps Miss Yukong sees Qingni as an extension of Caiyi's life? She failed to protect Caiyi's safety last time, so this time she must protect her child."

"This is the last responsibility she can fulfill for Caiyi. If Miss Qingni were to have any mishap... she would probably be even less able to forgive herself. Rather than letting Qingni go through near-death experiences, she hopes for her to live a stable life."

"But..." Mitsuri Kanroji said worriedly, "Miss Qingni has already been exposed to the sky."

If you haven't seen the light, you can certainly endure the darkness, but once you have... Shinobu Kocho could probably guess that Miss Qingni wouldn't give up easily.

After all, although both Yukong and Caiyi have experienced the taste of "freedom," Qingni has not. Even if this freedom comes with extremely high risks, she will go for it without hesitation.

Willing to sacrifice her life for her dream... Perhaps only with this kind of resolve can she convince Yukong?

"Oh, I don't know which side to stand on..." Mitsuri Kanroji shook her head in distress, her pink braids swaying back and forth.

"If I support Qingni becoming a pilot, and if war breaks out again in the future and she has an accident, becoming a second Caiyi... I can't even imagine how sad and regretful Yukong would be."

"But if I stand with Yukong and prevent Qingni from becoming a pilot, that would be too cruel to her... Is it really fair to her to never be able to achieve her dream in her lifetime?"