Chapter 16: Fireflies Flying

White Snow went limp in the young lady’s arms, her face buried in her chest, murmuring something under her breath.

Su Mengyao leaned in to listen.

She barely caught the words: “Don’t touch my ears either…”

The girl quietly moved her hand away from the cat ears.

She had to admit—White Snow looked even cuter like this than before. She couldn’t take her eyes off her. It wasn’t just against the rules; it was outright cheating.

‘The guilt is so heavy…’

Back when White Snow was in her normal form, only 4’7”, Su Mengyao already felt like she was walking a fine line. But she never expected White Snow had a second stage—a smaller, more compact catgirl that could be held entirely in one’s arms.

‘This is practically a protected species!’

Animal ears, cat tail…

Su Mengyao’s face flushed. ‘Maybe… it’s not so bad?’

System! I demand an explanation!

On the other side, White Snow slapped her thigh and glared seriously.

But her tone carried no menace at all—it was soft, like a child playing house.

[Host, let me explain first!]

The System seemed a bit flustered too.

[This is just a runtime bug. A selective adjustment. We’ll fix it soon. Please understand…]

What? With a bug this severe, the System couldn’t even be bothered to apologize?

White Snow stiffened her expression, her gaze holding three parts anger, six parts sorrow, and one part bottomless despair.

[S-sorry…]

If an apology worked, what use would the police be?

Keep in mind—I was just caught red-handed and almost passed out from rage, okay?

The girl bit her lip, on the verge of tears.

[Uh… then what kind of compensation would the Host like?]

The System was panicking now. Didn’t you tell me to apologize?

It even started to wonder if its own programming was faulty, if it was misreading the situation.

I want to keep this form!

The girl was adamant, her eyes glimmering with anticipation.

The System doubted its own sanity even more.

‘If you like this form, then why were you angry just now?’

Of course, it didn’t dare ask, and it didn’t dare tell the Host that this form had actually been permanently unlocked already.

[Alright. Catgirl form has been unlocked for the Host.]

It chose to brush things off.

Meanwhile, White Snow was secretly thrilled, feeling like she’d gotten a huge bargain.

Catgirl! This is a catgirl!

People talk about it online, but in real life, who doesn’t want to become a soft, fragile, easy-to-push-over little catgirl, with a fluffy tail and furry ears, burrowing into a big sister’s arms and whining for cuddles?

There are only two kinds of people in this world: those who want to be catgirls, and those who refuse to admit it!

“Hmm hmm hmm~”

Limp in Xu Mengyao’s arms, White Snow couldn’t help humming softly.

It sounded like a lullaby.

For some reason, the melody White Snow hummed this time was gentle and pleasant. Su Mengyao, who had been feeling anxious about the girl’s shifting expression, finally relaxed.

It wasn’t that White Snow’s voice had been unpleasant before, but it was always out of tune, more like babbling—her humming no better than a three-year-old singing a nursery rhyme.

Su Mengyao closed her eyes in enjoyment, her body slowly relaxing, her thoughts drifting back to early childhood. Back then, her adoptive mother was still alive, and there was no talk of fake or true heiresses. She would lie in her mother’s arms, acting spoiled, begging her to hum a lullaby.

That was… such a long, long time ago…

Back then, she didn’t even know what worry meant.

“Mom…”

The girl murmured, her eyes reddening.

A tear slipped down her cheek, landing on the girl’s forehead.

Lost in her memories, she didn’t notice White Snow’s utterly incredulous expression.

‘Who are you calling mom, meow!’

What mom? White Snow is not a mom, meow!

In her previous life, she’d heard that many people online loved calling lolis “mom.” It was supposedly some kind of trend—something about the difference between a loli and a teen being that if you call a loli “mom,” she genuinely wonders whether she can be a good mother.

White Snow had thought it was just a gimmick for views.

But now…

“White Snow… can you hum that song again?”

Just as the girl was considering whether to offer a gentle motherly lap pillow, Su Mengyao gently pinched her cheek.

Hum a song? Me?

I’m tone-deaf!

The girl froze, then remembered that her humming had indeed felt smooth just now. She glanced at a line on her Personal Panel: Music Theory LV1.

Was it because of this?

White Snow wasn’t sure, but her gut told her yes.

She had thought Music Theory was useless, only for playing expensive instruments. She didn’t expect it to include singing too.

The girl got excited.

‘Does that mean I can become an idol in the future?’

‘I mean, I’m this cute, with natural white hair—it would be easy to charm countless girls and boys, right?’

She remembered the last female lead who hadn’t appeared yet—Ye Xiqiu. In the future, she would become a virtual singer. Compared to the other two, her situation was the simplest and easiest to solve.

Maybe I could even form a band with her for life!

“Can’t you…?”

When the answer didn’t come for a long time, Su Mengyao’s spirits sank a little.

‘I guess so. How could anyone be willing to sing just for me?’

‘Even Mom… only mistook me for her daughter…’

“Oh, it’s not that,” White Snow said, pinching the girl’s cheek with a pout.

“What’s the hurry? I was just thinking about something…”

Without waiting for Su Mengyao to ask, she cleared her throat and sat up.

“‘Black sky hangs low—Bright stars follow—Fireflies fly, fireflies fly—Who are you missing…’”

The girl who was about to speak quickly held her breath, listening intently.

This was a melody Su Mengyao had never heard before.

Soft and beautiful.

But strangely, it made her want to cry…

When the chorus came, the girl’s pitch rose sharply.

“‘Fireflies fly—flowers sleep—Only pairs and pairs are beautiful—Not afraid of darkness, only afraid of a broken heart—No matter tired or not—No matter east, south, west, or north…’”

When the song ended, Su Mengyao remained lost in thought for a long time.

The melody was so simple.

Simple enough that after hearing it once, she could hum it.

But paired with White Snow’s pure, clear voice, the feeling it gave was something no pop song on the market could match.

It was like waking up from a nap and realizing you were still a child, held in your mother’s arms.

She gently patted your back.

“Yaoyao, did you have a nightmare? Mom heard you shouting about exams and work. Yaoyao is still little—don’t worry about those things. Want some candy?”

But then, that image shattered.

Just a fleeting dream—in the end, she still had to face life’s hardships.

“Thank you, White Snow…”

She gave an apologetic smile.

“Thank you for letting me feel like I had a mom again…”

‘I keep telling you I’m not a mom!’

Still… being called “mom” didn’t feel so bad…

“Mm… ah… don’t thank me,” The girl turned her head away, her tone unnatural.

“I just hummed a song.”

But your face is screaming “Praise me!”…

“Um… what’s the name of this song?”

“It’s called ‘Fireflies’~”

“‘Fireflies’…”

Su Mengyao mouthed the name, but nothing came to mind. She pulled out her phone and searched.

No results.

‘Did White Snow make up this song for me?’

The girl broke into a radiant smile.

“Hey, White Snow, I’ve memorized it.”

“This is a song just for the two of us.”