"Oh my, miss, if you don't forgive my friend's brother, it will be quite troublesome!"

I don't know when Yuanhui had already appeared in our midst, and he reached out to help me up from the ground. The two tall men standing in front of the two women clearly had the upper hand.

It seemed like she was the one who started the trouble, not me. Frustrated, I said, "You two were the ones who started harassing others first, weren't you?"

As she continued to provoke us, she was stopped by Qian Yeli. "Stop it, Rén! Without them, we would all be dead!"

"Are you all right? How did you disappear in the blink of an eye? It was hard for me to find you!"

"You dare say that? Besides these few little pirates, there are many more on this ship. That guy is just a small captain!"

"Well, you're right. I'll go check the back of the ship." Yuanhui bent down and picked up a weapon from a corpse, then made a slow down gesture towards me, indicating that he didn't want to deal with them.

"Hey, don't go!"

Rén grabbed my collar with her cold fingers and touched my neck. The familiar dizziness and pressure I felt in the past came back.

The border between the ocean and the sky was blurred with red. The things around me started to shatter one after another, and an old courtyard replaced everything.

The sea water shrunk, leaving only a small pond. The small islands around turned into toy cars less than an inch long.

"..." Where am I?

"Mama, when will Daddy come back?"

A kind woman lowered her head and stroked the silver short hair of a little girl in her arms. "Rén, the war is over, so Daddy will come back."

"War brings glory, but it also brings a price... my comrade!"

Another person who looked almost the same height and appearance as me, Juxi, appeared between us. He disappeared behind me like a ghost, patting my shoulder. When I quickly turned around, he would appear behind me again - he was toying with me!

"Speak! What is your purpose?"

"Purpose... hahaha, isn't that the question I should be asking?"

The laughter was so familiar... was it him?!

"Do you remember me, comrade?"

"It's you!"

During this time, the scene changed again. The chaotic courtyard of a wealthy family disappeared in an instant and was replaced by a room as large as a dojo.

"Grandpa, what about Daddy..."

"Our family must never mention that person again, not even for your father!"

The grandfather known as Rén's slapped her hard with his long beard. Cruelly, he said, "Our family's affairs must remain secret, even if we have to accept death. Do you understand?"

"Enough about my affairs, don't you want to know the details of this girl... what she really is?"

Juxi approached my arm, his words deep with meaning.

"That girl, Rén?"

"Yes, it's Rén. She is very likely the key to the incident, even the breakthrough!"

What detail did I miss? Why was I feeling so uncertain and anxious?

"Think about it carefully, you need to figure it out," he nagged me like a grim reaper, entangling my mind with every word. "What is the story behind Mǎ Rén, this mysterious girl, and what grudge do you have with her? You need to clear all this up!"

"Grudge?" Juxi nodded ferociously, indicating that what I said completely matched his thoughts. "I don't know what you are talking about. What grudge could there be between us?"

"Oh, nothing... not even the Son of the Abyss?"

His words hit me like a sledgehammer, directly hitting my lifeline.

"The Son of the Abyss, how could that monster who destroyed everything possibly be...""Perhaps, that girl is exactly the Child of the Abyss, a Child of the Abyss with an unfathomable ugliness that is incomparable to you humans!"

The Child of the Abyss, that terrifying name should have long been buried in that world, but why...

(Another burst of excruciating pain, causing me to nearly vomit and stumble)

Thirteen years ago...

Bang!

The city that once possessed bustling streets is now buried under the ruins of high-rise buildings.

The traffic on the streets still continues, but the rust that has grown tells us that those cars have been scrapped for decades.

"Huh... I've become smaller again?"

This is the park where I first had hallucinations and met with my sister, Youmu, but now it is overgrown with weeds, and occasionally we can hear the cries of unknown creatures.

"You... Yuki, is it Juxi... my little brother?"

A tall shadow engulfs my shadow on the ground, emitting an enchanting voice that resembles my sister, Youmu, but is much larger, like a giant beast.