Chapter 126: The New Alliance
As a dessert and a source of vitamins, Becca gave everyone an apple today.
You take the knife and start peeling the skin.
The knife tip disappears into the apple in your hand, then smoothly emerges, while one thought lingers in your mind:
"If someone else bleeds, will you no longer be forced to bear the mark of 'blood'?"
This thought sticks to your mind and keeps popping up.
You even start to think, "Mina is the most inconspicuous and frail one, it wouldn't be surprising if she accidentally got a cut..."
You jerked it suddenly, and the apple peel broke off.
You drop the knife on the ground, stare at your palm, sweat beading on it.
what's on your mind?
How could you think of such a thing?
You close your eyes and suddenly pinch your temples.
You are not that kind of person.
You are cautious, rational, and can be considered an upright person. Most of the time, you choose to observe first because you are always taking a path that minimizes the harm to others while protecting yourself.
But how could you be here now—
Are you thinking of getting someone else hurt to take your place?
Besides, things haven't gotten to that point yet.
This isn't the first time such a thought, completely contrary to your self-perception, has crossed your mind.
Every time, it's because you're being "controlled" or "parasitized" by something.
You punched yourself in the head to wake yourself up.
Once or twice is acceptable, but not a third time. It would be foolish to be controlled and unable to break free every time you encounter such a situation.
After realizing these things, the restless impulse in my heart finally subsided.
Your thinking will become clearer.
Looking back at all the thoughts that had just crossed your mind, you suddenly realize something very illogical.
First of all, why did your first instinct be to target Mina?
There are 10 people in this camp, including you. Mina is aloof and hard to approach. On the contrary, Freddy, who is in charge of logistics, often handles knives and sharp camping tools. He also often takes a drink to relax when Professor Shia is not paying attention.
Until now, you clearly assumed that only the six of you students were participating in this "game".
That's why you're anxious. After all, Dora, who seems to know a bit of witchcraft, appears to have the ability to protect herself. Only Mina and you are "competing" for the possibility of not being marked by an anomaly.
You look at Dora.
She sat not far away, weaving something with straw rope, her face as serene as a ripe fruit on a vine.
You stare at her, and a scene flashes through your mind of her talking in her sleep with you in the early morning.
She described everyone's state so precisely, creating a seemingly logical closed loop; and yesterday, she also gained your partial trust by linking Carlos's abnormality with your perception.
But... it's like you've been choked, and a huge hole suddenly explodes in your head.
There's actually a rule that's not really a rule: "natives" always "turn a blind eye" to irrelevant anomalies.
Those locals who broke the rules and were swept away by the black mud that appeared out of nowhere; those locals who were suddenly thrown into the mouths and chewed by monsters; those locals who underwent some kind of mutation only on the outsiders who broke the rules; and so on.
They will go unnoticed.
Those who notice them are themselves part of the abnormality.
But Dora's body... you've secretly looked at other girls' bodies and there are no marks on them!
You don't care anymore, just walk over, grab Dora, and drag her into her tent.
You and she were practically glued together today, so close that everyone could see it, but no one bothered with these "little things" that girls do together.
Dora looked at you strangely, quite puzzled.
You look down at Dora from your vantage point.
You reach out and touch her face.
"What are you going to do?" Dora's voice became shrill.
You gripped Dora's chin tightly and used all your strength to pry her mouth open.
In an instant, blood mixed with saliva splattered all over your hand.
There was no tongue in her mouth—
Instead, it was a set of sharp teeth that grew backwards, like some kind of backward-moving fish living inside a fleshy shell, intertwined layer upon layer, wriggling from the depths of her throat all the way to the roots of her teeth, each tooth growing towards her mouth, as if to bite herself.
The red fleshy surface was covered with different black characters that twisted and turned repeatedly like insects.
Your throat tightens, your stomach churns, and it feels as if the entire sound is drilling into your eardrums.
You stumble backward, your scalp tingling, and you knock over the storage rack at the tent entrance.
Her lips parted in a smile.
You hissed as you took a deep breath, turned abruptly, and rushed out of the tent, stumbling and staggering into the rainforest.
The fog hits you so hard you can't even hear yourself breathing.
You are finally convinced that she is "Yan".
The first day you wake up is not the first day of this curse from the rainforest or anything man-made.
This summer camp journey began before you even arrived at this instance, and the mark existed before that as well.
The entire journey is the curse itself.
You keep running until you can't run anymore.
You lean against a tree, hands on your knees, panting heavily and covered in cold sweat.
The sun has completely disappeared, and the rainforest of night envelops you, layer upon layer of dampness, darkness, and rustling, unintelligible sounds breathing against the back of your neck.
You ran away, but you know you can't just leave like that.
You grip your cold wrist.
No matter how far you run, you'll still have this body and this predetermined identity. You have to complete the summer camp, or you'll die in another way.
You calmed down and took out the hair clippings from your pocket.
You can't easily use props in front of locals, but now you're all alone.
You whispered, "Qingsi, take me back to the camp."
Her black hair moved slightly, like ink dripping into the night, leaving a dark yet steady guiding line.
You hold it, take a deep breath, and slowly stand up.
You move forward step by step, your black hair swaying slowly as if you are smelling and probing. Clearly, the paths and magnetic field of the rainforest are so chaotic that even such a spiritual being has to think twice.
A small, bluish-gray snake hangs upside down on a branch ahead, its transparent eyes wide open. You walk past it, but it doesn't react at all, as if you're not even in its world.
A crying sound came from the rotting wood to the left, like a child's, but the tone was too mechanical, like a broken record.
—If it were a real child, that would be even scarier.
You feel an itch in your heart.
You clutched your hair tightly, neither responding nor offering any explanation.
A long hand emerged from the bushes, its nails thin and pale like paper, blocking your way.
You stop and watch as it picks up a small, withered leaf from the ground and slowly retracts.
Keep going.
That's not your path. You know that.
None of these monsters are meant for you. They are watching, patrolling, and waiting for you to make a mistake.
This is the first time you've deviated from the pre-set event path of the instance, and naturally, endless dangers will come your way.
But you are calm and determined right now. Your goal is ahead, and you will do your best to accomplish all of this.
You walked deeper and deeper until a beam of fluorescent white light pierced through from the edge of the woods.
Who is it?
You suddenly ducked down and hid behind a bush.
Your palms pressed into the cold, icy soil, and your heart skipped a beat.
You hear footsteps gently crushing fallen leaves.
The person was getting closer.
Carefully look up and peek out through the gaps in the leaves.
The light was coming from a headlamp.
A familiar figure appeared, wearing a camp jacket with one trouser leg rolled up and an insect repellent bag tied to the other. She walked slowly, her left hand on a tree and her right hand holding a light source.
You hold your breath—
It's Mina.
It turns out she was the one looking for you.
You crouch behind a tree, watching her figure move slowly but resolutely through the night forest. She keeps her head down, as if carefully searching for traces of you along a route you cannot see.
Instead of standing up immediately, you carefully considered everything about Mina.
She is aloof, but in reality, she is independent of the group.
Yes, she was clearly the most unsociable one in this event's "design," and also the one most likely to be the one with "sustain."
You stroked the strands of hair in your hand and whispered, "Thank you. Now, please return them to my pocket."
Then you get up and softly call out, "Mina, I'm here."
She turned around abruptly, and you were seen in the swaying light.
Her eyes widened suddenly, and then she smiled genuinely and relaxed.
"I'm glad you're alright." She smiled shyly. "It was dangerous for you to run out like that."
You nodded gently.
"Mina, I have something to tell you."
-----------------------
Author's note: Doing experiments is so tiring T_T
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
