LIGHTNOVELWORLD Chapter 15: Trust is the Best Medicine for Wounds
"Almost there." Panting heavily, Ren's face broke into a smile of relief. After their long run, the border of the evacuation zone had finally come into sight.
Military-grade tactical vehicles, painted in a grey-blue camouflage, blocked the main road, completely obstructing the way into the city.
A fully armed combat team stood watch, holding their weapons as they observed the survivors approaching. They had to check everyone who came through. They seemed less focused on fighting the Honkai beasts and more like they were deliberately preventing survivors from entering the city.
As Kiana neared the safety zone, only a few dozen meters away from the military checkpoint, she suddenly stopped, her face troubled. She knew she couldn't reveal her identity. If she went through the official checkpoint, she'd be exposed.
Once the military's system caught her, hunters would soon arrive, bringing endless trouble.
More importantly, she glanced at Ren, who was leaning against a wall, breathing heavily. She might drag him into this mess as well.
After understanding that her life of so many years was nothing but a lie, Kiana had slowly accepted the fact that she was K423. Having experienced betrayal and loneliness, she was no longer so afraid of being studied as a test subject by Schicksal.
If a person lives in darkness for a long time, they won't fear the dark so much. But if that person is shown the light, the darkness becomes unbearable.
Before meeting Ren, she could face death without fear. But after he saved her, if she were to get Ren caught up in this vortex because of her, Kiana would be consumed by endless self-blame.
Because she knew what kind of people Schicksal were, and even more, she knew what kind of cold-blooded monster their leader was. If Otto were to find out that Ren had seen Sirin's awakening twice and survived, he would definitely be interested in studying him.
Thinking of this, she slowly let go of the boy's hand.
"What's wrong?" Having caught his breath, Ren noticed Kiana looking at him, asking with some confusion.
"You go first, I just remembered I have something to do." She offered a clumsy excuse, her face turning hot. Kiana, who was usually straightforward, was completely hopeless at lying.
Ren didn't call her out on it, just kept staring at her. Until Kiana's face turned increasingly red, her eyes darted around, and her whole face instinctively turned away, avoiding his gaze. Only then did he let out a deep sigh, saying with some helplessness, "Okay, what is it that you dropped? Let me help you find it, two people would be much more efficient."
"Even though my stamina is a bit low, I can still handle it as long as we don't run into any Honkai beasts."
Kiana, who was already feeling uncomfortable from lying, immediately exclaimed anxiously when she heard Ren's words, "No need, I'm a Valkyrie, I can handle it on my own. We've already reached the safe zone, you go ahead, I'll come find you later."
"A wanted Valkyrie?" Ren suddenly asked.
The girl's breath hitched, her heart feeling as if it was shrouded by a dark cloud, a sense of frustration rose in her chest.
As expected, he knew her identity all along? What was he going to do now?
Or was Sirin right? Did he approach her with an ulterior motive?
"What are you thinking about?"
As Kiana started to overthink, the boy's voice reached her ears again. She lifted her head and met the boy's clear, gray eyes.
"So, you already knew my identity." Her voice was dry. Was the first friend she'd made in months going to leave her too?
"Identity? Didn't you tell me yourself? We only met a few days ago." Ren's face lit up with realization. "You mean, you're wanted? That wasn't too hard to guess. As a Schicksal Valkyrie, you'd normally work with a squad. For you to be alone in this city, you must have your own reasons."
"Although I don't fully understand Schicksal's system, if you're operating alone, it means one of two things: either you're on a secret mission or you don't want Schicksal to find you. A secret mission wouldn't require you to hide your face, so that leaves the possibility that you're being hunted."
Kiana stared blankly at the boy, who was talking so fluently. The sunlight fell on his light gray hair, making him seem to glow with a gentle light.
If the whole world is dark, then that one candle flame becomes so precious.
"Aren't you afraid of me?"
"Why would I be afraid? Just because your past is unknown?" Ren lowered his head, meeting her mismatched blue and gold eyes, and his gray eyes showed no hesitation. "When you saved me from under the Honkai beasts, my life became yours."
"Someone who's still willing to save others, to keep the light of humanity alive in such a disaster, can't possibly be a bad person."
Ren's calm voice was like a ray of sunshine after a storm, cutting through the dark clouds that had wrapped around Kiana's heart for so long.
Before Sirin's consciousness awakened, Kiana had always been an optimistic and cheerful child, always laughing, as though nothing could hurt her. It wasn't until Schicksal betrayed her that her mental defenses, built from positive emotions, finally shattered. Pain, despair, and hatred—guided by Sirin—surged within her, constantly widening the mental rift that was the key to the Herrscher of the Void's awakening.
And now, Sirin, trapped in the shared mind space, was shocked to realize that the rift was slowly healing.
Damn it!
Kiana was unaware of Sirin's angry outburst. After confirming that Ren didn't seem to mind her identity, the two returned their focus to the immediate issue at hand.
How could they slip past the military's checkpoints?
"It's simple, we just need some makeup." Ren said, taking two hundred-yuan bills he had been saving for a long time out of his wallet. "I've dealt with them many times, this is the best kind of makeup."
"Money? You mean, bribe them? But the city's surveillance cameras can't be bribed."
"Then it depends on my makeup skills." Ren grinned, rubbing his fingers on the black marks from the car tires on the side of the road, carefully smearing them on Kiana's fair cheeks, turning her from a confident Valkyrie into an ordinary girl running for her life.