Chapter 61 Critical Region (13)
The boy got more and more excited as he talked, and even began to speculate, "If those things that popped up from underground are all innocent, and they're trying to tear open the hole and run into the city, wanting to go to that Three Avenues, could we assume that they want to go home?"
"go home?"
"Yes, they all died unjustly, didn't they? No one expected to die on that day, at that moment. They were still thinking about tomorrow and the future. They must have had many things and many people they couldn't let go of, just like when a ghost wants to go home on the seventh day after death. They also want to return to their original world, right?"
Bai Ye recalled Wang Shanshan's thoughts, which she had mentioned before: when on duty at the Three Avenues, it was easy to be sucked in and taken to the world of those things.
The innocent and the guilty share the same origin, come from the same world, and should therefore go to the same place.
If the boy's guess is true, then the three great paths really are the entrances back to the original real world?
"Never mind all that, let's go back to the first checkpoint. I have to catch someone and question them myself."
The boy was surprised to hear this, "No, brother, you have this skill too?"
Bai Ye thought to himself, "I don't have any skills, but I do have some props."
The strawberries that have never been used, and the few watermelon seeds left, should come in handy.
Even after running at full speed, it only took half an hour for Bai Ye to get back to Exit 1.
However, from the time I left until I returned, Gate 1 had completely changed.
The cliff here was sealed off, guarded by a large number of Order Guardians. They were wearing the same uniforms as us, but the difference was that their faces were blurred.
As fellow beings bound by order, we should not act this way.
Bai Ye's first reaction was that these people were imposters and did not belong to the General Affairs Department.
But they were quickly proven wrong.
Among the group of order-keepers, one voice sounded familiar. Upon closer listening, it turned out to be the team leader stationed there.
"It's the team leader. He's with that group of people. Who are they?"
Bai Ye sensed danger and instinctively hid, and this proved to be the right idea.
Because the team leader was personally leading the group, they were escorting a group of Order Keepers, some of whom had met Bai Ye before.
Those faces were all clearly visible.
"Team leader, what are you doing? You are breaking the rules."
“Those things are the source of evil, and you actually tried to release them. What you did was wrong.”
“Team leader, you will become sinful, you will become evil.”
The team leader ignored them, waved his hand, and let the blurry-faced enforcers take the people away. Then he stood at the edge of the cliff and looked down with a gleeful expression.
One by one, the items were pulled up and put into transparent boxes. Bai Ye couldn't see them; they were all invisible.
But the roar was so loud that it could not be ignored.
The boy heard the screams and his voice trembled as he said, "B-Big brother, those things look... look really terrible."
"Um."
"Were those people bad?"
"Anyway, it's not necessarily a good thing."
"Aren't you order-keepers supposed to take maintaining order as your duty?"
Bai Ye had thought the same thing before, but then she realized she was being too naive.
No matter what kind of world it is, if organizations exist, there will inevitably be disagreements. Whether it's a person, an object, or something supernatural, no one can achieve a unified ideology.
"It seems there's been a disagreement among the upper echelons of the Order, with some people having other ideas."
They want these things and want to use them for other purposes.
etc!
Use it for something else, use it for something else!!
Bai Ye thought of someone, Zhang Ting, a clerk in the Second Detachment, who seemed to have no background but knew a lot of "insider" information.
“I remember her saying that those things wanted to crawl out, but the higher-ups wouldn’t allow it. They should have been allowed to, because they were free food rations.”
"Big brother, what are you saying?" The boy didn't understand.
Bai Ye became increasingly alarmed as he thought about it. "If what she said is true, and what you guessed is also true, then these innocent people are their targets."
"Huh? Big brother, the more you talk, the more confused I get." The boy was a little bewildered.
Bai Ye's thoughts gradually became clearer. He recalled the strange mission he had been given earlier: to find the innocent and the guilty.
If the innocent and the guilty are both things, then their deaths are not the end; there must be a final step.
"I need to find out what they will eventually become so that I can know exactly how to do the task."
"Brother, what are we looking for? Shouldn't we secretly follow them and save those things?"
Those are most likely innocent, the boy thought.
Bai Ye shook his head, silently retreated, and returned to the city.
As he ran, the boy felt dizzy from the jolting, but his mind was even more confused. "Hey bro, at least explain yourself! Where are we going? How did we end up back in the city?"
“The root of the problem lies in the city,” Bai Ye said.
The boy couldn't understand.
Bai Ye explained simply: "Death is not their end. We need to go to the General Affairs Department; that's the main base. Just like the things that were taken away when I was on duty before, I need to find out their final destination."
"Then how are you going to get in? Brother, you'll easily get spotted if you go in alone like this," the boy worried.
Bai Ye ran along, saying, "It's alright, I have a way."
...
General Affairs Department.
Bai Ye stood at the building entrance again, panting heavily.
But this time, there was no longer any reverence for this place that guarded the city's order.
Instead of changing her appearance, Bai Ye used strawberries, which can increase the strangeness's favorability.
Although it is a disposable item, it still has a limited shelf life.
In this way, even if one is stopped upon entering the General Affairs Office, a brief explanation will suffice, and the officials in charge of maintaining order will approve and allow passage.
Stopped again, Bai Ye said directly, "I am Order Keeper 102 from Gate 1. The team leader asked me to come back to supervise those things and confirm the final procedures."
After saying that, Bai Ye's heart pounded.
That's too risky. If it's even slightly unreasonable, even if it gains a strangely high level of favor, it's very easy to be exposed.
The boy was terrified, fearing that his thigh would be severed.
Both Bai Ye and the boy were very nervous, waiting for the trial to begin.
"Tick-tock—tick-tock—"
Bai Ye even experienced auditory hallucinations, as if an alarm clock was ticking in her ear.
until--
A heavenly melody descended.
"Order 102, after review, may enter."
The guards let them through, and Bai Ye nodded slightly to them before walking in, hand in hand and foot in unison.
After turning a corner, Bai Ye collapsed to the ground.
"Big brother, you can't do this. Stand up bravely." The boy encouraged him, looking at his own weak legs.
Bai Ye tried, but couldn't stand up.
It was really embarrassing.
“Those who maintain order have weapons; they have many means.”
"Then you can't let your legs go weak."
"I need to slow down."
"That won't do. We need to hurry. What if we get caught?"
Bai Ye thought about it and agreed. He didn't know how long the strawberry's effect would last, so he had to find those things before the items expired.
but!
"Damn it, I really can't stand up."
Bai Ye tried many times, but he really couldn't stand up. It wasn't a psychological reason; it was more like he was physically restrained.
[Players please note that the Strawberry Fruit effect only applies to humans; it will not work on those in a half-demon state.]
The mechanical sound rang out once again.
The boy was surprised. So this powerful figure was half-human and half-monster?
Wow, that's exciting!
However, Bai Ye had an ominous premonition; every reminder from [the eerie] seemed to have a purpose.
So this time, they must have ulterior motives too.
Sure enough, the next second a mechanical voice announced: "The world is so big, I want to see it," sensing the customer's wish, requesting the player's help to fulfill it.
"Strange, what are you trying to do?" Bai Ye felt uneasy.
[The player is in a semi-monster state, unable to move due to day or night. Please immediately switch identities with the client. The client will be in a daytime/nighttime state and can temporarily take over the new identity.]
The world is so big, players can go and explore everywhere.
Even the boy could detect a gloating tone in the last sentence.
Before Bai Ye could refuse, the feeling of being confined in her body grew stronger and stronger. Suddenly, everything went black, and when the light returned, her vision was only a narrow sliver.
Looking out through the "eyes," one can only see straight ahead, while everything else is invisible.
"Big brother, are you alright?"
Bai Ye felt his body being grabbed, and the next second, he was lifted up and placed in mid-air.
Before him was his own magnified face, but he was making a silly grin, chattering incessantly, "Big brother, you're so light! I feel like I could jump ten meters high with a single leap. Can I fly?"
"Don't do anything reckless!" Bai Ye quickly stopped him.
"Ouch! That hurts. Brother, please speak softly. My head is buzzing and it's so noisy."
"..." I wonder who was making such a racket earlier, and even dared to complain about others.
However, there wasn't enough time, so Bai Ye didn't dwell on it. He quickly said, "Don't push your body to its limits. Even though you're inside me, you might not be able to control me. The most important thing is to hurry up and find those things. Don't waste time."
"Yes, yes, you're the boss, I'll listen to you."
The boy hung the doll back around his neck, stood up smoothly, moved his arms and legs, and strode forward.
As an ordinary passerby, the boy had no sense of experience since entering the virtual world, and the experience was even worse after being trapped in the doll.
Now that the roles have been reversed, even if it's just to find those things, I'm quite satisfied.
I feel like I'm walking on air, as if I'm a hero who saves the world.
"Brother, have you ever seen Hollywood blockbusters? They champion individualism, with one person saving a country, or even the entire planet. Although we classmates always complain about them when we get together, experiencing it for yourself is an incredibly awesome feeling."
"Take it easy."
Bai Ye's eyelids twitched; she was very worried about the chuunibyou (middle school syndrome) boy.
The boy patted the doll and comforted it, "Big brother, don't be afraid. If you encounter any danger, I will protect you."
"..." Thank you, but no need. As long as you behave yourself, I should be safe.
The boy continued forward and saw the elevator at the corner.
"Big brother, do you want to take the elevator?" The boy didn't know where to look for it either.
Bai Ye thought for a moment and then said a floor number, "Take the stairs and go straight to the 5th floor."
"The fifth floor? Is there a secret passage there?"
"No, that's the General Affairs Department's canteen."
"The cafeteria? What are we going there for?"
"Zhang Ting said that those were free rations. Since they were rations, they should be processed. Those things couldn't be taken out. The canteen might just be a digester."
"Hiss! What you said is terrifying."
The boy couldn't help but rub his arms. The thought of the cafeteria being associated with bloodshed made his stomach churn violently.
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