There was no essential difference—she had merely gone from a workshop full of natural fibers and dust to one filled with far more dangerous coal smoke and particulates. Both kinds of work were ruinous to the body.
Because she wasn't as strong as the male workers, Liqi had to spend more time to finish the same tasks and take home a smaller weekly wage, just to avoid being fired.
Most of the money Liqi earned—including the compensation for her chemical burns—was spent on Shaer's schooling. Over the past three years of study, Shaer had lived up to Liqi's expectations: her grades kept improving, and she seemed on the verge of a bright, open road.
Liqi hoped Shaer would keep studying and one day become a lawyer or a doctor, cutting all ties with their current life. That had always been Liqi's wish.
But Shaer clearly did not plan it that way.
She had no intention of taking the entrance exams, nor of seeking recommendations. As someone who planned carefully, Shaer didn't see further academic study as a path she could realistically walk.
The annual tuition and fees for an Ansu University college came to nearly one hundred and forty su pounds.
Even if Liqi worked herself to the bone, going a whole year without eating or drinking, she could only make around twenty-five su pounds.
Not to mention the enormous cost of living in the capital, Ansu. For them, university was an unbearable burden.
Beyond money, this poor district also teemed with hidden and overt dangers and ill-intentioned gazes fixed on them—like that thug Ayan, who for some reason had latched onto Shaer half a year ago.
What could most change her life and social standing now was not spending four or five years studying law at a university, but applying to the Bolen City Police Department for a recommendation right after graduation—leaving this neighborhood full of poverty and danger as soon as possible.
As an outstanding graduate of Bolen Private Academy, she wouldn't even need to take an exam. With a single letter of recommendation, she could secure a clerical post at the Inspectorate, move out of this district, and then figure out how to make life better step by steady step.
With that "police skin" on, those hooligans wouldn't dare target them anymore. In a new environment, she could safely save up for university, take the exams later, and keep climbing—one footprint at a time.
"Sorry."
A hoarse voice cut off Shaer's thoughts. She looked up and met Liqi's eyes.
"I want to do better, to work harder… but I don't know how."
There was a hint of frustration in Liqi's tone. Nearly fourteen hours of toil a day left her exhausted in body and mind, and those scar-covered hands still seemed powerless before the onrushing hardships of reality.
Seeing Liqi blame herself, Shaer felt a heaviness in her own chest.
How could she not blame herself, too?
She had been in this world for three years and had tried many things… but transmigration wasn't a novel. She didn't have those "essential" transmigrator advantages.
She didn't understand firearms design, couldn't recite the operatic verses popular here, and though she had studied law, she knew none of the physical laws or inventive knowledge. All she could rely on was the test-taking talent forged by exam-oriented education, and keep grinding away at problems in this world.
Law students couldn't cast spells, and public safety here was far messier than in her previous life. Her past-life knowledge was completely useless here.
It wasn't that Shaer hadn't tried to find superpowers or magic. She had even visited many so-called magical societies and telepathy or spiritualist associations, and attended their demonstrations.
But without question, those were all cheap tricks—fake at a glance.
There were many churches of various sizes in this world as well. She had visited them, and they all seemed like ordinary religions. Anything deeper was completely beyond her reach given her social station.
It seemed she had truly crossed into a normal otherworld with no extraordinary beings—and one with a hard start, at that.
No wonder her predecessor had taken her own life. That kind of pressure wasn't something most people could bear.
"I'm heading out."
Dinner ended in silence. After eating, Liqi reminded Shaer to lock the doors and windows, then left for her night shift. The real end of her workday wouldn't come until one in the morning.
Right now, both Liqi and Shaer had worries of their own—and plans for the future brewing in their minds.
In the living room, only Shaer remained, sitting on the sofa, staring at the cold fireplace. She rubbed the tarnished silver pocket watch in her hand, feeling the seconds tick beneath her fingertips.
Graduation was almost here… If she could just get into the Bolen Police, she'd at least have the ability to protect herself. But how could she keep that thug Ayan from disrupting her graduation ceremony…
"Gah!"
A crow screeched outside the window. Shaer flinched, her hand tightening on the watch.
"Tsk…"
A sharp sting ran through the pad of her right thumb. Looking down, she saw that the thumb she'd been rubbing along the seconds hand had been nicked; a thin cut welled blood that dripped onto the dial.
Before Shaer's eyes, that drop of blood seemed to come alive. It followed the fine grooves of the dial and gradually soaked the whole face.
"Tick—"
A single click of the seconds hand exploded in Shaer's mind, making her sway.
No way. Blood-bonding? That old trope?
Everything before Shaer's eyes blurred. She felt her consciousness sink into a pitch-black space.
Within that darkness, a silver-white screen lit up, flashing Chinese characters she hadn't seen in a very long time.
"Binding bearer…"
"Fate activation successful…"
"Detecting carry-in items… none."
"Detecting Fate Points… none."
"First simulation. System gifts 30 Fate Points. Please use them wisely."
After the sequence of flashes, three options remained before Shaer.
"Future: 2 Days (Saint 741, June 19, 18:27) (Cost: 10 Fate Points)"
"Past: 300 Days (Year 740, August 20, 12:00) (Cost: 100 Fate Points)"
"Old Days: ***, *** Days (Cost: 10,000 Fate Points)"
"Note: Choose 'Future' to simulate what's ahead; choose 'Past' to simulate what has been; choose 'Old Days' to experience a segment of ***. Please choose carefully… though it looks like you can only pick the first one, ha^"
The vision before her left Shaer standing there in a daze. After a long moment, she collected herself and examined the silver-white text again.
This… was a system?
And only one viable option…
"The future?"
She voiced the word softly.
If this really was a cheat… she had to at least try to see how it worked.
As soon as she chose, the silver-white text shattered and twisted into a rapidly spinning silver-white pocket watch.
The watch grew larger and larger in her vision, then burst. A wave of vertigo wrapped her up.
…
The blinding white light faded. The cozy scent of wood planks at her nose was gone, replaced by the sour reek of acid rain mixed with dust.
A light screen appeared before Shaer's eyes.
"Future"
"Saint 741, June 19, 18:28"
"Countdown — 23:59:59"
Drizzling rain smeared the date on the light screen.
The houses around her were gone. She didn't know when she had come outside. A fine rain had soaked her dress.
Looking down through the rain, Shaer saw the black academic robe she wore—and the diploma in her hand, tied with a white bow.
A diploma? Wasn't that only issued after the ceremony the day after tomorrow?
Eyes wide, Shaer opened it quickly. Her name and photo were right there.
It was indeed her diploma… Graduation date: Saint 741, June 19…
"This is… two days later?"
She lifted her gaze and quickly recognized where she stood.
She was on the road just inside Clocktower Lane District, facing the way home.
Knowing herself, she would have gone straight to get a police recommendation after receiving the diploma, right?
Shaer jogged to the shelter of an eave and felt around in her pocket. Soon she pulled out an oilpaper-wrapped letter. Seeing the envelope, she finally let out a breath.
Looks like she'd graduated safely and gotten the Police Inspectorate's recommendation—just as planned.
She had to hurry and tell her sister the good news. Get Liqi to quit her job, and the two of them could rent a place near the police station.
Shaer ran lightly toward home. Even when muddy water splashed her hem, she didn't care. It rained most of the year in Bolen; after three years, she was used to it.
"Dong—dong—"
The dinner bell tolled, signaling factories to let workers go eat. Shaer moved through streets and alleys with the bell as her backdrop. After turning a corner, her steps slowed.
A crowd had gathered before the door of No. 44, her building. They were chattering at once, passing judgment on the scene inside.
"Shaer's here!"
Someone shouted, and the crowd turned to look at her. Those blocking the middle stepped aside of their own accord.
At the center of their gawking lay four or five figures. Blood ran slick under the rain, mixing with the black gravel of the street.
On the outer edge lay Er—flat on his back, his white shirt stained red. His throat had been cut by a sharp blade, his belly slit open, intestines spilled everywhere. Terror still filled his eyes at the moment of death.
Next was the short one; his throat had been precisely slashed. He pressed both hands to his neck but couldn't stop the spray. His body convulsed in the struggles before death.
And behind those bodies, a figure sat propped against the blood-stained white steps at the door to the house. A knife was clenched in her hand; a silver-gray knife handle had sunk into her right eye; her horrifying face was frozen in a final grimace.
A bloody bouquet seemed to scatter around her. A cream cake had toppled on the steps, and a sugar plaque reading "Happy Graduation to Little Shaer~" had been washed by the rain. The red syrup of the letters melted and ran like blood.
"Thud!"
It was as if a hammer slammed into Shaer's skull. Her earlier light mood plunged straight down.
Cold rain struck her face, yet her eyes felt seared by a blazing sun.
What… happened…?
"Over there… Blackwater Gang!"
"Go… girl, you should go too."
At the arrival of a group, the nearby residents scattered in a rush.
In no time, the street that had been ringed with onlookers was suddenly empty; not a single person dared to linger.
"Six thirty-one… why is the ritual off schedule?"
"Click—"
An old man's voice came from behind Shaer.
With the crisp sound of a hammer being drawn back, the metal barrel in the man's hand was already aimed at the red-haired girl before him.
Is this a dream…?
Cold spread from Shaer's heart to her soles and up to her brow. She couldn't tear her eyes from the figure on the steps for even a moment. The rain could not wash this scene away.
What had happened? Why… had it become like this?
"Bang—!"
With the crack of a revolver, pain lanced through the back of Shaer's head. Silver-white light swallowed her vision.
When the light receded, the chill rain was gone. The old fireplace and the lingering scent of toasted bread filled her nose. She stared at the silver-white screen before her, hands and feet ice-cold.
…
"Reality"
"Saint 741, June 17"
"Evaluation: Two days later, you went for a run and polished your running technique. Since this was your first simulation, here's a consolation prize… hey now, don't look so grim."
"See? The bad thing hasn't happened yet."
"Rewards: Fate Points ×1, [Dexterity Lv.1]"
"Fate Points: 21"
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Chapter 3 — The Future, the Past, and the Old Days
Her ragged breathing couldn't calm the terror in her heart. The pain of a bullet punching through her skull still lingered. Shaer remained shaken by the vision she had just witnessed, unable to regain her composure for a long time.
By instinct she wanted to jump up and run to the factory district to check on her sister's safety, but reason kept her seated. She slowly adjusted the rhythm of her breathing.
What just happened wasn't real—it was only an illusion so realistic it went too far…
(Chapter 3 continues in the source beyond this point; your excerpt ends here.)
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