Hemp Rope

"Kill!"

The Red-Clothed Vengeful Soul let out a shrill howl and lunged at Molly and Luoxi, leaving a red afterimage in her wake.

Her hands turned into claws thick with resentment, tearing through the air.

At the same time, the Yin-Soul Monster rapidly formed seals with his hands, chanting an arcane incantation.

"Rise!"

At his command, the corpses of the dead Black Defectors staggered to their feet.

The corpses reeked, green light flickering in their eyes as they lurched toward Molly and Luoxi like Walking Corpses.

"Golden Yellow, leave these corpses to me!"

Molly shouted and charged the corpses with Broken Sword in hand.

Silver light flashed from Broken Sword. Each swing cleaved a corpse in two.

But things were going badly for Luoxi.

Luoxi's light magic countered the Red-Clothed Vengeful Soul, but her opponent was too powerful. A Half-Step Ghost King was no easy foe.

Luoxi could barely hold her off, and resentment had already eaten several gashes through her magical outfit.

After dealing with the corpses, Molly turned toward Luoxi, frantic with worry.

She wanted to help, but the Red-Clothed Vengeful Soul was immune to physical attacks. Broken Sword couldn't hurt her at all.

Damn it, how is this any different from Master Ye going into World War II barehanded?!

Molly couldn't help cursing inwardly.

Without a way to counter her, even the strongest physical attacks were useless!

Watching them lose ground, the Yin-Soul Monster burst into smug laughter.

"Hahaha! Struggle! Fight back!"

"The more you struggle, the more excited I get! Once I capture you, I'll rip out your souls and refine them into the most powerful vengeful spirits!"

The Red-Clothed Vengeful Soul's attacks grew fiercer. Luoxi's breathing weakened, and more wounds appeared on her body.

Just as the Red-Clothed Vengeful Soul's claws were about to strike Luoxi, Molly's eyes went red.

She knew she was taking a gamble, but she had no time to care!

"Holy Judgment!"

Molly roared and poured every last bit of strength she had into Broken Sword.

A brilliant beam of white light shot from Broken Sword's tip and slammed straight into the Red-Clothed Vengeful Soul with world-shattering force.

This was her trump card!

"Aagh!"

The Red-Clothed Vengeful Soul screamed as the white light punched a huge hole through her body.

Most of the resentment surrounding her dissipated in an instant, and her presence grew feeble.

A thick hemp rope stained with black resentment fell from her body and landed on the ground.

Luoxi's eyes lit up.

Seizing the chance, she pulled a yellow teleportation scroll from her pocket and chanted an incantation.

"Teleport!"

The scroll turned into golden light, enveloping Molly, Luoxi, and the hemp rope.

The Yin-Soul Monster's expression changed drastically. He charged toward them with a roar.

"You're not going anywhere!"

But he was a step too late.

Golden light flashed, and Molly and Luoxi vanished.

The Yin-Soul Monster stared at the empty square, his face dark with fury.

Then he burst into crazed laughter.

"Hahaha! So what if they escaped?!"

"With those two meddlesome magical girls out of the way, the Red-Clothed Vengeful Soul will become a Red-clad Ghost King before long!"

"Then all of A City will be mine!"

A thousand meters away.

In an alley.

Golden light flashed, and Molly and Luoxi tumbled awkwardly to the ground.

Both gasped for breath. They were wounded, and their breathing was weak.

Molly braced herself on Broken Sword and struggled to her feet. She looked at Luoxi and asked hoarsely,

"What... do we do now?"

Luoxi wiped the blood from the corner of her mouth and shook her head.

"The Red-Clothed Vengeful Soul is too strong. We can't defeat her by force."

"There's only one way to deal with her."

"What way?" Molly asked quickly.

"Resolve her resentment."

Luoxi's voice was grave.

"Once her resentment is resolved, her strength will plummet. Her soul might even dissipate entirely."

Molly frowned.

"But we don't know what caused her resentment or what she's clinging to. How can we resolve it?"

Luoxi opened her left hand, revealing something.

It was the hemp rope that had fallen from the Red-Clothed Vengeful Soul.

"I know Retracing Magic."

Luoxi gripped the rope and looked at Molly.

"This should be the rope she used to hang herself. It's stained with her resentment and the attachment she couldn't let go of."

"I can use it as a conduit to cast Retracing Magic and send someone into her memories to see how she died and what she's clinging to."

Molly looked at the rope and nodded.

"All right! I'll go!"

Luoxi shook her head.

"Entering someone else's memories is dangerous."

"One wrong move, and her resentment will consume you. You'll be trapped in her memories forever. You—"

"I'm not afraid!"

Molly cut her off, her gaze steady.

"If I'm too scared to take even this risk, how can I talk about protecting A City?"

Luoxi met her determined gaze and nodded.

"All right."

"I'll stay beside you and protect you. If anything goes wrong, I'll pull you out immediately."

She had Molly sit on the ground, then sat cross-legged behind her.

Luoxi placed the hemp rope on Molly's head, rapidly formed seals with her hands, and chanted an arcane incantation.

"Retracing Magic, begin!"

A soft light carrying the mottled feel of passing time shone from the rope and enveloped Molly.

Molly felt the world spin. Her consciousness seemed to leave her body and drift into the distance.

When she opened her eyes again, she found herself standing outside a high school.

She was watching from a third-person perspective.

She saw a boy in a school uniform, his face red, hand a love letter to a girl who wore the same uniform.

The boy was quite handsome, and the girl was beautiful too.

The girl accepted the letter and glanced at it. Then she smiled sweetly and nodded.

The boy blushed even harder. He scratched his head and gave her a shy smile.

From then on, they were together.

They went to class together, walked home from school together, strolled around the sports field together, and studied in the library together.

They promised to get into the same university.

After their college entrance exams, their wish came true: they were admitted to the same prestigious university.

Their four years at university were the happiest of their lives.

They ate in the cafeteria together, went to movies together, kissed... and shared the other intimacies of a couple.

Their bond grew stronger, and they became the couple everyone at school envied.

After graduation, they met each other's parents. Both families approved, and they got engaged.

Beneath a cherry tree, the boy and girl made a promise.

"We'll love each other for the rest of our lives."

To make a living, the boy took a civil service job in another city, while the girl stayed in A City to work.

Their relationship became long-distance.

The girl loved the boy as much as ever. She called and messaged him every day.

But the boy grew colder and colder.

He always said he was busy with work, that he had no time to call or reply.

The girl cried in secret many times. She thought he had grown tired of her.

But the boy explained that he was simply too busy with work. He hadn't grown tired of her.

The girl chose to believe him.

Day by day, their wedding drew closer.

The girl prepared for it with a heart full of joy, looking forward to the life they would share after they married.

But then the boy suddenly came back.

He hadn't returned to discuss the wedding. He had come to break up with her.

"Let's break up."

The boy's voice was cold.

"I don't love you anymore. I've found someone else."

The girl's world collapsed in an instant.

She begged him through her tears, asking why.

But the boy merely gave her a large sum of money, called it compensation, and left without looking back.

The girl fell silent.

She shut herself inside her home, eating and drinking nothing, and cried for months.

Months later, the boy returned.

Thinking he had changed his mind, the girl rushed to open the door, her heart full of joy.

Instead, she found him standing with several vicious-looking men.

They forced their way into her home and gang-raped her.

They also filmed her and posted the video online.

Overnight, the girl was publicly humiliated. In tears, she demanded to know why the boy had done it.

The boy said,

"Just for fun. The truth is, I never even liked you."

The girl lost all hope.

The boy disappeared for good.

On a stormy night, the girl, her eyes empty, put on a red wedding dress and hanged herself in her room with a hemp rope.

The scene cut off abruptly.

A gentle force pulled Molly's consciousness back into her body.

She opened her eyes. They were bloodshot, and fury burned inside her.

That bastard!

He deserved to die!

But once her anger ebbed, a question rose in Molly's mind. She frowned and said,

"I can just about understand a scumbag dumping his girlfriend because he found someone new."

"But why would he bring a group of men to gang-rape her? And post the video online?"

"Just for fun? Did he have nothing better to do? Did he not care about the consequences?"

Something's wrong!

Very wrong!

There's more to this!