—There are no just nations, nor any just peoples. There never have been.
It was an argument she found impossible to refute.
Ke Yiyi had never felt such immense pressure standing before Man Huai Zhi. She could remain silent, yet she felt compelled to speak, for to do otherwise would be to concede defeat.
“Ke Yiyi?”
Yagami Saichi’s voice reached her, and Ke Yiyi turned her head to see Yagami Saichi walking towards her.
Perfect… she had arrived just in time to rescue her from this awkward silence.
“Saichi… I’m sorry. I didn’t wait for you at the entrance.”
Ke Yiyi felt a pang of guilt, having promised to wait at the entrance. Instead, Yagami Saichi had to come all this way to find her.
“It’s no trouble. Here are your credentials.”
Yagami Saichi approached Ke Yiyi, and seeing her hands full, helped her fasten her ID badge and tuck her communicator into her jacket pocket.
“Thank you.”
“No problem. I’ll head back first.”
Yagami Saichi had noticed someone in a Xuanji Star military uniform speaking with Ke Yiyi earlier, but from too far away to hear clearly. By the time she drew near, the conversation had ceased. Seeing that the other person also wore an observer’s badge, signifying they were part of the observation team and not illegally entering Vega territory, she said nothing further and turned to leave.
Man Huai Zhi held little affection for the people of Vega. Watching her depart, he casually removed his hat, smoothed his hair, and asked solemnly,
“Have you figured it out now, little Ke?”
Yagami Saichi’s departing form abruptly froze. The tranquility in her eyes vanished instantly, replaced by a rigid stillness as she slowly turned, gazing at Man Huai Zhi’s back as if confronted by something utterly terrifying.
‘That voice… no, it couldn’t be!’
Ke Yiyi noticed Yagami Saichi’s abnormal reaction, a shock seizing her heart. She had thought Yagami Saichi had overcome her past trauma… could seeing the Xuanji Star military uniform have triggered a psychogenic breakdown?
“Saichi?”
Yagami Saichi stood there, stunned, her eyes filled with terror, her entire body trembling uncontrollably.
Noticing Ke Yiyi’s distraction, Man Huai Zhi turned his head, following Ke Yiyi’s gaze.
A gentle breeze ruffled the hair on his forehead, and a faint, slanted scar, running vertically across his eyelid, became vaguely visible.
Yagami Saichi stumbled backward, her mind seizing on something, countless blurred fragments rapidly connecting in her memory, like a film playing, every frame startlingly clear.
‘Bodies pressed to the ground like livestock… gut-wrenching wails… the triumphant laughter of their tormentors, urging on the next person… limbs shackled in a corner… the smell of burning flesh… vile substances forced down her throat, her hair yanked back again and again… familiar faces… familiar horrors… all of it, in an instant, seemed to surge back.’
Her hand fumbled frantically over her body, finally seizing the pistol in its holster.
“I’ll kill you!”
Ke Yiyi’s expression changed instantly. She lunged forward, embracing Yagami Saichi, knocking the pistol from her hand, and pinning her to the ground.
“Saichi! Listen to me, this is a Xuanji Star observer, not the person who hurt you!”
“I’ll kill you! I’ll kill you!”
Yagami Saichi struggled desperately on the ground, letting out hysterical screams. She tore her hand free from Ke Yiyi’s grasp, snatched the pistol from the ground, and aimed it at Man Huai Zhi.
Ke Yiyi quickly twisted her wrist, forcibly diverting the pistol away from Man Huai Zhi, and pressed her hand heavily to the ground.
Yagami Saichi drew a dagger with her other hand, attempting to push herself up, but Ke Yiyi swiftly clamped down on her wrist, knocking the dagger aside.
“Saichi! I won’t hurt you, please calm down.”
The sudden shouts drew the attention of everyone nearby. On the Vega side, realizing something was amiss, a large number of police officers hurrying back and forth immediately dropped their tasks and rushed over to help Ke Yiyi control Yagami Saichi.
“It’s you! It’s you! I finally found you! I’ll kill you! I *will* kill you!”
Not far away, Lei Ji, who had been leaning against a tree, noticed the commotion and quickly stood up, walking towards Man Huai Zhi. Seeing that the female officer was already under control, he immediately stopped.
‘Did she mistake him for someone else?’ he thought, before ultimately returning to the tree.
Man Huai Zhi scrutinized Yagami Saichi, unable to comprehend her outburst. ‘Was she having a psychotic episode? Can mentally ill people become police officers on Vega? And she wants to kill me…’
“Little Ke, your friend is quite agitated.”
Ke Yiyi extricated herself from the crowd, looking rather embarrassed as she faced Man Huai Zhi.
“I apologize. My friend has suffered trauma…” She brushed a stray strand of hair from her face, lowering her voice. “It’s related to your Xuanji Star.”
Man Huai Zhi scoffed softly, neither confirming nor denying, and donned his military cap.
Meanwhile, Yagami Saichi was swiftly led away. If she were to kill an observer here, the situation would become dire.
“It’s him! It’s him! I’ll never forget his voice! I’ll always remember his face!”
Man Huai Zhi watched Yagami Saichi, still struggling as she was led away, her head stubbornly fixed on him, her cries showing no sign of abating.
“Even a mentally ill person can be a police officer… has Vega fallen so low? See, little Ke? I’ve never met her, yet she’s falsely accusing me. This is what I mean when I say those not of our kind are sure to harbor ill…”
Man Huai Zhi’s gaze at Yagami Saichi suddenly solidified, becoming intensely focused, but it was only for an instant before returning to normal. He then bid Ke Yiyi farewell and departed without a backward glance.
Ke Yiyi was baffled by his sudden change from persistent argument to abrupt departure, completely at a loss. She could only bend down to pick up the empty bottle and mineral water bottle she had hastily discarded, then hurried after Yagami Saichi.
Ke Yiyi watched as Yagami Saichi tore at her uniform jacket, then her shirt, and finally her underwear, ripping it to shreds. The small woman, seemingly drawing strength from nowhere, fought off everyone, practically shredding all her clothes. It was the first time Ke Yiyi had seen her body…
A large character for ‘s*ave’ was branded on her lower abdomen, while her legs and waist were covered in countless tiny ‘justice’ characters, densely packed, a sight chilling to the bone.
They weren’t written; they were *branded*.
Her mouth twitched, her eyes uncontrollably darting back and forth as she looked in the direction Man Huai Zhi had left, screaming with heart-wrenching agony.
“It’s him! I couldn’t be mistaken!”
She grabbed Ke Yiyi’s collar, dragging her forward. Though much smaller than Ke Yiyi, she seized her with the ease of an eagle snatching a chick.
“Why are you defending him…?”
The people around them quickly pulled her away. Ichijō Hi took off her jacket and wrapped it around Yagami Saichi, preparing to lead her away.
“Calm down, Saichi! He didn’t hurt…”
“It *was* him! I couldn’t mistake that scar! He has a ‘wood’ [木, *mù*] character carved into his palm! And a lightning-shaped scar on his back, running from his nape all the way to his waist! I remember it clearly! I haven’t forgotten it in twenty years! He was the one who led the rapes!”
Ke Yiyi’s vision swam, feeling as if struck by a lightning bolt. Her gaze at Yagami Saichi shifted from surprise to astonishment, then to utter shock.
Everything from the past instantly resurfaced in her mind…
‘”Don’t worry, little Ke, I’m fine. I just slipped down a hillside, and some branches on the ground scratched my back. Medicine? No need, I think this lightning-shaped scar looks quite good.”
‘”Little Ke, I have an idea. How about carving your name into my palm? Here, I’ll start with ‘wood’ [木, *mù*]. Alright, alright, you say it’s for my own good not to mutilate myself, and I’ll listen. It’s a shame, though, I only got halfway through carving ‘Ke’ [柯, *kē*]. Sigh, what can I do when I’ve already promised you? If you say no, then no it is!”‘
During her time at the police academy, Ke Yiyi had rarely approached Yagami Saichi to avoid triggering her, nor had she discussed anything that might cause distress. She certainly hadn’t talked about Yagami Saichi’s past with others, and thus only knew the general outline of the events… even the scars she had only just seen today.
Watching the almost deranged Yagami Saichi, her state was even more terrifying than it had been at the academy… and heartbreaking.
‘”Yes, I was sexually assaulted, so it’s normal for men to avoid me.”
Those words Yagami Saichi had spoken before now flooded Ke Yiyi’s mind, again and again, growing ever clearer.
‘”Yes, I was raped, so it’s normal for men to avoid me.”
The nameless memorial… the endless cemeteries… sixty soldiers went to war, only three returned… mass graves… all the horrific scenes brought by the World War appeared before her eyes.
It was like a wire being bent and straightened repeatedly.
She finally understood why she found Man Huai Zhi’s words so impossible to refute… it wasn’t that she didn’t know of Vega’s suffering, but that she had always viewed Man Huai Zhi through the ‘shadow’ of the past.
So that was it… everything made sense now.
“This cannot stand…”
She clutched the bottles in her hands tightly, biting her lip, her body trembling uncontrollably as she murmured,
“This cannot stand!”
Ichijō Hi noticed Ke Yiyi’s sudden change and quickly asked her,
“What did you say?”
“This cannot stand!”
Ke Yiyi turned and sprinted wildly towards the street. Ichijō Hi, realizing something, immediately shouted,
“Stop her!”
But her cry came too late; Ke Yiyi, like a madwoman, vanished from sight.
Lei Ji followed behind Man Huai Zhi, chuckling playfully.
“What’s wrong, little Zhi? Why the sudden long face? Not interested in flirting with the little bunny anymore?”
Man Huai Zhi walked on in silence. He remembered who that girl was…
‘Damn it… how could I run into that b*tch here… such a buzzkill…’
“Stop! Man Huai Zhi!”
Though the voice was hoarse and distorted from screaming, Man Huai Zhi knew who it was.
He stopped and turned, watching the panting Ke Yiyi. Behind her, a group of Vega police officers had caught up, slowing their pace as they cautiously approached Ke Yiyi.
“What is it, little Ke?”
“You did it! Didn’t you!”
“What are you talking about?”
“In the new calendar year 213, in Worldly Affairs City, you raped a girl!”
“How could that be? I already said that was a false accusation against me. Those people are capable of anything. Those not of our kind…”
“Shut up! You despicable scoundrel! From this day forward, our ties are severed! We will fight to the death!”
Man Huai Zhi looked at the group of people behind Ke Yiyi and chuckled derisively.
“You’re too impulsive, little Ke. Are these people behind you forcing you to cut ties with me? Why bother? If only you came over to my side…”
“Enough! Stop with your empty rhetoric! Those mountains of corpses! Those homeless refugees! Those children whose families were shattered! The cities you burned! The property you plundered! The women you raped! The people you massacred! None of this is false; it is all real! I saw it with my own eyes!”
“It’s true that we lost the World War, but your victory in this war does not make you righteous! Your crimes are too numerous to recount, and no matter how you embellish or deny them, they will forever be etched into the annals of history! Forever!”
“You are powerful, and we may find it hard to defeat you, but we will never fear you because of it! We will never kneel and submit to you simply because you are strong!”
She raised the empty bottle and the mineral water bottle, now crushed and leaking, water streaming between her fingers.
“You wanted my answer, didn’t you? This is my answer!”
“For all those you have brutalized! I, Ke Yiyi, will devote every moment of my life to resisting you! With the bottles in my hands, I will drain your boundless oceans; with the water in my palms, I will extinguish your raging inferno; with my blood, my flesh, my bones, with my very being, I will overturn your boundless nation, steeped in its countless crimes!”