Welcome to Rewind World Game-Chapter 1368 - 19: The World Burns in My Color (10)
"No."
Su Ming’an directly refused.
He had no intention of dancing with Shen Xue.
Just as he was about to turn around, the colored cube sugar in his backpack suddenly shattered.
...
[You have violated "ooc" (out-of-character), and it’s determined you have lost in the story domain.]
[But you possess a special prop: "Colored Cube Sugar," which grants you immunity to one failure.]
[The story continues.]
...
Su Ming’an suddenly realized that his current character is "17-year-old Su Ming’an," and the 17-year-old him would not have known how malicious Shen Xue was. In such a scenario, out of politeness, he wouldn’t refuse a classmate’s invitation.
It was his first time engaging in this kind of battle between creators, and he almost got tricked. Fortunately, the colored cube sugar was useful, saving him once.
Su Ming’an put on his gloves and said indifferently, "Let’s dance."
Many envious gazes fell on Su Ming’an. Shen Xue was the class belle, and many wanted to dance with her, yet she actively invited Su Ming’an.
The soft lights spilled onto the wooden floor, and music flowed gently from the speakers; it was a waltz, with a slow and beautiful rhythm.
The others had already started dancing, seamlessly merging into the dance steps.
Su Ming’an and Shen Xue, however, didn’t fit in with others. Su Ming’an didn’t want to touch her at all, his palm hovering tentatively, wishing to keep her at a distance. They looked less like they were dancing and more like they were playing dodgeball.
...
The night is deep and heavy with dew.
The city sleeps in the dead of night.
He Zhizhen, with her long black hair and heavy bangs, leaned against the wall and walked forward slowly.
Her body was covered with scars, and she tightly held onto a piece of paper.
...
"Ding-ling——"
The wind blew through the sheer curtains, the dance floor sparkled.
Su Ming’an stepped down, landing on Shen Xue’s high heel.
"I’ve finally met you..." Shen Xue didn’t care about the pain, her eyes filled with eagerness.
"The real Shen Xue died on the Mingxi campus. You’re just a ghost named Shen Xue." Su Ming’an’s gaze slid over her shoulder, not granting her a single glance.
"Do you like my story? A story that helps you remember the past." Shen Xue said.
They always kept a not-too-distant distance; whenever Shen Xue tried to get closer, Su Ming’an would retreat. His demeanor was extremely cold, treating the whole event as nothing more than a routine school activity.
"Memories mean nothing to me. Even if you replay the past in front of me, I will not indulge in it." Su Ming’an said.
"Is that so? Then what if the memories are flawed?" Shen Xue whispered: "...Do you know why people often spoke poorly of you behind your back during your sophomore year?"
Su Ming’an felt a stir in his heart.
He remembered that during his sophomore year, there indeed were some bad rumors about him in the class. Some said that those naughty students were retaliating against him; they didn’t dare confront him directly, so they spread bad words behind his back.
But he wasn’t defeated by the rumors and continued to help He Zhizhen. She came from a poor family, and sometimes he would share a small piece of bread with her, so she wouldn’t go hungry. If she had questions she didn’t understand, she’d come to him, and he would patiently explain.
Not just for He Zhizhen, but he treated any classmate in need the same way.
Gradually, He Zhizhen was no longer as gloomy as before. With his help, she’d made some friends. Occasionally, he’d see her playing with them, her smile so beautiful that it made one overlook the unsightly scar on her face.
"What do you want to say?" Su Ming’an asked.
"I want to tell you the truth." Shen Xue said with a smile: "Back then, the rumors in the class were indeed deliberately spread by someone who couldn’t stand your popularity and wanted to tarnish your reputation. But guess who spread them?"
"Those bad students?" Su Ming’an raised an eyebrow.
"Nope." Shen Xue leaned in closer and whispered in his ear:
...
"...It was He Zhizhen."
"She was the one deliberately spreading slanderous rumors about you."
...
Under the darkness.
He Zhizhen walked out of the alley and headed toward a tall building.
"Young lady, why do you have so many scars on you? Where are you heading?" An enthusiastic aunt passing by saw the scars on her and approached with concern.
He Zhizhen was startled, like a frightened rabbit, and ran forward as if fleeing.
The aunt scratched her head, looking at her back, puzzled: "What’s with this young lady...?"
...
"Su Ming’an, did you know?" Shen Xue’s eyebrows curved, her smile gentle:
"I personally witnessed, after school, He Zhizhen would stay behind and gossip about you to some remaining classmates."
"She said you helped her for money and benefits. But since she had no money, you’d cling to her endlessly. By sharing bread and small favors, you constantly reminded her of the debt she owed you."
"She also said that due to depression and facial disease, she didn’t have any true friends, and no one would genuinely help her. Everyone was self-absorbed, giving her false hopes and kindness, only to abandon her when she felt things could get better."
"Including you, she felt you were only helping to satisfy your own sympathy and didn’t truly want to help her. Because she felt she was just distasteful to others."
"Moreover, you helped so many others. Your popularity grew, while she remained in the mire... She felt very unwilling, why? Why did you abandon her?"
"The better you are to people, the more they think you ought to be."
...
"It hurts so much... so much..." He Zhizhen finally made it to the building, panting.
She clutched the paper tightly and headed up the stairs.
Earlier in the alley, she was cornered again by that group of bad students, who laughed wildly as they beat her:
"Why isn’t Su Ming’an here to save you this time!? Scream, come on, scream!"
"Su Ming’an reported us, got us writing self-criticism. But since he always has parents picking him up, we can’t touch him, so we’ll take it all out on you!"
"Beat her, beat her hard! Count it as two shares!!"
This had happened more than once, He Zhizhen rolling in the dirt, endlessly pleading for mercy, but there was no response.
Then she prayed again, hoping that on that day, Su Ming’an hadn’t saved her; that way, she wouldn’t have to endure double the hatred. But again, there was no response.
Gradually, gratitude turned to resentment. She resented not only those students but also Su Ming’an — wasn’t he supposed to be her savior? Wasn’t he so good to her, so why didn’t he keep helping her!?
"Hiss, hiss..." She took a sharp breath, rubbed her aching body, and walked up the stairs in the dark. 𝐟𝗿𝐞𝚎𝚠𝐞𝚋𝕟𝐨𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝕔𝕠𝚖
...
Brilliance shone.
The crystal chandelier shone with a glassy gold shimmer, spreading gold everywhere.
On the dance floor, Su Ming’an and Shen Xue still stood awkwardly, like two sumo wrestlers.
"Besides that, do you know who ratted you out to the teacher about your watch that day?" Shen Xue exhaled lightly.
Su Ming’an’s eyes flickered for a moment.
Shen Xue’s lips curved into a smile:
"...It was still He Zhizhen."
Her right hand shook a little, and a photo slipped out from the folds of her dance dress, showing a scene of He Zhizhen speaking with a teacher:
"She was afraid you’d keep the video footage to threaten her later. So she reported you to the teacher. Even though she knew in her heart that if found out, you’d most likely face severe consequences. Had your watch not indeed been an ordinary one, you might have already faced punishment at home."
"Su Ming’an."
"With great eagerness, you helped her, sharing bread, teaching her to solve problems, and helping her make new friends. And this is how she ’repaid’ you."
"This is the person you wanted to save during your sophomore year."
"...This is the person you want to save."
...
The night wind was stern and cold.
He Zhizhen finally finished climbing the stairs, reaching the rooftop.
The cold wind lifted her black hair, the thick strands nearly covering her eyes. She shivered and placed the paper beside her as she sat on the edge of the rooftop.
Her legs dangled and swung.
She sneezed, her whole body aching with extreme pain. Aside from being beaten by the bad students, there were also wounds inflicted by her mother, and self-inflicted injuries.
She gazed into the distance; the starry sky was so beautiful.
From the moment she was born, she was despised by her grandparents. Her father left just a few months after she was born, and her mother, trying to woo a wealthy man, abandoned her several times without success, often cursing her face as ghostly, wishing death upon her.
To this day, she didn’t understand why she continued to live.
The hustle and bustle of the city’s traffic lay at the feet. The stars shone bright, and the moonlight disappeared.
"Bang—bang—bang!"
In the distance, colorful fireworks lit up the sky as people celebrated New Year’s Day.
"Rabbit, butterfly, fawn..." He Zhizhen lifted her fingers, counting the shapes of the fireworks. The symptoms of her depression gradually began to manifest, uncontrollably drawing tears.
So beautiful, these fireworks are just so beautiful.
But nobody would love someone like her; it’s all false, all false.
Su Ming’an is also fake.
There really isn’t such a good person in the world.
The colored radiance reflected in her dim eyes, with blood and long-unattended pus still flowing downward.
...
"This is something you didn’t know in your sophomore year." Shen Xue said softly:
"I reenacted these events to let you know the truth of the past—those bad students were not the ones who harmed you; it was the people you personally helped."
"So, to this day, those who always show you passion and gentleness, what do they really do behind your back... have you truly seen it?"
"Do you really know all of Noel’s actions?"
"How can you judge Lu’s gentleness?"
"How do you firmly believe in Yamada Machiichi’s loyalty?"
"When Alger joined the Peak Alliance, he expressed friendliness... and what has he done now? Oh, you don’t know yet, but Alger summoned the Sixth Thrones·Inorganic God, and is now pursuing another you."
Su Ming’an suddenly looked at her: "What happened over at Luowasha?"
"Want to know?" Shen Xue chuckled lightly: "Clear my story, and you can get out."
...
Shen Xue’s mood had never been this excited.
She finally stood before the person she longed for, her heart bursting with joy.
The youthful crush flickered through her mind...
She secretly gathered his taste in music, intentionally humming tunes as she passed by him.
She quietly studied science subjects, hoping he would ask her questions.
She quietly took the wrong path from the school gate, just to walk with him after school.
Maybe, if he softened a bit, if she became firmer... that day of confession would come.
But that day never came.
As the distance between them grew, becoming insurmountable... she had no choice but to choose another path to get closer to him.
In the center of the dance floor, she could clearly see the disgust in his eyes.
He didn’t like her, that was undoubted.
It was only to complete the story that he acted this way. When the dance ended, everything would conclude.
Others didn’t understand, given her good condition, why she wouldn’t let him go. But she knew in her heart that true pure "love" doesn’t depend on any conditions; from the first glance, she couldn’t look away.
"How I wish this dance had no end..." she looked at him.
But the regrets of youth, unable to be undone, would eventually await the moment of burial.
So, she smiled:
"There are only three beats left, and the dance will end, how fast."
Su Ming’an said nothing, but she saw "what he couldn’t wait for" on his face.
"Could you say a confession to me?" she gazed at him earnestly and humbly, pleading with him.
"..." Su Ming’an looked at her.
One second, two seconds, three seconds...
The music gradually ceased, the sound of high heels slowly came to a close, the skirt hem gradually stilled, and he said nothing.
Her heart suddenly became void, but the feeling that surged next was one of "expectation."
What was she hoping for?
Knowing there would be no result, yet forcing herself to witness this moment, love is indeed a strange and foolish thing.
Her hand reached for the rabbit pendant on her neck.
At the same time, Su Ming’an heard an exclamation from outside—
...
"—He Zhizhen jumped off a building!!"
"—He Zhizhen from class 2-4 jumped off a building—!!"
"Oh my god! Why—!!"
"It seems because of depression and school bullying, she left a suicide note—!"
"Can we see what she wrote in the note? What she wrote is likely the reason that made her decide to commit suicide!"
...
Su Ming’an closed his eyes, then opened them again.
There was no dance on that day when he was 17, it was additional content added by Shen Xue. However, He Zhizhen did jump off a building and commit suicide on this New Year’s Eve night.
This incident took many by surprise.
That’s why this incident had a huge impact on his entire life.
...
"What did her suicide note say?" people asked.
"It seems it only had one line..."
...
[He Zhizhen’s suicide note:]
[—I’m sorry, Su Ming’an.]
...
Later, due to this line in the suicide note, 17-year-old Su Ming’an was taken away for investigation for allegedly being involved in a classmate’s suicide. When he returned, some classmates thought he had incited He Zhizhen’s suicide and avoided him.
—He finally became another "He Zhizhen."
Later still, Bolong helped out, but that was a much more distant matter...
...
Now, 19-year-old Su Ming’an was still standing on the dance floor, looking at the chaos outside.
Suddenly.
"Crash—!!!" the door was kicked open.
A middle-aged man with a blade rushed in and started attacking the students.
The students on the dance floor screamed in panic.
"Who is this? Why is he attacking people?"
"Ahhh! Save us!"
"It hurts! Stop! Stop!"
The students fell into chaos, some strong ones wanted to stand up but were too far from the door.
The thug was hacking away indiscriminately, seemingly in revenge against society.
"... A violent assault by a thug? Is this the climax of Shen Xue’s story?" Su Ming’an saw a student getting cut down, he quickly shook off Shen Xue and, according to his persona—"the brave and enthusiastic 17-year-old Su Ming’an," charged toward the thug.
Seeing the thug’s blade about to cut down a girl’s neck, at the critical moment, Su Ming’an kicked with all his might.
With that kick, he successfully knocked over the thug, saving the students, who looked on with gratitude and lingering fear.
However, Su Ming’an sensed something was not right.
Something was off.
There seemed to be something strange...
But he had to do it, he couldn’t break character anymore. If he didn’t stop the thug, he would lose for breaking persona.
He stared at the thug, quickly pondering in his mind, what’s wrong.
Next,
he figured it out.
The fallen thug gradually, gradually transformed into a... white rabbit.
Its blood-red eyes stared at him with a deranged grin:
"Darling, you attacked me. Even if I’m just a thug in disguise, it’s still me, you know."
"You can’t move forward, nor back."
"Hee hee, hee hee hee hee..."
"That’s the killer blow."
...
["Although cards generally don’t harm players, if you really anger them, cards can bite the master, kon. Of course, it requires a proper reason; they can’t devour the master casually."]
["So..."]
[The Boss Rabbit leaned to his ear, bringing a whiff of burning joss paper:]
["... Darling, don’t give me this opportunity, or I’ll eat you up cleanly."]
...
The Boss Rabbit ended this memory.
The Inorganic God turned sideways with its cannon facing it.
