Her hair was held up by a long hairpin, her eyeliner deep and dramatic, her lips a scorching red.
She wore a black long-sleeved turtleneck on top and a crimson mamian skirt below. Her entire outfit was a contrast of red and black—even the underside and canopy of her umbrella were a striking scarlet and a deep, pitch black.
The woman noticed Yu Jin too. The first thing she said upon looking at him was:
“He abandoned us.”
Her tone held no confusion, no grievance, and no regret. It was as flat as if she were speaking of something that had nothing to do with her.
Yu Jin was extremely confused. He wondered if the “us” she spoke of referred to himself and her, or her and some other little one.
If it was the latter, it was simply absurd.
He had never heard of his brother having a girlfriend. Surely he couldn't have a child now?
Yet, he felt a woman completely unrelated to his brother wouldn't stand in front of his grave and say something like this.
So, who was she?
Yu Jin didn't dare to ask. He gripped the bouquet tightly and remained silent as the woman slowly walked toward him.
As she walked, she said:
“He abandoned you, too.”
Yu Jin's expression turned a bit grim. He hated the word “abandoned.”
Abandonment implied active intent, whereas his brother's departure was not a voluntary tragedy.
However, her use of the word “too” meant the “us” she mentioned earlier didn't include him. In that case, wasn't she his...
Before those words could fully form in his mind, the woman reached him and shared half of her umbrella with him.
“So, you're on the same path as us.”
She was about the same height as Yu Jin. Looking directly into those eyes, which seemed to ripple with red rings, Yu Jin finally couldn't help but ask:
“Who are you? You and my brother...”
“We parted ways. He wasn't a good fit.”
As expected!
Yu Jin was dumbfounded. He began to recall his brother's strange behavior when he was still alive. So his frequent disappearances for days at a time were actually for secret trysts?
What era were they in to still be having a secret relationship?
Yu Jin didn't understand, but he wished them well regardless.
He began to scrutinize the woman before him, wanting to find any trace of his brother on her. But before he could notice anything, she uttered a line that completely boggled his mind:
“But you're a good fit.”
“?”
What on earth?
Yu Jin was completely bewildered.
He blinked frantically and scratched his ear, wondering if he was hallucinating.
“What did you say?”
He took a tense step back, stepping out from under the umbrella.
The woman immediately followed, angling the umbrella over him again, and calmly emphasized:
“I said, you're a good fit for us.”
“...”
Yu Jin's face flushed with extreme embarrassment.
Sister, let's not go bringing back outdated feudal practices here.
He felt a bit helpless and at a loss for how to handle this. Fortunately, the woman didn't press him. She simply produced a revolver painted with a sneering grin from who-knows-where and tossed it to Yu Jin.
“This was originally meant for him, but now it's yours.”
She then glanced at Yu Jin's hair and said with approval:
“Red. Nice.”
“!!!”
Yu Jin's pupils dilated as he instantly grew vigilant.
His hair was not red; it was black.
But his hair could also be red, because in his dreams, he was a red-haired version of himself.
But the problem was that this was clearly reality. How could this woman see through to his dream persona at a single glance?
Yu Jin instinctively gripped the gun tighter. He was still processing the situation, but in the next second, he raised the gun and aimed it at the woman's exquisite face, letting out a sharp scowl. “Tsk,” he muttered impatiently. “Stop playing tricks. Who the fuck are you?”
The woman studied Yu Jin with great interest, as if appreciating an art piece she had found at a flea market.
Yu Jin detested that look. He immediately pulled the trigger.
Click.
There was no bullet in the gun.
Hearing the dry fire, the corners of the woman's lips curled up slightly.
“You're a lot like him, but you don't have his patience.
Remember, freedom is the ultimate irony. Keep this piece of advice as a gift.”
With that, the woman took a step back, and the umbrella moved away from above Yu Jin's head.
The moment there was nothing shielding him from above, he heard a shout from behind him.
“Yu Jin, holy crap, you're at the wrong grave!
You didn't forget which one Brother Xiang's grave is, did you?
Oh my god, Brother Xiang, please don't take offense. Then again, your neighbors are all comrades-in-arms, so paying respects to anyone is practically the same.”
Tang Yaoting jogged over and patted Yu Jin's shoulder. Seeing that Yu Jin didn't react, he poked his head forward in confusion, only to see an incredibly grim face.
“What's wrong with you?”
Yu Jin knitted his brows. Staring at the empty path ahead, he countered, “When you came over just now, didn't you see someone standing in front of me?”
“Where?” Tang Yaoting looked around, but there wasn't a single soul in sight. “Who? They left already? Do I know them?”
Yu Jin shook his head, his tone remaining solemn.
“I mean, when you patted my shoulder just now, did you not see a person standing right in front of me?”
“?”
The expression on Tang Yaoting's face froze. He could tell Yu Jin didn't seem to be joking.
“Don't scare me like that. There's nobody here.”
Yu Jin's brow furrowed even deeper. There was indeed no one there now because the moment Tang Yaoting had patted him, the woman had vanished into thin air.
Without a doubt, she was an awakened Dreamwalker. But why would a Dreamwalker of such formidable power come looking for him?
Yu Jin stared at the gun in his hand, completely clueless.
When Tang Yaoting saw the gun, he was slightly surprised. “You swapped out your service weapon? And how is it still a custom-painted gun?”
“You can see it?”
“...I'm not blind. Of course I can see it.”
“Then how did you not see that woman just now?”
“What woman? Where's there a woman?” Tang Yaoting's eyes suddenly lit up with excitement.
“...”
Yu Jin knew it would turn out like this, which was why he hadn't mentioned she was a woman in the first place.
Endless speculation wouldn't yield any answers. He could only tuck the gun away, make a mental note of the incident, and investigate the woman's identity once he got back.
Clutching the bouquet, he walked toward his brother's grave while Tang Yaoting followed behind him, chattering away.
“I'm telling you, when I was parking just now, I saw a dog in a suit parking, too. Not only did it parallel park perfectly and steal the spot I found, but it even flipped me off.
Hey, you know how short my fuse is.
I immediately flipped it two birds right back.
And guess what? It rolled up its car window!
It pissed me off so much! Dogs these days have absolutely no manners!”
“?”
Yu Jin thought he was hallucinating again. It took him a moment to realize that when Tang Yaoting said “dog,” he wasn't using it as an insult—he meant a literal dog.
Slightly bewildered, he sought clarification from Tang Yaoting:
“Are you saying you saw a dog driving?”
Tang Yaoting didn't see anything wrong with it and nodded vigorously. “Yeah, what about it?”
What about it?
You're the one saying things like that; I should be asking you what's wrong!
Yu Jin's face grew solemn once more.
He suddenly realized that today seemed a bit unusual.
...
Rate on N.U.
