The cycle begins to repeat itself today.

Before I knew it, I had reached the flat ground below my building. It was already quite dark nearby, with only the streetlights in the distance diligently working. The light in my living room was still on. I went upstairs, opened the door, and went inside.

This time, my sister didn't stand there. Instead, she sat on the sofa, leaning against the wall as she looked at me, who had just returned home. She held her phone in her hand, the charging cable attached to the end. Perhaps because I hadn't come home, she had finally succumbed to her desires. Her posture was more like lying down than sitting; she was simply sprawled across the sofa.

"You're back? Why are you so late today?"

"Something happened at school, which caused a slight delay."

I didn't intend to talk about this; talking about it would only cause more trouble. The other person is my own sister, and I have no reason to do something so thankless.

"Really? You didn't sneak out to hang out with girls, did you?" she joked. "Mom and Dad are already asleep. Do you want to tell me about it, and I can suggest some fun places to go?"

"No. Don't make wild guesses, go to sleep."

I was getting impatient. Although she was unaware of the seriousness of the situation and was speaking in a joking manner, I was genuinely in a bad mood. I considered that she didn't know the situation, so I didn't get angry, but my low mood naturally affected my tone of voice.

"Fine, I won't say then." She pouted and continued playing on her phone.

I realized I'd gone a bit too far and wanted to apologize, but she was already engrossed in her phone again.

Oh well, anyway, tomorrow everything will be back to normal... Yes, as long as I sleep, everything will be back to normal. Ye Yuqing will probably still be alive and well, and then just before class in the morning, she'll ask me what day it is, and then I'll spend another ordinary day, and then Ye Yuqing will die again. Maybe I can go back to how I was before, going straight home after school every day, not caring about anything, acting like nothing ever happened... Can I really pretend this never happened?

I don't think I have that kind of mindset.

Is it possible to go back to the very beginning of today? Is it possible to go back?

For the first time, I began to consider the positive impact of returning to this initial point. There was still about half an hour until midnight. I went back to my room, pinning my hopes on the phenomenon I had previously feared and loathed. Death, to me, should have been just a common occurrence, something intimately connected to me. Humans kill every moment—animals, plants, insects, all creatures with energy and life that can be used to satisfy human appetites live in constant danger. This is normal, because humans need to plunder other species to survive. But almost everyone shares the same view on killing: disgust.

Why would humans, whose lives are steeped in blood and death, feel disgust and fear towards killing? Because even they themselves know that it is wrong to rob others of their right to live, but compared to others, their own affairs are more important. Therefore, in order to put themselves on the side of justice, humans have put on a guise of survival for this behavior, and then continue to do what they themselves find disgusting.

I am not a kind person. I have killed other living beings to survive. I don't want to make excuses; I just don't want to die. All energy comes from other living things, and to survive, there is no other way but to plunder. But humans, as my fellow beings, are not among my targets.

This is a dog-eat-dog world, that's true, but my hypocritical kindness makes me loathe the deaths of my fellow human beings. I can't accept someone I know even slightly dying like this, whether it's from illness, old age, jumping into a river, being hit by a car, or even jumping off a building in a different place at a different time—that's fine, it's none of my business. But why? Why did they have to die right in front of me?

Why would someone who had been looking forward to their date since morning die so easily? Why would she jump off the building so recklessly? Why didn't her date stop her? Why did she have to take her own life? Why? Why? Why?

Why must I watch someone jump from such a height right in front of me, crash and die, their head mangled, blood everywhere? Why must I see something I can never erase from my mind? What good does it do to keep such a thing as a psychological trauma in my head?

I cannot accept this.

My task is clear. I must see her again and bring her back to life.

I had no obligation to save her. Her death was her own doing. People who choose death because they can't bear the pressure are pitiful, but they should also bear the responsibility for their irresponsibility. I need to find out why. After that, she can die however she wants; it's none of my business.

I sat in the chair in front of the table, waiting for night to come, but I fell asleep without realizing it.

Chapter Fourteen: The Reopened Investigation

When I woke up again, I opened my eyes to the same dim light I see every morning, with only a faint glimpse of the ceiling. Had I returned to "this morning"? I felt a little more at ease, found my phone on the bedside table, turned it on, and checked the time—September 12th.

I breathed a sigh of relief, then found my relief laughable, while simultaneously wondering what had happened to me. I clearly remember falling asleep in a chair. Although I usually have a regular sleep schedule and get sleepy around a certain time, I don't think I would fall asleep in a daze.

I don't know exactly what happened back then. We can investigate that later. Right now, the most important thing is that I need to talk to Ye Yuqing and find out why she jumped off the building. I have to find out.

If my life, which had been almost unchanging for so long, suddenly became strange at this point, then something must have deviated from my original trajectory, something must have happened to lead to this strange, inexplicable situation. And right now, the biggest anomaly should be this matter, and there are sufficient reasons to investigate.

I've found a good reason for myself, and now it's time to get down to business and investigate.

My phone rang at just the right moment. I turned it off. Today started just like every other day, without any mishaps. I need to find more clues. Although most people go to the cafeteria for meals during breaks, there are always some who like to stay in the classroom and wait for the cafeteria to be less crowded. So, there's never a time in the classroom when I'm completely alone.

So be careful and take more time to fill this gap.

I finished washing up much faster than usual, then left home and headed towards school. I knew my physical limits, so I didn't run. Although I wasn't feeling well, my physical strength seemed fine, about the same as usual. Perhaps it wasn't just time that was constantly being reset, but also my physical condition returning to the beginning of the cycle.

However, I don't understand why, if even my physical state can return to its initial state, my memories are able to be preserved through repeated resets. Considering multiple issues simultaneously reduces the accuracy of my thinking and the efficiency of my problem-solving, which isn't worthwhile for me.

I decided to address the problems that are out in the open and have a clear path to follow first.

I arrived at the classroom a few minutes earlier than usual. The distance and my physical limitations meant the time saved wasn't very noticeable, but those few minutes should be enough for a solo search if I was a little careful.

There were far fewer people in the classroom than when I had been there before, and they were mostly high-achieving students sitting at the front. They mostly lived and ate at the school, so they generally arrived at the classroom earlier and left later than others after school. Few of the students sitting at the back arrived at the classroom too early, so I wasn't worried about anything.

Ye Yuqing's desk was similar to everyone else's. The front section was covered with various textbooks, notebooks, and draft paper. The sheer number of books needed in senior year was absurd; textbooks for every subject were essential for review, as were notebooks, draft paper, and various workbooks—sets of mock exams from the past three years, plus loose test papers. The mess was so large that the desk drawers simply couldn't hold them all, and leaving them on the floor would be a huge cleaning hassle. So, generally, no one put their books on the floor. Everyone had similar piles of books on their desks, like rows of fortified walls.

This is quite popular because it provides excellent protection for many people who want to engage in underhanded activities.

I didn't know what I could find in Ye Yuqing's notebook. While keeping an eye on my surroundings, I quickly flipped through the notebooks that didn't seem to have much to do with studying. But Ye Yuqing was a surprisingly serious person. Although I didn't pay attention in class, it was just a matter of my personal habits. I only glanced through her notebook and I could see a lot of examples and explanations, as well as problem-solving processes that looked like templates.

How come someone who works so hard still gets similar results to me? That's the main reason I'm surprised.

Ignoring the papers and bookmarks tucked inside textbooks, I couldn't find anything that gave me the information I was looking for. As for checking the textbooks, even if I wanted to, there wasn't enough time; the classroom was getting crowded again.

I had to give up searching for now. Anyway, I still had some time at noon and in the afternoon, enough to go through everything. I withdrew my hand, took my textbook out of my bag, and continued to pretend to be lost in thought, just like before. A few minutes later, it was almost time for class, and I saw Ye Yuqing again, caught red-handed by the Chinese teacher just as she reached the classroom door.

As before, after being nagged for a while, she was able to get away and sit back in her seat. Then, for the third time, she asked the question I already knew: "Um, what's the date today? I forgot my phone."

Today is September 12th.

I told her the answer, and she once again showed that relieved and expectant expression.

"If I remember correctly, it should be today."

Even her words haven't changed. If you hadn't seen it with your own eyes, who would believe that this girl, who is now looking expectant and smiling, would jump off the top of this building after school tonight?

Last time, I hastily concluded that she was unrelated to my situation; it was far too hasty. Now that I know what kind of abnormality she might exhibit, I'm not going to ignore it.

I composed myself and struck up a conversation with her again.

You seem quite happy.

Okay, to be honest, I'm not very good at talking to girls, and I'm not even very good at talking. I don't have a talent for saying nice things, nor have I received any training in it. I don't even feel like talking much normally, so it would be strange if I suddenly came up with something nice.

Fortunately, she was more outgoing than I had imagined.

I saw a look of wanting to share on her face.

Chapter Fifteen: Vague Clues

"I never expected you to take the initiative to talk to me. We've been classmates for so long, and I've never seen you speak to anyone on your own initiative." She didn't hide her doubts and surprise at all.

"I was just curious because you seemed pretty happy."

"Is it that obvious?" She touched her face. "But I do have something very important to do today. It's a date I've been planning for months. Maybe I'm just too excited."

If I hadn't known she was going to jump off the roof of this building tonight, I probably would have been blinded by her excitement, but I noticed the problems revealed in her words.

"A few months?"

Generally speaking, while many large events do involve extensive preparatory work to ensure their success—a process that can take anywhere from a week to a year, or even longer, depending on the scale of the event and the efficiency of the organization—several months is far too long to just meet someone. If the intention is to celebrate after something major has concluded, why does it take so long…?

"Yeah, several months. That's a long time. I don't know how I managed to keep going, but thankfully I did. I'll see him today. This feeling of potentially falling in love at first sight is pretty good, isn't it?"

"You've never met him?" I was surprised. I always thought online dating was rare, because opening your heart to someone you know nothing about is incredibly foolish. The internet's anonymity stems from the fact that neither party knows the other's true information, and in this era that increasingly values ​​protecting personal information, opening your heart to a complete stranger is simply lacking in common sense and consideration.

Ye Yuqing nodded, her face filled with longing again: "Even if I've never seen him, it doesn't matter. I know he's always been here, always near me."

Was the information leaked from the other side? I was also planning to ask her about the phone. I clearly remember the bright light at the time; the bright square was swaying, but it was definitely a phone. She clearly said she didn't have her phone with her, and I saw her at noon; she was on the rooftop then, which should prove she didn't go home. And after dinner in the evening… honestly, if she lived relatively close like me, it might be possible, or living on campus would be quite convenient, but for those further away, it's not very realistic. Classes ended late, and classes started earlier, leaving less than forty minutes for dinner. If she lived closer, she wouldn't be arriving at class so late every day.

"If you're going to meet them, it'll be very inconvenient without a phone, right? Are you planning to go home to get your phone?"

"No, it doesn't matter whether I bring my phone or not. I've never met him or spoken to him. As for where we met, I won't tell you."

I think what she said is absurd, and she might be lying to me.

She said she had never met him, never spoken to him, and had no contact with him, yet they had arranged a time and place to meet? Is that even possible?

It's certainly possible, but the situation would be slightly reversed. I interpret her words with malice: she said she could arrange a meeting time and place without ever having contacted the other person. If she had successfully grasped the other person's activity patterns and knew when and where they would appear, then Ye Yuqing's statement would indeed be plausible. However, "never having seen the other person" is highly unlikely, because without seeing the target, her actions would naturally lack a target. How could she possibly know the whereabouts of someone she's never even met? Did God tell her?

While there are various possibilities, I'm more inclined to believe she's lying to me. Moreover, this makes sense, both from a confidentiality standpoint and for her own protection. It's highly unlikely she would reveal her whereabouts to someone who is essentially a stranger; she's just trying to appease me.

Having arrived at this conclusion, it seems somewhat pointless to continue the conversation with her.

The teacher is moving around a bit, so I think it's best to end this conversation now.

"Class has started, let's talk again another time."

This is probably the first time in recent years that I've said something like this to someone who isn't a family member.

Ye Yuqing seemed a little unsatisfied, but after seeing the teacher walking not far away, she still chose to stop: "Okay, let's talk after class."

Ye Yuqing took out her textbook and, like everyone else, randomly picked a classical poem from it and began to read it aloud. I did the same, except that although I was looking at the book, I was reciting it from memory and feeling. I was thinking about the clues that Ye Yuqing had just given me, which weren't really clues.

Firstly, Ye Yuqing is lying to me, but this should be a normal reaction. She said she knew nothing about the person she was supposed to meet and had never communicated with them, yet she was able to obtain a specific time and place, which is clearly impossible. However, it's unclear where she lied—whether they met once, had some communication, or even if it was all a lie—it's more likely that they were actually acquaintances who arranged the time and place together, but we still lack evidence.

Secondly, regarding her phone, there are currently three possibilities. The first is simple: she's lying. Her phone is with her, which is quite possible; modern people rarely forget their phones even if they forget money or keys, so her story isn't very convincing. The second possibility is that she went home at some point and took the phone with her, which would explain why she had the phone at that time. This is also plausible, but not very likely. The third possibility is that the phone wasn't brought by Ye Yuqing herself, but obtained through other channels. This would mean… Ye Yuqing might have met someone before that incident and obtained the phone from them. If this is the case, then the specific time of their agreed meeting needs to be reconsidered.

Could it be the person Ye Yuqing had arranged to meet? I pondered the possibility of this.

Chapter Sixteen: The Blocked Passage

When lunchtime arrived, I started packing my things, intending to head to the cafeteria and grab lunch first. However, Ye Yuqing next to me was even faster. Just like an alarm clock that rings at the set time, Ye Yuqing had already started packing her things the instant the bell rang, and stood up, ready to join the flow of people out of the classroom.

Then I remembered that Ye Yuqing had been nowhere to be seen at lunchtime; I only spotted her after I finished eating. She seemed to be on the roof of the teaching building. I never knew if the roof of that building was accessible, since there was no outsourced cleaning or anything, and I never bothered to check. Back then, I didn't want to create trouble for myself. But now, it was somewhat necessary to check, and the best way was to just follow Ye Yuqing; that would solve more than half the problem at once.

Thinking of this, I quickly stood up and left the classroom, but strangely, I couldn't find Ye Yuqing. She wasn't particularly striking; her height and figure were just average for a high school girl. She didn't seem to have any particular desire to stand out or differentiate herself. Although she was quite pretty, she wasn't particularly noticeable. Actually, based on what I saw "today," Ye Yuqing's situation wasn't much different from mine. When I saw her, she was always alone, without anyone to talk to. Perhaps I hadn't been paying attention, or perhaps her best friend wasn't in her class—anything was possible—but her image, similar to mine, hadn't changed much.

After realizing I hadn't found her, I decided to check some things myself.

Aside from the rooftop terrace, the highest floor of this school building is our classroom. It's an old building, with only two classrooms on each floor. Next to our classroom is another classroom, but it's a rather impractical tiered lecture hall, only used occasionally during exams, and probably only a few times a semester. However, for convenience and because there's nothing particularly valuable inside, the classroom door is always open. I stood at the door and looked inside, but didn't see Ye Yuqing, so I came back out and went to the staircase. The rooftop naturally has an entrance, and this building only has one staircase for access; going down leads to the exit, and going up leads to the rooftop entrance.

I walked up the stairs. The part leading up to this point seemed to be part of our class's cleaning and sanitation responsibilities. Although I hadn't cleaned this area, it looked fairly clean, without much dust. However, at the end of the stairs, on a small platform, were piles of old-fashioned wooden desks and chairs. I used to use these kinds of desks and chairs frequently in elementary and middle school; they were individual desks and chairs, and the number of sets was determined by the number of students, which was quite convenient. Now, however, this place was piled high with these things, one on top of another. It would probably take some time to tidy it up. I peered through the gaps between the desks and chairs at the door and noticed a very old lock covered in rust. I wondered if the inside was also unusable, like the outside.

However, this meant that the only way to the rooftop was now blocked by the poison. I was slightly curious about how Ye Yuqing had gotten to the rooftop, but since I couldn't find her now, I could only go to the cafeteria to get something to eat to fill my stomach.

I didn't leave the cafeteria until after lunch, and stood in the open space in front of the convenience store. I looked up at the roof of the teaching building, and sure enough, I saw her again. She was still leaning against the railing, waving and greeting me after looking in my direction. I looked around again, but the result was the same as last time—no one was looking in Ye Yuqing's direction. I turned back again, and this time she was still there. However, this time she wasn't leaning against the railing anymore. I watched her stand up, then turn and walk away from where I couldn't see her anymore.

She was supposed to come downstairs soon, which is why I followed her. I waited quietly at the stairwell entrance, and Ye Yuqing indeed came downstairs just as I remembered. I followed her. But I didn't expect that this time she really only bought a few things to eat at the convenience store, like snacks and bottled water. She didn't leave these things behind; she ate them in front of the store, threw the trash in the bin, and then walked back towards me. She probably wanted to go back to the classroom, right? I thought that was probably it, so I went back to the classroom before her. Two or three minutes later, she reappeared at the classroom door and went back to her seat.

She struck up a conversation with me again.

"Did you see me waving at you from the rooftop?"

"Waving at me? I thought you saw the person you wanted to see and were saying hello to him."

I was slightly surprised.