In the photograph, Wan Heng shared the same radiant smile as his sister.
His familiar sunglasses hung from the collar of his shirt.
Next to the photo frame was a box of Baiyoujie antidepressants, already half-empty, with its lid open and the instruction leaflet discarded unread to the side.
In a few days, the young woman would run out of medication.
Ning Yu pondered that, if she remembered correctly, after Wan Heng's death, his sister - this young woman - would be all alone.
She suffered from severe depression - how could someone like her survive in this cruel world?
Moreover, just moments ago, an elderly person under her care had also passed away due to illness.
"Click."
Ning Yu heard a sound, and an ominous feeling crept into her heart.
The sound came from the young woman's bedroom.
Without hesitation, Ning Yu rushed over at incredible speed, grabbed the doorknob, and tried to turn it.
The doorknob wouldn't budge - it had been locked from the inside.
Ning Yu raised her right hand, and Blood Kite materialized in the air, formed by pink particles, casting a cold gleam in the room.
In one swift motion, she cut through the entire lock mechanism. With Blood Kite's sharpness, there was no resistance at all.
The lock fell to the floor with a clatter, and Ning Yu kicked the door open.
As she feared.
A nylon rope hung from the metal light fixture above, tied into a noose.
The young woman was already suspended in the center of the bedroom, her body still twitching.
[Ding! Task: The Only Serious Philosophical Question progress updated!]
[Task: The Only Serious Philosophical Question (2/2): Make a choice.]
[Choice 1: Save the young woman. Task completes immediately.]
[Choice 2: Leave without intervening. Task completes immediately.]
Ning Yu hesitated for a few seconds:
Since the task would complete regardless of whether she saved the girl or not, should she save her?
But her body seemed to move faster than her mind, as Blood Kite slashed through the air with a red flash, instantly cutting through the thick nylon rope.
She lunged forward, catching the young woman's body and turning to place her on her bed.
The young woman had only just begun her attempt, and suddenly gasped for air, breaking into violent coughing.
I might be able to learn something about Wan Heng from her, Ning Yu told herself.
"Cough cough... cough cough cough..."
Ning Yu watched as she clutched her throat, coughing and breathing heavily.
The instinct to survive had nothing to do with the will to die.
After a while, the young woman caught her breath.
She suddenly looked up at Ning Yu, who had stopped her.
"Why... why did you... cough cough... stop me..."
"It's... it's you?!"
Tears lingered at the corners of her eyes, though it wasn't clear if they were there before or caused by the coughing.
Upon recognizing Ning Yu, her eyes widened in disbelief:
The beautiful silver-haired girl who had saved her was the same one who had given her the Baiyoujie medication that day.
The confusion and slight reproach that had been about to leave her lips seemed to be swallowed back.
Ning Yu waited until she had recovered somewhat before asking a question.
"Are you Wan Heng's sister?"
The young woman was surprised by the question. Ning Yu noticed the deep red marks on her neck were quite visible.
Ning Yu suddenly realized that it would have been impossible to set up the nylon rope on the ceiling in such a short time.
This meant that regardless of circumstances, the young woman had planned to hang herself today - the death of the elderly person she had been caring for was just a coincidence.
"Yes, are you... from the exploration team?"
The young woman seemed to understand Ning Yu's identity - since she knew her brother, everything became clear.
Hearing this, Ning Yu nodded slowly.
"Why... did you stop me?"
The young woman hesitated before asking this question.
Her eyes were hollow, and at the mention of that familiar name, she couldn't help but look away.
"You know too, he died during a mission."
Her hands gripped the bedsheet tightly.
"What if I told you he might have been murdered?"
Ning Yu spoke softly, and the young woman immediately looked up at her.
"I heard from Ji Mengyao that you knew too, but that's just a possibility. The exploration team doesn't have time to investigate further."
She didn't seem particularly surprised by this statement and lowered her head again.
"I don't have the strength to go on living anymore."
"Even if the truth comes out, can it bring my brother back to life?"
"I'll still be alone then."
"My illness won't leave me alone either. Once it takes hold again, every day will be torture."
She slowly leaned back against the headboard, seemingly drained of all energy, her eyes devoid of any light.
Ning Yu watched her silently, unsure of what to say.
"Are you investigating this?"
She suddenly seemed to realize something and looked back at Ning Yu questioningly.
"More or less."
Ning Yu nodded, though this visit had been unplanned, she did want to know the reason.
"Did he say anything to you the night he went out?"
Ning Yu continued, hoping to gather some useful information.
The young woman just shook her head.
"He didn't say anything. That night, after he came home, he suddenly went out again, then just told me he was going outside to complete a mission."
"But he didn't give any specific details."
Ning Yu had pretty much guessed this would be the case, otherwise the exploration team would have made some progress.
The young woman suddenly pulled out a notebook from under her pillow and handed it to Ning Yu.
"This is his diary, though it's mostly trivial matters. Maybe there are some clues - I found it later."
Ning Yu was slightly startled but took it, looking at the young woman hesitantly and asking:
"Is this okay?"
Giving a stranger her brother's diary to read.
"You're not a bad person, nor someone with ill intentions. I can at least tell that much."
The young woman shook her head slightly, then suddenly turned and began picking up the nylon rope that Ning Yu had cut, starting to repair it.
She began tying a new knot where it had been cut.
Ning Yu didn't immediately start reading the diary's contents, instead watching the young woman's actions.
She was hesitating whether to try to dissuade her, and what reason to give?
If she were in her position, having lost everything and being plagued by such an illness, would she want to live?
If one is struck down by suffering and doesn't want to fight back, is that shameful?
She had never really thought about this question. All along, as long as she had power, she could do anything she wanted.
"You don't need to try to persuade me, thank you."
The young woman turned back to the silent Ning Yu, forcing a smile.
"If I find out the truth, I'll come tell you."
That was all Ning Yu could say, not even understanding why she was doing this.
"Thank you."
The young woman's hands continued working as she spoke softly to Ning Yu:
"It started with being mocked by everyone around me."
"It started with this damned apocalyptic world, leaving just my brother and me to depend on each other."
"It started with my brother running around everywhere for my illness, only to end up dead."
"I've had enough of this absurd, bizarre world."
"This hopeless struggle means nothing to me, it's just endless torture with no end in sight."
"I want to exercise my final right."
Ning Yu put away the diary and stood silently at the door.
She knew there was no point in trying to stop her anymore.
Saying things like 'everything will be alright' would just be arrogance - making decisions for others without having experienced their pain.
"So... goodbye?"
"Goodbye."