Role Playing the Dark Horse Character

Chapter 81: Who Killed the Prophet (First Update)

Unfortunately, Lin Ran didn’t have milk tea, so in the end, she poured tea for Li Li.

Li Li looked at the tea under the candlelight.

The brownish surface was tinged with orange-red, looking rather bitter.

She put on a smile and looked at Lin Ran, who sat upright across from her. “You don’t seem surprised that I’m here.”

The orange-haired woman, like a still moth in the faint light, quietly lowered her purple pupils.

From her appearance alone, one would never guess she had a son.

She looked extremely young, with a gentle temperament.

The only hint of age might be her lifeless demeanor and those dull pupils.

At Li Li’s words, she slightly tilted her head and said, “Why should I be surprised?”

She seemed to view Li Li through a thick filter, saying matter-of-factly, “You have infinite possibilities. Coming to me is just one of them.”

This couldn’t help but make Li Li recall what exactly she had done in front of Lin Ran.

In the end, she only felt that the one thing worth praising was saving a few people.

But just because of that, was it enough for Lin Ran, an SS-rank ability user, one of the top ten powerhouses in the Empire, to say such flattering words?

On the surface, Li Li merely smiled politely and then said: “Then my questions, the reason I came here, can you answer them too?”

“Of course,” Lin Ran said. “You are different.”

“Ruye is disobedient, my younger brother lacks initiative, and in all of Ranmu City, only you can succeed me.” The orange-haired woman spoke earnestly, as if this were an established fact.

Seeing that Li Li’s expression didn’t change and she gave no reaction to her words, Lin Ran repeated, enunciating each word: “You are different.”

Li Li felt that Lin Ran had probably imagined something in her head, then put a thick filter on her.

For such matters, Li Li would only nod and make the most of it.

“The man you mentioned to me in the library, who was he?” she asked.

Li Li never forgot what she was here to do.

She had come to Ranmu City as Heige to find out what had happened to the Prophet in the end.

Whether the manga would have dual storylines was still uncertain, but the progress of her storyline here would eventually be presented in the manga one day.

The black-haired girl’s narrowed eyes slightly widened, revealing a crimson red like blood.

And Lin Ran answered without hesitation: “They all called him the Prophet.”

The candlelight trembled, and the black-haired girl sitting on the floor deepened her smile.

“Who killed him?” Li Li asked.

“I did,” Lin Ran said.

A gust of wind swept in,barge into the room, extinguishing the candlelight in an instant.

In the darkness, Lin Ran slowly said: “I killed him with my own hands and sent his head to the Qu clan.”

Her tone was natural, calm.

Yet this calmness made the atmosphere stiffen.

The wind stopped, and the candlelight flickered back to life, trembling.

Lin Ran remained in her vacant posture, but the person sitting across from her had shed the smiling mask, staring over expressionlessly with those crimson eyes.

The red wing-like marks at the corners of her eyes seemed to unfurl, growing vivid.

The candlelight reflected in her pupils seemed to radiate coldness.

“Why?” The words from that unsmiling face were still light. “Your goal shouldn’t be limited to the Ability Guild’s small territory.”

“That man was causing unrest,” Lin Ran said.

“He was inciting violence, manipulating people’s hearts. Nobles, commoners, many believed his lies, plunging the Empire into civil strife, leaving the people in misery.” She was convinced of this and asked with slight confusion: “Wasn’t what happened six years ago clear enough? He only brought disaster.”

Six years ago, the Prophet had gathered a group of ability users oppressed by nobles, challenging the nobility’s rule.

Powerful companions, an outstanding spiritual leader, shared beliefs and goals—that was the Former Ability Guild at its most spirited.

They liberated cities along the way, establishing their own strongholds, removing noble rule from those cities, and bringing rebirth after the pain.

Then it all ended at the hands of the nobles.

“You think that was a disaster caused by the Prophet.” The black-haired girl’s tone grew cold.

A traitor lured the Prophet away, and the nobles swooped in, slaughtering the unprepared high-ranking members of the Former Ability Guild.

Blood and violence followed, and even after that, it didn’t stop.

They used the survivors to threaten the still-living Prophet, forcing him to step onto the guillotine the nobles had built for him.

And now, to say it was all the Prophet’s fault?

“If it weren’t for him, none of that would have happened,” Lin Ran said, oblivious to the shifting atmosphere, still expressing her views. “He deserved to die.”

She must have noticed the tightened fist of the person before her but was only puzzled why they couldn’t understand.

“Then what have you achieved?” the black-haired girl, no longer maintaining her smile, asked.

“What have you achieved by massacring over ten thousand civilians?”

“In the unrest caused by that man, the only way to eradicate evil was with heavy laws,” Lin Ran said slowly. “Let them know not to cross the line, using the deaths of a few to instill fear of the law in the majority, creating the sinless city I envisioned.”

She paused, then continued: “At first, I succeeded.”

“I overestimated myself. I’ve entered old age, and my body can’t handle the high-intensity use of abilities.” She seemed to be reflecting. “The first two years, I could spread order across all of Ranmu City. But from the third year, it became strenuous.

Now, I must rest seven hours each night to maintain daytime order.”

“After seeing Eternal Night, do you still think you were right?” Black bangs fell, casting her red eyes into shadow.

“Eternal Night wasn’t my intention. It was Ruye, bewitched by that man’s honeyed words, who became obsessed,” Lin Ran said, lifting her eyes.

Her orange hair fell from behind her ear, a strand crossing her face, her purple pupils faintly visible behind it.

“Ha.” The person across stood up, letting out a light laugh.

“Killing the Prophet because he caused trouble, then what about the An clan nobles? Why did you participate in the annihilation of the An clan?”

She lowered her eyes, looking at the gentle orange-haired beauty in the candlelight.

“Sacrificing a few for the Empire is worthwhile,” Lin Ran said, tilting her head.

The atmosphere had frozen, dropping below ice.

Yet Lin Ran remained oblivious.

Her emotional intelligence was low, living in her own world, unable to read faces or communicate normally.

Li Li didn’t know why she had caught Lin Ran’s eye, but she couldn’t agree with Lin Ran’s ideas.

Neither could Heige.

“Let’s end this here,” Li Li said.

She had come only to confirm the relationship between ‘Lin’ and Lin Ran.

Now that it was confirmed, and she had gained a lot of extra information, it was a fruitful trip.

At the very least, for now, she would not clash directly with Lin Ran.

That would be unwise.

Lin Ran said, “I believe we’ve shared our innermost thoughts. We should already be close friends.”

“You and I will never be friends,” Li Li rejected decisively.

She turned, intending to leave in the dim candlelight.

“You don’t agree with my views. Why?” Lin Ran finally sensed something amiss and pressed,

“Because I despise that man?”

The silhouette in the darkness paused.

Footsteps echoed from outside, and faint candlelight spilled through the unclosed door.

“Family Head? You’re awake?” A servant, holding a lamp, ascended the stairs.

Inside the room, Lin Ran raised her head, leaning forward as if to grasp the friend she thought she had, who was about to leave.

“I’m very selfish,” the silhouette said softly, without turning back. “All I care about is the few who were sacrificed, the few who were taken.”

The next moment, the servant’s lamplight illuminated the corridor, streaming into the room.

The black figure inside vanished from the spot.

Lin Ran stared blankly at the gradually brightening doorway, her vacant gaze falling on the approaching servant.

She had been utterly rejected, without any room for compromise.

“Family Head?” the servant asked softly.

The candlelight was overshadowed by the brighter lamplight.

Lin Ran sat dazed for a moment, then murmured, “I think I upset my friend. What should I do?”

The servant thought he misheard. “Uh, friend?”

Lin Ran, who stayed in the attic day after day, never stepping beyond the threshold, had a friend?

Shocked, the servant said gently, “Generally, you’d apologize.”

At that, Lin Ran’s eyes gradually lit up. “Right, apologize.”

She looked at the servant and said, “Make arrangements. Three days from now, I’ll appear publicly to apologize to her.”

The servant was startled, confirming multiple times before hurriedly agreeing.

This was the first time in six years Lin Ran had requested to leave the attic, the first time since the execution of the Former Ability Guild’s prophet.

...

On the other side, Li Li dispelled the illusion and turned. “Let’s go.”

Beside her, An Heyu noticed her usual smile but sensed her mood was off.

He wanted to ask what had happened but held back, saying only, “As planned?”

“Yeah,” Li Li replied.

She touched her face, snapped her fingers casually, and her hair lengthened.

The red marks at the corners of her eyes transformed into a silver-edged mask.

Lin Ran would never be a friend.

For Heige, that was certain.

She didn’t understand why Lin Ran trusted her so deeply after being saved once, nor why that trust ran so profound.

But they would never walk the same path.

“I’m very selfish,” she said under her breath.

The night breeze rustled the treetops.

An Heyu glanced sideways at Li Li, who was gradually walking away.

Meanwhile, the undead still in the Lin residence bid farewell to the butler.

“I’m still a bit worried,” ‘Qin Qian’ said. “I’ve been suspicious of someone for a while. I want to check it out.”

“Shall I pass a message to the young master?” the butler asked.

“If I don’t make it to the Ability Guild by dawn tomorrow, then say something,” ‘Qin Qian’ said.

The butler nodded approvingly, pleased that he wouldn’t need to disturb Lin Ruye.

So he asked, “Where are you headed?”

“District 13,” the undead replied.

...

Despite some complications, Li Li finally reached District 3.

Their original plan was to visit District 3 to check on the new organization and perhaps give it a name.

The night breeze carried the heat of summer.

On the road, Li Li and An Heyu walked one behind the other.

Li Li had reverted to Heige’s attire, a faint smile on her lips, hands in the pockets of her trench coat, her mood seemingly improved.

An Heyu, still dressed as a woman, noticed her mood stabilize and asked, “Can I change out of this now?”

“Of course,” Li Li turned her head, but before An Heyu could show relief, she wagged a finger.

“No.”

An Heyu, about to celebrate: “...”

She was teasing him, wasn’t she? Definitely!