At Rainbow's End

After catching her breath for a moment, Ai Qing picked up her briefcase, passed once more through the mutated darkness, and returned to the distorted world beyond the gates.

Even though the contaminant had been sealed away again, everything that had already deepened beyond repair could not be restored. Instead, it began to spread ever more uncontrollably.

She had done everything she could, and could only ensure the mission was completed.

That was all.

Yet for some reason, her steps paused beside the "security supervisor."

"Ms... Ms. Ai, is the inspection... inspection over...?"

Pajero writhed, asking indistinctly from within his swollen shell, "We, we were... very rigorous... rigorous... There were no, no mistakes, right...?"

"Yes. There were no mistakes."

Ai Qing paused, then nodded. "That was all thanks to everyone's dedication."

"But, but... why, why... I feel..."

Pajero's voice became shrill, impossible to tell whether it was a groan or a wail. "I feel... not very well... Did something... something go wrong? Strange... What is strange...?"

In the silence, Ai Qing lowered her eyes and sighed soundlessly.

"Mr. Pajero, on behalf of the Decision Room, I thank you for the sacrifice you made for the safety of the Present Realm." Looking at the terminal in her hand, she suddenly asked, "If I issued you a Purification Order, would you comply?"

A notification tone like a scream rang from the terminal in Pajero's hand.

An order bearing the highest authority appeared upon it.

It illuminated that numb face.

Within his ignorant, chaotic thoughts, a trace of realization finally surfaced, bringing painful understanding.

"So... that's how it is..." he murmured softly. "Contamination... contamination... spreading..."

Ai Qing said nothing and waited quietly.

Until he lowered his head deeply. "Please... please follow... follow me..."

Once again, he turned around and writhed forward.

When the