Herrscher of Reason's Arknights

The dilapidated factory buildings exuded an empty and decaying atmosphere, making the place exceptionally dark and eerie at night.

The original brick and stone floor was now covered with gravel and broken glass.

The boots made a "creaking" sound when stepped on.

That was the crisp sound of stepping on shards of glass.

People unfamiliar with the terrain would have a hard time finding this place, since the houses in the slums are not oriented due east or north, and it is normal for people to lose their sense of direction when they are walking around here due to the illegal construction.

And here.

No one will bother you.

Those who came...

"Why you?"

With her right hand lightly resting on the hilt of her sword, Talulah's expressionless eyes reflected the woman standing in the moonlight.

Standing in the shadows, Talulah could see who it was. Moonlight slanted down from outside the factory gates and onto the ground.

Standing in the moonlight was a silver-haired Eurafian girl.

The tip of the jet-black one-handed sword hung limply at his side.

The dragon girl's white eyes reflected the azure blue of Eraphia's pupils.

And her reflection in her eyes.

Beneath the white coat was still that familiar white dress.

The black leather boots were replaced with military boots commonly used by Ursus soldiers.

Even the pristine hem of the skirt was torn into irregular jagged edges.

The dilapidated feeling made her seem no longer like the girl who taught children to read in that small mountain village.

The white flowers were stained with the smell of blood.

"Why you?"

Talulah murmured to herself in a voice only she could hear.

It was as if he was sighing over something.

Unfortunately, she still instinctively used her thumb to brace against the hilt of the longsword.

The mechanism can be activated at any time to make the longsword spring up.

The past can never be returned to.

"I really wish I hadn't run into you..."

"Really? What should we say? Long time no see."

Alina.

········

P.S.: I overslept last night, hehehehe [runs away]

Not much inspiration today, let me think about it. [Slumps over]

I got a shot

I got my second shot, and I can't lift my entire left arm. It's so sore. The doctor said it's normal and it'll get better in a few days. I think it'll be fine in a few days, but right now I feel like I'm useless. Even just lifting my left arm to type a little while playing games makes my arm ache. Damn it, this is so inconvenient! I won't be writing an update today. I tried typing with one finger on my right hand for over half an hour and I couldn't even type a few hundred words. Writing a thousand words is a struggle. I'll talk about it tomorrow or the day after. [collapses]

I'm done touching him. [burps]

P.S.: I went through so much trouble to play this game. I even reformatted my entire system! Finally, I can play Planetside 2. It was such a struggle! I don't know what's missing or what's causing the incompatibility. I've been playing for days straight, and I'm starting to feel nauseous. Staying up all night playing games is definitely not a good habit [facepalm]. I'm done playing now, I'm sick of it. I'll start updating again in the next few days. Let me finish writing the outline first [runs away].

Chapter 359 [Severing the Past]

"You seem to have changed a lot..."

"----boom!!"

The wall shattered upon impact, leaving a trail of gray-black dust in the air. Talulah jumped back.

Draco's strong physique means he could easily smash through a wall without much trouble.

The girl said with a smile, while her right hand remained gently resting on the hilt of the sword.

The unusually long sword was never drawn from its sheath; instead, it remained tucked at the waist.

"Why didn't you fight back? Do you think you can atone for all the damn things you've done by not fighting back?!"

Alina was ultimately unable to suppress her anger, and her longsword continued to launch attacks.

It seemed that Talulah was being completely suppressed by Alina. Although Elafia's swordsmanship was not particularly skillful, her anger and nimble sword made Alina's attacks seem like a storm pounding on Talulah's position.

With a leap and a swift run, Elafia appeared before Talulah in an instant, the gentleness that once graced her azure eyes now completely gone.

Like a shattered blue crystal, it is still beautiful, but with a touch of vicissitude and flaws.

A silver arc of light exploded above Talulah's head.

However, Talulah simply dodged and jumped away again.

repay?

what is that?

Does she need to repay something?

Looking at Elafia's angry eyes, as if she wanted to devour him alive.

Talulah felt that all of that happened a very long time ago.

It's been so long that it feels unfamiliar.

What you borrow, you must repay; to gain something, you must lose something else.

But this is never a fair exchange.

Equivalence never exists, but exchange does.

If you don't give anything, you can't expect to get anything in return.

What Talulah once wanted to do, she still wants to do now.

She made a deal with the devil.

The Reunification Movement was her sacrifice.

Yes, if future generations were to evaluate which con artist in the world was the greatest con artist, Talulah would likely be among them.

Because it all stemmed from a scam.

A complete lie, all for her own selfish desires.

Therefore, how could someone who ignores the consequences, morality, all bottom lines, and even themselves, and only acts according to their own desires, possibly have anything to repay?

That is a life where there is only one thing to ask for, and everything else is no longer something to be asked for.

Anyone who dares to stop me will be crushed to dust!

No matter who it is!

Talulah was like a gambler at a table, betting all her chips.

How could I possibly allow anyone to stop me!

She cannot lose, and she must not lose.

Because she never had the right to fail.

"No one can stop me, not even you, Alina!"

Talulah finally gripped the sword hilt tightly.

The next moment, the sound of metal tearing apart was accompanied by a burst of sparks!

In an instant, the dark space was illuminated, and the golden-red light reflected on Talulah's upper body and one side of her face. Half of her face was hidden in darkness, and the other half was illuminated by the scarlet light. Her beautiful nose was filled with a ghostly evil and twisted nobility.

The gray eyes of the Drakians were filled with indifference and determination.

The mechanism in the scabbard propelled the longsword out; it was less like drawing the sword and more like launching it like a cannonball!

With her legs firmly planted, Talulah used the force of the launch to make the longsword in her hand seem to illuminate the entire space!

Like a crescent moon blooming indoors.

And a silver line appeared in front of Alina.

Those are the lines of a slash.

Like a dancer in darkness, her magnificent slashes are breathtaking, and this can also be called the art of death.

Because anyone who witnesses this extraordinary skill will either die or be seriously injured.

If Alina hadn't reacted quickly enough...

"clang----!!!"

Alina's longsword, forged from fragments of the Bozokastite halberd, blocked this earth-shattering blow with its extremely hard texture!

However, the price was that Alina's arm bones began to crack under the strain.

"Woo-coo."

The strength of the Drakians was simply too terrifying. Alina was not a power-type fighter to begin with, and the Elafians were not particularly good at strength-based contests either. It was already a miracle that Alina could withstand such a direct attack without having her stance broken in one blow.

If even one strike is so difficult, what about after that?

Talulah's face showed neither joy nor sorrow, neither the delight of impending victory nor the grief of drawing her sword against her former friend.

All that remains is indifference, hiding all one's emotions behind a mask, and severing all ties that once belonged to oneself.

“I have something I absolutely must do. For this, please die, Alina.”

Talulah said coldly as she sheathed her sword.

The next moment, she pressed the mechanism again, and sparks flew!

Chapter 360 [The General]

The intense heat of the flames distorted the surrounding light, and the heat radiation filled the area with a silent, oppressive heat.

This is Ursus, a land synonymous with cold, shrouded in snow and cold year-round.

Yet this very place is now incredibly hot, with the heat source located right in the middle of Talulah.

Her long silver hair, draped in black, was tinged with the color of flames.

His gray eyes gazed indifferently at everything around him, including his former best friend.

"Don't try to stop me anymore. I won't warn you a second time."

His voice was as cold as an ice cave, colder than the coldest wind in the northern plains of Ursus.

The previous sword strike deflected all the attacks. In the face of absolute power and the intense heat that could melt steel, all calculations seemed meaningless.

Even the water in the air seemed to be evaporating.

It resembled a real monster.

At this moment, Alina could no longer see any trace of her former self in Talulah.

The idealistic and fiercely fighting fighter of the past is nowhere to be seen.

Lifeless silver hair fluttered in the wind like the withered corpse of an ideal, and the Ursus uniform that once belonged to him was gone.

Instead, she wore a long black dress, her silver eyes devoid of joy or sorrow.

It's like a passerby, someone who watches all of this happen and simply records it, rather than someone who experiences the story firsthand.

The Talulah of today is more like the dragon in the story, noble yet evil.

What exactly has happened over the years?

Alina had always been filled with this question, wanting to know, desperately wanting to know, what exactly had turned the former Talulah into the person she is now.

What exactly happened that snowy night?

However, even though she had all these questions on the tip of her tongue, when she saw Talulah like this, she couldn't bring herself to ask them anymore.

Those naive questions died long ago, along with the name "Talulah".