Opal took off his hat to greet an unfamiliar adventurer.
"You don't have to see everyone doing this." Raymond couldn't help laughing.
"It's just a masquerade ceremony, not the greeting itself," Opal said with enjoyment.
Raymond's head was full of black lines, and he turned on the VIP inquiry machine.
"Special files, please conduct three-level verification of fingerprints, genes and pupils."
Raymond pressed his finger, passed the genetic and fingerprint verification, and put his eyes up to scan, with a beeping sound.
"Synchronization completed, please operate." The electronic channel.
Coroline Shaks.
Level: [Hidden.]
Ongoing quest: [Investigate the ancient ruins in the Abyss of Destiny.]
Commissioned Publisher: Carters.
Opal: "… "
One of the adventurer badges in Raymond's hand turned over and over. Its surface had been polished, and the color could not be seen. It looked like a product many years ago. Raymond finally pressed it on the safety lock and opened a map. .
Above is a map of the local abyss in King's Wharf, like a giant whirlpool.
[The Abyss of Destiny, the defense base of the King's Wharf in the Dark Ages, has a total of seventeen floors. It is said that only a few people have entered the bottom layer. The tenth floor is extremely dangerous. There are sample animals and plants from many planets. The first floor is the relic of the ultimate battlefield. The fifteenth floor is said to contain magic blue fluorite, and the sixteenth floor is unknown. After the glorious battle, it was completely blocked by the Presidium of the Great Astronautical Association. ] "I'll look at the badge." Opal took the badge, the surface has been polished, no color can be seen, like a plum blossom, and vaguely with colorful lines.
Raymond said: "This badge may be an old version. What level of adventurer do you think he will be?"
Raymond copied the unfinished commission left by Cororin into his adventurer's manual, and left with Opal. Opal thought about it and said: "He also worked as a mercenary before, so many years, the universe There must have been a lot of runs everywhere, but it's just a B-level or a C-level I forget..."
Raymond said: "With his ability, he can at least be an S, if he is serious about mixing with Lie Xing."
"Yeah." Opal said thoughtfully: "But I feel that he doesn't like Lie Xing very much, or that he can't fit in. The teacher also said that. He might stay at the Great Astronautical Association for a longer time... "
Opal felt that Cororin's temperament was more like an adventurer, a sinister old man, spying in the dark and waiting for the opportunity to shoot... It's really a headache to be an enemy of this guy, but fortunately it hasn't happened yet.
"I promised him three things," Raymond said. "After all three things are done, I am free."
"And this condition?" Opal frowned.
Raymond said: "He promised not to embarrass me with very troublesome things. Now it's the second one, go to the bottom of the abyss to find something."
Opal always felt a little dangerous and asked, "Why didn't he go deeper?"
Raymond said: "Who knows? There may be some difficulties, or it may be a special event that made him give up his plan to stay in the Big Astronautical Association... Compared with this, I am more curious about what is hidden at the bottom, will it be possible? Is it the tomb of Horius, or…”
Opal said: "Go and ask Douglas."
Nearly two hours have passed since the event that Sen and them agreed to, it can be seen that the chairman of the Great Astronautical Association is not a punctual guy.
The King's Chamber on the second floor.
There was an angry quarrel inside, and Opal pushed open the door to see Douglas dozing in front of the chair, eyes squinting, and the quarrel between a young soldier and a female officer stopped when they opened the door.
The atmosphere was unspeakably awkward.
Opal said: "Chairman, is it convenient to speak now?"
Douglas looked at him ignorantly. After looking at each other for a while, Douglas said, "Who are you?"
"Adventurer Opal, Raymond." Raymond introduced himself: "You asked Sen to call us up at half past two."
Douglas nodded slowly, Opal really lost to him, he had met on the planet Jin Yao not long ago, and he forgot as soon as he turned around... No, he didn't forget.
Seeing the sly look in Douglas's eyes, Opal vaguely sensed something.
"Sit down, please," Douglas said.
Raymond and Opal took their seats, and Douglas said to the two soldiers, "You can continue talking."
Opal knew that this must be Brigadier General Feige and the head of the intelligence department of the White Falcon Star, but he did not expect Douglas to be more ruthless, so he directly met them both at the same time.
The female officer said coldly, "According to the search warrant issued by Jin Yaoxing. The two of you need to go back with me for review. Chairman Douglas, are you really going to provide asylum to the imperial prisoners?"
Douglas said: "What did they do? I forgot, memory is always bad."
Opal almost fell off the table with a smile, and Raymond smiled and said, "What kind of hatred can't be solved? Beauty, how about a cup of coffee?"
"You didn't commit a crime." Wen Li smiled at him: "After the matter is over, you can have a cup of coffee. I mean that kid, and his other partner, he didn't come today?"
Opal stopped laughing immediately.
"If you are interested in him." Opal said: "I can introduce his twin brother for a cup of coffee with you, just in case you won't be able to play with him."
Wen Li's face changed, she turned her head to look at Douglas, and said, "Chairman, if you don't resolve this matter before the association closes today, you will be responsible for all the consequences."
Douglas said, "What's the consequence, please say it again? I've never had a good memory."
Winry finally knew that Douglas was playing with her, and she whispered threateningly, "Then let's just wait and see."
She left the conference room and slammed the door shut, leaving Opal, Raymond, Douglas, and Feige in the room.
Brigadier General Feige was silent for a long time, and then said: "Justin was dealing with the aftermath on the strong star, and he has no time to come back for the time being. He asked me to protect you. It is safest to follow me."
"No need." Opal said lazily: "Thanks for his kindness, didn't he get slapped in the face by the shepherd?"
Raymond said, "He doesn't seem too afraid of his wife."
Opal said: "Oh, I think that's just on the surface."
Feige said: "A group of lunatics, please let me remind you again, Chairman Douglas, your decision will bring the entire Great Astronautical Association into the abyss, and the Empire will not sit by and watch you cooperate with Cororin. You'd better consider my proposal again. "
Douglas asked again, "What's the offer? I'm getting old."
Feige could not do anything about this guy. When he was about to get up, Douglas said again: "His Royal Highness Baroque wants to come and inspect, of course we welcome it. As for other things, how about we postpone it for a while? The two children can't follow you. of."
Brigadier General Figg's expression loosened a little, but he still had a paralyzed face, and said, "You can't protect them, Chairman. Winley's Intelligence Department is lurking in plainclothes all over King's Wharf. You'll be in trouble."
Douglas took out two candies and gave them to Opal and Raymond. He said, "Try it then, General Figg."
Brigadier General Figg stopped talking nonsense with him and left the conference room.
Douglas sat thoughtfully without any expression for a long time. Opal was chewing candy in his mouth and squinted at the old man. Raymond spoke first and asked, "Chairman, we just happen to have a question to ask you."
Douglas nodded, and Raymond opened the Adventurer's Handbook and said, "We received a request to investigate the Abyss of Destiny. Do you know what's in it?"
Douglas reached out and clapped a bell, and the ding ding ding sound came out, startling Opal, and almost choked on sugar. Raymond didn't know what he wanted to do, and his expression was blank.
"There are the remains of King Shax," Douglas said. "At the bottom, is Horius and the Dark Ages, the cemetery of the heroes who died for King's Wharf."
Opal's heartbeat stopped instantly.
Douglas said: "I called you here to ask about the results of the Lava Star's investigation. Now it seems that there is an answer."
Opal didn't quite understand and said, "Why?"
Douglas took a long sigh, took out his pipe from his coat pocket, held it in his mouth, and puffed out a puff of smoke.
"Is the clone army imminent?" Douglas said.
Raymond and Opal shuddered at the same time. Douglas knocked his pipe on the table, knocked out some ash, and said, "Where did Mr. Rector go?"
Raymond didn't know much about Douglas, but Opal motioned him to calm down with his eyes, and said to Douglas: "We destroyed the first base, and the teacher is tracking the clues of the second base."
Douglas said, "It's coming..."
Opal said: "No way, the clone army is about to attack?"
Douglas shook his head, finally waking up from his half-contemplation, half-conversation state, and said, "No, we have to deal with Alex first."
At the same time, Vice Chairman Sen pushed the door into the conference room, took off his hat, and said, "In the honor of Horius."
Douglas took off his hat and returned the salute, and said the same: "In the glory of Horius, Sen, open the association's recall order, collect all the commissions from the alien galaxy, and let the adventurers return to the King's Wharf after finishing the affairs at hand."
Another adventurer came in, one after another, more and more, everyone took their seats, Opal and Raymond got up and moved to the outer seats, Douglas asked again: "Kapp, our reserves are enough to support how long the war will last. ?"
"I don't think war is a good solution." The named adventurer said: "With the current reserves and planetary defense strength, we may be enough to deal with the empire's attack for two years. The premise is that the other party does not activate the Saintess Fortress, And keep the number of legions within two. Even if there are big and small trump cards."
Sen said to Opal and Raymond, "You two can leave now."
Opal still wanted to hear a few more words, but Douglas said: "Go and continue the commission. If there is anything, I will meet you again."
Raymond had to take it out, and Opal said, "Did you hear that? There's going to be a war, maybe with the Empire."
Raymond said: "Not necessarily, just the worst outcome... How does this old man feel like he knows everything?"
Opal went to see the commission information machine, and all the alien missions on it had disappeared, and all were replaced by local commissions.
"What now?" Opal asked.
"Let's take a vacation first." Raymond closed the Adventurer's Handbook and said, "I've been here at King's Wharf for so long, and I haven't had a vacation yet."
Opal also thinks about it. When he has time, he has no money, and when he has money, he has no time. After returning from the White Falcon Star, he never took a vacation. Finally can relax.
Autumn is the most beautiful season in King's Wharf. The hexagonal maple leaves are all over the streets and alleys. There is still a lot of things to do in the future. I don't know what happened to Rector, where is Cororin, what turmoil will there be in the clone army, the wheel of time? Still adrift in an unknown world, what will the Empire do to the Great Astronautical Society...
Opal and Raymond left the guild and walked on the road covered with maple leaves. The two maple trees were like a long corridor, and at the end was a blue sky that was washed by water.
"I began to understand the teacher's beliefs." Opal said: "The teacher's beliefs, Cororin's beliefs, Nolan's ideals."
"I'm starting to get a little bit of Ledgerson's beliefs," Raymond said.
Opal's mouth twitched slightly and said, "I don't understand at all."
"Look," Raymond said. "It's such a beautiful thing, so he's willing to sing, whether there's an audience, no matter how well he sings, it's a kind of... er, a kind of release. A kind of..."
Opal said: "A kind of catharsis from the heart."
Raymond said: "Maybe, what to drink?"
The square was sunny in autumn and the wind was very comfortable. Opal went to sit on the lawn, and Raymond went to buy food. The two lay side by side on the grass.
A maple leaf fell and fell between Opal's eyebrows, and he gradually fell asleep.
A hand reached out, took Maple Leaf away, poked his forehead, and Opal said, "Sleep a little longer."
"You are not a qualified adventurer. You are too lazy, Opal." Raymond's voice said: "I thought I should teach you to be more diligent when you were in the grip of light."
He sat up suddenly, and Corinthian said, "For a walk?"
Opal noticed that he hadn't gotten smaller, and he was still wearing a suit, trousers, a shirt vest, and a plaid cap. He smiled, took off his hat and said, "Hello, teacher, how is this dress?"
Cororin was wearing a long trench coat and carrying a black and gold axe gun, and said, "Are you lazy again? You didn't go to the abyss of fate."
Opal said, "I'll go after a few days off, how about you? What is this place?"
Opal finally found out that he was no longer on the Maple Leaf Trail outside the Great Astronautical Association. This was a strange place. There was a manor in the distance, and there were children's laughter.
"It's a dream, and I'm practicing a new kind of belief force that works in the daydream and affects the action against the target," said Coroline.
"Who is the corresponding target?" Opal asked with a frown.
Cororin walked across the grass, put on his mittens, and said, "The enemy."
Opal followed behind him and walked to the manor with Coroline. Coroline said: "To defeat our enemy, we must first explore his past and find his weaknesses."
Female Luoxing:
The mother of Nuluo is on the verge of withering, but the vegetation of the entire Nuluo star is thriving.
"Ledgerson concert tickets! Ledgerson concert tickets!" Someone shouted: "Take you in! Only 1,600 credit points, box!"
Rickett waved his hand, put on his sunglasses, jumped off the maglev car, and saw the light beam flickering under the huge shade of the mother of Nu Luo, and the open field was already surrounded. The performance stage was under the tree trunk, and a teenager came over and asked, "Sir, do you need a local guide?"
Rickett said: "I'm here to find someone, thank you."
Female Luoxing is not like Shui Lan, the latter has developed into a tourist destination in the whole universe, and commercial tourism services are arranged in place, while female Luoxing does not have many entertainment facilities except for a few large parking pads and limited forest dwelling inns.
All landscapes require tourists to find their own experience, from the deep ditch across the planet to the sea of trees, night, day, holy places, grasslands, tourists are everywhere. After Nu Luoxing joined the Dark Alliance, tourism resources were developed in just a few years. The local people almost stopped relying on planting for a living. Many factories were removed, leaving only leisure farms and residential inns for tourists.
The female Luo Xing people made a lot of money and no longer worry about their livelihood. However, there were also many people who ran away in anger. Fortunately, Cororin did not make any more demands except for the female Luo Xing to be open to the whole universe. All construction and planning are handed over to the local government of Nuluoxing, realizing a high degree of autonomy.
As for the female Luoxing's diplomatic relations, Corolin did not interfere in any way, and the invitees to Ledgerson's "Return" concert were not only dignitaries from the Empire and the Republic, but also Jin Yaoxing's much-discussed focus, Prince Alex. x.
Holding a concert at such a time is undoubtedly a buffer zone reserved for the entire interstellar situation after the Pope's accession to the throne and the Fierce Star War.
Recht easily entered the sea of trees area, walked on the steps of the towering giant roots, and heard the music in the lounge.
Ledgerson sat in the middle of the open-air platform. There was no one around. The light from the sky shone through the gaps in the leaves of Mother Nuo and fell on his smooth blonde hair. He played the pipe organ in a trance.
"This is the province of monks and soldiers." Cororin said, "The Orphanage in E major in Changkong City."
Opal looked up and saw the light sign at the door of the orphanage. He asked, "What are you doing here?"
"Look at the child." Coroline raised his eyebrows and said, "Opal, can you recognize who he is?"
Opal looked into the railing and saw a group of children, smiling and standing together.
"The third from the left?" Opal said.
"It's the one in the middle," Coroline said numbly.
Opal: "… "
The little robot took a picture of them, and the children dispersed. The blond child in the middle stood alone. The dean clapped his hands and said, "Okay, now we'll see Ledgerson away."
The children seemed to be reluctant, and one by one they came over and shook hands with the blond child.
Opal got it, this was Ledson's childhood.
A blond faculty member approached, and the dean said, "This is your father, Ledgerson."
Ledgerson glanced at him, the man kept his head down and looked at Ledgerson.
"Father," Ledgerson said quietly.
"He is the Archbishop of the Arc Nation, Ijan." Coroline said, "Ledjason used to be the next body of the Pope, but Gleibney went to negotiate with the Legion of Wisdom and was detained by Kalb. Now The situation in the Holy See is very chaotic."
Opal said, "Is he the actual ruler?"
"No, no, there are several archbishops who are negotiating with the Legion of Wisdom," said Cororin.
The surrounding environment has changed, and Cororin and Opal are in the Holy See.
"He was seven at this time," said Coroline.
Ledgerson was wearing shorts, standing on the balcony, with a chair cushioned and standing high, staring into the distance in a daze. From his angle, he could see a round hole in the center of the stained glass window, inside the red round hole. It's a scene from another room.
Opal and Coroline were standing behind him. Opal wanted to lean forward and climb into the chair to watch with Ledgerson, but Coroline stopped him.
"Shh..." Coroline said, "He is very, very vulnerable at this time, don't disturb him."
"If you go up too, the chair in his mind will collapse and make him fall next to us. That's what he's always expected."
Opal said: "What is he looking at?"
"Look at Ejan, guess what Ledgerson saw?" Cororin said.
Ledgerson's face changed greatly, he climbed off the chair, turned around and ran away. The moment he left, Opal jumped on the chair and saw Yirang stitching his left abdomen in the room diagonally opposite.
Within a second of that glance, Opal seemed to see something metallic.
"See?" Coroline asked. "What did you see?"
Opal remembered the wires in Raymond's body and said, "I… I don't know. Something gleamed in the sun."
"Finally found his weakness."
The surrounding environment changed again.
Ledgerson grew up, he played at the piano, and the music flowed like a cloud of water.
Archbishop Irang was lying on the handrail in the garden, squinting, the sound of artillery fire was heard outside, and the sky was reflected red. The space station swirled to emit a blazing light, and then was hit by the battleship, and gradually fell in the blue sky.
Ledgerson's fingertips let out a vibrato.
Yi Rang closed his eyes and said, "Keep singing."
Ledgerson whispered: "When I observe all the lively vitality, it is only a moment to keep them fragrant..."
Yirang sang in a low voice: "The stage of the universe is only tricks; it is pulled in the dark by the stars of God."
Ledgerson turned his head sideways, with imperceptible sadness in his eyes, and sang: "Tremble, the future era, listen to my appeal: you are not yet born, the beautiful summer is dead."
With another loud noise, Ledgerson couldn't help trembling.
"The age of mankind is over, and a new one is coming," Ijan said.
Ledgerson looked up at Irang and asked, "Father, will everyone die?"
"Perhaps, fate is the guide of the stars," said Ijan.
The music stopped, and Ledgerson said, "The Pope told us to be kind to our own lives, and to wait for death... Sangha now..."
"Winning is also the guide of the Creator, and death is also the guide of the Creator." Irang stood up and said, "Everything will have an end, and this is what the Pope gave us."
He walked out of the garden and went to the Hall of Stars.
Coroline: "Guess what he's thinking at this moment."
Opal: "I can't guess."
Coroline whispered: "You guessed it, Opal."
Opal stood quietly, and then said: "He was thinking, remembering what he saw when he was seven years old, and he suspected that Archbishop Irang was a clone."
Coroline nodded and said, "Yes, do you think he will inform the Human Army?"
Opal shuddered, and Coroline said, "If it were you, wouldn't you?"
"No." Opal said, "No."
"Neither would I."
Opal said: "Did he inform? Yirang was too careless."
Cororin said: "Yirang's misfortune is the great blessing of mankind. How much do you think the father-son relationship between Ledgerson and Yirang is?"
Opal said: "It's a bit indifferent, without me and the teacher, me and..."
"There is a lot between you and me." Coroline said lightly: "Look at this again."
It was a dark night in the kingdom of arcs. Ledgerson was running wildly in the grass, with light bullets flying all over his head, and the lightning-like energy illuminated his face pale.
"Save me—" Ledgerson ran with the strength of his life.
Cororin and Opal stood on the road in the dark night, watching from a distance Ledgerson who ran across the wilderness. The clone army came in full force, bombardment sounded one after another, and a simple mecha made a loud noise across the plain.
The zenith dropped an earthquake bomb, and Ledgerson's young body was lifted up by the shock wave. The mecha behind him rushed forward and raised his hand to catch him. Immediately after incendiary bombs, sonic bombs covered this area, and gravel flew around Cororin and Opal. Opal was in the explosion, and it had nothing to do with the explosion. He watched with his own eyes near the blast site as everything was overturned, dirt flew into the sky, trees were uprooted and flew in all directions.
It was dawn and they were standing in the Holy See with a long corridor in front of them.
"This is where I lived," said Opal.
Corollin said: "During that time, Ledgerson also lived here, you see, he woke up."
Opal said, "What time is this?"
Cororin said: "Here is his daydream, Opal. I suddenly realize that you are a little stupid. Haven't you been daydreaming?"
Opal said: "It's a bit late for you to realize that I'm stupid and lazy, daydream? I see..."
These are all Ledgerson's memories or fantasies. Opal couldn't help but wonder, how did Coroline invade here? Is he already powerful enough to read Ledgerson's mind directly
"Look, he's awake," said Coroline.
Tiny Ledgerson, barefoot, ran silently down the carpeted hallway, like a quiet cat.
Opal was about to follow him, and Coroline said, "Shh, don't disturb him."
Ledgerson slowed, and Cololin said, "If I'm not mistaken, this is the fragment we just saw between the two memories."
Ledgerson moved closer to the door, unable to hear any movement inside, and ran to another room at the end of the corridor, went out to the balcony, put away the chair, and stood on a high place and looked in.
"He must have been spying on his father so often, you see, very skilled," said Coroline.
Opal said: "Whenever he does this, what is he thinking about?"
"I think he was severely autistic as a kid, what do you think?" Coroline said.
Opal nodded slowly, and Corinthian said, "Geniuses in art and music often have a closed inner world. We might as well assume that he loves Yijan and wants to use his child's actions to show his righteousness. Yirang's return and care. The specific behavior is to peep, to know a little more, to know what he is doing."
Opal said: "I think Yirang also has feelings for Ledgerson. You see, he will go and save Ledgerson."
Corolin said: "Perhaps. Because we don't know the emotional world of the individual replicators, how did Raymond behave?"
Opal said: "Every individual has their own emotional tendencies. From the day they leave the training cabin, depending on the surrounding environment, the people they know will be different. Just like Raymond."
Corollin said: "So Yirang may have initially adopted an orphan to hide his identity as a clone, until he spent a short two years with Ledgerson..."
Opal said: "Both treat each other as their own family. But why did he inform?"
With a smile in his eyes, Corolin said, "He didn't tell the truth, but when he saw that the Holy See was destroyed by war, he had a little wavering thought."
"The Arc Kingdom's defense battle is a turning point in the second attack of the Wisdom Legion. In this battle, one of Ledgerson's thoughts controlled the future of the entire universe." Cororin said slowly: "Kalb's defeat, this is for the Horius bought time, and Mr. Recht got a way to go to the Ivory Tower, and four hundred years later, he was intercepted by the Wisdom Legion on the way to the Ivory Tower, fell on the star of Shax, and got to know me.”
"It's all because of Ledgerson's idea, so now I'm standing here, and you are standing here. We can get to know him, and we have to thank him. This reason finally became Ledgerson's result."
Opal: "… "
The piano stops.
"Teacher." Ledgerson said, "It's been a long time, are you here to take my life?"
Rector took off the hood of his cloak and said, "I'm here to atone, Ledgerson, kill me, kill all your hatred, and end all the mistakes you've made because of hatred."
The author has something to say: Why Ledgerson hates Rector
It's because Recht read Ledgerson's heart and knew that his adoptive father was a clone.