Long Street and Gun

"Cough, cough, cough, cough, cough..." Deep in the underground city, Alphonse's ragged coughing—sounding as if he were choking—echoed repeatedly through the cavernous space and intricate corridors. He was not someone given to wry amusement or helpless laughter. When the crushing wave of loss and absurdity struck, Alphonse felt only fury and a fleeting disorientation. "He recognized him just because he holds grudges?!" He never would have imagined that one of his meticulously prepared contingencies—the one carrying the least risk and collateral damage—had been shattered by logic so utterly nonsensical! Every subsequent step of that plan was now completely derailed. Alphonse had other plans, of course, but unease was beginning to creep into his heart. He had just abruptly realized that Han Qingyu had always given him this exact feeling—riddled with incomprehensible choices and a pervasive sense of absurdity. It had been this way from the very start. Years ago, when they came to take part in the trials, Han Qingyu had caught on to the dark, hidden secrets of the trial grounds. Over a hundred men cornered him in a canyon to kill him... yet he survived, grievously wounded. Under such circumstances, reason dictated that he should have felt terror and dread. He should have wanted to flee first and then expose the truth. Any young soldier subjected to such horrors would have thought that way and acted accordingly. Yet he hadn't! He had gleefully jogged back to Charles to demand his winning metal block, nearly provoking Charles to fury with his sheer, boundless greed... And so Charles had misjudged him... Otherwise, a person named Han Qingyu would have long ceased to exist in this world. Later, his squad was framed on the plateau, suffering catastrophic casualties. Upon returning to headquarters, he hadn't gone to Chen Buer to file a complaint, nor had he appealed to the Alliance. Instead, he made a direct raid on the airstrip... and hacked down three generations of Alphonses right off the bat: Denis, Eric, and Charles. If not for that, Eric might be a super combat power by now! Alphonse wouldn't be at a relative disadvantage having to face three supers at once. Speaking of the three supers... They hadn't even killed Theodore! That defied all reason as well—Theodore had nearly slaughtered them back then. Furthermore, if they had chosen to rely on Chen Buer's protection three years ago, remaining in Azure to fight the lawsuit and pursue the truth, the matter would most likely still be dragging on today. They might never have become who they were now. Yet they had chosen to break out of prison and flee, carrying criminal charges to become fugitives on the run... That group—or rather, that one man—consistently made illogical, unreasonable choices, yet somehow achieved extraordinary results every single time. This flagrant defiance of logic unsettled Alphonse to his core, for it had a habit of destroying every careful calculation and certainty. And it was precisely through this process, forged choice by choice, that those mere pawns of the past had grown increasingly lethal. "Fine. Then we will end this another way. It is time for it to end. I will carry the life source energy you sacrifice to greet eternity amid the apocalypse." Brushing aside his unease, Alphonse casually detached the connecting tubes from his body and stood up. His hypocrisy and fear of death did not mean he lacked confidence in his own strength. Donning a black combat suit and pulling up a mask, Alphonse left the underground city alone, settling into a dark, concealed corner of a building above ground. *** The architectural complex of Alphonse Manor resembled a bustling European-style quarter, complete with streets and alleys. The buildings stood in orderly rows yet varied in height, each boasting beautiful doors and windows, their roofs lined with balconies or overhanging eaves. The central main street was not particularly wide, but it was long and straight, paved with neat stone slabs. Combat boots embedded with dead iron struck against them, ringing out with crisp clatter. *Clack, clack...* The city remained as quiet as death. No one made any effort to conceal their footsteps. Han Qingyu and the others simply strode forward along the main street at a steady, measured pace. "I should take the rear. If there's a devouring attack, I'm probably the most likely to withstand it," Rusty Sister suggested in a hushed voice. Walking in this formation, the rear was undeniably the most perilous position. Not only did she possess armor with the highest defensive capability and a source energy internal circulation system, but she also had that jade bone. "Makes sense," Han Qingyu, walking at the very front, looked back and said. "Except your grandfather will be furious." "I'm not afraid of him." "Well, we are! Go on, fall in with Tangtang, Caixin, and the Little Prince," Han Qingyu commanded. At times like this, his word still carried weight. Just as he had refused to let Wu Xu take point earlier and strictly instructed him not to pursue under any circumstances regardless of how the battle developed, Wu Xu had accepted the orders without question. Rusty Sister moved to one flank. Along with He Tangtang, Yin Caixin, and the Little Prince—stationed left, front, right, and rear a few meters apart—they formed a tight perimeter around Wen Jifei in the center. "If you trust me, let me take the rear," Theodore spoke up with a faint smile. "My life was picked up for free anyway. Even if..." "Picked up for free?" Wen Jifei asked in confusion without looking back. Theodore blinked, momentary blankness in his eyes. "It was bought! Doctor Zhe saved your life, and you owe us a fortune. I've got it all down in my ledger," Rusty Sister chimed in. Theodore froze for an instant, then chuckled. "Don't worry, I'm hard to kill," Wu Xu said, tugging Theodore aside before stepping into position at the rear of the column. With their formation settled, the eight ceased speaking and pressed forward. None of them had drawn their weapons, save for Wen Jifei, who held Elegy of the Square in both hands. *Clack, clack...* The silent, dead city, the small band advancing along the main street, the rhythmic footsteps... "Are they definitely going to attack?" Yin Caixin asked. "Of course. With what happened outside, the Azure Council is probably holding an emergency session right now. Alphonse is running out of time, and we've already presented him with his only opportunity." Speaking in English, Han Qingyu made no deliberate effort to lower his voice this time, letting his words drift across the empty street. Dawn was breaking. The sun, on the verge of rising, hid behind a blanket of clouds, casting a reddish-white morning glow diagonally across wall corners and eaves. *Snap!* A faint sound came from above. *Bang!* A gunshot rang out. A corpse tumbled down from the far side of a roof. "Here we go," Wen Jifei said, pausing to light a cigarette before bringing Elegy of the Square back up, resting his cheek slightly against the stock behind the scope. The group kept moving forward. *Bang!* Without any warning, a bullet punched straight through a wall. A body went rigid behind the wall beside a window. Blood poured from the side of his head before he collapsed... He had only just peeked through the window a moment before. *Bang, bang!* Another body rolled across a rooftop, plummeted over the edge, and crashed onto the roadside. That was the eleventh. *Bang!* This time, the shot came from the opposite direction. The instant the gunshot sounded, Wen Jifei said, "Not it." By that, he meant it was not a source energy firearm. Yet in that very split second, an almost noiseless blade sliced out from a side alley, lunging directly at Wu Xu. *Whoosh!* Wu Xu spun around, drew his spear, and gripping the shaft right beneath the spearhead, swept it horizontally in a vicious arc... *Crash!* The attacker slammed heavily into the adjacent wall. ...This one wasn't Alphonse either. At the same moment, another figure shot across the ground like an arrow, a short blade rising along the stone slabs, slicing straight toward Theodore—now exposed after Wu Xu had shifted his stance.