“Was it… because of me… that you decided to cooperate?” Sha Yi was surprised by Kasan’s words. “But… back then, it was clearly you who met Garo first. Why say it was because of me?”
“You understand Garo as well as I do,” Kasan replied, shedding his earlier sorrow and regaining his composure. “At first, I did consider him, but I also saw the cunning beneath his surface. Perhaps he was far better than Yeli, but that doesn’t erase the possibility of him scheming against us. So, I didn’t fully rely on him. Besides, I always had to be wary of Yeli.”
“So you held back until that negotiation with Yeli, when you saw me?” Sha Yi raised an eyebrow. “That conversation between you and Yeli… was it deliberate?”
“Yes, exactly,” Kasan said slowly. “Originally, I hadn’t intended to openly oppose Yeli, but that time, to make you notice me and trust our sincerity, I deliberately confronted him.”
“You trusted me at first sight?” Sha Yi couldn’t help raising her voice. “Weren’t you afraid Yeli would notice something?”
“He’s always been suspicious of me, but I doubt he could pick up on anything. Very few know about the things I experienced as a child,” Kasan said with a dismissive smile. “As for you, I don’t know why, but the moment I saw you, I felt an inexplicable closeness, as if I could trust you completely. Of course, that was just my own feeling. You probably didn’t think the same. Maybe it’s because of the person from my past—she taught me so much that, subconsciously, I saw her in you.”
“Perhaps… as you say,” Sha Yi nodded in understanding. “Often, when we hold certain people or memories in our hearts, encountering something similar inevitably feels familiar, even comforting.”
“That’s exactly it,” Kasan looked up at her with a smile, then added softly after a pause, “But I know you’re not her.”
“Obviously,” Sha Yi teased. “If I were her, I probably wouldn’t be here now. From what you’ve said, she was much older than you.”
“Yes, she couldn’t have lived this long,” Kasan sighed, though he seemed more at ease now. “If she had been like you back then, maybe she wouldn’t have disappeared.”
Though the topic touched on life and death, Kasan, like many from ancient times, didn’t seem to fear death much.
Perhaps it was because he had experienced and faced it so often. In a world fraught with danger, death was commonplace. If one were to fall into despair every time, they’d likely perish themselves.
Just like when Ximang died—despite their grief, Xiyi and Xigu, as his closest kin, didn’t mourn for long. They recovered relatively quickly, far more accepting than modern people would be.
But Sha Yi wasn’t necessarily as composed as Kasan made her out to be.
When Xiyi was thrown into the river by Garo, she had been ready to follow him. Their luck had simply been better than that of the people Kasan mentioned—Taita and the others. Had she been forced to face the death of someone she cared about most, she doubted she could have survived either.
Because such pure, sincere, and irreplaceable bonds were truly rare.
Their conversation lapsed into silence.
After a long while, a glimmer of light appeared on the distant horizon. Kasan turned slightly to look and murmured, “Dawn is breaking. I wonder how things are on Tuge’s side.”
Snapped out of her thoughts and uncertainties about the future, Sha Yi asked, “Didn’t you already make arrangements?”
“I did, but…” Kasan shook his head. “I don’t know the outcome. You know as well as I do that so-called prophetic abilities are just observations and comparisons. You and she are from the same world. Others might not understand, but you should know better.”
Sha Yi was momentarily stunned. “Then we should hurry and check on them!”
“I’ll go to Garo and Kapa’s side. You go to Saina—you two communicate more smoothly,” Kasan decided, then turned and headed in the opposite direction.
The meeting point earlier and their current resting place were indeed in different directions. If Garo was busy with the rendezvous, Saina, given his condition, was more likely handling the arrangements.
Kasan’s choice was probably precise.
Sha Yi didn’t stop him and turned to go the other way. But just as she rounded the corner of the house, a lean figure stepped out.
Startled, she reflexively halted and looked up—only to see Saina blocking her path. Her racing heart settled slightly.
But then, the lean man suddenly reached out and grabbed her hand. She recoiled, trying to pull away, but he pulled her into an embrace. His slightly hoarse voice whispered by her ear, “Don’t push me away every time, Sha Yi. Just this once—accept me. I promise this is the last time I’ll hold onto these feelings. I just… can’t help it. Just this once, and never again.”
“Saina… what’s wrong with you?” Trapped in his arms, Sha Yi felt uneasy but feared struggling would only make him more determined—or worse, reopen his barely healed wounds. So she stiffly endured the embrace.
“I’ve… been here for a long time,” he sighed, tightening his arms slightly. “I heard most of your conversation with Kasan.”
“But I didn’t mean to eavesdrop,” he quickly added as she stiffened in surprise. “I came to find you, but when I arrived, Kasan’s words sounded off, so I… I’m sorry.”
“Why apologize to me?” Sha Yi was puzzled. “Could you understand what Kasan was saying?”
“If I told you I could, would you believe me?” As if steeling himself, he slowly loosened his grip. “I understood most of it, though some parts were unclear—like the ‘other world.’ But even before Kasan explained, I’d suspected some things.”
“You mean… you suspected I wasn’t from here?” Sha Yi couldn’t hide her shock. “Since when? Why?”
“Since the new settlement cave. Though even before the salt-mining trip, I thought your fire-making tools were strange,” he admitted, lowering his gaze. “Back then, I realized you knew things none of us did. You were skilled at using them. You never said where you came from, but that didn’t stop me from wondering. I’d never met a woman like you—not in all my life.”
“But… I don’t understand…” In her view, ancient people were supposed to be rigid in their thinking. Imagination like this shouldn’t have existed. “How did you even conceive of such an idea?”
“Most wouldn’t think of it,” Saina smiled. “But I’m different. When I was young, our group had no one left to care for us. We survived on our own. I often wondered where my dead mother went—why the dead couldn’t speak to the living. Maybe it was another world.”
“You… never told me about your childhood before…” Sha Yi felt a pang of guilt, as if she’d pried into a painful memory.
“I usually don’t talk about it. But for you, I’d gladly share—if you’d give me the chance,” his dark eyes glinted with mischief. “Of course, I know you wouldn’t, so I’m just saying it outright. No chance for refusal now.”
There was a hint of resentment in his words—for her never giving him a chance to pursue her. But it was also his way of smoothing things over, explaining himself while accepting the outcome. Rare for him to be so composed.
When she stayed silent, he continued, “That idea stayed with me for years. After my sister—the only woman in our group—died, I wondered if the dead might live again in another world like ours. Maybe they just couldn’t speak to us, and that silence is what we call death.”
“Then… I met you.” His expression lightened as he met her eyes again, the earlier melancholy gone. “I was astonished—back when we moved to the second cave. That’s when I started forming theories about you. But I could never confirm them, much less… have you. Not even a place by your side. That always felt like a regret.”
“But it doesn’t matter now.” Leaning closer, Saina gave a faint smile. “Sha Yi, when we go to where Kasan’s people gathered and face Yeli, no matter what happens, remember one thing.”
“What?” Sha Yi stared at him, uneasy. She couldn’t predict what he’d say or do next.
Saina had always been unpredictable—his thoughts and actions beyond ordinary comprehension. Even now, she was at a loss.
“Whatever decision I make, support me. And convince Xiyi to do the same,” he said, smiling. “That’s my only wish. I don’t expect everyone’s approval, but I hope for your and Xiyi’s trust.”
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