Tower Sleepwalker
Xiao Fu paid for the meal.
The two left the restaurant during the busiest part of the afternoon sun. The location of the Mori Lake City Hospital was awkwardly far from there. Cheng Xiangwu was about to walk when Xiao Fu suggested that instead of wasting time, they should just stab her and drag her body over.
In short, the two boarded the bus again.
“Based on the information I gathered beforehand, there are always people guarding outside that ward and regularly checking in, day and night, even though there are surveillance cameras in the corridor acting as eyes. Their purpose is truly intriguing,” Xiao Fu said, propping his head up with his hand.
"Do you think there's a purpose other than surveillance?" Cheng Xiang asked five times.
“I hope so,” Little Franz corrected.
The Moriko City Hospital complex consists of three main buildings: an outpatient building, a general medical building, and an inpatient building located at the far end.
Looking from the nearby bus stop, the three buildings are adjacent and there's no need to separate them, but clearer categorization helps visitors to categorize themselves. The hospital also has a crematorium and morgue, and there's a funeral home half a kilometer to the west. There are numerous one-stop services along the way, as well as traditional Chinese medicine clinics, making it a convenient one-stop solution.
This general hospital does not have a comprehensive mental health department, and naturally, it does not have wards specifically prepared for mental patients. The mental health hotline in Moriho City is outsourced to a neighboring city, and there is also an online system. The person in the hospital closest to a psychiatrist is the one who occasionally drops by to conduct mental health assessments for the police.
It's not peak time right now, though even during peak times the parking lot is hard to fill. This hospital is like a paper sieve; it can't catch the big ones, and it can't catch the small ones. Only patients whose size, weight, and shape are specifically designed can be reluctantly picked out.
Gorson's ward was on the top floor of the inpatient building. Given the hospital's medical standards, even if a patient lived on the ceiling, they wouldn't be able to take a proper breath. Instead, it was more suitable for this survivor who wasn't facing any life-threatening danger due to illness.
"Is there surveillance in the ward?" Cheng Xiang asked five times.
"Logically or humanitarianally speaking, there shouldn't be," Xiao Fu said. "Leaving aside those in the hallway, the doorman is a law enforcement officer, with a body camera on him all the time. If something happens—"
"Stop," Cheng Xiangwu interrupted. "Come with me."
So Xiao Fu silently followed Cheng Xiangwu along a winding path to the back of the hospital building. Behind that was a small patch of noise-reducing greenery, which should offer a nice view from above.
"Is it that one?" Cheng Xiang pointed to the top floor.
Little Fu nodded.
“Just hold on to me for a bit, I don’t care about you, but if you’re about to fall, just yell.” Cheng Xiangwu said, then couldn’t help but ask, “Why aren’t you saying anything?”
"Oh, may I speak now?" Little F asked.
"...That's it, do you understand?" Cheng Xiang asked five times.
"Do you understand that you expect me to hang on by my upper body muscles for at least ten minutes?" Little Ferguson retorted. "I recommend that you just break my arms and tie them up, since we're still connected by flesh and blood."
"It's not like I'm asking you to hang there." Cheng Xiangwu paused. "How about I find a rope and tie you up?"
"This sounds like it could cause permanent damage to my spine, and it's a bit tricky if it involves nerves," Little Franz warned.
“I have experience,” Cheng Xiangwu said.
"Is the subject a living person?" Xiao Fu asked.
"Of course not." Cheng Xiangwu shrugged.
"...I suppose that person can't speak for themselves now." Little F said, putting the umbrella away and setting it aside. He then solemnly stated, "I don't need a rope."
In the end, Cheng Xiangwu carried Xiao Fu on his back and started climbing up the outer wall. The one climbing with the weight didn't have any opinions or attitudes to express, but the one being carried had a lot to say.
Before the operation officially began, the professional assassin put on professional gloves.
"I told you there would be amazing rides!" Little Fu looked up at the sky with satisfaction. "Even though it was a subpar experience with substandard products, I'd give it a perfect score in hindsight!"
Cheng Xiangwu had nothing to say. There were few protrusions on the walls of the hospital building, and they were slippery due to the weather. Most of the time, she chose to jump up, and she had to be careful not to scratch the seemingly poor-quality exterior walls.
"That's right!" Xiao Fu suddenly thought of something and let go of one hand. The sudden shift in balance forced Cheng Xiangwu to pause in place. After regaining her balance, she jumped up again. Her feet slipped once, but at least she had a hand to hold on to, so she was fine.
The culprit who caused the imbalance pulled out a phone, turned on the camera, held it high above their head, and flipped it. The screen showed two faces that were quite close together, with a suspended view from at least four stories above. Anyone who didn't know better would think they were friends.
"Wu Xiang, do you want to smile? I won't criticize you for conforming to the conventional, mediocre atmosphere in this situation." Xiao Fu reminded her, poking her cheek with the thumb of the hand that was still around Cheng Xiang Wu's shoulder, trying to make her distort her expression a little.
Cheng Xiangwu felt that the phone was blocking her view, so she turned her head away and continued jumping.
"Hey, what a rare opportunity." Xiao Fu was dissatisfied, but she couldn't hold the phone with one hand for long, so she quickly took a few pictures and put the phone away, continuing to watch the sky getting closer and closer.
The sky, too, is watching over her.
"How terrifying, how evil!" Xiao Fu commented, leaving Cheng Xiangwu speechless as his neck was suddenly tightened.
"We're almost there," Cheng Xiangwu reminded him. "First, check if there are any security cameras inside."
“This is a move I’m good at.” Xiao Fu made an OK sign with the hand that was around Cheng Xiangwu.
Approaching the target window sill, Cheng Xiangwu grabbed the edge and did a pull-up-hanging version, raising Xiao Fu's field of vision to a height high enough to take in the entire room.
Xiao Fu glanced around, his gaze lingering on a few corners before he spoke to report. Upon hearing this, Cheng Xiangwu relaxed his upper arm slightly, quickly exerted his strength to propel himself to the edge of the windowsill, grabbed the upper windowsill with one hand, and opened the window with the other, creating an opening large enough for an adult to jump in. He then removed the window screen.
"Okay, the most difficult step has arrived!" Xiao Fu took a deep breath, carefully released Cheng Xiangwu's shoulders and neck, held onto the windowsill, stepped onto the narrow windowsill that was less than the width of a foot, turned sideways to go around the open window, and prepared to jump into the house.
"Wait, don't jump." Just as Cheng Xiangwu was about to warn the other person about to do something stupid, he saw the other person slip as they jumped, and it seemed that they might fall in or freefall to the ground.
Thinking of what this person had just said, Cheng Xiangwu had no choice but to let go of the hand holding the upper windowsill. Against the wind, she quickly leaned down as if she were about to jump. After making sure that her feet were hooked on the windowsill, she reached out and grabbed the arm that was struggling in mid-air as if it was about to fly away, and corrected the direction in which she was leaning inward.
After confirming that the person could fall in, she maintained her upside-down position, quickly braced herself against the wall below with both hands, and pushed off with all her might as if doing an enhanced push-up. She then used her leg strength to hook her feet back up, squatted down, and pulled herself back to the upper windowsill. She then flipped over and entered the window, and casually pulled up the window screen that had been taken down and was hanging by the window.
Inside the room, Gorson, leaning against the hospital bed, stared in disbelief as two people suddenly appeared outside and performed acrobatics for her, without any security measures. It wasn't until the person who had initially fallen in stood up, supporting himself on his knees and fixing his hair, that she realized what had happened.
"Slap—" She slapped herself first.
So when Cheng Xiang landed on May 1st, she saw a mental patient on the hospital bed slap her.
"That was wonderful, wasn't it?" Little Fran said, having already tidied herself up inside and out.
Cheng Xiangwu had nothing to say.
"Uh." Golson was slightly speechless, but finally chose to greet him first, "Hi."
The young woman lying on the hospital bed was still wearing a hospital gown. Her cheeks were somewhat sunken, but it was clear that her face was not yet that of an adult. Her eyes were focused, and she wasn't trembling or dazed. From that one glance, Cheng Xiangwu didn't think there was anything wrong with her mental state, at least not serious enough to require her to lie in a hospital room for so long.
The ward was small and not designed for mental patients, nor did it have any similar facilities. There weren't many items, mostly necessities for hospitalized patients, but Cheng Xiangwu noticed an apple and a fruit knife on the small table next to the bed, and a pointed pencil on the table by the window.
No one thought that Golson was a mentally ill person who would commit suicide.
“Hello, Miss Golson, it’s such a pleasure to meet you here.” Little Franz casually dragged a chair over to sit down beside Golson’s bed. “How have you been feeling lately?”
"Huh?" Galson was puzzled, which was understandable, but she quickly organized her thoughts. "Hello, your Chinese is quite good. I'm fine. What brings you here?"
"I see." Little F nodded.
"What?" Golson asked, puzzled.
"Mmm." Little Fu nodded.
"Are you talking to me?" Golson looked at Cheng Xiangwu. "Um, hello? Is your companion... uh, is she your companion?"
How is Cheng Xiangwu supposed to respond to this? Is this person having a heart-to-heart talk with you?
“Isn’t that right?” Little Franz laughed. “Anyway, we’re here because of what happened at your school a month ago. As you can see, we’re not officials, so we don’t have the usual way to get around, but that’s an advantage for you, isn’t it?”
When the key points were mentioned, Golson's expression calmed down. She looked at little Fer sitting to the side and then glanced outside.
"The soundproofing here is pretty good." Gorson turned around and spoke, his tone calm but also carrying an uncontrollable weariness. Only when he got closer to Cheng Xiangwu did he see the dark circles under her eyes, which was not something a normal person who had been lying in a hospital room for a month should have.
Cheng Xiangwu walked to the door and stopped.
“And to be honest, I’ve told the police everything I know. Whether they believe me or not is their business, but I’ve really told them everything I can.” Gorson pursed her chapped lips, her voice tinged with helplessness. “Actually, I don’t know why I’m still locked up. They don’t tell me what they’ve found out. They just occasionally come to ask me questions, but it’s getting less and less.”
"I see," Little Fu said thoughtfully.
"And, and they won't let my parents come to see me!" Golson's tone became urgent as he said this. "Could you lend me your phone?"
Cheng Xiangwu looked at Gorson, who had sat up, and recalled the attitude-related information she had learned earlier, not knowing what to say.
“Your parents are being closely monitored,” Little F said, looking at Goulson. “So unfortunately, at least not right now.”
“…Yeah, you’re right.” Golson sighed and leaned back on the bed.
“You should also know that we, as free agents, have no access to official investigation reports, but in a way, this is a kind of liberation of thought. Please tell us the information about the crime scene,” Little Franz said.
“…On-site.” Golson repeated the two words, propping himself up on his knees and shrinking himself in. “Fine, I’ve said it many times, I can say it one more time.”
"Please." Little Fu took out his notebook and prepared to start taking notes.
Although it seems no one cares now, the day before the incident was actually the spring outing for the entire first-year students of Moriko No. 2 Middle School. The destination was Moriko City's only amusement park, which had rather old facilities, but it was still a childhood memory for most locals. Well, these two things mean the same thing.
Snacks in hand, escaping school and homework—it should have been a good day. But Golson clearly remembers that it was a cloudless, sunny day when she left home that morning. After putting her bag down in the classroom, she wanted to go to the restroom, but suddenly the view outside the wire fence in the corridor was shrouded in fog.
Then it rained.
The entire class, or rather the entire grade, was lamenting. It was a Saturday, and scheduling the spring outing on a rest day had already caused discontent among some students. Now, it suddenly started raining, and since the amusement park was outdoors, most of the rides would have to stop running in the rain. As if echoing these lamentations, the school's public address system, which was closed on Saturdays, suddenly announced that the spring outing was canceled.
The students were making a lot of noise. The homeroom teacher said that they would find another destination to arrange, but by noon they still hadn't found a destination. The rain showed no signs of stopping. Everyone played cards and ate snacks in the classroom. Although they were somewhat well-behaved, everyone was still holding back their anger.
Golson was the same. She brought her camera that day and had made plans to take photos with many people, but if the background were changed to the school, the photos might be tinged with a sense of melancholy. So she just held her camera to her chest, occasionally taking one or two interesting photos, but she couldn't create any interesting memories.
The rain continued into the afternoon, and the school's loudspeaker played inappropriate closing music. The students realized that the spring outing was, in a literal sense, ruined. Some clamored to go home, and the homeroom teacher and other teachers couldn't do anything about it. And so, the spring outing came to an end.
It should have been like this. It should have been just an ordinary, unfortunate day, a ruined spring outing, a Saturday spent forced to stay in the classroom watching the rain. Years later, students might curse the school a couple of times, but that day would hold no other significance.
Someone must have thought something like, "If only I could do it all over again," or "If only it hadn't rained." These thoughts must have crossed someone's mind before they fell asleep that night.
So that night, everyone went back to the classroom.
No one was at a loss. When they came to their senses, they sat down in their assigned chairs in the classroom. The teachers stood by the podium, some even more bewildered than the students. The classroom door was locked, but outside the window was a bright, sunny day. From where the first-year high school classrooms were located, they could see the playground—a scene straight out of a dream.
The rides that were originally in the amusement park were moved to the playground. Neon lights flashed, mascots swayed, colorful flags fluttered across the entire playground, and the rides that couldn't fit were squeezed into the parking lot and aisles. With the filter of dreams, the boring school became crowded and gorgeous.
That was a dream, and everyone thought it was a dream, even if they couldn't wake up. Some were afraid; Goulson remembered her homeroom teacher, the bespectacled man, who was so frightened that he sat motionless by the podium. But most were excited, elated, and considered it some kind of divinely ordained magical experience.
So when the announcement came over the loudspeaker that "the spring outing has begun," the door opened, and most people ran out. Some people stayed in the classroom, and Gorson also went out, but she didn't run because she was afraid of breaking the camera she was carrying.
Yes, she also had a camera with her and took many photos of the scene. Is that why she survived? She doesn't know, and she doesn't know why she had that camera in her dream.
Time cannot be measured in dreams, but once everyone calmed down, they began to wonder why the dream hadn't ended yet, as the facilities seemed to be operating endlessly. No one felt thirsty or tired, but they gradually began to worry.
When the first person tried to leave the school through the gate, the facilities finally stopped spinning. The mascot also stopped its swaying motion; the stick figure-like arthropod, as if its string had been cut or it had finally gained its freedom, convulsed and fell down, only to stand up again shortly afterward and start grabbing people.
They arrest everyone in the school, regardless of whether they've left the classroom or participated in any activity. When the time comes, they start arresting people.
The mascot placed each person it had captured by the classroom window. The windowpane had been removed, and the rectangular windowpane was piled high with heads, like a butcher's display stand. They weren't dead, but for some reason, they hadn't moved the moment they were grabbed, allowing the mascot to use its black, segmented limbs like the claws of a claw machine to grab them and then pile them up by the window like a claw machine restocker, their heads resting on the windowsill facing outwards. Several mascots dragged over tables so the people above could put their feet down, so they wouldn't easily slip off; if they did, they would have to extend their black arms to catch them.
Soon, every classroom window was packed with people, or rather, heads were bowed low. Goulson was supposed to be the last one; she had locked herself in a corner of the toilet, but the arthropod's hand was so thin it slipped through the crack and opened the lock. She was then lifted up and taken to her classroom window. Looking at the wall of heads, Goulson was terrified, but she also saw a crack—it was meant for her.
At that time, she had no strength to struggle, or rather, she had never even entertained such thoughts. She was just afraid, like someone who knew they were having a nightmare but was powerless to do anything about it. She could only desperately pray that the dream would end soon. The sharp edges of the camera in her hand hurt her palm, but she never let go.
Then, her feet dangled in the air, and she knew she was going to her spot, into that narrow crevice.
The expected sensation did not occur. The barbed wire had disappeared without her noticing. When Gorson opened her eyes, she found herself placed on the edge of the corridor railing. In front of her were four walls of human heads, and behind her hung a bright blue sky. She held a camera in her hand.
For some inexplicable reason, even though she didn't know why she was placed here, she inexplicably felt an urge to do something. The windows rattled, and she raised her camera, switched to panorama mode, and squeezed four crowded windows into the viewfinder. The sharp edges of the metal windows were exposed, and the reflections hurt her eyes. She pressed the shutter and closed her eyes.
A loud metallic scraping sound erupted, followed by the dull thud of several heavy objects hitting the ground. Then she lost her balance and fell backward, not opening her eyes until excruciating pain struck.
When she woke up from the dream again, she saw a group of people surrounding her hospital bed, asking her how she was feeling, what had happened, and why she was still alive.
"Haha, why am I still alive?" Golson shrank to his smallest size. "Why would anyone actually want to know the answer to that from me? How would I know? Why am I still alive? Why—"
Only then did she remember to catch her breath. Her shoulders heaved like a rollercoaster, cold sweat broke out on her forehead, dampening some of her hair and making her features appear even more somber.
Little F didn't ask her why she was still alive, and she didn't ask any questions at all, but Golson answered a lot of questions on her own.
"I don't know why I'm dreaming, I don't know why there's an amusement park, I don't know why the mascot of the amusement park in my dream is an arthropod, I don't know why people are being grabbed, I don't know why people are placed on the windowsill, I don't know why it's me, I don't know why I have a camera, I don't know what I actually photographed, I don't know what that huge metallic sound was, I don't know what fell to the ground, I don't know why I fell down—"
She repeated it softly, without tears, just numb and uneasy.
"Don't ask me anymore, I don't know," she said.
The room remained quiet for a long time, with only the rustling sound of Xiao Fu writing. After a while, the sound also stopped.
“I see,” she said.
"You know?" Cheng Xiang asked five times, and Gao Ersen also looked up at her.
“Strictly speaking, this doesn’t count as knowing anything; at most, it’s just making some progress.” Little Franz looked up at Golson. “Those police officers who came to question you might not entirely disbelieve what you said.”
"Of course, otherwise why would they take my camera?" Golson scoffed. "Take my camera and ask me what I photographed? How could they ask such a question?"
When it came to taking photos, Golson did not mention anything about the act of "suicide" in his retelling, let alone any specific details.
"Is it related to your case abroad?" Cheng Xiang asked five times.
“There is definitely contact, but it’s hard to say for sure.” Little F put away his notebook and looked at Golson in thought.
“Abroad? You, you guys.” Golson suddenly pounced on Little F. “Where are you from? No, it doesn’t matter where you’re from, take me with you. I’ve never been home.”
At this point, she broke down in tears. "I hate this place. I want to go home, even just to see it from afar! You can climb up here and you can climb back down, right? Please, please take me with you. Do you want me to cooperate with your investigation? I'll do anything, just take me with you, please!"
Tears streamed down her dark, swollen eyes and cheeks. She stared blankly ahead, then turned to look at the person standing motionless by the door. She didn't know which side to beg for, or what to say to make a difference.
“You see, I’m really not sick.” Golson pointed to the paper and pen on the table. “Those people even made me write something. What kind of nonsense is that? Who wants to write something for those people to see? They looked at it and shook their heads. Then some guy came with some random thing and told me to calm down and think it through. These people are the ones who want to make me go crazy!”
Her voice rose and fell, then she quickly lowered it again, "Those people don't tell me anything, they don't say when they'll let me go. They'll do anything you want me to do. I don't have money, but you could consider my organs. My organs are perfectly healthy—"
“That’s enough. You’ve proven your urgency and determination, and in my opinion, you don’t have any high-risk mental illness.” Xiao Fu said, looking at Cheng Xiangwu. “This person is indeed a necessary part to resolve this incident, but you also know that our actions cannot withstand scrutiny from law enforcement, and we need your cooperation on that.”
"You want to hide her in my house?" Cheng Xiangwu was taken aback.
Suddenly finding his anchor, Golson abruptly changed direction and lunged forward, pleading, "Please, sister, I'll sleep anywhere, a steamed bun is enough for me, just take me with you—"
How could Cheng Xiangwu answer this? She looked at the high school student, tears streaming down his face, saying he wanted to leave, then looked at the smiling Xiao Fu, remembering the strange things he had mentioned, and the case that had been suppressed for a month and required the dispatch of out-of-town detectives to investigate. Finally, she nodded. Seeing this, Gao Ersen quickly rolled off the bed, grabbed Cheng Xiangwu's leg, and started crying. She lifted the high school student up with one hand and weighed him in her hand.
“I’ll take you down in two trips,” Cheng Xiangwu sighed. “We’ll have to take a shortcut back.”
"Don't we have a more convenient means of transportation?" Little F held up one finger.
"I can't drive," Cheng Xiangwu said. She really couldn't; with her limited vision and hearing, driving on the road would only be asking the traffic police for trouble.
“I wouldn’t mind being a driver if I had a car,” Xiao Fu said.
"You?" Cheng Xiangwu questioned. She still remembered that a few years ago, this person would consider taking a taxi even for a walk of less than ten minutes.
“After all, the trunk is just so convenient.” Xiao Fu shrugged. “There are so many back roads here, it’s like the South American swamp. It’s not hard to avoid surveillance cameras while driving. Do you have any connections to rent a car?”
As an assassin, Cheng Xiangwu had a wide and extensive network of connections.
"That's fine then." Little F nodded.
"What kind of conversation is this?" Golson asked, puzzled. "Speaking of which, this is the eighth floor. Is it alright for you to bring two people up and down?"
Cheng Xiangwu demonstrated with her actions that there was no problem. When she was carrying Gorson downstairs, in order to prevent the malnourished high school student from throwing her off, she carried him with one hand and held onto the wall with the other. For her, the wall with support was just another form of running track.
"Oh ho, the taste of freedom is so sweet," Golson said as he fell, trembling, whether from excitement or from the near-freefall speed, it was hard to tell.
Cheng Xiangwu then went up again. After doing it so many times, she remembered the way. Before coming down this time, she remembered to put the window screen back.
"Aren't you really going to consider smiling?" Xiao Fu took another selfie as she went downstairs, but Cheng Xiangwu didn't answer her question.
The two officially landed, and the company's IT department sent them the contact information of a local, enthusiastic flower shop owner. After communicating, Cheng Xiangwu took Xiao Fu to a nearby factory where a black seven-seater Volkswagen with one-way windows and fresh license plates pulled up.
After Xiao Fu got into the driver's seat with an umbrella, she skillfully adjusted the seat spacing and rearview mirrors; her outfit was completely out of place in this position. Cheng Xiangwu put Gao Ersen in the back row and then sat in the front passenger seat, fastening her seatbelt.
"Let me make this clear first, I don't have a driver's license." Xiao Fu said this as if he were introducing the weather, before stepping on the gas.
The first stop after the car stopped was the shopping mall where the family restaurant was located. The destination was the supermarket. Golson stayed in the car, while Xiao Fu went to several clothing stores, picked out a few outfits, and then bought basic and non-basic items. There were so many things that she had to push a cart to the parking lot. Cheng Xiangwu followed behind, preparing some things for Golson and also buying food and water.
"I didn't expect you to actually remember that nickname." Xiao Fu said, looking at the things Cheng Xiangwu was carrying. "How come I never realized you were such a kind-hearted Xiangxiang-jie who could take care of children?"
"Do you really want her to cower in my house like a mouse?" Cheng Xiangwu retorted.
“I feel like you’re alluding to me. You think we’re the same,” Little Fran said, dissatisfied.
“Yes,” Cheng Xiang nodded five times. “You heard it, so why are you saying it out loud?”
"...Then the difference in your attitude towards us is so great that it chills me to the bone." Little F sneered.
“She didn’t make me get a denture.” Cheng Xiangwu remained unmoved.
"Look at what you're saying," Little Fu said with a smug smile.
Cheng Xiangwu had nothing to say.
It was almost dark when the car was parked in the residential area. The streetlights came on, and the air was filled with the scent of home that most people would call home.
The three entered the apartment one by one. Cheng Xiang turned on the lights, threw the slippers she had bought on the ground for the next person to change into, and went inside first to stuff everything that could be refrigerated into the refrigerator. The shopping bags were bulging with things that weren't really necessary for living, mostly instant snacks and drinks, some fruit, and the tea that Xiao Fu had specifically asked for, along with a whole bunch of colorful jars.
"Please let the tea leaves cool to room temperature." Xiao Fu's voice came from behind. Cheng Xiangwu didn't turn around and threw the tea leaves on the kitchen counter.
The master bedroom is for the owner, the guest bedroom is for guests, and logically, the extra person should sleep in the study.
“I’ll sleep in the living room, I’ll sleep in the living room!” Golson quickly expressed his humble attitude. “Wow, this sofa looks just like my house.”
Xiao Fu smiled but didn't say anything, and Cheng Xiangwu didn't say anything either, but simply handed the daily necessities to the high school student for her to use.
"Oh, thank you." Golson sniffed. "How should I address you, ladies?"
"This is Sister Xiangxiang," Xiao Fu introduced. "You can call me Xiao Fu."
That's what she said, but Golson found it hard to actually say "Little F" out loud; she opened and closed her mouth several times.
"Hello, Sister Fufu," she whispered.
"...This is the only way to avoid spoilers." Little F accepted.
“Isn’t this very localized? Stop complaining,” Cheng Xiangwu said.
The three of them had dinner at a restaurant that combined the best of the food court on the basement floor of the mall. Xiao Fu brewed some tea, and amidst the scent of lavender, the three of them discussed their next move.
“There’s a disclaimer in advance,” Xiao Fu said, holding her teacup. “Your sister Xiangxiang is an assassin, and sister Fufu is an investigator in your case, though not an official one.”
"How could I possibly know this?" Golson paused, then nodded, holding his teacup. "Don't worry about my feelings, and I absolutely will not tell anyone!"
"Is there anything you want to do?" Cheng Xiang asked five times.
“…I want to see my mom and dad, just a little bit,” Golson said.
“On this point, I have something else to clarify first,” said Franz. “My previous investigations have shown that you, and the immediate family members of all the victims in this case, have not expressed any negative attitude toward your disappearances, deaths, or hospitalizations.”
Hearing this, Golson was stunned for a long time. "You mean, she, they don't care?"
After saying that, she herself shed tears.
“This is not a common occurrence,” said Franz. “I’m not trying to comfort you, but I believe there’s a reason for this, and I’m prepared to investigate.”
“Of course.” Golson wiped away his tears. “This is definitely not normal. I know there’s nothing that can be called normal about this so far, but it’s just… sigh.”
She remained silent for a long time before saying, "This is fine too."
“You are the only survivor, and I’m prepared to try to get you in touch with your family,” Little F said.
“…Yes!” Golson nodded, then smiled. “Thank you.”
Xiao Fu did not respond to the thanks, but instead asked, "After those communicators took your camera, did they talk to you about suicide?"
“Suicide?” Golson was clearly surprised by the topic. “No, at first those people did seem worried that I would do it and get scolded by me, but after we talked a few times, they understood that I had no such intention. But someone would come in to check on me every hour, like they were crazy.”
Cheng Xiangwu looked over, and Xiao Fu nodded.
"Did someone commit suicide?" Golson pursed his lips. "Speaking of which, how are my classmates doing now? They said they were sent to different hospitals in batches for isolation, just like me. Did one of them commit suicide?"
"In that case, this might be a topic that will give you nightmares tonight," said Little Franz.
“…That kind of thing doesn’t matter at all,” Golson said calmly. “Please tell me, what exactly happened?”
“Everyone in your dream committed suicide during the time between when you fell into a coma and when you woke up in the hospital, in your class,” Cheng Xiangwu said.
The time, location, and results are as follows; nothing needs to be added.
“…Actually.” Golson was silent for a long time, took a deep breath, and exhaled a long breath, “Actually, since that day, I have dreamed of going back to that place almost every time.”
She did not use the school's name.
“…Oh?” Little F raised an eyebrow, put down his teacup, and took out his notebook. “Please explain in detail.”
“That’s right, in my dream I’ll wake up from my seat with a camera in my hand, and then I’ll realize I’m dreaming.” Gorson said, then curled up again. “The sky is clear, there’s no one in the classroom, there are playground equipment on the playground, but they’re not running, there are no mascots, but we can’t get out.”
In her dream, she went from running around in fear to gradually accepting that her useless brain had led her back to this godforsaken place.
"Is this a stable phenomenon?" Little Franz asked.
“I don’t dream every night, but when I do dream, it’s always like this.” Golson nodded. “So I tried that method of separating my sleep time, which helped a little, but if I’m not careful, it still happens.”
"Does the camera in your dream have a physical form?" Little Franz asked.
“There are some photos, photos taken with my old camera, and photos of my classmates that I took on the day of the spring outing, but not the last one. I tried to take pictures of the world in my dreams, but when I woke up and dreamed again, those photos disappeared.” Gorson’s voice was low but calm, as if he were telling some secret.
“…It is indeed unusual.” Little F nodded. “It sounds like you’ve investigated that place.”
“Yes,” Golson nodded. “I was very concerned about that window, but in the dream it was just an ordinary window no matter what. I looked around the whole school; honestly, no one knows it better than me now. Every door was open, but I didn’t find anything special about it. There was some leftover food in the cafeteria, which I could eat, but I didn’t feel full when I woke up, and the same went for the water. The toilets flushed normally, and there was nothing strange about the mirrors. I also used some of the reagents in the chemistry classroom, and the wounds they caused me disappeared in the next dream.”
As he spoke, Golson touched his knee. "The strange thing is the rides. I couldn't find any power source or switches. If you climb up, they will move because of my weight, but that's about it. The bumper cars won't start either. In fact, most of the rides there require electricity to operate, but I didn't see any wires. Even if you burned them, there was no crackling sound."
“I didn’t tell those people any of this, since it wasn’t anything useful,” Golson chuckled. “I think those people didn’t care what happened in the dream at all, and they didn’t care much about me either.”
“Curiosity is one of the finest human qualities.” Little F nodded. “Thank you for your efforts; it’s meaningful.”
“…Is that so?” Golson blinked and took a sip of hot tea. “I’m not actually afraid of the dream itself, I’m just worried that one day I won’t be able to wake up. I can’t wake up on my own in a dream, no matter what I do.”
“So, the last question for tonight,” Little F looked up, “can you recall any specific details of the period between the end of the spring outing and when you got home?”
Golson looked up as if she was about to blurt out the answer, but doubt and self-doubt quickly pushed her head down again.
“...I should have such a memory, but when I think about it now, I feel..." Her tone was full of insecurity, "...it's very vague, it seems, how should I put it, there's nothing particularly worth remembering, so I've forgotten it."
Upon hearing this, the recorder thoughtfully closed the notebook, the crisp sound signaling the end of the Q&A session.
“I understand,” said Little F. “This thing that captures the human spirit is naturally our enemy. The enemy of mankind is not a dream, a place to rest those who have nowhere to go in their sleep, but a predator’s net.”
Her intonation flowed naturally, and the intonation seemed to be a part of her lungs, her original organ. Every word that rolled out with her breath had a wonderfully natural tone, even though there was no stage here.
“Oh…” Golson nodded, seemingly understanding.
“It’s okay if you don’t understand. The facts are made for people like you, and what I need to do is present the useful facts.” Little F said, putting away his notebook and standing up. “Well then, I’ll be going now.”
"Wait a minute," Cheng Xiangwu said, "Clean up your own teacup."
Xiao Fu turned around, smiled, took his teacup to the kitchen to wash it, and then turned back to his study.
"I'll get you a blanket." Cheng Xiangwu also stood up and said, "If you don't want to sleep, I also have medicine."
"No need, thank you, Sister Xiangxiang." Gao Ersen shook his head. "Actually, I'm also quite sleepy."
Cheng Xiangwu didn't say anything, but gave her a few more pillows and went back to her room.
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