Chapter Twenty-Two: Wavering

Sakuya found herself forced to confront the reality that the everyday life represented by the identity of "Qin Yun" was gradually slipping away. If the fading of this illusory normality was inevitable, then she at least needed to recall the mission borne by Sakuya, the ancient warrior. Yet, both sides felt hollow, leaving Sakuya lost in confusion.

Being with Long Sheng, Li Jiayi, and the others was certainly comforting. As an excellent student leader, a steady and reliable confidante to all, she had envisioned a school life spent striving for future careers and lives, making friends, and encountering love. From there, she would graduate, enter university, and eventually join society. That was the school life that should have belonged to Qin Yun. Perhaps, for everyone else, that was exactly how it was meant to be. However, under the constant threat of mysterious monsters, all of this had become fragile and unreal. She wondered how much longer she could maintain the facade of Qin Yun.

Moreover, this daily life was merely a fabrication created by Director Qin to conceal Sakuya’s true identity. Qin Yun was a mask, while the true Sakuya—who she was and what she had experienced—remained a mystery due to her amnesia. Thinking of it this way, who was the one piloting weapons to fight giant monsters? She was neither Qin Yun nor the true Sakuya, but merely a wanderer in this era.

Sakuya looked particularly exhausted today. Though she had hoped to find a corner of solace in her school life, the desolate state of the academy had clearly dashed her expectations. During martial arts training, Sakuya lay drenched in sweat on the studio floor, eyes closed, catching her breath.

"What’s wrong, Sakuya? You look exceptionally tired today. Is it too busy at school?" Master Shi Silang, the white-bearded teacher who trained Sakuya, noticed her unusual state and ended the session early.

"Sigh, if only it were just busy," Sakuya replied with a heavy sigh. All the schools in the city were currently on break; due to a severe shortage of students, there were ongoing discussions about merging campuses.

"Here." The master handed her an energy drink.

"Thank you... I have indeed been feeling very weary lately." Sitting up, she took a small sip, yet she could not shake the doubts and confusion swirling in her mind.

The master walked over and sat beside her. "I suspect it’s not physical fatigue, is it? Your breathing technique is perfectly normal."

"..." Sakuya turned to look at the old man with the white beard, her eyes filled with surprise.

"Hmm, it seems I guessed right..."

The old man had a wealth of life experience; reading Sakuya’s mind was not difficult for him. "If you are comfortable, would you like to talk to me about it?"

Sakuya’s thoughts were in disarray; she needed a moment to organize her words. However, she had never mentioned this to anyone before, and Master Shi was someone she felt she could trust.

In the corridor outside the training room, Ziyuan had arrived to pick up Sakuya as scheduled. Seeing through the small window that the training seemed to have ended early, she noticed Sakuya and Master Shi sitting cross-legged on the floor, talking. Not wanting to intrude, she leaned against the door to listen for a moment.

The mass exodus of citizens from New Chunqiu City was known nationwide. Many residents in surrounding provinces had even begun to move further away, using New Chunqiu City as the epicenter of their flight. This was understandable; no one wanted to live on top of a ticking time bomb. For ordinary people, who simply wanted to live their quiet, peaceful lives, it was too much to ask them to live in constant fear, guarding against monsters that could appear from nowhere. Even though New Chunqiu City was, in the words of Director Qin of Schwager, a defensive city for interception, this fact had not been disclosed to the public. The psychological pressure would be too great for the average person.

Of course, more than half of the citizens remained, unable to leave for various reasons. Sooner or later, they would realize what was happening on this planet. Among them, Sakuya’s school friends—Long Sheng, Li Jiayi, Bruce, and their families—were the ones holding their ground in New Chunqiu City. At least they provided Sakuya with some solace. Having forgotten her mission due to amnesia, a significant part of Sakuya’s reason for fighting currently lay with these friends.

In the mountainous area on the outskirts of New Chunqiu City, the remains of the stealth monster that Sakuya had killed in a desperate sniper shot were being collected and observed by the military. Personnel in hazmat suits moved through the cordoned-off area. It was quite busy during the day.

"Ha, this thing looks just like an egg..." a researcher on-site remarked to a colleague.

"Indeed. Look, the massive shards left behind after it died are still refracting light on the outside; it has stealth capabilities," the colleague said, pointing to the shattered shell fragments. The outer surface of the shell allowed light to pass through, revealing the scenery behind, while the inner surface was a stark, eggshell white. It was truly peculiar, defying conventional understanding.

"Analyze the material thoroughly. It might serve as a resource for military equipment."

"Agreed. Let’s go collect some samples." The two military researchers stepped into the area where the fragments were scattered, guarded by soldiers.

"Hey, have you noticed any changes? Compared to when we were here last time?" The lead researcher seemed to have spotted something, but his colleague was puzzled.

"What changes?"

"Previously, there was a lot of black, tar-like liquid inside these fragments. It had no odor, and since our team didn't know what it was, we didn't dare collect samples."

Hearing this, his colleague seemed to recall it. "Oh, that. I think I remember. What about it?"

The leader began pacing around the fragments, looking for a good spot to chip off a sample. "That fluid seems to be gone now."

"Oh, it does look like it. Maybe it evaporated; it has been several days."

"I’m just worried it might be toxic. If it vaporized into the air, that could be trouble."

The lead scientist began collecting samples from the surface of the shell. He pressed a cutter against the fragment, sending sparks flying. "Don't worry, this zone is equipped with air detection devices. If there were toxic gas, we would have known long ago."

His colleague dismissed the concern. After all these days, the soldiers stationed here were all perfectly fine.

"Hahaha, fair enough, I’m overthinking it. It seems that black fluid was just the egg white of this thing. As long as it’s evaporated, we’re fine."

The two researchers continued their work, relieved, unaware that they had missed something crucial. This thing was indeed an egg. It was unclear what the military might gain from recovering and studying the carcasses of these monsters. If, as they hoped, they could obtain materials to upgrade their military equipment, their chances of winning against these monsters might improve by even the slightest margin.

With school still on break, Long Sheng gathered his courage and decided to go find Qin Yun. Based on their previous movie date, he had figured out what she liked to eat. This time, he dressed in a stylish casual tracksuit and bought the chicken fillet burger that Qin Yun loved.

When his phone calls went unanswered, Long Sheng went to Qin Yun’s doorstep and tried knocking. However, Qin Yun did not seem to be home, which left him quite disappointed. He sighed with a self-deprecating smile and sat on the stairs of her apartment building to rest for a moment.

It was not that Qin Yun was intentionally ignoring him; she was indeed not at home at that moment. She was currently occupied with handling some rather thorny matters.