"So, Big Sister Bianka, have you thought about what your codename will be?" Getting back on topic, Li Sushang asked Bianka again.
"Since Captain Shu gives everyone their codename, I'll just wait for him to come back," Bianka said.
Bianka was aware that Shu had left the base with his squad. After all, for a period after her morning run each day, the base's broadcast would report the news and some internal MOTHs affairs. One of those reports had mentioned Shu taking Kiana and the others to re-establish the global orbital network.
"But you're heading to the front line soon. Will it be okay to not have a codename?" Li Sushang asked. "Everyone else uses a codename. You can't just use your real name, can you, Big Sister Bianka? Sifu got scolded for registering her account on [The Spark] with her real name..."
Bianka froze. Come to think of it, her own Spark account was also... wait, what was her username again?
Bianka quickly pulled out her phone to check her account. Hmm, the name was [User9527], not her real name... Thank goodness she hadn't paid attention to picking a name back then...
Silently putting her phone away, Bianka gave an awkward laugh and began to seriously consider the matter of her codename.
"Everyone else's was chosen by Captain Shu. Wouldn't it be weird if I made one up myself?" Bianka said.
This time, Li Sushang also fell silent, not knowing how to answer the question.
"Ahahahaha, the bitter melon juice is here!" Theresa's cheerful laughter came from behind them, making the two, who had been chatting nicely, instantly sit bolt upright.
Theresa was holding a tray. On it was a plate of cold-tossed bitter melon and three glasses of emerald-green bitter melon juice.
Just a sniff was enough to catch the bitter melon's sharp aroma. Theresa eagerly set down the tray and took two steps back, puzzled when she saw the two girls not making a move.
"Go on, why isn't anyone drinking?" Theresa enthusiastically picked up two glasses of bitter melon juice and held them out to the girls. "Bitter melon juice is very nutritious, you know!"
With a straight face, Bianka took the glass. She looked down at the emerald-green liquid, took a deep breath, and downed it in one gulp.
She set down the now-empty glass, the bitter melon juice still in her mouth.
With her cheeks puffed out, Bianka didn't even have time to wipe away the single drop of juice that had escaped the corner of her lips. Under Li Sushang's admiring gaze, Bianka's body trembled slightly before she slowly swallowed the juice in her mouth.
"How was it? Delicious?" Theresa asked with a grin.
"De...licious..." Bianka forced a smile and gave Theresa a shaky thumbs-up.
"I told you bitter melon juice is delicious!" Her opinion validated, Theresa smiled and turned to Li Sushang, completely missing Bianka swiftly pulling out a candy, unwrapping it with a speed she didn't even use during training, and popping it into her mouth.
The strained expression on her face quickly softened, so much so that when Theresa turned back to look, she really did see a blissful look on Bianka's face.
"Here, drinking bitter melon juice will help you grow taller~" Theresa cooed like a villain luring an innocent maiden, holding the glass of juice closer and closer to Li Sushang.
Li Sushang trembled like a leaf in the wind, her shaking hands accepting the glass of thick, green liquid.
One look was enough to tell it was freshly squeezed. The bitter smell drilled into Li Sushang's delicate nostrils, making her eyes water.
She glanced at Bianka, who gave her an encouraging thumbs-up. Li Sushang steeled herself, clenched her jaw, closed her eyes, and, holding her breath, chugged most of the juice in one go.
There was no taste while holding her breath, but bitterness is not a fleeting sensation. She held her breath for a long time, but finally, she couldn't hold it any longer.
The moment she exhaled, an endless bitterness flooded her senses. In that instant, Li Sushang thought she saw a bitter melon with the character for "bitter" written on its face. The bitter melon stood with its hands on its hips and stated coldly, "This world has never been a kind place."
Thump—
"Senior Theresa! She... she fainted!" Li Sushang flopped onto the sofa, her eyes turning into spirals.
Theresa sighed as if this was a common occurrence. She quickly checked Li Sushang's condition and, after confirming it was nothing serious, sat down with a puzzled look on her face.
She picked up her own glass of bitter melon juice and took a savory sip. "It's so delicious... why does no one want to drink it?"
At that moment, Bianka had a sudden realization that drinking bitter melon juice might not be a trial at all, but that Theresa genuinely... liked the stuff.
No, it must be a trial. Otherwise, what was the point of all the glasses I've drunk? Am I an idiot? No way, I'm a genius!
A flash of wisdom shone in Bianka's eyes. She then reached over to the table, took a candy Li Sushang had brought, unwrapped it, and carefully placed it in Li Sushang's mouth.
The magic potion worked. The great bitter melon king vanished from Li Sushang's sight. She slowly opened her eyes, licked the lingering juice from her lips, and then sat up in a daze.
"Senior Theresa, I have a question." Having completed her trial, Bianka remembered the issue of her codename and decided to ask Theresa for help.
"Sushang said everyone in the squad has a codename... so my codename..."
Theresa paused for a moment, then understood what Bianka meant.
"Oh! So that's the problem... Do you have any ideas?" Theresa put down her glass, speared a slice of bitter melon with a toothpick, and popped it into her mouth as she asked.
"It seems like Captain Shu chose everyone's codename. I was wondering if I should wait for him to come back..." Bianka said hesitantly.
"I see..." Theresa nodded thoughtfully. She looked at Bianka, ate two more slices of bitter melon, then put down her toothpick.
"Ahem, actually, Shu left a few codenames behind before he left, and I think one of them is perfect for you, Bianka," Theresa said solemnly, clearing her throat and closing her eyes.
"Really?" Bianka was pleasantly surprised. "What is it?"
Theresa secretly peeked through a slit in her eyelids. Seeing Bianka's expectant face, she pushed aside her guilt.
"From now on, your codename will be [Durandal]. What do you think?"
"Durandal..." Bianka repeated the codename thoughtfully. For some reason, she felt it suited her perfectly.
As she nodded, she wondered to herself.
Was this also part of Captain Shu's plan?