End of Salvation

022: Being A Wizard

A/N: Heh... Here's an update. I'm not six feet into the ground yet. I'm almost there.

---

Xiu Shinyi's eyes glimmers as his hands accurately slam onto the buttons. Like a lion chasing after the lone prey that has separated from the heard, he ruthlessly hunts them down. With every pounce, a large amount of their HP decreases significantly as well as the number of words thrown at him. A large notification pops up as soon as another pitiful user falls by his hands. He raises his hands and looks at his brother, they were the last two standing in the game.

Xiu Shinyi claps excitedly, "Yay~! Yu Yu, I did... It?"

He tilts his head in confusion as he saw that Xiu Shunyu's expression wasn't quite right. Following where his twin's eyes were directed, Xiu Shinyi's sights move over. His face reddens immediately and he covers his eyes. The rest of his family members were here! It was as if he was saying 'if I don't see you, you won't see me'. If he was an animal at this moment, he would be covering his eyes with his large and soft ears and probably be curled up into a cute small ball right now.

He screams internally. How could be so careless?! It was just supposed to be a game to pass time until he could go sneak and listen to the four of them talk... But he became sidetracked and missed his chance to! Wasn't this called digging a pit just to just to jump in it? Mentally slamming his face on a wall, he wants to cry.

Xiu Shinyi couldn't be blamed for becoming too engrossed in an online game for his current mental age. Before he was locked inside of a shell by his own fear. To his mind, there was always monsters lurking around every corner. No matter what he did, he could not shake off the baleful feeling; so he hid from the unknown and set up a cage to surround himself in for protection. His life was just as tragic as the Titanic that sunk, except he was the cause of his own drowning. His incompetence made it seem impossible for him to grasp moments to spend with his family and to 'live'. This made his exposure to the rest of the world down below the minimal amount. Even now, he was just barely exploring the surface of the deep and vast ocean. It was sad to say, but he admits that he wasted one life to only realize this fact that has been in front of him all along. All he ever needed to do was reach out and touch it.

Feeling as if his face was now the size of an atom, Xiu Shinyi wants the ground to split open and swallow him on the spot. He was already a wizard¹ with his age combined from the past and present life, and soon enough, his level would increase to becoming a legendary sage²... But he... His mind regressed and he let them see such a shameful side of him. His lashes flutter like the wings of a butterfly as he tries to blink away the shame.

Xiu Yijun quickly strides over and gathers him in his arm. His hand gently strokes the top of his head, "Did you have fun, Yi'er?"

Parting his fingers a little. Peeking through the open gap of his finger, his sapphire eyes glisten as it was slightly watery. He coughs to clear his throat lest he wants to sound like a screeching wheel, "Un. Un. Yi'er had lots of fun... Very fun."

He wishes for time to pass much faster and for the topic to already shift onto the next subject, as he did not want to relish in this black spot of his. He curls up in Xiu Yijun's arms and presses his face into his (XYJ's) chest. The scene was rather amusing as the little rabbit was trying to burrow itself into the embrace of the big faithful dog. Xiu Shunyu who was still in shock sits on the side with his face still blank. Should he laugh or should he cry at how fast his other half changes his expression? Who would've thought that his guileless younger brother of his was quite devious?

---

Sitting by the window, Xiu Shinyi was quiet as he gazes at the scenery outside, but his mind was not present to take in the magnificent spectacle. After his mortifying moment, Ying Zhuqing and Xiu Yunsheng explained in the vaguest words about their grandmother's condition. Her body was not well and her motor capabilities had dwindled down to being stuck on a wheelchair. She also has memory problems. Parts of her memory would suddenly disappear at times and she would not be able to remember what happened in the recent years or what just occurred a few moments ago. Many times, her memories were so foregone that she could only recall her youthful days when she was still pregnant with her second child; forgetting that she had already given birth to her and that she was now resting in the grounds of acold cemetery.