"Alright, Geuse." Subaru looked directly at the tear-streaked man. "You still remember who you are, don't you?"
Geuse's tears fell like broken pearls. He tried to cover his face with his hands, but being tightly bound, he could only futilely twist his wrists.
"I...I know! I'm sorry! I'm so sorry!" His voice was broken, every word a confession squeezed from the depths of his soul. "I've done too many...too many unforgivable wrongs! Those...those are all my sins!"
In Geuse's blurry vision, countless bloody scenes flashed by like a revolving lantern.
Burning villages, the last gazes of people he had torn apart with his own hands, the slaughter sites he called "Trial"s, mountains of innocent skeletons accumulated over a hundred years.
Each scene was like a sharp knife piercing his heart. Geuse, inherently kind, wished he could die immediately, but then realized that even death could not atone for such monstrous sins. This realization plunged him into deeper despair.
"I...I don't know how to atone...Please...kill me..." His forehead hit the ground heavily, his sobs exceptionally clear in the forest. "A demon like me...doesn't deserve to live in this world..."
Subaru looked at the trembling man before her. This appearance...was this his true face?
"I cannot grant your request." Subaru's voice was low and firm. "While I would very much like to kill you right now, we need information more than revenge."
She leaned forward slightly.
"You used to work with them, didn't you? Even if it was forced or for other reasons, you must know something." Subaru's tone gradually hardened. "The Greed Archbishop and the gluttony Archbishop are coming soon. Their authorities...do they have any weaknesses?"
Geuse's body trembled violently, as if struck by an invisible current. His pupils suddenly constricted, and his breathing became rapid and disordered.
"Greed...Regulus?!" His voice was so hoarse it was almost inhuman, as if uttering that name caused him immense pain.
Subaru slowly nodded, her Fingers tightening.
"That's right, do you have any information about her?"
Her mind flashed back to the horrifying intelligence Crusch brought back in the last loop: "Time Stop." Regulus had completely frozen her own time, making any attack unable to touch her in the slightest. And the air she casually waved, the dust she kicked up, once enveloped by the stopped time, would transform into an indestructible killing weapon, ignoring all defenses.
Invincible.
Even knowing the principle, Subaru still couldn't find any way to break it.
"No...no! She's coming?!" Geuse suddenly struggled violently, shaking his head frantically, his voice filled with desperate fear.
"Run!!" he shrieked. "You can't...She's invincible! You can't win!!"
His eyes were unfocused, as if he had fallen into some terrifying memory.
"She...she'll kill everyone...villages, cities...all living things!!" Geuse suddenly looked up, tears mixed with cold sweat streaming down his face. "You must evacuate the nearby villagers immediately! Quickly!! Otherwise...otherwise..."
His words cut off abruptly. Just imagining the scene brought Geuse to the brink of collapse.
Subaru's brows furrowed. She had never seen Geuse, even in his "Sloth" form, display such a terrified expression.
Subaru bit her lower lip. She couldn't give up, absolutely not.
In the last loop, the information Crusch brought back was already horrifying enough: the reason the Greed Archbishop Regulus attacked the convoy seemed to be mere curiosity, they wanted to see who had killed the White Whale.
And in that subjugation battle, Carlisle's performance was dazzling. If Regulus truly set her sights on the "heroes who subjugated the White Whale," then next time...she might directly invade the territory!
That absolutely cannot happen..."What's going on~" Felix crossed his arms, his cat tail flicking impatiently, his amber eyes full of disdain. "Is this guy really an Archbishop of Sin? He cries way too much, Nyaa~"
Carlisle stood to the side, nodding slightly. He said helplessly.
"Indeed, he cries even more than Subaru."
"Huh?!" Subaru turned sharply, her golden pupils wide, her cheeks instantly flushing. "You, what kind of comparison is that!"
She angrily waved her fists, like a ruffled small animal. But in Carlisle's eyes, rather than anger, it looked more like...pouting.
Subaru looked back at Geuse. "Listen to me! Instead of running, I want to take the initiative. If you have information about those lunatics, then tell me honestly!"
Tears continued to stream from Geuse's eyes: "It's no use...it's really no use...that monster is impossible to fight...I've already tried...Please...while there's still time...run..."
"I'm sorry...I'm sorry..." Geuse curled into a ball. "Please...a sinner like me...kill me..."
Suddenly, Subaru's fist shot out, landing on Geuse's tear-stained face. The punch wasn't heavy, but it seemed to break some invisible barrier, making the man, who had been immersed in self-reproach, suddenly look up, tears still silently flowing.
"Do you think I don't want to kill you?!"
Subaru's voice was like flames squeezed through her teeth. She grabbed Geuse's collar, forcing him to meet her golden eyes burning with anger.
"If it weren't for the possibility that you know information! Even if this is your true self, I will never forgive what you've done! Those evil deeds...do you think a few cries and then dying will erase everything?!"
Geuse's lips trembled, but he could only close his eyes in pain, letting the tears fall.
"Listen up!" Subaru suddenly released his collar. "You want to use death to escape reality? But others haven't given up yet!"
She abruptly turned sideways, pointing to the crowd behind her.
Carlisle stood silently behind Subaru, Rem tightly gripped her Morning Star, the hatred in her blue eyes undiminished, Julius wiped his blood-stained longsword, his expression calm and scrutinizing beneath his purple hair.
"Every single one of them is fighting! Struggling! To survive at the hands of your terrifying organization! And you" Subaru's voice suddenly rose, "A scoundrel who has committed countless crimes, how can you so lightly say 'I want to die' and be free?! Where in this world is there such an easy way out!"
Geuse's breathing was rapid. He opened his mouth but couldn't make a sound.
"Even if you're going to die, spit out the information first!" Subaru took a step closer, her shadow enveloping Geuse's curled body. "Or...do you have to make things even uglier? Torture? Torment? Do you think we can't do that?"
Her threat cut through the air like a blade. Geuse suddenly froze. He looked over Subaru's shoulder at the figures standing behind her, there was anger, confusion, hatred, but no retreat, no fear, only a stubborn determination.
"...I...I don't know." He finally spoke.
"Huh?" Subaru's fist clenched again.
"I'm sorry...but..." Geuse looked up, tears mixed with dirt leaving murky streaks on his face. "I really don't know where Regulus's weakness is..."
"However!" Geuse suddenly raised his voice. "Regarding gluttony...although I don't know exactly what Ley's authority is, you absolutely must not let him know your real name!"
...
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guilt_free_daoist
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