At Kallen's words, the bewilderment and regret on Mr. Dalis's face gradually faded, replaced by a complicated expression mingling surprise and mockery.
He looked at Kallen and asked softly:
"Captain Kallen..."
"Yes."
"So you aren't one of her people?"
"Oh, you thought I worked for Mrs. Felshev, so you were deliberately hiding things from me just now?
"You thought I would report your condition to Mrs. Felshev?"
"Yes, because her granddaughter is in your squad."
"I don't work for her."
"Now I know you don't. Otherwise, you wouldn't have guided me into deceiving her."
"That was unnecessary on my part, then, because you were already planning to deceive her."
"Yes, exactly. She wants a good outcome, so I'll give her one. All along, she's treated me as a test subject, and I was willing to be her test subject, but only on the condition that... the outcome was what I wanted.
"But now, the outcome isn't what I wanted, so she must enter this abyss of pain and despair with me.
"Deceiving her is actually very easy. Even if she sees me looking like this, she'll still think my failure was due to something specific to me, and that she'll definitely succeed.
"A person is deceived because she herself is willing to believe."
"Can you tell me exactly what condition you're in now?"
Kallen looked around and finally pulled over a chair used by the guards. He sat down and looked at Dalis through the cell door.
Then he silently took out the cigarettes he had pilfered from Neo's car, lit one, and took a drag. The pain from his soul injury, which had just begun flaring up again, subsided.
He should really have been resting and recovering now, but circumstances didn't permit it.
It was like running a shop: