Chapter 141
【In the end, things developed like this... I’ve done my best.】
【I’ve investigated everything I could, even the loyal follower of the Holy Ascendancy has shown up, but I still can’t determine which organization or person has set their sights on me.】
【I’ve really been having the worst luck lately... No, it feels like I’m under a curse. I don’t want to stay in Boleun City for even a day longer; it’s just too ominous here.】
【Honestly, I want to use the subsystem’s ‘Deep Simulation’ to see where the problem lies.】
【But my task is to investigate and to survive as long as possible. Even if I want to explore the other realm, I can only wait until the last moment.】
【I have only 5 points left, and the remaining potions have been exchanged for money. Fortunately, everything for the transfer is ready, and I’ve already taken my sister onto the steam train.】
【After several comparisons, I ultimately chose to go to Ansu. Although the steam train is slow and doesn’t go directly to Ansu, I have to admit it’s still much faster than a horse-drawn carriage.】
【Let’s just call it a day. I’m exhausted.】
“Xia’er! What’s wrong? Xia’er!”
Calls echoed in Xia’er’s ears. Tortured by the murmurs, she slowly lifted her head to see Lichi shaking her shoulders.
“Take me... away from here…”
Xia’er slowly opened her arms.
Without hesitation, Lichi grabbed the canvas bag from Xia’er’s hands and lifted her up, running away from the train.
Boom—!
Just as they had run about ten meters, a train car behind them exploded with a deafening roar. The shockwave knocked Lichi off balance, sending her tumbling forward.
But before hitting the ground, she twisted her body, slamming her side and shoulder against the earth, rolling a few times without letting Xia’er get hurt.
After the explosion, most of the murmurs and cries in Xia’er’s mind vanished in an instant, and she fully regained her composure.
The panicked, struggling people were nearly all gone.
Xia’er quickly got up, grabbed the tattered canvas bag and notebook that had been thrown away, took Lichi’s hand, and led her up the slope.
It wasn’t until they crossed the tracks and reached the other side of the slope, feeling the heat behind them fade away, that Xia’er finally stopped, coughing a few times.
She had inhaled too much smoke inside the train, leaving her slightly dizzy.
Lichi also stopped, panting heavily. She turned to look back at the billowing smoke and flames, her expression a mix of confusion and disbelief.
What just happened…?
Her sister had suddenly opened the train window and inexplicably... flown out, landing safely on the ground.
But in the next moment, the train had exploded, derailing and rolling down the slope before bursting into flames in the blink of an eye.
Everything happened so fast that Lichi barely had time to react.
By the time she realized her sister was still on the train, Xia’er had already dashed out of the inferno.
It seemed she even saw Xia’er’s canvas bag flying out from the flames…
“What... happened? Xia’er?”
Lichi stammered, her excessive anxiety making her words unclear.
She was still reeling from the series of events, unable to focus on what had transpired.
At that moment, Xia’er, holding the notebook, looked back with a puzzled expression toward the thick smoke.
She wanted to know what had happened too.
How did the train suddenly explode and derail? Did someone know her itinerary and plant a bomb to kill her?
“Sis, what just happened?”
Xia’er turned to Lichi, gripping her hand tightly, and asked slowly, “Can you tell me in detail what happened on the train?”
Hearing Xia’er’s calm voice seemed to soothe Lichi, and her earlier panic gradually settled.
Slowly, Lichi began to recount everything she could remember after boarding the train.
Everything had been normal... except for a few people who came over wanting to get to know Xia’er; nothing particularly unusual had occurred.
In the simulation, it seemed that just before the explosion, she had used her last 5 points of fate to send Lichi outside—most likely using the ‘Judgment’ save, since only the Shadow could do that.
In the simulation, Xia’er had predicted the explosion one second in advance with her [Precognitive Vision], and in that final moment, she chose to send her sister out.
As for herself, she had been knocked unconscious by the smoke in the train car, nearly burned alive.
Xia’er analyzed that it was very likely the explosion had killed the ‘Judgment’ save, leaving her original self with no ability to escape the flames, trapped inside and deemed dead by the system, which was why she had arrived at this moment.
She could have chosen to jump out of the train car herself.
That would have bought her a few more days to investigate…
Xia’er couldn’t blame her simulated self for that emotional decision; if it were her, she wouldn’t be able to watch Lichi die in front of her again, especially when she had the power to stop it.
Regardless, her simulated death had caused Xia’er’s simulation to advance, forcibly moving from September 27 to August 9.
It seemed she couldn’t go to a time her simulated self hadn’t experienced yet; she couldn’t reach the time after her simulated self’s death.
Xia’er tightened her grip on the notebook, the questions swirling in her mind refusing to dissipate.
What exactly happened?
Why was her simulated self so pessimistic today? Why was the investigation making no progress? Wasn’t that fervent follower of the Holy Ascendancy supposed to be involved? Had her simulated self already met them?
Xia’er desperately wanted to open the notebook to find out, but right now, she needed to get her sister to a safe place first.
Her sister had seen a small town in the direction they had come from. Supporting Lichi, Xia’er walked along the railway toward the town, and only when the flames behind them had shrunk to a small dot did they arrive at the town’s entrance.
After renting a room in a shabby inn, Xia’er led her sister inside. Once she had calmed Lichi down and helped her fall asleep, Xia’er sat down at a wooden table and opened the notebook.
【Year 741 of the Holy Era, June 23, 5:46 PM】
【I’ve seen the subsystem; the tasks left are quite a lot... from a few minutes ago.】
【June 23, 9:30 PM】
【The banquet has ended, and it was quite lavish.】
【After eating, Aivina brought Adele and Amy to the study. Nia briefly introduced Amy to the extraordinary background and then listed a selection for her to choose from.】
【The list included two paths I hadn’t seen before: ‘Performer’ and ‘Gardener’... I can’t imagine their abilities just from the names.】
【As it stands, only two paths remain, both still unknown. Even Aivina knows very little about them; they seem to be part of a secret cult that exists only in legends, with very few records.】
【Do you remember the flowers in Amy’s garden and the ones in her room?】
【Yes, that’s right. She chose ‘Gardener,’ a potion I wouldn’t have picked if it were up to me.】
【But Aivina doesn’t have the ‘Gardener’ potion either; it seems to involve a mysterious nature cult. She decided to revise her claim against the Dutton Manor, asking them to find a bottle of ‘Gardener’ potion that includes the revival ritual.】
【That’s it for today. I’m planning to find my sister and have her move to the new rented house. Aivina has checked it out; the landlord seems to be just an ordinary old man with no issues.】
【I estimate that tomorrow, the stakeholders of Dutton Manor will investigate the incident there, and I’ll leave more information then.】
As she reached the middle of the first page, Xia’er continued to flip through the notebook.
【June 24, 12:00 PM】
【Today was supposed to be a long-awaited day off; I had promised to take a day off to accompany my sister, but I can’t. There are still things that need investigating.】
【Investigating in the simulation is much more difficult. The subsystem doesn’t show changes in the simulation days; it only reflects a deep simulation that includes the other realm. I have no idea what my actions will trigger.】
【Today, I arrived at the luxurious clinic Aivina bought. Since there was no advertising, there weren’t many guests today; it felt quite empty. However, Adele was busy concocting a new potion.】
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