[AR] Chapter 15: Sprouting

How much time had passed? Maybe only a few minutes, maybe far longer. Luo Yuan kept running forward in numb silence.

No one followed beside him anymore. Only he remained, clutching the unconscious Chen Fengling in his arms as he staggered onward.

Her blood had already seeped into his clothes, soaking him in her scent.

Luo Yuan reached the entrance to the gymnasium. Climbing the steps, leaving behind a trail of sweat and blood, he finally reached the top—only to be met with hostility instead of welcome.

“Put down the infected girl you’re carrying, or we won’t open the door.”

Yes. Chen Fengling had been pierced through the arm and shoulder by a Corrupted Skirmisher. Now she was barely hanging on, moments away from turning into one of the walking dead.

“I was right there in front of him,” his so-called “roommate” said, sneering as he lied. “Not only is that girl infected, but he’s been wounded by that monster too.”

The students manning the door, hearing this, didn’t unlock it. Instead, they pushed the barricade tighter.

The sound of heavy objects being dragged filled Luo Yuan’s ears with a buzzing hum. His tears, bitter with sweat, dripped onto Chen Fengling’s pale face.

Her eyes were closed, her expression tranquil, like an angel. The lively girl who always clung to his side seemed silent now, as if Heaven had recalled its blessing and taken its angel back.

“Qingtang… Fengling…”

Luo Yuan felt like he was that weak, cowardly boy again—the one who never dared to resist. He thought, if only he had gone along with them back then, maybe that vile classmate wouldn’t have betrayed him. Maybe Fengling and Senpai wouldn’t have had to sacrifice themselves.

His regained courage, his pride, all felt like cruel mockery.

Unable to fight head-on against even a Corrupted Vanguard, burdened with carrying her, he could only skulk in the shadows like a rat.

Her finely crafted sword was still at his side, but when he tried to wield it, his strength was nowhere close to hers.

Fearful and weary, he finally reached the infirmary across the street from the stadium. The school doctor had already fled; the door hadn’t been locked. For once, he was lucky—no monsters lurked inside.

He set Chen Fengling down on a bed and collapsed against the floor, exhausted. But he couldn’t rest. He had to try to treat her wounds.

Her pierced arm and shoulder still bled heavily. There was no time to hesitate. He swallowed hard, removed her blood-soaked dress, and began working.

Chen Fengling’s flawless skin lay bare. She had always worn this strange white dress she’d brought back with her after crossing into this world. Without a household registry, she shouldn’t even exist here—yet no one had noticed, because her presence quietly clouded their minds.

Now, defenseless, she was laid out before him.

Luo Yuan flushed, ashamed of the stray thoughts stirring in his mind. She was dying—infected with the virus, likely to soon become a Corrupted beast—yet still, the temptation gnawed at him.

Forcing his mind back to the task, he disinfected and bandaged her wounds as best he could. Crude work, enough to kill a normal human, but Chen Fengling was no ordinary girl. As an awakened, her resilient body slowly began to clot and stabilize.

“Fengling! You’re awake—thank God…”

Her lips pale, she weakly nodded. She had let the virus enter her body on purpose, lowering her defenses in order to grasp another chance at awakening an ability.

Her immune system raged, fever burning through her body. Luo Yuan stayed at her side, afraid she would fall asleep and never wake again.

Holding her hand, he was swallowed by despair. Senpai and Tian Bo were missing, and Fengling was slipping away. Against that monster, he had achieved nothing. His pride after surviving now felt like a boomerang cutting him down.

“I couldn’t even wield her sword against the weakest Corrupted Vanguard,” he whispered bitterly. “If not for me, Senpai could have led everyone to safety…”

When he looked into Fengling’s eyes, however, he saw only trust and gentleness—as if she were telling him: It’s okay. You don’t need to blame yourself. To me, you’re already the best.

But Luo Yuan couldn’t believe it. He had failed her, even harbored shameful thoughts while treating her. He wasn’t worthy of such faith.

He thought he had finally broken free of the nightmare—standing up to those who bullied him, finding courage with Chen Fengling at his side. But reality mocked him again. It showed him light, only to snatch it away.

“I’m so tired… what is this life even for?” he thought. “Why me? Why always me?”

His tears fell as Fengling shivered, fever making her body feel icy. Naked beneath only a thin sheet, she trembled as if back on that ruined battlefield of her past life, dying alone in despair.

“…So this is what awakening an ability feels like,” she murmured, clinging to his warmth before her mind crashed into darkness.

Luo Yuan panicked, watching her temperature fall. On impulse, he climbed under the blanket and wrapped his arms around her fragile body.

Startled at first, Chen Fengling relaxed into his warmth. His presence melted her fear like snow under the sun.

“…As expected of Luo Yuan… my god, my nightmare…” she whispered with reverence. Even knowing she could turn at any moment, he still held her close.

Inside her, emotions long suppressed began to stir. The Divine Seed buried in rotting soil cracked open and sprouted. She realized now that her feelings for him were no longer mere friendship or dependence—they had become something deeper, more dangerous.

Pressed so close, with his breath warm against her shoulder and his hand resting on her stomach, she trembled again—but this time for an entirely different reason.

“No… I can’t… I mustn’t…” she told herself, even as her body betrayed her.

The seed had sprouted.