Chapter 104 (First Release)
In my dream, the aroma of food filled the room, and the fireplace crackled and burned, keeping out all the cold...
Ning Wanwan closed her eyes, a slight smile playing on her lips, lost in a beautiful dream. However, her reverie was short-lived; the chill of reality soon brought her back to reality.
Ning Wanwan rubbed her eyes, stared blankly at the cold, rocky cave walls in front of her for a while, and couldn't help but sigh softly.
I wish I could wake up looking exactly like I did in my dream...
She peered out of the cave with a glimmer of hope, but to her disappointment, the wind and snow outside showed no sign of abating.
The wind howled, and all that could be seen was a vast expanse of white. Not to mention anyone else, there wasn't a single other color to be seen; all that could be seen was cold, icy white.
Ning Wanwan pursed her lips, trying to suppress the anxiety in her heart.
She glanced again in Ansel's direction; the blond boy was resting with his eyes closed.
He was probably under immense psychological and physiological stress, because even in his sleep his brows were furrowed, and he looked extremely tired.
Ning Wanwan sighed again as she thought about the food.
Since there was nothing to do, Ning Wanwan didn't want to disturb Ansel's rest. There wasn't much to see in the cave anyway, so she simply stared blankly at Ansel.
It must be said that Ansel's blond hair is really beautiful. He doesn't have his eyes open right now, otherwise, it would look even better against his violet eyes.
If Ansel hadn't brought it up, Ning Wanwan would never have realized that this young man was just like her, a "fleeing refugee" with nowhere to go.
Even though his clothes were tattered, it was hard to imagine.
Thinking about her identity as a "refugee," Ning Wanwan wanted to sigh again.
From Ansel's description, Ning Wanwan didn't know what she would do if she didn't have talent...
But for now, let's get past the blizzard first...
Although it seems like there's nothing we can do right now.
Thinking about this made Ning Wanwan feel even worse.
Having stayed in this cave for quite a while, my stomach seems to be starting to rumble again...
Ning Wanwan touched her flat stomach, her gaze involuntarily falling on the backpack next to Ansel.
Ansel had taken the food out of this backpack earlier...
Should we go check? Let's make sure, like Ansel said, there's still plenty of food...
Ning Wanwan had barely entertained this thought when she bit her lip hard, letting the pain pull her back to reality.
No, those belong to someone else; you can't touch them.
But I just wanted to confirm it...
No! I can wait until Ansel wakes up and ask him directly. I can't touch other people's things without permission!
Especially at this time, the importance of this backpack goes without saying.
Ning Wanwan exhaled and closed her eyes tightly, refusing to look at the tempting backpack.
But if she didn't go, the inner voice urging her to go and see seemed to grow louder.
Ning Wanwan felt that the hunger was becoming more and more pronounced; she was extremely hungry, even more so than when she had just been rescued from the snow...
But something's strange, even though I've already eaten some of the food Ansel gave me...
But after eating, how long did they actually stay in that cave?
Ning Wanwan seemed to have no recollection either; trapped here, she had no concept of time.
I guess I didn't eat much to begin with, and now that I know there's food but I can't get it, I'm even hungrier.
Ning Wanwan pursed her lips, enduring the hunger for a while, but finally couldn't bear it any longer and softly called out, "Ansil."
Ansel seemed to be fast asleep and did not react at all.
It was already difficult for Ning Wanwan to wake someone up because she was so hungry that she wanted to ask for food. Not to mention that the other person was finally able to rest and was sleeping so soundly, and she had to forcibly wake them up.
After struggling with the decision, Ning Wanwan decided not to call him again.
But a certain thought in her heart seemed to be amplified infinitely, as if a voice was whispering in her ear—
How long can you endure this feeling of hunger?
Follow your heart's desires, don't resist them. You really want to eat, you really want to survive.
If only one of you and Ansel could survive, wouldn't you want yourself to be the one to live?
No one wants to die while the other person lives.
Moreover, once food becomes truly scarce, can you guarantee that Ansel will remain rational and refrain from harming you? In such an environment, how many times can he truly rely on handing you food?
Maybe he's being nice to you now to lower your guard and use you as a backup plan. There are precedents for this kind of scary thing...
Take advantage of this opportunity while he's still asleep and secretly steal his backpack... or even better, find a way to kill him once and for all...
A devil whispered in her ear.
Ning Wanwan's steps were already moving uncontrollably toward Ansel, her eyes fixed on the backpack containing the food.
No, that's not right!
Ning Wanwan bit her lip hard. Fortunately, because she hadn't relaxed, she had been unconsciously biting her lip, and the stinging sensation kept her slightly awake.
The taste of rust spread between her lips and teeth. Ning Wanwan suddenly squatted down, covering her lips and hissing as she inhaled the cold air.
"Ouch...it definitely broke the skin..."
[...]
The demon in my mind seemed to be making a silent sound as well.
[Why won't you admit that you have many dark thoughts and a strong will to survive?]
[You just really want to live, you want to use any means necessary, regardless of ethics or morality, to survive. Humans are all like that; when death approaches, when death comes, it's an inescapable part of human nature.]
[Why not do it? Is it because you're too timid to take action? Is it because you're afraid of being bound by your own moral conscience?]
Ning Wanwan slowly exhaled.
Because her lip was bitten and was still in pain, she couldn't help but frown and cover her mouth while speaking indistinctly.
"Thoughts are one thing, but I admit I have many bad, even dark, thoughts."
"But those are just ideas; if they're not put into practice, they're just empty words."
“I really want to live…even if I’m condemned, even if I’m immoral…I’m a cowardly person, but I really want to live.”
"If I were really about to die, I don't know what I would do. I might do things that would cross the line of morality and moral boundaries."
"Because I want to live."
"When something hasn't actually happened, no one can say for sure what choice they will make."
"However, I feel that we haven't reached that point yet."
"Therefore, I will not do that."
Having probably spoken so much in one breath, and having not drunk water for a long time, the girl's voice was dry and muffled, interspersed with gasps of pain.
So, although the words sounded like a serious declaration, they sounded pitiful and lacked any of the necessary momentum.
The invisible demon fell into a long silence.
Then the devil laughed.
[You are very honest.]
[Alright, I'll see...]
[When do you think "that time" will be?]
Ning Wanwan sensed that the devil had temporarily left.
Ning Wanwan breathed a sigh of relief and collapsed to the ground, feeling utterly exhausted.
She didn't know where this demon came from, or whether it was a demon born from within herself, and this was just an internal struggle within her.
She then realized that she had unknowingly moved only a few steps away from Ansel and his backpack.
"Fortunately, I managed to restrain myself and didn't do anything irreversible, right?" Ning Wanwan muttered to herself.
A cold wind leaked in from outside the cave, and Ning Wanwan felt a chill on her forehead.
She wiped her forehead with her fingers and realized that she had broken out in a cold sweat without even noticing.
"This is bad... If I catch a cold in this environment, it will only make things worse..."
Ning Wanwan smiled wryly, slowly stood up, and wanted to find a corner to sit down again.
Just as she was moving away from Ansel and his tempting backpack, she suddenly heard a strange sound.
The sound came from afar, carrying a slightly sticky quality, somewhat like the sound of some kind of giant soft-bodied worm wriggling on the ground.
Ning Wanwan examined the cave for a while, then looked uncertainly toward the innermost part of the cave she hadn't yet entered.
The cave was quite spacious, but the space further inside became narrow, dark, and very eerie. So after testing the waters, Ning Wanwan and Ansel did not choose to step inside.
It sounds like the sound... is coming from inside!
What is it?
Ning Wanwan's face turned a little pale, especially when she realized the voice was getting closer and closer, and was coming straight for her.
She couldn't help but take a few steps back, when she suddenly heard Anseil's voice behind her.
"careful!"
Ning Wanwan's body was suddenly pulled backward, and Ansel shielded her behind him.
He didn't know when he woke up. At this moment, he was tightly gripping a dagger in his hand, his face more serious than ever before, and his purple eyes were fixed on the dark entrance inside.
"It's very likely... a monster."
Upon hearing the word "monster" again, Ning Wanwan realized what it meant. Her face turned pale, and like Ansel, she was on high alert, staring intently into the cave.
"Sizzle, sizzle—"
A terrifying-looking monster appeared before the two of them, its genitals covered in a sticky liquid dragging along the ground, making disgusting and strange noises.
At first, its movements were slow.
Then it stopped, its strange head turned, and it "saw" Ning Wanwan and Ansel, the two humans.
Ning Wanwan found it hard to describe the fear she felt at that moment.
Just like a starving person seeing a delicious meal, the monster's "head" suddenly opened its mouthful of fangs and excitedly charged towards the two of them!
Before Ning Wanwan could react, Ansel had already gripped his dagger and was fighting the monster!
That's incredibly fast! It's unbelievable that such a massive monster could move so fast!
Ning Wanwan's mind went blank. She instinctively wanted to step forward to help, but she had no weapons in her hands.
Rushing in like that will only make things worse.
"Run! Don't worry about me! Get out of here!" Ansel suddenly shouted at Ning Wanwan.
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