Cannon Fodder – Chapter 19 – The “Water” in the Bottle Was Crimson

The wind howled, rain poured, and lightning split the sky.

The storm had raged for nearly an hour with no sign of letting up. If anything, it grew fiercer.

On the dormitory rooftop, Chi Xiaocheng still sat beneath the shelter, her breathing weak, her face pale.

The constant notifications of emotional value in her mind had been too noisy, so she turned them off. Now, only thunder and rain filled her ears.

But the wind was too strong. Even under the shelter, stray droplets still struck her, soaking half her body. Her thin T-shirt clung to her skin, revealing glimpses of fair flesh.

“System, how long has it been?”

To make the act more convincing, she had thrown her phone off the 14th floor. Without it, she had no way of knowing how much time had passed since she hung up the call.

Fortunately, she still had the system.

[About 20 minutes.]

“By my estimate, Su Tao should be back at school by now.”

She shifted her body, deliberately exposing herself to the rain, letting it drench her completely.

It was late November, deep into autumn—not freezing, but far from warm.

The icy rainwater sent uncontrollable shivers through her body.

Even the system felt a pang of sympathy.

[Host, maybe we should just call it off? Or use some emotional points to buy another pill? I’m scared for you.]

“I’m not even complaining, and you, a system, are scared?”

[If you die, I’m gone too! And host, are you sure you’re not actually a yandere? Your actions terrify me.]

“Aren’t you a villain system? Even if I went out and killed someone, you should be cheering me on! I haven’t done anything yet, and you’re already scared? How useless are you?”

[T-T]

Chi Xiaocheng rolled her eyes.

Once she confirmed she was thoroughly soaked, she retreated back under the shelter, curling up to preserve what little warmth remained.

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She had already executed the second step of her plan: Using emotional points to buy and take a pill.

But this body’s frailty surprised her. Even with the pill, she still felt weak.

Her head throbbed, heavy with exhaustion. She wanted nothing more than to sleep.

But the female lead hadn’t arrived yet. The third step of the plan was the most crucial.

Afraid she might collapse from exhaustion, she forced herself to keep talking to the system.

“Answering your earlier question: I told you, this is the ‘yandere’ persona. If I’m going to act, I have to commit fully. Otherwise, how can I make the female lead fall for it?”

“Besides, real yanderes don’t have self-awareness like this. They don’t even realize they’re yanderes.”

“And think about Ye Liang’s glare this afternoon, plus the hundreds of emotional points I just got. I bet he wants to kill me right now. I need to squeeze out as many emotional points as possible and keep the female lead firmly in my grasp.”

Without the protection of the female lead’s halo, Chi Xiaocheng was genuinely afraid something might happen to her!

Her conversation with the system gradually turned into a monologue.

She had no idea how much time had passed when—

BANG!

The rooftop door was flung open violently.

A frantic voice called out—

“Xiaocheng!”

Su Tao arrived!

Gasping for breath, she braced herself against the wall to keep from collapsing.

After half an hour of pedaling through the storm, wading through flooded streets, and then, due to a blackout, being unable to use the elevator, she had sprinted up 14 flights of stairs, desperately hoping to see Chi Xiaocheng somewhere along the way.

The metal door clanged violently against the wind. Her formal dress was completely drenched, clinging to her skin with every step, making each movement exhausting.

Yet despite it all, she stepped outside, shouting into the wind—

“Xiaocheng! Where are you?!”

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No response.

Her eyes swept the rooftop, but she saw no sign of Chi Xiaocheng.

But when she had arrived downstairs, there had been no “body,” no ambulance.

Xiaocheng must still be okay!

She clung to that belief fiercely.

Just as she was about to search the rooftop, a weak but delighted voice reached her—

“Tao… Tao… you came back?”

“Xiaocheng?!”

Following the sound, Su Tao’s heart leapt with relief.

There, under the shelter, was Chi Xiaocheng.

The tension in Su Tao’s body dissolved instantly. Her legs gave way, and she collapsed onto Chi Xiaocheng, wrapping her arms around her tightly.

Tears mixed with raindrops as they streamed down her face.

“Xiaocheng… you’re okay… thank goodness…”

Resting her head on Su Tao’s shoulder, Chi Xiaocheng felt the warmth of her embrace and allowed a faint smile to curl her lips.

Ah~ This feeling of being loved so completely… it’s so warm.

But her acting never faltered.

A fragile, trembling voice escaped her, laced with fear and guilt—

“I-I’m sorry, Tao… 14 floors… was too high… I couldn’t jump… I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry…”

Su Tao’s heart ached.

She knew Chi Xiaocheng had misunderstood her words.

But she blamed only herself, for not explaining clearly, for nearly costing Xiaocheng her life.

Guilt overwhelmed her. Taking a deep breath, Su Tao cupped Chi Xiaocheng’s face, gently wiping away her tears with her thumbs.

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“Don’t apologize. It’s my fault for not explaining properly. As long as you’re okay, Xiaocheng… as long as you’re okay…”

Chi Xiaocheng sniffled, her voice still weak and tearful.

“Tao… won’t you hate me? After all the terrible things I did… and now I made you worry like this… I…”

“Shh.”

Su Tao pressed a slender finger to Chi Xiaocheng’s lips, then leaned forward, resting her forehead against hers.

“How could I ever hate you, Xiaocheng? Everyone makes mistakes. You’re trying to change now, aren’t you? We promised to talk tonight, remember?”

Chi Xiaocheng’s tears turned into a fragile smile—

Then, abruptly, she began fumbling around nervously.

“What are you looking for?”

“Water.”

“Water?” Su Tao didn’t understand at first—then it hit her. “Oh! Xiaocheng, what did you want to tell me up here?”

“It’s about the water.”

Finally finding the bottle, Chi Xiaocheng carefully handed it to Su Tao.

“This afternoon… Tao gave water to Ye Liang… but not to me…”

Su Tao froze.

Then, despite everything, she let out a soft, exasperated laugh.

“So that’s what this was about? Xiaocheng, you’re really….”

Really such a fool.

She didn’t pick up on the oddness of the situation, only seeing this as Chi Xiaocheng’s way of making amends.

Almost like… she was jealous?

She accepted the bottle. The darkness hid Chi Xiaocheng’s expression, but Su Tao could feel the anticipation in her gaze.

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Gently, she said, “If I drink this, you have to promise to be good, okay? We’ll go back to the dorm together.”

“Okay~”

Chi Xiaocheng’s voice was sweet, softer than usual, carrying a childish lilt—

It reminded Su Tao of the Chi Xiaocheng from middle school.

She really is starting to act like her old self again.

Even in the dark, Su Tao easily twisted the cap open.

A faint, strange scent tickled her nose.

But she didn’t dwell on it. Sitting beside Chi Xiaocheng, she tilted her head back and drank.

Gulp.

A little… sweet?

Is this orange juice?

Then—

BOOM!

A deafening thunderclap.

A blinding flash of lightning split the sky, illuminating the rooftop for a single, stark moment.

The darkness lifted—

And the liquid in the bottle became horrifyingly clear.

Su Tao’s pupils shrank to pinpricks.

Every raindrop on her skin turned to ice.

This wasn’t water.

The liquid in the bottle was a deep, vivid crimson.