Analysis / Embrace...

"A tall man wearing a fox mask."

Chapter Thirty-Four Analysis

"The killer's physical characteristics?" Hua found this incredulous. "Wouldn't that narrow down the possibilities for the killer?"

However, Kevin coldly shook his head and said, "No."

"Why?"

"Immer left a message by writing those words on the floor with his own blood dipped in his finger."

After listening to Kevin's description, Hua's excitement at finding the killer's characteristics vanished almost instantly. She lowered her head in thought for a moment, then looked at the two of them. "Can you confirm that it was written by Immer?"

"..." Judging from Kevin's expression, it seems unlikely.

Leaving messages is a common practice, especially for a loyal and excellent soldier like Immer, who would do everything in his power to find the real culprit. Therefore, Hua, Kevin, and Hen would unconditionally believe in the accuracy of Immer's information.

But the way it was left behind makes it hard not to suspect that the murderer did it intentionally.

Immer's injuries were severe. Although no major organs were damaged, he was caught off guard and no signs of resistance were left at the scene. He lost his ability to fight instantly. It is questionable whether he could have consciously written down and hidden the information at that time.

Moreover, it's such an easily detectable way of transmitting information.

Therefore, this could be a misleading statement by the murderer.

"But the killer left in a hurry without even confirming Immer's life or death, so it's possible that he really didn't notice Immer's movements." Kevin offered a different perspective. He wasn't good at finding clues, but his grasp of combat and timing was far beyond that of ordinary people. "It's very possible that there wasn't enough time at the time, which has a certain degree of credibility."

"The safest way is to wait for Immer to wake up, but it seems we can't wait that long now."

Two more High Council have been murdered, clearly indicating that the mastermind behind the scenes has begun to take action.

"Furthermore, based on the information from the second crime scene and Immer's information, combined with the information from the first crime scene, the physical characteristics of the murderer match. We can try to investigate the male members of the Moth Chaser group first."

Hen and Hua nodded. Kevin unconsciously clenched his fist. He felt as if he had overlooked something, as if he had accidentally stepped into a trap. It was so reasonable, yet there was a sense of incongruity that he couldn't quite put his finger on.

In the projected image, a tall man disembowels an old man, lifts him up with his claws, and slams him onto a conference table. Blood splatters out like liquid from a high-pressure pump, accidentally spilling onto the white handkerchief on the chest of a girl with different hair colors.

"Projection ended."

With great interest, Vill-V watched Prometheus close his eyes, turn off the projection, and then silently stand aside.

After Lin disappeared, the mechanical girl seemed to have lost her soul as well, losing the lifelike humanity she used to imitate, and instead performing assigned tasks like a real machine.

"The first crime was committed in a conference room, and the second crime was committed in an artificial lake."

Einstein held a cup of cold coffee, her eyes listless. After taking a small sip to recharge, she yawned and walked up to Prometheus.

"Has the second death report come out yet?"

Prometheus nodded slightly, preferring to speak with facts, "The first and second people died half an hour apart. One was in deep water and his body was only found after being retrieved, while the other was in shallow water."

"The cause of death is the same as that of the victim in the first case."

"Claws?" Vill-V asked.

"What the murder weapon is doesn't really matter." Einstein added a spoonful of sugar to her coffee, stirred it slowly with the spoon, and looked at the crystalline substance spreading in the cup. "It's just using conventional thinking to mislead people into thinking that the murderer must be someone who used this kind of weapon. In reality, even I could stab someone through with those claws."

After a pause, she casually remarked, "It's quite surprising that Doctor Mei didn't notice."

"There always needs to be a direction." Vill-V smiled. "When walking down a dark path, it doesn't matter whether you encounter a dim candle or a bright street lamp; it's just that the person walking needs a direction."

"..." Einstein didn't continue speaking. She glanced thoughtfully at the mysterious smile that Vill-V often wore, took a sip of coffee, and exhaled a breath of stale air. "The two crime scenes are very different. What was the killer's motive?"

The difference between the conference room and the artificial lake is too great, and this difference may very well hide some of the killer's secrets.

Vill-V and Einstein worked together, organizing their thoughts. "After the first incident, the High Council must have become more vigilant. They wouldn't meet someone at such a dangerous location as an artificial lake in the middle of the night. So the artificial lake is probably just the second crime scene. The real first crime scene will only be known after investigation."

"Then why would the murderer hide the body in an artificial lake?"

"There would be a response to the disappearance of personnel at headquarters in a very short time, so hiding the body was not a realistic goal. The killer wanted to hide something else."

Einstein asked, "What is it?"

"A comparison of the two locations where the bodies were found is needed."

"The first body was found in a closed conference room, with few extra items, a simple structure, and little information left behind," Einstein added. "The second body was found in an artificial lake, with a complex structure, and more footprints and traces were left in the soil."

"After comparison, the shoe prints are the same size. Based on the degree of soil depression, it can be analyzed that the killer's height is about 175 to 180 centimeters and his weight is about 130 kilograms, which are all standard male builds."

Why would the other party appear at a location that could potentially reveal more information?

"..."

"..."

The two geniuses already had some guesses in their minds.

The answer is that the murderer wanted to deliberately reveal his own information.

"Prometheus Unit 2 found no evidence of anyone tampering with access records, and the monitors are all functioning normally. The perpetrator has other ways to move freely within headquarters."

Vill-V's fingers paused for a second as she tapped the table. Einstein, noticing something amiss, looked at her, but she calmly said, "If you use some devices and become proficient, achieving free movement isn't too difficult."

"... What is it?"

"Lin has a device called 'Phase Shift,' which is a technological achievement resulting from his research on the Second Herrscher. He can travel through space over a certain distance, and according to the records, he has fully mastered its use."

His height and weight matched perfectly, he had the means and opportunity to commit the crime, and even the murder weapon was labeled with his name.

Vill-V laughed and said, "All the evidence points to Lin's side."

Chapter Thirty-Five: Embrace

Lin sat behind Zero, the soft mattress still feeling real to the touch. He sat upright on it, gazing at Zero, who was in standby mode.

The last rays of dusk cast the final light before nightfall beneath the door, and the terminator disappeared at the far end of the line of sight.

Lin was waiting for Zero to act, but apart from eating, resting, and conducting necessary experiments, Zero didn't seem like a living person at all.

Lin wanted to explore other places, but he could only move within a 0.5-meter radius. Upon reflection, he realized that this was within his memory and understood that he couldn't possibly go to places he had never seen before.

Therefore, if he wants to know more, he can only do so through one person.

"Squeak."

"Ah, sorry, sorry, the meeting went on for too long today, I'm late." The man pushed open the door and entered, scratching the back of his head and smiling apologetically. "Those old fogies talk too much nonsense, it's annoying to listen to them. If I weren't so inexperienced, I really wouldn't want to give them face."

"..."

A man's apology is useless; Zero doesn't care whether he's late or not, and besides, Zero doesn't care if he comes at all.

However, the man's constant talking to Zero did have some effect; for example, Zero started responding to him on her own initiative.

"'Who are they?"

"Huh? Didn't I tell you?" The man pulled up a chair and sat down in front of Zero, complaining without any regard for his reputation. "It's the High Council at Firemoth. We created Firemoth together, and we thought we would elect a leader, but instead we split the power. It's incredibly foolish."

"You want to be a leader?"

"Who said I wanted to be one? You know you don't have the ability."

Upon hearing Zero's question, the man curled his lip slightly in disdain and said, "To disperse power in the face of Honkai is tantamount to sending humanity to the guillotine. Internal strife, division, assassination... even a fool could think of a whole host of problems. Do you think those so-called human elites wouldn't think of that? They just can't accept being inferior as elites."

"In the future, humanity needs someone to lead the way, whether that person is an unparalleled genius or a rare idiot, whether they walk towards the light or into the abyss, it doesn't matter."

When the man mentioned the future, his eyes lit up with excitement. He proudly took out his cigarette case and skillfully lit a cigarette.

However, he didn't light the cigarette. He glanced at the indifferent Zero, silently put the cigarette away, and after thinking for a moment, threw the cigarette pack into the trash can.

"But I don't want that person to be you."

"...Why?" Zero couldn't understand. His parents had always taught him that he would be the hope of humanity, the future of humanity. Why was the man saying the exact opposite?

"Because you have never experienced human life, you are not human." The man stroked his smooth, stubble-free chin and answered seriously, "No human is born to lead humanity. You should have been born as a human, not as 'humanity's hope'."

"Incomprehensible."

"So that's what makes you different from humans, Kobayashi. No matter how many words you read in books, no one will love you."

"..."

"You said you love humanity, right? But that's just a consciousness your parents implanted in your brain. You've never seen the darkness, the ignorance, or the greed of humanity. They're like a bunch of planetary maggots, doing everything to persecute the living space of other creatures and destroy the environment they depend on for survival in exchange for resources and profits."

The man coldly rolled up his sleeves, revealing numerous scars on his arms that told the story of his past, "Most humans, including myself, will see their so-called humanity crumble in an instant once they get involved in the profit chains we've created. Besides, we're capable of anything to ensure the continuation of our race, calling ourselves a superior race, but in reality, the Earth can function perfectly well without humans, and might even be better off."

"If you had truly seen what kind of race humanity is, you would not be able to say that you love humanity. And I would never let you sacrifice everything for humanity for the crazy plans of two mentally unstable scientists. Humanity has no right to make a child sacrifice anything."

Zero was surprised by what the man said. In the past, he would only come to say hello and talk about trivial matters. He seemed neither serious nor busy.

"I want you to say 'I hate humans.' You have been taken away from you by humans, and you need to see the true face of humanity."

"..."

"..."

"But..." The man's serious face suddenly crumbled, and as he opened and closed his eyes, a gentle meaning welled up in his pupils. He sighed, "After that, after you have seen the truth, I want you to fall in love with humanity again."

"Xiaolin, you have never truly lived in human society. The concept of humanity in your mind is broad and unrealistic. You don't know why you love humans, nor do you know whether you should love humans."

"Go and find someone who loves you, child."

The man was young, but his eyes were filled with a compassionate and loving gaze. Looking at the child with empty eyes, he reached out and embraced him.

Zero had no idea what the man was doing.

He had never been hugged kindly by anyone.

"Forehead..."

The world before his eyes was a blur of double images, and the stinging pain in his brain and the weakness in his body brought Lin back to the real world.

He coughed as he stood up from his wheelchair, stood on one leg, and walked towards the door while holding onto the wall.

He no longer felt that sharp gaze. Had Pardo driven away the watcher?

"Hello? Moshi Moshi, is this Mr. Lin?"

Before he could reach the door, a muffled sound came from outside.

The deliberately low voice made it impossible to tell whether it was male or female. Lin, who had just woken up, was in poor condition and couldn't tell whether the person outside the door was friend or foe.

Lin knew that someone must have secretly brought him out of this unknown place, but he didn't know what that person's purpose was. They sent people to monitor him, but didn't do anything to Lin.

However, Lin had no choice at the moment. Any soldier could easily take him down, so he could only remain silent.

The person outside seemed to have anticipated Lin's silence, so the door was slightly opened, just enough for a finger to pass through, and a package was thrown in.

"If you don't want to die right now, use what's inside. You shouldn't end your life here, should you?"

Lin couldn't see the outer packaging of the items that came in, but what was peeking out from inside looked somewhat familiar to him.

That's a syringe. The design and the bright green liquid inside make it obvious who designed it.

The man knocked on the door. "There are many people waiting for you."

Lin stepped forward and pushed open the door, but there was no one behind it.

Chapter Thirty-Six: Gifts

Mobius dipped a drop of blood into the microscope and examined its composition while adjusting the focus. The shrill ring of the communicator made her frown and look impatiently at the screen beside her.

Upon seeing the garbled number, Mobius's slightly furrowed brow relaxed, and he answered the call with a hint of annoyance.

"Didn't I tell you not to call me?" She held the communicator between her ear and shoulder, her tone filled with annoyance. "Now all communications could be monitored."

She stopped working in surprise after the person on the other end finished speaking, "You found him? So fast?"

"Those drugs are just potent inhibitors formulated with medicinal materials and inhibitors from the Medical Department. Given the extent of his damage, they can only keep him conscious for a short period of time."

After a brief conversation with the person on the other end, Mobius hung up and deleted the record. The atmosphere at headquarters was already at its most tense, and this communication contained sensitive information, so it was best to be cautious.

She didn't care what was happening inside the Firemoth headquarters. Whether the High Council- ups were alive or dead was of little concern to her. The operation of Firemoth didn't actually depend entirely on those guys. Besides, she would be more at ease if there were fewer people restraining her.

"Blinded in one eye, missing a leg, and still acting crazy..." Mobius muttered to himself, "What will those who eagerly awaited your birth think when they see you like this?"

She shook her head. She had seen the information about Lin's parents, and they were just ordinary people. Therefore, the abnormal artificial modification data in Lin's genes must have been done by someone else.

Whether Lin's parents were aware of this is unknown.