[???]
[??????]
[Oh my god!!! You’re incredible, sister!!!]
[Uh oh! Are you going to jail now?]
[Quick! Buy a lottery ticket before you get locked up, and we’ll split the winnings!]
[Hold up, let me search if there’s any news about ‘genius student Tong Yang going to jail.’]
[But how does this relate to the suicide case?]
Study for Money: [He was pushed.]
[WHAT?!?!?!]
[WHAT??????]
[He was pushed?!]
[That’s terrifying!]
[What happened to the person involved?]
Tong Yang took another picture of Sun Ye and sent it to the group.
Study for Money: [The killer disappeared into thin air, just like before—no record on the surveillance cameras. After the murder, they vanished again, so no one knows it was a homicide.]
[Sun Ye is still in shock.]
[So you didn’t just stand by and watch, huh?]
[My sister acts tough, but she’s soft-hearted.]
[Did you find any clues?]
Study for Money: [I asked, but they wouldn’t say. However, I have a theory.]
[Let’s hear it.]
[We’re all ears.]
Study for Money: [I entered a group chat created two years in the future, which means my current time has overlapped with yours in some way. Logically, time from the past and future should never overlap, but if my time can overlap with yours through this chat, then it’s possible that others can overlap with my time using different methods.]
[Uhhh, sorry, can you explain that again? My brain isn’t working.]
[I kinda get it but kinda don’t.]
[Can you explain it more simply? You’re losing me with all this ‘your time and our time’ talk.]
[Are you saying the killer is from a different time?]
[Whoa, this is getting more and more surreal.]
Study for Money: [The person who tried to kill me looks exactly like my mom, who died seven years ago. Considering their mysterious appearances and disappearances, I suspect they come from a different time, or perhaps… a different dimension.]
[Parallel universes? Multiple dimensions?]
[OMG, this is getting intense—like parallel dimension hunters!]
[I once read a theory that if two intelligent civilizations existed in the universe, war would be inevitable until one was completely wiped out.]
[If humans really discovered another intelligent species in the universe, that would be terrifying.]
[But come on, there can’t just be one fish in the sea, unless it’s living in a tank controlled by someone.]
[The multiverse theory has always scared me…]
Study for Money: [The reason humanity only knows about itself as the only intelligent civilization is because we’ve only discovered ourselves. But for everything else, we’re clueless. For example, the overlap of our times—current science can’t explain that. If these killers come from another time or parallel universe, that means they found us before we even knew they existed.]
[Whoa…]
[Help, I want out of this group.]
[I’m just a regular college kid, someone save me.]
[Shouldn’t we just report this to the police? Let the authorities handle it.]
[That would cause worldwide chaos! And since only a few of us remember anything about Tong Yang after she fought off her attacker, everyone else’s memories have been wiped. We might get thrown into a psych ward.]
[If parallel universes exist, how do we even prove we’re from the same one?]
The group suddenly fell silent.
Study for Money: [Your reality changes based on my actions, which means we’re living in the same space but at different times. What happens in the future, though, is still uncertain.]
[I’m scared but also excited.]
[So, the killer from the bakery, the one who tried to kill Tong Yang, the rooftop incident, and the upcoming terror attack at Third High—are they all from another time or dimension? And that’s why they can suddenly appear and disappear?]
Study for Money: [Yeah, and after they die, their bodies probably disappear within three minutes.]
[So, Tong Yang won’t go to jail?]
[The killer isn’t even a regular “person.” It’s more like they’re invaders, right?]
[Well, that takes away the guilt. Nicely done, Tong Yang! Saving a life is like building a seven-story pagoda!]
Study for Money: [What I’m about to say might be even scarier than all that.]
[Go ahead, we’re listening.]
[Spill it, we’re ready.]
[I’ve seen bodies disappear, I’m accepting the multiverse theory… What else could scare me now?!]
Study for Money: [Take Sun Ye’s rooftop fall as an example. Doesn’t anything stand out to you?]
[Stand out? The invaders are vicious, targeting high school seniors.]
[True, if I got taken out before my college entrance exams, I’d be a vengeful ghost haunting the whole world.]
[What do you mean, Tong Yang? What’s your point?]
Study for Money: [Think about the bakery murder, my attempted killing, and this rooftop incident. What’s different between them?]
[Different?]
[What’s different? Weren’t they all written off as suicides because the cameras didn’t catch anything?]
[Sorry, my brain isn’t working, just spell it out.]
Study for Money: [Tsk.]
[I’m a pig teammate.]
[I’m a pig teammate.]
[I’m a pig teammate.]
[I’m a pig teammate.]
Study for Money: [Since the killer leaves no trace, these cases are labeled as suicides. Now, think about all the other suicide and accident cases over the years. How many of them could have been murders, misclassified just like this one?]
[Whoa…]
[Ahhhhhh, help! That just gave me chills.]
[I take it back… this is seriously terrifying!]
[I’m freaked out, it’s broad daylight but I feel like something’s lurking around.]
[I need to leave this group… like, right now.]
[Hug me tight. If they crawl out of the screen, we’re all doomed.]
Tong Yang still hadn’t told the group that she could loop through time. Though they had helped her in small ways, she didn’t trust them completely yet.
[Sister Tong, what are you planning to do now?]
[This invasion thing has nothing to do with you. If you can keep yourself and your family safe, that’s enough.]
[Please don’t become a martyr, Tong Yang. You can’t save everyone!]
[Smoke break. I’ve read too many stories where the protagonist becomes a justice warrior to save the world. Please don’t do that.]
[No way! I have a bad feeling about this. Tong Yang, don’t get yourself killed. If you die, we’re all done for.]
Study for Money: [I’m not stupid. I’ll take my exams, do what I can within my limits, and if you have money, pay me. If you don’t, work for me to earn money. Maybe I can give it a shot.]
[That sounds reasonable.]
[Yeah, earning money, saving lives, and maybe even saving the world—it’s a win-win-win.]
[But be careful, Tong Yang. Don’t get yourself killed.]
Study for Money: [As for starting funds, someone V me 50 bucks so I can take myself and the other victim out for lunch. I’m starving.]
[I swear, the line between genius and madness is thin. How can you still think about food after all this?!]
[I’m Oikawa’s Dog transferred 50 RMB to Study for Money with a message: Tong Yang, I’m officially your first loyal follower.]
[How are people so easy to scam? What if this is a con?]
Tong Yang accepted the money without hesitation and replied: [Help me check if there’s any update on the June 7th terror attack.]
The butterfly effect could be tricky. It would be great if something troublesome was resolved by chance.
“Feeling better now?” Tong Yang glanced at Sun Ye, who was still trembling next to her.
Sun Ye shook his head vigorously. “It’s too terrifying…”
The rooftop girl’s corpse had completely vanished, along with the scattered bloodstains and the blood on Tong Yang’s body. It was as if nothing had ever happened.
But while reality could erase physical traces, the fear left in the heart couldn’t be wiped away as easily.
Sun Ye knew clearly that he had been pushed off the sixth floor and died. Then, inexplicably, he opened his eyes, returned to life, and watched Tong Yang kill the murderer, only for the body to slowly disappear. For someone who had gone through normal schooling, it was all too much to process.
Tong Yang clicked her tongue impatiently. “Bottom line: you died. I went back in time to save you. Now, you owe me your life. From now on, work hard to make a lot of money to pay me back. Don’t tell anyone who doesn’t already know, or I’ll use the time loop to come back and kill you before you spill the beans. Got it?”
Sun Ye, clearly scared of Tong Yang, shrank back and nodded, mumbling, “I understand…”
“How much do I owe you?” Sun Ye asked cautiously.
Tong Yang glanced him up and down. “Since it’s the first time, I’ll give you a discount—20,000 yuan, no interest. You have to pay it off within ten years after graduating high school. I’ll allow installment payments.”
“Oh…” Sun Ye, taking her word as gospel, slowly fished out a 50-cent coin from his pocket. “I bought a pen, so I only have 50 cents left… can you not tell my parents? I promise I’ll earn money to pay you back.”
Tong Yang rolled her eyes and took the coin. She opened her phone and noted in her memo app: Sun Ye owes 20,000 yuan, has repaid 50 cents. Remaining: 19,999.50 yuan.
“During your repayment period, you have to follow my orders to the letter. I might even reduce your debt as a reward.”
“Really?” Sun Ye’s eyes lit up. “I’ll definitely do that!”
“Let’s go. Time to eat.”
“I don’t have any money…”
“I’m treating.”
Tong Yang grabbed her bag and stood up. Her phone pinged a few times with group messages.
Sun Ye followed nervously behind her. “Tong Yang, will I have to deal with this again? It’s so terrifying.”
Tong Yang didn’t answer immediately. Instead, she checked her messages.
[Um… I feel bad for Sun Ye. The victim list for the June 7th terror attack just added one more person.]
[Image.jpg]
[Sigh.]
“Tong Yang, thank you for saving me. If it weren’t for you, I wouldn’t have the chance to take the exams. My parents would have been heartbroken.”
Tong Yang chuckled lightly. “Don’t celebrate just yet.”
She flipped her phone around and held it up for Sun Ye to see.
“Look at this. On the June 7th death list, isn’t that you next to Chu Shiyu?”
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