These Dangerous Girls Placed Me Into Jeopardy-Chapter 8Vol 3. .2: The Surface and the Depths of [Lillian Ji]

Upward. I have to keep going upward... I can’t close my eyes. Don’t be afraid. This time—for sure—I’ll make it.

I want to go... I want to hear his voice. I want him to look at me. I want... to touch him with my own hands.

I really want...

I really want to be held in your arms...

I swatted away those terrifying things that bound me and rose from the abyss, reaching forward with all my strength, as if I could even pluck down the stars. Even just one more centimeter—I wanted to get closer.

It’s okay. I’ve tried so many times. This time, I’ll reach it.

In the endless darkness, I could faintly see a light.

So weak it might disappear at any moment—but that was what gave me hope.

As long as I focused only on that light and kept rising, I could get there.

And finally—I arrived.

A dark gray ice sheet. Through it, I could dimly see the “outside.”

This place was divided by a horizontal line—the boundary between the conscious and the subconscious. A membrane of the soul. A divider of the spirit. I, the foundation of “her,” was trapped in this deep layer of awareness, unable to perceive anything from the outside. All I could do was struggle upward again and again.

She had imprisoned me deep within her consciousness.

Even if we shared the same memories and experiences, I... had never reached this far before. I wanted to see him with my own eyes, through this ice.

I wanted to feel more. I wanted to be with my Ethan and spend precious time together—

I reached out, placed my palm on the ice, and closed my eyes, pouring all my desire into that single touch.

The world around me began to tremble. Because of my deep yearning, cracks began to form in the barrier that divided inside and out.

She would probably push me back down again afterward. But even so—just seeing Ethan made it all worth it.

Ethan did say we’d go on a date together, didn’t he? Hehe~

A date~ Last time was such a rush—we didn’t get to enjoy it at all. This time, I want to make unforgettable memories.

For the location...

Hmm, I kind of want to go to an amusement park. I’ve always wanted to ride the Ferris wheel, to lean against his shoulder.

An aquarium would be nice too. It sounds romantic.

Where will he take me? I can’t wait~ Hehehe...

But Ethan said he’d decide where we go next time.

If we end up at a love hotel—

“Cut the delusional crap. This body doesn’t belong to just you.”

A voice pierced through the ice and echoed in my ears.

A face exactly like mine, glaring at me coldly.

Our eyes met. She was me—or rather, I was once a part of her.

“Oh? You again... What are you doing here?”

“Pfft... calling me ‘the other one’? That’s so like you. ‘Partner’? Please, let’s not pretend.”

She crossed her arms and looked away in disgust, eyebrows furrowed.

...Ah, so that’s what she meant.

I searched my memories and understood the joke. Hearing her mutter under her breath, “I must be losing it, joking around with her...” made me smile instead.

“Lately, ~Nоvеl𝕚ght~ you’ve been joking around more often too, haven’t you? Must be Ethan’s influence.”

“Joking around, huh? And now it’s self-deprecating humor? Incredible.”

The old her would never have cracked jokes—especially not about herself.

Thanks to Ethan, even she had softened a little. The iceberg was starting to thaw?

That line must’ve hit a nerve. She laughed coldly in anger and started mocking me:

“Soft ice, huh? Maybe we should call you ‘Soft-serve.’ You’ve got such a sweet, dumb little head, too. Hehehe~”

“Hehehe~ Soft-serve, huh?”

I already knew she’d react like this. I had my response ready too.

“If I can find happiness, then...”

“Hmph? I’m a fragment of you, you know? So if I’m ‘sweet and dumb,’ I’ll admit it.”

“What’s wrong with being sweet and dumb? Hehe~”

Hehehe~ Looks like Lillian lost this round.

Didn’t expect I still had this mischievous side in me. Teehee.

“Hopeless.”

“Are you talking about me? Or... about yourself?”

“Hmph!”

She didn’t respond—just scoffed and stomped hard on the ice.

Crack.

A web of fractures spread across the surface.

I gasped and backed away. A second later, with a deep rumble—

The ice shattered open.

She had broken it herself...

I surfaced and stared at her in a daze. She looked back at me the same way.

Her brows never relaxed. Every time she looked at me, she wore that same annoyed expression. She never hid her disdain.

I understood—she hated me.

Truly, from the bottom of her heart.

Or rather—it was self-loathing.

Because the parts she couldn’t accept about herself... were what made up me.

She’d tried to erase me by suppressing me deep within her awareness.

But now—she had broken that barrier herself. She had released me.

“...What are you standing there for? Need me to pull you out?”

“Huh? Well, if you could help me up, that’d be nice—”

She looked visibly irritated, but still stretched her hand toward the surface.

I quickly grabbed it—just in case she changed her mind.

She yanked me out in one pull and immediately let go.

...I was out.

That strange feeling washed over me. The connection to the body—right now, I could probably touch that longed-for light at any moment.

But I didn’t rush out in excitement. I looked at her back instead.

After a long silence, she spoke:

“Is that okay with you?”

She didn’t need to explain. I understood what she meant perfectly.

We didn’t need to talk like this at all. I already knew what she was thinking, and she should understand me just as clearly.

She turned to me. Her face had returned to its usual smile—but unlike mine, hers looked more like a mask than a true expression.

“Didn’t expect you to actually make it all the way here... Alone. Aren’t you scared of being in a place like this? Even without getting devoured by the ‘Abyss,’ your willpower is far stronger than I imagined. Hehehe. Let’s call this your reward.”

“So long as there’s love in my heart, I can hold on no matter where I am.”

“...Tch. What’s so great about that herbivore...”

There she goes again—saying things she doesn’t really mean.

She always dodged with words. Never honest about anything.

“You know what’s great about Ethan, don’t you? After all, we share the same memories and feelings.”

“Wasn’t it you who lovingly polished that magatama he gave you every single day?”

No answer? Then I’ll take that as confirmation, hehe~

“Just go already. I won’t have to listen to your endless rambling anymore. Finally, some peace and quiet.”

“...Are you going back in there?”

Back to where I was before?

No. If it’s her—she’ll go even deeper—

That place was never meant to exist.

That place... the one we both share... that pain we pretend not to see. The half of our world we deliberately forgot.

It was the first time I ever looked down into the abyss from this side. And now, I understood just how terrifying “that side” really was.

In that gray, freezing water, countless dead floated.

All the way down to the bottom of the abyss—it was nothing but the dead.

Mostly bones. Some corpses. Among them...

Whenever I approached the ice, they would always try to stop me.

Because I was born from her, and I’ve been down there from the start. I know better than anyone.

That was the true essence of her—the darkest, foulest part of the person named [Lillian Ji].

“Something that shouldn’t exist? Hehehe...”

She didn’t look back. She stepped into the water.

Filth rose up to form a platform beneath her foot.

Yet her feet didn’t get wet.

“And yet—this is what forms my core.”

From the gloomy water, a throne made of bones began to rise. Corpses lifted the seat up from below.

She strolled forward like a queen. With each step, a hand rose to support her sole—as if offering itself willingly to be her stepping stone.

Unlike me, who was an “intruder” there—she was the ruler of that place. “The woman who loved the dead, and was loved by the dead.”

She sat on the bone throne, resting her hands on the skulls of the armrests, legs crossed, smiling at me.

“Lately, I’ve been getting soft... I got infected by your sickeningly sweet nonsense. It’s messing me up.”

“Isn’t that... a good thing? Doesn’t that mean you’re happier?”

“Happiness...?”

She didn’t deny it. Maybe even she didn’t know what she felt anymore.

“Well, I’m leaving the body to you for now. Whatever happens outside is none of my concern. I’ll return to my roots.”

She snapped her fingers, and the corpses began to drag the bone throne back into the depths.

The skeletons under the water stirred—

—and she just kept smiling so lightly.

“...Admit it!”

I stood up and shouted at her.

“Do you really not care if Ethan gets taken by someone else?!”

“...All I want is his corpse. I don’t crave his love. So whoever he’s messing around with means nothing to me.”

“So you are jealous, aren’t you?”

“...If I really were jealous, do you think those slutty foxes would still be alive?”

“Isn’t the truth that your bloodlust got so strong, you had to flee here and trade places with me?”

So I was right.

She does care about Ethan.

Too many girls were getting close to him lately. She was growing jealous—her hands almost drenched in red.

But she was afraid. Afraid that if she killed them, Ethan would hate her. So she ran here instead.

In that case—leave it to me!

“Hmph~ Just watch how I use feminine charm to win Ethan back~!”

“Hehehe... I’ll be watching...”

I’ll make Ethan fall for me completely!

The Silence of the [Necrophiliac Killer]:

Downward. Keep sinking. Close my eyes. Let my body fall...

Hollow eye sockets stared at me. I wanted... to touch him with my hand.

I wanted... to have his corpse. I wanted... his empty skull to look my way.

I really wanted... I really wanted to hold his dead body in my arms...

The throne of bones crumbled. I lay flat, sinking into the abyss.

I... I am still Lillian Ji. The thing I long for has never changed.

“Go ahead... Enjoy what little peace you can still find.”

Peace is of the flesh.

“By the end... you’ll probably become something even more terrifying than I am.”

Jealousy is rot in the bones.