Chapter 111 Chapter 111 Is it us who can’t make you trust us…
Elio untied his hand in disbelief and looked over, only to find that his glove was covered in rust from the lever. Oops.
The assassin immediately realized that this passage had probably not been opened for a long time.
Elio, truly panicking, yanked the lever again; it seemed to move reluctantly, but then quickly fell back down, practically motionless. Only a dry, creepy scraping sound came from the wall.
Meanwhile, the temperature in the cell continued to climb. Perhaps because of the heat, Elio's dark hair was damp and dripping with sweat. He wiped the sweat off his forehead and tried to suppress negative thoughts like, "We're going to be steamed to death," "We're going to choke to death," and "I don't know which will be steamed first or choked to death first."
The others probably didn't notice him struggling with the damn rusty lever. Elio glanced over and saw they were still fiddling with the lock of the last room. While they weren't looking, Elio quickly squatted down and checked the lever.
That seems a little better than "hopeless".
The believers closed their eyes and chanted, "O Lord, please hear my prayer..."
Elio wiped the sweat from his forehead again and took a deep breath. He dropped to his knees, using all his strength to lift the lever. The thing that had just rubbed his palms was now pressing hard against his shoulders, but Elio couldn't focus on the pain in his body.
"Please listen to my plea..."
Elio managed a whimper. But the lever moved. He heard with delight the clacking of gears in the wall.
“Answer me in your faithfulness and righteousness!”
Suddenly, a stronger, rumbling sound came from the wall. A stone door was lifted up. Everyone looked over with joy and saw Elio kneeling on the ground. He was picking himself up, panting, but his eyes were shining.
"Line up two by two," Elio told them, "and go into the passage one by one. No pushing or squatting!"
They quickly formed a line, supporting each other like obedient lambs. Elio walked in front. The passage was dark, and the assassin relied entirely on his eagle eyes to explore the direction. From time to time, he had to stop and rub his eyes before he could continue groping forward.
Fortunately, the group behind him was relatively quiet. Only the believers were still whispering, "Into your hands I commit my spirit... O Lord, the God of truth..."
After walking for a distance, Elio finally heard the faint sound of water. The exit might be just around the corner. His spirits rose, and he wanted to rush out immediately. But when he thought of the people following him, Elio had to suppress this impulse. He could see the road, but they might not.
So he continued to move forward slowly, step by step.
But everyone behind him could hear the sound of water. That hopeful sound grew louder, and the light gradually illuminated their path. Finally, unable to restrain himself, Elio took a few steps forward and reached out: he touched the waterfall hanging over the cave entrance.
This is it!
Elio stepped forward. The cool, small waterfall immediately drenched him, but Elio took only a few steps and was out of it. He wiped his face and found himself standing on the beach below the cliff. The sea breeze caressed his face, like a kiss to his new life.
“…survived.” Elio murmured.
One, two, three, more people emerged from behind him. Silence at first, then an explosion of joy. They wept, they howled, they fell to their knees on the beach, thanking God and Elio. Elio was hastily grabbed by their hands and kissed wildly, almost startled by the Sicilian's expression. It took a while for them to finally calm down.
"Where are we?"
"Who cares! We're free!"
"There's a horse!" someone exclaimed in surprise.
Elio looked in the direction of the sound. It was his horse, rustling toward him. If Elio hadn't believed in miracles before, he was now convinced. He couldn't help but smile and approached. The horse stopped before him, lowered its large head, and nuzzled its soft, moist nose against Elio's open embrace.
"Good boy," Elio said gently, "take us home."
The fire burned all night long. As the dawn broke, Gatlin, filled with anger and worry, rushed over from the Vongola Manor with his men. He could still see the thick smoke billowing from the fortress in the distance.
He was almost in despair.
Before arriving, he had argued with Spedo, accusing him of abandoning his companions in the fire. But upon arriving, Gatlin realized with despair that no one could survive such a fire. Not to mention that they were trapped underground. They would be boiled alive before the fire could reach them!
The troops behind him were also silent. The fire was still crackling, and they looked towards the fort, silent. Someone sobbed.
Gatlin let them wallow in their sorrow for a moment. Then, his voice still a little hoarse, he spoke, "All right. We have to get to work."
They'd come under the pretext of putting out a fire. The flames could be seen from the Vongola Manor. Giotto knew something was wrong, and when Spedo returned to recount what had happened, Giotto's face paled even more in the light of the fire. He refused to believe that Elio was gone, just like Gatlin and everyone else.
And now…
Gatlin closed his eyes.
But at this moment, he heard someone in the team exclaim, with tears still in their voice, "Look there!"
Gatlin followed his gaze. In the morning light, a ragged group emerged from the beach. They looked so shabby and gray, so insignificant against the azure sea and the orange sunrise above. Even Gatlin's sharpshooting eyes almost missed them.
But the leader, who was holding the horse, obviously recognized them at a glance. He was ragged and dusty, but he raised his left hand, which was not holding the horse, high up and waved it towards them happily.
The person behind Gatlin exclaimed in a low voice, "That's..."
Before he could finish his words, Gatlin immediately ran over there. The team behind him was stunned for a moment, then quickly realized something and rushed over with cheers. This team, well-trained by Elio and Gatlin, now looked like a group of lively calves, plunging into the beach with one foot deep and one foot shallow.
This action startled the flustered group behind Elio. They stopped immediately, even looking as if they were about to run back. But Elio simply raised his arm and turned back to say something to them. They were calmed down and watched quietly as the red-haired leader ran towards them. They hugged their savior, Elio.
"You bastard!" Gatlin hugged Elio tightly. "I thought you—"
Elio hissed as he was squeezed against his wound. Gatlin quickly released him and looked him up and down. Gatlin knew Elio had dressed smartly the day before, but now his long riding coat had been given to a barefoot woman in the group, his vest had been thrown on a child on horseback, and his scarf had been tied around someone else's leg wound. He was now left with only a bare, dirty shirt and breeches.
"You're injured." Gatlin frowned.
But Elio just smiled and answered evasively, "I'm back."
Gatlin looked at him and shook his head helplessly. He hugged Elio again, this time with less force. "Welcome back."
He didn't go back with Elio, saying it was best for him to stay here to put out the fire and clean up the fortress, but Gatling detached some of his team to escort Elio and the people he had rescued all the way back to the Vongola Manor.
Rambo was the first to see the group return. Giotto, driven from the manor, was next. They were practically weeping with joy, but Elio took the opportunity to smear Giotto's face, leaving Yu Yue in a state of both laughter and tears. After the reunion, Giotto, having washed his face, quickly pulled himself together and arranged to send the people Elio had rescued to the monastery in Nakel. Only then did he find time to properly inquire about what had happened to Elio.
Elio, who had just finished packing himself, also hurried to find Giotto, "Where is Spedo?"
"Uh," Giotto paused, "I suppose he's seeking revenge for you?"
Elio's face paled as he heard this, and he jumped up immediately. Giotto held him down, glancing disapprovingly at Elio's freshly bandaged wound.
"You just escaped death, Elio!" Giotto advised him, "Have you forgotten? At first, I only asked you to attack the Scalera family. Now you have not only eliminated them, but also found the mastermind behind them!"
"Isn't that why I should keep tracking this?" Elio asked in confusion. "You don't know, Giotto, about the mastermind..."
His voice grew quieter as he spoke. Although Giotto was just looking at him silently, Elio was surprised to see that his emotional golden eyes suddenly misted up. Why did he suddenly look so sad? Elio didn't understand.
"I understand, Elio," Giotto shook his hand. "If you want to go, I won't really stop you. But think carefully about your physical condition, Elio. Just think of this as a friend's request!"
Elio muttered, "It's just a minor injury..."
"That's why I've been letting you stay at the manor," Giotto said sadly. "You don't take your body seriously. We have so many ways to solve this problem, but you always seem to want to do it alone, without us. Why are you always so impatient, Elio? Is it because we can't trust you?"
Elio stood there in a daze, as if he had been hit hard.
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The author has something to say: Oreo, who has escaped death countless times: Minor injuries, just some water.
Giotto: (tears)
Oreo:
Oreo: No.
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