Qianyuan: My crew comes from the world of anime.

Page 54

In short, whether one lives or dies is not important... what is important is that one cannot die in the humiliating way of those who lie on the ground without ever resisting.

That was her initial thought.

It wasn't until she met Luo Tianming that she realized she could live a different life: at first, she was still worried about when she would die, but later she gradually forgot about it.

Europa gave her a wider world, and she felt like she was living again... Not only her, but others felt the same way.

As she fell to a point where she could lose consciousness, a thought suddenly flashed through her mind—a sentence she had overheard by chance.

'What you gain in the abyss, you will lose.'

"..."

So that's how it is... Revy suddenly felt at peace. She began to accept being swallowed by the abyss and stopped struggling...

In this respect, Luo Tianming is clearly different from her.

"Levi?! Levi?"

In a daze, Revy seemed to hear a familiar voice right beside her ear.

dong dong——!

The vibration from the helmet made her open her eyes groggily—and she immediately saw Luo Tianming's face looking at her through two masks.

For some reason, seeing his carefree and silly expression, Levi felt a little touched at the same time... but her anger flared up.

In an instant, she understood what 'foolish thing' Luo Tianming had done: he had come to save her, instead of running away—she, who shouldn't have expected to be rescued, had been saved... Only she herself was immersed in the emotion of 'sacrifice'.

Overwhelmed with shame and anger, Levi rammed her head into Luo Tianming's chest, yelling, "You...you bastard, what are you doing jumping down like that?! Are you trying to commit suicide for love?!"

"..."

And just like that, Revy completely ruined the touching reunion scene.

Chapter 71 Accomplices

Luo Tianming rubbed his chest and said, "A suicide pact..."

"So this is how you see our relationship?"

"Bastard!" Levi punched his shoulder again, but accidentally aggravated her injured hand, causing her to gasp in pain. She continued her tirade:

"You knew exactly what I meant, so why did you jump down to save me?!"

Luo Tianming grabbed the injured Levi, dragged her onto the small thruster, and then activated it...

Unfortunately, the weight of the two people plus the wetsuits was far too much, and it could only carry them up a few dozen meters at most before stopping.

"The power is out..." Luo Tianming stated this despairing fact.

Meanwhile, Levi's voice continued to boom through the communication device: "Now look what's happened, we're both going to fall together!"

"You bastard, Alo! Explain yourself! Why did you give up such a good chance to escape and insist on running down here to your death?!"

"..."

Luo Tianming thought this guy was really unreasonable. He had come down to save her, but instead he got a good scolding from her.

If it weren't for the diving helmet, he really wanted to slap this crazy woman to bring her to her senses.

But the immediate priority is to find a few footholds, as the rock walls are as smooth as a cave, with nowhere to grab onto.

"That's right!"

Luo Tianming suddenly remembered that he still had the harpoon of his harpoon gun tucked behind his waist... Unfortunately, he hadn't brought the harpoon gun with him, so he could only rely on the strength of his arms to send the harpoon into the cliff face.

Using the last bit of power left in his underwater propulsion system, he brought the two of them to the edge of the cave, then pulled out a crossbow and rammed it into the wall!

choke--!

The alloy arrow made a crisp, metallic sound as it scraped against the cave floor; he couldn't insert it.

"?!"

Just as they were about to fall, a voice came from behind them:

"Get out of the way, I'll handle this!"

Levi snatched the crossbow bolt with her uninjured hand and flicked her hand backward—!

Do!

With her exaggerated arm strength, the crossbow bolt pierced the hole half an inch deep.

"..."

And so, each of them used a crossbow bolt to hang themselves from the edge of the cave.

He was at least out of the danger of falling... but compared to Levi, who was about to 'erupt like a volcano,' Luo Tianming sometimes felt that it would have been better to just fall.

"..."

"Hey," Levi fired first, "Don't you want to answer any of my questions?"

"If you think you can expect me to be grateful to you just because you saved me, you're sorely mistaken!"

“I hate those self-righteous guys who lecturing others. If you can’t give me an explanation… this is never over, even if you’re the captain.”

Luo Tianming: "..."

How could I possibly respond to what she said?

The awkward atmosphere passed by second by second... Luo Tianming felt that he definitely had to say something, no matter how bad he was at speaking, he had to speak quickly, otherwise Levi really wouldn't forgive him.

You won't forgive him?

Why won't Levi forgive him?

It was because he wasted a rare 'chance to escape' that she, with the resolve to die, created the opportunity for Luo Tianming to escape.

But he deliberately gave up this opportunity and jumped down, which was like a suicide attempt. Wasn't he just wasting the opportunity that Revy had created?

"Levi, I didn't waste the opportunity you gave me."

After a long silence, Luo Tianming said, "I killed that Veteran Velociraptor. If it weren't for your bullets, I probably wouldn't have had the chance to kill it."

"That's not it!" Reverie unexpectedly snapped angrily. "What I mean is, why did you come back to save me? You have no obligation to do so!"

"This isn't what we agreed on at the beginning?! Protecting you is my duty as the 'security officer'... but if it's you protecting me—what's the point?!"

Luo Tianming: "..."

“You shouldn’t have come to save me…” Levi shook her head. “A mercenary like me should be disposed of as soon as possible after being used. The employer should be happy when the mercenary dies, because it means they can pay less.”

"If I were to fall and die like this, it would simply be because I'm not skilled enough, and I deserve it... But what do you mean by lending me a hand? Are you pitying me?!"

Levi's angry voice is reminiscent of a snarling wolf... Even with her leg broken by a trap, she will bite without mercy when someone comes to rescue her.

"..."

Surprisingly, Luo Tianming didn't feel angry at all about her attitude.

She is not a plaything, nor is she someone else's pet. She is a person with her own thoughts and worldview... It is normal for her to have conflicts with other people's values.

The reason why Revy kept asking Luo Tianming why he "came to save her" was actually a question she herself was asking.

Levi lived in a world of mercenaries amidst gunfire, and the belief she had held for over twenty years was: the survival of the fittest.

This world is utterly rotten, and everyone is struggling in it... Therefore, do your own thing, and then give the middle finger with style before you die. That's the meaning of life.

Luo Tianming's actions shattered the beliefs in Levi's heart.

If Luo Tianming hadn't come to save her, Levi could have calmly accepted her fate, even if it meant sacrificing herself and facing the prospect of dying in the deepest hell.

Luo Tianming came to save her... Things started to change, and the idea that Levi believed in mutual exploitation and each going their own way no longer applied.

In this world, people can support each other and trust one another—in other words, the world isn't as bad as she imagines.

Now, she is like a boat tossed about in a storm.

Luo Tianming's words could either dispel the storm or plunge her completely into the dark and deep sea.

"..."

Hiss~whoosh.

After taking a deep breath, Luo Tianming answered her question.

“Levi, we have never had an employer-employee relationship.”

"...!"

These words made Revy feel as if her blood vessels were being pierced by countless growing ice needles.

But the next sentence was like sunlight melting away those ice needles.

"I've always considered you an accomplice."

Luo Tianming explained, “We are in the same boat. You and I—wasn’t that how it was when we escaped from the outpost? I couldn’t have survived without you back then, and similarly—if you had died, I wouldn’t have been able to escape alone.”

"I thought you thought the same thing... If I fell from here, would you risk your life to save me?"

"Of course!"

Without a moment's hesitation, Levi realized that it was a pity they were all wearing helmets, otherwise she would have seen the sly smile on Luo Tianming's lips.

“But…that’s different,” Levi’s voice became unexpectedly weak. “It’s my duty to save you.”

"For the sake of duty, even losing one's life is acceptable?"

"of course."

"If you saw me fall, would you jump down without hesitation?"

"of course."

"do you like me……"

"when……!"

In an instant, Levi realized she had been tricked.

"Hmph~" Luo Tianming chuckled smugly, "Levi, you know that between men and women, this kind of feeling is actually called..."

"……cough!"

An untimely cough came through the communication device, reminding the two of them that there were other people present.

"..."