Chlorine Sodium's Arknights

It wasn't until that moment that Yelena realized a truth.

Gods existed, but they had never shown any kindness. They believed that faith could save their followers, but it was merely a way for people to comfort themselves and delude themselves.

No one could save them.

No one would pity the Infected. The damned overseers wouldn't, Ursus wouldn't, not even God would.

This world was just that messed up.

In a world ravaged by war, all she could recall was the perpetrator, standing within the pillar of light.

Golden wings of light crackled with countless arcs of electricity, and her golden eyes were utterly indifferent.

Her overwhelmingly radiant form was the greatest mockery of human "ignorance."

Though she couldn't see clearly, Yelena etched this moment into her mind.

"Ugh... another dream...?"

Yelena woke up from her dream and slowly sat up, only to realize her surroundings had changed. This wasn't the same house as before.

People who lack a sense of security are always highly sensitive to their environment. Yelena quickly sensed that she had been moved.

"You froze the previous house. It's no longer habitable."

A somewhat cold voice came from beside her.

It was still that woman who seemed quite aloof and unapproachable.

She called herself Chlorine Sodium.

She was the girl's savior. Perhaps the elf believed this person could save her, so she brought her here with a miracle. Chlorine Sodium gave her food, though Yelena didn't quite understand how someone so slender could have carried her here.

But undeniably, the young woman before her was probably the last person she had met in this world.

Even though she wasn't familiar with Chlorine Sodium's identity.

Yelena seemed to struggle internally because of the dream she'd had.

However, when the girl tried to lift her gaze, she habitually lowered her head out of fear.

No Infected would dare to look directly at the overseers; it would undoubtedly be a death wish. Anyone who looked at an overseer was considered a provocation.

Or rather, they were not allowed to look up, only to work with their heads bowed.

Chlorine Sodium's gaze, meanwhile, swept over the girl.

She re-examined the girl in front of her.

She had to admit, the girl had endured inhuman abuse. Her dry hair and the prominent scar on her nose were clear indicators.

Her body, malnourished, was extremely thin, as if a gust of wind could blow her away.

And the scars on her body were old but had never received any systematic treatment. In addition to these... crystalline growths extending from her body.

All of this indicated how terrible the girl's previous environment had been.

It also greatly stimulated one's protective instincts.

There were also mental issues. Environment shapes a person's character and thoughts. If in a world full of people, a person is naturally human, then in a world full of demons, that person would no longer be human but a demon.

Whether they were evil spirits or hungry ghosts, they were all dehumanized and distorted beings.

It seemed this was also a world full of tragedy.

Of course, Chlorine Sodium felt no sympathy. She had lost such emotions long ago. Seeing it once or twice might evoke some so-called pity.

But after seeing it so many times, it was like a butcher slaughtering pigs; she had become numb.

To achieve what she had, to win from 200,000 points to 8.78 million points, the most basic requirement was to abandon human conscience and pity.

Those things truly hindered normal business capabilities. If one were to show pity, there were too many people, and the job couldn't be done. They would be killed by the protagonist with a single sword. Human pity was always limited.

But now Chlorine Sodium faced a difficulty: originally, being so devoid of pity was perfectly fine, even smooth sailing.

However, what was needed now was acting, to feign pity so that this girl would believe her and trust her completely. The deeper the love, the more painful the stab of the knife.

It was truly a test of skill for someone without emotion to act out emotion sincerely.

Chlorine Sodium was not a true method actor, or rather, she lacked sufficient acting talent.

But Chlorine Sodium was an extremely patient person. To achieve her goals, she could resort to any means. Since she lacked talent, she would diligently become a method actor.

As long as the method was appropriate, everything would go smoothly.

It was like her life; as long as everything was executed according to plan, everything would run normally like a train on its tracks, and her victory would only be a matter of time.

Thinking this, the young woman slowly squatted beside the sofa, doing her best to be at eye level with the girl curled up on it.

This was the first step of the method. The primary goal of gaining trust was to appear approachable.

"We didn't have much time before, so let's get to know each other properly now."

The silver-haired girl gently placed her hands on Yelena's shoulders, appearing very careful, as if handling a fragile artifact.

Even though her face remained cold.

"My name is Chlorine Sodium. I'm not a bad person..."

"...But I'm not a good person either..."

"Huh?!"

The girl flinched at the woman's astonishing statement, but she didn't dare to break free from Chlorine Sodium's hands. She could only lower her head even further.

"Because bad people never say they're bad people, but I'm an exception."

"..."

Creepy aunt.

Yelena had already labeled the young woman in front of her as a creepy aunt in her mind.

But Chlorine Sodium didn't mind. This was her strategy.

Contrast would highlight genuine emotions. The image of a kind, understanding older sister at a noodle stall first required a contrast.

A contrast that appeared clumsy.

And clumsiness should be reflected in communication.

"Personally, I'm not good at dealing with people, nor am I good at smiling."

"It's okay to look up at me. No one will bully or hit you here anymore."

The young woman placed one hand on Yelena's head and slowly pushed it back, allowing the girl to lift her head and meet her gaze.

Feeling the warmth of Chlorine Sodium's hands, a flicker of light gradually appeared in Yelena's eyes.

It was the hope of seeing a glimmer of possibility.

Good, the first step is already working.

Then, the way to express goodwill is the decisive link.

And smiles are always full of goodwill.

But this was also a difficult point, because Chlorine Sodium had forgotten what a smile full of goodwill looked like.

However, this wouldn't stump her. After all, clumsiness was also a form of protection.

As she spoke, as if feeling that her perpetually cold expression wasn't ideal, in Yelena's eyes, the creepy aunt in front of her used two fingers to press the corners of her mouth and pull them up slightly.

It was a somewhat comical smile.

Or rather, it was as clumsy as someone who couldn't smile trying hard to show their goodwill to outsiders.

With a "pfft," the laugh couldn't be covered by Yelena's small hands.

"It's okay. I told you, no one will bully you here anymore, and they won't in the future."

"You can call me sister. How could a sister deceive her little sister..."

Please collect, please support, sob sob sob

Section 8 Chapter 8 [Isn't it common knowledge that Doctors can fight?]

These days, Yelena felt like she had seen some sneaky figures in the nearby forest.

According to Chlorine Sodium's previous explanation, they might be wolf packs scouting the area. After all, with fewer prey in winter, if hunters couldn't catch anything, wolves would naturally have a hard time finding food. At such times, encountering a seemingly deserted village with a few people would naturally attract attention.

"So... Yelena. That's your name, no surname?"

Based on Yelena's previous explanation and her own recollection of Russian naming conventions.

A person from Ursus typically had their given name, their father's name, and finally their surname.

But Yelena was just Yelena, with no further suffixes.

"I... Before I could remember anything, my parents were already gone."

In the snow, two figures, one large and one small, trudged deeper into the forest.

"Sorry."

Chlorine Sodium still had that eternally unchanging poker face. Yelena had secretly counted; the number of facial expressions the young woman displayed in a day could be counted on one hand.

"I'm fine. Because I have no memories at all. I can't even recall their specific appearances..."

To an outsider, both of them would seem like complete oddballs. Chlorine Sodium wore a thick coat, but it seemed more for decoration than practical warmth, not at all the kind of thing that would protect someone from freezing to death in this environment. In reality, Chlorine Sodium was completely unaffected by the cold.

How could the Herrscher of the Void be afraid of the cold?

And Yelena wasn't even wearing a coat. She was wearing two slightly oversized shirts and an orange and white hoodie.

They looked far from warm, but Yelena was also not afraid of the cold at all. Or rather, the temperature around her was even lower than the winter chill; it was all controlled.

As for the clothes, they were clearly Chlorine Sodium's.

This world did possess supernatural abilities called Originium Arts. Of course, unlike other worldviews, using power in this tragic world came at a price.

Or rather, everything was marked with a price by fate.

The more Originium Arts were used, the higher the Originium infection rate became. Once the infection rate reached a certain threshold, people would completely crystallize from Originium, or explode.

In Ursus, the Infected have no civil rights.

They are treated like weeds, trampled by anyone.

As such, the Infected are concentrated in the mines, subjected to high-intensity, dangerous labor that is akin to being worked to death for waste utilization, all to produce Originium ore resources for Ursus.

They're quite business-minded, aren't they? Though slavery is the most inefficient system, Ursus believes this is fitting.

A classic way to divide people.

People are divided into different classes, and the lowest always have someone worse off to look down on.

Even the poorest farmer, upon seeing the Infected, whom even they can oppress, will feel that their own life isn't so bad; at least they can eat and have a place to live.

The Infected are slaves, or rather, worse than slaves, because the Infected are like rats in the street.

Suppressing internally with an iron fist and expanding aggressively externally, they are no different from historical Tsarist Russia.

"The wind sense is weak, you need to keep trying."

This was training, to hone Yelena's control over her abilities.

Each time she transmigrated, she would gain some basic knowledge of the world afterward.

For example, information related to Originium Arts.

Otherwise, work would be difficult to carry out.

Taking the girl out allowed her to try and suppress/control her abilities while talking to her, multitasking and hunting at the same time.

Communication and interaction are also ways to deepen a bond.

So, Doctor, do you also use firearms?