It's a Fine Day Today

"Boss, will this actually work?"

Running at full speed, the man asked while trailing behind the captain.

Weaving through this labyrinthine forest left him feeling uneasy.

One had to realize that a map of the Zoldyck Family estate was worth a bounty of one hundred million Jenie.

It was easy to imagine just how complex their terrain must be.

If they barged in like this, wouldn't they be throwing good money after bad?

The man couldn't help but feel a sense of dread.

They were all just working for money; there was no need to throw their lives away.

"Regretting it now? What were you doing earlier?"

The captain snorted coldly, casting a disdainful glance at the man behind him.

He sneered, "Weren't you quite eager when you took the money?"

"But..."

"Relax. Our mission is only to disrupt the Zoldyck servants. There's no real danger. We just need to scatter their manpower and provide an opening for those who are actually here to do the big job."

To put it plainly, they just needed to tear a hole in the Zoldyck defenses and let the others in.

All they had to do was run in aimless circles to draw the family's hired muscle away.

The captain glanced out of the corner of his eye at those chasing them and smiled.

It was nothing more than a mouse playing with a cat.

It was an easy job.

There was no need to fear offending the Zoldyck Family, either; after all, they hadn't even launched an attack.

They were simply running away.

As long as they escaped, they would receive a massive bonus!

That was enough money to last for years!

Why wouldn't they do it?

Thinking this, the captain felt even more smug.

He subconsciously looked back at those who had been following them, only to discover that the group of Zoldyck hired hands in their uniform attire had vanished at some point.

"Stop!"

Raising his hand, the captain issued the order.

"Where did they go?"

Muttering under his breath, the captain was puzzled.

This shouldn't be happening. How could the Zoldyck servants, known as the Mad Dog Guards, stop chasing halfway through?

He looked around, observing his surroundings.

All around them was a lush, dense forest.

Dark and lightless.

Eerie.

A cold wind picked up, and the leaves rustled.

It only added to the strangeness.

On the branches, crows let out low cries.

Their green, ghostly pupils stared at the intruders.

With ill intent.

It was as if they were watching a group of pathetic clowns.

Flap, flap.

Suddenly, the crows beat their wings and flew away rapidly.

Caw.

Caw.

The desolate forest echoed with a few raspy cries from the crows.

Like a funeral knell.

It hammered against the nerves of the intruders.

Swallowing hard, the captain felt a tremor of fear.

Cold sweat seeped from his palms, but he feigned composure.

"Turn back, keep harassing them, and lure that pack of 'mad dogs' over here!"

He shouted loudly, perhaps to bolster his own courage.

But, regardless, this place was no longer suitable for further advancement.

"Boss, we shouldn't move forward..."

Before he could finish, he was interrupted by the captain, whose eyes were filled with panic.

His voice was cold and sharp, as if he were feigning composure: "Move where?! The people chasing us are gone! Move where?!"

Pressing in step by step, the captain glared at the bewildered team member and scoffed: "Our mission is to lure that pack of dogs away! Not to run around aimlessly! Do you understand?!"

Swallowing hard, his nerves, long accustomed to operating in the gray zones, had already sounded the alarm.

This place could not be stayed in for long!

They had to leave immediately!

The team members were startled by the suddenly irritable captain, looking at one another in confusion.

They didn't understand.

But they had no choice but to obey.

Turning around with sluggish movements, the team members, who had already been running for an hour, felt deeply exhausted.

They no longer had the energy to continue provoking the enemy's nerves.

Yet, the captain's orders had to be obeyed.

"Hey, cute intruders, where are you going?"

A crisp, melodious child's voice rang out from behind them.

At that moment, the captain felt the alarm bells in his brain roaring.

Run, run, run!

These words looped infinitely in his mind.

But just as he was about to flee in a panic, a killing intent so intense it made him tremble erupted from behind!

His heart seemed to stop for a split second; the captain didn't know what he was feeling at that moment.

He only knew that he seemed unable to move.

Time suddenly slowed down; he could even feel the cold sweat sliding down his cheeks.

His pupils trembled, and his muscles were taut all over.

"I'm asking you? Where are you going, uncles?"

The voice behind him continued.

It carried a sense of confusion and bewilderment.

Faintly, one could even detect a hint of grievance: "Uncles are so mean, you won't even tell a child?"

Stiffening his neck, the captain turned his head with great difficulty.

He discovered a white-haired boy holding a black book standing in the middle of the grass.

Dressed in a white suit, his movements were elegant and proper.

A smile was etched onto his face, giving him an innocent appearance.

If not for the killing intent radiating from this child, one might have mistaken him for a cute little gentleman.

Blood-red light swirled in his pupils as the boy slowly approached.

Smiling, skipping.

He hopped and skipped, even finding the time to spin around.

Meanwhile, the people in front seemed to have had their time frozen.

They could only stare blankly as the child approached them step by step.

Their bodies trembled involuntarily, yet they were powerless to do anything but watch in terror as he drew near.

Carrying cold, murderous intent.

At this moment, the captain's heart turned ice-cold.

He knew he wouldn't be able to escape this time.

But he couldn't understand why a small child would possess such terrifying killing intent.

This killing intent was enough to force a person's body into an automatic state of alarm.

It made every muscle in his body tense to the point of rigidity.

It was just like the instinct one feels when encountering a large predator.

He was completely unable to move!

Finally, just as the boy was about to touch the captain's body, they discovered that they seemed to be able to control their bodies again!

They scrambled and crawled, tears and snot streaming down their faces as they bolted forward!

They wailed and shrieked.

Some were even worse off, their mouths hanging wide open, unable to emit a single sound.

Their trousers had been soaked through by some unknown liquid at some point.

But they had no time to worry about such things.

They only knew that this was their one and only chance to escape!

Run! Run faster!

Yet, it seemed to be of no real use.

In the blink of an eye, the boy reached the front of the group at a speed invisible to ordinary people.

In a blur, the captain saw the child's mouth opening and closing.

"Why run? You've already arrived."

His vision grew dim; the captain could no longer hear any sound, only guessing the words from the smiling child's lip movements ahead.

Then stay behind.

The world faded into a blur.

For no apparent reason, a thought surfaced in the captain's mind.

Who is staying?

Me?

No, us.

Oh, yes, we are being left behind.

A sharp pain shot through his entire body.

Then, his perspective suddenly shifted.

The captain could suddenly see his own body sliding downward in a grotesque posture.

He watched in confusion.

He was puzzled as to why he was seeing his own body from a perspective he had never experienced before.

Thud.

His head hit the ground.

A sudden realization dawned on him.

Oh, so I'm dead.

How... truly regrettable.

His consciousness plunged into eternal darkness.

Falling into the abyss.

The boy standing in front of everyone merely glanced at them indifferently, slowly turned around, and donned a gentleman's hat.

The oversized brim obscured his eyes.

The corners of his mouth curled upward.

An enigmatic smile.

He took a slow step forward.

Rip.

A faint sound echoed through the space.

Then...

Behind the boy, all was blood.

Fresh dye splashed across the sky.

Everything was red.

Limbs were severed, heads separated from bodies.

Blood-stained threads drifted in the air.

Tugging at the broken people.

They danced in the air, shattered and torn.

Like the final elegy of life.

Facing the new moon.

The curtain fell on a lifetime.

Bang.

Bang.

The sound of heavy objects hitting the ground rang out incessantly behind him.

It was as if he were stepping to the beat of a drum, conducting a funeral march for the souls of the departed.

The heads rolling across the floor wore expressions of every kind.

Terror, fear, despair, pity, regret.

All of them frozen in the final moment before death.

Rich, yet desolate.

Coleman did not even spare them a glance.

He simply faced the wind and spread his arms wide.

He tilted his head back, gazing up at the beautiful, tranquil night sky.

In a faint, detached voice, he spoke.

"Today is a beautiful day."

Burying death, welcoming rebirth.