Oliver felt the body temperature coming from the palm of his left hand. His eyes suddenly swelled and almost shed tears again. Just like a creature that had been wandering in the dark for too long, the world became unreal and terrifying in an instant. Such a happy thing couldnāt happen in a place like this. It may be he subconsciously fabricated this illusion to support himself because it was too painful.
After all, there were still many things that must be done, and he couldnāt fall yet.
As if he was about to freeze to death, Oliver was greedily sucking the temperature through from the other partyās wrist that felt firm to the touch. It was smooth and strong and wasnāt as warm as it really was.
The held the temperature close, listening to the other partyās voice, and responded almost instinctively, not knowing what he said. There was only one thought in his hazy consciousnessā If it was possible, if Nemo was really here, he must say everything he wanted to say.
Before, he always thought that they still had plenty of time. They still had time to slowly get sentimental, and time to waste on shyness and tension, just like most normal couples.
But he almost never saw Nemo again, and he didnāt even have time to express his true feelings.
Please wait a bit longer. Just a bit longer.
Even if itās an illusion, please donāt dissipate so quickly.
Oliver took held the wrist with his left hand and pressed his parched lips on it. After a clumsy kiss, he was finally willing to let go. The weak knight raised his head, glanced at Randy and Mora not far away, and then decided to give up thinking about the current situation.
His whole body was in pain, trembling in agony everywhere. The terrible collar finally shattered, leaving only a little debris stuck in his amor. Oliver wanted to use a condensation spell to first rehydrate himself, but he couldnāt do it. Whether it was a reciting a spell in his heart or drawing runes with his hand, the condensation spell showed no sign of being activated.
But he didnāt feel that his power was drying up. Contrary, the strange force ignored his capacity and constantly gushed out. The gray mist kept spinning around him, carrying chaos and nothingness, directly destroying the flesh-and-blood furnace.
The remnants of life accumulated over thousands of yearsā Those flesh and blood that were unconscious and only had the instinct to devourā Were wiped out in the mist drawn by the bone sword.
Including the bones of those heroes.
Oliver licked his chapped lips and tried to empty his consciousness. Those gray mists seemed to be a part of his body. They flowed back and forth around him, rushing in the wind. It was like suddenly there were countless wired limbs, but his subconscious mind was able to control them to a certain extent.
The world in front of him had completely changed.
The Gatekeeperās guard and alarm spells made visible ripples in the air. Oliver could feel every life nearby. Although they were vague and indistinguishable, they were like obvious fireflies in the dark. He tried to stretch out his hand, as if to gather something. The circling mist quickly rotated around the three people in front of him, condensing into a solid protective barrier. Regardless of whether Nemo and the assassin couple was real or a hallucination, it was always better to be cautious.
Nemo in his illusion seemed to be yelling something, but the agitation of power seemed to make Oliverās blood burn all over his body. His ears were filled with the sound of his heartbeat that seemed to be going out of control. All external voice became distant and blurred.
After confirming that everything was fine, Oliver closed his eyes. The power flowing rapidly in his body was like a growing blade that was scraping at his bones, nerves, and internal organs, but it didnāt matter. He could still control it, just like controlling fine sand flowing out his fingers.
Perhaps the accuracy of his control was still too rough. He could at least spread it in the direction he wanted to.
The peak of the mountain broke.
It wasnāt like being blown up or being smashed into pieces by a giant. It began to crumble softly from the highest place, quietly shattering into small pieces of sand and gravel, then fell from the sky. Oliver grabbed hard, raised his hand as if overwhelmed, and gestured with difficulty. People began to float in the air, held by the gray mist. Some were screaming, some were cursing, and the rest were silent.
The pieces rose faster, rubbing against each other making a tooth aching sound. Dark clouds gathered over the collapsed Withered Castle, rolling out a dark and frightening vortex above it.
He wasnāt a dead man, nor a murderer. That cold statement was broken. He was an upright man that left the Withered Castle.
And then destroyed it with his own hands.
When he was pulled into the air by the gray mist, the manager who wore glasses was still in a daze.
Everyone around him was falling towards the night sky, followed by weird gray mist that shattered into debris smaller than corn kernels. Paper, materials, books, recordsā¦ All the things that carried data and information all floated up in an unpleasant way and disintegrated. Finally, a spark from nowhere ignited the castle. The flames started from Telaās piles of book and spread instantly. When he was lifted up, he had to watch with bated breath as thousands of years of living research turned into ashes and flames.
Those ancient and previous data that they used expensive magic stones to back up; everything was destroyed within minutes, disappearing from this world and could never be reproduced again.
Just for a group of inferior products, a group of worthless peopleā¦
He squeezed a few desperate whines from his throat.
The flames were followed by an explosion and thick smoke. The manager of the test area turned blankly in the direction of the flesh-and-blood furnace, but the furnace that should have stood between heaven and earth didnāt have a trace of even a shadow left.
The fire was getting bigger, and the rising heat wave rushed up from below. āNow wasnāt the time to feel distressed about the records,ā the manager thought to himself. He didnāt know if he should grabbed the mist that looked illusory, and he didnāt dare to move casually, so he had to shout at the people around him.
āTela!ā he shouted. āHave you seen this?ā
But the sloppy middle-aged man turned a dear ear. He just laid on the gray mist and even laughed a few times.
āAnswer me!ā there was a bump in the gray mist. The glasses of the manger fell to the ground making his eyes hazy. He didnāt even dare to move.Ā Itās probably Ramonās ghost.Ā What was he going to do? Have them experience the limits of their fears and then plummet them to their deaths?
The researchers around him still didnāt respond. The manager of the test zone squinted, and fire stung his eyelids. The scorching air suffocated him and debris flew all around him, rising to the ominous dark cloud vortex in the night sky. Oliver Ramon ruined everything. He destroyed their lifeās work right before their eyes.
No, it was hard to say if that thing was āRamonā. It could be really crazy, orā¦
The manager trembled and gritted his teeth, unable to say whether it was because of anger or fear. He wanted to scream but he choked on the black smock that made him cough. When a figure floated in front of him, he almost cursed subconsciously.
But the person wasnāt Oliver Ramon.
It was a handsome young man with black hair, fair skin, and soft facial features. He looked harmless at first glance, but when he raised his eyes, the gaze casted by those silver eyes was almost enough to strangle him from their momentum alone. He even had the illusion that the young man in front of him completely saw through him, and his gaze pierce directly into his bones, exposing all his thoughts in an instant.
The beautiful young man stopped in mid-air in silence, with a raging fire under his feet. His wide robe was hit by flying debris from time to time, fluttering faintly in the rolling black smoke. The man reached out his hand, and his face showed sign of obvious griefā¦ As well as anger.
There was no such person in their records, but at this moment, he didnāt have the mind to guess the origin of his opponent. The momentum was getting stronger that it made him dizzy and he vomited out a mouthful of blood.
āDo you know how much I want to kill you?ā the young man asked rhetorically. His voice wasnāt cold but broken and trembling. āI just need to make your physical state like Ollie, and youāll die immediately.ā
The black-haired young man words were clear, but each word felt as if they were harshly squeezed out of his teeth. āBut if I do that, heāll be sadā¦ I donāt want to make him sad.ā
āIā¦ā before the manager could reply, the old man not far away screamed.
āWhatās wrong with getting rid of the worst and bringing happiness to the rest?ā the old manās voice was sharp. āNo one needs those people, and they donāt treat themselves as human beings! Progress is always accompanied by sacrifice. We have provided the world with the most perfect defense props and the most advance skills, and all this only needs the sacrifice of a few scums. You naĆÆve, self-righteous littleā¦ā
āIām not here to argue with you.ā The black-haired young man raised a hand. His voice got lower. āFor right or wrong? Iām not such a great person. I just want to protect the person I love, and I almost let you kill him.ā
āIām not afraid of death.ā The old man was right. A heroic feeling suddenly rose in the managerās heart. Besides, they have lost everything. āKill if you want. People like you can never understand our sacrifice for a noble purpose. You canāt stop peopleās progress. Youāā
āProgress,ā the fair young man murmured. āIf you really want human data, I believe thereās a better solutionā¦ without getting on your high horse and merely think those people werenāt worthy.ā
He turned his head sideways and glanced at the person on the other side of the gray mist. The group of sluggish prisoners seemed to be destroyed. They were silent, unaware of the destruction around them, but were looking up at the stars.
āLet me tell you one thing. In my opinion, thereās no difference in your āgradeā.ā
This time the voice of the strange young man was completely cold.
The dark shadow hovered behind him. It sucked out all the light projected and shook ominously, like the long hair of a corpse under the water swaying with the waves. They suddenly stretched out, rose into the sky, and fell in all directions. One of the black shadows strangled the neck of the manager on the test zone. The next sound seemed to ring directly in his brain.
āAll the pain you have caused by your own hands will return in dreams at night.ā
āI donāt know how many people have lived here, but I know how many people are still alive. Iāll return those pain, despair, and hatred to you intact. Prepare for decades of nightmares.ā
āOf course, you still have the freedom to continue your research, so let me add a small caveatā¦ā
The manager of the test zone suddenly felt chills. He narrowed his eyes hard trying to distinguish the expression of the terrifying young man, but his eyes only saw a blurry ball of facial features.
āā¦If you continue such research, the new pain will continue to follow you. For the sake of your noble purpose, please suit yourself.ā
āā¦Now go to sleep and have a good dream.ā
The person who lost his glasses only saw the outline of the young man clearly. At this time, he was lowering his head indifferently and making a sarcastic salute.
The dark shadow that was originally wrapped around his skin squirmed and penetrated through it. The unique cold feeling of the curse was instantly soaked in his limbs and bones. He tried to keep his eyes open, as if doing so would prevent the drowsiness, but he still fell asleep on the mist and in the next second lost consciousness.
Nemo put down his right hand, and the shadows immediately returned to his feet, as docile as a bunny.
All the Gatekeepers laid on the gray mist one after another, groaning in pain. Chanting, whispered screams, and neurotic sobs instantly sounded everywhere. These real nightmares would follow them every night, until the day of reckoning was complete.
Only one Gatekeeper was still awake. One he knew.
The gray mist was still raging, and the entire mountain peak was almost flat at this moment before it descended. Oliver didnāt intend to let go of the underground part of the Withered Castle. A dark pit gradually appeared on the desolated land, like a bone-dry empty eye socket.
Itās almost over,Ā Nemo thought to himself.Ā Thereās one last thing to take care of.
He must protect Oliver.
Nemo exhaled a sigh of relief, rushed lightly to one of the gray mists in the sky, and directly picked up the sloppy middle-aged man on it.
āTelaranea.ā He stared straight into the eyes of the demon in front of him and clenched the hand that had grasped his collar. āLong time no see.ā
The author has something to sayļ¼
When I wrote this chapter, I was actuallyā¦ full of thoughts ofā¦
Oliver: Delete the database! Blow up the server!
Nemo: Reset everything. You have to fix all the bugs every night.
ā¦ ā¦
Sorry (.
āāāā
Randy and Mora who witnessed everything: ā¦ā¦ā¦ā¦ā¦ā¦ā¦ā¦ā¦ā¦ā¦ā¦ā¦ā¦ā¦ā¦ā¦ā¦ā¦.
Mora: ā¦Did you really fight with him?
Mora: Are you already dead and just havenāt found out yet?
Randy: ā¦
Kinky Thoughts:
A fitting punishment. People often delude and tell themselves whatever they need to in order to sleep comfortably at night. Well, now they wonāt.