"Tick... tock... tick... tock..."
The second hand on the wall clock moved in small increments.
This regression was rather strange, lasting for so long without ending.
Yuan Luoyi felt it had something to do with her earlier wish. The system said it would assist her in realizing her wish, and the regression function might have changed as a result.
Now she needed to stay calm and look for useful clues here, since her elder brother had been searching for the real culprit ever since her death, and had already collected a lot of evidence.
Yuan Luoyi walked towards the wall covered with photographs, her gaze sweeping over each one, hundreds of them, both men and women. Some of the photographs had red crosses on them, while others did not. What did that mean?
Footsteps sounded from behind as Yuan Ao finished dealing with some trouble, and he had changed into another shirt, this time a black one with an exquisite Chinese stand-up collar.
Yuan Luoyi had seen him wear this shirt before. Back then, it had fit him snugly, suiting his temperament. But now it hung loose, as he had grown much thinner and paler, the veins on his hands clearly visible.
Recalling the wounds on her brother's back, Yuan Luoyi knew he had been living in agony.
He understood better than anyone that no matter how many people he killed, his sister would never come back, and due to the unbearable pain, he had become increasingly numb and ruthless. Just a moment ago, he had taken someone's life without the slightest tremor.
Yuan Ao took out a red pen and put a cross on a male's photograph.
Yuan Luoyi understood. Those who had already been killed would be crossed out. She asked, "Brother, were all these people responsible for harming me?"
Yuan Ao said, "Yes, but don't worry. Before I completely lose myself, I'll kill them all."
Yuan Luoyi continued looking at the photographs. She had never seen most of the people, and there were hundreds of them. It was clear that anyone even remotely connected to her death would end up on Yuan Ao's hit list, and the real culprit might be hiding among them.
She wanted to ask for more information, but couldn't make a sound, feeling a familiar sensation of her throat being constricted by the system's power.
Looking at the untouched apple on the table, Yuan Ao asked, "Why aren't you eating the apple?"
Yuan Luoyi said, "I'm not hungry."
Yuan Ao said, "It's already noon. Even if you're not hungry, you should still eat something. Children won't grow tall if they're hungry."
Yuan Luoyi gazed at Yuan Ao. He seemed a little concerned. He had always been obsessed with taking care of Yuan Luoyi, and even if he thought she was an illusion, he still looked after her food, clothing, and shelter.
She asked, "Brother, do you enjoy taking care of people?"
Yuan Ao said, "I only enjoy taking care of you, not just anyone."
"If possible, I really wish you could keep relying on me forever, but in the blink of an eye, you grew up and forgot me. No matter how I tried to get close, you were always afraid of me."
"But when you were sick and delirious with a fever, you weren't afraid of me anymore, and you couldn't avoid me either. That's when I thought, it might be nice if you were always sick."
Yuan Ao sneered, "Indeed, I'm not normal. I shouldn't be a brother. A madman only knows how to make demands, not how to properly protect his sister."
Earlier, Yuan Luoyi had asked her brother the same question, and he had lied and said he didn't enjoy it. But now that he thought she was an illusion, he didn't bother hiding his dark side.
Yuan Ao rummaged through the fridge, "Would you like some whole-wheat bread?"
Yuan Luoyi said, "No, I don't want any."
Taking a coat off the hanger, Yuan Ao quickly put it on. "I'll go out and buy some food."
A flicker of panic appeared on Yuan Luoyi's face. Her brother was going out, leaving her alone in this room filled with the scent of murder!
She ran up to Yuan Ao. "I want to go too!"
Yuan Ao stopped in his tracks, looking back at Yuan Luoyi, his gaze gradually darkening. "You can't go out."
His voice was icy, devoid of any inflection.
Yuan Luoyi asked, "Why?"
"Because it's too dangerous out there. There are people everywhere who want to harm you. Once I've killed them all, you can go out."
"I'll stay with you the whole time and not wander off, so we won't run into them."
"I'm sorry, but I can't let you leave this place. I've already lost you once, and I don't want to lose you again. I'll be back soon after buying the food."
Yuan Ao opened the door to leave, but Yuan Luoyi reached out her little hand and grabbed his sleeve, trembling at being so close to her brother.
"Brother, there's the smell of blood everywhere here. Please don't leave me alone in this place."
Gazing into his sister's pure eyes and trembling little hand, Yuan Ao hesitated. "Aren't you afraid of me? You're shaking now. Can you really stay with me the whole time?"
Yuan Luoyi said, "I can do it. You seem terrifying now, but you're my brother. You won't hurt me."
Yuan Ao's eyes flickered slightly at this trust, the very thing he had longed for yet never received.
He walked out the door, and Yuan Luoyi followed, and he didn't stop her.
Once outside, Yuan Luoyi realized this was an underground parking garage, with the ventilation fan humming constantly, and darkness all around. The room they were in earlier was a storage room that Yuan Ao had converted for executions.
Yuan Luoyi asked, "Brother, where is this?"
Yuan Ao said, "It's the third basement level of my company, very secure. No one can get in here except me."
As they walked further, there was gradually more light, revealing the small cars parked here.
Yuan Ao walked towards one of the cars and opened the door. After Yuan Luoyi got in, he started the car and drove out.
Outside, the sunlight was dazzling, and it took Yuan Luoyi a while to adjust. The security guard, seeing it was Yuan Ao's car, let them through without inspection.
After just a few minutes, they arrived at a mall. Yuan Ao stopped the car and turned to Yuan Luoyi. "I need to go in and buy some things. Can you wait in the car for a bit?"
Yuan Luoyi said, "Okay."
Yuan Ao asked, "What would you like to eat?"
Yuan Luoyi wasn't actually hungry, as in her world line, she had just finished eating barbecue with her brothers and was stuffed.
But Yuan Ao really seemed to want to take care of her, so Yuan Luoyi said, "Jelly and chocolate."
Yuan Ao said, "Eating just snacks isn't good for your health."
Yuan Luoyi said, "Then also buy some pineapple buns, with lots of cream."
Yuan Ao nodded, then got out and entered the mall.
The opportunity had arrived!
Yuan Luoyi opened the car door and jumped out, running towards the plaza where people were coming and going, and a large screen was displaying various commercials.
Due to the system's restrictions, there were some questions Yuan Luoyi couldn't ask Yuan Ao, but she could actively explore the answers. Like watching the news, which could provide her with a lot of useful information.
After a cosmetics ad came a pet care ad, followed by an insurance ad, one after another endlessly, but no news.
Yuan Luoyi grew increasingly anxious as she waited. If her brother returned and didn't find her in the car, she might be in trouble.
