Did I Succeed in Redeeming the Villain Today? - Chapter 46

Chapter 46: “But I Don’t Want You To Lose Even One Of Them…”

Dust and the coppery scent of blood intertwined. The air, dampened by the spilled water, carried a foul, lingering stench.

This abandoned place, filled with the stains of human depravity, was far from clean. Yet, bright sunlight managed to pierce through the intact windows, spilling in brilliantly. The sun traced the scene in meticulous detail as light and shadow flickered across Lu Ning’s vision.

Mu Qiuyu tilted her head slightly. The golden light bathed her face, making her appear lean and pale. Her dark yet crystal-clear eyes were like the purest glaciers, yet also like the sharpest blades. Her face was the only clean thing in that room.

Lu Ning stared blankly, feeling as though she could hear the sound of a heartbeat in the distance. Gradually, the sound drew closer to her ears as reality peeled away from the hallucination. Her reason returned; she realized with total clarity that this was not a dream.

Mu Qiuyu had really kicked Gao Yuan away and pulled her back from the brink of death.

“F*ck,” Gao Yuan hissed through gritted teeth, spitting a curse.

He shook off the daze of being kicked and realized it was Mu Qiuyu who had sent him sprawling to the floor. Long before she had transferred into their class, his malice toward her was already immense. The humiliation at the shooting club had caused his hatred to spiral out of control. Every day he saw her come for training, he wished for someone’s gun to misfire and kill her.

Or perhaps, he could just “accidentally” kill her himself.

His family was deeply rooted in the shooting community and had covered up such “accidents” before. Mu Qiuyu was just a trash orphan with no parents; who would care? At worst, they’d just pay a bit of compensation.

These thoughts grew like wild vines in Gao Yuan’s mind. They were off-campus, and this abandoned house had no surveillance. Most importantly, Mu Qiuyu had struck first. He could claim self-defense.

A sneer tugged at the corner of Gao Yuan’s mouth as he seized this rare “opportunity.” Torturing the cat was nothing; now he could strike Mu Qiuyu directly.

“You b!tch!” Gao Yuan shouted, lunging from the ground with long strides to teach her a lesson.

But to his surprise, the moment his fist swung out with brute force, Mu Qiuyu—holding Lu Ning—slipped to the side. He was thrown off balance by the miss, charging straight toward the wall and nearly slamming into it.

“F*ck,” Gao Yuan cursed, reflexively reaching for his pocket. He seemed to have a secret weapon hidden there, one he was desperate to use. But as soon as his hand went in, he froze.

His secret weapon was gone.

How is that possible?

Gao Yuan felt along the chain attached to his belt loop, disbelieving. It was empty. Instead, a familiar object was now pressed against the small of his back.

“Are you looking for this?” Mu Qiuyu’s voice was calm and polite, like a young lady returning lost property.

If only she wasn’t holding a gun.

If only her finger wasn’t resting on the trigger in a perfect, standard grip.

Lu Ning didn’t know how she did it. In just that single moment, Mu Qiuyu had deduced that Gao Yuan had smuggled a gun out, swiped it from him, and aimed it at its owner.

The sun behind them cast Gao Yuan’s shadow against the wall. The girl tilted her head slightly, her face—an artwork carved by the creator—appearing over the shoulder of his shadow. In the gloom, she looked like an executioner from hell.

A chill ran down Gao Yuan’s spine. He was stunned. “How… how is this possible?”

Mu Qiuyu had no interest in savoring the shock of a defeated foe. Without mercy, she kicked the back of Gao Yuan’s knee, neatly forcing him into a kneeling position.

“Too st*pid to even hold onto your own gun, yet you dare to bring it out,” Mu Qiuyu toyed with the weapon, tapping the cold barrel against Gao Yuan’s face.

For a moment, Gao Yuan couldn’t tell if his knee hurt more or his pride. His heart shifted from the high of aggression to the panic of despair. He couldn’t understand why a kick from someone as slight as Mu Qiuyu felt so agonizingly powerful.

Gao Yuan, of course, wouldn’t understand. This was a matter of higher-dimensional technology. Before arriving, Mu Qiuyu had exchanged points in the System Mall for a set of ultra-concealed mechanical exoskeletons. Though designed for stealth and only able to handle opponents under $70kg$, they were more than enough for a few teenage idiots.

“Qiuyu! You… how did you run so fast?”

At that moment, a flurry of footsteps came from outside. Li Xiang, shocked that she couldn’t outrun Mu Qiuyu, leaned against the doorframe, several steps behind with a certain “dead weight” in tow.

“…F*ck.”

“What is that smell? It’s horrible.”

As Li Xiang and Shi Jin reached the doorway, they both covered their noses in unison. Mu Qiuyu might not care, and Gao Yuan might be used to it, but this scene was far too cruel for two girls who had been well-protected by their families.

Shi Jin looked at the sight, feeling both sadness and nausea; she looked like she was about to break down. Li Xiang was about to say something to Mu Qiuyu, but was cut off.

“Don’t speak loudly. There are others,” Mu Qiuyu said.

Li Xiang shut her mouth immediately. Shi Jin swallowed her urge to retch. Mu Qiuyu scanned the surroundings alertly, discreetly hiding the gun before the other two noticed. Holding Lu Ning in one arm and keeping Gao Yuan pinned with the other, she gestured to the door. “Bring that chain over here.”

Shi Jin kept her nose covered, so Li Xiang went to get it. Then, Li Xiang’s eyes widened uncontrollably.

“There… over there, there’s…” Li Xiang looked at Mu Qiuyu, her heart heavy with psychological trauma.

“Preserve the evidence first. Later, we’ll find a place to give them a proper burial,” Mu Qiuyu instructed. Her tone was unusually soft, as if considering Li Xiang’s feelings.

“Mhm.” Li Xiang nodded repeatedly. Looking at the weak Lu Ning in Mu Qiuyu’s arms, she asked worriedly, “How is the kitty?”

“Meow,” Lu Ning responded weakly. She kept her beautiful eyes open, trying to reassure Li Xiang.

Mu Qiuyu paused at the kitten’s cry. Then, using the chain, she quickly lashed Gao Yuan to a filthy rack, securing him just like the cats and dogs he had abused.

Hidden in Mu Qiuyu’s embrace, Lu Ning watched the practiced technique and suddenly remembered the chains by Mu Qiuyu’s feet in the Inner World. Was I shackled like this by her then? No, the Mu Qiuyu of the Inner World was nothing like Gao Yuan. How could she even compare them! Lu Ning shook her head frantically. She then saw Mu Qiuyu turn to the other two.

“You two stay here to preserve the evidence and watch him. I’m going to look outside.”

Lu Ning still didn’t know why Shi Jin was here, but as she watched her with suspicion, she saw the girl nod submissively alongside Li Xiang. Li Xiang was still worried about Mu Qiuyu and stepped forward as she turned to leave. “Should I go with you?”

Shi Jin tensed at this. But before she could speak, Mu Qiuyu refused. “I’m relieved if you stay here.”

Li Xiang looked at Shi Jin, who had followed them for some mysterious reason, and slumped back.

In the dim light, Lu Ning was easily hidden in the shadows. Li Xiang didn’t suspect a thing as Mu Qiuyu carried her out of the room. This place was an old well-house, abandoned and forgotten. The stale corridor allowed no light; a damp, moldy smell permeated the air, casting shifting spots of decay on the shadows passing the mottled walls.

“Can you move?”

After they had walked a distance, Mu Qiuyu looked at Lu Ning and spoke to her.

“I am initiating the program to complete self-repair. Estimated time: one minute,” Lu Ning’s voice was stronger than before, and her fur was drying at a visible rate.

Mu Qiuyu didn’t seem to care about these details. Instead, she nodded coldly. “Good. Because I have questions for you.”

“What is it?” Lu Ning asked, looking at her with seemingly innocent eyes.

“Why didn’t you send me your location?” Mu Qiuyu asked bluntly. “When Gao Yuan was holding you in that bucket of water, did you really not think of letting me save you?”

She rarely spoke like this; there was a hint of some other emotion behind the interrogation. The girl’s dark pupils were as cold as an ice cellar, staring fixedly at Lu Ning.

Lu Ning was stunned. A wave of unprompted panic rose in her heart as she explained, “It was because this place is too dangerous. You couldn’t get hurt. Besides, you were in the middle of an exam; it concerns your mission.”

Hearing this, Mu Qiuyu’s expression darkened even further. “Is that what you thought, or is that what your program required of you?”

There was no breeze in the corridor. The humid air clung to Lu Ning’s damp fur—cloying and oppressive. Lu Ning could clearly feel Mu Qiuyu’s foul mood, but she didn’t understand why she was so upset.

“Host, what’s wrong?” Lu Ning asked instinctively.

But this time, Mu Qiuyu didn’t give her the chance to deflect. “Answer me.”

The voice was deeper than the previous question, the low tone feeling like a blade pressed against an ear. Lu Ning realized Mu Qiuyu truly wanted her answer—and was also truly restraining herself from using harmful methods.

“I thought so myself,” Lu Ning answered honestly.

She knew Mu Qiuyu wasn’t an ordinary child. She was more mature than any of her peers, so if she explained clearly, she was sure she would understand.

“Aside from the exam, Gao Yuan’s goal in kidnapping me was to make you suffer. I couldn’t let you fall into that trap. I am your system; I won’t let you face danger. Do you understand?” Lu Ning spoke with adult-like sincerity, her clear eyes meeting Mu Qiuyu’s without guilt.

But the dim light couldn’t penetrate the girl’s eyes. She remained somber, staring silently at the kitten. No cowardice, no guilt. Mu Qiuyu didn’t get the answer she wanted from Lu Ning, and her aura grew even more brooding.

Silence filled the corridor. Lu Ning thought Mu Qiuyu might drop her and walk away alone, but she didn’t. She continued to hold her, the mechanical arm firmly supporting the kitten’s increasingly plump bottom. The fluffy tail draped over the girl’s slender arm like the world’s most beautiful black waterfall.

Who could bear to throw away such beauty?

The dark corridor suddenly felt very long. Mu Qiuyu walked for a while longer before speaking quietly. “So because of that… if you had died here today, I might not have even known, is that it?”

Her voice was calmer than ever—like a blank sheet of paper, devoid of emotion. Yet Lu Ning felt wrapped in that paper, suffocating.

A cat’s vision is too good. Lu Ning looked up and noticed that Mu Qiuyu’s eyes were faintly rimmed with red. She suddenly realized that Li Xiang and Shi Jin had arrived breathless and panting, yet they still hadn’t caught up to Mu Qiuyu.

Mu Qiuyu must have been out of her mind with worry.

Worry. Care. The inability to accept losing her.

These were emotions Lu Ning had never felt in all her years. She had never been cherished like this. Just like today, in the past, Lu Ning had always decided and solved everything on her own. She would make the most rational decision, even if it meant sacrificing herself.

Family… she had no family who would think for her.

“Host…” Lu Ning murmured. Two shimmering blue starlights lit up in Mu Qiuyu’s dark world.

The kitten’s pink-padded paw, now dry, reached out clumsily toward her owner, brushing against the corner of Mu Qiuyu’s eyes. “Don’t be sad. I won’t die. A cat has nine lives. And I’m a system, remember?”

Mu Qiuyu hid her reddened eyes and gripped the kitten’s paw coldly.

“But I don’t want you to lose even one of them.”

Support