Inside the enclosure, Chen Nannan, whom I didn't know where she found it, held a dagger to her chest. Wang Peng and others beside her tried to stop her, but she pushed them back.
Seeing me approach, Wang Peng anxiously walked to my side.
"Brother Ye, Chen Nannan has gone mad. She just took advantage of a savage's carelessness, snatched a dagger from him, and wanted to kill herself. Please talk her out of it!"
I hurried to Chen Nannan's front and said gently, "Nannan, what's wrong? Put down the dagger, let's talk it through."
Chen Nannan gave me a mournful smile. Her originally pale and gaunt face miraculously regained some of its former spirit.
"Brother Ye, it's good to see you one last time before I die."
Seeing this once innocent and cheerful girl become like this, my heart was torn apart.
"Nannan, Brother is here now. Put down the dagger, and I promise I'll take you back to the outside world. Come with me, okay?"
Chen Nannan could no longer maintain her smile, and tears fell like raindrops.
"Brother Ye, we can't go back, we can't go back! I've got a terminal illness and don't have many days left. Taking me with you would just be a burden."
I stared intently at Chen Nannan's every move, afraid she would do something irreversible. I slowly moved closer; with my skills, I was sure I could snatch the dagger from her at close range.
"Don't say such discouraging things. Come with me, I have doctors who can surely restore your health!"
I spoke with her while trying to stabilize her emotions.
Chen Nannan smiled faintly, "Brother Ye, if there is an afterlife, I want to be your friend again."
Saying this, Chen Nannan fiercely plunged the dagger into her chest, blood instantly dyeing her clothes red.
"No!"
I lunged forward, but it was ultimately too late.
"Why is this happening?!"
Unbelieving, I held the dying Chen Nannan in my arms. Her trembling hand weakly caressed my cheek.
"Brother Ye, come closer."
Chen Nannan seemed to have something more to say to me. Suppressing my emotions, I brought my head close to her lips.
"Brother Ye has nothing to do with me. Even if you hadn't come, I wouldn't have wanted to live. It was truly good to have known you. Lastly, you must be careful of Wang Peng..."
Chen Nannan's voice grew weaker until it was inaudible.
This girl who was once close to me ultimately died in my arms.
I tried my best to control my emotions. Even after coming to this island and experiencing so much bloodshed, I thought my heart had turned as hard as stone. But at this moment, I just wanted to find a deserted place and weep loudly to mourn this departed friend.
"Keya, take some people and dig a pit here. I want to give Chen Nannan a grand burial!"
I knelt there in the open space, holding Chen Nannan's gradually cooling corpse in my arms, just like this, for a long, long time.
Until, after an unknown period, Keya awakened me from my grief.
After burying Chen Nannan, I found a stone and carved these words into it with my alloy knife:
Tomb of Chen Nannan.
No one knows that a pitiable girl was buried here, becoming one with everything.
"Wang Peng!"
Chen Nannan's dying words echoed in my mind: be careful of Wang Peng?
Before I could even make a move, Wang Peng, who had been standing by, nervously dropped to his knees before me. He slapped himself, tears streaming down his face, and said to me, "Brother Ye, it's my fault! I deserve to die. I didn't watch Nannan properly, I didn't take good care of Nannan. It's all my fault, all my fault!"
I looked at Wang Peng in silence until he had swollen his own face, blood already seeping from the corners of his mouth. Then, without a word, I turned and walked away.
A dying girl's final counsel, I could not afford to ignore it!