earthwork

The deputy chief's face showed extreme shock and disbelief for a moment. He looked as if he was hurt to the extreme, so painful that even his pupils shrank slightly, and his voice fluctuated slightly, I don't know if it was because of the pain of the injury, or because of the huge mental blow.

"Yukiba, how can you say that, we finally met again"

However, Liu Quan looked at him so calmly, as if he were oblivious to the great pain he had endured, and slowly shook his head.

"If you seek and get lost, you don't ask for it, and there is no way to confuse love"

She slowly recited a haiku, and then burst out laughing.

"Do you think I'm the kind of ordinary woman who has a love brain, I only know how to say this kind of lines related to love when I leave"

The smile on her face grew wistful.

"The haiku I left behind has nothing to do with love. ”

She said unexpectedly.

"Actually," she whispered.

"Sigh the moon of spring, the plain is narrow, sleepless, only the moonlight is cool"

Whispering in such a gentle and melancholy tone, she gently turned the hilt of the knife in her hand, causing the blade to spin half a circle in the other person's abdomen.

A fierce anger slowly appeared on her face.

"You guys, do you want to use the memories of the deputy chief to shake me? ”

She sneered.

"It's a shame that I can't be stopped. ”

She said categorically.

"The one who taught me this was the deputy chief. He taught me that no matter what happens, if you have a conviction, you have to follow it, no matter what powerful forces are going to be fought in front of you."

Even when she is temporarily immersed in the reminiscence of the past, her expression and attitude are still resolute, as if adhering to an indestructible will

That's the mark that the Shinsengumi years have left on her.

"At that time, the one who stood on the opposite side of us and made us bet everything on our side was the Nishiki Banner. Now, for the sake of faith and truth, I can also fight an enemy who weighs the same weight as that banner, understand?"

The person in front of him gritted his teeth fiercely and did not answer her immediately.

He seemed to be shaking in pain, or maybe the stab she had stabbed had indeed hit the point. Anyway, he bent down deeply, trying to cover the wound in his abdomen with one hand, but he couldn't because there was a short knife stuck in it.

Then, Liu Quan jerked his short knife out, and at the same time let go of his hand.

The false lieutenant staggered back.

His left hand was now tightly covering the wound she had stabbed in his lower abdomen, but his right arm was hanging a little unnaturally.

However, he was unable to maintain his balance due to his injury, and as he stumbled backwards, his body slammed into the desk before stopping.

Because of that shock, his right arm also shook a few times.

Then, there was a sudden click, echoing through the empty room.

A short knife slipped out of the sleeve of his right arm and landed on the ground at his feet.

Liu Quan slowly curled his eyebrows and smiled silently.

"It's a pity. She said quietly.

"Even a dumb guy like me isn't that easy to clean up. ”

Then, she slowly narrowed her eyes, stared coldly at the fake in front of her, and said

"If you were a real deputy chief, you would remember me. ”

"Because these are the words that Mr. Hijikata shouted out before I rushed forward to face a strong enemy. ”

The guy who pretended to be the deputy chief who had never spoken since her true face was exposed by her, still didn't say anything after hearing this.

However, his left hand, which was tightly covering the wound in his abdomen, slowly moved away a little.

As the hand left the surface of the wound, a small, ominous sizzling sound came from there.

Surprisingly, the source of the snorting sound was wisps of black mist escaping from the cracked wound.

The false deputy chief lowered his head blankly, staring at the black qi escaping from the wound. Then he slowly flipped his palm, staring at the slightly viscous black liquid that was stained in his palm.

That ominous black liquid was probably what he called "blood", dripping from his fingertips onto the ground.

He slowly raised his head again, staring at the young woman in front of him, who had witnessed the scene, still with a calm face.

His features gradually distorted.

"You"

He squirmed his lips and made a hoarse sound.

"It's been a long time ago, did you see it?"

The young woman in front of her smiled slightly. For some reason, there seemed to be a hint of bitterness in that smile.

"No, I was deceived by you at first. ”

She said.

So, when you finally realize it, you hate you and the people behind your back who are telling you to do it. ”

"Whoever takes advantage of the sincere feelings of others and wants to achieve his own dark purpose in a despicable way, and who plans all this, is not worthy of forgiveness. ”

Her face sank suddenly, and a strong anger suddenly emanated from her body, which was calm and cold.

"Even if it's pretending, please pretend to be a little bit like me, in the minds of you people, is this even Mr. Hijikata, do you think Mr. Hijikata's enlightenment ends here?"

The anger that had been barely suppressed in his heart erupted violently.

"It was not that Mr. Hijikata had no other way to escape the dead, and I heard with my own ears the foreigners talking about why he refused the French favor and invitation, but this is Mr. Hijikata, for whom faith and morality are more important than anything else."

She sneered.

"Even if he knew that what he was taking was a path that ran counter to the torrent of history, he would not just give up what he was fighting for and indulging in so easily"

"So, I finally understood. ”

"Some people can become inquisitors, but Mr. Hijikata doesn't do that. ”

"Come a thousand times and ten thousand times, knowing that you will sacrifice if you go, and knowing that what you are doing is not tolerated by the times and history"

"Mr. Hijikata, I would still have decided that. Follow your heart and follow your own path"

"The position of the God Inquisitor, in his mind, must not be more important than the deputy head of the Shinsengumi. ”

Hearing this, the fake deputy chief staggered two steps as if he could no longer stand on his feet

Then, suddenly, he struggled to straighten up, and at the same time stepped on the hilt of the dagger that had fallen to the ground with his right foot

The short knife jumped upward, and he grabbed the small jump distance, picked it up with his toes, and kicked it forward, and the short knife flew forward

However, before the flying dagger could plunge into the body of the young woman in front of him, the false deputy chief heard a sigh similar to that of a woman whose face seemed to be so young forever.

"You guys, you really don't know what a rakshasa is, do you?"

Before she could finish speaking, her hair suddenly turned white.

She remained where she was, not dodging or intercepting the dagger flying towards her. The next second, with a thud, the short knife stabbed straight into her thigh.

She gasped and reached out to pull out the short knife that didn't sink deep into the flesh.

Even if it didn't penetrate deeply, after all, the blade was sharp, and bright red blood flowed out of that small wound.

She narrowed her eyes and hid her red eyes.

"Then I'll show you why Mr. Hijikata made me like this in the first place. ”

She said this in a leisurely tone, and then, under the watchful eye of the false lieutenant, she gently wiped the fabric around the wound with her left hand, and then spread her five fingers and palms upwards in front of him, as if to show him something.

The only thing in his palm was the dust that had just been stained by the fierce battle with the enemy in Bentendaiba, and the old blood that had dried up. There was not a single trace of fresh, uncurdled red blood.

The wound had healed rapidly.

She met the disbelief in the fake lieutenant's eyes, and curled the corners of her lips.

"Got it, even though I'm a monster like you, I'm a monster you can't kill. ”

She said this in a brisk tone.

That fake deputy chief""

The action just now seemed to exhaust the last of his strength. The black gas escaping from his wounds grew thicker and thicker. He opened his mouth, but it seemed that he could no longer speak, so he had to stare at the young woman in front of him with a smile in his eyes.

The young woman in front of him looked at him as if she had not seen the same face as the one she had so fondly missed.

"I'm going to find out who told you to do this. She said quietly. It's not like an ultimatum, it's not like venting anger, it's just a normal and objective message.

Eventually, the fake lieutenant could no longer stand, and fell sideways to the ground with a pop.

Wisps of black gas began to emerge from all over his body.

Seeing this scene, the young woman in front of him did not waver in the slightest.

She just stood there straight, her hair suddenly turning black again.

Then, her gaze fell on him as if it were inorganic.

Finally, the eyes that faded their blood red and regained their clarity surfaced with a layer of emotions similar to emotion, remembrance and sorrow.

"So, in the end, it's just wishful thinking on my part."

Her voice suddenly dropped. It was not so much a declaration of victory to a defeated enemy huddled at his feet, but rather a kind of self-talk with a certain sense of melancholy.

"I've always thought that if one day, I can see Mr. Hijikata again, I must tell him."

"No matter how far I go, whether I can still be by his side or not"

"I would say that to this day, you are still my light. ”

"However, it is the one of my light, not you. ”

"I know he's gone through history and will never see me again, but I just don't want to admit it. ”

"But now I understand"

"Even if you move forward, you can't get to him again"

"I still have to keep moving forward. ”

"Because only by doing this can our encounter be meaningful. ”

As she spoke, the appearance of the man curled up on the ground gradually changed.

In a thick black mist, sharp bone spurs and long horns slowly grew above his head and behind him.

Then, the distorted figure slowly turned into the same black gas in that black mist, accompanied by an ominous swishing sound, and dissolved into the black mist, without a trace.

The moment he disappeared, Liu Quan's eyes seemed to widen slightly, staring at the ground where he had been lying before.

Now, it's empty.

I don't know how long she stared like this, maybe just a few seconds, but she suddenly closed her eyes again, her head lowered slightly, and a small drop of water slid down her cheek under her long eyelashes.

However, she didn't realize it herself, and only squirmed her lips and whispered softly.

"Mr. Ah Sui. ”