I will always stand by your side

Scar said, "Before you knew anything about this world, you were already a pawn in the struggle."

"An unknown, chaotic factor that sparked a frenzied scramble the moment you appeared."

"From the instant you opened your eyes, everyone you met understood your purpose, including that girl you care about."

Lu Li shot back, "Says who? I didn't!"

Interrupted by Lu Li, Scar grew a little exasperated. "I already told you, you're not part of our plans."

Then he sneered. "But fair enough. Talk all you want while you still can, before you lose the chance..."

Lu Li felt his urge to attack becoming impossible to contain. If A Piao hadn't kept stopping him, he would probably have squared off against Scar already.

Scar continued, "That's how greedy this world is. It cruelly turns a living, breathing person into a pawn with a specific function."

Lu Li cut in again. "Says who? A Piao is my future wife!"

Scar took a deep breath, his expression brimming with displeasure. "If you dare interrupt me again, I can't guarantee what I'll do."

Lu Li rolled his eyes. "Who do you think you are? You think I'm afraid of you? Come on! Fight me one-on-one!"

Lu Li taunted him, knowing Scar wouldn't attack him, at least not now. After all, A Piao was right beside him, protecting him.

Since they considered A Piao so important, they wouldn't hurt someone she valued right now.

From what he could see, Scar clearly wanted to win A Piao over, so he certainly wouldn't make their relationship any worse.

Perhaps this was what it meant to borrow someone else's power to throw your weight around.

Scar also knew that ignoring Lu Li was his best option right now. He continued:

"So I'm stepping forward to tell you the truth, because I sincerely consider you a friend, and I'm sorry for everything you're about to face."

Lu Li sneered. "A friend who's been watching her the whole way? You're pretty good at deadpan jokes."

Scar continued to ignore Lu Li. "This is my show of sincerity."

A Piao wasn't taken in by his words either. "Aren't you saying all this because you want me to join you?"

Scar smiled. "I'd rather say I'm looking forward to your choice."

"My goal is simple. I just want us to understand each other a little better."

Scar spread his arms and looked around:

"Take a look at this village, then tell me the truth you see."

"The more people understand this world, the clearer their inclinations become, and the more... interesting our game gets."

"In the meantime..." Scar paused, fixing Lu Li with a sharp gaze:

"I simply don't want our precious time together disturbed by someone who has nothing to do with this... that's all."

Lu Li scoffed. "What, the culprit's pointing fingers now?"

A Piao felt the same way. After all, the clues they had just found pointed to the Fractsidus, some openly and others more subtly.

"What did the Fractsidus do to this village?"

Scar replied helplessly, "Don't just assume we're the perpetrators..."

"What you should be asking is, what happened in this village?"

Scar spoke teasingly. "But simply telling you would be too boring. Didn't I say? You're the one who's going to tell me what you've seen."

"So, tell me. What did you see?"

A Piao described the clues they had just found.

A large-scale ritual...

Incidents of people being injured...

And strange Remnants...

"Heh, you've noticed that much already?"

"What do those clues suggest happened here?"

A Piao said with certainty, "The Fractsidus manipulated and harmed the villagers."

Scar laughed loudly. "A classic story. Innocent lambs, vicious wolves, a clear line between good and evil. It satisfies people's unchanging imaginations while secretly imposing rules on the entire world."

Scar's words were obscure and difficult to make sense of.

"But do you really believe stories in the real world work that way too?"

"Let me give you some indispensable pieces of information."

"This village's story is nowhere near that simple."

"First, who does the story revolve around?"

"An innocent girl, a highly respected village chief, and a group of simple, honest villagers."

"Then what are the most important parts of the plot?"

"Ignorant worship, wavering kindness, lies everyone knows about, lives given and taken at will, and that insignificant yet special existence... driven to her death by everyone."

"Rover, now I'll hand the pen over to you."

"I'm looking forward to hearing how your story changes once you've learned more about this village."

Without Lu Li interrupting him, Scar delivered a long stream of incomprehensible remarks.

But the gist was that he wanted them to uncover the truth about Qichi Village.

Lu Li gave him a cold look before A Piao pulled him into a corner.

"What do you think?" A Piao looked at him questioningly.

Lu Li pondered for a moment. "Since he's so insistent that we find the clues ourselves, this village definitely wasn't harmed by the Fractsidus the way we imagined."

A Piao said, "That's what I think too. But why can't he just tell us the truth?"

Lu Li let out a heavy breath. "Only by experiencing something firsthand can you truly empathize. Maybe you'll come to understand them, then join them..."

A Piao nodded thoughtfully. "You mean the Fractsidus wants to paint itself as the victim?"

"That's more or less it. Different perspectives naturally lead to different interpretations."

A Piao said, "In other words, the clues we find might be presented from the Fractsidus's perspective, until we eventually discover that they're the real victims?"

"Exactly." Lu Li looked at A Piao curiously. "Even I'm getting curious about who you are."

"Hm?"

"Think about it. In just these two days, Jinzhou... the Fractsidus... and even the Black Shores, where Aalto and the others belong, have all been asking about you."

A Piao gazed quietly at Lu Li. "You're the only person I can trust right now."

"Hm?"

"After all, you're not from this world, are you? You wouldn't know who I am and treat me like a pawn, the way he said..."

The sincerity in A Piao's eyes moved Lu Li. In this strange, dangerous world, who else could he trust?

He took A Piao's hand, feeling the warmth between their palms:

"A Piao, I will always stand by your side."

[Ding! Rover's intimacy has reached 80!]

[Skill acquired: Echoing Sonata]

[Echoing Sonata: Gather spectro energy to attack the target area. After a brief delay, the target area will explode, dealing spectro damage.]