Chapter 81

Translated by boilpoil Edited by boilpoil

Hopkin has directly sentenced number 56 to death. Bright looks at him with a shocked expression, a tone of worry in his voice, “what do you plan to do?”

“Detective has dug up quite a lot of the hidden pawns the Butler planted in the show. He hasn’t been as honest as Inner City thought; Inner City is only tolerant of sheepdogs that are useful and loyal. If Butler crosses a certain baseline, he will be dispatched without hesitation.”

Bright ponders for a moment, “you mean, to lead other Inner City residents to think Butler is overambitious and question his loyalty?”

“Yes,” Hopkin nods, “this is just one aspect. Butler has worked dozens of years for Inner City and has built up quite the reputation and repertoire. Through the years of machinations, his faction’s reign over Outer City is tight. We must strike him down in one fell swoop with lethal precision, so that he has no chance to rebound.”

Hearing Hopkin describe them as ‘we,’ Bright can feel a strangeness bubbling up in his chest. He realises this could be an excellent chance to escalate the conflict between Inner and Outer City. He asks, “how should we go about it?”

“This is also what I’m thinking about. Ambition, power, selfishness, greed… None of these would have been enough. When this Butler is deposed, another Butler will still be open to all these issues when designated.”

Bright thinks in silence for a moment before speaking slowly, “what if… number 56 wanted to start a rebellion?”

Hopkin appears completely stunned. Something flashes across his black pair of eyes and his expression turns complicated. Bright continues as if ignorant of it, “we had a deal in private. He help me leave, I help him start a rebellion.” This is a lie. The rebellion is something Bright actively proposed to Piers.

“On episode eight, when you were parasitised?”

Bright didn’t expect Hopkin to remember so clearly. He ‘mm’s in agreement.

“For what reason did number 56 join the show and why does he want to rebel?” Hopkin furrows his brows.

“I suspect it is to go against his father’s whims.” Piers has a cold relationship with his father. He is repulsed to and even hates the identity of ‘Butler.’ He thinks it is only a dog of Inner City, so he does not wish to succeed the position as his father wishes, thus rebelling in the most extreme way possible, by joining the Killing Gauntlet this season.

Bright has himself thought about the fact that Piers wanted to blow him up. He is suspicious, given that he has already made a deal with Piers so he has no need to eliminate him. He already suspects that the explosion may have been the handiwork of Piers’ father.

As Bright expected, for Piers, he has only two paths to survival – one is to acquire the secret of unlocking the bracelet from Bright and running away, two is to kill Bright. He has already chosen route one, and almost succeeded. He didn’t expect his old man to intervene and force him onto route two.

Piers who is usually the one setting his father up finally got set up by him for once. It’s his fault too, because the operation this time was a bit grander in scheme so he had to use the personnel his father assigned to him. In the end, news got out and so an interlude happened. Normally, his goal would have been achieved anyway if Bright is dead, but unfortunately, he luckily survived, only being buried for several days.

This is awkward. He has effectively first betrayed their deal before trying to murder him. He even caused the death of his little kid and the pet. Now he has got on the wrong side of him and nothing he can say will work anymore. He will only have to work with this and fight to the death with him!

After working out how to take their revenge on Butler and number 56, Hopkin stares at Bright for a long time before finally asking, “do you still want to leave now?”

Bright looks straight into those pair of nervous eyes. He blurts out the truth for some reason.

“To be honest, I don’t like it here. No matter how much I adapt, I will still think the same of this City. It is advanced technologically and people are indulging in decadence. The extravagance can even reach absolutely staggering levels, but I don’t like it. I don’t like that murder is classified as entertainment; I don’t like that men are treated as property; I don’t like the cruel mistreatment of the underclasses. This is a beast of concrete that has consumed all my hopeful expectations for the good in humanity.

Hopkin’s chest feels as if surrounded by a dark fog, “then where do you plan to go? Outside? It’s not a Shangri-La of freedom out there. The environment is highly irradiated and dangerous. You will have to be wary of attacks by beasts and men, nor can you trust the humans who would kill their wife and children to fill their bellies. Why else do you think the Outsiders try so hard to make it inside? Don’t they also know the human traffickers and their leaders would eliminate their humanity layer by layer and sell them like merchandise?”

A saying goes that one would rather be a dog in peaceful times than to be a man in chaotic times, which probably means exactly this.

Hopkin takes a sip out of his tea, soothing his messed up emotions, “not everyone can live Outside like you, Bright. Perhaps you can find a relatively safe area and build a wooden house with your own two hands and live there, like a hermit in the fields, far from civilisation, away from machines and electronics, away from the Internet and smart chip, forever staying alone and spend your days lounging around.”

Like in the game, the days with Latiao.

Bright has never thought deeply about whether days like that would turn tedious and boring. It is the price he must pay for his freedom and equality, so he thinks it is worth it.

Now that the topic has shifted here, Bright asks a question he’s had for a long time, “with how much resource the City has, why doesn’t it try to help the Outsiders a bit?”

Seeing Bright change topics voluntarily, Hopkin is secretly relieved, “the story goes that Outsiders have tried to invade the City, which is why people in the City would hate them. That is not true, however. The reason is a bit more complicated. Outer City military would regularly go on missions to attack Outsiders, collecting their genes as they eliminate their population. From AI analysis, they are no longer pure humans. That year when humans returned to the City and it hasn’t been built up yet, and the human leader has triumphed over the king of the zombies, they kept out any ‘Contaminated’ people; did not allow them to enter.”

This is the first time Bright has learned about the hidden side in this, and feels like he suddenly understands. He is surprised, “Ginger is also an Outsider, but he looks no different.”

Hopkin hmphs, “he lied. He’s about as much a local of the City as it gets.” Beauty, however, did come from Outside. This isn’t something that Bright has to know, however.

“…” Can there be a bit more trust between people?! Ginger knows quite a bit about him, and Bright can suddenly feel his mental state being consumed by shadows.

Now that the white lotus’ lie has been exposed, Hopkin feels liberated. There is a tinge of pride in his expression. Bright suddenly feels a bit funny, and brushes across his nose as if forced by the hand of fate.

“I was completely deceived. Thank you to the great and famous Gentleman for telling me the truth.”

“It’s alright to praise me, but don’t move your hands and feet one me.”

“…”

Night falls gradually. Bright is feeling conflicted as he washes the dishes.

Day one after the rescue, both were really tired so they didn’t do it. They just rested under the same blanket.

Day two after the rescue, Hopkin was so busy investigating throughout the day that they didn’t do it at all.

At night, he no longer has any reason to refuse. When falling into love, he is almost like an intercourse machine, being able to salute anywhere and at any time, and he would work for half a day each time. With how long he hasn’t been physically exercising, it is going to raise some eyebrows eventually.

Maybe he should just tell Hopkin everything…

The devil in him asks, are you willing to let go?

Bright feels irritated, I’m not going to miss him!

Devil says, oh, I’m referring to your opportunity for revenge.

Bright is speechless ‘…’

Devil laughs, oh how evil Bright turned out to become.

Bright tells the devil, fuck off!

The devil mocks him for his standup comedy act.

Bright is in retrospection. No matter what the excuse, for revenge, for punishment, or something else, this kind of intimate physical relationship without love should not continue. He would have another way of going about it, even if it were less satisfying, but it’s no longer the life-or-death situation where his life would be impacted and he’d die if he doesn’t do it.

There’s still barely a reason when he did it with Hopkin for the first time. He managed to steal the information and make a deal with the werewolves to get rid of his bracelet. Now the bracelet is no longer a bother, but then why, is he continuing to walk step by step towards the bedroom?

Why will he feel his throat parched and his heart beating wildly when he sees Hopkin wrapped only in his blanket?

Why will he want to take the man in front of him for himself? Is true love and physical desire separable like that?

Bright suspects he might have developed real feelings for Hopkin…

Since ancient times, in terms of love and fidelity, women have always been stronger than men in that respect. One proposes that it is related to the problem of historical and cultural inheritance, another proposes it is related to evolution, and yet another proposes that it is related to progesterone. This is a substance that makes people develop a feeling of reliability and belonging to their romantic partners. Males can also produce progesterone, just in a smaller amount compared to women. It is produced by the testicles and adrenal glands. Research has shown that normal levels of progesterone (without medical intervention) can facilitate male desire for intercourse. Experts predict that progesterone produced after climax will increase the tendency for males to pick and maintain their relationship with the same partner, which is realised as the moral quality of ‘fidelity.’ It is an active area of research to be investigated and proven.

In layman’s terms, it means to develop romantic feelings through physical intimacy. All the accumulated times of climaxing eventually turning into feelings of love.

In the room, Hopkin sits at the side of the bed, his back facing Bright in a defenceless posture.

“Help me wipe my hair.”

“You wash your hair even before sleep?” Bright laughs at this terminal-stage clean-freak.

“What, you can’t wait anymore?” Hopkin retorts out of reflex, “machines can clean it up too, but I like it when you help me.”

Bright’s eyes glow darker. Judging from his expectant mood and kidney, he did turn out to be a sexually driven scum who is passionate when pushing but ruthless when pulling.

What was the meaning of all his struggles and hesitation just now? Other than proving how he is indecisive and shameless, it only proves how attractive and charismatic the aristocrat is.

Bright dries the moisture in the black hair of Hopkin with a towel carefully, ensuring that he applies just the right amount of force, which ended up slowing him down a bit. In the end, an impatient Hopkin wraps him around his neck and pulls him onto the bed.

If Bright were just a bit naughtier, a bit more evil, a bit more selfish, or were an absolute bastard, a beast which only pursues pleasure, he wouldn’t have so many complicated emotions.

If Hopkin were just toying with him, using him, he would not have hesitated either.

Unfortunately, Bright is still standing by his kind principles; unfortunately, Hopkin has poured his earnest heart out.

“ He will not live to see that day. ”

The impactful announcement of the aristocrat is as if ringing aloud next to his ears. Bright can feel the warmth of being defended and being cared about in his chest.

It’s over for me…

He closes his eyes and kisses Hopkin on his lips.

A whole room bursting to the brims with lascivious passion certainly makes our hearts skip and our cheeks redden.

Author’s notes: Bright needs to face his true emotions. He’s been running away all the time from his goodwill for Hopkin.

Hopkin has to work hard to turn that goodwill into love.

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