Illusion Report

"At first, she just looked like she was in a deep sleep."

Han Liuyue’s face had returned to normal.

Her complexion was a little pale, but her breathing was steady. Her blood pressure, heartbeat, pupils, and neurological responses were all normal. At that time, everyone thought that if they just let her rest, she would eventually wake up on her own.

Chaisi even wondered if his demands had been too strict, causing Han Liuyue to take such a risk just to record a video for him that was only needed as a backup plan. ’Once Han Liuyue wakes up, should I scold her? Advise her? Thank her? Or should I reflect on my own actions?’

"...Brother Chaisi seemed quite troubled by it and even went to discuss it with Tian Xi. The two of them talked for a while, then called me in with serious expressions and asked me, ’How much risk are you willing to take to carry out Brother Chaisi’s orders?’"

Suo Beihua let out a quiet laugh.

"I thought they were about to give me a difficult mission, so I got all puffed up with pride. I exaggerated, bragging about how I wasn’t afraid of risks, how willing I was to take them, and that there was nothing I wouldn’t dare to do... The more I talked, the worse Brother Chaisi’s expression got, and Tian Xi quickly shooed me out the door."

With Han Liuyue expected to recover, a more relaxed and cheerful atmosphere settled over the Kai Family Mansion.

This atmosphere lasted for less than ten hours.

"I don’t know who was the first to discover it."

Suo Beihua raised her eyes and looked intently at Mai Mingle—not at Mai Mingle herself, but at her as a mirror. She seemed to be trying to see if what Mai Mingle said was true, if Chaisi was truly in the mirror.

"In any case, by the time we realized what was happening, Liuyue’s body... was collapsing inward."

It was a scene that was incredibly difficult to describe.

The body lying on the bed seemed to have become a human-shaped frame; the flesh, bones, and organs were slowly sinking within that very frame. Just from the description, Mai Mingle couldn’t even begin to imagine what such a sight would look like.

"The outer contour formed by her bones was the last thing to sink. I went to see her once and found that the space between the outer ring of her bone structure and her slowly receding face was deep enough to fit half a hand stood on its side. She used to be such a beautiful person... I... I was so scared back then. I even thought that, rather than this, it might have been better if she had died."

Suo Beihua shook her head and said, "I’m quite ashamed of myself for thinking that."

She glanced up at Robert on the floor above.

As the matter involved the Kai Family’s private affairs, she had just politely but firmly asked him to wait upstairs and "observe the situation outside while you’re at it." But the stairwell wasn’t large; if he held his breath and listened, there was no telling how much he might overhear.

As for Emily, no one paid her much mind; her current state made you feel it wouldn’t matter even if she did hear.

Suo Beihua lowered her voice again.

"...Brother Chaisi didn’t say it, but I think he must have felt terribly guilty."

’It must have been a powerful, overwhelming guilt,’ Mai Mingle thought.

Otherwise, after Han Liuyue had finally collapsed completely into a human-shaped black hole, there were probably few people in the world who could have mustered the courage to slowly stick their head and body into it.

"He tried a few times. The first time, he pulled back out almost immediately and told Tian Xi and a few of us other Hunters that it was just pitch black inside, that he couldn’t see anything. We all demanded he not go back in—listen to me, what am I even saying, ’go back in’? She’s not a door."

Suo Beihua covered her face and paused for a few seconds.

Mai Mingle wanted to gently stroke her arm to calm her down, but the moment she moved, Suo Beihua immediately dropped her hands and fixed her gaze on her again.

Even though Mai Mingle had told her about "Mirror Chaisi" and offered to find a way to bring Chaisi back to the Human World, Suo Beihua remained wary of her. This was understandable; after all, the whole situation was too bizarre, and she’d never even heard of the existence of the "Black Abyss Belt."

Besides, the way Mai Mingle had gotten mixed up in this whole affair was indeed highly suspicious.

"He didn’t listen to you," Mai Mingle said.

"...That’s right. He’s always been very protective and taken care of us, but this time, even I felt he was going too far. Even if he was wracked with guilt, he didn’t need to..."

Suo Beihua shook her head, not finishing the sentence, and changed the subject.

"The second time, he stayed in the darkness for a few minutes before pulling out. The third time, he leaned in even deeper and tried to step in with one foot... Luckily, Tian Xi grabbed his leg. We shouted for him to get out, but it was like he couldn’t hear us. After a while, he finally moved a little. But when we sensed something was wrong and tried to pull him out, we found we couldn’t."

Chaisi was like a small bug trapped in setting concrete, stuck and solidified.

No one dared to yank him forcefully. They could only call out his name while gently pulling on him, trying to prevent Chaisi from going any deeper into the black hole.

"After that... everything just stopped. He’s been stuck in the black hole ever since. Over a day has passed, and there’s still no sign of him getting free."

Suo Beihua shot a glance at Mai Mingle.

"And then, you snuck into the mansion and somehow, of all things, opened the door to the room where Brother Chaisi and Liuyue were. You said the door opened by itself, but I don’t believe you. The Kai Family’s lock system isn’t so useless that it can’t even perform the basic function of a lock. But we can talk about that after we get out of here."

Mai Mingle gave a bitter smile.

No matter how hard she thought, she couldn’t figure out how that door had opened. She couldn’t give Suo Beihua a satisfactory answer.

"You said you wanted to understand the situation, and I’ve told you the whole story—even though I still feel I shouldn’t have. But we’re at a complete loss right now, so even if you’re lying to me, I have to try. Alright, now it’s your turn to tell me: how do we bring Brother Chaisi back to the Human World?"

She didn’t mention Han Liuyue; a person who had become a hole was, most likely, beyond saving.

"I... I only have a theory."

Mai Mingle looked up at the sky and light pouring in from where a wall on the upper floor had been removed. "I’m not sure about Chaisi’s current situation, but I think he can definitely see me clearly. Isn’t that right?"

She boldly directed the last question at Chaisi; it seemed he could not only see but also hear her.

The translucent face behind her eyeball did indeed hesitate, then gave a slight nod.

"If he’s been following me closely this whole time, then doesn’t that make me his landmark and guide? If I go back to Blackmoor City and stand next to his body, then when he walks toward me, won’t he also be returning to the ’crevice’ formed by Han Liuyue, allowing him to get back to his own body?"

"Sounds logical," Suo Beihua said coldly, "and quite beneficial for you, too."

"Regardless, it’s worth a try. Besides, if we stay stuck in this stairwell, we can’t save anyone..."

Mai Mingle paused.

’Come to think of it, this period of undisturbed quiet has lasted for a surprisingly long time... Is it because we’re about to return to our own reality?’

’So the people from the other realities have stopped chasing us?’

Suo Beihua seemed to have thought of the same thing. She swam forward a few steps and called up the stairs, "Robert? Do you see anything?"

The translucent Chaisi suddenly turned his head behind her eyeball. At first, Mai Mingle thought he had noticed the commotion in the stairwell and involuntarily turned her own head to follow his gaze.

But all she saw was a bare concrete wall.

Chaisi, however, seemed to be staring at something.

It was as if he were listening to someone speak, occasionally opening his mouth to respond silently.

’Is Chaisi looking at someone in the Black Abyss Belt...?’

’That can’t be right. There shouldn’t be anyone in a darkness where nothing exists.’

’Who is he talking to? Han Liuyue?’

Mai Mingle wished she knew how to read lips, but Chaisi was just a translucent outline; even if she could read lips, she wouldn’t be able to make out the shape of his.

"...Robert?"

In the short half-minute that Mai Mingle was distracted by Chaisi, Suo Beihua’s voice suddenly became sharp.

Mai Mingle’s heart tightened, and she immediately hurried up the stairs. The sky, the street, and the Nest, as large as an entire wall, were just a stone’s throw away; she could reach out her hand and grasp freedom.

...Robert was gone.

"Emily, did you see where he went?" Mai Mingle asked, quickly turning her head.

The huge nut remained silent and motionless.

Just as she was thinking Emily might have lost the ability to speak, she slowly mumbled, "...Doesn’t... concern... me..."

Suo Beihua climbed the stairs again and looked at the floor above, but it also seemed to be empty.

Chaisi seemed to grow faintly agitated. A shadow of a furrow appeared between his brows; he shook his head at the person Mai Mingle couldn’t see, the one who shouldn’t exist.

"Did he get out ahead of us?" Suo Beihua asked hesitantly, looking out past the wall.

The street was empty. Not only was Robert gone, but so was Tian Xi, who should have been waiting outside.

Tian Xi might have come in to help with the other two, so that didn’t necessarily mean anything. But Robert’s whereabouts were baffling; he would never scout the path for others and go down first himself.

"Did you see him leave?" Suo Beihua asked Emily—but no matter how many times she asked, the latter remained silent.

Mai Mingle lay at the edge of the floor, not daring to lean out. After a moment, she suddenly asked, "Wait, don’t talk... Do you hear that?"

Suo Beihua walked over to her side and listened quietly for a moment.

"Is that... the sound of a wind-up key? No, that’s not right. Winding something up isn’t that fast."

The CLICK-CLICK-CLICK of metal machinery was tight and rapid, unceasing. The speed was indeed extreme; if this were a spring being wound, it would have started smoking and worn out long ago.

"It’s coming from downstairs," Suo Beihua said.

The sound was coming from right below the building’s outer wall, in a blind spot they couldn’t see unless they stuck their heads out.

"I’m not risking my neck for him," Suo Beihua said, standing up. "If he fell out and he has a wind-up spring on him, that just proves the world outside isn’t reality. Let him go. We’ll find another way out."

Behind her eyeball, Chaisi was suddenly startled. His face and expression were imprinted on Mai Mingle’s retinas, and his abrupt shock sent a jolt through her, causing Suo Beihua to glance at her.

Chaisi turned his head to stare intently at Mai Mingle. On his translucent, hazy face, his mouth opened and closed rapidly, as if he were talking to her.

No—he wasn’t talking.

He was warning her.