Somewhere in the distance, a light suddenly flared up.
Madra, who had always been unhurried and composed, noticed the anomaly. She stood up and looked toward that direction through the window, her brow suddenly furrowing.
"What's wrong?" Miyano Shiho asked, puzzled, as she followed her gaze.
In the next moment, the girl also frowned.
“A fire?!” she cried out in shock.
Gin still has not returned.
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Author's Note: Regarding Gin's number tag, I specifically went back and looked at that illustration from the original work that had Miyano Shiho and the others' names on it..
To show my gratitude to all the Little Angels, there will be another update tonight.
The Mermaid Island arc is almost over.
Shiratori Midori is still cosplaying Sleeping Beauty, seriously!
Usually, when it comes to anything involving Midori-chan, Gin is either in a good mood or in a cold, irritable state, radiating murderous intent.
..
New character unlocked.
I've noticed that many Little Angels don't remember Brandy anymore. This character will appear again in the future; I specifically chose a name based on a base liquor.
Originally, the Mermaid Island arc was intended to be completed in a single chapter, but QAQ
..
Thanks to Meow Unspeakable Little Angel for the landmine, love you mwah~
Thanks to Jing Little Angel for the landmine, love you mwah~
Chapter 38 Chapter 36 "You seemed to say before, that you could help..
The fire has started.
The Black-haired miko ran toward the warehouse in a panic.
His "great-grandmother" was still there, him.. mother!
Stumbling and running all the way along the path, she accidentally tripped over a stone. Shimabukuro Kimie struggled to crawl back up, ignoring her aching knees and legs.
Her phone suddenly rang.
The black-haired miko froze for a moment, then hurriedly fumbled through her things to find her phone.
“……” Hearing Mother's voice, the Young miko's tears burst from her eyes instantly.
Mother—" the Black-haired girl sobbed, her voice breaking, "Are you okay? Have you come out?
Kimie.." The woman's voice was weak and gentle, filled with deep love and longing: "Mother is dying, please.. *cough*..
The thick smoke left the woman unable to speak, but she struggled to force out a clear voice: "Kimie.. please don't let the Long-lived woman disappear.."
"I love this island.." The woman's voice grew fainter and fainter, until it was almost impossible to hear what she was saying unless one listened very closely.
The voice grew increasingly ethereal, interspersed with pain and moans, as if symbolizing the fading of the woman's life.
Shimabukuro Kimie finally reached her destination, having run desperately to get there.
She stopped in her tracks.
It was already too late.
The Black-haired miko looked at the raging Warehouse, gritting her teeth tightly as tears streamed down her face. He desperately called out "Mother" into his phone over and over again, but there was no response.
He stared blankly at the Warehouse, his once gentle and vibrant gaze now deathly still.
Mother.. his last family..
Long-lived woman?
She stared blankly at her own legs.
..
When Gin arrived, this was the scene she beheld.
The silver-haired youth frowned at the spreading flames, knowing in his heart that it was already too late; rather than making any futile efforts, he stepped toward Shimabukuro Kimie's side.
The black-haired girl was still staring blankly at her own legs, lost in thought.
Gin's cold and somber voice sounded in the woman's ear: "I said, I can do you a favor."
Shimabukuro Kimie looked up blankly at the person beside her upon hearing the voice, her black eyes filled with nothing but sorrow and emptiness: "It's no longer needed.. It's too late.."
Her voice was hoarse and harsh, carrying a faint, suppressed sob—or perhaps her tears had already run dry, leaving none of her former grace.
What you need." A low, thick male voice loomed indistinctly in the firelight, like the low murmur of Satan in hell, announcing the trajectory of Fate: "Your mother's death was no accident.
The black-haired girl's eyes suddenly widened, bloodshot veins surfacing in her gaze; her voice was shrill and piercing, like porcelain shards scraping against glass, or like—
The small beast, with its neck bent, let out a piercing wail: "What did you say?!"
Her beautiful, clear features twisted like a vengeful spirit in an instant.
Gin didn't care, quietly recounting the facts she knew, the facts from the Spoilers: "There were three people.. who did something incredible just to see if the Long-lived woman really was long-lived."
In the firelight, a ghostly shadow stained the youth's cold, stern face. Her tone remained indifferent, yet to Kimie, it sounded like a sentence passed by Fate.
Although he indeed did not know the Truth, now would be the perfect time to test the veracity of the Spoilers.
After all, he had always been suspicious of the System.
However, at a time like this, he was using the death of the other party's Mother to test the System..
Well.. Gin's eyes darkened in an instant.
—So what?
It wouldn't matter if he was wrong; anyway, Shimabukuro Kimie would definitely go and verify it. Even if he was wrong, it wouldn't cause any serious consequences.
Of course, if he was wrong.. for the sake of that Dugong Arrow, he would help her find the Truth.
The black-haired girl looked at her thin lips as they parted and closed, softly uttering three names:
“Saori Kado, Naoko Kuroe, Toshimi Ebara.”
!!" Shimabukuro Kimie took a step back, the heavy blow leaving her speechless for a moment, only able to shake her head repeatedly. "No, no, it's impossible!
She shook her head vigorously, shouting loudly in a state of breakdown, "It's impossible! They.. they are all my best friends!"
I might not necessarily consider you a friend." Gin's gaze flickered in the darkness, her voice softening, carrying a seductive tone: "Let's make a bet.
Shimabukuro Kimie stared blankly at Gin, her white teeth biting hard into her pale lower lip, her dark eyes brimming with crystalline tears that looked like two clear, transparent lakes.
She nodded slowly yet firmly.
..
The result was not as Gin had predicted.
Or rather, the Spoilers were correct.
After confirming her suspicions, Gin organized her thoughts slightly, lazily crossing her arms over her chest as she turned to look at Shimabukuro Kimie.
“You intend to do this?”
Her voice was very faint, carrying a sense of detached indifference.
I.. I don't know." The woman grit her teeth as she looked at the three panicked Friends before her—or so-called 'Friends'—"You are committing murder!
We.. we just wanted to see if the Long-lived woman really is truly immortal.." Saori Kado's gaze was filled with sheer panic. "I don't know.. Kimie..
"Do they need to be handed over to the Police?" Gin suggested, her tone neither heavy nor light.
Actually, Gin knew that this suggestion was of no use.
However, the three people opposite her grew nervous, Toshimi Ebara pleaded, "No! We didn't do it on purpose.. and, Kimie, aren't we friends? Can you please let us off this once?"
The Black-haired miko looked at them with hatred in her eyes: "Friends? Do you consider me a friend? If I were your friend, why would you set fire to something for such a thing! He is my mot— my great-grandmother!"
“What are you asking her for?” Naoko Kuroe said coldly. “Kimie, since you refuse to agree, there is nothing more we can do. Also—”
Her gaze was filled with mockery: "Do you have any evidence? The fire was so intense; you don't have any evidence at all, do you?"
Shimabukuro Kimie took a deep breath, looking at her in disbelief through clenched teeth.
Gin suddenly felt a sudden urge to laugh.
He really did just that.
Under the suspicious gazes of the four women, the Silver-haired youth lowered his hands and straightened his back.
His emerald eyes turned cold in an instant. Gin turned his head slightly and raised an eyebrow—she made the gesture look devastatingly beautiful as she lowered his voice.
“Reporting to the police requires substantial evidence, but some matters do not,” the Silver-haired youth said suggestively.
He tilted his head playfully, his voice hoarse and low, possessing a magnetic quality; his mellow, rich voice was like a glass of fine Whisky, fragrant and intoxicating: "For example, revenge—that only requires the Truth."
His eyes held a lazy and mocking smile. Shimabukuro Kimie met her gaze; her green eyes were like fine emeralds, or perhaps a lake, bottomless and deep.
Within them lay an extremely dangerous storm; if one stared for too long, a suffocating sensation of drowning would rush toward them.
Shimabukuro Kimie gazed at those special eyes, suddenly understanding the hidden meaning within them.
She stared at the three Friends for a long time, her expression resembling Izanami emerging from the underworld, or a vengeful wraith haunted by resentment, coming to claim a life.
"What.. what do you want to do?" Sensing some danger in their conversation, Saori Kado retreated two steps in panic.
An elegant and sharp murderous intent brushed against their skin, a sudden chill of dread rising from within their hearts, as anxiety and panic surged in waves, leaving their hands and feet ice-cold.
Saori Kado clenched her hands, only to find they were covered in cold sweat.
She grit her teeth as a sense of crisis crawled up from her tailbone, making her tremble uncontrollably.
The other two didn't seem to be in much better shape either.
Shimabukuro Kimie suddenly smiled, but this smile was different from her previous gentleness and unlike her usual brightness; instead, it held a hollow, sinister quality, as if she were falling into an abyss. "Didn't you say before that you could do me a favor?"