But Xia Zuo was no longer the boy who was so afraid of ghosts that he could force out his potential. He quickly calmed down and looked at the innocent boy in front of him with some suspicion:
"You are not a human, and you don't have the top dark aura like Ursula, and you are not a deep-sea monster... Who are you, or what are you not?"
"While it can indeed be classified as a 'thing', it is indeed very rude to say so, Mr. Freeman."
The young man dragged out the last syllable of his words, seeming to be a little unhappy.
Xia Zuo: “…”
His brows twitched slightly, and the sense of familiarity became even stronger.
"Don't worry about species or anything like that." The blue-green boy brushed aside the topic and introduced himself: "Your number is 2511. Mine is 0, you can call me Zero."
"…Zero?"
Xia Zuo was slightly startled.
He knew something about the numbering rules of the Eastwood Prison for the Insane. The prison numbers were not designed according to the year or the date of entry into the prison, but were arranged according to the order in which each prisoner entered the prison.
Therefore, when a prisoner meets a number smaller than his own, he should know that this person came to Eastwood earlier than him.
Now the code names of Isvetri have all been changed to the ones starting with 2. Those starting with 20 are all dead, and those starting with 21 are the veterans, who at least have certain connections and prestige in Isvetri.
But the boy in front of him said that he was "Number Zero".
No. 0.
Doesn't that mean that he is the original prisoner who has existed since the founding of Eastwood?
"I didn't lie to you," the blue-green-eyed boy smiled as if he could sense what he was thinking. He spread out his palm and revealed a numbered plate inside. "You didn't see it because I picked it off my clothes."
Xia Zuo looked at the "No. 0" written on the small sign and fell into a strange silence: "..."
First of all, he had no way to remove the number plate on the clothes without damaging the clothes and the plate. But the boy held it in his palm easily, and there was no damage to his clothes. He took off the number plate as if it was just a trivial matter.
Secondly…
All the seniors with the number starting with 20 are gone, so if you are really number 0, how did you survive to this day? ?
——It looks so small!
Xia Zuo suddenly had a bold idea: Could it be that just like Bai Loli, the little boy is not as young as he looks, and he is actually an old man with white hair, but he still has a childlike face... ?
No. 0's smile deepened.
Xia Zuo felt inexplicably cold.
"I'm not an old man, Mr. 2511."
Xia Zuo's heart skipped a beat. If he had just drunk a sip of water, it would have probably been spit out by now.
This guy is really an old monster, is he capable of mind reading?!
But at the same time, that inexplicable sense of familiarity became stronger and stronger.
The brown-haired boy pursed his lips and suddenly said, using the same old trick:
"Cise?"
The golden eyes observed the other person without blinking.
My heart suddenly tightened, as if expecting some answer.
However, the boy with blue-green eyes just tilted his head, as if he had thought of something, and then asked with interest: "Are you talking about the current warden?"
"Cesare Crest is indeed the name of the current warden." No other emotions could be seen in No. 0's big cat-like eyes. He raised his index finger and warned with a smile: "But you can't call the warden by his name."
The brown-haired boy suddenly wilted, his eyes losing their luster: "I know."
“…”
Because he lowered his head and looked downward, Xia Zuo did not see the boy who had been acting casual and playful since he appeared. At this moment, his originally clear blue-green eyes were filled with a misty light that seemed to come from far away, calm and impenetrable.
"Aren't you curious about my identity?"
No. 0 suddenly asked.
Xia Zuo looked at him: "Curious. But will you tell me?"
"Yes," No. 0 nodded and smiled once again, "but I have one condition."
"What conditions?"
"You have to be a perfect listener and not tell anyone else what I told you." He thought for a moment and said childishly, "Otherwise, I will punish you and your future stories will not be heard by the people you want to hear them."
Xia Zuo thought for a moment, then responded, "Okay."
This is not an excessive request, and it sounds like No. 0 has been in Eastwood Prison for the Insane for a long time, so he should know a lot about the Crest family.
Xia Zuo also knew that he must know more information and intelligence now.
As soon as Xia Zuo finished speaking, the boy with blue-green eyes raised his hand without hesitation, and with one force, he removed his entire left arm.
Xia Zuo's pupils shrank, and he was involuntarily startled for a moment, then he realized that there was no blood spraying from the wound, and he also saw clearly the structure of the connection between his body and left arm.
——Even if he didn't know much about technology, he could tell that it was not flesh and blood, but machinery.
This is a human body made entirely of machines, only its appearance is disguised to look like a normal human.
So, of course, he is not a human being. Normal humans have heartbeats, pulses, blood, age and die, but he does not.
The only expressions in his life vocabulary are probably "energy" and "scrap".
...No wonder it was Zero. Maybe Eastwood didn't take this kind of artificial mechanical non-human prisoners into account.
As we all know, humans cannot create life, so he created by humans is certainly not life.
"As you can see, I am a mechanical creature." The blue-green-eyed boy continued to smile and said, "You can also understand my existence as artificial intelligence."
Xizel once mentioned artificial intelligence to Xia Zuo, so Xia Zuo quickly reacted and said hesitantly: "So, why did you come to the Eastwood Lunatic Prison? Was it the Crest Family who created you? What is the purpose of your appearance?"
"There are too many questions—" the boy smiled and said, "Then I will answer them one by one."
"The person who created me was actually the previous head of the Crest family."
Xia Zuo: “!”
He looked at the boy's inexplicably familiar features, as well as his large eyes that had a hint of green due to their mechanical feel, and an indescribable sense of weirdness and absurdity surged up in his heart.
As expected, he heard the boy smile without any emotion:
"After all, not everyone can endure the pain of sacrificing their own children. Humans always like to use some pitiful means to deceive themselves."
Xia Zuo's pupils shrank slightly.
His voice was trembling uncontrollably: "…What did you say? What on earth is going on?"
"Literally, isn't it?"
The young man with blue-green eyes slowly gathered his expression, and that nonchalant smile finally disappeared from his face, leaving only a strong sense of mechanicalness.
"Didn't that black-haired girl tell you? The warden has been transformed as a god since he was born."
Xia Zuo saw the mechanical boy smile again according to the set program: "We already know that gods are too illusory, Freeman."
Xia Zuo's breathing suddenly became heavier. He already understood why the young man was looking for him.
"For thousands of years, the gods have not appeared again."
"How do you want people to believe that He will be successfully awakened one day?"
The face of the brown-haired boy was imprinted in the clear blue-green eyes.
He said softly:
"Since the gods are ethereal and their return date is uncertain,"
"Then why can't we cultivate an artificial god?"
…
"Ding ding - ding ding - abnormal energy fluctuations detected from prisoner 2511 -"
A shrill alarm sounded, and the black-haired boy gave him one last look: "We haven't finished talking yet, but maybe you need to calm down."
"Don't worry, I tampered with the surveillance, no one will discover our conversation."
"Until next time, Mr. Freeman."
By the time the prison guard opened the door of the cell and looked inside with full vigilance, the brown-haired boy was the only one left.
…
No. 0 returned to his cell.
The comic will was still trembling with fear because of the previous conversation: "Why don't you hide it? It doesn't seem like you..."
"All the foreshadowing has been done. The situation is now dead, and before César Crest can achieve his final deification, drastic measures must be taken."
The boy with blue-green eyes had no expression on his face: "Do you still remember the words in the wordless book?"
Comic Will: "...What?"
"The words that Ursula didn't read in full, and will never read again - Cesar will go to ■■■■."
"You mean, you want to let Xia Zuo know the news, know where you are going in the end, and then let him follow you?" Comic Will analyzed with some difficulty.
The boy laughed, "Yeah."
"After all, some of the foreshadowing at the beginning of the manga still needs to be completed. Only in this way can the manga appear more complete."
The comic will was silent for a moment, then asked with some difficulty: "...What about you?"
"What are you going to do?"
"You came to this world not as a soul, but as a body. What will you become after you become a god...?"
Will the Caesar it knows still be the Caesar?
"Are you worried about me?" The boy blinked.
He smiled and said jokingly in a lighthearted tone, "When the world is restored to order, you will be back to your peak, right? Then I will count on you to save me from this misery."