The Perfect Path To Insanity

Morning rose. Night dawned. And three days passed.

Justice finally woke without pain pulling him back into sleep.

Morning light entered the room through the tall window beside the bed. The curtains had been drawn halfway aside, leaving a strip of pale sunlight across the wooden floor. Sitting on the bed was Fei Ming with his back against the wall, one knee raised and one arm resting loosely across it. Justice had been lying across his lap until the moment the door opened.

The purple-haired lady from earlier stepped inside. She had introduced herself as Xia.

Her hair fell to her shoulders in loose strands, the purple color catching the light from the window. Her skin carried a warm brown tone, smooth against the pale cloth of her sleeves as she crossed the room. When she saw Justice awake, she moved closer and reached forward.

"Let me see him."

Lifting the cat gently from Fei Ming’s arms, she placed him on the bed.

Justice blinked up at her, ears twitching as she leaned over him. Fingers pressed lightly against the bandages wrapped around his stomach. She untied the cloth and peeled it back slowly to inspect the wound beneath.

The injury had already closed halfway. The skin around the cut was still red and tight, but the flesh had sealed cleanly without signs of tearing. Xia ran her fingertips along the edges of the healing wound, checking for heat or swelling.

Justice stared up at her face the entire time.

A wide foolish grin spread across his face. He couldn’t help but giggle like a drunk cat on anesthesia as he said, "You’re really pretty,"

Pausing, then glancing down at him, Xia responded with a short smile.

Justice giggled again and rolled onto his back while she finished checking the bandages. His tail flicked lazily across the sheets as he watched her hands move.

Fateless side-eyed him hard. ’Still a stupid cat.’

When Xia finished, she tied the cloth back around his stomach and reached into the pocket of her coat, pulling out a small treat and holding it between two fingers.

Justice’s eyes lit up.

Xia dropped the treat into his mouth, and he crunched it happily.

Once she was done with him, Xia straightened and turned toward Fei Ming. "Who were you running from?" she asked. "A beast? Some group of thugs?"

Looking at her without moving from his seat, he ignored her.

"Hey. I deserve to know. You broke my bat," she argued.

"You hit me on the head with the said bat. Don’t complain."

Scoffing, Xia puffed her cheeks and was about to exit the room, but then Fateless called her back by asking,

"Heaven’s rejected," he muttered. "Why did you call me that?"

Xia walked back toward the bed and dropped onto the edge of the mattress. The frame creaked slightly under her weight as she leaned back on her hands.

"Well..." she began, letting out a slow breath. "When Mr Light found out about you, we did a bit of digging."

Cocking her head toward Fei Ming, a smile tugged her lips. "For you to grab his attention like that, you must be similar to him."

One finger lifted up, and pointed toward the ceiling.

"Not earning a single Force approval or affection," she said. "Players like that exist, you know. We call them rejected."

Fei Ming remained silent.

The explanation didn’t answer the bigger question. They had pulled him out of danger, treated Justice’s wounds, and given them a place to stay. None of that aligned with simple curiosity.

’Another shred of luck?’ he thought.

The name Mr Light lingered in his mind.

He had heard it before.

Weeks earlier, during the Carnival game, there had been a man dressed entirely in white. His name had been Light. That man had owned a faction and had even offered Fei Ming a place within it.

Fei Ming had taken the business card.

He had thrown it away the moment he left the arena.

Xia pushed herself off the bed. "He came back from a game earlier today," she said. "I’ll call him over."

Giving a curt nod, he replied, "Okay."

She left the room, closing the door behind her.

Once again, the room was silent.

Justice hopped down from the bed and landed lightly on the floor. Padding across the room and sitting beside Fei Ming’s foot, his tail curled around his paws.

"This place is nice," Justice said, looking up toward him. "Let’s stay?"

Fei Ming looked down at the cat.

For a moment he said nothing. The corners of his mouth shifted slightly forming into what mimicked a smile.

"Are you hungry?" he asked.

Justice shook his head immediately.

"No. I want to play!"

Opening his system’s interface, a faint panel appeared in front of him, displaying the contents of his inventory. He scrolled through the list until he found a small set of cat toys he had won as a prize in the carnival game.

After selecting one, he dismissed the panel and placed the toy—a fish plushie— on the floor. "Your wounds are yet to fully heal. This should be okay for you."

"It’s good!" Justice pounced on it at once.

Satisfied, Fei Ming stood and walked toward the window.

The building they were staying in rose several floors above the surrounding compound. From the window he could see the open ground below where several faction members trained.

Two men stood across from each other in the yard, wooden swords clashing repeatedly as they exchanged strikes.

Another group practiced close combat nearby, their feet sliding across the packed dirt as they moved through drills.

He watched their footing, the way their weight shifted during each strike. Eyes narrowing slightly, he focused on the particular sword fight between those two men.

Minutes passed. And alas, the door behind him opened, breaking his concentration.

He turned, seeing a man dressed entirely in white step into the room. His hair was black and combed straight back from his forehead. Fine lines rested near the corners of his eyes, giving him the look of a man who hadn’t slept in a while.

From the looks of it, Fei Ming recognized this man. He was right.

It was the same man from the Carnival game. Light.

"Hello, Fateless," Light said with a smile, his eyes closing briefly as he spoke. "I am glad to see you alive."

Giving a short nod, Fateless rose to his feet.

"Likewise," he replied.

Justice had already collapsed beside the toy, his small body rising and falling in slow breaths. The brief play had tired him out.

Light glanced down at the sleeping cat and gestured toward the door. "You haven’t stepped outside for three days," he said. "Your pet is doing fine now, yes? Come walk with me."

Nodding, Fei Ming followed him out.

The hallway opened onto a wide balcony overlooking the compound. From here the scale of the faction became clearer. The building resembled a large hotel, with rows of rooms facing inward toward the open training grounds below.

Members moved through the yard carrying weapons or equipment. Some sparred with one another. Others watched from the shade along the outer walls.

Light walked slowly along the railing.

"Your face was everywhere a few weeks ago," he started. "Serial killer, mass murderer, every ugly label they could attach."

He glanced toward Fei Ming. "Then two weeks later the reports disappeared. I was quite confused. You seem like a good kid. Were you framed? Has the real killer finally been caught?"

Fei Ming kept his eyes forward, without any flicker of emotion in his eyes, he quickly replied. "Yes. I was framed." Resting his hands along the railing, he continued, "It takes a monster to kill without purpose. I’m no monster."

"Hmm," Light watched his face for a moment. Then he smiled again.

"Your expression hasn’t changed," he said. "The same blank look I saw during the Carnival game. I cannot seem to decipher what you think, Fateless."

Shrugging, Fei Ming hummed in response. A small thought crossed his mind on what Xia had told him about Mr Light. ’Heaven’s rejected. What do they even mean about helping me?’

’I’m not the only one hated by them?’

As Light continued walking, he said to Fateless, "We recently received a member from another faction. I am sure you know about the spreading plague, my faction and theirs are currently looking for a cure." Fully turning to Fei Ming, he asked,

"Will you join us in searching for a cure, Fateless? In return, we’ll help you."

A loud noise interrupted him. CLANG!!!

Both men turned toward the sound.

A metal object had fallen to the ground near the far side of the balcony. Behind the object stood a young lady staring back at them.

Her red hair contrasted against the pale wall behind her. Clutching both hands against her head, she began pacing in circles, muttering loudly under her breath.

"Fuck... fuck... fuck... shit," she groaned, looking right at Fei Ming standing beside Light. Frustration mixed in her voice. "Why do I keep bumping into this psycho?"

In despair, she scrunched her face, acting as if she ate something really bitter. Groaning again, she muttered. "I have really done something fucking terrible to deserve this."

The next second she pointed directly at Fei Ming. "What the fuck are you doing here?!"

Light blinked, then leaned slightly toward Fei Ming. "I see you two know each other," he stated. "Is Miss Helena your friend? She’s the member I mentioned."

Fei Ming’s eye twitched. Irritation curdled in him. "I... know her," he replied.

’An annoying bitch. A fucking annoying fool.’

Just then, another sound came from the corner of the balcony.

Turning his head to see where the noise came from again, Fateless sighed.

A young man stood there with half his hair shaved short while the remaining half was dyed blue across one side of his face.

For a brief moment the man’s expression showed clear shock.

Then he coughed and straightened his posture.

"Shit," Olive muttered.