No Hero-Volume 9 Endless Days, The End NO.1: Desire

Translated by TaffyGirl13 (proofread by Xuan & Trespasserby; C/E edited by lucathia)

“How is Dark Sun’s condition?”

Receiving inquiry. Source of voice: group of doctors from laboratory. Speaker is Lv.3 in command. Determined to be no danger.

“His condition is good. It’s truly unfathomable. I hadn’t thought that implanting the chip would actually succeed. Now, Dark Sun’s level will definitely triple and the previous speed restriction will finally be resolved!”

Starting self-inspection.

“An order just came from above: it must immediately be confirmed that Dark Sun no longer has any emotional responses. Sigh, a surgery as major as implanting a chip is already an unprecedented success, but in the end, the first thing we need to verify is instead this?”

Chip operations normal. Head injury not yet recovered. Restoration status normal. Pain index: 5.

“Lower your voice! In any case, we just do whatever the higher-ups say.”

Current situation determined to be in a surgery recovery period. No major orders on short-term. Automatically entering stand-by mode.

“But, how exactly do we confirm that Dark Sun no longer has emotional responses? He’s usually very indifferent and has already been untalkative these past few years. Even when we ask him questions, he simply nods or shakes his head in response. He didn’t have many emotional reactions in the first place.

“We could use detectors for brain waves and heart rate. Have An Te Qi speak with Dark Sun—only he can make Dark Sun respond.”

“That’s true. But speaking of An Te Qi, where is he? It’s really weird. Didn’t he like Dark Sun a lot before? Whenever Dark Sun finished undergoing any surgeries in the past, he would always wait by Dark Sun’s side for days, yet he didn’t come at all this time.”

“It’s not strange. He was the one most against this surgery. He probably didn’t want to come and see how Dark Sun is now.”

“Look guys, is Dark Sun sleeping?”

“That’s his standby mode.”

“Oh, right, I nearly forgot about that setting…”

I quietly stood motionless. In front of me was a fairly tidy, small room that was completely vacant, without even a table or a chair. All four walls were as white as snow. It was simply an empty, bright room; the only darkness was my own shadow beneath me.

They were always very skilled at making others recognize their own dark side.

Despite having stood for a long while, I did not feel anxious. I even hoped that no one would walk in at all, and just leave a vampire like me to stand alone here until I decomposed into dust.

“Charles Endelis.”

Yet even decomposing was an extravagant hope. I could only raise my head to face the person that had arrived. The man in front of me was not quite a stranger; while his face was only slightly familiar, his outfit was one I knew extremely well. The attire for the Sin Elimination Committee had never changed significantly since ancient times. Even vampires were unwillingly forced to change with the world by wearing suits and ties, yet the Sin Elimination Committee dressed the same, unchanging since time immemorial.

As I scrutinized him, he also focused a steadfast gaze on me.

It was then that I understood why I thought this stranger seemed familiar. His fairly rough features were similar to Father Alex’s, but with a taller and sturdier figure. Moreover, his expression was ice-cold, unlike Father Alex’s warm temperament. However, if they were to appear together, they would in no doubt look like a pair of brothers.

He was undoubtedly a Sin, a leader figure in the Sin Elimination Committee dedicated to hunt X.

“It has been over a century.” Sin said, “There was a period of time when I once thought that a trail like you was not worth the effort since you were tightly blocked off by the Elysees’ meddlesome troublemaking.”

You do not appear to be over a hundred years old. I did not voice this statement. Alex had previously mentioned that every Sin must read all the previous Sins’ memories and regard themselves as the same person. They were all “Sin,” who has lived over a thousand years like X.

A thousand years, countless Sins dedicating their entire lives, all for the sake of capturing X. If I did not know X, I might admire their perseverance.

“Yet time will solve anything. Aside from the unchanging path to eradicate evil, everything else will change, including the shelter of the Elysees family.” His icy expression finally shifted, the lips of his mouth curving into a sneer as he asked, “Is that not so?”

“There is something else that will not change with time,” I emotionlessly stated. “Which would be that I will not tell you anything of X’s whereabouts. There is no longer anything you can use to threaten me into speaking.”

I had not imagined that losing everything would actually have this advantage. There was no longer any person or object that could make me spill X’s matters.

“No need.” Sin coldly chuckled. “We just need to send out the news of you being in our hands. Do you think E.X. will come?”

I remained silent.

He would not only come, he would come extremely quickly as well.

X was in this very city.

Sin did not require my answer. His face clearly indicated that even if I claimed X would not arrive, they would not believe me. Furthermore, I had to admit that he was right—X would come. There was no suspense in the slightest, and I was entirely helpless in this situation.

They had evidently known this, as after capturing me, they had not even removed my gear before confining me in this room. Afterwards, Sin walked in without any apprehensions.

I did not quite hold any expectations on being able to defeat Sin. Even if I could, I would not be able to use Sin as a hostage. If Sin were to be defeated by a barely mature vampire like myself, his will to live would vanish along with the defeat, let alone allow himself to become a hostage.

“Your only usefulness comes with staying here.” Sin mocked, “This lifestyle is quite easy. Don’t even think of fleeing. Even if E.X. was the one shut here, it would be similarly impossible for him to escape!”

Perhaps because I did not respond, he did not seem to have any interest in continuing to converse and turned to leave.

“Why must you stay so attached to X in this way?”

I could not help but ask, “What exactly did he do? Since ancient times, has he not committed less crimes than humans? A single atomic bomb could kill millions of people, while X could not possibly get close to that number even if he ceaselessly killed for a hundred years. Could he truly have committed an even heavier crime?”

Sin sharply whirled around, his gaze like a torch that burned with blazing hatred and fury. Yet I still could not fathom how X could have possible done something that could incur such resentment considering what I knew of his character.

“E.X. is the source of sin and must be completely eradicated!”

Source? I did not understand. What do these words mean?

In the past, I had studied multiple church texts and had never come across a single work that mentioned X, let alone pointing at him as the source of sin. Perhaps this was an extreme way of thinking that only the Sin Elimination Committee had?

After all, the Church could not pay attention to the matter of hunting X in every single period. If he truly was the source of sin, the Church would not have held this “capture or not” attitude.

After reaching this understanding, I no longer clung onto wondering what X had done. Sin had pursued him for thousands of years; this dispute would never be resolved easily, and was not something I could put my hands into here.

I calmly asked, “What condition did you use to make a deal with the Sun Emperor?”

Sin glanced at me, appearing not to be too interested in replying. However, he did not directly stride off to leave, which gave me the opportunity to continue speaking.

“The Sun Emperor is a person who would not wake up early if there were no potential for profit. At the same time, he is also a figure whose thoughts are far too complex to grasp. Are you certain that working together with him will allow you to obtain the benefits that were only agreed to on the surface?”

Despite Sin’s constant frigid attitude, I was certain I saw a slight furrow of his brows. However, he immediately stated in an even colder tone, “For the sake of thoroughly eliminating sin, we are willing to pay a price heavier than you could ever imagine, vampire!”

With this statement, he turned to walk away without fighting any further. This time, aside from lunging forward to attack him, I no longer had any means of keeping him here.

I took a step forward, but an energy beam suddenly shot out before me. Then they continued to increase in number, crossing to form a web. I stared at the energy net in front of me silently for a while before retreating, and the web vanished beam by beam.

If I had activated x-speed the instant the web had materialized, I undoubtedly could have reached Sin. Yet even in the best-case scenario of having defeated Sin and captured him as a hostage, I would likely only obtain a corpse, which would provide no help to the current situation.

Sin paused in his tracks but did not look back, simply letting out a cold chuckle as he walked to the wall. Before the door opened, the energy net reappeared around me, so densely packed together that I could not pass even a palm through. If I attempted to forcibly break through, either my blood ability would vaporize, or I would be sliced into countless pieces.

Once the net completely assembled, the door opened, and Sin exited.

Compared to Sin’s safety, not letting me flee seemed to be what was truly important.

Once the door shut, the web disappeared once more, and the room returned to its empty state.

The vacant room also had time. This room would turn off the lights at set four-hour intervals to submerge completely into darkness to suit a vampire’s required conditions for rest. While I no longer needed to rest, I would still lay down on time to avoid this secret from being exposed.

Twenty-four hours without needing to sleep while having nothing to do.

All that remained were my thoughts.

The previous chain of events had arrived in great number rapidly and messily, giving me no time to stop and ponder over them. I had only been able to bear with them one after another.

The Sun Emperor’s advancement step by step, Curtis’s betrayal and intervention, Father Yue and Alex’s interference, Luo Ye and Lieder’s appearance… The suspicions in my heart continued to pile up high as the situation worsened further.

Only after I had been seized and taken in the car had I discovered that the Luo Ye that the young master had been protecting this entire time was the criminal he had painstakingly searched for. Moreover, I had become a prisoner. Despite how disastrous the matter was, it actually calmed my anger and sense of defeat.

The bright room also allowed my mood to stabilize, although light ought to make vampires feel anxious. Brightness had always been an environment suited for humans, while darkness was what vampires loved the most. However, this did not apply to a vampire like myself who had been born and raised among humans.

I had adapted so much to sunlight that whenever I pulled open the curtains in the morning, I would frequently forget about the light shining on my face until the pain pricked through my eyes to remind me that I was not a race of the sunlight.

My emotions surged slightly once again. I quietly stood motionless as I dispelled all emotions and mulled over everything again and again, yet I only grew more and more confused.

What does the Sun Emperor truly want to do?

He said he did not care about Luo Ye. Could it be that this whole matter from beginning to end was merely a test? To test our loyalty toward the young master?

Melody and the others qualified, while the Sun Emperor used X’s whereabouts to threaten me and command me to deceive Luo Ye. I hesitated and was unwilling to do so, so I did not qualify?

No, the Sun Emperor had personally stated that I had no intentions of handing Luo Ye over to him. If I never betrayed the young master, why did I not qualify?

Could it be because I did not firmly reject the Sun Emperor’s command? However, every person has someone they care about. If the Sun Emperor had seized Briar away, Mr. Bramble would likely have become the first to disqualify.

Furthermore, if it were merely to test us, there would be no need at all to involve the Elysees family and the Church. This instead makes the situation more complicated, even presenting Lieder an advantageous opportunity to take Luo Ye and me away.

Aside from killing Luo Ye, aside from testing us, is there something else I am not aware of? And does the young master know of it?

No, he undoubtedly does not know. In this time, the young master and the Sun Emperor’s relationship had only gotten stiffer. If it were not for the young master’s instinct to protect his older brother, I am afraid that he would have long since blown up from anger and turned away to leave—Wait a moment.

Recent events suddenly flashed past in succession—the Sun Emperor had been unwilling to meet the young master to converse while hunting Luo Ye. The Sun Emperor had also used X and Curtis to anger me, forcing me to raise a hand against him, which the young master just happened to return in time to see, driven to have a falling out with me. He even attacked as forced to take my life.

During this period, he also tested Melody and Mr. Bramble’s group, using DSII to act as well. Practically all those by the young master’s side were involved with no exceptions.

It was as if the Sun Emperor was announcing to the young master that his everything was given by the Sun Emperor. When the Sun Emperor wants to disrupt the waters, the young master cannot resist in the slightest and will just find himself… abandoned and betrayed by all.

No one would be happy to be tightly controlled by someone, with the other party able to destroy their world with a single shift of their fingers, no matter how deep their relationship is.

The Sun Emperor should understand this fact, yet he intentionally made this type of declaration. Would the unrestrained king of the business world truly be foolish enough to do something with this result?

It would only make the young master feel unhappy with the Sun Emperor…Wait, what if this was what the Sun Emperor desired? Did he purposely provoke the young master?

But why would that be? I could not comprehend it. There must be something I am unaware of that is the Sun Emperor’s true objective.

It is undoubtedly related to the young master.

As I was unaware of other clues due to my lack of knowledge and failure to understand the whole situation, I could only let it go for the time being and raise another messier and more difficult issue.

Curtis, or perhaps, the attitude of the Elysees family.

When I thought of this, my heart fell. Although I had long since not considered myself the family head and had mentioned countless times to Curtis “not to pay any mind to me,” now that I was truly forsaken, I could not calmly face it. My former words were truly pretentious. In reality, I had still hoped the family would forever stand behind me.

If I had lost the Elysees family when Sadina had left, I would likely not have felt a loss as great as this. After all, Curtis had not actually been obligated to do anything for my sake.

However, after he had repeatedly voiced his commitment, I had begun to embrace that hope, that perhaps the relationship between the family, him, and myself could be as it had been when Sadina was still in this world. Even when I did not return to the family, I knew I still had that bond. It was not at the point where I had nothing to keep me afloat, where I had no space that belonged to me despite the vast, wide world.

I had once wondered if it had been because this small sense of belonging was missing that X was so embittered, unable to assimilate into this world in any way.

If I lost the Elysees family, would I be like X and not hold any longing toward this world?

No, no, not “if,” I have already lost the Elysees and I have just not been able to accept it. Curtis did just turn around and leave, even abandoning me with the Sun Emperor…

I can promise you that, as long as you are still alive, I will protect you to the end, even if it requires the strength of the entire family!

No! Curtis had no need to protect me yet still made such a promise. I do not believe he would say anything he was unwilling to do. When he made that promise, he undoubtedly wanted to carry it out. However, the Sun Emperor may have made a massive threat that gave him no other option but to abandon me?

You should never feel threatened by the Sun Emperor. The Elysees do not fear him. Moreover, you are our family head, so you should not need to be afraid of anything!

“If he was not threatened by the Sun Emperor, then why abandon me… Or did you not do that at all?”

I began to think back to the whole sequence of events. Curtis had left the red bowtie troops to me, which had included quite a number of “Extraordinaries.” This was evidently the Elysees family’s secret weapon. If he had wanted to give up on me in the end, he certainly would not have dispatched these troops and meaninglessly exposed the family’s strength.

Over the phone, he had constantly hinted about being controlled by the Sun Emperor, which also proved that Curtis had no intention of abandoning me then either. After Dong Fang Lei and I arrived at the hotel, the red bowtie troops revealed the true face of the Extraordinaries and blocked off Father Yue and Alex while I went looking for Curtis and the Sun Emperor…

I pondered back and forth, unaware of how much time passed. As before, I did not feel any sleepiness, only an increasingly powerful sense of hunger.

At this moment, the door was suddenly opened a crack and a tray was pushed in with several bags of red liquid. Before any thought could come to mind, I had already raced forward to bite through the bags and drink the blood in my extreme thirst.

It got more difficult to think in the following days. I was very hungry, extremely hungry. The blood that was delivered periodically was not enough to satisfy a vampire, only enough for maintaining 70% fullness or so. The Church clearly did not want a vampire to have too much vitality.

However, ever since I drank the medicine Lieder sent, I had not needed to sleep and had in turn needed a significant amount more blood. This current amount was not enough to even keep me half full.

I was getting hungrier.

Although I was a pureborn vampire, I rarely felt thirsty for blood because my honorable father always took care of his child well. My honorable father might have even known better than a vampire what the necessary amount of blood for a vampire was; he would never be even a drop short.

This was the first time I had ever felt a such an obvious desire for blood.

I need blood.

Time passed slower and slower. Now, the only means to determine time was to rely on the number of times the blood was delivered, though I did not know if they had extended the timing or not. It may have simply been a misconception from my starvation, but the interval between each time felt like it was stretching longer.

It also started feeling colder despite the fact that I rarely felt the cold. Usually, I always felt hot. The moment I saw sunlight, my body would turn into a stove and heat until my blood was about to boil.

Currently, time had almost frozen like ice. As it slowed down further, each minute and each second were distinct. I had an incomparable desire to lose consciousness for just a single second, or even have my consciousness blur a bit. Yet I remained so clear-minded that it was impossible to suffer a single lapse in concentration. I knew something better than anything else…

“I need more blood!” 𝒇𝘳𝐞𝚎𝓌𝑒𝑏𝒏𝑜𝙫ℯl.c𝚘𝒎

When a crack was opened once again, I had already holed up next to the door to frantically shout this. Yet I did not receive any response. After waiting in torture for a while, the delivered blood was still the same amount.

I was beyond thirsty as I drank the blood, the sense of satisfaction vanishing in a flash. The amount in the blood bag was honestly too little. It felt as if I drained it in a single sip, the blood disappearing instantly only for an intense lack of contentment to surge forth. I desperately squeezed the bag, but only a few drops of blood landed by my lips. I licked them again and again until there was nothing more to taste, though I still could not resist continuing to lick my lips and the inside of the blood bag.

I need blood…

Need blood…

Blood…

The door opened slightly again. I swiftly reached out to grab the other party’s hand and pulled the entire arm through the crack. The screams sounded so beautiful. Even with the skin as a barrier, I could smell the concentrated fragrance of blood with a hint of rust that was so intoxicating. I bit down with my fangs, the sweet and salty blood pouring into my mouth, giving me such euphoria.

The other party was not very obedient, struggling as hard as possible to retract their hand. However, I kept a steadfast grip on the…food.

I was beyond thirsty, so my absorption was extremely quick, and was caught off guard when I was suddenly not sucking anything more. After a delayed response of extreme confusion, I took another hard suck and still could not extract anything. At this moment, I came to the sudden realization that the hand no longer felt normal. The previously thick arm was now shriveled dry.

Words instantly flashed through my mind.

Thou must not take the last drop of blood when feeding.

Could it be… Just as I was about to look down at the food in my hands, alarms began to go off loudly in my head and I hurriedly retreated with x-speed. However, I still felt a pain from my hand, as I had not escaped quickly enough and was still burned. The fingers in particular were half blackened. If I had been just the slightest bit slower, I might have lost my fingers entirely.

After finally drinking my fill, my awareness had cleared significantly. I looked up to see the energy net that had appeared before. An abnormally pale arm remained in the crack of the door, completely motionless.

Did I drain all of this human’s blood? Will I die as a result, or will nothing occur? Is there a root to the prohibition of not drinking the last drop of blood, or is it just a rumor so that vampires do not suck humans dry?

Despite all this, I currently did not feel anything wrong. I even felt very good because that unbearable thirst that had practically driven me insane had vanished. Now, my body was filled with energy and my consciousness was very clear, to the point where I understood that I was…a vampire.

In that moment when I had been starved to an extreme point, I had not been able to sense anything except for sustenance, just like a starving beast that wanted to tear the head off from its prey and happily enjoy the flesh.

If the owner of that arm just now had been the young master, had been Curtis, would I have been bitten it?

This was the first time I felt glad that my honorable father and Sadina were no longer in this world.

The door opened and Sin’s fury hit me full force, despite the energy net in between us. A dead body fell down next to his feet, abnormally shriveled and pale.

“Non-humans should all die!” His eyes were spitting out waves of hatred.

I remained silent and did not voice any retort.

Some other people wearing lab coats appeared behind Sin. They appeared to be either doctors or research-type scholars. They were either standing or squatting down next to the corpse, their expressions filled with amazement and excitement as they occasionally looked up at me. Their gazes of eager excitement at the corpse immediately made me loathe them more than Sin.

“Unfathomable!” The lab coats animatedly discussed with each other, “He actually drained a human dry? My god, this is worthy of examination. Bring him into the laboratory.”

Sin’s expression changed as he twisted his head around and shouted angrily, “He is absolutely not allowed to leave here!”

“We must study him.” The scholars in lab coats showed no fear of his wrath and patiently explained, “He drank all the blood of an adult male. No vampire should be able to drink this much blood. They don’t have the ability to transform this much blood.”

Transform? I could not comprehend their words but silently continued to listen. These people from the Church have hunted non-humans for so long, especially the vampires whom they detest. It was possible that they understood vampires more than vampires themselves.

Sin remained furious, but these people’s following words made him freeze amidst his anger.

“He is unlike other vampires and is unique like E.X. They might have a common point or even a shared weakness. We can find it.”

X does not have any common points with me. I just drank the medicine from Lieder that mysteriously made it impossible for me to sleep or faint, requiring me to need a large amount of blood. Up until now, the disadvantages have outweighed the advantages. I honestly regret drinking that medicine.

Sin looked at me with conflicting emotions before turning to ask the scholars doubtfully, “Are you certain he has a connection to E.X.?”

“It isn’t certain,” a scholar candidly replied. He hurriedly added, “But he is definitely not normal. An adult male’s blood volume is over 5000 milliliters, and he should have stopped after drinking half due to an inability to transform more. Especially for a vampire that is only just over 150 years old, drinking 5000 milliliters of blood would be absolutely fatal!”

Sin was quiet for a while, and my own mood grew more complicated. Being able to leave this prison was naturally good, but turning from a prisoner into an experiment sounded even worse… No, regardless of the situation, it’s better than remaining powerless while locked inside this room.

Perhaps the experiments themselves would be unbearable, but the thirst I experienced over the past few days made me understand that there was no torture that was more frightening than endless hunger. Going to the laboratory was a change in pace. At least, there would be people coming and going there. I may have a chance to find a way to escape.

Upon thinking this through, I calmly watched Sin furrow his brows and somewhat reluctantly agree to these lab coats’ suggestion. He gestured toward some direction, and an entire row of pastors dressed in the Sin Elimination Committee’s garb walked in.

They were all fully armed and faced me vigilantly, bounding me with chains. These were not the chains used in the past, but instead were completely silver. They appeared to be very advanced technology, as they were rather heavy despite not being bulky. I did not know what they were made of, but I was certain they had silver components.

The instant I exerted any strength, an electric current raced through, the numbing pain making me twitch uncontrollably. I had to tightly clench my teeth in order not to let out a shout. As expected, these truly were not simple chains. I could not even see where the keyhole was. Considering that any pressure would invoke electricity, it appeared that forcibly breaking out was impossible. Even though this was to be expected, I still felt some disappointment.

Sin coldly chuckled but did not say anything. He really spoke very little, basically never talking unless it was necessary.

As I exited the prison, I put on an act of curiosity to examine the surroundings. My head had been covered when I had come here, and by the time the covering had been removed, I had already been in the room.

Outside the prison was a bright white corridor. Entirely contrary to my expectations, this place was more like a research center rather than the Sin Elimination Committee. The walls were a glowing pure white, and multiple instruments with simple designs that did not have obvious functions were placed around the area. The surroundings gave a strong scientific atmosphere, similar to the science-fiction films I had seen in the past.

I was slightly uneasy, as science and technology had never been a vampire’s specialty. In addition, there was not a single window in the vicinity. Even if my hands were not chained, I would only be able to run down the hallway and attempt to find an exit. Though, according to films, these corridors might have a bunch of sluice gates fall down at any point in time to block the path. Then, I would still be captured and locked in a cage.

In the beginning, there had not been any people in the hallway. Only after we had turned a few corners did people gradually appear. These figures wore different-colored robes, though most were white. The white robes were similar to doctor coats, so I guessed they were probably doctors or scholars.

Then there were the black priest robes. These people were easy to identify; they were the priests of the Sin Elimination Committee, the type responsible for capturing non-humans. Most of them were in groups of two or three escorting a handcuffed criminal. I believed these criminals were all non-humans, though I could not discern the difference races. The only thing I was certain of was that there were no vampires.

The handful of criminals all had fallen expressions, evidently feeling there was no way to survive, which was the likely reality. I had heard before that eighty to ninety percent of non-humans captured by the Sin Elimination Committee never came out again. Now that I had seen this lab-like Sin Elimination Committee, perhaps being killed on the spot was better than being seized here. I did not think they would be imprisoned here. Being experimented on is more likely.

One of the people shot me a particular look. Or rather than a person, it was a wolfman. This type of non-human’s appearance was not much different from that of a stray dog. They typically pretended to be stray dogs as well, though they were undoubtedly non-humans more proficient in standing upright on two legs rather than with four limbs on the ground like a dog.

Yet this one looked more like a wolf than a dog. The fur that covered its body glowed black, and its figure stood practically at the height of an adult. Wolfmen this outstanding were truly a rare sight, very similar to a werewolf. I subconsciously glanced at him multiple times, instead drawing him into baring his teeth. However, he was immediately pulled back and began twitching as the priest behind him firmly tugged on his chains.

This surprised me somewhat. Wolfmen were a race that did not make offenses against humans if the reverse was also true. There were very few wolfmen that were this violent. Perhaps it was in a poor mood because it knew it would not live long?

Sin unhappily looked at the priests escorting it. After straightening their backs upright, they immediately yanked the wolfman back to one side to clear a path. No one spoke. The people standing on the side only secretly shot glances at me, though they concealed it well. There was no doubt that management here was very harsh.

“What crime did he commit?” Sin frowned at the single wolfman and said, “Wolfmen aren’t a belligerent race.”

A pastor came forward and explained, “He was searching to kill a human, seemingly seeking revenge. The opposite party had previously killed the human that had taken him in.”

“He killed the human?”

“No, the opponent’s firepower was too great, and he did not have the chance.”

“Firepower was too great?”

The pastor lowered his voice to reply, “It was a weapons merchant that had dealings with us. He was the one who reported this case.”

Sin furrowed his brows. “Investigate this entire matter thoroughly. If you cannot reach a clear conclusion, then just kill it.”

As soon as he said this, the priest seemed slightly shocked, although I was not certain if the shock was due to Sin not killing the wolfman immediately, or if it was due to the command to kill it if the investigation yielded an unclear conclusion. After all, the wolfman had not killed anyone; he was also not from a race that the Church would want to eliminate at first sight like vampires.

“For the interim, do not bring too many non-humans back, especially those that are highly dangerous or have unclear origins. It’s best to just kill them on the spot.”

“Yessir!”

Sin turned to glare angrily at me. “I won’t give you any chance to escape!”

I started, then smiled bitterly. What a needless warning. I had no idea where the chance to flee would be. The surroundings were well fortified, the personnel adopting a cautious attitude. If no mishap occurred, there was no possibility of being able to run away by myself.

While it was certain that X would arrive, and he was very powerful, he was also powerless against an entire organization. X bursting in to face against Avexila’s clan alone might not have yielded good results if the young master had not found so many people at the time, let alone facing an organization as enormous as the Church.

Aside from X, did I have anyone else I could rely on?

Young Master…

Curtis…

“Don’t think you can flee!”

I raised my head to look at Sin, whose striking resemblance to Father Alex reminded me: Perhaps I was not as alone as I imagined.

Even in a world without justice, could I still look upwards and gaze at the sky with hope?