hsntnovel Chapter 588 I don't want to trouble everyone anymore.
Chapter 588 I don't want to trouble everyone anymore.
The sound of the door being pushed open was so loud, it was as if an invisible hand had suddenly grabbed its throat, instantly extinguishing the originally bustling noise in the tavern.
Both Feng Ye and the two captains immediately turned their attention to the entrance of the tavern.
All eyes were drawn to the petite figure who entered the tavern. When the Heavy Edge mercenaries saw who it was, they all lowered their voices and even breathed a little softer.
The reason was simple: the visitor was none other than Nono, the third captain and team doctor of Chongfeng, who was regarded as the team's darling by all the members of Chongfeng.
Feng Ye's hand, which was about to reach for the wine glass, froze in mid-air. He keenly noticed that there was a conspicuous bandage on Nuonuo's shoulder.
For a moment, no one in the tavern dared to speak.
"Nono!"
The spearhead was the first to break the suffocating silence, its sound filled with anxiety and disbelief.
"You're injured? Were you injured during the commission?"
He stood up from his seat almost in the blink of an eye, the oak chair behind him tipping over with the sudden movement and crashing heavily to the ground.
But Maojian was completely oblivious to this. He strode toward Nuonuo, staring intently at her shoulder, which was wrapped in bandages.
"Are they those damn low-level zombies? Or those disgusting monsters from the ruined city?"
The bullet casing followed closely behind. His usually cheerful face was now gloomy, as if it could drip water, and he exuded a cold aura.
Faced with the barrage of concern and anger from the fourth captain's spearhead and the fifth captain's bullet casing, Nono, surrounded by them, simply lowered her head slightly.
The hood of her cloak was pulled down slightly, making it impossible for others to see the expression on her face.
"I am fine."
Nono's voice was unusually cold and calm, completely out of place with her slightly disheveled appearance.
She didn't even look up at the spearheads and cartridge cases, but just stared quietly at the dusty tips of her boots.
"It's just a minor injury; the doctor in this war courtyard treated it for me."
Nono added, her tone nonchalant, as if she were talking not about the piece of flesh bitten off her body by a low-level zombie, but about an insignificant item.
In a corner of the tavern, several heavy-armored mercenaries who had been drinking heartily put down their glasses and looked over with complicated expressions.
One of the men, with a face full of scars, spat under his breath, not too loud, not too soft, just loud enough for his companions at the surrounding tables to hear:
"Pah, what 'minor injury'? I saw it myself. For those she was protecting, Captain Nono charged into the horde of zombies all by herself, and was besieged by dozens of low-level zombies... She's a Sun Mushroom Plant Spirit who's not good at fighting..."
"Shut up!"
The heavy-duty mercenary next to him quickly reprimanded him, glancing nervously at Feng Ye and the two captains, number four and five, at the main table, but his eyes were full of concern and disapproval:
"Don't say that in the courtyard. Captain Nono is just too kind-hearted. She always thinks others are more precious than herself. If she were injured, she wouldn't even utter a sound, let alone get bandaged up."
"That's right."
A young heavy-duty mercenary interjected, "Last time I only scratched my arm, and Captain Nono was so anxious she almost hit me on the head with her first-aid kit, insisting I stay for treatment. But when it came to her own situation... look at Captain Nono, she acted like the injured person was a complete stranger..."
"Sigh, it's happening again."
Another veteran Heavy Edge mercenary sighed, his cloudy eyes filled with pity: "That child always thinks her own life doesn't matter, only other people's lives do. You don't know, once when she was on a mission, to save a lost kid, she relied on being a Sunlight Plant Spirit and ventured alone into a poisonous gas zone. When she came out, she was almost dead herself, but she still insisted on treating the kid. This time was the same..."
The whispers were like tiny needles, pricking Nuonuo's heart one after another.
Her fingers, which were placed at her sides, curled slightly, and her nails dug deeply into the flesh of her palms.
The air inside the tavern seemed to freeze, and the surrounding sounds became blurry and indistinct, as if viewed through a thick frosted glass.
Only the voice within oneself that denies one's own existence, and the voice from the depths of memory, stained with blood and fire, are not only clear but also jarring.
【Why? 】
Nono couldn't help but pinch even tighter, trying to suppress the surging self-loathing in her heart that was almost overwhelming her.
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Look, they're all worried about you, Nuonuo, you're such a useless piece of trash who can't even protect yourself.
Why do you deserve this kind of concern? You don't deserve it at all.
Deep in my memory, that repulsive face resurfaced, speaking in an exaggerated, excited, and mocking tone amidst the fiery red sky:
"Your parents died at my hands because you're a useless girl who can't do anything right."
Now, you filthy, unworthy soul, what right do you have to stand in such a clean and bright place? To receive everyone's concern?
What you should do is find a dark corner, like an abandoned, wounded cub, quietly lick your wounds, and then disappear without a trace.
Every word that man said was like a poisoned knife, precisely piercing the most vulnerable part of her soul.
He clapped his hands with feigned elegance, turned and left, abandoning Nono, who was being held in the arms of the dead couple, in the burning ruins.
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What right does she have to stand here? And what right does she have to be worried about by her companions?
They deserve a stronger captain, a more reliable team doctor, and a teammate who won't hold them back.
Instead of being a burden who only makes them feel sorry for her, make them angry, or even potentially pay a heavy price for protecting her someday.
"Nono!"
The sound of the spear tip rang out again, tinged with a barely perceptible tremor.
He had never seen Nuonuo like this before, so silent, so aloof, like a frozen island that kept everyone at bay.
Shell's face darkened further, barely able to contain his anger: "A minor injury? Is this a minor matter? Why did you act alone without notifying us or the other team members to help you?"
Their questions were all reasonable, but they were like heavy hammer blows, slamming into Nuonuo's already battered self-esteem.
Look, they're starting to get angry because I'm such a useless piece of trash, and I've made them worry.
Nono lowered her head even further; she didn't want to explain anything, nor did she need to.
The facts are the facts—she acted on her own in an attempt to commit suicide; she was willful again and disappointed those who cared about her.
"Feel sorry."
She spoke slowly, her voice still eerily calm, with a barely perceptible hoarseness: "I'm sorry to have worried you, but I'm really fine. The doctor in the courtyard is very skilled; the wound has healed, and there won't be any problems."
The spearhead and the cartridge case suddenly paused, looking at Nono who had raised her head. Nono's golden eyes were so empty and unfocused.
"I just... don't want to bother everyone anymore."