BAD HEROINES

3. A Murderer

The brown-skinned girl, her long curly hair tied into a bun, wearing a nurse's uniform, walked into the ward.

Nurse Natalie checked on Reina's condition, then filled in her notebook.

She looked at Reina again and sighed deeply. "Things are getting difficult. Get your ass out of here soon."

After checking on her, Natalie stepped out.

She closed the door behind her and stopped, a little startled by the sight of a girl standing there.

She was a teenage girl, about seventeen, dressed in a school uniform. Her hair was cut into a bob, with bangs covering her forehead.

Her eyes were blank as she stared at the door.

"Be honest," the girl asked, her voice flat. "She won't wake up, right?"

Natalie sighed. "Hanae, no one knows her better than you. Do you think she would let herself die?"

"She looks... too pathetic. Anyone could harm her, and she wouldn't even know." She gazed at the nurse's face. "I heard you're returning to France. Now that my sister is like this, it seems everyone is leaving."

Natalie scoffed. "News travels fast." She gestured toward the door with her head. "You can go and see her."

Saying that, Natalie left.

Hanae walked to the door and pushed it open.

She glanced at the still body supported by medical equipment for breathing. Then she placed the bouquet of flowers she was holding on the table.

"I remember you hated flowers." She spoke as if her sister could hear her.

She stepped closer to the bed.

"Wake up, or I'll fill this room with them."

After visiting her sister, Hanae stopped at a vending machine.

She took a bottle of cold water, and as she turned around, she froze, her expression darkening.

A boy about her age stood there, a little chubby, wearing the same school uniform as her, with glasses resting on his face.

Beside him stood a tall man. His dark hair slightly long, and a scruffy beard covered his jaw, yet his striking features still visible on that rough appearance to draw more than one glance.

"You've been following me," Hanae asked coldly, glaring at the chubby boy.

"N-no, we weren't!" the boy with glasses hastily replied, shaking his head. He swallowed hard.

The adult glanced at the two of them and almost groaned.

Hanae turned to the adult.

"I warned you, Mr. Lian. Stay away from my sister."

Lian smirked mockingly.

This brat. Just like her.

"Hanae, you misunderstood," the chubby boy cut in. "My brother never meant any harm to your sister..."

Hanae shot him a piercing look, and he immediately fell silent.

Lian leaned forward, his hands in his trouser pockets, slippers on his feet.

"You should be telling your sister to stay the hell away from me." He straightened. "Besides, I haven't seen her in months. You don't have to act like I'm stalking her." He turned to the boy. "Kai. Let's go."

Hanae watched Lian's back until he disappeared from sight.

"Brother, I told you to stop messing with her. She likes you," Kai said as they walked. "Though I don't get what she sees in you." He muttered under his breath.

Lian smacked Kai on the head.

Kai held his head and looked at him.

"How did I end up with this moron as my brother?" Lian clicked his tongue. "You should worry about yourself and your grades."

Kai pouted. "I told you my brain isn't for that. You better send me to the eSports team..."

Lian added another smack, this time harder, and glared at him. "For your sake, you better put your efforts into your studies."

Not long after, the two arrived at the doctor's office, and Lian was led into the examination room.

"Nothing is wrong with you. Your body is healthy," the doctor said. "Mr. Lian, because of your CIP condition, I suggested that you come every month, not every six months like you do."

"That costs money, Doctor," Lian dismissed carelessly.

"We will," Kai said.

Lian threw a look at Kai. Did that brat understand where money comes from?

After the appointment, Lian sent his brother home while he visited an internet café.

He placed a cigar in his mouth, lit it, and logged in as he smoked.

With only the two of them left in the family, Lian was the one taking care of his younger brother.

But until now, he had never held a proper job.

He took out a card Reina had once given him.

The card had the name of a hotel on it: Milan.

She had said it was a hotel she owned and that she would give him a place to work.

That weird woman.

At the time, he had laughed, not believing her, and thrown the card away in his room. But now, desperate for a job, he had gone back to find it.

What's the point, Lian? She probably disappeared for good.

"Argh! She really knows how to mess with my head!"

He exhaled a stream of smoke as he entered the hotel's information on the internet.

The CEO of the hotel?

Yumi Endo.

The photo attached to the profile was some middle aged woman.

He gritted his teeth. "Of course she was lying!"

Just then, something else caught his eye—an article about the explosion at the hotel.

One of the victims was Reina Lau.

"What?"

It happened in our city, and I didn't know? When was it?

The explosion had happened four months ago, before he had even met her.

It was the very same day the conglomerate's daughter disappeared.

Then another video, uploaded only a minute ago, appeared on the same page.

Lian narrowed his eyes.

In the video, a masked figure claimed to have discovered the true identity of the notorious murderer known as Scupper.

According to him, one person had appeared at every murder scene five hours before the killings.

He showed surveillance footage and pointed to a single person.

Lian's cigar dropped.

"What?"

Reina...

Scupper?

The woman in the video, the one being identified as the murderer was Reina. What kind of joke was that?

---

While the world was drowning in questions and shock after the viral video, one person listened to the news through earphones as she jogged outside.

Reina stopped running and pulled out her phone to look at the screen carefully.

Then she burst into laughter.

She laughed so loudly, but not matching her eyes, that passersby stared at her strangely.

After nearly a minute, the laughter faded.

Her smile disappeared and her eyes turned cold.

She had planned to use Michelle's identity only to clear herself of the accusations of involvement in the conglomerate's daughter's disappearance, who was still missing...

But now, it seemed there were people she needed to punish.

Her fingers tightened around the phone.

But first...

She had to remove her body from that hospital.