Ember's Question, the Flower, and Their Identities

"How could this be..." Flame Wing said hoarsely, clutching his chest as the flame hovering above his head flickered in and out.

White Jack raised his eyes and grinned at Flame Wing, who was struggling to get back up in the distance. "Friendly reminder: this isn't some little game. There are no revival coins here."

With that, he immediately transformed into a streak of blue lightning and shot straight ahead.

"Dammit!"

Flame Wing gritted his teeth and turned at once, blasting pillars of fire from his palms. Propelled by the force, he shot more than ten meters away in an instant.

But at that moment, one of the little paper figures in White Jack's palm suddenly spoke again in a low voice:

"Eternal Recurrence."

As the paper figure's words fell, a system prompt flashed across White Jack's pupils.

[You have activated Philosopher "Nietzsche's" skill—"Eternal Recurrence" (returns you or a nearby target to the position they occupied 1.5 seconds ago).]

And at this moment, the target White Jack designated for the skill could naturally only be Flame Wing, who was fleeing in panic.

The next instant, Flame Wing was suddenly enveloped in blue light, then returned to where he had been 1.5 seconds earlier.

He was back where he started, standing shoulder to shoulder with White Jack in the middle of the street.

At this moment, White Jack was awkwardly humming the tune of "Hotel California."

Holding his cane, he twisted his body restlessly, as though warming up for a golf swing.

Flame Wing stood frozen in place, his face filled with confusion and shock. Only after a moment did he slowly turn his stiff neck, White Jack's hair-raising face reflected in his pupils.

They were within arm's reach.

White Jack waved at him first, then swung his magician's cane at Flame Wing's head like a golf club.

The blow instantly knocked Flame Wing's head crooked, sending brain matter spraying out. At the same time, deep-blue currents flowed from White Jack's palm to the tip of the cane.

Then they surged without restraint through Flame Wing's entire body.

Flame Wing threw back his head and howled. His whole body convulsed amid countless flashes of deep-blue lightning, as though serpents formed from lightning were licking every corner of his flesh.

He rolled across the ground two or three times before coming to himself, then his eyes rolled back and he fell still.

"Job done."

White Jack tilted his head and stretched lazily. The current enveloping his body faded in an instant, and the three little paper figures in his hand turned into wisps of smoke and vanished.

With one hand on his hip, he looked at the sprawled Flame Wing, then at Water Snake.

"Which one should I butcher first?" White Jack rested a hand against his chin.

He tucked the magician's cane under his arm, carried the unconscious Flame Wing in one hand and the unconscious Water Snake in the other, and slowly walked into the alley.

Then he dropped them both and picked up the cane tucked beneath his arm.

Humming "London Bridge Is Falling Down," he gripped the magician's cane with both hands and, like a butcher at a slaughterhouse, smashed it down on Flame Wing's head again and again.

"Splat—!"

In the narrow, dim alley, brain matter kept spraying out. Blood splashed across White Jack's face, adding a savage crimson tint to his pale features.

"Are superhuman skulls all this hard? Or is my Strength stat still too low?"

After a while, he let out a breath and wiped away his sweat. At last, a notification panel appeared in his pupils.

[Detected that the player has completed Weekly Mission 2—"Kill a superhuman."]

[Congratulations, you have received the reward for Weekly Mission 2: one chance to use the Item Roulette.]

[Detected that you killed a D-rank superhuman. As this is your first time killing a D-rank superhuman, you have received 1,000 Super Coins and 200 EXP as rewards.]

[Current Super Coin balance: 1,500.]

"That's so stingy?"

White Jack curled his lip and walked toward Water Snake with his cane. A patch of ghostly blue flame suddenly ignited at its end.

He pressed the cane against Water Snake's tail. Before long, the flames roared to life, spreading from the snake's tail across its whole body. Soon, Water Snake was burned into a charred corpse.

[Notice: You have killed a "D-rank superhuman" and gained 200 EXP.]

[Current level progress: Lv.05 (2400/2500 EXP) (↑400)]

White Jack was just about to complain that the system was stingy to the extreme when a cold shout rang out behind him.

"Stop."

White Jack froze for a moment, then slowly turned his head. At that very moment, a girl in a gothic dress was floating in midair, her feet slowly touching down on the alley floor.

The girl raised her umbrella, its tip aimed directly at White Jack's head.

"What is it now, my Miss Ember?"

White Jack threw away the bloodstained cane and raised both arms in surrender. "You can kill criminals, but I can't?"

Magical Girl Ember remained silent. She looked at the alley stained red with blood and brain matter, then lifted her gaze to White Jack's blood-covered face.

A teasing smile still curled at the corner of his lips, and his eyes were full of composure.

"So you really didn't die..." Ember said.

"Of course not. Didn't I say I'd come back?"

As he spoke, White Jack slowly walked toward the girl in the gothic dress, one step at a time.

"Don't come any closer. If you do, I'll shoot." Ember's voice was cold, every word distinct.

"Oh, of course. I don't plan to come over." White Jack scratched his head. "Actually, I wanted to give you a big hug, but I'm covered in blood right now. What if I get you dirty?"

As he spoke, he hunched over like a little dog drenched by rain, pitifully taking off his top hat and reaching inside it as though searching for something.

"Don't move."

But White Jack ignored her warning. Ember pulled the trigger, hitting him in the shoulder.

The magic bullet was immensely powerful. A corner of White Jack's shoulder was blown apart, blood spraying out. Yet he still stubbornly continued searching inside his top hat.

Before long, he slowly pulled out what he had been looking for with his right hand.

Ember froze.

What appeared in White Jack's hand was a lily.

He grinned and staggered toward the stunned girl in the gothic dress.

With every step, blood flowed from his body. Leaving a trail of blood behind him, he approached the girl, bent slightly at the waist, and offered the small flower—snow-white and flawlessly pure—to Ember.

But Ember did not take the flower.

She only stared blankly at him, her fingertip still resting on the trigger in the umbrella's handle.

"Who... are you, really?" she asked softly after a while.

"One day, you'll know." The corners of White Jack's mouth split wider. "One day..." As he spoke, White Jack wanted to raise his bloodstained right hand to her cheek, but slowly withdrew it.

"My lovely Miss Ember, I hope you always remain this innocent."

As his words fell, White Jack's figure began to dissolve. Before long, he turned into a cloud of snow-white smoke and scattered away, leaving behind a wisp of white smoke that formed the shape of a smiling face in the air.

Magical Girl Ember silently watched the scene, unmoving for a long time.

Meanwhile, directly above the alley, a figure clad in a red-and-black metallic coat stood atop Wind-Fire Wheels, hovering in midair.

Beneath the pitch-black sky, Red Lotus looked down silently at Magical Girl Ember.

Her gaze trembled slightly, her lips moving as she murmured softly:

"It really is you... Xiao Li."