Chapter 8 — Going Thousand Years Later

43

Today, Nghi Dung is very strange. From the moment I entered the house, I immediately realized— She was always staring at me. When I talked to Mr. Nghi. When I help Aunt Nghi prepare meals. Even when I just came out of the bathroom. Her eyes never left me. During the meal, Uncle Nghi picked up food for her and asked with concern:

“Do you have a cold? Why does your voice sound different?”

Nghi Dung smiled, her voice was clearly softer than before:

“No, I don't have a cold.”

My hands stiffened, my chopsticks stopped in the air. Because… This was the voice I heard when I fell into the water. The voice was so similar to mine that it was creepy. Before, Nghi Dung's voice was not like that. My back was cold, my whole body had goosebumps. I can't swallow rice anymore.

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I don't want to stay here for long. After the meal, I hurriedly helped Aunt Nghi clean up, intending to immediately leave after finishing. Nghi Dung suddenly enthusiastically wanted to help. She took the bowl from me, but the moment our hands touched— She suddenly touched my hand.

“A——!!”

Nghi Dung screamed loudly! I looked in panic. Right at the spot where her finger touched my skin, a puff of black smoke rose up! I was also scared. Instinctively, I immediately backed away. When I looked towards Nghi Dung, her eyes changed. She is no longer the sister I used to know. But a pair of eyes filled with resentment. But right after that— When Uncle Nghi heard the scream and ran over, her eyes quickly turned into pity and anger.

"What's wrong? What happened?" Uncle Nghi looked impatiently at her hand.

Nghi Dung choked up, looked at me weakly, and said:

"Tu Khuyet, I just want to give you a hand... why did you give me such a hot bowl... I burned myself..."

Aunt Nghi also ran in. Upon seeing this, her face immediately darkened, her tone full of blame:

"Tu Khuyet, what are you doing? Why are you intentionally burning your sister?"

I was completely stiff. Being wronged. Unjustifiable. Can't understand why Nghi Dung did that. I stared at her. No arguments. No explanation. My silence made the other couple even angrier. The two of them kept scolding me, saying every word as if I had done something unforgivable wrong. In all my life, I have never felt so strong— A strong urge. I want to leave here. Want to cut everything off from this house. Anyway... This place never belonged to me. I am grateful that they raised me. But at the same time, I also clearly understood one truth— They raised me not just out of kindness. They kept the money my biological parents left me, calling it "care fees". So, I stayed in this house, was treated differently than their biological daughter, and never had a truly happy day. At this moment, all the emotions that had been suppressed for so many years finally exploded. Not through crying. Not through crazy anger. But... An extreme coldness. Suddenly, I was strangely calm. All that's left in my heart is a cold awakening. I looked at them and slowly said:

"The meal has been finished a long time ago. The soup has cooled down. Me How can I burn her?

The couple was stunned. No one said a word. Perhaps, they also suddenly realized the gap in their own story. But I don't care about their reactions anymore. I turned away. At that moment, I decided— From now on, I will never step into this house again.

45

Even though I left Nghi's house, Nghi Dung still followed me like a shadow. I guessed right. The skeleton-faced female demon in the river clung to her. Or it can be said that Nghi Dung has found his own past life. She always watches over me. Waiting for me to mentally collapse. Using every means to coax and trick me into taking off the hair-braided bracelet on my wrist. Because now, she is no longer a pure human being. Which has become a monster that can transform into both human and demon. She could appear anywhere around me— • On the showerhead in the bathroom, which spewed blood-red water. • • In the toilet when I opened the lid. • • In the refrigerator when I unconsciously opened the door looking for something to eat for the night. • She constantly tortured me with horrifying images and persistent whispers. Even so— She still couldn't touch me. Can't get too close. Because the bracelet on my wrist stopped her. I ignored her words, put on headphones, and pretended not to see. But… People can ignore fear, but cannot fight fatigue. As time passed, I began to feel exhausted. At night, I huddled under the blanket, silently shedding tears. She realized the time had come. And right at my weakest moment, a shadow appeared in my room. Not a scary image, not a familiar horror. It's— Little Marquis. I fell into her trap. Seeing Little Marquis appear in front of him, his expression was still gentle and smiling like always. In that moment, I truly believed he had arrived. He told me familiar words, words like a stream of warm water soothing my tired soul. And I, as if controlled by an invisible force, raised my hand, preparing to remove the bracelet.

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It's too late. I know full well that if this continues, something terrible will happen. But my hand... No longer obeys my own will. Even though I was aware of the horrifying truth, even though I wanted to stop, my body still seemed to be controlled by an invisible force, continuing to remove the bracelet. Despair engulfed me, I sank into endless darkness. The moment my hand was about to reach its final limit—

“Whoosh——!!”

A brilliant golden light exploded! The light was so bright that I reflexively closed my eyes tightly. The wind swept past my ears, as if something had just been swept away quickly. When I opened my eyes again— Everything was quiet again. The bedroom window was wide open, fluttering in the cold night. On the glass surface, a dark, dark blood stain appeared horrifyingly. Nghi Dung ran away. I finally escaped the control and fell exhausted onto the bed. Half awake, half asleep, I felt a warm hand pick up my hand and gently place it back on the blanket. Then… The bed sank a little. I know he has come. My eyebrows relaxed, I gently leaned towards him, burying my face in his chest as if looking for comfort. Hand He gently pressed the back of my neck, slowly patting me, little by little. I felt completely relaxed, all tension gradually disappeared. I don't want to let this night pass. I want to be like this forever. I know... He's still looking at me. Those eyes... Gentle to the end. Drowsily in my sleep, I whispered out, expressing my doubts:

“Little Marquis... why didn't you say anything?”

His voice was filled with thousands of years of loneliness, mixed with a reluctant letting go.

“Because I know... it's useless to keep you.”

“So I didn't say a word.”

Early in the morning, I woke up with a refreshed spirit. It felt so comfortable that I stretched out comfortably. Then, I unconsciously tilted my head to look to the side— I only saw cold emptiness. No one. Even the bed sheet was smooth, without any marks. I turned around and looked towards the window. The black blood stain left by Nghi Dung last night has disappeared. The glass surface is transparent without any blemishes. The window was tightly closed, the sunlight gently shining in, as if everything that happened last night was just a dream. I looked down at my wrist. The bracelet that I took off last night— Has been carefully tied. Not only that, there is also a beautiful little bow on it. Like… Someone carefully took care of me… when I fell asleep.