What She Lost, What I Gained: For Now, Let's Move Forward
What makes people happy?
What causes pain?
What is it that allows one to ascend to heaven?
What kicks people down to hell?
What is something that you can never have too much of?
What is it that makes you feel heartache even if you lose just a little bit?
What is it that you can't give up no matter how much you hate it?
What is it that, even after hurting someone countless times, the victim still tries every means to obtain it?
What is it that can support everyone's lives and even become the pillar of society as a whole?
It's definitely not love.
The answer is obvious: money.
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деньги De
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เงิน
Although different countries have different names for it, it is all the same thing.
Right now, money is exactly what we need most.
It's not for material enjoyment, nor for maintaining daily life.
Now, the amount of money we have directly determines how much strength we can exert.
It is directly related to our life, death, success, or failure.
To win, to confront the Extra Weapon, to survive, to rescue Little Butterfly, and to bring down Yu He.
So--
Rewind a bit, to a time shortly before the minor argument between the Extra Weapon—
"The Sea Beast Shipping vessel is about to arrive at Port 4, West Wing, Third Floor of the Business Capital. All vessels, please weigh anchor and prepare. Repeat..."
The hollow broadcast echoed through the Sea Beast, its sound reflecting off the vast interior and reverberating endlessly, causing a painful ache in the eardrums.
We sat silently in the emergency boat provided by the Matuji Company; the atmosphere was very somber.
I leaned against the edge of the small boat and simply closed my eyes to rest; Haoyue nestled beside me, unusually refraining from sexual Sin Annihilation; Xiao Wu was on the other side of the boat, looking up silently, one hand constantly smoothing her hair; Sick Spider sat silently with Xiaoying and Little Ying, Sin Annihilation's expression even more stiff than usual, and Little Ying surprisingly didn't make a fuss.
I shifted my consciousness from the outside in, feeling every component and organ of my body as real, undiminished, and never disappearing. The feeling of my body gradually vanishing was terrifying. Although we escaped safely after Little Ying broke through the barrier and Fiser fled, and my almost transparent body returned to normal, I never wanted to experience that feeling of existence slowly fading into nothingness again.
"Well..."
What exactly does this feeling feel like?
It wasn't sadness or despair, but it was definitely not happiness either. Although it was a close call, there was no feeling of relief, nor any remorse for its previous recklessness.
"What everyone is feeling now is probably 'lingering fear'."
Winnie's voice echoed in my mind, and the projection inserted into my brain seemed embarrassed, its gaze shifting away.
"... Hey, Winnie, it's so good to hear your voice while I'm still alive."
"I'm sorry, I should have arrived sooner, but Yu Xun seems to have tampered with the surrounding space, probably some kind of special device. The transmission of spiritual energy throughout the belly of the Sea Beast has been cut off, so..."
"It's okay, I'm not blaming you. After all, in this situation, anyone would be willing but unable to help."
"How about I just transfer my main body here and act with you all the way? Although I'll definitely be put on the defector list, that's better than nothing—"
"--Stop, stop! You said you loved me, didn't you? Is your love for me so fragile that you can't prove it without risking your life?"
"... sorry."
"Okay, stop blaming yourself. Knowing that someone fought for my survival is already a huge encouragement to me."
"Um..."
"Let's not talk about this anymore, we're almost there..."
The ship began to move. Countless huge cruise ships, cargo ships, and container ships raised their anchors, and hundreds of thousands of tons of seawater in the belly of the Sea Beast began to flow towards the mouth of the monster. All the ships sailed with the current toward the exit.
I stood up, and the others followed suit, all looking in the direction of the Sea Beast's mouth.
The fleet passed through a long passage, which was probably a modified esophagus of this Sea Emperor Clan, but there was no fishy smell here. Instead, there were ventilation fans at the top that sent out cool breezes.
The further you go along the passage, the dimmer the lights on the walls become, until finally it becomes completely dark.
We waited in the darkness, and not only us, but many people on other ships who had already been to Business Capital held their breath.
Hiss... Rumble rumble rumble...
A bright light appeared in the darkness, its edges jagged like teeth, growing longer and wider. This was naturally the gigantic maw of the Sea Beast, hundreds of meters wide, and also the world's largest unloading outlet.
It was so bright. Was it because I had gotten used to the darkness it described? The light coming in from outside was so bright that I could hardly open my eyes. I couldn't help but cover my face with my hands, while the small boat continued to move towards the opening of light with the current. I even had the illusion that I was about to step into another world.
As if timed perfectly, the hollow broadcast played its final sentence:
"Dear passengers, welcome to Business Capital. We hope you have a wonderful time here."
Then, the beast's mouth opened completely—
Rumble rumble rumble rumble--whoosh who...
The deafening sound of drainage, the cacophony of voices, the port's announcements, the ship's horns—all sorts of sounds rushed in, mingling with the light I hadn't yet adjusted to, plunging me into this most bustling city in Human Society.
I don't know why I'm standing frozen on the boat, nor why my mind is completely blank. In the instant before, all sorts of things flashed through my mind: fate, battle, enemies, comrades, money, power, the individual, the world, the past, the future—
What am I doing? Why is my heart trembling so much? Why did I feel a sudden urge to back down? Am I afraid? But having already overcome the obstacle of the lady, would I still be afraid of this mere Business Capital city?
What is it that I fear? No one knows what future fate will lead us to, and even if we did, all we could do was silently endure it. It's going to be like this anyway, so there shouldn't be anything to be afraid of.
Even knowing this, I still feel fear.
I have never lost anything.
What others see as "loss" is nothing more than "gaining a negative number" to me.
Along the way, I've received many positive numbers and quite a few negative numbers. Fortunately, when I add them together, I'm still above 0.
... I see, is that so?
What I fear is not the unknown future, nor the possibility of ending up with a negative number.
What I fear is my "fate" itself.
"Hey... A Ye... A Ye!"
"... Uh, um?"
"What are you daydreaming about?! Your boat has already docked!"
"Ah... ah!"
Pushed by Haoyue Sakura Dance and urged on by Winnie in my mind, I stepped onto the dock as if in a dream.
Then, the sight of bustling prosperity—a scene that even if you put all the major international metropolises on Earth together, including Beijing, New York, Tokyo, and Paris, and compressed all their airports, train stations, and bus stations—couldn't compare to, instantly brought me back to reality.
"Is your luggage all packed?"
"There's practically no luggage to carry!"
"Where's the ticket for riding the Sea Beast?"
"Here! Take one each, and slip it in when you go through the ticket gate!"
"Don't run around! Don't get lost!"
"So, Xiao Ye, what were you daydreaming about? Let's go!"
I vaguely recalled my childhood on Earth, getting off the train during the Spring Festival travel rush, being held tightly by my parents as they jostled and pushed their way through the crowds to the station exit.
I really miss those days.
Thinking of this, I couldn't help but laugh, and then I took a step, truly stepping into Yu He's territory for the first time.