When the Wild Beast is Trapped in the Nightmare Cycle (BL)
Chapter 366: Unbreakable Bond (2)

Chapter 366: Unbreakable Bond (2)

Day one, and her brother’s health already collapsed.

How could he not, when he was suddenly forced to climb up a rocky mountain under the blistering summer sun? The physical exertion and exhaustion had taken a great toll on his body, leading him to contract a high fever. Hence Ying took it upon herself to carry him on her back, along with the two heavy backpacks thrust upon them at the base of the mountain.

Everything about this place was strange. Ying was just taking the usual route home when she found a lone bus instead of the familiar neighborhood she traversed every single day. And worse, her brother was implicated as well!

Through the mouths of the more experienced players, they learned that they had entered a bizarre yet horrifying survival game, and they had to fulfill whatever the NPC asked of them, if they wanted to obtain the return ticket and return home.

Their task was as simple as it was horrendous: climb the mountain and pray in the temple on the peak. As long as they completed this, then they could return to their world.

That was the only reassurance Ying repeated to herself again and again, even as her legs began to ache from the exertion, her chest heaving, and her lips cracked. Yet she was not willing to drink even a mouthful of water that had been rationed to them, opting to reserve every precious sip for her brother instead.

Faster... she had to move faster! The sooner she reached the peak, the quicker she would get her brother treated!

"Jie..."

Upon hearing that familiar voice, the tightness in her chest loosened ever so slightly. She gently placed her brother down, leaned him on a shaded rock and retrieved the mineral bottle for him. "Drink first," she said in a raspy voice.

Her brother drank only a few small mouthfuls before his gaze landed on her cracked and bleeding lips. "What about you? Aren’t you going to drink too?"

Wordlessly, Ying placed her hand on his forehead and frowned when she sensed the high temperature. "We don’t have medicine here, so... please hold on for a little longer." She began to pack their belongings as she spoke, "Come on, we have to move fast."

"Jie—"

"It’s okay," she mustered a faint reassuring smile on her face, her tone leaving no room for rebuttal. "I’m not thirsty yet."

He opened his mouth as though to say something, only to close it again and let silence prevail. She proceeded to carry him on her back as they pressed on, the unforgiving sun casting shadows over their arduous journey.

All day long, Ying never stopped to catch her breath, only resting a few minutes in between when she felt dizzy from the intense heat. If even she felt this much discomfort, what about her brother? For that, she should never complain.

Navigating the rugged landscape, Ying continued to climb one step after another, carrying her precious brother on her back. When night descended, they set up a tent and huddled against each other, seeking solace in each other’s presence just like they did in their mother’s womb. Then they would resume their grueling journey again as soon as the dawn broke.

This torturous routine continued for three whole days, yet her brother’s fever did not show any signs of abating. It grew worse instead, and he was starting to have difficulty staying awake.

Ying had never thought she was capable of feeling such gripping fear before. After placing her brother in a shaded enclave, she resolutely set out to seek other players and pleaded for their help, begging them to share their medicine with her.

But none of them helped. None of them was willing to waste their precious resources for someone who would clearly fail the Cycle.

One particularly callous player said that she would share her vitamins with her, if Ying were to kneel down and lick her shoes.

Soon after, she returned with a pill of vitamin in her grasp, her smile broadening as she saw her brother awake. "Here, drink this." She hurriedly took out the water bottle and handed the vitamin to him. "This is not a fever medicine, but it should help a little."

"Where did you get this from?" He questioned with his brows furrowed, his voice feeble and weak.

"A kind person shared it with me. Come on," Ying continued to urge, and she only breathed out a sigh of relief when she saw him swallowing the pill.

Another agonizing day unfolded. The relentless sun persisted in its merciless assault, its glare hot enough to burn. Ying’s throat felt like it was on fire, as it had been more than half a day since she last drank anything. But she only pressed her lips tight and swallowed her own saliva as much as possible, trying to douse the blazing flame with a small flicker of water. Sweat streamed down her body, some even dropping to her eyes, stinging like liquid fire.

Too focused on the challenging terrain before her, she did not even realize her brother was crying until a faint choked sob escaped his lips.

"W–What’s wrong?! Are you hurting?!" Alarmed, she attempted to put him down to check on him, but he only wrapped his arms tighter around her neck and whispered,

"Sorry... I’m sorry, Jie... sorry..."

"What the hell are you saying sorry for?" She hissed, the heat starting to get to her head. Otherwise she would never speak in such a harsh tone to her brother. "Stop crying. You will only be wasting the liquid in your body."

Despite her admonishment, her brother’s tears continued to fall on her neck and shoulders, and somehow they stung even more than the glare of the sun. "Sorry, Jie... you just gave me the last bit of our water, didn’t you? You... You always let me have more of it..."

Ying was caught off guard, not expecting her brother to find out. She had been trying to hide it. Oh well, she guessed there was no way she could have pretended for long. "It’s okay, you’re sick," she asserted in a matter-of-fact tone. "Don’t cry anymore. I will try my best to reach the peak tonight. By then, we will drink as much as we want."

She didn’t even know if there was water up there, let alone whether they would really reach their destination tonight, but the confidence in her tone managed to calm him down, just as it always did. His Jie was powerful, determined and resilient; she would definitely be able to tackle any problems that stood in her way.

However, the harsh reality within the Cycle would soon shatter any remnants of their hopes.

They did not manage to reach the summit that day, nor the day after that.