Chapter Volume 9 Endless Days, The End NO.6: Family Head (1/2)
Volume 9 Endless Days, The End NO.6: Family Head
“I forbid you from saving that vampire. You cannot have others do it either. He wanted to kill me! Don’t tell me your butler is more important than I am?”
Highest priority master has asked a question. Initiating action: Reply.
What kind of question is Gēge asking?!
“Gē, Charles is not more important than you.”
But why is Charles’ score so high? 91.5? Since when did it become that high? If he surpasses Gēge, then what would—No, impossible!
The purpose of Dark Sun’s existence is to protect Gēge. No one can be more important than him.
“Charles did not really want to kill you. I know it was your scheme from the beginning. What exactly do you want to—”
“Ah Ye, if I want you to kill Charles Endelis, what will you do?”
Highest priority master has issued a command. Initiating action: Obey.
Kill Charles Endelis—No! Charles cannot be killed.
“Gē, don’t say that! Don’t! I can’t control it anymore, Charles is—”
“Answer me!”
“…”
Highest priority master’s command received. Initiating action: Obey.
“I will follow your order and kill Charles Endelis.”
Initiating action: Kill. Target: Charles Endelis. Immediately taking effect.
“Ah Ye, wait a minute!”
“Yes, Gēge.” Turning, awaiting orders…
“You are not allowed to die. No matter what, your life is the most important.”
Command received: Own life takes precedence over assassination task.
“Yes, Master.”
***
I quietly lay in bed with a slight hunger in my stomach. However, this amount of hunger was just enough to curb the pain in my limbs without burning off rational thought entirely. It was the most comfortable period, as well as the only time I could think things over.
Recently, it seemed that the pain was becoming more tolerable, though there was no knowing whether it was a result of getting accustomed to the pain after so long or if it was truly subsiding. My mental clarity had gradually increased, and I had significantly more time for my own thoughts.
I had a feeling and instinctively looked out the window to see a figure as expected. His back faced the brilliant sunlight as he gently pushed the window open and quietly stood in front of the French window to watch me. The sun’s rays spilling over his face were too blinding. It still did not suit him as much as the moonlight in the dark.
I slowly sat up and gazed at him. Perhaps this would be the last time I could see him.
“Charles, you look very terrible. I’ve never seen you so…” He tilted his head, seemingly uncertain of how to describe it. “Pale and weak. It’s like even Briar could easily kill you.”
I smiled and asked, “Did the Sun Emperor order you to stop chasing after my life?”
The young master nodded and replied, “Curtis is very formidable in negotiations. It was my first time seeing Gēge get so mad at a conference table.” After a moment’s thought, he added, “In the past, Gēge said that Curtis would not be as fierce as Madam Sadina and use the entire family to protect you. However, he was wrong.”
I had worried that the Sun Emperor had been wrong. The situation on the battlefield had truly been a terrible sight, one that a person would be unwilling to witness for a second time.
“Did you come all this way because you wanted to tell me something?
I went straight to the main topic without delay because the young master’s hands were trembling. It was certainly not due to pain; rather, it was caused by forceful suppression. His glinting metallic nails would extend and then retract without stopping. He did not even dare to move. Perhaps if he did, his sole action would be to pierce those silvery nails through my chest.
Even though the Sun Emperor had issued a command, it seemed that it had not been entirely effective. As expected of the raison d’être implanted in his brain’s microchip; anyone who dared to move against the Sun Emperor would instantly and unfailingly face punishment from the Death Scythe.
The young master was restraining himself, as was I. The difference was that he wanted to kill, while I wanted to die. I could only endeavor to recall Curtis’s expression as he had stood by my bed; otherwise, I might have crawled over of my own volition and pled to be freed from this world.
The young master remained silent.
I could only remind him, “Young Master, I cannot maintain a clear mind for long.”
It was extremely difficult to stay conscious. Restraining myself from seeking death was even harder.
Finally, he opened his mouth and asked, “Charles, if one day both X and I are in mortal danger, who would you save?”
I nearly laughed out loud when I heard this question, but then wondered why there was a need to keep it in and simply laughed out loud anyway.
“Young Master, you know, a very long time ago, the most impossible question to answer between lovers was ‘if your parents and lover simultaneously fell into the water, who would you save?’. I once thought Sadina would eventually ask me this question; after all, I yearned for my honorable father so much. However, she never asked me. Yet in the end, I hear it from the Young Master’s mouth instead…I truly do not know whether to laugh or cry.”
The young master quietly watched me laugh, though he did not have any trace of emotion on his face. He was both similar and dissimilar to Dark Sun; despite being expressionless, he did not give off the artificial feeling that Dark Sun did.
“Then, who would you save?” The young master was exceptionally fixated on knowing the answer.
I suddenly felt beyond furious. Even though I knew the young master was not to blame, he was currently right in front of me, demanding an answer as to who was more important and forcing me to decide between two important people. He could not comprehend that such comparisons could not be made!
I angrily stated, “Young Master, I can die for you, but I cannot let X die because of you. Similarly, I can die for X, but I absolutely cannot sacrifice you for X’s survival. This question should not exist at all!”
The young master asked again, “Then if it’s X and the Elysees family? Who would you save?”
This simply made me feel powerless. When someone assigned their entire world numerical values, how exactly could I explain to him that important people were simply important, with no one’s significance level higher than another’s?
I could only chuckle bitterly as I thought about the possibility of never meeting him again. I could not help but advise once more, “Young Master, you must fix your habit of looking at people using numbers.”
The young master was silent for a while before he flatly replied, “I can’t fix it. It’s imprinted in my brain’s microchip.”
“Even if your brain has numbers, your heart cannot have them! Think about the future; if you marry Briar and take her as your wife, you might even have children. When that time comes, will you compare the significance levels of your wife and children with the Sun Emperor’s? What if they nearly surpass the Sun Emperor’s value? Will you kill them too?”
I could not imagine how terrifying it would be for a frail mother and child to be threatened with the Death Scythe by the person who was the husband and father. That was why I had to make the young master understand!
The young master shook his head and replied. “Charles, the reason your score is so high is because ‘time’ is too superior of a variable. You can accompany me for a very, very long time. This is something that no one else can do.”
I was stunned. So is that what it was?
“So the others do not lose to me, but rather to time.”
I suddenly felt it was somewhat ironic. “Time” was why I had chosen to return to the young master’s side back then, yet time was also what had forced the young master to try and kill me.
After some contemplation, the young master suddenly smiled. “Hm, you’re right. It’s a pity that I cannot kill ‘time’; I can only kill you.”
“…Curtis would definitely loathe your current smile.”
The young master did not seem to mind. “He hates me so much as it is. Even with my smile, he couldn’t possibly hate me more! He even gave me a warning right in front of my brother, saying that if I ever dared to harm you again, he would throw me into a cremation furnace until I melted into metal pieces. It made my brother explode on the spot, and he nearly declared war right there and then.”
I laughed at this, completely able to imagine the situation. The Sun Emperor and Curtis had found each other disagreeable from the beginning. Every time they saw each other, they would make sure to go measure for measure. However, after today, there would be no further opportunities to witness such an amusing scene again.
I could not help but ask, “Young Master, you still want to kill me, is that not so?
The young master did not reply directly. “You already know the answer.”
I did indeed.
He said in amusement, “But Charles, you’ve become super strong. It’s hard to say who would kill who! I did say ages ago that you were very strong!”
“I am not strong in the slightest. This is the result of burning away my vitality to fight against you.” I smiled bitterly and raised a trembling hand as I sighed. “Only being able to attain victory by bringing myself to the point where I have no will to survive, yet remain unable to seek death cannot count as being formidable, can it?”
“Why can’t it?” The young master bluntly stated, “When I was in the lab, I also struggled between life and death for a full seven years. That’s how I became this strong.”
I was stunned for a moment and could only stare at the young master. An entire seven years was truly enough to leave one at a loss for words. I could not even endure for seven days, though I could no longer track the passing of time. Under the tortuous cycle of unending hunger and pain, time had lost all significance.
The young master consoled me. “Charles, you will become even more powerful. You just need to endure through this. It’s always like this; the operation hurts, and your recovery will hurt too. But once the pain subsides, you’ll become strong. Just hang in there for a bit.”
He hesitated for a moment before continuing, “But Charles, you shouldn’t eat that candy anymore. It’s only for you to use in emergencies. I didn’t think you would eat a bunch in one go. It’s too dangerous; the things that Bàba makes really cannot be eaten in large amounts. You’ll die!”
I smiled. As expected, it was something that the young master had asked Mr. An Te Qi to make. Even if it had been passed off under Aren’s name, it was ultimately the young master’s doing.
“I had no other option and was truly forced to do so, but I do not dare repeat it.” Next time, I would likely rather kill myself than eat that candy. The consequences were honestly unbearable.
The young master sadly replied, “There was indeed no other option. Honestly, Charles, you’ve done very well. If you hadn’t decided to eat that candy, the situation might have ended terribly. I didn’t think Gēge would dispatch the adjudication squad as well. If the three forces had really started fighting, it wouldn’t have been resolved even if everyone there had died. The aftermath might’ve been even more terrifying.”
I understood. “It would have caused a three-way war.”
The young master explained further, “That’s not all. With so many people lost from all three parties, there’s no way the matter could be left like that. The fight would continue on, and there might be many others apart from the three powers. Some might be allies joining the battles, some might be enemies taking advantage of the crisis to secretly attack. There might even be people just waiting to reap the profits afterwards. The entire world would fall into chaos.”
I was dumbstruck. I had not imagined the situation to be even more frightening than I had thought.
The young master dejectedly continued, “My brother might even have hoped for that to happen. I don’t understand what exactly he’s thinking. Gēge’s way of doing things is too complicated. I can only guess at a part of it.”
“What part?” I asked in confusion.
“The part about me.” The young master hesitated for a moment but still elaborated, “My guess is that he wanted to test everyone by my side, especially you and Melody, since you guys can stay with me for a very, very long time. But Melody-jiě’s situation is simpler. She has no concerns, so she easily passed the test.”
Meanwhile, I did not qualify because I was too complex, involved with both the Elysees and the Church?
“Sorry. You ended up like this because of my brother’s test.” The young master’s head fell as he quietly said, “I will make up for it.”
Make up for it? I smiled bitterly. Now that matters had reached this point, we could only go our separate ways. What is the point in discussing compensation?
Right then, my hunger began to intensify again. Although I felt that it was a pity since we might not meet again after this farewell, and I really did wish to interact with him for longer, I also was unwilling to let the young master see me starving to the point where my eyes turned red as I looked at him like food.
“Young Master, please leave. I am too hungry to control myself.”
The young master quietly stared at me. “I wonder whether you need candy once you’ve lost rationality from hunger. Would you become as strong as before?”
“Young Master, please leave!” I firmly requested, “You can see how poor my condition is at the moment. If I attacked you, how would that be any different from committing suicide? If you want to kill me, please do not use such a method. I do not wish for my final action before death to be attacking you!”
The young master was quiet for a moment. Finally, he turned to leave, standing outside the French window. The glare from the sun’s reflection on the glass covered most of his expression.
“Charles, what is the fundamental meaning of your existence?”
I was taken aback as the reflected light from the glass pierced my eyes. After I had blinked in pain, the young master had vanished without a trace.
Definite numbers and a definite meaning to one’s existence. How could a person’s life be so defined, with knowledge so thoroughly overriding feelings until they must use another personality to draw the distinction between reason and emotion? What exactly was this lifestyle like? It was truly unimaginable.
We can blame someone for being too impulsive, for doing things too emotionally. But how can we blame someone for being too rational? How can they be rebuked for following the fundamental meaning of existence?
How can I beseech him to overthrow the fundamental meaning of his existence?