Chapter Twenty-One: You Are My Sun (Part Four)

Hua Weiwei couldn’t even remember how she made it back to her dorm. Staring at Zhang Qingqing, who sat on the floor with a look of concern, a surge of hatred rose in her heart almost involuntarily.

Yes, hatred.

Whether it was looks or academics, Zhang Qingqing always overshadowed her at school—and it was the same even after they entered the Lord God’s Space. Having read “Infinite Terror,” Hua Weiwei knew that the more potential a newcomer had, the earlier they would awaken. If that was the case, then Zhang Qingqing obviously had far more potential than she did. That, she could accept. But Zhang Qingqing shouldn’t have betrayed her. That wretched woman! Always flaunting herself like Liu Li, always making Liu Mengchao dislike her in other ways.

What did Zhang Qingqing mean by “only the two of us can help each other and survive together”? Perhaps Hua Weiwei was never part of her plan from the start. Zhang Qingqing probably intended to use her like a toy, then discard her without a second thought—just like when they acted together in their first short film. When the awards were about to be announced, she took Hua Weiwei along in the middle of the night to knock on the judges’ door.

In the end, only Zhang Qingqing won Best Actress. Hua Weiwei was merely a supporting actress. To call her a supporting actress was generous; she was just a glorified background character.

Why?

Facing Zhang Qingqing as she got up, Hua Weiwei smiled kindly, then quickly slipped into the bathroom.

She closed the door.

Turning the faucet on full blast, the water roared.

Staring at the water gushing from the tap, Hua Weiwei could no longer hold back her tears. Her sobs were so soft that even the sound of running water drowned them out.

Her tears, like hatred, flowed bit by bit from the deepest recesses of her heart.

Why? She had to survive in this terrifying Lord God world too. Why should she follow Zhang Qingqing’s plan? Why should she endure this horror that was more than any horror movie, alongside her?

“I want… to survive… alone…”

Hua Weiwei lifted her head, gazing at her reflection in the mirror. She smiled, pure and innocent—a role she excelled at playing.

“Hua Weiwei, you’re the best! You’re the greatest! They all deserve to die, all of them…” she said as she laughed, tears trailing into her mouth. “Disgusting men should die, men who aren’t moved by me should die, and Zhang Qingqing… she must die.”

Feeling the hatred welling up inside her, Hua Weiwei remembered what she needed to do.

“Tomorrow morning, I’ll go to Katsura Kotonoha and tell her not to leave Liu Mengchao’s side for a moment. That bastard Liu seems likely to win Kotonoha over. All I need to do is act as a mole, reporting Zhang Qingqing’s plans to him. Zhang Qingqing already decided not to share the reward points with Liu Li or that otaku Li Yang… But what if they find out? What would they do?”

With this thought, Hua Weiwei turned off the tap, wiped her face, and flirted with her reflection in the mirror.

“Well then, let’s see who’s more powerful, shall we? Zhang Qingqing, I hope you, a mere girl, can outmatch two grown men. Of course, I can’t let them find out too soon.”

Smiling, Hua Weiwei opened the bathroom door and looked again at Zhang Qingqing’s back.

No one knows your ruthlessness better than I do. I believe you can kill those two men, Li Yang and Liu Li—but I will kill you, because no one hates you more than I do, Zhang Qingqing.

With a gentle smile, Hua Weiwei walked over to Zhang Qingqing. “Sister, I’m ready for tonight. We have to succeed. I want to survive with you!”

“Mm,” Zhang Qingqing smiled as well, believing in her loyal follower—the girl who, since the first day of university, had always obeyed her every command without question.

―――――――――――――――――――――

Saturday morning. Liu Mengchao strolled leisurely, as if savoring the moment, arriving at the door of Katsura Kotonoha’s house.

10:30 am.

That was the time he and Kotonoha had agreed upon.

This morning, Kotonoha had risen early and dressed in her favorite outfit—a pink dress suit, topped with a white Victorian-style sun hat with a large brim and a blue bow.

“Sis, are you going on a date with your boyfriend?” Katsura Kokoro, her younger sister, looked at her with wide, curious eyes. Kokoro was just seven or eight years old, so when her question made Kotonoha blush, she burst into delighted laughter.

“Sis, sis, Mom says girls’ faces turn red when they think of the boy they like. Is that happening to you? Your face is so red.”

“Kokoro…” Kotonoha pretended to be angry, giving her little sister a look, which only made Kokoro laugh louder.

Can’t hear, can’t hear…

Kotonoha kept telling herself this, taking deep breaths to calm her nerves.

“Dong, dong, dong…”

The clock on the wall chimed the hour.

Suddenly, Kotonoha realized it was already ten o’clock—only thirty minutes left until Liu Mengchao arrived. Ignoring her sister’s teasing, she hurried back to her room.

“Hmm…”

The white dress fit perfectly, and the broad-brimmed hat made her look gentle and graceful. But would Liu Mengchao like her appearance? Would he like this style?

Kotonoha quietly lifted a corner of the curtain and timidly peered from the second-floor window toward the street corner. She longed to rush downstairs and wait for Liu Mengchao at the station.

But…

He wouldn’t allow her to do that—a domineering boy, indeed.

Unconsciously, Kotonoha smiled.

“That’s right!” Suddenly remembering something, Kotonoha took out a carefully kept item from her wallet.

Two movie tickets, for a film released just this year—“Sky of Love.” The thought made her cheeks flush. Her father’s workplace had given out two tickets, and she’d bravely asked for both.

Kotonoha still remembered her mother’s smile and words from that time.

“Kotonoha, this is a movie for couples. Do you already have a boyfriend?”

She hadn’t answered then, but Kotonoha knew the truth. She did have one—she, Kotonoha, had a boyfriend she liked very much.

Time passed quietly at the curve of Kotonoha’s smiling lips, until she spotted Liu Mengchao’s familiar figure at the street corner. Only then did she realize she’d been gazing out the window for half an hour.

“Liu Mengchao!”

Kotonoha called out happily. She had never run downstairs so quickly, her heart brimming with anticipation for today’s date.

At that moment, all her fear of boys vanished; she was just an ordinary girl in love, running and cheering toward the boy she adored.

Is there any girl who isn’t infatuated? Is there any boy who isn’t lovestruck?

When she opened the front door and saw Liu Mengchao standing outside, Kotonoha suddenly felt that Goethe’s words were true.

Right now, it really felt like she was experiencing spring.

“Good morning, Liu Mengchao.”

Bathed in sunlight, Kotonoha’s smile was especially radiant, for in front of her stood her very own sun.

――――――――――――――――――――――――――――――――――

Haha, I got up at seven this morning and have been writing ever since. Finally, I finished four chapters—just over ten thousand words! Hahaha… The so-called author, full of discipline, updating ten thousand words daily~ La la la.