Falsehood and truth

"Isn't that the God-Slaying Crossbow? Now that brings back memories." A voice rang out from beyond the door.

Xiao Sha said, "Master, you're here."

Tsubaki said, "Yuan, you're so late!" She bounded over and threw herself into Yuan Shikai's arms.

Yuan Shikai said, "I came in and found nobody around, then spotted a door over here and let myself in. I hope I'm not interrupting."

Tsubaki said, "Not at all!"

The woman in red said, "You actually recognize this crossbow. You must know Qin Shi Huang, then."

Scooping Tsubaki into his arms, Yuan Shikai said, "Know him? I even fought him. Qin Shi Huang fought dirty back then and shot me with this crossbow. It hurt like hell."

The woman in red said, "Surviving that means you're strong. One shot was all it took to kill me."

Yuan Shikai said, "That First Emperor really was strong. With the Great Wall supporting him, I'd only have a fifty-fifty chance against him head-on."

The woman in red looked utterly shocked by my words. Her expression seemed to say, Are you even hearing yourself?

You could fight the First Emperor to a draw while weathering attacks from the Great Wall? Wouldn't that have made you invincible in that era?

The woman in red said, "You're actually that strong? Why have I never seen you before?"

Yuan Shikai said, "That might be because I was born a few thousand years after you."

...!

I studied the woman in red and found yet another familiar face. The artists for this version must all have been the same person. They could churn out endless characters just by putting the same face in different clothes.

Though she wore red and covered her face with a veil, she couldn't conceal her flood dragon tail. I spotted it at