CH 43.2

“I know what you’re thinking.” Zhou Zong picks up the photo frame himself, and runs his finger on the faces no longer familiar, “I was the one who wanted him dead. I’d only be fooling myself.”

“I don’t actually think that.” Lin Yi tries to object, “you have your own circumstances as Captain, and it cannot be helped. The others do not know what was best, or what the truth was.”

Zhou Zong didn’t seem to listen though, “but a-Tai… We grew up together, relied on each other, and walked this far. Go after one of us and you’ll see the other never far behind. We’re no different from genuine brothers.”

He already said he didn’t think that, did he even… Lin Yi glances at the time, waiting for Zhou Zong to finish.

“Telling him to die is like tearing my own limb off.” Zhou Zong continues reminiscing, looking at the young adults that did not know any better in the photograph. His tone is gentle, “he had to die.”

“This was the best end for him.” Zhou Zong says calmly, “to die under my orders, when Nianluo is still a force to be reckoned with. He will not have to see what happens next, or risk his life for me ever again, to lose everything, to become the defeated, the losers in the end.”

Seems like the Captain has also sensed the impending end for Nianluo.

Ah, a tragic tale of brotherhood for the ages.

Lin Yi says, “I understand. You have done everything you can for him.”

“You don’t.” Zhou Zong puts the frame back down. That glimpse of humanity quickly disappears without a trace, “nor do you need to. I only said all that to tell you one thing.”

He turns his head back to Lin Yi, “it saved your life.”

Lin Yi makes a slightly introverted smile.

“You can go now.” Zhou Zong walks back to the window, watching the scenery outside with his back to Lin Yi.

Lin Yi takes a peek, and the scenery outside the window is set to an alleyway that looks like it was from some past age. It is quite effective at evoking childhood memories of running around alleys and playing with other children.

The living can still reminisce, but the dead can no longer do so.

Lin Yi smiles and turns to leave. He no longer has a connection to this past anymore.

Back at Stargaol.

Jian Si seem restless. Of course, it will take time to adjust.

Adjust to the presence of Doctor. The presence of a thin blade always hanging on top of your head, in front of your heart. The presence of an instantaneous death that can come at any time.

It is not just anyone that can quickly adapt to living alongside death.

Even so, while the danger of death can be accommodated, but Doctor’s own presence is still beyond that.

The mood is quite restrained here in the cell. Jian Si is not sure how or if Jiang Yiyi did anything, but Stargaol has said nothing of the two-person cell hosting three prisoners. Or rather——Since he left the interrogation room following Jiang Yiyi, Stargaol was a completely different place to him.

The haughty, raucous prisoners have disappeared from his sight. The cells near Doctor’s cell are empty. In fact, he would believe it if he was told Doctor’s cell is the only one in operation in the entire building block.

Even the omnipresent, commanding prison officers are nowhere to be seen. Outside of Lin Yi, he can count the number of times he has seen other officers on one hand.

As for the dangers lurking at every corner?

Jian Si glances at Jiang Yiyi, currently happily reading again. He is sitting right next to the biggest source of danger on the fourth floor.

A hurricane is powerful and immensely dangerous to be exposed to, but in the eye of the storm, there is nothing but calm and peace.

And clearly, they are in the eye of the storm right now, with the safety zone being right next to Jiang Yiyi.

Jiang Yiyi tilts his head a little. Though he also tried his best to ignore Jian Si’s gaze, he has been staring for a long time now.

“What is it?”

Jian Si appears spooked by Jiang Yiyi’s sudden engagement, and stops looking to say, “noth…” Then he swallows his remaining syllable back in to ask, “I’m curious, actually…”

Jiang Yiyi closes his book and gestures for him to continue.

“Can Lin Yi be trusted?” Jian ‘the Mysterious, Background Unknown, Weak and Otherwise Useless’ Si asks.

Jiang Yiyi pauses for a moment at the question, and quickly answers with another question.

“And you think you can be trusted?”

Jian Si immediately makes the connection, “I see. Trustworthiness is irrelevant when it is more important whether we have the guts to betray Doctor.”

After the metamorphosis, Jian Si’s ability to think logically has certainly increased manyfold——Well, there is always the slim possibility that he has always been acting dumb previously.

“Whether trust can be placed in someone at any one time is influenced by a lot of factors, but there is only one possible answer for whether someone might decide to betray Doctor.” Jian Si knows the answer well too, for he can still recall the threat of dying that was once but inches from him.

He also realises how limited his way of thinking has been. Both he and Lin Yi are used to basing their interpretation of Doctor’s thoughts by their own framework of thought, and become surprised by Doctor’s choices in the end, when it was but a simple decision on Doctor’s part.

Because trust is not an issue for him. He has enough power to exact retribution against anyone who decides to slight him.

After realising that, Jian Si quietly shrinks back into his corner, but stops in the middle to ask again, “Doctor, if Lin Yi decides not to return…”

There is a click at the cell door. Lin Yi, surprised, asks, “not to return? Who?”

Jian Si completes his shrinking activity seeing Lin Yi, now already back in his prison officer uniform.

Lin Yi also has more important things in mind to care about. He walks over to the table, and begins to write.

“A gift from Nianluo.”

Jian Si looks up at him.

Lin Yi explains, speaking slowly, “as a token of gratitude for bringing those words.”

Jian Si furrows his brows slightly, but does not interject seeing Jiang Yiyi’s calm demeanour.

Jiang Yiyi is not particularly interested in what the gift is. Instead, he asks, “how was outside?”

Lin Yi stops for a moment, puts down his pen, and looks at Jiang Yiyi, unsure of what he meant by outside.

Deliberating his words carefully, he begins, “nothing much has changed. People crowded wherever there is still space left. Various mottos about developing space colonies, just as it has been for the past few decades. The politicians are busy as ever campaigning for votes. People are too busy just making a living and carving out a corner for themselves…”

Lin Yi’s tone finally reveals a slight sense of disdain, “it is just as terrible as it has always been.”

The description sounds a little vague, and Jiang Yiyi thinks for a moment, not feeling much in the way of emotions. It is like listening to a distant story.

Well, it is a distant story, for that matter.

This is technically a background setting for the game. Even the most avid fans of the game wouldn’t have had the means to access such obscure things unrelated to the game.

Jiang Yiyi decides to label it a ‘generic cliché background,’ and throws it to the back of his mind before commenting, “it appears, the mysterious group you actually worked for, has quite a lot to say about this situation.”

Lin Yi’s eyes widen slightly, before he suddenly remembers one thing——The more you say in front of Doctor, the more of yourself you expose.

Jiang Yiyi did not seem to notice or care about his shock, as he continues laying on his observations, “based on the fact that you are a law-abiding policeman, we can conclude your group does not intend to overthrow the Federation and form your own authority.”

“Yet what you just spoke of also speaks volumes of your group’s misgivings about the way the Federation is operating right now.”

“And considering your work as a double agent, working in conjunction with but also against a mafia’s interest – Nianluo’s interest; I believe I can draw my conclusion already.”

Jiang Yiyi claps his hands together, smiling, “gallant knights in the dark who believes themselves just. ‘Braves who defend the Federation from the shadows,’ if you will.”

He’s practically only missing the Organisation’s actual name. In fact, Lin Yi wouldn’t be surprised now if Doctor just spouts their name out.

Yes, the entire chain of logic is sound, but the fact that he made the conclusion look so simple, only makes one wonder if he didn’t have the answer at hand and reverse-engineered the process out, or if he actually did conclude based on observation and thought.

And Lin Yi would not be surprised, whichever one is true.

Since he is the Doctor, after all.

“A fools’ errand.” Jiang Yiyi gives his final comment.

Lin Yi is not sure there is anything he finds not foolish.

He is quite calm, with no urge to defend his former Organisation——So what if he could retort until Doctor had no comebacks? Isn’t that just a new and exciting ticket to Hell?

He hands the paper with the decoded info to Jiang Yiyi.

“There will always be those who makes the foolish choice.” Lin Yi merely replies, “and the world needs the fools.”

“The world does not. You assumed that it did.”

Lin Yi wants to keep speaking. Lin Yi does not dare to speak. Lin Yi chooses to shut up.