"This, well..."
Ye Ming scratched the back of his head, unsure how to explain for a moment.
But Himeko, through repeatedly mulling over Ye Ming's words, arrived at the answer.
"Could it be!"
She rushed into Ye Ming's arms, grabbed his collar, and a surge of heartache and sorrow welled up within her.
"The person Kiana lost was..."
"Shhh!"
Ye Ming placed his finger on Himeko's lips, cutting off her correct answer.
"I hope you can keep this a secret from Kiana."
"Are you planning to keep it from her forever?"
"Of course~~ I hold grudges, you know how long Kiana's last sword strike hurt me?"
Ye Ming said with a smile:
"I have to tease her a couple more times."
"Kiana~~!"
"Yo! Kiana!"
"Isn't that Kiana!"
Meanwhile, back at the university, Kiana had become the center of attention for the students.
"We all saw your amazing performance."
"Hehe, I'm not that great~~"
Kiana said with a feigned modest smile.
"You looked so cool destroying the world!"
"No... that wasn't me..."
Kiana didn't expect that everyone's talk about her "amazing performance" referred to the Herrscher of the Void within her. Wanting to enjoy the praise a little longer, she could only sheepishly run to the dean's office.
"Say, Kiana..."
The dean looked at Kiana and said with a face full of emotion:
"You have to know, historically, those who bear the name of being treacherous and rebellious only managed to be treacherous to their teachers; they basically couldn't wipe out their ancestors."
"After all, ancestors and disciples aren't from the same era, so being treacherous and rebellious is mostly just a figure of speech."
Seeing the dean rambling on for a long time, Kiana tilted her head and asked curiously:
"Does this have anything to do with my diploma?"
"No."
The dean frankly admitted this, and then said:
"I just think you're amazing. You didn't just spare your teacher, but even your teacher's teacher, truly achieving the feat of being treacherous and rebellious."
"That wasn't me!"
Kiana, defending herself, suddenly realized that this wasn't the place to complain, and hurriedly changed her tune:
"And don't bring up the game's plot!"
Kiana snatched the certificate and left in a huff.
"Kiana~~!"
"It was the Herrscher personality, don't ask me!"
Hearing someone call her name, Kiana thought it was someone else making fun of her, so she simply retorted.
"Huh? What? Kiana, it's me!"
"Eh? That voice..."
Kiana, who hadn't planned on paying attention to anyone, suddenly heard a voice that sounded a lot like her own.
"Hu Tao?! Long time no see!"
Looking at the twin-tailed girl dressed in all black, with only her two large, fair legs particularly eye-catching, Kiana's earlier displeasure immediately vanished.
After all, this was her accomplice and friend from her college days, with whom she skipped classes together. They only had happy memories together.
"What have you been up to lately?"
"Me? Singing, dancing, rap!"
45. Himeko: Was I really that wild back then?
"I'm serious, I'm not making a reference."
"I wasn't making a joke either."
Hu Tao opened her big plum blossom eyes and said excitedly:
"My hometown is holding the Lantern Rite Festival, and I've formed a band with some friends. We'll be performing live, singing, dancing, and rapping!"
As she spoke, Hu Tao even did an impromptu rap.
"What about... going to the company for an internship?"
"Oh my~~ I've been running Wangshēng Funeral Parlor since middle school. What's the point of an internship?"
"Is this... the ease of a family business owner?"
Kiana said with a look of envy:
"V me 50 to see your strength."
"You guys made such an amazing game, you must get a lot of bonuses, right?"
"We did get a lot of money last time, but after paying back everyone we owed, there wasn't much left."
As she spoke, Kiana scratched her head in embarrassment. She spent money like water and didn't know how much money she had borrowed from others.
"Although I could borrow money from everyone again, I've decided to turn over a new leaf. I need to work hard from now on."
"Oh? Is it because of Himeko-sensei?"
"Oh my~~ Stop making fun of me."
Soon, these two who used to climb over walls and skip class together were playfully fighting again.
"Oh, right, speaking of which, I wanted to represent Wangshēng Funeral Parlor and cooperate with your company."
"Ah? Isn't that... that... industry of yours? How would we cooperate?"
"What do you mean 'that industry'? Is there something unspeakable about the funeral industry?"
"The problem is, how would we advertise?"
"That's easy. I've seen the tone of your game. A lot of people are definitely going to die in the future."
Hu Tao said with a look of having seen through the truth:
"There will be many funerals to hold then, right? At that time..."
"No, no, no, the boss said this game is healthy, sunny, and positive. Not that many people will die~~!"
For some reason, Kiana suddenly felt a little overwhelmed at the mention of the word "funeral" and already had the idea of slipping away.
"Then remember to give my contact information to your boss. I'm available to meet anytime~!"
"On the way here, you looked like you were going to devour me, but now that we're home, why have you become so quiet?"
On the other side, after taking Himeko back to her residence, Ye Ming looked at Himeko, who had been silent, and couldn't help but feel a little worried.
"After finding out about you and Kiana, how could I still be in the mood to do that kind of thing..."
"But I'm still alive and well, aren't I?"
Ye Ming smiled calmly:
"This world will no longer have tears that cannot be wiped away, nor will it have wounds that cannot be healed. This is the result of the joint efforts of those who sacrificed themselves and left hope for the future."
Ye Ming gently lifted Himeko's face and helped her wipe away the tears that had already seeped into the corners of her eyes.
"Of course, that includes you."
"Then, what's the price?"
Himeko turned around and grabbed Ye Ming's hand, bringing her face closer.
"Bearing all the costs, are you really okay?"
"..."
Ye Ming felt a little guilty about this question.
The current situation is different from what he imagined.
Not only did he meet his former lover, but under certain circumstances, they could also recall their feelings for him.
Could things really be this good?
Just like Himeko said... what is the price?
—I have reversed tragedies more painful than despair, and I have shattered unchangeable destinies and karma.
—What I am to accomplish, what I am to witness, what I am to redeem... has already taken root and sprouted in the new world.
—And this world is the reward that I and everyone else rightfully deserve.
"System?"
—Read the words I gave you!
"Uh..."
Ye Ming hadn't expected the system to give him the answer so bluntly, allowing him to copy it, and with such high quality...
Is she more impatient than I am?
"Rewards, huh... Heh..."
Himeko was finally convinced, no longer harboring any worries.
Perhaps it wasn't that Ye Ming's words were particularly logical, but rather that the person before her, his very presence, brought her a sense of security.
"So now... shouldn't I give my hero some rewards?"
Himeko stood up again and gently kissed Ye Ming, tacitly allowing his hands to gently invade her body.
"Wait!"
Suddenly, Himeko seemed to remember something. Her eyes widened, and she grabbed Ye Ming's collar.
"I get it now. No wonder my body became so sensitive... so strange... when you were doing motion capture on me..."
Himeko said, her face flushed red, "In the previous world, we must have done it many times, right? I'm afraid even my body has become molded to your shape."
"You're exaggerating way too much..."
"Even if the world is reconstructed, my body still remembers the feeling of being cherished by you. Just being touched by you makes me feel strange..."
"What you've done to me is only more outrageous than what I'm saying."
At this point, Himeko couldn't help but let her imagination run wild, wondering just how exciting things would get between her and Ye Ming in the past?
Himeko, a single woman whose loneliness would bring tears to anyone's eyes, was actually starting to envy her past self from that other world.
"What do you mean, what I've done to you! Most of it was you doing things to me, okay!"
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