"..."
Inhale.
Exhale.
With every breath, his entire soul expanded, compressed, was destroyed, and reborn.
Ordered footsteps approached steadily. The traitor was about to pay the price. Life or freedom—there was no choice.
Lin stared blankly at Chiaki's corpse. Her blood-stained face was turned right toward him, two tracks of blood sliding from the corners of her eyes and the bridge of her nose.
How could someone so skilled at deception and role-playing end up like this? For a traitor like him—someone she had almost no connection to—she was killed so simply.
"But unlike you logic-heavy types, I'm more about emotions."
"If someone could cast aside logic for me, I'd definitely be moved to tears."
Was it because she did the same thing herself?
Before he knew it, he was surrounded.
Countless weapons were pointed at him. Lin lifted his head and saw Sakura, Hua, Erwin, Imul...
The disbelief in their eyes would likely be etched into his mind until the day he died.
Perhaps he would die next?
...That would be right.
Images of Vil-V and Einstein's tragic deaths surfaced, spinning in his mind like madness, reminding him every second that he was the one who killed them.
Then, was he also the one who killed Erwin and Pardo, and the one who killed everyone at the end of the "last time"?
If so, he was no longer human.
"Arrest him, then lock him in the Deep End."
Lin heard his sentence. This made him struggle to lift his arm, the bone already pulverized, with his shoulder.
Clatter.
A pill bottle fell from his pocket.
his hazy, muddled eyes instantly sharpened. Vanished clarity and wisdom returned to his body in a flash.
Lin stared intensely at the bottle of Ritalin as it hit the ground, rolled to the side, and bumped into Chiaki's body.
Even during the fight with Kevin, the bottle hadn't fallen out. Now, it dropped so naturally.
"Do you have anything else to say?"
Anything to say?
...
...
Of course he did.
A cruel gaze shot out from eyes as clear as a mirror. Everyone present took a step back in fear.
Lin thought of that massacre, committed by his own hands.
Blood covered everything.
"I'm going to kill every single one of you right now."
Eerily, words that made one's skin crawl spilled from his mouth.
"Starting with you. I'll drive a blade into your heart, then cut the person next to you in half." Lin looked at a soldier on the far edge who was trembling so hard his gun was shaking—clearly a recruit.
He took a deep breath, then bared his teeth like a beast, staring at the man with a hideous expression.
This behavior naturally triggered the others' vigilance. They stepped back slightly, but their weapons moved closer.
"Then I will kill the rest of you without leaving a single one behind. I'll stack your corpses into the shapes I want, mince your bodies into meat, and use your heads as footballs."
His tone wasn't urgent. There wasn't even any killing intent. Yet it chilled everyone to the bone.
Like a gentleman elegantly planning a lunch, narrating his murder plan as if flipping through a menu.
"As long as you don't kill me, I will hide in the shadows, lurking in the darkness, watching you, waiting for the moment you lose focus..." He tilted his head, letting his malice radiate without restraint. "And drive a knife into your necks."
"Aah—!"
The recruit frantically raised his muzzle, wanting to fire, but was stopped by Prometheus. "He has lost his ability to act. We can leave the rest to Dr. Mei."
"Lost mobility? What are you talking about?"
Prometheus froze. She saw the blood-soaked Lin stand up from the ground, his twisted, deformed hands hanging limply, as he charged toward the crowd like a madman.
"Wait—"
Prometheus reacted, but as she shouted the first word, the gunshot had already rung out.
Bang!
Lin fell backward. Blood geysered, occupying the sky before his eyes.
He heard screaming.
And his own... death.
So, let's organize the current information.
Lin: The initiator, the mastermind behind the massacres, the traitor, and the "Consciousness Eroded." He killed humans under the control of a polluted consciousness without his own knowledge, causing the theft of the database, the serial murders, and the tragedy of the headquarters massacre.
Chiaki: The accomplice. After learning Lin was the mastermind, she assisted him in secret, interfering with the headquarters' surveillance. She was skilled at disguising her personality and was killed by Prometheus while trying to save Lin.
Vil-V: Victim of both times. The first to know Lin true face and the first victim. Killed with her own stolen weapon, leaving behind a message about consciousness erosion.
Erwin: Victim of the first time. Lin lured him to the deck at 5:00 AM on September 12th and murdered him.
Einstein: Victim of the second time. Murdered by Lin.
Pardofelis: Victim of the first time. Suspected to have been killed by Lin.
Kevin: The first to realize something was wrong with Lin. In the first massacre, he was killed by Lin; in the second, he defeated Lin and severely wounded him.
Mei: Kevin's accomplice. Killed by Lin in the first massacre.
The thread is very clear. In the "first time," Lin consciousness was eroded after the ball. He then stole data, killed multiple people, and died after the headquarters massacre—cause of death unknown.
In the "second time," Lin normal consciousness was similarly affected. He stole data while conscious, then killed Vil-V and Einstein, was wounded by Kevin, and finally shot dead.
He was a damned traitor, an enemy of humanity, an outlier about to turn into a Honkai creature. Perhaps he deserved to die like that.
After all, everything is now clear...
Right?
September 11th, 11:30 PM.
Crash—
A grease-stained dinner plate shattered on the floor covered in footprints from high heels and dress shoes.
"Sawwy."
"It's fine..."
Lin gaze moved from that minor interlude to Elysia face, which was full of confusion.
"What is it?" Elysia asked, blinking.
Lin shook his head. "Nothing. I'll come find you in a bit to meet those two."
With that, he turned and walked toward the noisy area.
The cold-faced mechanical girl faithfully executed her program, bowing to the person she bumped into to apologize. The other person merely waved a hand and said nothing more.
Prometheus lifted her head, watching the other party leave. Before the waiter came to clean up, she knelt down and used her porcelain-white hands to pick up all the shards.
After finishing, she turned her neck and met the gaze of the silent Lin.