Burying

When did he appear on the other side of the cruise ship?

Li Shi didn't know; he had just experienced spatial teleportation.

The coherence of the space around the cruise ship had a problem. The moment he stepped onto the ship, a spatial void caused him to cross a rupture and appear on the "other shore."

"I don't believe this!" Li Shi gritted his teeth and turned to walk back onto the cruise ship, but without any warning, he reappeared where he had come from.

It was as if the cruise ship had never existed, as if the deck he saw had never been there.

"Could this be something supernatural?" Li Shi's eyelids twitched violently. He gave a self-deprecating laugh. "How could that be? It must be an illusion!"

"Maybe it's a mirage?" Although he said that, he still tried to board the cruise ship from different locations. But the result was always the same; he would cross over the ship and appear directly on the other side.

Zzzt—

"Li Shi, what's the situation? Are there any clues on the cruise ship?" A voice crackled through the communication device.

"I..." Li Shi couldn't explain it for a moment.

"I don't know."

Rustle...

"You're awake?" A somewhat ethereal voice sounded in her ear. Nelly felt a strange sense of familiarity.

"Where is this?" As she thought to ask, she realized where the familiarity came from—

It was her own voice.

No, she was sure it wasn't. Her own voice always carried either false or true emotions, and her tone was so soft it was almost humble. It wasn't this flat, emotionless intonation.

Pushing herself up, Nelly saw the person speaking. She looked exactly like Nelly herself, with blonde hair and golden eyes, like an angel from the mortal realm.

"Don't be surprised. I'm just borrowing your appearance. You don't mind, do you?" The young girl smiled slightly, her smile filled with an indescribable eeriness.

But Nelly wasn't concerned about that.

"For..."

"You want to ask about Fornia, right? Don't worry, this is just a dream. It's normal that she's not here." The girl stretched, her movements stiff.

"How is she?" Nelly asked urgently.

"Won't you know once you wake up?"

"Then how do I wake up?"

"..." You're asking me this question?

However, the girl pretended to ponder for a moment before saying, "Talk with me."

An awkward silence fell between them.

Nelly wasn't actually good at interacting with people. Although, when facing this girl, she felt comfortable in a way she didn't with others.

It wasn't the same comfort she felt with Fornia. It was that Nelly could "ignore" the girl.

Ignore her existence, her thoughts and feelings. She could say or do whatever she wanted without any reservations.

Perhaps it was because it was a dream, but even so, Nelly didn't know where to start the conversation.

"What were you doing just now?" After a long pause, Nelly tried to find a topic.

"Talking to you."

"...I mean, before that."

"Digging a hole," the girl said, waving her hand helplessly.

"What were you digging a hole for?" Nelly finally looked around.

They were in a large open space. The ground seemed to be made of some kind of soil or sand. The space was vast, and the sky was completely dark, like a starless, moonless night.

Far in front of them, the phantom image of a tree flickered in and out of existence, immensely large, obscuring half the sky.

"To bury you."

"Huh?"

"I said, digging a hole, to bury you," the girl said softly, picking up a handful of sand.

Her voice gradually gained emotion, becoming more and more like a normal human's.

Nelly looked at the girl, her eyes filled with confusion, as if she wanted to ask something.

"Aren't dead people all buried?"

The girl tilted her head, mimicking Nelly's confused expression.

"But... I'm alive." Nelly shivered, feeling a little scared.

"Ha, how do you prove it?" The girl put down the sand and met Nelly's gaze.

"I'm talking to you, isn't that the best proof?" Nelly leaned back, wanting to curl into a ball.

"No, you're dreaming!"

"In dreams, you have no warmth, no heartbeat. No one can see or touch you but me..."

The girl leaned close to Nelly, so close they were almost touching, yet Nelly couldn't feel her breath. She reached out a hand towards Nelly's chest, as if to feel her heart beating.

"What makes you think that's living?"

"..."

Nelly was speechless, unsure how to answer.

Fortunately, the girl didn't dwell on the question, merely stroking Nelly's hair gently.

"You killed someone."

She suddenly said.

"Yes, but... he deserved it!" Nelly felt no guilt towards Simon. He was a scumbag who had ruined countless girls, and what's more, he had shot Fornia.

The girl didn't argue, only continuing, "How does that feel?"

What did she mean? Asking how it felt to kill someone? Such a strange question...

"If I could, I wouldn't want to hurt anyone, but Simon shot Fornia. I don't care what happens if I kill him!"

Nelly's voice was filled with hatred as she looked up to meet the girl's gaze.

"As for how it feels, I didn't pay attention. You know so much, you should understand I just wanted to save Fornia at the time."

The girl shook her head, her smile becoming more genuine. "You're wrong, Nelly."

"You've wanted to kill him for a long time, you just lacked the ability."

But Nelly showed no reaction, appearing indifferent, as if to say, think what you want.

"If I were to..." The girl didn't seem to care either. She pushed Nelly down onto the sandy ground, her long hair spreading out.

"Steal your name," her eyes held an unreadable depth. Nelly tried to get up, but she felt completely pinned down.

"Your appearance, your voice... would you be willing?" The girl propped herself up on her elbows, one hand gently caressing Nelly's face, while the other rested on Nelly's throat.

"You..." If they had no connection at all, Nelly might not have cared. But this person was right in front of her, knowing everything about her.

There was no way she would agree.

"Heh, you're actually thinking about it, aren't you? I'm just teasing." A wicked smile curved the girl's lips. With a flip, she released Nelly and her gaze became distant.

"See that tree?" She gestured towards the phantom of the giant tree.

"Everything you love, everything you hate, you can find it there!"

Ignoring the girl's nonsensical ramblings, Nelly stood up and looked down at her.

"Is this really, truly just a dream?"

The girl tilted her head up slightly, her blonde hair obscuring her small face.

"Yes, it's just your dream."

With that, she let out a soft laugh. "What? You don't want me to go?"

Nelly remained silent.

"Don't be like that. I would never harm you. Or rather, in this world, only I would never harm you, and I would never leave you."

The girl patted the sand off her clothes and stood up as well.

"When you wake up, you'll forget most of it, but it doesn't matter."

"You just need to know that when you're in despair, I will appear, I will help you, and..."

She looked up again, meeting Nelly's eyes. But this time, her smile, her gaze, on the face that was identical to Nelly's, held a never-before-seen... sickness.

"I will replace you."