Chapter 28: Just Politeness
Lina followed behind Chenxi and Hongxu as they left the shack, which reeked of mildew and despair.
The cool night air swept away the stuffiness of the house, but it did nothing to ease the weight on her heart.
Her sister's last forced smile lingered in her mind, echoing over and over again.
Lina felt a strange emotion, but couldn’t quite place it.
Chenxi stopped, not turning back. His voice was low but clear enough for Lina to hear.
“Look after your sister.”
Lina froze, looking up at Chenxi’s back.
In the darkness, his black robe seemed to blend into the night.
“What... what’s wrong with her?”
Lina’s voice carried confusion.
Confusion about the future, confusion about herself.
When someone truly experiences life and death, their thoughts change.
Lina only felt that her sister was tired, just as tired as she was.
“She’s been thinking about suicide.”
Chenxi spoke directly, with no attempt to hide the truth.
He turned his head and looked at Lina.
“Earlier in the house, her eyes were off.
That kind of look—it’s a look of someone who’s made a decision.
The way she looked at you was like she wanted to see you one last time.”
Lina’s heart tightened, as though a cold hand had gripped it.
Suicide?
Her sister... how could she? Was it because she didn’t want to burden her?
This thought sent chills through Lina, colder than the fear of facing death.
She had always believed that if she worked hard to earn money, her sister would survive, even if it meant living without dignity.
She had never thought that maybe her sister didn’t want to live anymore.
A surge of inexplicable anger and resentment rose within her. Why?
Why?
Why couldn’t she live for me?!
I’ve fought so hard to live for her until now!
Why can’t she fight to live for me?!
What do I have left?
“It’s just a reminder.”
Chenxi turned around, pulling out the heavy pouch of coins from his chest.
Without counting, he poured a small pile of gold coins into his palm, ten bright yellow pieces gleaming faintly.
Casually, he shoved them into Lina’s stiff hand.
“Take this.
Buy her some proper medicine, or hire someone to take care of her.
Don’t let her feel like she’s just a burden to you.
I’m sure you’ve already guessed the reason. I won’t say more. When you’re strong enough, your sister’s thoughts will naturally disappear.”
At this point, the polite smile Chenxi had worn earlier disappeared, replaced by his usual serious expression.
Despite this, when Lina looked at his face, she felt an inexplicable sense of reassurance.
It was strange—how could this feel comforting when they had just met?
The coins felt heavy, cold, and hard in her palm, digging into her skin.
She looked down at them, then up at Chenxi.
That face, under the dim light, remained expressionless, as if he hadn’t done anything at all.
But these ten gold coins... for someone she had just met, and someone she had nearly killed, they were heavy.
He was unlike any adventurer she had ever known.
Those so-called “teammates” she had met, calculating every coin’s worth, greedy and hypocritical.
They kept pressuring her, telling her that without the team, she was nothing.
No one had ever done this… no unnecessary words, no gestures of charity, just dropping the money, giving a reminder, and leaving without a second thought.
As if giving her money and warning her about her sister’s suicide was just another normal thing.
She, who had done so many wrong things!
(Chenxi: Huh? What do you mean by "wrong"? Is it the part where I reminded her at the risk of exposure?)
Lina stood frozen, clutching the ten gold coins in her hand, watching as Chenxi and Hongxu turned and walked toward the town’s slightly brighter streets.
Chenxi’s silhouette stood tall in the night.
Hongxu carried the axe behind him.
Looking at Hongxu, Lina couldn’t help but feel envy. How nice it must be to be trusted and depended on by him.
A strange feeling swelled deep inside Lina, something she had long suppressed beneath her exhaustion. She could barely recognize what it was.
It wasn’t gratitude—gratitude was too light.
It was heavier than gratitude, but she didn’t know what it was.
She was still exhausted, so tired that all she wanted to do was collapse.
But the weight of those ten gold coins in her hand, and the cold warning about her sister, had given her new hope and strength.
How to live, how to keep living... it seemed like something she needed to think about again.
...
After walking some distance, they left behind the suffocating oppressive air of the slum area.
Returning to a more normal residential area, the atmosphere felt different.
Hongxu, whose shoulders had been tense, finally relaxed a little, but she didn’t start talking non-stop like she usually did when it was just the two of them.
She remained silent, simply following Chenxi quietly.
Chenxi could feel the low pressure around him.
He glanced at Hongxu. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing.”
“?”
Chenxi looked at Hongxu, who was walking with her head down. “The money was to make her feel secure while working with us.
If her sister is a little better, she can focus better.”
Chenxi continued walking ahead, wondering… was Hongxu... jealous?
It couldn’t be, could it?
“Is that true?”
Hongxu looked at Chenxi skeptically. “You’re not looking at her because she’s cute, are you?
Boss, you can’t do this! Someone who looks like she’d collapse with the wind—she definitely can’t fight! Forget fighting... even if she’s...”
“Stop, what are you even thinking?!”
Chenxi quickly interrupted her. What was she even talking about?
“The Holy Light Priest class is still very rare. If we want to explore higher levels in the future, a healing slot is necessary.
This advanced class, we don’t see it in small places like ours.”
She must have come here with one of those mercenary groups.
“Oh.”
Hongxu lowered her head, unconsciously kicking a small stone on the ground. She walked a few more steps before finally voicing the thing that had been bothering her the most. Her voice was softer, tinged with a little grievance.
“Then why... why did you smile at her sister?”
Chenxi stopped for a moment, completely not understanding. “Huh?”
“Just now! In the house!”
Hongxu raised her head and glared at Chenxi’s side profile, her eyes filled with accusations and grievance. “You smiled at the woman lying on the bed! Just now! I saw you smile several times!”
Chenxi: “…”
“Really? I didn’t smile at you?”
“No... not like that.”
Chenxi looked at Hongxu’s pitiful face. “I said, you’ve been looking so upset, it’s not because of this, right?”
“No, it’s not!”
“Nothing wrong with that.”
Chenxi turned his head. “Nothing much, I was just being polite when I smiled at her.
But when I smile at you, it’s because I’m happy, simply happy.”
Hongxu’s eyes instantly lit up.
“Really?!”
“Mm.”
The heavy feeling in her chest seemed to be blown away by a light breeze.
Hongxu’s eyes brightened again, and her mouth unconsciously curled up, showing her signature sharp tiger tooth.
“I get it now!”
Her voice immediately returned to its usual lively tone. “I knew it! The boss must be happier with me! So it’s like that! Hehe!”
Chenxi watched Hongxu’s mood change from gloomy to bright and once again confirmed: This idiot’s thinking is so straightforward.
Turns out, he was the one overthinking things.
“Let’s go.”
“Coming! Hehe!”
Walking ahead, Chenxi heard Hongxu humming an unknown tune behind him. He couldn’t help but let a small smile slip at the corner of his mouth.