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墨書 Inktalez
Is history repeating itself once more?
Compared to the initial pain she felt upon discovering what Qin Yaojie had done to herself with drugs, Xu Nuan now faced Gu Ze with a deeper sense of betrayal and despair.
Suddenly, she found it hard to breathe; the air felt thick, as if she were submerged in water.
"You misunderstand, Nuan."
As Xu Nuan struggled to escape, Gu Ze reached out and pulled her back tightly into his embrace. The familiar heartbeat, the familiar scent, but an unfamiliar intent.
Memories of that night flooded back, the resentment she held towards Gu Ze for not being there, for hiding things from her while he was out doing who knows what.
The feeling of isolation and betrayal weighed heavily on her. She was supposed to be the one moving forward, yet emotions kept pulling her back, stalling her progress. Two days had slipped away in a haze of sleep, leaving her no chance to seek out the other First Batch of Players.
"I’m not misunderstanding."
Xu Nuan stopped struggling and fixed her gaze on the vial in his hand. Memories from the hospital rushed back— the smell of disinfectant, fragmented recollections leading to mistakes in her life, that person’s smile, and then suddenly, her parents' deaths. Those memories returned with a heavy sense of crisis; that person's abandonment and demise loomed large.
"This isn’t a Sedative. Can you tell me what it is?"
His arms around her tightened for a brief moment before Gu Ze replied with a bitter smile.
"You can’t tell me, can you?"
"Not right now. But I will be able to tell you soon," Gu Ze moved closer to Xu Nuan, supporting her seriously. "Nuan, I won’t hurt you. This will only help you."
"Could my fainting be related to this? Because I was injected with some strange drug?"
Xu Nuan completely ignored Gu Ze's explanation, and even if he told her later, it might be something he would never reveal.
She noticed that others had no intention of coming over to greet her, probably because of her outburst that night. Although she wasn't clear on the reasons, it was indeed a thought she had harbored herself, and through that incident, she learned about the thoughts of others.
As long as she remained a valuable person, others would not abandon her. Despite her dislike for such judgments, unfortunately, that was the reality.
"Nuan!"
Gu Ze shouted sharply, but upon seeing the lingering fear in Xu Nuan's eyes, his tone softened.
"I'm not telling you for your own good; you'll recover soon."
Reflexively retreating but feeling trapped, Xu Nuan looked up at him with undisguised skepticism on her face.
"I'm not sick; I don't need any nonsensical medication."
Xu Nuan attempted to stand up but felt weak and nearly collapsed. Fortunately, Gu Ze was quick to support her. However, this commotion caused her head to start throbbing again, a pain that tormented her in her dreams without reason.
Thoughts raced through her mind—uncontrollable memories and suppressed doubts surged forth, threatening to overwhelm her consciousness.
"Ugh."
Xu Nuan let out a painful groan, cradling her head in her hands. The throbbing pain was unbearable, and she pounded her fists against her skull, but even that couldn't alleviate her suffering in the slightest.
Just as she was about to strike again in frustration, her hand was seized by Gu Ze. Before she could lift her head, a sharp pain shot through her arm.
"You!"
Xu Nuan looked up in terror, intending to yell at Gu Ze, but her vision blurred, and her consciousness faded once more.
It seemed she had indeed been injected with something that caused her to lose consciousness.
Why was it Gu Ze?
Why?
When she awoke again, it was under a starry sky. The scenery around her had changed dramatically. Xu Nuan wasn't sure how much time had passed; she didn't feel hungry at all.
There was no warmth beside her, and she couldn't hear Gu Ze's voice among the sounds of others nearby. However, she could clearly make out the voices of several others.
She simply lay there on the damp mat, gazing up at the stars, with no intention of getting up to join the others.
"Beibei, would you like to eat some of this?"
It was Yu Yu's voice, soft and sickeningly sweet. She had long grown tired of this man's entanglement between Amin and Fan Beibei. Although she had warned Yu Yu once, He Min had scolded her for it. Thinking back on it, she realized she had no right to meddle in their affairs.
"I want to eat that."
Fan Beibei's voice sounded perfectly normal, regaining its usual playful tone.
In just a few days, Fan Beibei had returned to her normal self. It seemed she was not driven mad by any external stimulus; as long as the person in the shadows had lifted the suggestion and Fan Beibei's mind was strong enough, she could recover. This indicated that Fan Beibei was not just a pretty face with a sharp tongue. At the very least, she was resolute, passionate about life, money, and her pursuits.
But then the question arose: how did the person in the shadows lift the suggestion?
She wasn't sure if the others were puzzled by this, but from their conversations, it seemed they wouldn't be discussing it for now.
Fan Beibei and Xu Hang, despite the layer of suggestion between them, managed to get along amicably, which was no small feat.
"Gu Ze is up again; another person has left. What on earth is he doing?"
It was Xie Huai's voice, having noticed Gu Ze's absence.
"Mysterious as ever, just like that one who won't get up. He must be contagious," Deng Yinyin chimed in. Xu Nuan didn't think much of Deng Yinyin's first comment but felt a twinge of concern at the second.
"And also, it was clearly Xu Nuan who lost her temper before. She was the one who insisted on crossing those Eagle Flock despite not having the skills, so why should Gu Ze hit you?"
This remark was clearly directed at Xu Hang, but Xu Hang did not respond to Deng Yinyin.
Xu Nuan would never know the expressions of the speaker and the onlookers.
Gu Ze hitting Xu Hang surprised her. Although she wasn't narcissistic, she vaguely felt it was because of her. However, she still had no clear idea of what had happened that night; she couldn't discern anything from their words.
But more than the conflict between these two good friends, she was more concerned about what kind of drug Gu Ze had injected into her.
Would it really not harm her?
What was he doing outside?
What was she supposed to do?
When a person starts to overthink, it's hard to control their emotions. By the time she realized it, her eyes were already moist.
Crying over such matters seemed utterly useless, so Xu Nuan simply raised an arm to shield her eyes. Who was she putting on this disheveled act for?
She heard footsteps approaching her direction, and it wasn't someone trying to be discreet; it was one of He Min's group. Accompanying the footsteps was a gaze—neutral and calm, nothing like the intense look Gu Ze gave her.
In that instant, she sensed another gaze from afar, followed by a barely audible retreating footstep.
Someone was watching her!
It was the first time Xu Nuan realized how sharp her senses could be. She immediately stood up and looked in the direction where the sound had faded away—dark and deep, with nothing visible.
Without hesitation for even a second, Xu Nuan stood up, intending to chase after them, but as usual, a wave of dizziness stopped her. History was repeating itself; her figure swayed slightly, and a pair of hands reached out to try to hold her back.
It wasn't Gu Ze.
She knew this clearly and quickly dodged past, steadying herself before pressing her hands against her head and looking up at the newcomer.
Expressionless, their eyes were so dark that no light could penetrate.
Chi Xiaoming.
"Is there something you need?"
Earlier, in her dazed state, she had indeed noticed that Chi Xiaoming hadn’t joined the conversation.
After she asked, Xu Nuan finally noticed the food in Chi Xiaoming's hands. She paused for a second before averting her gaze.
"I don't want to eat."
"Gu Ze asked me to bring this to you."
Chi Xiaoming spoke in a straightforward manner, seemingly unaware of the wariness in Xu Nuan's eyes.
"Ze?"
Xu Nuan murmured softly, glancing past Chi Xiaoming only to notice that Xu Hang was not looking this way at all, and the injury on his face was still there.
Did Gu Ze and Xu Hang really have a falling out? Because of her?
Xu Nuan would never think she had that much influence. As the captain and an ally, Xu Hang would indeed take care of her, but the events of that night stemmed primarily from her own inability to control her emotions, leading to an outburst of harsh truths.
Or was there something else that happened between Gu Ze and Xu Hang?
Xu Nuan felt puzzled, yet she still did not reach for the food from Chi Xiaoming. If she wanted something to eat, she could get it from her own backpack.
However, after scanning the area, Xu Nuan realized her backpack was missing. Panic surged through her as she forgot everything else and directly asked, "Where's my backpack?"
She spotted Gu Ze's backpack nearby; hers would typically be lying close to it.
"...You don't remember?"
Xu Nuan keenly noticed Chi Xiaoming hesitated for a moment, his tone subtly shifting. She raised her gaze to scrutinize the emotions in Chi Xiaoming's eyes, but it was too late; he had already masked his feelings well.
It dawned on her that something must have happened that night, and Chi Xiaoming's question indicated he had witnessed the event while she remained conscious. Yet, she couldn't recall it—what a familiar feeling.
The pain of being repeatedly hypnotized by Shen Shen surged back into her mind, causing Xu Nuan to instinctively hug herself and take a step back. She stubbornly lifted her head to look at Chi Xiaoming without speaking; silence would prevent any exposure. So far, Chi Xiaoming was not someone she could trust.
Her gaze was indeed effective, at least enough to catch the attention of He Min and a few others, who hesitated about whether to come over. Thus, Chi Xiaoming spoke up.
"On the first night we entered this stage, we were attacked by the Eagle Flock, and you chose a direction on your own, quite far from us."
Chi Xiaoming did not tell the story lightly; his serious expression matched his serious tone. However, Xu Nuan could still understand that he was referring to what the System had informed them about that choice and its subsequent events, though she couldn't recall them herself.
"When we noticed you, you had already fainted, and your backpack was missing. Then Gu Ze came back."
In other words, a Player had taken advantage of her being alone to attack her and steal her backpack, which contained a notebook left by Qin Yaojie—potentially something very important.
"When did Fan Beibei wake up?"
After thinking for a moment, Xu Nuan first asked about Fan Beibei. If her awakening time was as she imagined, she would probably know what had happened.
Chi Xiaoming did not hide anything and did not question why Xu Nuan asked.
"We confirmed she was awake the day after we were attacked by the Eagle Flock."
As expected, a glimmer of understanding passed through Xu Nuan's eyes.
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