Double Shot City.
A circle of strange light swept across the sky where the swift wind brushed the clouds.
Beneath the dark, ancient building, beside the motionless Seliras lying on the cold ground at the base of the wall, a cowering figure ran out from behind the corner of the house, crouching halfway.
“Seliras, ” the person whispered, “are you okay? “
Lying on the ground, his face covered in blood, Seliras struggled to open one eye, seeing the outline of the large, unlit building that the shadowy figure beside him was warily watching from a distance.
“The wind and strange energy passing through have already caused anomalies in the power generators here. Jorgen has taken people to fix them, ” the person said.
“I… ” Seliras opened his mouth weakly. Seeing this, the person beside him immediately waved to the side, “Come quick, he’s still alive. “
“My god, brother. “
Two others ran over and grabbed him up.
“Run fast, heavens. We have no idea what this damn organization is. “
“Shh! “
The two men half-carried and half-dragged the limp Seliras, while the young man who had come to confirm the situation kept watch from behind. The three of them, with small satchels hanging at their waists, ran towards the edge of the ancient city. They climbed over the ladder propped behind a tree, then frantically slid and rolled down the slope, constantly avoiding obvious trails as they headed for the uninhabited desert.
……
“No one announced his death. “
“No obituary. “
“Nor any record of disappearance or unknown whereabouts. “
In a room decorated with ancient and intricate ornamentation, the elderly yet smooth-faced Teal Jr VII, Sarajoan Hazel, clad in a thick, winter-only, fur-collared pure white and red plaid cloak, his thick fingers adorned with a gold ring, rapidly flipped through documents stored for over four hundred years in his hands.
Administrative staff carrying heavy books walked inward and placed these equally ancient tomes onto the spacious, sand-table-like coffee table in the center of the opposite sofa set.
“From what I remember, the Octagonal Fund was originally just a very small wandering knight order. “
On the sofa, a seated elderly woman with a very weathered face stared blankly ahead, her old eyes pale and unfocused. Beside the table, a woman and a man, crouched and quickly flipping through documents due to the uncomfortable sitting posture of the sofa, rapidly scanned the books in their hands before passing them to another team waiting behind them to avoid missing any information.
“I have a record here too. It’s from Expeditionary Calendar Year 67, related to our Teal Keep’s Autumn Seas Trading Fair. “
The man in a brown leather belt and black uniform who discovered this record immediately handed the document swiftly to an approaching person wearing a gold-and-red ceremonial uniform who strode over upon hearing the news.
“Order for the Octagonal Trading Group: five baskets of ribbon fish, two baskets of cod, and four piculs of black-shell lobster. Kefis was the consignor. “
“By that time, he had already established the trading group. “
A woman using a typewriter immediately clicked the keys and narrated, “Ya’grinar and the Covfefe Knights Errant, between the years 65 and 67 of the Preliminary Calendar, established a trade consortium. In late July of 67, they appeared in the southern coastal waters. “
“Search! Covfefe. “
“This is the third time this person has appeared. “
Paper rustled as it was flipped through more quickly.
“Grandmother, is there anything else you remember about this group of traveling knights? ” By the sofa, a woman in a tight black jacket and trousers, holding a vertically-bound notepad and a pen to record the old woman’s words, asked in a clear voice.
“Hmm… “
The old man with cloudy eyes thought for a moment, his gaze lacking clear focus.
_”Since your grandfather took me as his wife to Courtly Castle, I haven’t heard much news from the North. But one thing still stays fresh in my memory.
“For some time in later history, that period of about two years… the counterattack of the ancient demon-men… was called the ‘Bloody Path of the North.’ I seem to recall that the Octagonal Knights contributed greatly to the campaigns of those years. Oh, and it appeared that their firearms and knightly standing armor later became their primary trade goods with the various reconnoitered lands. “
As the old woman slowly narrated her memories,
By the table, one person had already found some information on Covfefe from the archives.
“Within less than three months of the Octagon Foundation’s establishment, this man died of illness, ” the man said, handing the document to a woman nearby who was also waiting.
The woman with a fair complexion glanced at it.
“How could they have died of illness? “
“Officially, it was declared a death from illness, with the news released by the hospital. “
The typist quickly recorded this information into the files. In the bustling room, before long the candlelight flickered unsteadily, and everyone felt a faint, numbing sensation moving through them.
……
The scraping sound from the treetops lessened slightly. In the room, Liya was pacing back and forth, her hands clasped together over her chest.
“It hasn’t worked yet, it hasn’t worked yet, ” Liya muttered this sentence nervously.
“Too few people have a clear understanding of him, ” said an elderly gentleman from the Fairham Maritime Bureau nearby. “Speaking of which, the Chairman’s autobiography… “
Liya turned her head to look at the speaking older man. “His autobiography is stored in an ancient place. ” The woman furrowed her brow and spoke with a hint of regret.
“If I had known the failures this time would be so frequent, I should have retrieved the autobiography in advance, to at least let the people in the chamber understand our history. “
The older man gave a displeased grunt in response.
……
Major Lorentz raced faster through the streets of the deep night, which were shrouded in faint, glowing mist.
His speed made his not-so-long hair stream backward, and the leather boots on his feet pounded the ground with a vigor that rivaled the galloping shadows of horse legs.
A figure followed behind him, keeping pace and running alongside him at a steady speed.
Why is this happening?
His teeth clenched tightly in his lips, his heart aching with a painful, terrifying thought and struggle.
On the street less than a mile behind him, a Soldier Army Demon-Blood Warrior clutched his head in madness, shouting “Demon! ” before finally closing his eyes in pain and curling up on the ground, his consciousness falling into a coma.
Hamdray, surrounded by mist, gasped as he looked at him. “Damn it, I only hinted that thing wasn’t alive. “
He panted and lifted his head, gazing at the converging and colliding energies in the distance.
“Damn it, why isn’t that aboriginal brat affected? That guy went mad just from hearing it. “
Then, frowning, he pondered, “Perhaps that Air Force Major shares a bloodline with Earthkind. Is that why? Strange. “
The wind sweeping through the air finally subsided.
That allowed Hamdray to breathe a sigh of relief; at least the people could finally light the Campfire plan again. Yet he remained doubtful. After blowing so fiercely for so long, how long would the calm last? A summer storm? Let’s hope there’s no next time.
Far ahead along the long street, at a chaotic and interwoven intersection, some transport vehicles, cloaked in thick cloth and vaguely eerie in design, began to roll by.
Soldiers armed with rifles leaped down from them, one by one, pairing up to charge toward the nearby nighttime streets.
Northwest of the Northern District.
“Charge! “
“Our people must move up! “
The advancing attackers were being steadily defeated one by one, when a plane roared in from the darkness above the city and landed upon an open space—just where a masked figure had, with a single shot from his rifle, knocked away one clad in metal armor.
Colonel Golden Lion Iska, within the canopy, tilted his head back, squinting as he looked up at the chaotic, nebula-like energy center in the distant sky.
The strange, slightly faint pale golden stellar orbit lent the sky a touch of magnificent beauty.
He carefully savored the blowing energy wind, and as the canopy opened, Colonel Iska pulled out a finger-length black military binoculars from his coat pocket.
He saw a small black dot within the lens.
Something resembling a kite was struggling to control its posture, flying upward from beside the two colliding objects.
At the same time, Iska also saw, from a far side, a fine golden arc was tilting towards the canvas gondola at the very top.
Though they were separated by at least ten kilometers horizontally, the fairly slow golden arc covered a very large arc path with each second of its movement across the sky.
……
Inside the orange-glowing building below ground.
Yang Zicang silently stepped back from the control console, taking a glance at the tall, ancient architecture around him.
“We’ve gathered quite enough intelligence on the New World, ” he murmured to himself.
He glanced at the huddled group nearby and tugged on the sleeve of Kim·Kliest, who was on the periphery. The young man turned his head, then followed him off to the side.
A brass key was placed in the palm of Edgar·Jin·Christie’s hand.
“This is the key to compartment 308. “
“This, Mr. Yang… you…” Jīn·Kèláisītè’s expression shifted.
“You’ll understand,” Yáng Zǐcáng said with a smile, patting him on the shoulder. “You found my first place to live, introduced me to my first group of people, and then, well, brought me right here.“
Jīn·Kè láis Tè held the brass key, somewhat puzzled. He certainly knew how precious this object was, yet he couldn’t quite grasp the meaning behind Yáng Bùchén’s words at that moment.
Regarding the significant loss of subject 309, Yáng Zǐcáng felt it was a bit melodramatic to hand it over to the young man beside him. He glanced sideways at the youth, who was pinching the key and concentrating on it.
“When you get back, remember to protect yourself. Don’t trust the people in the inn too much. And then, remember to come out in the next couple of days and lend everyone a hand.“
The Flame Phoenix approached. Yáng Zǐcáng glanced at it before continuing to address Edga: “The experiences are the room fee. They can’t take one away while you choose another vessel for the story…“
“Me.“
“You just head straight back to the surface,” Yáng Zǐcáng said. “I’m making an investment in you. Don’t worry; eventually, you’ll be able to use it yourself.“
“Really?” Jīn·Kèláisītè’s face lit up with delight.
Across from him, the chest of the young man from Mist Town began to glow with a ring-sized halo. His hand touched the key in Jīn Kèláisītè’s hand.
“Turn around,” Yáng Zǐcáng said to Fèngqīmù, who was behind Jīn·Kèláisītè.
The flame’s tail morphed into its head. The Phoenix spat out a wisp of flames and sauntered off.
Kim Kliest also turned his head, seeing the back of Vanderloo in the distance talking to someone, and beside him the elliptical dish-like machine squatting with its metallic legs retracted.
“Can I take that thing back with me? Isn’t it capable of communicating with you? “
“Quite right, what say you. “
Yang Zicang released his grip; the key now glowed with a faint, misty luminescence. He brushed past the young man in the red robe of the Hellfire Sect and strode forward to where Sigurd stood before the control panel, retrieving the storage of Ebiser’s genetic data.
After exchanging a few words, with Princess Horn pouting reluctantly, the object followed Yang Zicang toward Kim Kliest.
As they walked, Yang Zicang taught it the pronunciation of the words “danger ” and “safe, ” and also roughly sketched the shapes of these two words in the air with his fingers.
The back of the Mechanic Guard was like a set of layered, shrinking movable-type plates. As they collapsed inward, they stacked upwards along several vertically extended arms, shifting out mechanical grooves that could accommodate footsteps or cargo, and forming a protective framework around its legs.
The young man pinched the key, activating it with a sudden thought. With eyes closed, Yang Zicang opened them again to find that the young lad’s trail had vanished from before him.
The sound of steady, rhythmic footsteps came from behind him.
Sigurd came to the long corridor where Kim Kleist once stood. After glancing at its emptiness, he looked at Yang Zicang and said, with his arms slightly open:
“Since you arrived, you’ve been listening to my story. But I haven’t heard yours yet. “
“Our story… “
“At least, can you tell me why there have been so many dead people in your world this year? “
Yang Zicang thought for a moment, let out an “Mm, ” then raised his head to meet Sigurd’s gaze and said, “It’s because of the Ironvine, and… because of the prophecy of the apocalypse. “
He frowned. “That’s why everyone has been racking their brains to investigate the cause and… to prevent the Vinestem apocalypse from wiping out civilization. “
Sigurd pondered for a moment.
“And then? “
“In a sense, things have already failed. The entire civilization was destroyed. “
Yang Zicang chose not to explain which destruction he was referring to—the previous one or the one they had managed to avert.
Seeing Sigurd standing there quietly listening, Yang Zicang continued:
“In order to survive, our group of people, who knew nothing about the underground, has carried out four world-saving plans since ancient times… “
……
Edgar Jin Christie walked out of room 308, a relaxed and bright smile on his face.
Following at his feet, a Mechanical Guardian reflecting the faint glow of the wall lamp walked sideways out of the door. Its two eye-like, orange-yellow crystals rotated briefly with mechanical lifelessness, scanning to register the surrounding terrain.
Walking one after another toward the stairs, upon hearing voices from the first floor, Kyn·Kleist opted to go down and check the room plaque he had been slightly concerned about.
Geraldine, dressed in a gray jacket, stood by a pillar near the sofa, murmuring in low tones with two others.
Suddenly, they saw the young native resident, who should not have been there at that moment, walking down the stairs.
And behind him trailed a strange metal skateboard that seemed incapable of even descending stairs.
That thing slid diagonally down a few steps, clattering to a halt on one step, before extending its metal support legs on its own—some legs lifted high, some coiled in a medium posture, and one leg not fully extending—as it adjusted its body to achieve perfect balance.
It shifted twice more, then, to the astonishment of everyone present, chose to move down from the wall like a spider clinging to it, before leaping to land steadily on the ground right behind Kyn·Kleist.
“Mr. Edgar, why are you back?“
A young-faced man next to Geraldine—whose demeanor was that of an older man—asked.
“Has President Buchen completed his exploration mission below?“
“Should be soon.” Kyn·Kleist replied briefly.
He walked toward the counter where Manager Shirley stood guard at attention.
Then Edgar directly looked at the words etched on the sign for room 308—markings he had not scrutinized closely before.
—For those who cross paths in life, choose a new place of refuge. Sometimes it is something I utterly do not wish to face, yet must do.
Suddenly, Edgar’s eyes shifted to the side.
On the “Tivi Machine’s ” dance drama screen, the performance is still unfolding, but the great scientists are no longer present.
He turned his body and looked toward the two people approaching from behind in the quiet atmosphere.
“Mr. Edgar, did you come back using the Key? ” asked the man with a small obsidian earring in his ear.
The originally coiled Mechanical Maintenance Guard stood up.
……
“The ‘Bonfire Ignition Plan’ that has persisted since ancient times, or rather, the accumulated experience of bonfire ignition that has continued since the last lost civilization era, has always accompanied the growth of civilization. But it is precisely for this reason that a second deceit plan emerged. “
“Deceit? “
“Yes, ” Yang Zicang continued toward the ancient equipment maintainer, “the situation is like this… “
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