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"Hello, my name is Gaya Ze," the boy said, extending his hand to Su Jin'er.
Su Jin'er shook his hand lightly. "Hello, I'm Su Jin'er."
"Indeed, you are a beauty. No wonder someone is so distracted. Honestly, you are the most beautiful girl I have ever seen."
"You are also the funniest boy I have ever met."
Gaya Ze laughed heartily and then shook hands with Linyuan and the other two. As they walked out of the school gate, they chatted and joked.
Chu Feifan led them into the woods. Entering through that hole would save them a lot of time, and they needed to find out the cause of Zhang Yang's death before anyone discovered his body and then call the police. Su Jin'er suddenly felt cruel; no matter what Zhang Yang had done, he was her classmate, and she couldn't bear to leave his body in that dark hole after his death. Even if it was to find out about the Killer, it felt too cruel.
They passed through the woods and reached the entrance of the cave. Du Xiaonan looked at the cave entrance and suddenly felt a chill, along with an inexplicable sense of familiarity.
Su Jin'er noticed Du Xiaonan shivering at the entrance. "Xiaonan, what's wrong?"
"I don't know. This place feels so familiar, like I've been here before, but I can't remember," she said, rubbing her temples.
"Then don't think about it; you'll remember when the time is right." Su Jin'er patted her shoulder and walked into the cave; everyone else had already gone in.
What secrets were hidden in these strange caves?
The sound of several footsteps echoed chaotically in the cave. Each step felt like a hammer striking at everyone's hearts; though not heavy, it still made it hard to breathe.
"We need to conserve our flashlight; we don't know how long the path ahead is, so let's leave just one on!" Chu Feifan's voice came from behind.
Then one by one, they turned off their flashlights. The once brightly lit cave plunged into darkness. They closed their eyes briefly to adjust to the remaining light.
Everyone understood Chu Feifan's intention, so no one objected. Darkness is what frightens people most; often, the most terrifying things happen in the darkest places, and darkness can also bring out the darker sides of people's hearts. However, in darkness, as long as there is a little light, there is hope in people's hearts, preventing them from getting lost in despair.
When Li Yiqian saw the pile of ashes next to the extinguished fire, she stopped. Looking at the fire and the ropes left on the ground, her eyes seemed to burn with fire; it was here that she had been insulted by Zhang Yang and threatened repeatedly.
Linyuan patted her shoulder and led her forward.
At the front was Gaya Ze, followed by Li Yiqian and Linyuan, then Zuo Yi, with Su Jin'er and Du Xiaonan behind them, and finally Chu Feifan.
Gaya Ze's voice suddenly came from the front: "I think I should turn on a flashlight! I can't see the path, and I smell the stench of decaying bodies, so I want to avoid stepping on one by accident."
They agreed with him because the flashlight was held by Chu Feifan, who was at the back. Although they were close together, the people in front could hardly see any light.
Du Xiaonan furrowed her brows tightly. The deeper they went, the worse she felt. That familiar sensation not only failed to provide her with any sense of security but instead made her more afraid. A strange feeling of guilt wandered in her heart, eroding her spirit like a ghost. She gasped for breath, feeling as if she were drowning, which made her bend over uncomfortably.
"Xiaonan, what's wrong?" Su Jin'er asked as she supported her arm.
"I don't know; it feels so uncomfortable. This place feels so familiar. I think I've been here before and did something that caused me great pain, but I can't remember. I really can't remember."
Everyone stopped upon hearing her words because the entrance to the cave had become very narrow, allowing only one person to stand. They could only remain in their positions and listen to their conversation.
"Let's take a break! Xiaonan isn't feeling well," Su Jin'er said, looking at her sweaty face with concern.
"Jin'er, I'm really scared. I feel like I've done something unforgivable, but I can't recall it," Du Xiaonan said, tears streaming down her face.
"Do you remember when you were here before?"
Du Xiaonan lowered her head. After a while, she lifted it and said, "I don't know if it was then, but after school was out, I came back here once when my dad and mom picked me up from the mental hospital to pack my things. During that time, I fainted once. As for what I did, I don't remember at all."
Su Jin'er looked up at Chu Feifan and then said, "Your parents might remember. When we get back, ask them about it. Don't think about it too much right now; maybe your feelings are just an illusion. Don't we often encounter certain scenes or events in life that seem familiar? Don't overthink it."
Du Xiaonan nodded in agreement with Su Jin'er’s words. Perhaps she was just too tired and had created an illusion. She wiped away her tears and stood up, smiling as she said, "I'm sorry for worrying everyone."
"It's fine as long as you're okay. We've already encountered too much; we don't want anything to happen to our friends. Xiaonan, we all need to be strong," Linyuan's voice came softly from the front.
Although they couldn't see her expression, it must have been resolute.
Soon enough, they found Zhang Yang's body. During this time, Du Xiaonan did not feel relieved by everyone's comfort; instead, that familiar feeling grew stronger. She bit her lip hard enough that the metallic taste of blood filled her mouth, yet she remained silent. She felt like she was running—running very fast—and she could even hear her own heavy breathing and the chaotic pounding of her heart. It felt like she was chasing someone or evading someone; she could even see the terrified expression on her own face.
"We found the body you mentioned." Upon hearing Gaya Ze's voice, everyone gathered around. Even though they were all wearing masks, they were still nearly overwhelmed by the stench of decay.
Gaya Ze put on white gloves and began to examine Zhang Yang's corpse, which had already decomposed severely, with white maggots slowly wriggling on it. Linyuan and Li Yiqian turned away and vomited, while Du Xiaonan stared at the body with wide eyes filled with fear.
"He was stabbed in the abdomen with a dagger and died from excessive blood loss. There is no murder weapon at the scene, which means he was killed," Gaya Ze said while inspecting the body. "He must have had a fierce struggle with the Killer; there are varying degrees of scratches on his face and hands, indicating that he might have been killed by a woman."
A woman?
The possibility of a man being killed by a woman is very slim unless the man knew the woman and was caught completely off guard, or if the woman was stronger than the man. But how many women in the world are stronger than men?
According to Gaya Ze, they had fought, so this woman could not have killed him by ambush. Who exactly is the Killer?
"Not necessarily! Perhaps the Killer disguised herself as a woman to frame someone else," Su Jin'er suggested.
"Right, that's also a possibility," Gaya Ze agreed.
"Let's search the area nearby to see if we can find the murder weapon," Chu Feifan said.
"If it was premeditated murder, the weapon definitely won't be here," Zuo Yi remarked.
Everyone turned on their flashlights, preparing to search for the weapon, even though they knew the chances of finding it were slim.
While they were all gathered around the corpse, Du Xiaonan stood alone at a distance, not looking at the body. Once everyone moved away, she slowly approached and when she saw the corpse, she suddenly screamed.
"What’s wrong?" Everyone was startled by her shout.
Du Xiaonan looked at Zhang Yang's corpse in terror, backing away repeatedly until she weakly leaned against the wall. She slowly slid down to the ground, shaking her head in disbelief.
"Xiaonan, did you remember something? Tell us, don’t be afraid," Su Jin'er squatted down and hugged her.
"I remembered, I really remembered, but how could this happen? How could I possibly kill someone?" Du Xiaonan looked at her hands, desperately rubbing them against the ground.
Su Jin'er grasped her hands tightly. "Tell me what happened. Why do you think you killed someone?"
She shook her head, blood on her lips making her look terrifyingly ghastly.
"Xiaonan, just say it! We can help you if you tell us!" Linyuan also crouched down.
"No, I killed someone. You can't help me. I remember everything; I killed him, I killed him." She struggled to stand up.
Su Jin'er pressed down on her firmly; she couldn't let her run away now. With her emotions so heightened, who knew what she might do?
"Let go of me! I really killed someone! I'm a murderer! Stay away from me, or I might kill you too!" Du Xiaonan shouted in a loss of reason, tears streaming down her face, her eyes filled with sorrow and despair.
"Xiaonan, be quiet. Just tell us, and we will figure it out together. You're so innocent and lively; there's no way you could kill someone. I don't believe it, so please just tell us!" Su Jin'er cried out, unable to accept that Du Xiaonan could commit murder.
Du Xiaonan looked at Su Jin'er and slowly stopped struggling. Tears fell in large drops as she suddenly hugged Su Jin'er tightly and began to cry loudly. She was terrified—truly terrified. Even though she remembered everything, she didn't understand why she had killed Zhang Yang.
"I don't even know why I killed him. I only remember the process of killing him. I remember this cave; I was desperately running forward while he chased me from behind. I was so scared that I kept running until I fell here. He caught up with me and pinned me to the ground, tearing at my clothes. I fought back and scratched his face and hands, but when he saw the blood, his eyes turned red. I was terrified and started groping around on the ground without knowing how I found a dagger. With all my strength, I stabbed him. He died; I killed him."
Du Xiaonan cried loudly on Su Jin'er's shoulder.
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