Volume 7 - CH 126.2

“Beijin…”

Lin Qin calls out to Xü Beijin.

Xü Beijin turns his head around, curious, “what’s wrong?”

Lin Qin appears to be in doubt.

Xü Beijin has never seen Lin Qin as doubtful as he is now. So he asks again, “what’s wrong? Do you feel ill?”

“No…” Lin Qin answers, unsure, and says, “but I do think something is wrong with me.”

Xü Beijin, shocked, asked, “what is it?”

Lin Qin says, “I think I’m remembering some of my past memories.”

Xü Beijin is stunned, then wonders, “why… I mean, do you know what might have triggered that memory recovery?”

“Not really recovery, but more, some kind of vague feeling,” Lin Qin corrects Xü Beijin. Telling him what he’s feeling has made him feel better.

So his tone quickly returns to the usual frank and nonchalant form, “it’s not really that much of a bother, but I thought I should tell you.”

He’s just reporting what he’s thinking to Xü Beijin by habit.

Though… ‘Not that much of a bother’?

Xü Beijin’s eyes widen. He is speechless learning that this is what Lin Qin really thinks.

He’s oddly sympathising with how Lin Qin was all concerned over him while he was dismissive; is this what it feels like for the eunuchs to be worried sick while emperor just faffs about?

Oh, of course he doesn’t mean to describe himself or Lin Qin as a eunuch.

He is just… experiencing stuff from others’ shoes, as their roles switched.

Then Xü Beijin starts casting doubtful gazes at Lin Qin. Did he do this on purpose? Is he even that quick-witted?

Lin Qin tilts his head at Xü Beijin, looking all clean and honest. With his baby face, too, he looks innocent as ever.

Xü Beijin then doubts his own suspicions. It looks like Lin Qin really might be regaining his memories.

Why now, though?

Xü Beijin is slightly concerned over it, because if Lin Qin manages to remember everything right here, right this moment… Wouldn’t it imply that Lin Qin may have a more complicated identity than Xü Beijin thought?

To put it simply, Xü Beijin thought Lin Qin’s amnesia comes from either some special mental illness or was the price he paid to use some utility card.

Xü Beijin is more leaning towards the latter, too, since it works all too well as an explanation for how he gained his immense fighting power.

Of course, it remains a hypothesis, because he can see Lin Qin doesn’t seem to treat his amnesia or fighting power as something important to him. This means it doesn’t look like he’d be the kind to initiate such a transaction.

Regardless, Xü Beijin ended up disregarding the discrepancies surrounding Lin Qin. Only occasionally remembering it, thinks about it, and then casts the thoughts aside without making any progress whatsoever…

Xü Beijin suddenly wonders, alarmed, why he would lose interest in Lin Qin’s condition repeated.

Why would such obscene fighting power be here in the Tower? Even the most insane Tower resident has never lost their memories of the past. No one has ever lost their entire memory in the process of entering the Tower.

So why did it happen to Lin Qin?

Xü Beijin also can’t help but feel a little guilty.

He has been aware of Lin Qin’s oddities all along, but somehow, he ignored it over and over, finding them slip out of his mind.

It might be because Lin Qin always looked so ‘matter-of-factly’ when questioned about it. It’s almost as if he’d been born just like this. Possibly… it was NE that changed him, or adjusted the mental states of the Missiontakers, or both?

They might joke about Lin Qin’s strength, and diss his asocial behaviours. No one has ever asked, though, why Lin Qin is like that.

Xü Beijin finds himself drenched in cold sweat just standing there. His face is going pale again, after regaining the slightest bit of colour earlier.

How terrible. Questions keep popping up one after another, while they’re still just beginning to conquer the labyrinth…

Oh, wait, no. He’s supposed to be thinking about Lin Qin’s problems right now.

He almost lost track of his thoughts again.

The phenomenon has Xü Beijin realise that NE is probably behind this. Perhaps… Lin Qin’s past, really is special?

Lin Qin, meanwhile, appears quite worried about Xü Beijin, asking, “what’s wrong? Why are you looking all pale white again?”

He touches Xü Beijin on the cheeks, and says, “what should I do… to make you feel better?”

Lin Qin looks really concerned and lost. He’s angry, but he can’t lash out at Xü Beijin, obviously. All he can do is just sulk, so he looks quite grim.

Now, they’re already at the entrance to the labyrinth.

Xü Beijin looks at the Missiontakers in the front, and then says, “Lin Qin, I need you to answer a question honestly.”

Lin Qin looks dead serious with Xü Beijin looking like this, replying, “I will.”

“What do you think is the reason that you have lost your memories and hold such strength?”

Lin Qin seems to blank out processing the question a little, muttering, “the reason… what?”

“Why did you lose your memories? And why do you have such power?”

“I don’t know,” Lin Qin tilts his head. He looks a little lost for words, “I don’t know. I’ve always been like this.”

“Do you not find it weird?”

“Not really, because this is just how I am,” Lin Qin mutters, then asks, “why do you ask?”

“Do you feel anything strange when you hear other people describe Earth?”

Lin Qin looks like he’s blanking out while trying to recall. Then he slowly shakes his head, saying, “nothing, really.”

His world is just blank. Empty.

Xü Beijin is examining his reactions closely.

Lin Qin, he… he doesn’t share the identity of being human with others.

He knows consciously that they’re his same species, but he doesn’t actually think of himself as a fellow human.

He knows consciously about some rules of human society, perhaps even about the different, common emotions of humanity, but he is more like a passing observer, who decides to participate in their ‘rituals’ and ‘customs.’

Xü Beijin is inside of his world, now, but their relationship actually stemmed from a rather embarrassing misunderstanding.

Lin Qin misunderstands his behaviour as being ‘romantically attracted to Xü Beijin,’ and then he ended up falling in love for real. Now, no one can ever deny that he does like, and love Xü Beijin.

Not even Xü Beijin can deny Lin Qin’s feelings now.

He knows Lin Qin loves him. Even in spite of… Lin Qin’s world being empty.

Since in the very beginning, he really believed whatever anyone told him, and then simply checking to see if he himself filled the bill.

It’s almost like… almost like…

He’s just an NPC in this game world.

boilpoil's notes:

This part of the chapter depicts Xü Beijin trying to wrestle out Lin Qin’s nature. More to follow in the next part.