She tried to run again.
But clearly, her physical condition couldn't keep up; by the third step, the girl's body was already stumbling, nearly falling due to her loss of balance.
Because of the momentum from her forward sprint, the Girl pitched forward entirely.
The Pain she had foretold did not come.
Gin caught her.
..
The Silver-haired man looked at Nana's current appearance.
She was shivering from the cold, her little dress was in a mess from her previous running, with some parts even coming undone, hanging precariously on Nana.
A small face was frozen to a purplish hue, her ankles were red and swollen, looking wretched as she curled up unconsciously, with skin visibly scraped and raw.
However, those green eyes stared fixedly at him, her pale lips pressed tight, revealing a silent stubbornness.
She opened her mouth—
—"Achoo—"
And then, she sneezed.
At this time, she still remembered to lower her head so as not to affect Gin.
After taking a few breaths to recover slightly, Nana's chest, which had been heaving from the intense exertion, finally began to settle down.
Fine beads of sweat still clung to the girl's nose, appearing like evening dew in the night wind, while her green eyes shimmered with hidden tears.
But she did not cry.
Nana gripped Gin's coat hem tightly. The man's black trench coat was of high quality, its texture felt slightly cool to the touch in the night air. The girl's strength from her injury was terrifyingly great, almost exuding an aura of fighting to the death.
Her green eyes were tinged with a hint of crimson, looking much like the blood-colored sunset spreading across the horizon, her voice was nearly choking, broken yet still articulating every word clearly.
Zhenjun.. what.. what on earth are you planning to do?
Gin closed her eyes.
Her pale face took on a dreamlike glow under the night sky, giving him an almost surreal appearance, her cold, stern countenance was even more merciless at this moment, with even her thin lips carved into a severe line.
"It has nothing to do with you," he said.
Why is it none of my business?!" Nana suddenly looked up, her green eyes glaring at Gin like a she-wolf. She grit her teeth hard, her voice squeezing out from the very roots of her teeth as she demanded, "Why on earth is it none of my business?!
Gin remained expressionless, casting a sidelong glance at her. "And what can you do?"
The hand that was already clenched tightly tightened once more, the pale fingertips bulging with veins, as Nana stared at him without fear, her left cheek twitching slightly.
She forcibly suppressed her nearly collapsing emotions and said with a calmness that surprised even herself, "At least I can't just let you go like this."
With an extremely faint "snap," Nana's fingernail broke. As the broken nail fell to the ground, vivid blood welled up from between the fingers of the girl's fair hand.
The bloodstains were absorbed bit by bit into Gin's black trench coat, like a glamorous painting where the artist's brushstrokes dissolved into endless black ink, leaving not a single trace visible.
Hopeless smearing, hopeless painting.
Hopeless effort.
This happened without a sound, causing not even the slightest ripple under the Night.
Even Nana, whose fingernails had been snapped off by her own force, did not notice.
The girl said hoarsely, "At least I can't just stand by and watch you leave."
She seemed to be struggling to restrain something, yet she also seemed to have exhausted all her strength. The volume of her voice was very low; if it weren't for the desolate and silent Night, it wouldn't have been heard clearly at all.
It was on an entirely different level from her previous questioning.
However, the helplessness and confusion revealed in her words seemed to have infected Gin; her eyebrows twitched, she lowered her head slightly.
The girl's gaze remained stubborn as she stared at her.
Green eyes seemed to be filled with a veil-like mist, appearing like the calm, clear waters of a lake under the moonlight, without a single ripple. Yet, the stubbornness within them was like a blade of solid ice, suddenly rising from the lake surface to confront the opponent.
She looked up at Gin, her gaze dazed and stunned; sharp and cold.
A drop of dew slid from the blade.
Tears slid down her cheeks, winding toward her jaw, yet they only served to wash the determination in her eyes, making them even clearer.
This single dewdrop, this single tear, seemed to trigger some incredible switch at this very moment, snapping a rope that had been held together through sheer struggle.
Gin suddenly turned around.
Her hand gripped Nana's shoulder tightly, showing no sign of weakening, her long and powerful fingers tensing until her knuckles turned white, her expression looking like a fierce demon that had just emerged from Hell.
For a moment, Nana could almost hear the sound of her arm dislocating, however, even in the face of such pain, she remained silent, gritting her teeth hard.
She could taste the metallic tang of blood in her mouth.
“Shut up,” Gin said.
However, as soon as those words fell, he heard the sound of the strings of his sanity snapping within his own mind.
-----------------------
Author's Note: I was startled by the Little Angels' enthusiasm..
I'd better hurry up and write.
However, after finishing two chapters at once, I took a look and realized that it would actually be better to read this chapter and the next one together..
Looking hesitantly at my storage box
Struggling jpg
..
Thank you to Bi'an Hua Little Angel for the Grenade, love you, mwah~
Little Angels who provided Nutrient solution:
Equisetum argenteum 94 bottles; Guimu 10 bottles; Haru-toki Kusunoki 2 bottles; Hibiscus, Grapefruit-flavored You Nini, Tsundere and hot-tempered Furuya Rei 1 bottle;
Thank you very much for everyone's support, I will continue to work hard!
Chapter 158 Chapter 142 "And I, I will never accept it.."
Gin lowered her head and looked at Nana.
Even though the girl was in a disheveled state, her clean and delicate face could still be seen faintly glowing under the Moonlight; even with red-rimmed eyes and pale lips, she still possessed a purity that remained untainted by darkness.
She was the white snow of early winter, a flawless jade within a box, a Kaguya awakening within a bamboo tube.
This was the sight Gin had always wanted to see.
"I have never let you involve yourself in these matters," Gin said.
His voice was deep and mellow, just as it had been during so many Riri Yeye in the past, however, unlike before, there was now a hint of raspiness and exhaustion in the man's voice.
"I never let you get involved in these things," he repeated the words he had already said.
This was actually an accident; at the beginning, I didn't intend to let you harbor thoughts of bloodshed, but through a series of unfortunate twists, you still became what you are today.
This was an accident, every single thought could have been enough to ruin this accident: for instance, the occasional thought of wanting you to stay by my side, for instance, the possibility that your talent in marksmanship and combat might have been even higher, or a situation where a danger I failed to notice forced you to kill..
However, none of that happened, so the little girl with the sallow face and body covered in wounds, wearing tattered and greasy clothes, yet still staring at him with eyes like a desperate young beast; that little girl who said, "I will curse them all to Hell," ultimately never personally killed an innocent person.
She.. was not like Shiratori Midori, even less like him.
"After realizing this, an idea occurred to me," Gin slowly stated her deeply hidden thoughts, her selfish motives.
“I want to know how a truly innocent person's story will ultimately end.”
During those struggling days and nights of Shiratori Midori, he once held Gin's hand and said to him, "Even if I die, do not be too sad; this can be considered the ending I deserve."
“Both me and Shiratori Midori have the lives of innocent people on our hands; whether it was by choice or by force, we both bear sins that cannot be denied.”
“Every member of the Black Organization is like this.”
He said with a cold sneer, his gaze was freezing, even his eyelashes seemed to radiate a chilling frost.
Whether they are Organization members or Black Organization undercover [male], whether they represent Justice or Evil.
Have not even Haibara Ai and Miyano Akemi committed crimes themselves?
A single word like "forced" might offer leniency in the eyes of the law or provide justification in terms of morality, but it cannot mask the harm caused to those innocent people.
Sheila once looked at him, his gaze playful and his tone unrestrained: "You kill people for your own interests, while we are forced to kill because of being Undercover.. But aren't the people being killed all innocent?"
So, if there is any karma, it is only natural.
Gin did not believe in gods, nor did she believe in karma.
But he was not afraid of death.
Living is naturally good, but if there should come a day when he slips up—being in the Dark, he is not without the mental preparation to be killed.
Then he thought, since none of the members of the Black Organization are innocent, what kind of life do the Innocent lead?
Most people who leave the Black Organization do not live well.
For example, Shiratori Midori, who died many years ago; for example, Haibara Ai, who has "lost" his sister and is constantly in hiding; for example, Miyano Akemi, who, despite managing to stay alive by relying on Gin, still had to temporarily lose his freedom.
And then there is Byrrh, who made countless efforts, only to end up committing suicide in the end.
Then what about a true Innocent?
I want to see what your life—will be like.
Gin has always been a rational and selfish person.
Before he even took Nana to heart, he had entertained this thought—he was so cold-blooded that even knowing Nana was Shiratori Midori's only sister, he would have watched what happened next with a malicious mindset without any hesitation.
As long as Nana doesn't die, he will have done right by Midori.
Then gradually, he softened.
Perhaps he softened her heart while teaching her marksmanship, perhaps he softened her heart while paying attention to her daily life, or perhaps, the moment he began demanding that Nana stop doing unnecessary things, he had already softened her heart.
And the moment an accident happened to Nana, the moment Malibu's palm struck the girl's face, he finally realized that he had already softened his heart.