Chapter 42: Worn Soldier

Once again, she arrived in the Under-Reality.

In the distance, the battlefield remained engulfed in endless fire.

Explosions thundered one after another.

Flames illuminated the gray-white sky.

The air carried the faint scent of smoke and burning debris.

Xia Jiuwei stood still.

Suddenly, she felt like laughing.

She had not continued "saving people" for more than a week.

Yet the moment she entered the Under-Reality again, she had instinctively—

teleported near another Lost One.

She slowly walked forward, her expression blank.

Her head lowered as she watched her shoes sway gently with each step.

The sound of artillery continued in the distance.

But her thoughts had already drifted far away.

She walked for what felt like a long time.

Only then did a realization slowly catch up with her.

It felt like…

she no longer had a home.

She wandered aimlessly.

She didn't know where she was going.

Nor did she know—

where she could still go.

She wanted to go back.

Back to the place where someone waited for her to come home.

Back to the light that was always left on for her.

Back to Lu Nian'an.

But she knew.

Those were not things she should have.

She had never been entitled to a life like that in the first place.

It only existed because Lu Nian'an had spent all this time

holding it together at any cost.

Even so.

Those days—

had already been beautiful enough.

Gradually, Xia Jiuwei's awareness became hazy.

Her thoughts slowly sank away.

Only the instinct to keep moving forward remained.

It hurt.

It really...

hurt.

It felt like something kept stabbing into her chest again and again.

Not a single clean stab—only countless needles, one after another, driving deeper into her chest.

Bang.

A sharp sound suddenly rang out.

A faint sting followed in her arm.

Xia Jiuwei froze.

Her scattered thoughts finally gathered slightly.

She lowered her head.

A small hole had been torn through her sleeve.

Embedded in the fabric was a flattened piece of metal, so distorted it was almost unrecognizable.

The skin beneath it bore only a slight red mark.

She reached out and removed the metal fragment.

Studying it quietly for a few seconds.

Then she looked down at the torn sleeve.

The dark power of the Under-Reality slowly rose from her body.

Like mist spreading through the air.

It gradually covered her clothes,

transforming them into darker shades.

Small pains began appearing more and more frequently.

Only then did Xia Jiuwei belatedly realize—

those were bullets.

...Whatever.

It didn't matter.

Amid a battlefield filled with artillery fire and gunshots,

a white-haired girl

walked alone.

"My God..."

A weary-looking American soldier crouched behind a piece of battlefield cover.

Lowering his head, he counted the rounds remaining in his magazine.

"John, check your ammo."

"Just because you're the rookie doesn't mean you're definitely dying here."

"We're making it home."

He muttered the words automatically toward his side.

But no one was there.

Only himself.

An M4A1 carbine.

An M17 pistol.

And several magazines that were nearly empty.

The man took a few deep breaths.

Yet the fear of death seemed long gone.

What remained

was only a numb familiarity.

Then suddenly—

he saw her.

In the middle of the gunfire and explosions,

a young girl was quietly walking forward.

The soldier's expression froze instantly.

...This was insane.

That was the only thought in his mind.

The next moment, he moved without hesitation.

Keeping low, he darted between pieces of cover.

Waiting for a brief lull in the gunfire.

Then he sprinted out.

"Get down!"

He tackled the girl to the ground.

Rolling with her behind nearby cover.

"Holy hell..."

"Do you have any idea how dangerous that was?"

"How many times could you have died just now?"

The soldier cursed between heavy breaths.

But the girl merely sat there blankly.

Those pale violet eyes were terrifyingly empty.

As though even her last desire to survive had already burned out.

The soldier fell silent.

Then seemed to understand something.

"...What's wrong?"

The girl lowered her head.

A long time passed before she finally spoke.

"I..."

"I don't have a home anymore."

The soldier froze.

"...Yeah."

"That's pretty bad."

Leaning back against the cover, he paused.

"But there's still hope."

Suddenly, he smiled.

"As for me..."

"I'm pretty much homeless too."

"And I'm still alive, aren't I?"

The girl slowly raised her head.

Within those hollow eyes,

a faint trace of confusion finally appeared.

The soldier looked at her.

Then spoke quietly.

"When I was serving..."

"Every day, all I thought about was going home."

"I thought that once I got out of the military..."

"I'd marry my fiancée."

The distant explosions continued.

But his gaze had already traveled years into the past.

"That war was hell."

"I lost a lot of friends."

"But I was lucky."

"I survived."

Looking down at the girl, he asked,

"Didn't you?"

"You survived too."

The girl said nothing.

The soldier continued softly.

"But after I came home..."

"Everything seemed different."

"One bad thing after another."

"I went looking for my fiancée."

"Spent a long time searching."

"And eventually found out..."

"She was already married."

He paused.

Then laughed bitterly.

"After that, I realized..."

"I couldn't even find a decent job."

"The money I had saved up..."

"Disappeared pretty quickly."

"And my current job..."

"Only barely keeps me alive."

He shook his head helplessly.

"The funniest part is—"

"Can you imagine it?"

"Living in America and not even being able to afford gas."

He laughed.

Loudly.

Loud enough to drown out the distant artillery.

But slowly,

the laughter faded.

Leaving only a hoarse trace behind.

"But still..."

"It's all just another challenge."

"Just a difficult one."

His voice was low.

As though he were comforting the girl.

Or perhaps comforting himself.

"Things will get better."

"The government will help me."

"I'll find a stable job."

"I just need to hold on a little longer."

The man stared toward the distant battlefield.

His voice grew quieter and quieter.

“Everything will get better,” he said quietly.

“…It has to.”

“Do you know who I am?”

A weary voice suddenly came from beside him.

The soldier blinked.

Then turned toward her.

Only now did he fully notice—

the white hair.

The violet eyes.

"You...?"

"Mm."

After a brief silence, he spoke hesitantly.

"Are you..."

"Maiden J?"

Recently,

the controversy surrounding Maiden J had become impossible to avoid.

Almost every time he opened his phone,

there were news reports and discussions about her.

The girl didn't deny it.

She simply looked at him.

"Don't you think..."

"I might do something to you?"

Her voice was soft.

As though testing him.

"N-No."

The soldier instinctively shook his head.

"Why?"

He was silent for a moment.

Then quietly answered.

"Because I think..."

"we're the same kind of person."

Within those exhausted eyes

was a faint trace of sympathy.

Xia Jiuwei pressed her lips together slightly.

"The same kind of person..."

she repeated softly.

As though tasting the words.

In the end, she merely let out a quiet sigh.

After a while, she suddenly spoke.

"What if..."

"I could grant three wishes?"

"What would you want most?"

The soldier froze.

"Three wishes?"

"Mm."

He frowned.

As though genuinely considering it.

But even after a long time,

he couldn't answer.

Slowly, he lifted his head.

His gaze drifted toward the distance.

His lips moved.

Yet no words came out.

Finally, only a trembling whisper remained.

"...I've never thought about it."

Xia Jiuwei quietly watched him.

Then let out a soft breath.

"Then let's do this."

"I'll take away your memories of war."

"And I'll give you some gold."

The next moment,

a small black briefcase appeared in her hand.

"There's eight kilograms of gold in here."

"It should be enough for you to live comfortably."

The soldier stared at her blankly.

Several seconds later, he finally asked,

"...Why are you being so kind to me?"

Xia Jiuwei was silent for a moment.

"Of course it isn't free."

“The price will be your entire military life.”

At that moment,

the soldier's pupils trembled slightly.

"I..."

"I..."

His voice suddenly caught.

As though he couldn't believe it himself.

"So..."

"I still have value?"

The words were barely louder than a whisper.

A long time passed.

Only then did the soldier finally gather himself.

He took a deep breath.

Then straightened his back.

As though he had returned to the man he once was.

Facing Xia Jiuwei,

he raised a formal salute.

"My name is Jack."

“U.S. Army… 101st Airborne Division… Bravo Company…”

Xia Jiuwei looked at him.

Then handed over the briefcase filled with gold.

"Actually..."

"We're not the same kind of person."

The moment those words fell,

Jack's figure—

and the battlefield itself—

vanished together.