Chapter 43: The Blade from Behind (3/4)

Under the moonlight, Liu Mengchao flipped open his phone with a sharp click.

The rain had ceased. Standing on the rooftop, Liu Mengchao gazed at the phone he had kept tucked away in a corner; the smiling face of Katsura Kotonoha remained clearly visible on the screen.

"Liu Mengchao..." Akazawa Izumi’s voice suddenly rang out behind him.

"You came?" Liu Mengchao turned around to look at the girl standing behind him. Sweat still clung to the tips of Akazawa Izumi's hair, her red locks tied into two ponytails that rested against the back of her head.

"What you’re holding in your hand..." Akazawa Izumi asked, suddenly curious.

"Are you talking about her?" Liu Mengchao turned and smiled, shaking the phone in his hand at her.

"Who is she?" Akazawa Izumi looked at the phone and asked with curiosity.

"Katsura Kotonoha," Liu Mengchao replied, turning around and exposing his back to her without any defense. "A girl I met in Japan."

As he spoke, a nostalgic smile tugged at the corners of his mouth. Although it had only been three worlds, reflecting on the events he had experienced, Liu Mengchao felt as if an entire lifetime had passed.

"You..."

Akazawa Izumi’s heart skipped a beat. Steadying her breath, she walked up behind him and leaned her head against his back.

"You actually..."

She could not explain why, but Akazawa Izumi felt that Liu Mengchao would not deceive her—at least not right now. Her heart was filled with countless questions she wanted him to confirm.

"Yes, I am not from this world."

Her pupils dilated.

Akazawa Izumi froze as she heard his words. Not from this world? No, could it be that he already knew her identity and was confessing to her?

"You actually... you’re already dead, aren't you?" Resting against his back, tears welled up in her eyes, silently soaking into Liu Mengchao’s shirt and staining her own cheeks.

There was no answer, no sound, only the deathly silence of the night.

"Chibiki Tatsuji-sensei discovered your identity, and then you killed him..."

The words died in her throat.

Akazawa Izumi realized that the thing she feared most had become reality. Her entire body began to tremble. A conflict of emotions flooded her mind in an instant.

Kill Liu Mengchao, save everyone in Class 3-3, let the dead return to death, and let the living survive. Her brother’s face flashed before her eyes again, smiling and encouraging her...

But...

Her hand, touching the hilt of her blade, recoiled as if struck by lightning.

She couldn't do it!

Why... why did it have to be him!

*Clack.*

Liu Mengchao tossed the gun he had been carrying away. The black Ebony clattered as it hit the ground.

"I killed Chibiki Tatsuji. If I hadn't, the curse of this world would never end; it would continue to cycle year after year."

"I..."

"You don't believe me." Liu Mengchao smiled, saying the words Akazawa Izumi wanted to speak. With his back to the light, she could not see his expression or know his thoughts.

Who should I trust?

Akazawa Izumi’s brows were furrowed tightly. How could Chibiki Tatsuji be the source of the curse? Which one of them was telling the truth?

Confused?

Liu Mengchao looked at the system interface before him and smiled.

*You must have been waiting impatiently in the shadows, haven't you, Reincarnators?*

Prize pool: 850,000!

While Liu Mengchao observed his system panel, the Reincarnator known as Old Snake was hiding in the shadows, watching the interaction between Akazawa Izumi and Liu Mengchao deep on the rooftop.

*Damn it!*

*This woman actually stopped at the critical moment!*

Old Snake watched anxiously as Akazawa Izumi struggled behind Liu Mengchao, his hand involuntarily brushing the ring on his finger.

The Ring of Charisma could strengthen psychological suggestions in a person’s mind, forcing them to obey commands for a certain period. This was the item given to him by the agent known as Qing Yun.

"Then... act according to my will..." Old Snake smiled grimly, rubbing the ring.

A dim red light flashed across the surface of the ring, and in the distance, the look in Akazawa Izumi’s eyes suddenly changed.

"Oh?" Liu Mengchao raised an eyebrow, watching his system panel. The points in the prize pool were rising again. There was no one around him but Akazawa Izumi—or rather, the Reincarnators were hiding in the dark.

"Liu Mengchao..." Akazawa Izumi said, word by word. "If you are truly one of the dead, please..."

A sharp blade was drawn from her coat, trembling as she slowly extended it toward Liu Mengchao.

"Return to death!"

*Thud!*

A muffled sound echoed, and blood immediately seeped from Liu Mengchao’s back.

With a crash, Liu Mengchao fell to his knees, the blade still embedded in his back.

"I didn't expect..." Liu Mengchao sighed, looking at the girl before him, and spoke slowly. "I didn't expect this."

As soon as he spoke, Akazawa Izumi suddenly froze. She stared in disbelief at the blade in her hand and at Liu Mengchao, who had collapsed into a pool of blood before her.

*Clap... clap...*

Applause suddenly rang out from behind Akazawa Izumi.

Old Snake walked out from behind her, looking entirely at ease.

"How does it feel now, Senior, Liu Mengchao?" Old Snake stood before him, observing his state. He was not nervous at all; who would be nervous about a dying man?

"Ah! Almost forgot!"

Old Snake ran over and kicked the Ebony that Liu Mengchao had dropped far away. He then bent down and picked up the gun.

Holding the black Ebony, Old Snake pointed the hollow muzzle directly at Liu Mengchao’s head.

"Don't move. Your life is in my hands now." As soon as the words left his mouth, Akazawa Izumi’s tears began to flow uncontrollably.

Even if she were slow to react, she could understand the situation now.

She had been used.

"Any last words for me, this year's Dead One?"

Old Snake waved the Ebony at Liu Mengchao, his smile deepening.

"You have an ugly smile."

"An ugly smile?"

Old Snake bent over, unable to suppress his emotions any longer, and burst into wild laughter. He laughed so hard that tears streamed down his face.

"You’re just a trapped beast now, an ant. Even if you knelt and begged me, I wouldn't let you live. Why don't you cry a little so I can have a good laugh?"

"I don't have that habit." Liu Mengchao’s face still held a smile, just as the prize pool before him surged crazily.

Prize pool: 880,000!

"You don't have the habit? Are you really content with this? Being betrayed by the person you like, stabbed viciously from behind?" Old Snake said, pointing the gun at Akazawa Izumi, who was supporting Liu Mengchao.

The girl was now motionless, slumped blankly over Liu Mengchao, the blade having fallen from her hand due to her shock.

"Actually, you’re the one who is the Dead One, aren't you?" Liu Mengchao smiled, looking at Old Snake and the figures behind him.

"Things have come to this, and you’re still trying to argue?"

"Argue?"

With a soft chuckle, Liu Mengchao shook his head.

"Because you’re lying, Teacher Zhang. People cannot control their expressions; facial muscles always react before your conscious mind does."

"So what? I’ve heard that psychologists have a theory about human micro-expressions that can reveal deep-seated emotions, but..."

*Click.*

Old Snake cocked the gun. Holding the black Ebony, he felt that the sensation was excellent.

"Even if you know I’m lying, you’re going to die now..." Old Snake slowly raised the muzzle, aiming at Liu Mengchao’s head. "The Main God didn't say... that killing a teammate incurs a penalty, Senior!"

"That’s true... killing one is a kill, killing two is also a kill... don't you think..." Liu Mengchao’s gaze moved past Old Snake, looking at the figure behind him.

"Don't you agree, Zhen Qianting?"

*Thud!*

A muffled sound, a spray of blood.

This was Zhen Qianting’s answer to Liu Mengchao.

"You make a very good point, Liu Mengchao."

Old Snake turned around in disbelief, staring at the person behind him.

"Betrayal is like a poison. Once you take the first sip, you can never stop."

Only then did Liu Mengchao’s voice drift into Old Snake’s ears like a nightmare.

Prize pool: 900,000!