Monster - Chapter 106
Chapter 106: Thriller Paradise - Jealousy
"What's wrong?" Lin Sandie turned back and asked, noticing Lou's sudden silence.
"...Lin Sandie, you're injured back there. Why didn't you tell me?"
Lin Sandie reached behind her, touching the slightly raised 'Scorpion' on her shirt. Her beautiful face was expressionless as she replied faintly, "It's fine."
Seeing Lou's lovely brows furrow, Lin Sandie added, "Have you played house with other women in other worlds? Did they ever tell you that wanting to play house with you is no easy task?"
"No!" Lou's brow tightened, a little unhappy. "Let me put some medicine on it. Take off your clothes."
As she spoke, Lou took a tube of ointment for external injuries from her Space Bag.
Lin Sandie said nothing, simply turning her back to Lou and unbuttoning her shirt. The white tank top underneath was also stained red with blood. Lou couldn't bear to watch and stopped Lin Sandie's hand. "I'll do it. You just sit."
"Okay."
Lou removed Lin Sandie's top. It was the first time she had seen the silver alloy scorpion dormant on her back. Lin Sandie's skin was very fair, but at this moment, the silver-white scorpion looked as if it were crawling through a river of blood. Everywhere it touched was stained crimson.
Looking at the scorpion covered in Lin Sandie's blood and the mangled flesh beneath it, Lou silently bit her lip. An irrepressible emotion seemed to surge in her chest, threatening to burst out. She clenched her fists tightly, desperately trying to picture Little Rabbit's face and smile, but her own expression was on the verge of tears.
Fortunately, Lin Sandie couldn't see her like this.
After a long moment, Lou managed a normal grin and said to Lin Sandie, "I'm putting medicine on you. This doesn't count as me taking advantage of you, okay?"
"Okay."
Only after Lin Sandie responded did Lou take out the disinfectant alcohol. She sprayed it on the skin around the scorpion first, then began to wipe away the bloodstains.
A heat more intense than usual radiated from Lin Sandie's body. Lou sensed it but didn't tease her as she normally would. She just quietly cleaned the wound.
The inside of the vehicle was utterly silent.
"Your 'Blade Sheath'… what kind of person was she?" Lin Sandie broke the silence.
The hand on her back paused for a moment.
"...I was raised by her. She taught me many things." Lou's voice had lost its usual frivolity, becoming steady and gentle. "Including how to be a person, how to hunt... Without her, I wouldn't exist."
"Is that how she taught you to be a person?" Lin Sandie couldn't help but mock.
"It has nothing to do with her. I was just a bad student~" Lou said with a smile, not the least bit angered by Lin Sandie's taunt.
"How long were you together?"
"Less than ten years. I met her when I was six or seven."
"I see."
"Actually, she's been gone for many years. Many, many years. So I don't remember a lot of the details about her very clearly."
"You've been to many Tower Worlds. Haven't you collected any magical items that can enhance memory?"
"If it's for knowledge, there are certainly items like that. But memories of another person are often colored by one's own imagination, so using those items isn't reliable."
"I see."
"My memories of her are now more about feelings. But often, when I encounter something I find tricky, I'll wonder, what would she do if she were here?" Lou chattered on, her hands never stopping. After wiping away the blood, she began to apply the clear ointment to the damaged skin around the 'Scorpion.'
"And what would she do?"
"She would first analyze the current situation with me." Lou channeled her impression of Little Rabbit and began to analyze the situation for Lin Sandie.
Just then, the pitter-patter of raindrops began to hit the canvas of the camper. Inside, Lou's voice was different from usual, as if her former "Blade Sheath" had possessed her.
"My main mission is to investigate the source of the monster virus in Leviathan. If the source can be eradicated, I will eradicate it. If it cannot, I will completely destroy this Tower World, Leviathan."
"At first, I thought the monster virus was caused by Tree. But the information I got from Cheng Gui today is that the 'Scorpion' is related to Tree. But isn't the 'Scorpion' meant to suppress human emotions? This contradicts the idea that people become monsters after an emotional outburst triggered by despair. So my guess is that the monster virus wasn't intentionally caused by Tree, but it's definitely related to him. The 'Scorpion' can be seen as one of his rescue methods."
"Mm."
"I don't completely trust what Cheng Gui said, but the intelligence he provided did help me understand Tree better."
"Next, let's analyze the various factions in Leviathan. Tree is at the apex of power. He currently controls the Rose Society. The president of the Rose Society, Zhang Jun, is Yan Ting's husband. Plus, the shadow of the Upper House has always been present, openly and secretly. Tree's true identity might be a councilor in the Upper House. He also controls the Upper House, and those councilors who hold the Ruler and Legislator brooches are all under his command."
"Mm."
"But where there is oppression, there is resistance. Led by Councilor Sui Xi from the Lower House, there is an anti-'Tree' faction in Leviathan. Her 'Glory Road' is investigating in the shadows. They gave you the glasses before. The deceased Xu Yao and the current Little Police Flower are also part of this faction."
"Mm."
"Then there are the factions in the Disorder Land. Wei and the others appeared in Thriller Paradise, and their target was clearly Saya. Because Saya has been avenging her deceased ex-girlfriend, the victims in the previous serial murder case all died horribly, and they were all more or less connected to the Upper House. One can imagine the hatred she holds for the people who caused Xu Yao's death. It's logical for the Rose Society to see her as a thorn in their side."
"Mm."
"It's long been rumored that Bite Mark and the Rose Society are rivals. Plus, Carlo said he saw members of Bite Mark in Sally Village. So, the simultaneous appearance of Saya and Bite Mark members here is very intriguing. I guess they're most likely going after Enzo. Bite Mark has expanded rapidly in the last two years, and the leader of 'Madness Material,' the Khan, is getting old. They want to use this opportunity to establish their own dynasty in the Disorder Land."
"That's a rough analysis of the current power dynamics in Leviathan."
"Mm."
The rain outside grew heavier, its drumming sound like a beat on one's heart. After analyzing the factions, Lou began to explain the situation Lin Sandie would face next and possible ways to break through it. The old Lou was also talkative, but she mostly spoke nonsense. Now, holding forth on serious matters, she didn't seem like herself at all.
"...So what I can do now is run around, collect more magical items—not to use them, because I can't figure out why there are 'Remnants' here that are like the magical items from the Main World. Perhaps it's also related to Tree. But by coming into contact with more strange things, the 'Thus Have I Heard' restriction on me will gradually be lifted, and I'll have more options when I face Tree."
"Mm."
"The medicine is on. But you have to wait for it to dry. Your clothes are all bloody. Do you have any clean ones?"
"Yes." Lin Sandie took out a clean set of clothes, another tank top and shirt. With her back to Lou, she put on the looser tank top first, planning to put on the shirt after the ointment on her back had completely dried.
"Oh, right, you fell from the building today. I bought some medicine for internal injuries. You should take some too." Lou handed a strip of white pills and a bottle of mineral water to Lin Sandie.
Lin Sandie took them.
"Take three."
Without hesitation, Lin Sandie tilted her head back and took the pills as Lou instructed. A question suddenly popped into her mind: if it were Lou's Guide, would she also have jumped from such a high building to save Lou without a second thought?
She probably would have. Lin Sandie thought, tilting her head back to drink the water, swallowing back the tears that were about to well up in her eyes.
Just then, Lou turned over, propping her feet up and resting her head on Lin Sandie's lap, grinning at her.
"Her code name is Little Rabbit. If you ever leave Leviathan and go to the Main World, if you meet her, let me know. I'll give you a reward."
A ridiculous code name.
"Why are you so obsessed with finding her? Have you ever thought that maybe she doesn't want you to go through all this trouble, constantly searching for her, constantly waiting for her?" Lin Sandie screwed the cap back on the water bottle and tucked it into the storage pouch behind the seat.
"She never told me not to look for her!" Lou's tone became a little fierce.
Lin Sandie's face immediately turned cold, and she ignored her.
The wind and rain outside grew stronger. Seeing that Lin Sandie was angry, Lou pursed her lips. "I did something really terrible to Little Rabbit, but I never had the chance to apologize to her... If I can't see her again in person and tell her I'm sorry, my heart will never be at peace."
"What did you do?"
"I betrayed her."
Lin Sandie fell silent, then reached out and caressed Lou's cheek. "I'll help you look for Little Rabbit from now on."
"Okay~"
"Lin Sandie, we're not actually completely identical." Lou took Lin Sandie's hand and played with it as she spoke. "My ethnicity has a different skin color from yours."
"What was your original skin color?" Lin Sandie's voice was very gentle. After their conversation, she seemed to have figured some things out.
"Much darker than yours. But the first girl I liked didn't like it. She preferred fairer skin."
"Little Rabbit?"
"Of course not Little Rabbit. Little Rabbit would never dislike me for how I look. The first person I liked was a princess."
Lin Sandie smiled faintly.
"She was white. When I liked her, she said with regret that she wished I was white too. So I bought a magical item and changed my color. I remember Little Rabbit was furious when she found out."
"First love always makes people lose their minds." Lin Sandie lifted Lou's chin and leaned down to kiss her on the lips. She had wanted to do this for a long time.
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