[Decimation], to Burn Away That Sin

All things had already been burned away; even the self would be destroyed without a trace. Life and death, existence and extinction—only [Decimation] would burn eternally, never fading!

Before the words had even faded, the phantom moved. His figure flickered repeatedly through the carriage, each appearance accompanied by a bloodthirsty aura soaring into the air.

Gunshots, screams, and the sound of bones breaking intertwined into a terrifying symphony.

A few breaths. Just a few breaths, and all was silent.

The masked phantom stood amid the piled corpses, raising a hand to gather several balls of fire and burn away the sights "unsuitable for children."

At last, he lifted Eous and Nekomata from the floor with a look of disgust and said impatiently, "Stupid cat, and this rabbit-like thing. It's over."

"Uncle Qianjie—be polite."

A soft, sweet voice came from the carriage doorway. It was Griseo, and at the same time, Mr. Knight beside her had vanished.

Griseo looked seriously at the masked phantom, the [Decimation] Signet shining between her brows.

"...Got it." Qianjie paused, then silently tossed Nekomata and Eous onto the floor.

Through Eous's perspective, Wise looked at the now-empty carriage—a carriage that had been packed with armed Public Security officers just over ten seconds ago.

The faint smell of blood lingering in the air, along with the officers' shrill screams before their deaths... all proved the slaughter that had just occurred.

"What... happened?"

Beside him, Nekomata's tail had gone rigid with fright, and her face was equally full of lingering terror.

Griseo walked into the carriage and bent down to pick up Eous. Then she explained, "The smell of lies. Uncle Qianjie doesn't like it, so he came out."

It turned out that when the train had first stopped, Griseo had intended to use the [Daybreak] Signet.

But when she sensed the colors inside the train, she saw a heavy blackness.

That was the color of lies, as well as greed, hypocrisy... She was not very good at describing it, but she knew that color was unpleasant.

Because she had seen it before. Long ago, after Sister Sakura and Sister Belle disappeared, Uncle Qianjie had once spoken with Mother Aponia.

Uncle Qianjie had been very angry then, and he had been stained with colors that did not belong to him—this very black.

And then...

The [Decimation] Signet had lit up on its own, and Mr. Knight had transformed into Uncle Qianjie's phantom.

Though he was only a projection summoned by Griseo, he perfectly inherited the original's personality—including that temper and that hatred of "lies."

"The smell of lies..." Wise repeated, and Eous abruptly turned toward Nekomata.

"Nekomata—! Have you been hiding something from us?!"

"Meow—!!!"

Caught off guard by being called out, Nekomata sprang up as if startled.

But before she could jump away, Qianjie grabbed her by the scruff.

"Stupid cat." Qianjie's voice came from behind the mask, carrying a teasing chill. "If I were you—"

"Uncle Qianjie." Griseo raised her head and said earnestly with her little face tilted up, "Please speak more politely."

"...Don't use that woman's way of talking on me!!"

Seeing Griseo imitate Aponia's tone, Qianjie's voice suddenly rose, but Griseo merely watched him quietly.

Three seconds later, Qianjie could only turn his head away irritably.

After all, Griseo had summoned him. What else could he do?

Of course, even the original would only obediently listen to her.

Nekomata let out a long breath, grateful that her cat life was still intact. But Wise's questioning soon followed.

"Nekomata, what exactly have you been hiding from us?" Eous stared straight at her.

In an instant, Nekomata's ears drooped. She knew she could not hide it anymore.

"Fine, I'll talk..."

Nekomata swallowed and began recounting what she had concealed.

The commission was real, and searching for the family heirloom was real too.

But something unexpected had happened during the commission. They had encountered a child in the Dead End Hollow.

After saving the child, they ran into the Dead End Butcher.

When the group had been chased into a situation with nowhere to go, they accidentally passed through an unknown Hollow rift and barely escaped with their lives.

But because of that rift, they saw something they should not have seen—Vision Corporation's secret.

In the Canvas Harbor area, Vision Corporation's main demolition zone, there were hundreds of residents who had not been evacuated.

To prevent the residents from escaping, Vision Corporation had thoughtfully installed signal jammers and disguised their people as Public Security officers, completely cutting off any chance of calling for outside help.

That was also why Vision Corporation had defeated Belobog Heavy Industries—the so-called low-cost plan was simply to seal off the blast zone.

They would blow up the people and the railway together. As for compensation?

Go ask God for it!

"What?"

After hearing this, Wise and Belle froze, but they soon no longer found it surprising.

The two had dealt with people from Belobog Heavy Industries before. It had an excellent public reputation: good quality at reasonable prices.

But how could a newly emerged Vision Corporation defeat Belobog Heavy Industries, then brazenly claim it would enter the TOPS Financial Alliance within five years?

"Heh. People are all the same everywhere. For profit, they'll stop at nothing..." Qianjie's phantom leaned against the carriage wall, an inscrutable cold snort sounding from beneath his mask.

Yet there was something in his irritable voice that made chills crawl down their backs.

"No matter where you are, humanity itself is the darkest abyss!"

The carriage fell silent for a moment, and Wise and Nekomata's gazes landed on him at the same time.

Back at the video store, only the ever-diligent Fairy was still working overtime.

[Master, based on the information provided by Miss Nekomata, the original plan requires the following adjustments—]

[Known information:]

[1. Vision Corporation personnel have impersonated Public Security officers and sealed all exits from the Canvas Harbor area.]

[2. Most residents in the area have Ether adaptability ratings below E and cannot evacuate on foot through the Hollows.]

[3. The only viable evacuation route—the subway line—will be completely destroyed once the demolition begins.]

[Conclusion: The residents must be evacuated before the train reaches the demolition site.]

[Recommended plan of action—alter the current train route, charge into Canvas Harbor, and take out all residents.]

Belle looked at the plan on the screen and asked with a frown, "Fairy, have you devised a way to drive the train to New Eridu?"

[Yes.]

"So the question now is whether we can hold off Vision Corporation's people, as well as any Ethereals that might appear, until the residents have evacuated."

Belle turned to Wise and voiced her concern.

Hearing his sister's question, Wise fell silent for several seconds instead, recalling what had happened on the train not long ago.

The issue was no longer how to stop Vision Corporation's people. It was how to stop them from coming here to die.

Without realizing it, his gaze met Qianjie's through Eous...

"Kid, let me give you a piece of advice: 'Human nature is uneven stone. Don't dream of using it to build a tower.'"

"..."

"Come on! Proxy, don't hesitate! Every second wasted puts Nicole and the others in greater danger!!"

"Alright, I understand. Let's go!" Wise nodded and no longer hesitated. He could still tell what mattered more.