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I Am a Detective: Why Am I on Criminal Island?
墨書 Inktalez
Xiao He struggled in the chaos, as if caught in an endless whirlpool.
"Who am I?" This thought echoed in her mind, yet received no response.
Her entire body ached, especially her head, which felt as if countless needles were piercing it. A continuous roar filled her ears, mixed with a sharp noise that made her eardrums throb. She lay in a cold, damp place, her nose detecting a heavy scent of dust, rust, and something decayed.
"Hiss—" She gasped for air and forced her eyes open. It was pitch black around her, with only a faint glimmer of light seeping in from a distance, like a tiny crack tearing through the darkness.
Xiao He attempted to move her limbs; her body was stiff and painful, but she could feel the strength of her muscles and some instinctive coordination. This didn’t feel like the body of someone who had been bedridden for long. She took a deep breath; the air was foul but at least breathable.
"I need to get up first," she told herself, her voice hoarse enough to startle even her.
She leaned against the wall beside her—its texture rough with concrete and twisted steel—and struggled to stand. The dizziness threatened to bring her down again, but she gritted her teeth and held on.
Using that faint light, Xiao He scanned her surroundings. This was a vast ruin; skyscrapers stood as mere skeletal frames, as if torn apart by some immense force. The streets were littered with rubble, vehicles twisted and deformed like abandoned toys. It looked like a scene from a post-apocalyptic movie.
Her body instinctively maintained a defensive posture as her gaze darted around. This vigilance wasn’t born from fear but rather an ingrained response that told her how to assess potential dangers. This feeling was familiar yet she couldn’t pinpoint why.
"Who am I really?" Xiao He murmured to herself, trying to recall anything, but her mind was blank. Her name? Her family? Where did she come from? Nothing but emptiness. Only fleeting glimpses of vague images flashed through her mind—some jumping colors and sounds without meaning—and an overwhelming sense of unease, as if something extremely important had slipped from her memory.
A faint sound came from afar, like something moving. Xiao He immediately tensed up, instinctively finding a relatively concealed corner to hide. This reaction was swift and precise, leaving her even more confused about her true identity.
She felt the fabric of her clothes; they were worn and dusty, rough in texture. Her pockets were empty, devoid of anything that could prove her identity. No wallet, no identification, not even a key. She felt like someone completely forgotten by the world.
As she groped through the ruins, Xiao He’s hand unexpectedly brushed against a broken rebar. Instinctively, she grasped it, feeling its weight and shape. Her body seemed to know how to use it for defense, how to wield it, how to block. This muscle memory astonished her; it was far richer than her barren consciousness.
Just as despair began to engulf her, a cold, emotionless mechanical voice echoed through the ruins, as if resonating directly in her mind. The voice said, "Welcome to Redemption Island. You are Criminals, here for purification. Obey the Warden's commands to have a chance at survival."
"Criminal?" The word filled Xiao He with intense rejection and anger. Her body instinctively resisted this label; her intuition told her she was not a Criminal. Yet the voice sounded so authoritative and omnipresent that it left her feeling powerless.
"I must survive first," Xiao He told herself. Her instincts urged her that survival was the top priority. Find water, find food, find a safer place. She decided to move toward the direction where light filtered in, hoping to find an exit or at least a more open environment.
As she took her first steps, she caught a glimpse of several indistinct figures swaying in the shadows of distant buildings. They appeared to be stumbling as well, but their gait exuded a sense of numbness and sluggishness. Xiao He was uncertain whether they were friend or foe; her instinctive caution led her to choose to avoid them for the time being.
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