Another Side.16 · [Narrative · Narration]

Foreword:

I must overcome my inner fear. I hope you can do the same.

[ --David Victor]

[Part 1: Smoke Signals]

Awakening from her confusion, Bai Ziqing shivered.

She jumped out of bed in the guest room and heard the hum of the air purifier.

Looking around, David Victor sat on the edge of another bed, like a cast-iron statue.

The sharp claws of [Hell Highway] have just turned the next page of the log.

--The log was signed "Maddes Bruno".

In addition, Xiao Qi seemed to remember something important and hurriedly rummaged through her pockets to find the notebook in her backpack.

"Calm down." Teacher David put a single finger to his lips, signaling for Xiao Qi to quiet down.

His blond, curly hair had become unkempt and messy during the long journey, almost hiding his ears and emerald-like eyes.

He crossed his legs, shifted his position slightly, and immediately revealed the King of Cinder's face from beside the numbered camouflage fabric of the Xue Ao Troops.

"Let him get some rest," said Teacher David, taking the prepared supplies from the table and handing them to Xiao Qi.

Xiao Qi took the hard leather bag, untied the rope, glanced inside, made sure she could see the types and quantities of pyroxene, picked through the snacks and rations, took out a few counterfeit items, and finally felt at ease, deciding to deliver them all to Teacher A Ling.

She asked in a low voice, glancing at the Lord of Cinder, "Professor Victor, this guy is an enemy."

"The Geneva Conventions stipulate how we should treat prisoners of war," Victor replied without hesitation. "He should be given basic humanitarian care, food and warm clothing, and adequate sleep. I will take care of these things before sending him to the execution ground."

Xiao Qi rolled out of bed, but the intense dizziness made her unsteady on her feet. She took several steps and almost fell in front of the sink.

The bright red tail of the [Hell Highway] wrapped around the girl's waist, forcibly lifting her body up so that Xiao Qi could stand up straight and avoid falling and getting hurt.

Without the protection of pressure-resistant clothing or spirit garments, Xiao Qi would have almost no chance to move around in this place.

After she finished washing up, she spoke solemnly to Teacher Victor.

"Thank you so much! I don't know what to say. I'll definitely treat you to a meal sometime!"

Victor: "No need."

"Well then." Xiao Qi still wanted to take out the HC card. Teacher Victor had done so much work and spent so much money to buy the Radiant Stone, so this part of the cost should be charged to [Anonymous].

"I just hope my two students come back safely," Victor said.

Before he could finish speaking, [Hell Highway] grabbed Bai Ziqing's shoulders and tried to push the girl out the door.

In the vibrant golden-red flames, the demons of hell draped the girl in the combat uniform of the Xue Ao Troops and added a layer of cold clothing.

Victor continued, "You need to act quickly. The transport team has already headed ahead to RSH and will arrive at the front lines in four hours to deliver the Radiant Stones and supplies to [Phoenix]. This way, my two students might be safer and their lives could be guaranteed."

Xiao Qi had many questions before leaving home.

"Teacher Victor, aren't you coming with me?"

Victor: "I have more important tasks to complete."

He grasped Maddes Bruno's chin with his large, warm hand, revealing the Lord of Cinder's bluish-gray neck and collarbone.

The Hell Highway was inscribed with countless golden characters on the monster, transforming into a series of elaborate rules and regulations, so numerous they could almost be read as short stories.

"I'm sending Lord Cinder back to the Magic City · Balasong, to the Lapis Lazuli Guards' lair—you're really lucky, Waiter 9527."

"Huh? Didn't you come here specifically to save me?" 9527 was about to go downstairs when he heard what Teacher Victor said and almost fell to his death on the stairs. He turned 180 degrees and returned to the door.

Victor shook his head. "I just happened to be passing by. According to the railway system's schedule, all VIP and passenger trains must remain in the Nine Realms as the harvest season approaches. I was on the same train as you, but I stayed an extra day at the trading hub in the Golden Township to gather some intelligence on the ancient giant hybrids."

9527: "And then?"

Victor: "I came here with the Xue Ao Troops. These soldiers from Guangling Zhixi were on patrol, delivering some gifts to RSH and Pavlov substation—products from Fang Feng. I finally learned about the [Lord of Cinder] from these soldiers, so I thought I'd come here to see—after all, I once subdued the Lord of Cinder, so I could be of some help."

As he said this, Victor took out three Universal Elixir from his baggage and tossed them to Xiao Qi.

"Take these medicines, I need to take him with me—"

Teacher Victor used his pen as a weapon, pointing it at the Lord of Cinder's forehead.

"--Transport him to the nearest major trading post."

When the Universal Elixir arrived on 9527, I felt a sense of unease.

Thinking to himself, how could Teacher Victor have simply "just happened to be passing by"?

He was clearly keeping a close eye on the students' movements, following them like an overly worried single mother.

Returning to Golden Township from Albert Research Station will likely not be an easy task.

The Northern Territory Armed Train that the [JoeStar] crew is traveling on is probably the last train of the season. Victor wants to bring the Lord of Cinder back to Balason for trial and to carry out procedural justice, which means he has to walk more than a thousand kilometers and spend months living with this man-eating tiger, struggling to survive in the wilderness.

"Teacher, why don't we find a way to kill him?!" Xiao Qi hardened her heart and immediately said to Victor, "You come with us to the beach! If we work together, everything will be easier!"

"Bai Ziqing!" Victor changed his form of address, his tone becoming stern. "Do you know who he is?"

Xiao Qi shook her head. "I don't know, but he must have eaten a lot of people!"

Victor: "Then among those he ate, there must have been relatives and lovers, right?"

Xiao Qi stopped talking.

Victor: "Leaving aside how we kill a [[Outlaw]], even if we could actually throw him into the reactor of a nuclear power plant, and make Maddes Bruno vanish here, who would we hold accountable for these sins, these debts? How would the victim's family and loved ones avenge themselves?"

Xiao Qi pouted, looking indignant.

Victor: "I killed Cliff Guderian without hesitation—because I wanted to stop him from taking more lives, but now that Maddes Bruno has surrendered, I can't find a reason to execute him immediately."

Xiao Qi: "What a hassle!"

Victor: "It's really troublesome. I have to risk my life, carrying this burden over mountains and valleys—it's a losing proposition no matter how you look at it, isn't it?"

Xiao Qi: "Teacher, don't you think this through quite clearly?"

Victor: "But my Soul Might won't allow me to do that."

The Hell Highway had long since pierced Maddes Bruno's heart.

Upon opening the Lord of Cinder's skull, it immediately sensed countless undead wailing and lamenting within the chaotic polymer.

The souls of thousands of the dead gathered in this immortal body, so much so that even Victor's superpower of [opening the door to the heart and reading memories] could not finish reading this thick book immediately. It would take a very, very long time to count the sins on Maddes' body.

"I think you will have to take this path too." Teacher Victor had made up his mind. "If we return victorious, we will surely have to rely on vehicles and our own two feet to get back to the Golden Township."

Xiao Qi immediately pursed her lips, tears welling up in her eyes.

Victor: "I'll bring this indestructible human punching bag along, measuring the hardships and dangers of the journey with my own two feet, and setting up road signs for you. That should make your journey on this road easier."

"Teacher! No! Mother!!" Xiao Qi immediately wanted to rush up and hug Victor's mother.

Victor looked disgusted, as if he were seeing a fanatical female fan, and as he listened to the thunderous punches of [Hell Highway], the door slammed shut.

Eight large characters were left on the dark wooden door.

[Visitors are not permitted during working hours.]

Victor's farewell came from inside the door.

"Hope to see you again at the next stop."

Xiao Qi nodded vigorously. "Teacher! I'm leaving!"

Victor: "There's a dioxin smell in the air. I wanted to bring you more gas masks, but no activated carbon adsorption technology in modern society can handle this kind of toxic gas. In my own experience, they all became clogged and damaged after only a few hours, which is a real shame."

Xiao Qi: "It's okay. Teacher, you've helped us a lot!"

Victor: "The smoke of war on the front lines has died down, and materialism seems to have ceased its activity. Hopefully, the products of the Fang Feng will come in handy. The sulfur in the Fireman's body should smell even worse than dioxins, perhaps it can alleviate this dizziness and nausea."

Xiao Qi: "Hahahaha"

Victor: "Go and light the signal fire, Bai Ziqing."

[Part ②: A Strange Competitive Spirit]

Forty minutes later--

Xiao Qi caught up with the transport team from Guangling Zhixi.

Meanwhile, Maddes Bruno finally escaped his terrifying nightmare.

When he woke up, he saw David Victor by his bedside. His cold, serious face and green eyes were unforgettable.

Lord Cinder was shocked. "It's you!"

Victor did not answer immediately, but turned his head and glanced sideways at the emaciated and pale monster Lord of Cinder behind him.

Lord of Cinder: "Where is my advisor!?"

Victor: "He's dead. He climbed the stairs to heaven to the gates, and I kicked him down to hell."

Then came a deathly silence.

Twenty seconds passed without either of them saying a word.

Only the cigarette in Victor's mouth burned quietly, the pungent nicotine trying to drive away the discomfort in Victor's chest and lungs, or releasing more dioxins to help his body get used to the harsh environment of the research station, since cigarettes also contain this toxin, a carcinogen.

That scene was quite mysterious.

--It's amazing.

The thin man sat up in surprise, his limp limbs leaning against the headboard. His dark hair was damp with moisture, and the cold sweat on his forehead and the gold lettering on his neck were very conspicuous.

A strong, healthy man sat on the edge of the bed, smoking and reading a book, without moving.

Maddes Bruno thought about many, many things.

His skin was covered with countless new chapters and rules, as if the devil had added an additional clause to his contract, far more excessive than a simple phrase like "Do not kill," with complicated and far-fetched regulations.

At this moment, he was at the mercy of others and had no way to bypass the power of the [Hell Highway]'s soul force to break the law.

The staff officer is dead, so why did David Victor spare my life? -- Maddes Bruno couldn't understand.

Judging from the time shown on the clock, he had been unconscious for a full eight hours, completely defenseless like an infant. Victor could probably find nine ways to get him into the nuclear reactor at the research station.

So Maddes timidly asked, "You're not going to kill me?"

Victor closed the journal and handed it to its original owner, Maddes.

"I hate questions that are practically nonsense. If I wanted you dead, you would end your sinful life in your dreams."

Maddes stared at the logbook in surprise; he didn't recall having such a thing.

His passenger logbook had long since turned to ashes with the passing years; it was gone when he left the railway system to join the Madness Butterfly Sect.

"What is this strange thing?!" Maddes held the book pages, wanting to examine the contents closely, but it felt completely unfamiliar. "Is it my diary?"

"To be precise, it's the life story of Maddes Bruno." Victor stubbed out his cigarette, took a new one from the pack, and handed it to Maddes: "The story taken from your skull by my [Hell Highway], and written down by my pen."

"Damn it!" Maddes was both frightened and curious, and wanted to curse, but a strong golden flame burst from the skin of his collarbone.

No swearing allowed.

This decree forced him to submit to the tyranny of hellish demons; his vocal cords felt as if they were being squeezed by an invisible hand, rendering him unable to produce any more sound.

"I have many ways to get prisoners to confess, and I'm a juror in the court." Victor beckoned to Soulwreath to snap his fingers, like a spark from hot flint, to light a cigarette for the Lord of Cinder. "Your Soulwreath is very interesting."

Maddes took a deep drag on his cigarette, but felt a void in his heart.

He could no longer remember what was written in his diary, or rather—his memories had been scattered by the chaotic remnants of a vengeful spirit, turning into a tangled mess. His experiences related to his age or era were disrupted by the massive flow of information, leaving him with no useful entry point or clues.

He could be Maddes in 1937—

--It could also be Miley Cyrus from 1980.

--It could be Bruno, who mingles with widows.

--It could also be Siphus, enjoying his twilight years with three generations living together in harmony.

Countless souls opened a giant online chat room in Maddes's head.

He simply couldn't distinguish which parts of his memories were real and which parts were fake.

After all, these elements were once vibrant lives.

"[Icon] can steal another's senses, seemingly the same type as [Hell Highway]," Victor said, turning the page to the next page of the Lord of Cinder's journal. "Except yours is [Taking], while mine is [Giving]."

Maddes, preoccupied with reading the log, found the effeminate VIP incredibly annoying. "Stop talking nonsense! You spared my life because you value my abilities, right?! Tell me, what do you want me to do for you?!"

"Come back with me." Victor cut to the chase, showing no mercy. "We'll go back to Golden Township first, bring more security personnel with us, then I'll personally take you to the courthouse in Balason, have the judge stamp your papers, and then it will be a public execution."

"Hahahaha!" Maddes laughed loudly, "You actually want to kill a dead man?"

Victor: "Perhaps there's a better way, like sending you to the wilderness and turning you into a sun."

Speaking of this--

The Lord of Cinder suddenly fell silent.

He couldn't believe what he was hearing; the thing he had been pursuing for so long had actually been accomplished in this way.

Victor continued, "Don't be so naive, Maddes. I guarantee you, you'll suffer unspeakable torture before you die—I'll do my best to decipher the cause of death of every life within you, and recreate that agony within your very being."

"All of it? All of it?" Maddes's face immediately changed, and beads of sweat the size of soybeans rolled down his forehead. "All of it? So much?"

"It will take several years, even a decade, to slowly complete this torture." Victor revealed a terrifying smile, "The entire process will be filmed, and a crime documentary will be made specifically for you, so that people can see how you eat people, how you are tortured, and how you ultimately die."

Maddes immediately regretted it. "No, no, no! No, no, no, no! No, no, no, no!"

That's not a punishment that can be endured overnight, or by simply sticking your neck out, gritting your teeth, and closing your eyes.

That's a perverse practice that lasts for years or even decades, with thousands of ways to die, where it's difficult to kill someone even with continuous bleeding or skinning and dismemberment.

No matter how resilient a person's nerves are, or how strong a creature's will is, no one can withstand this level of mental attack.

Even if he did manage to walk off the execution ground, he might have already gone mad, becoming a completely demented, vegetative state.

The gleaming gold pen tip swiftly sketched a portrait on the journal page.

--That was Maddes Bruno's waitress, a very energetic young woman with freckles, coarse hair, and round, lively eyes.

"I challenge you to a knightly duel." Victor finished drawing the portrait and immediately placed his bet. "If you can endure these torments, what awaits you in the end is this fiery sun, which will likely be the most important light in your life."

Maddes screamed hysterically, "The price is too high! What if I can't hold on? What if I go insane and become a madman? Then I'll have nothing left! If that's the case, you might as well just kill me! Let me die!"

Victor picked up his pen, preparing to draw the wound on the portrait's face.

The sharp pen tip drew a vicious, bloody mark on the King of Cinder's arm.

"I promise you!" Maddes Bruno hesitated only for a moment before immediately changing his mind, making a pact with the devil. "I promise you! David Victor! I have nothing left! I have only this one thought in my mind! If I can resurrect her, or find a way to resurrect her with all my might, even if it's just a myth, I will try."

"Then let's set off." Victor turned his back to pack his bags.

Maddes Bruno was utterly bewildered. "David! You're exposing your back! Aren't you afraid I'll take the opportunity to kill you?!"

Victor: "If you can do it, go ahead and try. You should have witnessed my soul power."

Maddes: "Why are you doing all this for me?!"

Victor picked up his backpack, crossed his arms, and the cool light from the window shone on the handsome man's profile.

"It seems you've misunderstood something—Lord of Cinder. I've never considered you a human being. My 'humanitarian aid' to you is just a nice-sounding, respectable term, a fairy tale told to children."

At this moment, Maddes felt a chill run through his body.

"You are my material, my toy." Victor's cold face revealed a strong sense of restlessness. "I am very curious about how many more horrific stories await my reading in this thick, rough notebook of yours."

"--I never intended to help you fulfill your wishes."

"--Your ideals and pursuits are worthless in my eyes."

"--I just hope to dig out more material from this journey, from your body that should have been rotting and stinking long ago, and from your head."

" --Maddes Bruno, you seem to think too highly of me."

Victor simply flicked his finger.

The golden characters on the back of the Lord of Cinder burst forth with dazzling flames, urging his body to immediately follow.

"To add some thrilling elements to this story, we need to incorporate the fairness and equality of a jousting tournament, along with various other conditions—"

Victor slapped the cannibal sun's face and spoke of the [Hell Highway]'s fatal weakness.

"--To break free from my soul's power and escape my control, you must extract the [Safe Word] from me. This word is something I absolutely cannot say or write down, yet it has always been on my mind. Once you utter it, I'm afraid you, this fierce tiger, will break free of your shackles and immediately kill and devour me completely."

"Such an important phrase, I will certainly treat it with utmost care."

"If you have a nightmare while sleeping and talk in your sleep, and you hear it, it could be a terrible disaster."

"If I win, I must overcome my inner fears, and I hope you can do the same, confronting the sins you've committed—let me savor your memories."

"If I lose, and during this journey you find the [Safe Word] I specially set for you, find this key, [Icon] will deliver the fatal blow, and you will regain your freedom."

Hope returned to Maddes Bruno's eyes.

Life always needs these things; we need something to look forward to in order to keep going.

Victor clapped his hands gently, and Soul Might closed the guest room door at the opportune moment.

"I'm a [carnivore] like you, and on this journey, I'll devour all your stories. After that, you'll be nothing but an empty shell to me, worthless."