Episodes 77. Blood Strings

In the desolate surroundings of a crumbling, ruined building, the man stood gazing at the midday sky above him.

There was no sense of pain at his blindness or anything else upon seeing it.

He stared as if knowing...

This was his last day seeing the bright cruelty of the world.

CLAP! CLAP! CLAP!

The man gave a round of applause to me standing behind him.

"I suspected as much, Granny would surely find me soon, or rather, I was found out from the start, wasn't I?" He spoke, turning his body around to face me, locking eyes with mine.

Without hesitation, I drew my pageblug and pointed my Curved Sword at him.

"Hey, hey, are you going to finish this right away?"

"This episode will end quickly if you do..." he said, mockingly and matter-of-factly.

I better listen to what this man has to say first; after all, I'm sure he can't escape from here.

Because I can't make the same mistake twice.

The environment, or even the entire ruins of this building, has been infused with CODE magic and thunder domes, so no magic or humans can exit this place.

I slightly lifted my weapon, indicating that I ordered him to continue his story.

"Well... well... Thank you... Thank you..."

"You're a kind person, aren't you?"

"For the standards of an executor like yourself..." He said, shooting me a sharp glance.

I didn't respond at this moment; he's still within reason.

This creature will be my next target if he crosses the line, and especially now, he's just an ordinary human without magic or invulnerability in my eyes.

"You're mentally strong, aren't you?"

"Okay, I won't linger, so..."

"In the year 2049, a man owed a large debt to a company..."

"Instead of paying it off, he chose to end his life by hanging..."

"Before you ask, 'why did he die?' I'll answer, the old man hates Anitya, so he used a fake Anitya made by that company. Unfortunately, the foolish man was deceived and set a high price with a piece of paper containing his signature, a stamp, and his fingerprint..."

"Truly foolish, isn't it? The man's fate?"

"The CEO of the Company was furious with the man and redirected his target to the man's family."

"His two sons ran off in a panic upon hearing it, but unfortunately, they died on their escape journey... Hihihi!"

I feel like I've heard this story before, but is it really related?

"And the stupidity... The meaning of changing the target to the man's family is..."

"My wife and daughter who have blood ties with that man also became victims!"

"Even though my wife was a good sister to that man, why?! Why did she make her sister suffer?!"

He's getting more manic, but I'll let it slide... Depressed people are easier to execute.

"And because of that..." (he drew his pageblug and aimed it at me) "... when I heard the name of that school became a target for those businessmen, I agreed..."

"It's like killing two birds with one stone, isn't it?"

His pageblug formed a modern katana with glossy silicone.

"Do you remember? All the family members of that man, they're all dead, except his wife and daughter..."

As he revealed that, I finally realized...

His background is revenge, and that revenge is against that woman.

And from his story, I can confirm...

This is the same story as...

=======

Before I could finish my thought, suddenly, strangely, Erika appeared beside me.

"RASYID!" Erika came panting.

"I finally found you... But why are you here?"

"I found you thanks to Dahlia..."

Wait! How did she get here?! How did she get through my lightning dome?!

And this is the most inappropriate moment for this woman to show up.

As I tried to glance at the man's face, my pupils shrank, and my eyelids widened.

Jainal Zaka Zaki Mahesa Jinail made a sinister smirk, he seemed satisfied, getting what he wanted.

"So it's true, huh?" I said incredulously.

"What is real (glancing at my opponent)... Oh, Mr. Jainal? Why are you here? And why is Rasyid facing off against Mr. Jainal like they're about to fight?!" Erika still seemed puzzled by the current situation.

Before things got any more chaotic, I should inform her of the danger here.

"Erika, it's dangerous here!"

"Why?!"

"There are reasons I can't tell you..."

Upon hearing that, Erika immediately grasped the reason.

As if accustomed to my actions, she knew I was about to dirty myself with sin again.

"Do you want to finish him?! Why?!" She asked, trembling.

"He... He's the kidnapper!"

I explained the situation without hesitation; lingering would only lead to failure.

Upon hearing this, she released her grip on me and stepped back in disbelief.

"Is this a lie?" She asked, kneeling to the ground.

"NO! THIS IS REAL, DAUGHTER OF A DEBTOR!"

The one who answered wasn't me, but Jainal himself.

Just as he said that he stabbed through the woman's neck.

Erika looked on sadly at what she was witnessing.

She seemed unable to believe what she was feeling in her body and in her heart.

"Why, Mr. Jainal? I thought of you as family..." Erika said, struggling even as blood continued to pour from her mouth and throat.

"You only want to be the strongest without realizing what's around you! And you ask me about my actions to you?! Don't joke!"

Jainal pulled his sword from the unfortunate woman's neck, preparing to stab her again, this time towards her heart.

But just before that happened, I stopped him, locking his arm.

"What?!"

CRACK!!!

I slammed his body to the ground and made him helpless.

...

"Damn! You bastard! You're Nova's slave! You've defeated all my comrades! Are you going to finish me off too?!" The man lying there shouted, looking up.

Hearing this, Erika was shocked beyond belief, trying to understand the situation.

"What does he mean?" (Erika)

"The Executor of Anitya, he's the one who will eliminate anyone who disrupts Anitya's balance!"

Erika's eyes widened in disbelief at what she heard. A mix of already knowing and being surprised filled her mind.

SHH!

But before he could talk any longer, I froze his body making him unable to move.

I looked sadly at the woman.

"Sorry... This is my duty, not..." I reassured myself deeply. "I'm doing this to protect them."

"So, please... Can you not tell about it to anyone?"

Though somewhat embarrassing to say, it's the only way to keep her from getting on that old woman's list.

"Hmm (nodding)..." She could only nod, not understanding the man's meaning.

The blood in her neck was now clotting, allowing her to breathe more easily.

At least, with Erika's arrival, this mission turned out to be much easier than I thought.