Endless Debt

Bologue appears to be a rational, rigorous expert, yet he is keenly aware of one thing: he has always been consumed by long-term chaos and mysteries.

The content of his deals, the Devil who seized his own soul, the source of the Soul Shards, the true nature of Resurrection...

Bologue himself is a walking enigma, but these mysteries have coexisted with him for so long that the unknown has become commonplace, even indifferent.

Bologue's mind was empty as he stood forlornly in the corridor, holding the file Lebius handed him.

This is the area of the Special Operations Group, and unless there is a report to make, few non-group members come here, so naturally, no one sees Bologue at this moment.

Gazing at the file in his hand, Bologue was both shocked and delighted, having repeatedly questioned Geoffrey about all this, never imagining he would gain it so easily today.

"There is quite a lot of content inside, and most of it is derived from the various conjectures we made based on experiments."

Lebius's voice echoed beside him, "Thus, there may be some inaccuracies in the analysis of your Undying Body, but that can't be helped. The true nature of this power is known only to you and that Devil, yet it's clear you yourself are unaware of it."

"Resurrection..."

Looking at the blood-red chains and sword, Bologue spoke emotionlessly.

He hesitated for a while, suppressing his curiosity and thirst for knowledge, stuffing the file into his coat, and deeply breathing repeatedly to control his restless emotions.

Lebius was right, his emotions have been fluctuating a lot lately, and an expert should perfectly control their emotions to prevent any errors.

The file felt like a birthday gift, where other children eagerly unwrap it, but Bologue restrained himself, acting as if nothing happened, leaving the Field Operations Department's area and arriving at the Pillar Courtyard, pressing the Sublimation Furnace Core symbol in the elevator.

Rather than the truth of Resurrection, Bologue cared more about Aimou at the moment, needing to see her condition himself as his trustworthy partner who shared life-and-death bonds.

Aimou was a flower growing in a greenhouse, making its first exploration of the outside world, only to encounter a raging storm.

Forget the flower; even Bologue, who went out with it, nearly stayed forever in that Abandoned Land.

As the elevator began to move, in the sealed solitary space, Bologue's mind was vacant, followed by an uncontrollable surge of another thought.

Staring at the gleaming elevator door, Bologue's visage was reflected within.

The elevator slightly trembled, the lighting quivered with it, and in a momentary illusion, Lebius sat within the mirrored surface, causing the recent conversation to rampage in his mind.

"So sudden?" Bologue asked Lebius in the memory, "Just handing it over to me so easily?"

"This itself isn't any major secret, and it's inherently related to you, so you have the right to know."

Glancing at the file, Lebius continued in his unruffled tone, "The reason we didn't inform you before was partly because we needed to observe for a while longer."

"Like a probation? One assessment after another to determine whether I am capable of receiving this information?"

Recalling the conversation with Evan, Bologue had never understood the various aspects of the Abandoned Land during his employment, expecting Evan to employ some memory-erasing means or have him sign confidentiality agreements upon confirming the intelligence he knew.

But Evan merely gave some advice about not leaking information, then left directly.

Unknown secrets hold extraordinary value, but after knowing them, they become meaningless.

"To some extent, yes, like when you got promoted to Condenser, if we were to pour all the details about the Abandoned Land, Sect, Calamity... how could any expert bear it?"

"Probably... I suppose."

Hearing this, Bologue didn't know how to respond for a moment.

"Knowledge progresses step by step. Another reason is due to regulations; each employee has their own permissions, limiting your intake of knowledge. But what you explore yourself is not subject to these limitations."

"So if I have the ability to sneak into the archives, won't the regulations punish me?" This sounded like encouragement for transgression, prompting Bologue to ask.

"Provided no one catches you. Unnoticed means unknown, being caught is another matter entirely."

Lebius appeared quite experienced in this regard.

"Of course, the reason for such regulations... don't you find knowing too much can sometimes be burdensome?"

Bologue was stunned.

"Suppose we inform everyone now that monsters named Calamity exist, once powerful Seekers of Glory, growing stronger post-fall, and currently one such Calamity sleeps beneath the Great Rift, ready to destroy all upon awakening."

Lebius used analogies, asking Bologue, "What would be the response of ordinary employees upon learning this?"

"I trust in the employees' convictions to resist anomalies, but trust is one thing; truly using calamity to test it is another." Bologue replied softly, slightly nodding as if in agreement with Lebius.

"Yes, precisely, not everyone has a sufficiently resolute will to endure the psychological pressure of knowing secrets, so we open some back doors for those curious enough."

Such as you."

Lebius took a sip of the hot coffee beside him.

"We know disaster is coming, but we can't drag everyone into fear, so we must endure this nightmare alone."

"Enjoying the nightmare alone?"

Bologue murmured to himself.

Who else in this world enjoys the nightmare alone? Only he knows, unable to tell a second person, the secret that is eternally watched.

The elevator shook, emitting clanging metal sounds, interrupting Bologue's wild thoughts. A crisp bell rang; Bologue had arrived at the Sublimation Furnace Core.

As the elevator doors parted before him, the face of Lebius in his memories shattered alongside.

Bologue stepped out of the elevator; the Sublimation Furnace Core was as scorching as he remembered. Someone signaled to Bologue to get a piece of Protective Clothing before proceeding, but the Undead clearly wouldn't care about such things.

In the orange warning color, the gray-black on Bologue seemed like a stain, exceptionally conspicuous, traversing in a cold sea of orange flowers.

After a simple identity check and some directions, Bologue quickly found Belli, who never wore Protective Clothing, her cool summer outfit just as eye-catching here.

"Yo! Bologue, you're discharged?"

Belli, seeing Bologue, was as excited as before, spreading her arms wide, ready to give Bologue a loving hug.

If it weren't for her duties binding her, Bologue might have seen Belli upon waking up in the Border Sanatorium, and Belli could very well have been one of his attending physicians.

"Why come here right after discharge? Missing your sister?"

Of course, her nonsense was just like before.

Bologue raised his hand and pressed it against Belli's face. If not for caring about the dignity of this department head, he'd really want to kick her away.

Pushing Belli away forcefully, Bologue knew once caught by Belli, she'd cling to him like an octopus, hard to shake off.

"You know why I'm here." Bologue said.

"Oh?" Belli's expression was subtle, "Here to find my junior sister?"

"Junior sister?"

Bologue took a few seconds to think about this term, then realized it referred to Aimou.

If Belli hadn't mentioned it, Bologue could hardly imagine that Belli and Aimou were from the same sect. Remembering the missing Teda, Bologue harbored deep doubts about the legitimacy of this sect.

"How is she?"

"Hmm? I'm her attending physician after all. The doctor's diagnosis is that the patient needs rest right now, and can't see outsiders."

Belli finished speaking, signaling to Bologue with her eyes, a move she'd used to intimidate Bologue many times.

But this time Bologue looked on expressionlessly, showing no intention of cooperating with Belli's intimidation game.

"You're really boring this way." Belli said, turning around to motion Bologue to follow her.

"I'm not at every venue to become interesting." Bologue replied.

Belli turned back, looking at Bologue with a hint of disdain, "Bologue, has anyone ever told you that girls don't find you appealing this way?"

Scarlet hues flashed before his eyes, and Bologue recalled the Night Race named Olivia.

Bologue listened to Olivia's warnings, but listening was one thing, executing was another.

"Mhmm, someone mentioned it."

Bologue nodded in agreement with Belli's words.

Belli wanted to say more, but Bologue's interruption left her words stuck in her throat, expressing both anger and frustration, finally complaining.

"You're truly impervious to everything."

"I'm personally very firm; ordinary words don't affect me."

The damnable thing was, Bologue even self-affirmed his stance.

Belli felt a pang in her chest, almost suffering internal injuries from Bologue's words. Few could anger Belli this way, and few could ignore her charm.

To be honest, during their previous conversation, Belli did find Bologue somewhat humorous, but clearly all his humor turned into verbal weapons against her.

"Alright, alright."

Belli grumbled, ending this bout of competition with Bologue as the victor, unwilling to endure Bologue's provocations any further.

Bologue followed behind Belli, she being the walking pass. One heavy gate after another opened, and soon a bluish glow enveloped Bologue.

Belli suddenly stopped, then pointed ahead and said,

"Look, she's right there."

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