Danmaku, my skills refresh weekly.

Before Valeta could even react, Shakti, who had been forcibly suppressing his grief over his sister's death and hadn't even had time to celebrate her resurrection, had already sounded the horn of counterattack.

"Fire!"

At the moment of the explosion, the adventurers, who had already taken out their specially made cylindrical fireworks, threw the bamboo tubes, which were covered in flying flames, into the surrounding flames and magic.

stab-

The kinetic energy generated by the gunpowder propelled hundreds of bamboo tubes to rotate around the workshop, and the sparks that burst forth instantly engulfed the entire warehouse.

In the pale world, violent roars echoed all around the room.

Before the secret faction's cadres could even pull the trigger, they were blown to pieces by their own teammates nearby.

The roar and panic, along with the dazzling flames, blinded the enemy, who scattered and fled, completely unaware of their location.

The adventurers, who had made preparations in advance, moved behind the building's cover. After a series of astonishing explosions, blood, flesh, and bone fragments splattered all over the building's walls.

"Ugh—cough cough cough cough—" Valetta, who crawled out from under the rubble of the collapsed pillars, spat out a mouthful of blood. She stared in disbelief at the horrific battlefield before her.

His face was blank...

"what happened?"

The adventurers, who were clearly cornered, pulled out strange items specifically designed to target them! And the quantity was astonishing!

Finn knows about our plan!

Is there a mole? Who leaked the information?

The plan to ambush Finn was devised by the three of them together; even the Joker was unaware of it. Were they still foolishly sending out a 'challenge' and waiting for Finn to accept?

Can……

Why is this happening?

Olivas? Impossible. That idiot doesn't even have that kind of intelligence.

Faceless? He doesn't need to! It's perfectly beneficial to his master's plans!

Valetta stared blankly, then in astonishment, disbelief, anger... and finally a silly grin.

Huh? The mole was myself? I almost got myself killed? You must be kidding me!

"Hahahaha—cough cough cough, cough cough." Valeta laughed hysterically, dragging her bloodied right leg as she scrambled out from around the collapsed wall.

……

On the other side, the adventurers who crawled out from the collapsed and shattered iron baskets and piles of debris cheered loudly upon seeing the battle unfolding before them.

"It worked! We succeeded!"

Although some casualties were suffered, more than a thousand members of the Dark Faction were eliminated in one fell swoop.

Shakti searched among the nearby corpses for Vareta's shadow, but when she saw the bloodstains extending into the hole in the wall, she sighed regretfully: "Did she run away?"

The moment her vision returned, Liu rushed to where Adi was. She buried her head in Adi's arms and cried loudly.

"Adi—Wow, Adi!"

"Okay, okay, Leon, I'm fine now."

Kaguya walked up and looked at the little girl who was being held captive by the other members, complaining again, "Don't have useless sympathy. It will only hurt you!"

Adi smiled wryly: "I just can't bear it, she's still so young..."

"To have pity on villains, that's pure naiveté!" Kaguya said, but inwardly she grew increasingly agitated. If she were in that situation, would she hesitate in the face of a child like that?

She herself couldn't give an answer.

"Hey!! What's going on?" Kaguya scratched her hair, "You blockhead, aren't you supposed to be dead already?"

Adi ignored Kaguya's venomous snake and glanced at the ring on his hand: "It seems to have protected me. But..."

Adi glanced at the little girl, pushed away the sobbing Liu, and slowly stood up.

She arrived at one side of the explosion's epicenter, where a member of the Dark Faction lay, his body charred, one arm missing, and his face bandaged.

He weakly opened his eyes, and a gemstone necklace that shone with an emerald light shattered on his chest.

Adi took out the elixir from his body and poured it on the man.

"This……"

“He saved me…” Adi’s eyes showed compassion: “In the instant of the explosion, this man snatched the girl’s black robe and the bomb, and pushed her into my arms.”

Kaguya exclaimed in shock, "How is this possible? The Dark Faction actually..."

Ryu seemed to recall her conversation with Ciel, and she took a deep breath:

"A person's sense of right and wrong can change depending on their stance. The underworld also has its own 'ideals,' and without external interference, they would most likely be benevolent."

Leila and Alexie, who had gathered around, stared at the girl in surprise: "Liang, when did you come to this realization?"

Ryu didn't answer; she was now desperate to know the answer: "Can you tell me your reasons for doing this? To your comrades, this is betrayal, isn't it?"

The man lying on the ground gave a bitter laugh, his empty eyes staring at the ceiling: "Ah... I just misjudged."

"Seeing her rush forward in fear, I momentarily lost focus and mistook her for the child... Hah, I'm useless, I can't save her, I can't save her! But I can save the child in front of me..."

The man, tears streaming down his face, clutched his head and wailed, "Ah...ahhhhh! Gods! Please don't take away my chance to see everyone again in the next life! I didn't mean it...I didn't mean it! I really apologized! Apologizing...it's not enough. I'm sorry..."

"..." Liu suddenly realized.

The man's words were incoherent, but everyone understood them.

As a believer in death, he was undoubtedly a madman, but as a father, he was undoubtedly a hero.

After calming down, Ryu seemed to have a profound understanding of the relationship between "ideals" and "justice" that Ciel had mentioned.

She became increasingly calm.

Wasn't Adi also facing a "trolley" problem? So, is this ending beyond the two choices?

As a father who was a hero, he should have sacrificed himself, but he still survived. Which ending does this belong to?

Liu's gaze fell on the shattered ornament on her father's chest, and the ring on Adi's hand...

"Adi, what is this ring?"

Chapter 173 Select a Few Bosses Who Aren't Afraid of Death

“Jester gave it to me back then… and I traded it with my sister for the gun.” Adi stuck out his tongue and complained, “I got scolded by my sister back then, saying it was a specially customized Level 1 adventurer weapon. Super expensive.”

Alexandra said with her hands on her hips, "Now it seems like such a great deal!"

“Jester…” Ryu recalled the image of the hero from her memory.

But... I only have a vague outline in my memory.

His story and actions had all vanished from memory. Only the fleeting lightning and the flames that shattered the villain remained.

Just as everyone was caught between memories and doubts, boom—

A series of enormous roars echoed through the city.

As if a signal were being given, the moment the trigger was pulled in the warehouse here, the Dark Faction simultaneously launched explosions throughout the city.

Everyone hurriedly ran out of the warehouse.

The city's night sky explodes with dazzling fireworks, flames and roars ignite buildings, turning the city red.

"Boom, boom, boom, boom -"

A series of terrifying explosions rang out in every corner of the city, followed by bursts of dazzling flower petals.

"What a nice view--"

"It's also ugly..."

Every firework's bloom signifies the end of at least one life.

Residents scattered and fled through the streets, while others were buried under the collapsed buildings...

In order to deceive Valetta, Finn did not evacuate the people in advance, and they naturally became the expendable pawns, with countless people falling in the sea of ​​fire.

"That's just like the Hero's style all the time." Laila grinned, her feelings complicated.

"Stop making sarcastic remarks, go and rescue them!"

Alexie set off first, but halfway there she suddenly stopped: "Oh no, I have a bad feeling. Layla, Kaguya, you go to the rescue, I'm going to find Lady Astrea!"

Shakti stared at the departing crimson figure, then hesitated no longer. Before deciding on the plan, she had already arranged for some military police to prepare, and they were already on their way.

……

The clock tower on West Street.

Covered in wounds, Valetta stood atop the towering clock tower, her gaze fixed on the city engulfed in smoke and bursting with fireworks.

I could almost hear the screams of countless comrades.

"Finn... and this 'fireworks'! Damn it! Damn it! Damn it!"

All her plans crumbled to ashes before her eyes. She sat down on the ground, disheveled, and chuckled, "But even though my plan failed, we haven't lost yet—"

"Look, what a beautiful sight, and the melodious screams. Those believers are nothing more than decorations that add to the splendor, just like these fireworks..."

Valeta, as if she were the one on the right, declared: "Adventurers, struggle! Beg for mercy! Before absolute power! Tricks and schemes are utterly meaningless! Hahahaha—"

She and the evil gods laughed strangely together.

……

On North Street in the city, assassins wearing skeletal masks and tattered robes moved swiftly across the rooftops on both sides of the street.

"Ughhhh, it's the Dark Faction!"

Arrows coated with deadly poison and magical fireballs that could burn away even tears pierced the backs of the fleeing adventurers.

Standing at the back, Victor grinned and removed his mask: "Alright, although there were some setbacks, the stage is now complete."

His pupils reflected a tragic scene:

The corpse of a fairy with wide pupils and tears streaming down its face; the bloodstains on the wall of a dwarf pierced through the skin; the orc mother and child, their hands still clasped together despite being severed.