Chapter 356 Forgiveness
The exclamation and the sound of the bullet being fired were almost simultaneous. Ryan's movements were astonishingly fast, with a determination to risk everything and a madness to die together.
But someone was faster than him.
A slender hand appeared out of nowhere, accurately grasping the attacker's wrist, pulling and twisting it, and suddenly Ryan's entire arm was twisted like a pretzel. He screamed, and the dagger rolled and fell in front of the black-haired young man's shoe with a clang.
Ryan had been stepped on the back of his head, his face crushed into the tiles. Blood soaked the cracks, and he let out meaningless, animal-like howls and screams, desperately scratching at the stone with his only intact arm, not caring even if his nails were completely turned outward. His eyes, hidden by wisps of hair, stared fixedly at the black-haired young man, stained crimson with hatred.
Azuka slowly loosened his left hand, and the two Limin Army soldiers who instinctively shot at the attacker's back couldn't help but widen their eyes - they saw two copper bullets appear between the other's white fingers, fell to the ground, and made two crisp sounds.
Everything happened in a flash. The professor blinked expressionlessly. After reacting, he squatted down and picked up the dagger that fell at his feet.
"Go to hell... I'll kill you...!"
The attacker continued to struggle and scream helplessly. Azuka frowned, and stepped on him with even more force, as if he would crush his skull in an instant. If the professor hadn't insisted on getting to the bottom of this, he would have been dead the moment he drew his dagger.
The commotion in the street attracted more soldiers. The professor, showing his badge and speaking briefly with them, ordered them to leave and immediately investigate how the Imperial deserters had entered Crescent Castle. Once the soldiers had dispersed, he signaled the Savior to cast a Confusion Spell on the area—finally, no one was waiting.
Ryan lay on the ground, gasping for breath. He knew he was about to die, or rather, his fate had been sealed from the moment he took action.
But the rage of revenge made him completely forget the fear of death, so that when he heard the slowly approaching footsteps and saw the black-haired young man squatting in front of him, staring at him quietly with those damned gray eyes, the imperial soldier's first reaction was to spit a mouthful of bloody saliva at that ordinary face - although he failed.
He hissed and sneered, "Kill me right now if you have the guts, you bastard!"
"...I see hatred in your face." The professor said thoughtfully, "You hate me, why? I clearly saved your brother Cole."
"Shut up! You're not worthy of mentioning him!" This name seemed to violate some taboo, causing the other party to struggle violently again. "Filthy slave, you deceived him! You took advantage of a child's kindness and brought disaster to Crescent Castle—and you even had the nerve to drink my mother's soup! I really regret trusting you and not handing you over to the registry right away!"
Regardless of who this person is, one thing is certain, that is, he is a high-ranking member of the Limin Army and the leader of this siege.
The professor stared at Ryan for a moment, his eyes expressionless. Suddenly, without warning, he asked, "Is Cole dead?"
He carefully studied the expression on the man's face, his brows slowly furrowing. "...Or did your parents die too? In the siege not long ago?"
The soldier gasped violently as if he was collapsing, as if someone had torn apart the shell that had been forcibly pieced together, revealing his internal organs that had long been torn to pieces.
"I don't think the Limin Army did this intentionally," the professor slowly stood up, lowered his eyes, and spoke in a calm, almost cold tone. "The Limin Army doesn't have a habit of massacring women and children unless they actively attack—so it's most likely an accidental injury."
Those smoky grey eyes looked coldly at the soldiers' eyes, which were dazed by hatred, grief and despair. "They were among the crowd driven by the commander of Crescent Castle to block the wall, and then they died?"
All struggles suddenly ceased. Ryan collapsed, lying there like an animal with its spine removed, only able to utter intermittent, discordant howls.
"...It seems I was right." The black-haired young man closed his eyes and pinched his eyebrows tiredly.
The soldier seemed to be irritated by the emotion that emerged on his face. He suddenly raised his head with an effort and sneered nervously: "Bah! The invader's sophistry!"
"You ordered your soldiers' swords and bullets to kill them. You forced them to leave the safety of the fortress and face a painful death!" His face was twisted to the extreme, a look that seemed to be both smiling and crying. "Cole is only seven years old. Why are you making such a face now? Can someone like you still feel guilty? Do you think this will make your conscience feel any better?!"
"Excuse me for being blunt," Azuka said in a slightly cold tone, "If it weren't for you, your brother wouldn't have survived, and your entire family would have died on the battlefield one day. The only difference would be that you'd still be able to speak so arrogantly in front of you."
"I won't feel guilty." The professor suddenly interrupted him and replied coldly.
"I feel regret and sorrow for the death of your family. Perhaps I also feel some of the instinctive grief and sympathy that humans feel when a young cub of their species dies." He looked down at the man, his expressionless eyes solemnly staring at his violently trembling face, and replied word by word, "But I don't feel guilty—guilt is useless. It represents clinging to the past, an attempt to escape, hesitation and wavering, and it will only lead to the deaths of more people."
"I understand why you hate me, Mr. Lane."
Those smoky gray eyes were merciless, cold, bright, and piercing, as if they wanted to completely dissect the soldier's soul, with a cold sense of forgiveness. "You understand that the culprits responsible for your family's death are the commander who gave the order, the cruel and brutal Imperial Army, and the cannibalistic society itself that treats civilians as dehumanizing. Yet, you cannot seek revenge on any of these three, leaving you frantically searching for one final, specific enemy."
Ryan's lips trembled violently. This was a sophistry! He wanted to refute, but found that he was completely speechless under the extreme emotion.
"From various perspectives, countless people have died because of me, for me." The black-haired young man's tone was remarkably calm, sounding like he was stating an established fact. "For me, for ideals, for the future, for humanity—we always say that on the road of history, the collapse of the old system and the birth of the new world are inevitably accompanied by the pain of blood and fire. However, when this pain befalls each individual, it will be an unbearable calamity, and this is true for you and me."
"But this is a revolution, and I'm just an ordinary human being," he said softly, his voice firm and decisive. A terrifying, breathtaking light appeared on his pale, exhausted face. "So all I can do is keep remembering their deaths and sacrifices, and keep going for those who deserve to survive."
"—regardless of my life or death, or anyone else's life or death."
The black-haired young man bent down, placed the dagger in front of the soldier, and then took a step back.
"Azuka, let him go." The professor said expressionlessly. He looked at Ryan, who immediately staggered to his feet with the dagger in his only intact hand after regaining his freedom. Seeing the look of surprise and vigilance on the other's face, he calmly opened his arms to him, revealing his slightly thin chest.
The light of day enveloped the black-haired youth, and Ryan couldn't help swallowing. The wind blew away the sweat on his forehead, and he suddenly felt cold. Then he found that his fingers were shaking so much that he could hardly hold the dagger, as if he were facing an incredibly tall and majestic statue.
He finally began to feel fear.
"Mr. Ryan, for Cole's sake, I'll give you a second, final chance to choose." The statue's voice seemed to come from a very far distance. "You can rush over and continue to seek revenge on me. This time I will definitely kill you and bury you and your family together. If you trust me, you can tell me your last words now."
"—Or you can turn around and leave, join the People's Army as a surrendered prisoner, and together we will destroy the corrupt empire that has caused countless tragedies like Cole's."
…
After this incident, the professor completely lost the mood to fly around. He stood on the street corner, staring quietly at the gray sky, and slowly exhaled.
Azuka, standing beside him, briefly reported on why the Imperial deserters were in Fort Crescent. "As guards, Ryan and his men knew a hidden route into Fort Crescent. The father of the soldier in charge of guarding this area was acquainted with Ryan's family. Ryan hadn't strayed far from Fort Crescent at the time. It was Ryan's father who contacted them and informed them of the death of his parents and younger brother, and asked his son to open a backdoor for him to enter the city."
He paused, then added, "The father and son have been dealt with according to military law."
The savior's expression was slightly cold, even his usual gentle smile faded, and there was still a hint of hostility in his blue eyes.
After so many years of fighting on the battlefield, it seemed to him that his old enemy was still soft-hearted, actually giving a second chance to a weak and incompetent guy who had once tried to assassinate the leader - but this was probably one of the reasons why the other party was able to attract so many people, and they continued to rush towards the great light where he was.
...After all, the former "Azuka" was also Ryan.
"I'll have Greven keep a close eye on him." The Savior paused, then continued, "A wavering former deserter could very well become a hidden danger."
"You've thought it through very comprehensively." The professor, regaining his composure, replied calmly, "Treat him like any other Imperial soldier who was converted from a captive to the civilian army. If he makes a mistake, he will be dealt with according to military law. There's no need for leniency."
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