"You are such a fool, if only you hadn't bought so many little books!" Yuanhui once again owed someone a big favor, reportedly because his family stopped giving him any pocket money after discovering his secret.
Although we didn't realize it at the time, we had been friends for many years, and it felt like helping each other had become a habit.
"Ah, the loans that Chiyori offers are really outrageous, you should try borrowing from her if you don't believe me!"
"Um, I'll pass." I waved my hand, politely declining his offer.
Chiyori is the daughter of the police station chief - while she may look like a top student, her outward kindness couldn't be further from the truth.
"Thanks, I'll definitely pay you back double when I start making money."
"Um, don't deceive me, have you ever repaid anyone?"
"Hehe, well..."
Yuanhui always liked borrowing money from me and shamelessly never paid it back.
I could only sigh, "Oh well... if you want to repay, then stop borrowing money to buy those trashy little books."
I never wanted to place all my trust in just myself.
Not thinking about the compromise that follows, ending up losing everything in the end...!
I had nothing to say, with Yukari always by my side, we all looked so familiar, like we had spent a long time together in the past.
Now, many of my childhood memories have faded, at least the important ones are lost.
Unless one day I lose everything!
"Juxi, are you still there?"
Yukari's empty voice echoed in my ears, the only wish I longed for but failed to realize!
Returning to this small town, it felt different from before.
The world plunged into darkness, only the ruins of the city proved human existence on this desolate planet.
The once bustling city is now overgrown with weeds, and in a corner of the abandoned city, two figures huddled together.
It might have been just wishful thinking in the beginning.
The man's black hair turned to a dark gray as he finally succumbed to a sudden blow.
A slender girl lay peacefully in the man's arms, covered in scars with red eyes slowly losing their color.
"If time could turn back..."
The gray-haired man's eyes contracted, his almost cracked lips murmured, "I must live on—Yukari!"
Before, even though we were just a small town, it was filled with the sounds of birds chirping and blossoming flowers, vibrant with life.
I truly felt happy then, with dad around and mom too.
"Xi, do you know what Mom wants the most, Xi?"
Back then, I didn't understand much, so I gave the generic answer many kids would give.
"Is it to become an amazing person?"
"Hehehe... wrong!"
"...I don't know."
I didn't know, because I was too afraid of losing everything. If only we hadn't met at the beginning, if there was no encounter at all, if, if, if...
"If we hadn’t met, then our future... maybe... just maybe!"
Perhaps our future wouldn't have turned out so complicated.
In my eyes, all I see ahead are fortresses where flowers bloom in abundance.
I've grown accustomed to this kind of life, but for most people, it would have driven them to the brink of collapse long ago.
Licking my cracked lips out of boredom, I pondered deep within.
This small city harbors countless secrets, and I am perhaps the biggest secret of all, maybe the only one of my kind in the world, or one of the very few.
Anything, even a shadow, should have its own true form.
Therefore, my true form must still exist in this world, perhaps in another time, but I cannot find the connection between us… just like that dark creature mentioned.
The once bustling city is now filled with ruins and rubble.
The occasional human screams that used to pierce the air have fallen silent.
Only the roars of monsters and the sounds of burning buildings and cars echo through the eerily quiet city.
Not far from them, a few individuals are feasting on their prey.
The city has lost the protection of law and no longer knows peace and harmony.
Finally, the season of parting has arrived, and all these actions are my own, a confession from me alone…
(Next volume, prelude to the Archangel Program)
I have become a mere shadow in this world, missing opportunities in the cycle of reincarnation, completely and utterly failing, and can only pay the corresponding price… to dissipate!
One year later…
Location: along the border of Poland and Slovakia.
"ShuraShura, this is headquarters, please respond!"
"Yes, Shura here!"
He is a legend in this world, wanted by many countries and dark terrorist organizations. The nightmare from two years ago that nearly led him to the brink of extinction of his humanity still haunts him.
Fortunately, over the past year, there hasn't been anything that troubled him.
"Whew…" Amidst the sounds of a blizzard, a cold wind and snow fluttering in the night, the headquarters received a transmission.
A boy who appears to be only seventeen or eighteen years old is currently hiding atop a snowy peak in a tight black cold-protective outfit, tightly holding a silenced sniper rifle.
While contacting headquarters with his left hand, his right hand, through the scope, cautiously observes the movements of the enemy camp, waiting vigilantly for the target to appear.
"Shura, please confirm your current most accurate location, our drone will assist you in timely evacuation!"
"Understood!" The boy picks up and discards a piece of chocolate he was holding in his mouth, crawls forward on the snow, slowly reveals his head, sets up the sniper rifle on its stand, "Psst, it's just dealing with a small fry… I'm too nervous!"
For a job that often puts his life in danger, no matter how weak the opponents are, one shot equals a kill.
He always relies on self-made chocolate before assassinations to relieve stress.
This remedy, for the boy who does not smoke, ensures that every action he takes is foolproof.
Currently positioned on a snow peak towering thirty meters high, if he doesn’t escape in time after the assassination, the enemies will pinpoint his exact location in a short time.
"Reporting to headquarters, target spotted! Requesting helicopter dispatch to the designated location!"
The time for the helicopter to assist in evacuation must be accurately synchronized with the kill and retreat. He carefully coordinates the timing with headquarters and then observes the target's every move from his position.
Time passes by minute by minute...
"Shura, this is headquarters, the helicopter will arrive at the designated location in three minutes!"
The urgent voice from headquarters came again as the heavy snow began to thin out.
With no time to spare, he ignored the thick layer of snow covering him, instead wiping the thin snow off the muzzle with his hand, focusing on observing the movements of the bald man in a fur coat and the organization flag beside him through the sniper scope.
"Shura, the headquarters helicopter will arrive in 30 seconds..."
The flag waving in the wind suddenly fell still, the boy held his breath awkwardly, quickly confirming his position.
"Swoosh!"
A slight and subtle sound rang out as a gleaming bullet flew out from the muzzle, hitting the man's chin and passing through his neck from behind— a perfect shot from two kilometers away!
The leader of the enemy camp was abruptly castrated in front of everyone by the sniper!
The terrorists all cowered in fear, hiding in their bunkers, afraid that the next bullet would penetrate their heads!
"Sigh... what a bunch of misfits, wasting time!"
Gasping for air heavily, the boy mockingly scolded the riff-raff soldiers, then brought the radio to his mouth to report the mission result,
"Panting! Panting... Reporting to headquarters, mission accomplished, the head of the Hadith Cult evil cult has been killed, requesting cover for extraction!"
From catching his breath to reporting the mission result, the boy appeared very skilled, taking just five seconds, and then deftly securing a rope from his bag to a crevice in the mountaintop, rappelling down the slope towards the helicopter landing point.
"Well done, Shura! After this week, let's take a good rest, and have some fun together, hahaha!"
Ah, why is my friend still the same old self? He's feeling down.
"You're still in such high spirits, even after being disciplined by the government for so many years, you're still the same old uncle with unchanged character, you perv!"
While chatting with his old friend, Shura didn't slow his pace at all, and within thirty seconds, he finally saw the helicopter that had landed behind the snowy mountain come into view.
Truly, the heavens did not intend to hinder this lord's vacation plans, just as the colorful vacation thoughts swirled in his mind, the troubles behind him... The bullet whizzed past his cheek with a cold wind!
"FUCK!" He should have realized that the arrival of the helicopter would alert the enemy to his presence. He needed to hurry or risk getting exposed.
"Swoosh!"
Just as Shura felt the killing intent creep up to the back of his head and sensed the attacker's hand touching the deck, he agilely executed a backflip, planting his right palm straight on the cabin floor to maintain a handstand.
The fierce wind brought by the bullet swept over his head and nailed itself to the cabin door behind him!
Simultaneously, his free left hand swiftly pulled out a compact handgun from his waist and quickly aimed it at the attackers bearing down on him, firing three shots in succession!
"Bang! Bang! Bang!"
Amidst the cacophony of AK47 gunfire, the three shots seemed to ring out even clearer.
They struck the bridge of one attacker's nose, the liver of another, and the heart of the third.
With a thud, all three fell to the ground almost simultaneously, and at that moment, the helicopter spun up its rotor blades, blowing away the surrounding snow and swiftly departing from the scene of chaos.
"Oh my... that was so close, I almost met my deceased grandpa!"
Sitting in the pilot's seat of the helicopter, Shura managed a wry smile, "Well, that's the life of assassins, it's not the first time, so why not adapt?"
