Am I the only one streaming Sword Art Online on the entire internet?

The moment Mo Yulan heard these words, he felt an immense heaviness in his eyelids. He desperately tried to suppress his urge to sleep, but his eyes closed uncontrollably, and he instantly lost consciousness and fell into a deep sleep. Seeing him close his eyes, Chu Ziyu, who was beside him, also made a phone call.

"Hello, Mr. Kikuoka. Well, we accept this commission, but we would also like to ask you to bring Mo Yulan there for treatment as well. This is our primary condition before this mission, and I am confident that you will meet our requirements."

"That's right. Whether it's for personal reasons or because of the Rainbow Squad's official stance and the Shigemura Research Institute's concern, we will protect him."

"That's good. My first batch of men will arrive at the sea turtle with the patients, and the second batch will arrive later with airdropped supplies. If you think the enemy is too strong, you can also make this call, and I will be there as well."

"Thank you for your help. As for the payment..."

"Two million US dollars, plus reimbursement for all equipment and ammunition used by our team."

"make a deal."

February 1, 380th year of the Human World Calendar (Splitting into Two Bodies)

One hour later.

Although Eugeo stood in front of Alice with a near-certain death in mind, he still couldn't withstand even two of Alice's attacks when Sorin didn't intend to fight back. In the end, he and Sorin were taken back to some place in the Central Cathedral by Alice... although he still couldn't be sure of this.

"what……"

His voice became dry and hoarse. He struggled to sit up and looked at Solin, who still hadn't opened his eyes. He shook his arm slightly, feeling the heavy restraint on it, and then, enduring the sharp pain in his right eye, gently shook Solin's upper body.

"Wake up! Solin! Wake up!"

The handsome young man lying on his side gently swayed his body, looking at Eugeo with sleepy eyes as if he hadn't woken up yet, and then opened his eyes wide in surprise.

"Eugeo, what happened to your eyes?" Sorin asked in a low, surprised voice. "What's wrong with your eyes?"

“I don’t know either. Maybe it’s because I’ve truly broken free from some kind of restraint.” Eugeo shrugged, clearly not taking it seriously, even as he did so, the excruciating pain continued to torment him. “Why…why didn’t you resist? Are you really willing to be captured by the Integrity Knights like this?”

"I...I don't know. I lost consciousness when you rushed up there, and when I woke up I was here." Solin tried his best to recall what had happened, but every time he tried to remember, he was interrupted by waves of excruciating pain in his mind, and eventually he had to give up trying. "So we're now..."

“We’ve been captured and brought to the Central Cathedral, and what awaits us is still unknown,” Eugeo said, then began to survey his surroundings. “The good news is we haven’t been here long; the bad news is we can’t get out of this hellhole, and we can’t use holy magic. Whatever your plan is…”

"Whatever my plan is, the first step in implementing it right now is always a prison break. If you know a city called Gotham, you'll get used to this—being locked up in prison is always a pause, not an end."

Solin huddled against the wall to his feet and began to survey his surroundings. They were enveloped in endless darkness, with only a sliver of light emanating from the guards' quarters at the end of the corridor outside the cell door. Even inside, it was pitch black, and he had no way of assessing his situation…

"Wait, if that's the case, then why was I able to see clearly that Eugeo had lost his right eye?"

Solin suddenly thought of this question, but no one could answer it for him, just as no one was lighting the way for them now. It was obvious that none of the many weapons he carried with him had been left on his person—no warden would keep a prisoner's weapons along with the prisoner.

"Look on the bright side. In a world where no one would choose to commit crimes under normal circumstances, there are naturally no overly guarded prisons. To put it another way, even if this were Impel Down, I would still take you out, so don't worry."

"I can't believe it," Sorin said confidently, then began searching the vicinity for a way to escape... or at least remove the shackles from his hands. Subconsciously, he still believed this was part of the main quest of this unknown game, and since it was a quest, there must be some way to escape prison. No game would let its protagonist sit idly by in life imprisonment.

“That’s right, we need to find a way to escape now. I need to find out what happened to Alice.”

Eugeo spoke firmly, but at that moment, Sorin noticed something: the previously honest and obedient Eugeo was now proactively proposing a prison break, instead of timidly advising Sorin against getting involved when he mentioned it. This was a completely different Eugeo from the one who had advised Sorin a few days earlier against opposing nobles like Leos.

"It seems, dear Mr. Eugeo, that you have indeed completed your 'transformation,' which is truly beyond my expectations."

Upon hearing Sorin's words, Eugeo quickly looked up, his expression one of utter surprise. In his memory, Sorin almost never spoke like that, nor used such a cold tone, which struck him as quite odd. He gently patted Sorin's shoulder, and the latter finally snapped out of his daze, his eyes regaining their sparkle.

“Sorin… I feel your situation is more worrying,” Eugeo said anxiously. “This has happened three times already. What exactly happened to you?”

"I don't know, I just lost consciousness again..." Sorin muttered to himself, then turned to look at Eugeo and asked anxiously, "What did I just do?"

"You put on a particularly cold expression, and your tone was quite different from your usual self. You said, 'My dear Mr. Eugeo, you have indeed completed your transformation, which is truly beyond my expectations.'" Eugeo tried his best to imitate Sorin's words, then tilted his head at him and asked, "'Transformation'—what do you mean? Whose expectations were you surprised by?"

“No, I would never speak in such a condescending and pretentious tone. If I wanted to praise your changes, I would have said it directly just now.” Solin shook his head, feeling very troubled by what had happened to him. “Could it be that something is lurking inside me, or even another personality? But I…”

He was perfectly clear that he had never experienced any symptoms of dissociative identity disorder in the first half of his life, nor even had any triggers for such symptoms. Although he had experienced a lot, none of it had ever made him lose control and despair to the point that he needed an alternate personality to help him manage things.

After racking his brains for a long time in vain, Sorin still came up with no results and sat down on the ground, exhausted. His body could still do many things, but his mind, or rather his thoughts, were utterly worn out by the prolonged and intense thinking. However, he knew that if they wanted to escape, they had to hurry.

Alice's capture was definitely not just a simple case of her going to jail. Thinking about the worst-case scenario, she might have been brainwashed by the Axiom Church, which is why she became the Integrity Knight Alice. Considering this, they don't have much time left.

"Think of a way. From now on... this is no longer a game."

February 2, 380th year of the Human World Calendar (Splitting into Two Bodies)

"Think of something. From now on... this is no longer a game."

Solin murmured to himself, then began actively searching for any usable resources around him. The shackles binding his face were icy cold and so hard they instilled despair; one end was connected to the same material shackles on his right hand, and the other end was attached to a lock embedded in the wall.

Now it's certain that neither the shackles, the locks on the wall, nor the chains themselves are things that can be easily broken. However, Solin didn't show any frustration; instead, he suddenly smiled.

"This reminds me of a story called paradox. In other words, isn't the only thing that can break through the strongest shield the sharpest spear?"

At this point, Sorin gestured for Eugeo to come over, then passed under the chain on Eugeo's right hand, and walked back to their original spot. The chains in their hands then crossed to form an X shape.

"So what exactly did you come up with to get out?" Eugeo asked, puzzled.

"Theoretically, these two chains have exactly the same strength, meaning if we pull them back and forth, they will gradually break due to friction." Sorin explained what he was going to do simply, then gripped the chains firmly with both hands and stood on the ground. "Shift your body weight back, and then pull in the opposite direction from me, understand?"

Eugeo instantly felt a powerful force emanating from the chains in his hands. He quickly crouched down, shifting his weight backward as Sorin had instructed, and pulled back. A piercing squeaking sound came from the intersection of the chains, intermittently emitting small orange sparks. Although he hadn't opened the Window of Stysia to check, Sorin could guess that the chains were rapidly descending.

"Squeak~"

A sharp, metallic sound, completely different from before, rang out in the cell. Before Sorin and Eugeo could react, they were violently thrown backward, crashing into the thick stone wall. Sorin glanced outside briefly but didn't hear any curious guards rushing over. Thinking about it, it made sense; if any guards were curious about the sound, they would have come to check while the two were tug-of-war.

"That's fucking amazing, but at least it's awesome."

As he spoke, Solin swayed as he stood up, taking several deep breaths to calm himself before looking at his previously bound right hand. The chain had been severed, leaving a length of over a meter. Looking down, he saw four half-rings on the ground—segments that had fallen from the ends of their bindings. But what happened next was strange—the four half-rings quickly vanished, and the long chain in Solin's hand returned to its original, intact state. Without checking the length, no one would know that the chain had been forcibly broken.

"It's quite a high-end material, but this remaining small piece... might be difficult to get off." Sorin shook his head regretfully, then looked in Eugeo's direction, "How's it going on your end?"

"It's open, thank goodness. When it comes to thinking, I'm definitely no match for Sorin." Eugeo sighed silently, then raised his right hand to Sorin, showing him the remaining piece of chain. "Is this all we can take with us?"

“Take it. Don’t forget we don’t have any weapons yet. This thing is barely enough to hit someone.” Sorin shrugged, rolled up the chain to make a simple glove (or maybe an arm guard?), and then his tone suddenly became serious. “Listen up, Eugeo. We’re like a bunch of rebels shouting ‘Are kings and nobles born with special privileges?’ Any laws you’ve always believed in are worthless now. I hope you remember that, otherwise you’ll only be a burden to me.”

“Understood. Speaking of which… ‘Are kings and nobles born with a special destiny?’ That saying is really catchy.” Eugeo nodded seriously and continued, “I have made up my mind. As long as I can call Alice back to my side, I will not hesitate to betray the Church of Axioms. And if necessary, I will not hesitate to draw my sword and fight. That’s why I’m standing in front of you.”

“It’s good that you’re aware of that. But there’s no need for us to fight right now… or rather, we should avoid fighting as much as possible. After all, while this chain does fit the definition of a weapon, only I can use it to perform sword techniques, and you can’t.” Sorin gave Eugeo an approving smile, then squeezed the iron bars in front of him, casually finding a place where the two could escape. “So now… this is the first episode of ‘Escape’ brought to you by MagicTV and Sorin. As for the name… let’s call it ‘The Escapee’s Scoundrel’.”

He said something that left Eugeo completely bewildered, then released the chain from his hand, transforming it into a whip over a meter long. He then exerted force instantly, and the whip turned entirely golden, striking the iron railing with a deafening roar. The seemingly indestructible iron fence, however, was no match for the chain's strength, instantly shattering into pieces and leaving a gap large enough for two people to pass through.

At this moment, Solin suddenly glanced towards the corridor. He originally thought that such a commotion would definitely attract the attention of the jailer, and then he would fight with the two of them. However, the jailer did not react at all, and did not even come out to check.

"Looks like it's Easy difficulty, Ikuzo! Eugeo!" Sorin didn't hesitate to squeeze through the gap and stand outside, then helped Eugeo out and went straight to the front. "Go go go! Hope is ahead! As long as we don't stop, the road will keep extending! So... don't stop!"

Eugeo listened silently to Sorin's obviously excited tone. He, who hadn't shown much reaction even when Sorin made the decision to rebel against the Axiom Church, felt a little scared of the suddenly unfamiliar Sorin. Although he had no proof, he could vaguely sense that the Sorin before him was no longer the gentle and sensitive roommate he once knew.

"Never mind, let's just follow them."

February 3, 380th year of the Human World Calendar (Splitting into Two Bodies)

Sorin ran quickly down the corridor, with Eugeo close behind, nervously scanning his surroundings. The light was still dim, and he couldn't understand why Sorin could run so fast, but he kept running very carefully.

As they passed the only source of light, Sorin suddenly stopped and, on instinct, helped Eugeo, who was stumbling towards him, and gestured for him to be quiet.

"I wondered what had happened, but it turns out the jailer touched it." Solin walked to the observation window, pressed his face against it and looked inside, then suddenly realized, "This really is a universe where slacking off is the ultimate goal. You can become incredibly awesome just by slacking off every day."

"Slacking off?"

"The meaning of 'fishing in troubled waters' is actually a very strong ability; it's a struggle against your sacred duty."

Solin earnestly explained the advantages of slacking off, then led the way towards the spiral staircase ahead. The staircase looked long, but it only took a few minutes to reach the exit. The musty smell in the air had disappeared, and the damp walls and stones underfoot had somehow transformed into smooth marble.

Finally, they saw a faint light ahead—a quadrilateral exit. This meant that the two had successfully escaped and reached the surface. After finally catching their breath, Sorin looked around. The sky was still pitch black, but thankfully there was a faint starlight, allowing him to see things even without any light.

The Axiom Church, which governs the entire human realm, is located in the center of the central capital, Santoria, within that vast, square area. The building before them is the colossal marble tower, the "Central Cathedral." Its cross-section is also square, its vertical walls polished smooth as a mirror, and its upper part is perpetually shrouded in clouds, its top completely invisible from the ground.

"The people who manage this world, and the system control console that can communicate with the outside world, should be here. If it's not even here, I really have to doubt the reliability of that plan."

Eugeo looked up in confusion. Once again, he heard Sorin utter these inexplicable words, and his eyes had become unfamiliar. He shook his head, then gently placed his hand on Sorin's shoulder and asked with concern:

"Solin? Are you alright?"

Sorin was visibly stunned for a moment, then his body trembled. It took him a while to calm down before he turned around and gave Eugeo a smile.

“I’m fine… let’s keep going,” he said. “It seems that this prison is actually located underground in the central cathedral… it’s unbelievable that we actually reached the cathedral.”

“Indeed. No matter how high the rank of the nobles… no, even the emperors of the four empires can only look at this tower from behind the wall.” Eugeo nodded in agreement, then showed a regretful expression, “However, our identities are not the Integrity Knights as expected, but escaped prisoners.”

“What’s wrong with being an escaped prisoner? And if I’m not mistaken, there’s likely a process of erasing memories and imposing absolute obedience to the Axiom Church on becoming an Integrity Knight, which is deadly.” Sorin shook his head, neither agreeing nor disagreeing with Eugeo’s words. “Wait a minute, I need to try to treat your eyes.”

"My eyes...can they really be cured?"

"That's because you don't understand the true nature of divine magic, or rather, you don't understand the true meaning of divine words. If you understand these things, then you can deduce the technique that can truly heal your right eye."

As Sorin spoke, he concentrated the healing "light essence" on his right hand and then touched Eugeo's right eye.

"System call! Regenerate the eye!"

A strange scene unfolded at that moment: guided by Sorin's right hand, the light elements flew into Eugeo's empty right eye socket, where they emitted an even more dazzling light. And in just a moment, Eugeo found that his vision had returned to normal.

"Done! Now our goal is to retrieve our weapons and start climbing the tower. Real men go all the way up to the hundredth floor." Sorin clapped his hands, looking at Eugeo with considerable satisfaction, then pointed to the magnificent outer wall of the Grand Cathedral. "Ikuzo! Eugeo—hesitation leads to defeat!"

Eugeo had gradually gotten used to it; Sorin was a completely different person when he was timid like before, and when he was like this, although he had no proof. Now he carefully recalled Sorin's behavior in several tense situations—the bloody waltz when encountering the goblin band in the cave, and the whirlwind show at the Zakaria Sword Tournament… But before, Eugeo only thought it was accidental, a manifestation of his true nature; now, he believed that some external factor had caused Sorin to become this way.

"Sorlin..."

Eugeo stared wide-eyed at Sorin, who blinked at Eugeo in confusion, then, as if understanding his worries, tilted his head mischievously and asked first:

"You think that you can find a way for me to regain all my memories in this tower, and then I will leave you and ignore you, right?"

"Ah...no, no, I..."

Eugeo's face contorted for a moment, then he lowered his head deeply. Sorin simply stepped forward and gently ruffled Eugeo's hair.

"Don't worry, I've said it before, whether my memory returns or not, I'll accompany you on this journey. I even want you to visit my hometown, haven't you forgotten?"

The familiar, pleasant voice, and the boundless gentleness within it, confirmed to Eugeo that the person speaking to him was the usual Sorin. He breathed a sigh of relief, looked up at Sorin again, and reached out to hold his slender hands tightly in his own.

“I don’t doubt what you said, and I trust Sorin completely. But… I just feel a little…”

Eugeo deliberately lowered his voice as a sense of emotion welled up within him. He stood up, looked up at the massive obelisk, and then suddenly looked down at Sorin's beautiful eyes.

This serious demeanor made Sorin flustered. His fair face turned slightly red, and he was somewhat hesitant to continue looking at Eugeo—especially with his hands being held like this.

"Can you promise me, Sorin—we won't be separated forever. Even if this journey ends, we will still never be apart."

"Is that all? No problem."