Night Journey

Chapter 152 Surfaced
The city of Hull is always gloomy during the rainy season. The misty water vapor mixes with the exhaust fumes released by the Lighthouse, forming a thick layer of fog that shrouds the city.

Rolf remained secluded in his mansion in the inner city, where, despite it being midday, the light was dim, casting an iron-gray shadow over the interior.

"A victory celebration?"

Rolf gripped the document, his fingertips turning slightly white from the pressure.

"This is going to be a real problem."

He put down the documents with a headache, closed his eyes, and leaned back in his chair.

“Decal had already unified the old and new factions, and after the purge of the Claws, his prestige reached its peak, and he almost completely controlled the city council.”

Rolf closed his eyes to rest and said, "Before the purge, I could have united the spirit craftsmen to oppose Dekar's various actions, but in the current situation, forcibly confronting Dekar would probably only ignite the fuse of civil war."

He sighed softly, his voice echoing in the empty study, carrying a sense of helpless weariness.

"I'm afraid it's more than that, mentor."

Another voice responded, and Rolf opened his eyes to see Bill and Weyland sitting opposite him.

"How many times have I told you, use your job title!"

After emphasizing this, Rolf felt a wave of exhaustion.

Bill and Vilan.

Several years ago, on a whim, Rolf picked two unqualified apprentices and, under the pretext of "infiltrating the enemy camp to await an opportunity," threw them into Decal's city guard.

From that moment on, Rolf completely forgot about the two apprentices.

Ultimately, he eliminates countless apprentices every year, and his actions are simply to find them a job and a way to avoid starvation.

But who would have thought that a few years later, these two apprentices would miraculously become spirit craftsmen and even make a name for themselves in the city guard bureau.

What a hell.

Upon seeing him, the two men burst into tears and poured out their hearts, saying that during their time undercover, they had always kept in mind the Commander-in-Chief's instructions and the mission they bore.

"Chief, I understand. You've always wanted to bring down the Director, haven't you? Although the Director has treated me well, there's still a proper order to things."

That's what Bill said at the time.

Then, to Rolf's astonishment, he spilled all the evidence of the City Guard Bureau's tax problems, procedural errors, and abuse of power over the years.

As the chief technology officer of Hel City, Rolf remained calm and composed even when the chaotic creatures were at the city gates.

But on that day, he was unusually plunged into an unprecedented state of bewilderment.

So, after many years, Bill and Veran reconnected with their upline.

"Chief, besides the victory speech, there is another critical matter."

Bill shifted his chair and moved closer.

"Our extraction and analysis results are in: the corpses in the river contained a very strange type of spore."

Vilan, standing to the side, nodded vigorously, making "uh-huh" sounds.

"Look."

Bill unfolded the report and explained to Rolf.

“During our previous investigation into the Claws, we collected a number of spores, all of which possessed the power of chaotic devouring. The spores extracted from the river corpses this time, in addition to the power of devouring, also possess another strange power of destiny.”

Bill thought it over and then gave a rough description.

"That power of destiny seems...it seems...it can erase memories, even the existence of facts."

Upon hearing this, Rolf immediately perked up and began carefully reviewing the documents.

"I don't know exactly what this power of destiny is, but what we do know is that when it is mixed with the power of devouring, it can produce an extremely subtle reaction."

Bill spoke with particular excitement as he recounted these events.

Compared to his various identities such as undercover agent and city guard employee, Bill's favorite and most cherished identity is naturally that of a researcher at the Spirit Craftsman.

If it weren't for his thirst for knowledge, he wouldn't have worked so hard for Rolf.

"This power, with the help of the Devouring Power, will spread morbidly. At the same time, it will also evaporate the existence of the Devouring Power... In other words, while evaporating the memories of others, it will also evaporate the chaotic power itself to a certain extent, achieving a kind of self-purification."

Bill exclaimed, "The person who cultivates these spores is a genius."

Then, he said in fear.

"Once these spores spread fully through the crisscrossing waterways, they can cover the entire city of Hull within minutes..."

Rolf recalled Cillian's previous visit, and the fragmented pieces of information came together to form a terrible truth.

He added Bill's words.

"The existence of Hel City will be erased from this world, and at that time, a Void Being will use this opportunity to advance in rank."

"The Void One? Advancement?"

"Chief, what are you talking about?" Bill asked, puzzled.

He was aware of the existence of the power of returning to stillness, but he was still shrouded in the veil of cognition and could not know its truth.

"Go read the book on the far right of the third row of the bookshelf, the one without a title." Rolf sighed and ordered, "Vilan, it's your turn to report."

Despite his many questions, Bill obediently did as he was told.

"Yes, Commander!"

Vilan, who rarely spoke, began to report on what followed, speaking clearly and articulately like a broadcaster.

"Based on our analysis, we believe that the Claws have not been completely eradicated. On the contrary, this purge operation is very likely a smokescreen."

"Oh?"

“We reported the unusual sight of the bodies in the river to the city sanitation bureau, but the higher-ups did not respond at all, even during the cleanup operation.”

So, before this, didn't the water gate system detect this anomaly?

Compared to the unreliable Bill, Wieland was clearly much more composed, he further analyzed.

"Therefore, we suspect that the Claws have already infiltrated every department of Hel City, including the water gate system and the upper echelons of the city guard. Only in this way can we explain why so many corpses have silently filled the river."

At the same time... I also suspect that this purge was a staged act by all of them.

Rolf nodded in acknowledgment.

"continue."

"They sacrificed a large number of members to lull us into a false sense of security, and also took the opportunity to eliminate the pawns within the Watergate system. Even if we later discovered the anomaly in the river and conducted an investigation, there would be no way to prove anything."

Vilan paused for a moment, his words carrying his personal opinion, "Given the way the Claws... no, the Spore Sanctuary operate, they are absolutely capable of doing such a thing."

The forces of chaos do not possess any unity or glory; they are driven only by conflicting selfishness and absolute interests.

"The victory pronouncements will not be the beginning of peace in Hull; on the contrary, they will be the prelude to another crisis."

After reporting everything he knew, Vilan straightened his posture and awaited further instructions.

Just then, Bill returned carrying the books.

The book only briefly describes information about the path to Nirvana, but even this limited information was enough to pull Bill out of the veil of cognition.

With a clearer understanding of his destiny of returning to nothingness, the previously vague information exploded in Bill's mind like a bomb.

"Damn it, you have to take a look at this thing."

With the motto "Even if I'm down on my luck, I'll drag my good buddy down with me," Bill opened the book and pressed it against Vilan's head to look at it.

A moment later, Vilan revealed the same confused, bewildered, and somewhat fearful complex emotions as Bill.

"It's over, it's over."

The two did not speak, but they had completely identical psychological changes.

I thought I was only involved in the power struggle of the city council and could also give the Chaos forces a good beating, but how did I end up with this troublesome thing called the Path of Destiny?

Fear, calm, and then... ecstasy.

“Chief, this is a huge problem,” Bill said obsequiously. “We brothers have risked our lives so much, you can’t treat us unfairly.”

Faced with Bill's strong desire to improve, Rolf really didn't know what to say.

Throughout, their requests were simple: they hoped Rolf could become their mentor, guiding them on their path as mechanical beings, and more importantly, after his retirement, take them away from Hel City and back to the Forging Court.

Unlike the spirit craftsmen who treated their work as a means of livelihood, the two were filled with a genuine thirst for knowledge and were madly eager to go to the sacred Forging Court, even though they knew very well how harsh the living conditions there were.

"Shut up."

Rolf raised his hand to stop them, and the two immediately fell silent.

After some deep thought, a corresponding solution gradually emerged in Rolf's mind.

he murmured.

"Regardless of who founded Hull City, its new life was given by the Spirit Craftsmen."

The enemy's plot surprised Rolf, but that was all he was surprised about.

At that moment, Bill noticed the paper that had fallen to the ground; it was supposed to be tucked into the document.

"Oh, right, Chief of Staff, there's one more thing."

He handed the paper to Rolf and began to speak.

"Just today, Director Dekar announced that the City Council will wage war against the last enemy of Hel City."

Rolf glanced at the words on the paper and said dismissively.

"What other enemies does Hel City have..."

Rolf stopped halfway through his sentence, staring intently at one line of text.

Bill, standing nearby, sighed.

"Yes, that's the guy. The city council is going to war against the Reverse Falcon."

(End of this chapter)