If the Tang family's hidden master died, she could beg her adoptive father to retract the order.
Tarik had followed his father for so many years; before Xia Qingyu appeared, Tarik had never made a mistake.
If anyone truly deserved to die, it was Xia Qingyu. Tarik absolutely shouldn't become a victim of his father's emotions.
Thinking of this, Sif hurried closer to Er Ya, her wrist flicked, and a dagger appeared in her hand.
Steel-hearted, Sif aimed for the carotid artery in Er Ya's neck.
With just one strike, she could send Er Ya to the underworld.
The corner ahead was a blind spot for surveillance. She had 1.25 seconds to commit the murder, after which she just needed to have someone hack the system to tamper with the footage of her departure.
The turn was just ahead. Sif tightened her grip on the dagger, took a step forward, found her timing, and raised the dagger high.
At that moment, a hand emerged from the other side of the turn and caught her wrist.
"Sif!" Nie Qingkong said, his face grim. He knew Sif would act on her own.
"Tarik!" Seeing Tarik, Sif was also stunned. "Tarik, don't stop me! I'm doing this for you!"
"Don't do anything unnecessary," Nie Qingkong warned. "This is not your place."
"I'm saving you! Don't you understand!" Sif was furious. She tried to wrench her wrist from Nie Qingkong's grasp, only to find his strength immense, so much so that she couldn't break free.
Frustrated, Sif glared at Nie Qingkong through gritted teeth. "Do you really think you're Nie Qingkong? You are Young Master Tarik, not some lovesick fool Nie Qingkong! You are nobody to Xia Qingyu! You are my Tarik!"
Hearing Sif's words, Nie Qingkong paused slightly. This was the first time he had such a thought.
If he wasn't Young Master Tarik, if he were just a transfer student named Nie Qingkong, perhaps... things could have developed differently with Xia Qingyu.
If...
It was a pity that there were never any such "ifs."
Just then, a female voice came from behind Nie Qingkong: "So, you're called Nie Qingkong."
Both Sif and Nie Qingkong turned their heads simultaneously. They saw Er Ya, who should have left long ago, leaning against the wall, staring at them with great interest.
"Tang family's hidden master!" Sif immediately looked nervous, her eyes filled with killing intent. She had almost succeeded!
"Hey, little foreign girl, you've been following me. What's up?" Er Ya had noticed Sif much earlier but had been too lazy to bother with her until Sif revealed the dagger.
Er Ya sensed that this little foreign girl meant trouble.
She had originally planned to act at the corner, kill the person directly, and throw her into the sea to avoid troubling Qing Tian. She didn't expect an unfamiliar man to walk towards her, disrupting her plan.
As she was contemplating whether to find another opportunity to strike, the two suddenly started arguing.
Only when the little foreign girl called out the boy's name could Er Ya no longer hold back.
"How do you know who I am!" Nie Qingkong looked at Er Ya, his eyes filled with wariness.
"Qingyu mentioned you," Er Ya replied directly.
"What? Qingyu she..." The wariness in Nie Qingkong's eyes vanished instantly, replaced by a flicker of hope. "She spoke about me to you? What did she say?"
Could it be that Xia Qingyu cared about him just as much?
Cared enough to mention him to others?
"Qingyu said you owe her 200 yuan," Er Ya blinked and replied.
"..." Nie Qingkong's mouth twitched slightly. After a long moment, he asked with lingering disappointment, "That's it? She didn't say anything else?"
"She..." Before Er Ya could finish, Sif rudely interrupted.
"Tarik!" Seeing Tarik like this, Sif stamped her foot in anger. "I don't want to deal with you anymore! Whether you live or die! I don't care anymore!"
With that, she turned and ran away in tears.
Watching Sif's retreating back, Nie Qingkong's gaze shifted slightly.
He knew Sif cared about him, but sometimes, this kind of concern felt like a form of pressure for him.
He didn't need it, nor did he like it.
"This little foreign girl has quite a temper," Er Ya remarked, watching Sif's back. She then turned to Nie Qingkong and asked, "Who is she? Your girlfriend?"
"No." Nie Qingkong sighed inwardly and looked at Er Ya. "You still haven't told me what else Xia Qingyu said about me."
"Ah, this," Er Ya said frankly, "She said you are a pitiable person, and she also said..."
"P-pitiable person?" Nie Qingkong couldn't believe his ears. It felt as if a sharp knife had ruthlessly pierced the softest spot in his heart.
Bleeding profusely.
Xia Qingyu actually saw him that way.
Pitiable, so pitiful...
*Tsk.*
In her eyes, he was someone who needed her pity.
Muttering, Nie Qingkong let out a self-mocking laugh and turned to leave.
When his parents died, his relatives had also called him: a pitiable person.
Looking down from above, they offered him cheap sympathy, limited kindness, a few tears, and the label: pitiable person.
But not long after, that pitiable person turned into an unlucky omen who had caused his parents' death.
Pity.
In this life, the two words he hated the most and needed the least.
Watching Nie Qingkong walk away, Er Ya, who hadn't even finished speaking, could only click her tongue. "These two, one more temperamental than the other. I haven't even finished my sentence."
Turning back towards her room, Er Ya's ears echoed with Xia Qingyu's conversation with her that evening.
【Er Ya, Nie Qingkong is a pitiable person. If he really comes to kill you, please protect yourself well. If possible, try not to hurt him...】
【Qingyu, aren't you making things difficult for your Er Ya! If he comes to kill me, I'm not allowed to hurt him! Get it straight, he's here to kill me!】
【I know my request is a bit unreasonable, but, but Er Ya, you can ask me to do anything when we get back... Try not to injure him. Er Ya, consider it me begging you!】
【Anything? Oh, I can't say no to you! I'll try my best~】
...
Humming a tune, Er Ya returned to her room. As soon as she entered, she saw Xia Qingyu sleeping soundly on the bed.
Looking at Xia Qingyu's face, Er Ya whispered, "I didn't hurt him today, you know~"
Stretching, Er Ya then snuggled up on the other side of Xia Qingyu and fell into a deep sleep.
The sunrise at sea was very early. The morning on the ship was even colder than the previous night.
Knowing that it was the day to land on the island, many people had woken up early, watching a complete sea sunrise on the deck and marveling at the grandeur and magic of creation.
After everyone had breakfast in the dining hall, the entire ship began to shake, and an exciting announcement came over the ship's broadcast.
【The ship will officially reach its destination in twenty minutes. Passengers are requested to gather their belongings and disembark in an orderly manner under the guidance of the staff upon landing.】