Embers of Embers

Chapter 623 The Return
For the man, this was not a bad thunderstorm night. After all, he had lived in Old Dunling for so long, and he had experienced worse weather in Old Dunling. Everything seemed to be more benign now. Besides, he quite liked this feeling.
The cold air filled his mouth and nose, as if there was frost growing along his internal organs. He immersed his consciousness in the cold water and rubbed it vigorously, peeling away all the fatigue and hardship.
"Only those who obey me will live and go there in peace, enjoy peace, and have no fear of disaster."
He stroked the scratched cross and whispered a prayer.
The man was sitting on a bench on the platform, with a suitcase beside him. He seemed to be preparing for a long journey, but it was already late at night, the train had stopped long ago, and he was the only one left on the empty platform.
Rather than saying that he was ready to leave, it was better to say that he had just gotten off the train, but as if he was unwilling to accept the fact, he did not want to leave here, as if stepping out of here would lead to a vortex from which he could not escape.
What is he waiting for.
Thinking about how long his holiday was, the man was almost immersed in that beauty forever, until he was called back on this day, and he realized that he had never left the battlefield, as if he was cursed, and followed him like a shadow.
He was just a little regretful, and he didn't know how many people still remembered him. He had heard about the retirement process of the purification agency before, but only when he experienced it personally did he feel how complicated it was.
First, it was deduced from the existing system. Under the weak influence of the antimeme, he disappeared into the records as if he had never existed. Then the files were archived and fell into the depths of darkness, covered with dust.
Then came a transitional period in the sweeper department, and finally retirement altogether.
The man has reached the last step. He has his own small yard in the countryside far away from old Dunling, and lives happily with his family.
It stands to reason that this is the case, but every story has a bad turn, and now he is on his own wrong path.
"I really don't want to come back."
The man complained, but there was nothing he could do. He had to come back, no matter what the reason.
Within the purge agency, the information of each member is kept strictly confidential. Everyone usually only calls each other by their code names, and very little is known about their personal past.
Therefore, few people know that the man has been working in the cleanup agency for many years. Compared with Kestrel and others, he has the most senior work experience. If there is any right opportunity, he may be promoted.
But the man refused in the end. He had been loyal to the purification agency for many years. In the end, he chose to leave and disappear without warning at the right time, until he returned today.
Looking at the other end of the railway track, I could hear a slight vibration, as if something was running wildly on the railway track, heading here.
They came to pick up their own. The galloping iron snake tore the light into a white light and smashed the cold raindrops. The light was scattered in the rain curtain and stayed in the man's eyes for a long time before slowly disappearing. When he reacted At that time, the car door had opened, and a familiar figure walked out of the car. When he saw the man, a smile appeared on the man's stiff face.
"I thought you were dead, and I was sad for a while."
The man put down the cross, stood up, and walked towards the visitor, "I have been praying for you for a long time, hoping that God will take care of me and let you go to heaven."
"To be precise, I'm half dead, not completely dead yet, not yet the time for God to make a choice for me."
Joey and the man hugged each other briefly, and then let go. Seeing a familiar face always makes people feel warm.
"It is indeed half dead. I can smell the rotten smell on your body, like maggots are eating under your flesh and blood."
The man was both sad and happy. After speaking, he whispered a prayer, seemingly praying for Joey.
"If I hadn't seen you on the retirement list, I would have almost forgotten that you existed." Joey said.
"It's normal. The scavengers have always done this. Everyone who leaves the purification agency will be forgotten. It's only when the real forgetfulness comes that everyone realizes how terrifying this thing is."
The man picked up the suitcase, and Joey reached out and took it, pushing it into the car.
"It feels good to remember you again," Joey smiled. He was also affected by his knowledge of the man, but not to a deep degree. When he knew the man's existence again, those forgotten memories emerged from the shadows. Climb out, "How's retirement going?"
"It's perfect. I made a small yard of my own, planted some flowers and plants, and lived happily with my wife and daughter... There's actually nothing to say, happiness looks the same," he added, "But it's really great , I guess this is the paradise God has prepared for me.”
The man lit up a cigarette, trying to regain the previous feeling and get himself into work faster.
"Wives and daughters...I've never heard you mention these." Joey seemed a little unbearable when he heard this.
"Of course I didn't mention it. Who would mention this kind of thing without any reason? They fight and kill all day long. Mentioning this kind of thing will only make people feel uneasy." The man didn't care about this. He smiled, "Actually, I I had a premonition.”
"What's the premonition?" Joey asked.
"The good life is an illusion. Sooner or later, I will return to Old Dunling again, just like I never left." The man shook his head in distress, "I understand somewhat how Lorenzo felt when he picked up the nail sword again. I thought this day would be postponed for a long time, but who would have thought it would happen so soon."
"To be honest, when I received the order to be transferred back, I resisted extremely. I was thinking about running away with my whole family and escaping to a place where the purification agency could not find it. I thought you were all so busy anyway, so you should You don’t have time to catch me either…”
The man said depressing words, but Joey didn't feel disgusted. No matter how many times he said such depressing words, this guy still appeared here.
"If you think so, why are you here anyway?" Joey asked.
The man paused for a moment, as if he thought of something, and smiled again.
"Why...does this need to be said? Is there any reason better than saving the world?"
This is really a just reason. For a moment, Joey felt that the man was much taller, but this was inconsistent with the man in his memory. Joey asked.
"It's fake, right? I thought you were doing it for your god," Joey said with some evil humor, "It's a pity that your god is fake."
"Hey, I already knew this. Who believes in God?" The man hung a cross on his body. He had always been pious, but now he was even more rebellious. "I'm just used to it. It's too much to change this thing." It’s a lot of effort.”
All of this was engraved into his behavior like a brand, and although he didn't care, it always echoed.
"But you are right, the reason is indeed false. Rather than saving the world, it is better to say that it is to save the world with my wife and daughter.
I also want to spend my life with them, but if I don't kill all those madmen, all I long for is nothingness. "
Joey always felt like he had heard the man's words somewhere before. He got out of the way. The car was dark, as if he was heading to some unknown place.
"So...welcome back to hell, robin."
Iron snakes are galloping. In this late night, there are more iron snakes and trains running, full of souls who have left and returned. Their names are recorded on the retirement list. After a long and beautiful time, they respond Recall of purge agencies.
The flow is all towards the city, as if something is gathering momentum in the darkness.
……
The furnace fire roared in the Perpetual Pump, and technicians worked around the clock, cooperating with the mechanical institute above for production. Dozens of tons of holy silver were melted, poured into molds, and shaped into new weapons.
Sparks and smoke are flying, just like the freeze frame of an oil painting.
The gods swung their hammers in the furnace, striking the iron, killing the base, sublimating the great from the remains, and forging the extraordinary holiness.
With the blessing of industrial assembly lines, the output of large quantities of Holy Silver weapons began to increase rapidly. Box after box of Holy Silver bullets were piled into the warehouse, waiting for the antimemetic blessing of anonymous people to resist erosion and possess the characteristics of Holy Silver. There is also a certain amount of sandwich protective clothing, and then the armors of the Original Sin Armor are plated.
Everyone performs their duties and prepares for the start of the war.
In the busy factory, there are also doctors from Black Mountain Hospital walking through it. The underground railway track connecting Black Mountain Hospital has been opened. These doctors have been taking care of the technicians to prevent these guys from dying of overwork.
The "overseers" wandered high up, passing through air corridors one after another, and reached the most glaring depths.
"It's progressing very quickly."
Merlin put his hands on the railing and looked at the blazing fireworks below. He could see a vague figure in them. It was so tall, like a giant.
"Well, after all, it is Duke Stuart's order, and the priority is very high."
Nicholas followed him, and Merlin had been taking him with him in the past few days. There was obviously no important research that required the two of them to work together, but the two of them were just like this, moving forward in parallel.
"We reinforced the original central frame and reconstructed the external armor, and these were loaded with holy silver."
As he spoke, thick chains lifted the red-hot frame from the sea of ​​fire. The skeleton was as jagged as a corpse.
The rest of the armor is displayed on nearby stands, where it has been repainted, awaiting assembly after the central frame has been adjusted.
"What still needs to be done now is the implantation of the demon's flesh and blood. It is being cultivated and it will probably take some time before it can be installed."
Merlin asked, staring at the jagged frame.
"What kind of flesh and blood were used? The ones we cultivated before?"
"Well, the flesh and blood of the Holy Grail, so this time the overall strength of the Black Angel will rise again. Coupled with the coverage of the Holy Silver Armor, it can also greatly limit the restlessness of the flesh and blood."
Merlin shook his head and denied.
"There is no need to take care of Lorenzo. There is no need to put any restrictions on the flesh and blood, as long as it does not break through the frame of the armor."
"How to solve the erosion?" Nicholas asked, the biggest threat in the original sin armor is the erosion of the flesh and blood of demons.
"Do you think the current level of erosion can still affect Lorenzo?"
Merlin only felt that these things were underestimating Lorenzo at the moment, "The silver bolt has been removed, and the sublimated will can easily achieve critical breakthroughs. This thing is no longer a threat to him, but a weapon."
Nicholas only felt a little uneasy, he said.
"[Final Echo], Holy Silver Arms... If we invest so many weapons into him, won't we create another monster?"
"Lorenzo is already a monster, it's just that he is on our side. Even if there is such a trouble, the premise of this trouble is that we can survive, right?" Merlin was not worried, he was too lazy to think about the future. For this kind of thing, "If such a situation really occurs, I think Lorenzo will be easier to deal with than those two monsters."
"Besides, I think Mr. Holmes can understand it."
The corners of his stiff mouth were slightly raised, and Merlin seemed to be smiling.
There was a harsh friction sound, and the metals stuck together, sparking slightly. You could see more uniform armor hanging on the rails, which was very different from the armor of the Original Sin Armor.
"The transformation of Ufutu has also started?" Merlin asked.
"Well, Jiuxia carried a large number of Ufutu. After our analysis, these weapons are more suitable for holding the position and can cooperate well with the more flexible third-generation armors, so we added holy silver armor to them. Just I don’t know how much it can be transformed before the war.”
Nicholas was very worried.
"The most important thing is that the initiative of this battle is on the side of the monsters. Before they show their fangs, none of us knows when this crazy thing will start."
He smiled helplessly.
"It could be months from now, it could be in the next second."
"Don't worry too much about this kind of thing," Merlin looked at the busy technicians below. "This kind of thing is like sudden death. Who knows what will happen in the next second?"
Nicholas's expression was a little strange. He looked at Merlin and said doubtfully, "Are you kidding?"
"Absolutely. People need to be humorous sometimes. What's wrong?"
Merlin said casually, "I've looked away a little. When facing pressure, it's better to be happy than to grimace. You don't want to die with a look of resentment on your face, right?"
"Death is relief, it is saying goodbye to this world. I think that when saying goodbye, you should at least show a smile or something."
Merlin said, raising his hand and pulling at the stiff corners of his mouth.
"I just feel that you...are different from before." Nicholas said. The Merlin he was familiar with was much more serious than this.
"Of course, I was still chasing the truth at that time, and now Lorenzo has brought the truth back, allowing everyone to see the truth of everything," Merlin took a deep breath and sighed, "I witnessed what my teacher wanted all his life. , and even said to be the lifelong wish of all alchemists."
"Is this more or less my wish coming true?"
Nicholas didn't answer, and Merlin was talking to himself.
"So my life is quite complete. Since it's a successful farewell, I should smile at least, right?"
(End of this chapter)