So, Shall We Make a New Deal?

"Although I don't want to bother you at this time," Bai Wei's slow, leisurely voice echoed in Jie La Er's mind, "Have you forgotten your situation? There's not much time for you to reminisce about the days of loving fathers and filial sons... People are already heading this way."

Jie La Er then came to his senses and heard footsteps coming from afar. He immediately put away the photos and hid in a small room at the very back.

Before long, two members of the Skeleton Corps walked in. They were separated from Jie La Er by only a wall, and Jie La Er could easily hear their conversation.

"I said, is the rumor true?"

"What?"

"Bishop Holman of the Fourth District is dead. It was Jie La Er who did it," a Knight said. "When I heard the news, I thought it was a joke."

"Of course it's true, otherwise what would we be doing here?"

"Do you think Jie La Er would go back to this place? This is where he lived ten years ago, and the house has collapsed."

"That's why they only sent the two of us. They just put up a wanted poster and that was it." The other Knight trudged through the rubble, making his way to a spot where he wouldn't get wet in the rain. He then posted the wanted poster on the wall, unaware that Jie La Er was in the room behind that wall. "As for the house he's staying at now, the entire Tenth Squad has already gone there, fully armed."

"They're so enthusiastic?"

"Don't you know?" another Knight said, "The captain of the Tenth Squad also died at Jie La Er's hands."

"... I really didn't know that. No wonder Cha Mo Si looked so grim." The Knight's tone also turned serious. "What exactly does he want? Does he want to kill us all?"

"Who knows? That guy went crazy ten years ago. Maybe in his eyes, none of us are normal."

"So we should have killed him ten years ago."

"There is no evidence."

"Should we not take action without evidence? Look at how many of us have been killed by those rigid rules. Are we going to continue down this path?"

"So it's not needed now." Another Knight pasted the wanted poster down, then slammed it against the wall. The vibration was transmitted directly through the wall to Jie La Er's body, making Jie La Er feel as if it had hit his heart, causing him a sharp pain. "We are also making progress. Those outdated and harmful things will eventually be eliminated by us, starting with him."

After saying this, the Knight turned and left, without any intention of searching the dilapidated house.

If he looked closely, he could see that there were still some bloodstains under the ruins that hadn't been completely washed away by the rain. But he didn't want to stay there any longer, because this was where the Evening Star Corps used to live. Now that Jie La Er had been confirmed to be insane, who could guarantee that there wasn't any residual pollution here?

"We'd better find that guy quickly and then demolish this whole area." After saying this, the Knight and another Knight quickly disappeared into the rain.

After a long while, Jie La Er slowly walked out of the small room, then looked up at the wanted poster that had just been posted, and remained silent.

"Do you think this wanted poster might have been issued by Yong Xin... that is, your son?" Bai Wei said leisurely. "In other places, the notices that sons post on the wall to their fathers are usually missing person notices, but here it has become a wanted poster. Although from a certain perspective, the two have the same effect, they are both looking for you."

Faced with Bai Wei's rather gruesome teasing, Jie La Er remained silent for a long time, then lowered his head again to look at the photo in his hand that was already somewhat distorted from being squeezed, and finally spoke slowly, his voice extremely hoarse. "I don't understand, why it has to be him."

"Haven't you had enough questions by now?" Bai Wei said. "And when exactly did you have this son? I haven't seen you with a wife either."

Bai Wei knew that this was another good opportunity to get closer to Jie La Er's heart.

Before this, Jie La Er had never mentioned his son to Bai Wei, even though his room was almost entirely filled with photos of the boy and girl.

Clearly, the young boy and girl were Jie La Er's weakest spot, and Jie La Er was trying his best to avoid exposing it to Bai Wei.

Bai Wei seemed unaware of this and never used the details of the transaction to press Jie La Er for answers.

Because Bai Wei knew very well that the effect of being forced to reveal certain things was completely different from the effect of the person revealing them voluntarily, especially for someone like Jie La Er who would never easily show his weaknesses. Getting him to reveal them voluntarily would definitely have a multiplier effect... just like now.

Jie La Er was still looking at the photos in his hand, but his memory had been pulled back to more than ten years ago, to that rainstorm that was even more torrential than today's.

In the torrential rain, a Medium Pollutant ravaged rows of houses, like a wolf rushing into a flock of sheep.

Jie La Er, standing not far away, stared at it emotionlessly, then waved.

Countless "Iron Wire" pierced through its body, causing it to suddenly stop, then collapse with a violent convulsion, crushing the last house.

Then, fully armed Evening Star Knight charged out from all directions and swiftly crushed the terrifying behemoth.

Thus, this sudden encounter came to an end.

It's called an encounter because the battle with this behemoth didn't take place in the Land of Corruption, but rather... in a residential area.

After the battle, Jie La Er stood on the highest platform, looking at the rows of collapsed houses with a solemn expression.

"Captain!" Hermes rushed over to report, "That damned thing has been dealt with, but it caused a lot of damage. It appeared so suddenly that there wasn't enough time to evacuate people, and now we don't know how many people are trapped in the houses."

Jie La Er asked, "What about the Skeleton Corps?"

"They're already on their way."

"... We can't just stand by and watch; we have to start disaster relief too."

"But we still have to deal with the pollutants."

"Just have Eric assign three people to ensure the contamination doesn't spread," Jie La Er said, starting to remove his gear to lighten his load. "The rest of you, get to the rescue. Every second we delay, someone could die... Follow orders, Hermes."

"...yes!"

Lightly equipped, Jie La Er leaped into this colorless memory.

"Thanks to your timely rescue, Your Lord Jie La Er, without you, I don't know how many people would have died."

"We only did a small part of the work; the rest of the rescue will be done by your remains."

"Hehe, whether it's the Night Star or the skeleton, we're all doing it for Lyra."

"Yes, it's all for Lyra... Was the loss this time significant?"

"As I just said, because of your timely rescue, the losses have been minimized. Although many people were injured, not many people actually lost their lives."

After the rescue work was completed, Jie La Er and the leader of the Skeleton Corps walked quickly through the disaster area, which had become a pile of ruins.

"In that case, the remaining rescue work will be handed over to you. We need to complete the follow-up treatment of the pollutant. Of course, we will also find out as soon as possible why the Medium Pollutant suddenly appeared in the residential area."

"Of course, it's our duty."

Jie La Er nodded and was about to leave when he suddenly caught sight of two small, thin figures out of the corner of his eye.

They were a brother and sister, standing blankly in the rain. The downpour washed over their blood-soaked bodies, and in front of them were two stretchers covered with white sheets. The white of the sheets was even more glaring than the blood.

Jie La Er paused for a moment. "What happened?"

The leader of the Skeleton Corps glanced over there and then said, "Ah, those brother and sister. They must be the most unfortunate people in this disaster. That damned contaminant landed right in the center of their house, and their parents were smashed to pieces by the monster right before their eyes. Only these two children survived."

Jie La Er fell silent, and the scene of the Medium Pollutant collapsing under his command suddenly flashed into his mind.

After a long pause, he asked, "What will happen to them?"

"They're too young. We'll have to send them to an orphanage and see if anyone will be willing to adopt them."

What are their names?

"The older brother's name is Ian, and the younger sister's name is Ina... What's wrong?"

Jie La Er shook his head without saying a word, and then walked alone into the rain.

The memory of this moment is as monotonous as dark clouds.

Welfare home.

"Lord Jie La Er, this is your third visit here this month."

Jie La Er and the headmaster stood side by side, looking at the brother and sister in the distance. They stood alone in a corner of the garden, and no children wanted to play with them.

Why hasn't anyone been willing to adopt them yet?

"Uh, do you want to hear the truth?"

"Certainly."

"Because they have been exposed to pollutants," the director replied. "No one is usually willing to adopt such children. Parents feel that they have also been contaminated, and even the children themselves are unwilling to play with them."

Jie La Er was silent for a moment, then asked, "So what will happen to them after that?"

"According to the laws of Lyra, we will raise them to adulthood," the director said. "The rest of their lives will be up to them."

"I see."

Jie La Er took one last look at the brother and sister, then nodded, said "Thank you for taking care of them," and turned to leave.

Just as the dean was about to return to his office, heavy footsteps sounded again. He turned around and looked at Jie La Er, who had returned, in surprise.

"Lord Jie La Er, what is this...?"

Can I take them in?

And so, memories gained a touch of color.

"From now on, you will live with me. My house may not be big, but it should be better than the orphanage. At least you will have someone to talk to."

Looking at the still very reserved brother and sister, Jie La Er didn't know how to talk to them, and after a long silence, he spoke.

"Ian and Ina, right? You don't need to change your names if you follow me, and you don't need to treat me as your father. I'm just a..."

Before he could finish speaking, the door was pushed open with a bang, and a group of people rushed in.

"Oh my god, the captain has a baby! The captain has a baby!"

"I know you value efficiency, Captain, but isn't skipping the step of finding a wife and going straight to having a child a bit too efficient?"

"To be honest, that's true."

"Hehehe, kids, don't be nervous. From now on, you're all part of Xiaoxing. You can go anywhere with your heads held high!"

"Come on, kid, have a drink to celebrate having a dad... But how old are you? Can you drink? Ah, eight? That's enough, that's enough."

The sudden arrival of these people not only startled the brother and sister, but also made Jie La Er frown. He immediately stood up, intending to chase these guys away, but suddenly saw a vitality that had not been there before welling up in the timid eyes of the brother and sister.

Jie La Er hesitated for a moment, but said nothing and sat down again.

The colors of memory have become even more vivid.

"Father, I want to join Xiaoxing."

The grown-up boy, slightly drunk, looked at Jie La Er very seriously.

"I know you may disagree, but I've thought about this for a long time. I'm serious. I also want to become someone like you, Knight of the Evening Star."

Jie La Er watched the boy quietly.

He could sense the tension in the boy's heart, though not as obvious as that of his younger sister beside him. But the beard he had deliberately grown to appear more mature trembled slightly at that moment, revealing his nervousness.

Jie La Er was silent for a moment, then slowly extended his hand.

The bottle was capped.

"Now that you've decided to join Nightstar," Jie La Er said calmly, "You must stay away from alcohol."

The boy was stunned for a moment, his brain, slightly sluggish from drinking, didn't immediately grasp Jie La Er's meaning.

But there was no need for him to understand. At that moment, the door was forced open again, and more people rushed in. Each of them was holding a piece of equipment, and they started putting it on the boy as soon as they entered the room.

"Silly boy, the captain agreed!"

"Is that the captain? That's his dad."

"Oh right, Dad agreed."

In a panic, the boy was fitted with pieces of equipment, quickly becoming the person he had always dreamed of— the Knight of the Evening Star.

Jie La Er watched from the side, a smile unconsciously creeping onto his face.

The memories at this moment are like strokes added to a painting, and the colors of the memories reach their peak when the boy is helped to be fully armed.

But in an instant, it came to an end, condensed, and became that tattered black and white photograph in my hand.

The noise around me faded away, replaced by the noisy and monotonous sound of rain.

That cozy little home has been turned into ruins and rubble.

His comrades who had been surrounding him had also disappeared without a trace.

The cold reality, accompanied by rain, shattered the memories.

Jie La Er stood alone, the only thing in the house that could make his eyes meet was his own image on the wanted poster.

In this place where reality and memory intertwine, Jie La Er heard someone speaking to him from the depths of his heart.

I sensed your confusion.

"So."

"Shall we make a new deal?"