Welcome to Rewind World Game
Chapter 595 - Five Hundred and Ninety-Two: ’Will You One Day Go to Save Them?

Chapter 595: Chapter Five Hundred and Ninety-Two: ’Will You One Day Go to Save Them?

Su Ming’an sat ten meters away from Xiao Mei’s home, modifying the mechanics in his hands.

From within the nearby house, the rough voice of a man’s cursing and swearing kept coming through.

"...why have you come back? Ah, you’re my daughter, are you here to mock me, right? An incapable useless father, who does nothing but drink all day... loses everything at cards, even your mother’s medication money, living like a gambling addict...

What’s with that look in your eyes... You dare to look at your old man!

"Get out! Get out——!!"

"..."

Just a moment ago, after returning from the garbage mountain, Xiao Mei had seen the man who was entering her house; she explained to Su Ming’an that it was her father returning home and asked Su Ming’an to wait for her at a distance.

After Xiao Mei entered the house, that was when he heard such sounds.

Even from a great distance, Su Ming’an could hear the man’s loud cursing; the neighbors on the street took detours around the house, as if this kind of thing was normal.

With a "click," Su Ming’an, relying on his Level 10 "Mechanics" ability, finished modifying the mechanical leg in his hands. He tentatively connected it to his own legs—

The ice-white metal covered his legs without looking bulky, instead showing a streamlined fit. He gradually stood up, and a crisp "click click click" sound came from below. He tried to move his legs and finally felt the sensation of spanning distances.

It had worked.

He had been sitting in a wheelchair for five days, and now he could finally move on his own again.

Lord of Acto City didn’t install such mechanical legs, and Su Ming’an could think of many reasons, but he believed there was only one significant reason—pride as a pure human.

Even though he was a modifier of the Dawn Brain, Lord of Acto City did not want to install anything related to mechanics. Without the Dawn Chip, without mechanical legs, relying purely on human physical strength to face everything.

Su Ming’an took a step but nearly fell; the way of "driving" these mechanical legs was somewhat torturous. If it weren’t crucial, he would still prefer to use the wheelchair.

"—You worthless thing, why don’t you just go die? A dirty thing that makes money by selling your body; you’ve lost all my face, people from miles around see me and mock, ’Oh, that’s your daughter? I slept with her last night’... damn it. I should have strangled you the moment you were born!

...If you were assessed as a Type II personality, would our family have to stay in this broken place? What use are you now? If you were a son, at least you could carry on the family line, but looking at you just brings bad luck, disgusting thing! See if I don’t beat you to death today..."

The man’s cursing inside the house had become increasingly disgusting, to the point where even the viewers felt uncomfortable listening.

"Bang!" Suddenly, a loud noise came from within the door, like the sound of a heavy object hitting the floor, and the man’s cursing stopped.

Su Ming’an walked forward, pushed open the door, and as soon as he entered, he saw Xiao Mei with a red swollen palm print on her face. Her hand, fitted with a mechanical arm, was raised high, and beside her was her father, who had collapsed and was unconscious.

The man, reeking of alcohol, lay on the ground, his chest oozing blood.

"...I never thought of fighting back." Xiao Mei’s eyes looked dazed, and her mechanical fingers clicked, blood from the man lingered on them, "Why did you force me, why did you force me, why did you force me... why did you come at me with a knife, why did you pull my hair, why did you hit me.

Why does he have to treat me like this? Why does he have to gamble every day and night, why does he have to drink from morning to night, why does he have to take away the medicine my mother needs for treatment, why does he insist on ruining this home... I just wanted a home, I just wanted to make money for my family, where did I go wrong? What did I do wrong?"

Her breathing was hurried, she inhaled as hard as she could, her eyes bloodshot.

Wet strands of hair stuck to her face, and her lips had been bloodied by the man’s hand earlier.

"Dong An’an is not my biological sister, but an adopted one, I’ve known it for a long time. She comes from the Inner City, I live outside the city; we are completely different... Since childhood, my family of three, myself, my father, and my mother, we all have inferior personas. I’ve known since I was young that I had to work hard and make a lot of money..."

She spoke tremblingly, very fast, and the chip on the back of her neck blinked red very quickly, "beep, beep, beep."

"Current Emotional Value: 95 points, extremely dangerous..." Xike said softly.

"...Previously, when the Inner City came to select people for work, I studied hard, I knew my chance to change my destiny had come. Inferior personae could only enter the Inner City through such a selection, so I went to the recycling station to buy books discarded by Inner City people... Those books were so new, some barely flipped through a few pages, they’re so wasteful—knowledge was being thrown away just like that... something I longed for but couldn’t get.

I couldn’t afford more books, my father wouldn’t give me money for them, so I picked up trash and self-taught mechanics to make money. I bought so many books, read so much, read until my eyes were about to go blind. On the day of the selection, the Dawn System finally approved my adaptability, I chose Mechanics and City-State Economics as my work options, I could enter the City, even as an inferior personality..."

Her body shook violently, drops of blood from the mechanical arm trickling down one by one.

"But, but no one at home would approve of me working in the city, people with inferior personas are always at risk of emotional overload, we have no access to drugs, and it’s even easier to end up losing money... On the day the selection team was returning to the city, my father locked me in the house, not allowing me to go; he said being beautiful was sufficient for a girl from The Fringe, he found me a job that I could do at night..."

Then, then..."

She lifted her head.

Her eyes were hollow, devoid of anything.

"... and then there was no after that."

"What followed is what you see now."

"I became ’that kind of woman’."

"To keep my skin smooth, so I don’t get a mechanical arm, the choice I made is cheap, laughable, no different from a bug..."

"Drip, drip, drip..."

The red light flickered rapidly; she stood still, her eye sockets like a deep-set black hole.

Her face had lost the vivid vitality of the night, as if all the liveliness of the night had faded away in the daylight.

[Current Emotional Value: 99 points, severe overload...] Xike said.

"Sometimes I also think about just considering what I want to do like some people, not compromising for the conventions of society. I actually don’t like mechanics at all, I see on the news that a lot of people can engage in the occupations they are most interested in, because they don’t focus on it just for the money; they have a family safety net to allow for trial and error, as long as they accumulate enough knowledge and cultivate the right interests, the adaptability of the Dawn System will get them through..."

But I can’t.

No family background, no ability, not smart enough."

She "clang" removed the mechanical arm, revealing the arm that had been reddened by being squeezed by the improper size.

"... I have to think about if my loved ones get sick, I need to have enough money to cure them. I have to think about how I would survive if one day this house were forcibly requisitioned. I must have money to live a life where I am not starved to death...

My future has been limited... I dare not explore the things I like, I dare not look up at the sky, I dare not invest in the fields I’m interested in, I dare not... dare not think too much."

She looked down, pulled open the drawer, rummaged out a small wooden box, and "click" opened it to reveal several blood-red flowers inside.

On the crimson cloth, the solid flowers were like congealed blood.

——[Roseblood.]

Su Ming’an had long known that this addictive mentality drug was widely abused, and it was not surprising to find it in Xiaomei’s home; it is an illegal substance that causes madness and death with prolonged use.

In The Fringe, people’s lives are extremely difficult. Consuming such drugs that bring them happiness is like a psychological comfort, letting them find solace in illusions.

It is a satisfaction that comes at a low cost. Just one piece, no need for exquisite delicacies, no need for lavish feasts, can bring the ultimate happy illusion.

"I dare not explore my future, my long-term plan can only be picking up trash during the day and going out to work at night... because the slightest misstep could result in ruin... I have no capital... for trial and error." She stared at the Roseblood in her hand, revealing a somewhat frantic smile.

It was the first time Su Ming’an saw this shy girl expose such an unreserved grin.

It was as if sweet clouds were fermenting gloomily in her heart; she looked at the cold blood-colored flower in her hand, her eyes brilliantly lit up as if she had seen paradise.

She examined its petals carefully, as if she could see the happiness of another world through the transparent crystal.

Just as she raised her hand, about to swallow the Roseblood, Su Ming’an stepped forward and grabbed her thin wrist. With a "snap", the Roseblood fell to the ground and shattered.

...

[Perfect Pass (TE2) Progress: 50%]

...

"Enough," said Su Ming’an. "I’ll take you back to Central City."

"..." Xiao Mei stared at him.

The madness on her face softened bit by bit, as if she was coming back from her hallucinations.

She must have consumed Roseblood more than once, her mental state had sunk to such a degree, and her behavior just now was obviously abnormal.

"...What did I," she said, "do just now?"

She saw her father, unconscious on the ground, at a glance, realizing what had just happened.

"City Lord," she said with her head bowed. "You saw the color on the back of my neck, didn’t you? Although I can’t see it, it must be deep red now..."

She slowly, ever so slowly, crouched down, extending her pale hands to carefully pick up the broken pieces of dusty Roseblood.

"You said you’re taking me back to Central City... What then? Can you bend the rules of the Dawn System to favor a person with an inferior persona like me? You are a just and impartial leader of the city-state, would you break the decades-old rules of the city-state for a girl from The Fringe?"

"I’ve seen the chaos in The Fringe, and I’ve seen the resistance of the battle groups. If they get hold of this evidence and disclose it, the credibility of Central City... will be no more."

She spoke slowly, her eyes gradually becoming clear, shimmering with tears:

"As for me?

What identity shall I assume by the side of Central City’s leader? I have no scientific knowledge, no high-level persona, no stable emotions; I can’t do anything. Do you... plan to assign me the role of a secret lover? Or perhaps an invisible person without a name?"

Su Ming’an released his hands.

Xiao Mei’s frail wrists were a vivid red.

The leader of a city-state cannot afford to show favoritism. The Dawn System would also never allow a person with an inferior persona into Central City.

"Moreover," said Xiao Mei.

As she spoke these words, she knew she was severing her own path of retreat.

It was not that she did not want to follow the City Lord. Even if she had to live hidden and oppressed, it would surely be better than staying here.

... But she must not become a burden to the City Lord, a risk to the public trust of the city-state.

She did not hate the Dawn System; living in such an apocalypse, everything Acto brought with him was a significant change, otherwise, everyone would still be living in the Danger Zone. She would not hate him for this, for it would be akin to an ungrateful wretch.

He had already saved her once. From here on, she would let herself survive or perish on her own.

She looked up.

At that moment, a sharp pain spread throughout her organs.

She was about to reject the path he had laid out for her, continuing her life in the mire.

... What need did someone like her have for a future, for prospects?

Her body had been seen by many in the surrounding area; she was utterly defiled, she couldn’t turn back with just a word.

"Your invitation to me now," she said, "——is it out of genuine sympathy for a girl, or is it because you truly detest the measuring system of the city-state?"

Su Ming’an did not respond.

He would not say that apart from some emotional factors, his invitation was motivated by significant rational reasons.

...

"Ding dong!"

[Perfect Pass (TE2) Progress: 55%]

...

"If it’s the former, then I am the one who appeared before you, and you felt pity for me from the bottom of your heart; I am lucky," said Xiao Mei. "If it’s the latter... then what about thousands upon thousands of girls just like me? City Lord, you can’t see them, but... will you one day save them?"

After saying this, she suddenly lowered her head.

"I’m sorry," she said. "I’m so sorry, sorry, sorry... I’ve been too greedy. You’ve already done well enough, to ask you to see us, to see people like me, it’s just too much to ask."

Her words were heartfelt.

Born in the mire, yet she possessed such vision and perception, without dragging him down like grasping at a lifeline, nor was she like some residents of The Fringe who complained and blamed the heavens.

... She was even better than those players who were still on the world channel arguing about "whether to arrest Su Ming’an or not."

Was this a child born from sewage?

How could she be considered an inferior persona?

"Take this handgun," Su Ming’an removed a silver handgun from his wheelchair and handed it to Xiao Mei.

It was the top model from Central City, a masterpiece of Treya, with a six-pointed star on the firearm, symbolizing hope.

Without the resolve to resist, at least she should have the strength to protect herself.

She didn’t have to use the gun, but she must not be without one.

"...For suicide?" asked Xiao Mei.

When handed a firearm for self-defense, her first thought was of suicide.

She gripped the handle tightly, wiped away her tears, and suddenly laughed.

"Just kidding," her eyes, glinting with tears, clear as a stream, "Suicide is also against the law. I’ll live well, survive to see the day you perfectly reform the city-state.

On that day, even people with inferior personas can live well, children can be protected, and girls like me can grow up healthy, in classrooms.

All of us, the billions of the city-state, our fates are in your hands and Dawn’s now.

I want to see that day, so, Lord Yasa Acto, you must survive... live better and longer than I do. You are much, much more important than someone like me."

Su Ming’an watched her hopeful eyes and turned away.

...Yasa Acto.

Are you worthy of carrying such hope?

He pushed open the door, craving a breath of fresh air, but heard the distant noise of voices and footsteps.

"...According to travelers, Lord Acto was seen here."

"... Search house-to-house, take away anyone showing favoritism."

"You go this way, team three go that way..."

Search the lightnovelworld.cc website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.