Chapter 38: Crimson Blossoms (2/2)

"Can't bring yourself to do it?"

Although Liu Mengchao could not see Qing Yun’s face, he knew that at this moment, Qing Yun’s face must be wearing a jubilant smile.

"What are you hesitating for? You soft-hearted Agent." Qing Yun’s polyphonic voice was as grating as ever, perhaps even more so. "Do you truly believe that once you have become an Agent, you can still live like an ordinary person?"

*Click... click...*

The walls behind Liu Mengchao began to crumble, piece by piece, and face after face emerged from the masonry.

Mei Misaki’s eyes suddenly changed, filled with a look of profound nostalgia.

"Sister," Mei Misaki whispered, involuntarily calling out the name of a face behind Liu Mengchao.

Turning his head, Liu Mengchao looked at the girl who had emerged from the wall and suddenly began to laugh. She bore a striking resemblance to Mei Misaki. She had short hair and a pair of red eyes. Her skin was as fair as Mei Misaki’s, like porcelain that would shatter at the slightest touch. Had she not been pulled into this ghastly state, she would have likely been a vibrant, sunny girl.

"Twins?"

Liu Mengchao voiced his thought, only to be met with a contemptuous sneer from the Agent, Qing Yun.

"You still have the leisure to focus on such trivial details? Look around you! You incompetent Agent!"

The corpses that had previously fallen to the ground were crawling back up, shaking their heads in a manner identical to the zombies Liu Mengchao had encountered in his previous world.

"As long as Mei Misaki does not die, the ghosts in this fantasy kingdom will continue to resurrect. It will never end."

"Oh?"

Liu Mengchao smiled. With a slight tilt of his head, he dodged a pale claw reaching out from behind him. He spun around, and his greatsword swept in a horizontal arc. The figures behind him fell like bowling pins, clattering to the floor.

"Not bad reflexes, but how long can you keep this up?"

Qing Yun’s voice acted like a command. More and more faces emerged from every direction. It felt as though he were being watched by an audience; no matter where he moved, there were cold, icy gazes fixed upon him. These faces slowly pulled themselves from the walls—first the feet, then the torso, and finally the trailing arms. These dead people had returned to the world, slowly advancing toward Liu Mengchao as corpses.

"Hmph."

Liu Mengchao shook his head and tapped his feet, his figure flickering rapidly.

"It’s all in vain. You can’t bring yourself to strike them down. Or rather, you don't know what to do, do you?"

*Don't know what to do? You think I haven't found the 'extra' person yet?*

Liu Mengchao arched a brow, offering no reply to Qing Yun’s provocation. His sword, however, spoke for him. As if the blade had a life of its own, the massive white sword circled in his grip, and the figures charging at him were sent flying into the air by a direct strike.

*Thud!*

With a powerful push against the floor, Liu Mengchao vaulted into the air.

"These can no longer be considered human. They are ghosts."

His longsword slashed left and right, and the ghosts before him were split into pieces with a sharp *snap*. There was no blood or viscera as one might imagine; instead, trails of visible black smoke splattered outward like blood.

*Splat!*

The corpse hit the ground, and Liu Mengchao landed squarely on top of it.

"Actually, my profession..."

He drew his pistols.

"...is to..."

*Click.* He disengaged the safety.

"...make ghosts..."

*Bang! Bang! Bang!*

He opened fire.

"...weep."

With a forceful shove of his feet, the corpse beneath him slid across the floor like a skateboard. Liu Mengchao, now moving like a master skater, glided rapidly through the library.

Ebony and Ivory—the twin guns in his hands—began a movement that sounded like a musical score started by a cue. *Ding-dang-dang* echoed through the dark library. With every gunshot, a brilliant golden light flashed from the muzzle, followed by a wisp of black smoke drifting away from the fallen corpses.

"Futile. It is all futile."

Qing Yun’s face was practically beaming; everything was unfolding exactly as he had anticipated.

"You are hesitating! Because you have yet to find that 'extra' person."

*Bang!*

A gunshot rang out; Liu Mengchao used the sound of his weapon as an answer.

"Do not force yourself so. Your only hope is the Mei Misaki standing before you. Only by borrowing her eyes can you find that extra person. Unfortunately—"

*Bang! Bang! Bang!*

Three gunshots, three flashes of light.

Qing Yun’s words were interrupted by Liu Mengchao once more. This time, however, Qing Yun chose to remain silent, for he had already witnessed the outcome he craved most.

Mei Misaki was suddenly surprised to find that the cursed corpses had vanished from before her. Even Liu Mengchao’s figure had disappeared. Her eyes could only see her sister, Misaki Fujioka—the only dead person still standing.

"Mei Misaki."

Liu Mengchao’s voice suddenly sounded from right behind her.

"Your sister is very beautiful."

*There is someone behind me!*

Mei Misaki realized the source of the voice. No, she didn't just hear it; she felt it, as her back was pressed firmly against Liu Mengchao’s.

"A beige blouse with a blue ribbon tied at the neck."

Liu Mengchao’s voice sounded calm and gentle, like a conversation shared while sitting on the grass during a sun-drenched afternoon.

"The skirt is white. It looks truly lovely."

Liu Mengchao continued, "But I must say, you two really do look exactly the same. The same short hair, the same features, and the same smile."

*Liu Mengchao...*

Mei Misaki was caught off guard. A faint, vague thought flickered in her mind: *Perhaps... Liu Mengchao won't kill me...*

Before the thought could fully form, she felt a chill—a coldness that belonged only to a sharp blade. Looking down, she saw a massive sword suddenly appear before her, leveled directly at her throat.

"Oh! You’ve made your decision! You’re prepared to kill her! Excellent, excellent!" Qing Yun’s voice became instantly excited. "Only by doing this can you be considered a qualified Agent! I am already looking forward to the war between us in the next world, rookie!"

Liu Mengchao did not answer. In the darkness, there was no sound other than Qing Yun’s laughter.

Mei Misaki stood quietly, allowing the greatsword to rest against her neck. Her eyes were filled with anticipation as she watched Fujioka Misaki walking toward her.

A soft sigh escaped Mei Misaki’s lips.

"My other half, I am coming to find you now."

With that, a smile bloomed on her lips. Perhaps death was not something unbearable for her, but rather a long-awaited reunion. In truth, she had always been alone in this world, hadn't she? Yes, surely that was the case.

As she thought this, Mei Misaki smiled. *I am just a doll, devoid of a soul. I am merely a living puppet. My only value is to provide comfort to a mother who lost her child, pretending that her daughter is still alive.*

She gripped her phone tightly, sweat seeping from her palms. She had heard that when people are near death, their life flashes before their eyes like a rotating lantern. Every scene from her past would spin rapidly before her.

*Then... will you appear too, Liu Mengchao?*

*Drip.*

Tears slid silently from the corners of her eyes, landing on the white greatsword before her with a crisp, clear sound.

*You said I was different from a doll. You said you could see through my loneliness.*

Mei Misaki’s pale hand rose slowly, gently touching her own face and the tears flowing from her eyes.

"Touching a face can bring warmth to a doll. But for a human, if it cannot reach the soul, no amount of consolation will be anything more than a garment in winter."

*What about you, Liu Mengchao? When you touched my face and said you wouldn’t let me be lonely, that you would warm me again—were you lying to me, too?*

In that moment, Mei Misaki felt her heart die, just as Liu Mengchao had once told her. She could still clearly remember the words she had said to him back then.

"A garment?" Liu Mengchao had replied at the time. "Yes. Once you take it off, the cold strikes even faster. And the heart dies much faster than before."

*You were absolutely right, Liu Mengchao. My heart has indeed died even faster than before.*

"Are you ready?"

Liu Mengchao’s voice cut through her memories.

"I am ready." Mei Misaki lowered her head, looking at the greatsword beneath her throat. She was prepared to see the flower bloom at her neck.

A flower of blood.

"Then..."

Liu Mengchao spoke slowly, then paused. A smile appeared on his face, unconsciously.

"Bang!"

The gunshot rang out.