Chapter 708: Questions

Ewan’s proposal to help escape fate.

That offer caused the bustling Z-District to suddenly fall silent.

The sound disappeared, the air grew cold, and the atmosphere became awkward.

It was like cracking a tasteless joke in a funeral hall.

Naturally, people reacted in line with that mood.

Most people frowned at Ewan, as if asking, ‘What in the world is he thinking?’

However, not everyone frowned. Some people still wore their usual expressions.

The person the offer was directed at, Oliver.

“It’s an interesting proposal.”

Unlike the others, Oliver took Ewan’s proposal seriously.

The reactions around him caused a brief stir, but it soon subsided when Second raised a finger to his lips.

“Do you believe him?”

“Yes.”

“Oh, that’s surprising. I didn’t think you’d believe me so quickly. I even prepared to convince you.”

Ewan pulled a script from his chest and threw it on the ground.

Whether it was a joke or for real, Oliver remained unfazed and engaged him seriously.

“It’s because, unlike others, I don’t see any sin in you, Ewan.”

“Yeah, I’ve lived too righteously.”

Ewan lied without batting an eye.

Oliver didn’t argue. He just silently stared at Ewan with those bottomless deep eyes.

Fortunately, even Ewan, with his questionable conscience, quickly surrendered to Oliver’s gaze. A shred of guilt had remained within him.

“Okay! Fine! I’m a terrible person. The IOU in my possession proves it. So stop looking at me like that. It’s scary.”

As Oliver complied and averted his gaze, Ewan sighed in relief.

“Man, it feels unfair. Seriously, how can anyone live without ever sinning?”

“I agree.”

“Really?”

“Yes, living without committing any sin is hard, even for me… I can relate.”

“You say ‘relate’ like you’re just sympathizing.”

Ewan smiled meaningfully. Oliver, without answering, continued the conversation.

“Are you someone from outside this world, Ewan?”

“That’s the technical term here. But don’t think I’m as grand as a spirit or a demon. Basically, I’m human like you all. The only difference is, I’m a bit more handsome.”

Though his last remark was strange, the rest left people completely shocked.

What Ewan said defied conventional knowledge.

No, it wasn’t just unconventional, it transcended people’s ingrained beliefs.

Someone from another world.

They didn’t even know how to react.

But Ewan didn’t seem to care.

He wasn’t trying to make everyone understand. He only needed the one person in front of him to grasp his words, and it seems that person did.

“I understand.”

“Really?”

“There are spirits and demons, so why can’t there be people from other worlds?”

“That’s quite logical. I have no argument.”

“But I am curious about how you became someone from beyond this world, Ewan.”

“It’s no big deal. It took 1% effort and 99% luck. Basically, a series of coincidences. Something big happened in my world, and by sheer chance, I ended up the way I am now. Picture it as a wandering refugee on a much larger scale. Get it?”

“Did the world you lived in face an apocalypse too?”

“It’s too long a tale. We can talk about it later. That’s not what matters right now, right?”

He was completely right.

Though his past was intriguing, Oliver had something far more critical and pressing at the moment.

The choice of whether to accept Ewan’s proposal and escape the shackles of fate.

At least, for Oliver, that was the most important thing now.

A golden opportunity to escape all suffering.

“Yeah, ‘golden opportunity’ sounds about right. The Archive’s been around for over a thousand years. The timing fits.”

“What do you mean by that?”

“I mean my offer is that valuable. Escaping fate is no simple matter.”

There was sincerity in Ewan’s tone. Oliver couldn’t deny it.

After all, Oliver had tried harder than anyone to escape fate, only to learn how futile it all was.

That was why he had sat there, listlessly, after waking up from his daze.

Once you understand that you can’t do anything, it leaves you like that.

Recalling those moments, Oliver felt a strong urge to accept Ewan’s offer.

Escaping suffering is a primal instinct.

“May I ask why you’ve given me such an offer?”

“You’re curious about everything, aren’t you?”

“I’m just very grateful for it.”

The offer was so sweet and came at the perfect time. Oliver earnestly wanted to know. Even Ewan, though mischievous, eventually revealed the reason. A reason no one expected.

“Let’s call it compassion. Sympathy for someone else’s misfortune… Why is this atmosphere so weird?”

Indeed, something felt strange.

The people around them, who had been silently watching, became even quieter. Child, in particular, glared at Ewan with a disgusted face.

Even Oliver, the only one still speaking, seemed lost for words.

It was understandable – hearing Ewan talk about compassion was shocking. Even more shocking was that he meant it.

Ewan defended himself.

“Hey, people are complex beings. They can ignore traffic rules but still pick up trash off the ground. All this quiet is kind of hurtful.”

“Ah, I apologize. That wasn’t my intention. It’s just… It’s been a while since anyone’s pitied me.”

In fact, ‘a while’ didn’t even cover it. Back during his orphanage and mining days, the only thing Oliver had ever received was contempt. Genuine pity was exceedingly rare, almost unheard of.

Ewan elaborated.

“Look, there’s this huge burdensome and filthy task that even hurts if you try to take it on. Do you know who’s left to handle it?”

No one responded, but everyone listened.

“God is there, the one who created the world. And his most beloved, radiant son is there too. There are countless adults all around.”

Ewan gestured to everyone besides Oliver.

Marie, The Selectors, the Fighter Crew, and the Anti-Development Committee were all there.

“But they all pass the responsibility down, leaving it to a kid who just arrived in this world a few days ago.”

The finger that once pointed around now pointed straight at Oliver’s face.

Ewan quickly shifted back to a more cheerful tone.

“That’s why I made the offer. Looking at it just pisses me off. Don’t you feel the same way?”

Oliver couldn’t deny it. In a way, he agreed with Ewan. Upon discovering his own identity, Oliver’s first emotion had been, as Ewan said, complete annoyance.

Why did it have to be him? It was bad enough that he’d made a pact with Puppet. All he had wanted was…

“I can’t promise it, but escaping fate’s chains might take you back to the happiest time of your life. A time when you could freely move about, indulging your curiosity.”

It was a tantalizing offer.

Now that he thought about it, wasn’t that the happiest time?

After emerging from the mine, he didn’t know how to converse, had no common sense, and lacked knowledge. But he was free to do what he wanted with no restrictions.

Everything was joyful, everything was free. What if that had lasted?

At the very least, he wouldn’t have been desperately chasing after people he cared about.

No more suffering because of the sinners.

He might have wanted to rest, but thoughts of Kevin, Joanna, the slain Merlin, Rosburn, and Derek kept him moving.

He did want to go back.

While all the memories were precious, he also wanted to return to a time when he knew nothing.

Is that wrong? Is that selfish? As those thoughts crossed his mind, he heard a young girl’s voice.

“Excuse me…”

She didn’t speak clearly, but Oliver recognized the voice—it was Nora.

One of the children Joe was looking after because Oliver had killed her older brother.

Nora had once tried to poison Oliver out of revenge, but it had failed, leaving them all intact.

The girl squeezed through the crowd and opened her mouth.

Fear made her tremble, but she forced herself to speak.

Everyone’s eyes turned to Nora.

“I-I’m sorry! Please, let me take him!”

Joe’s friend, Sam, who always carried twin pistols, tried to pull Nora back, knowing the gravity of the situation.

“No, leave her.”

Sam froze, as if his body had been physically restrained.

Oliver approached Nora slowly, and asked.

“What’s going on, Nora?”

Oliver inquired why she had come. But truthfully, he already knew.

It was clear to him what she wanted.

She wanted him to save Joe, who was imprisoned.

While it was impressive for a child to stand up on behalf of an adult, Oliver found himself slightly bored by it.

Maybe it was because of all his accumulated experience, or maybe because of his own condition, or maybe because people had asked him so much by now.

Still, he thought he should at least hear what she had to say. There might even be a clue about how to respond to Ewan’s offer—

“–You don’t intend to keep your promise, do you?”

“…What?”

“I asked if you planned to keep your promise.”

Nora spoke with a trembling voice, but she mustered enough strength in her eyes and neck to ask if Oliver still intended to fulfill the promise he made.

“What promise did I make?”

“You said that if I ate all my meals and slept well every night, you would sincerely apologize to me.”

“…”

“You asked me to give you time. Time to apologize genuinely.”

“…Yes, I did, didn’t I?”

Oliver responded. This was something he had said before setting out to the New Continent, before seeing Joanna, before meeting the Devil himself.

Though it hadn’t been a promise, more like a request.

“I forgot.”

Oliver spoke brazenly. His encounter with The Burned One had overshadowed everything else.

The Burned One had told him he was a being of great worth. That was enough to make him forget.

His head had been filled with thoughts of himself, leaving no room for the promises made to a young girl.

Sniff.

Because of his negligence, the girl rubbed her tear-filled eyes. Not Oliver, but the girl herself.

She radiated a mix of powerful betrayal and disappointment, but also more than that.

Concern and affection directed towards Joe. Because Joe was family to her.

“It’s okay… You’re not obligated to apologize.”

The girl lied.

“But, instead, can you do me one favor?”

“What the…”

Someone muttered at the girl’s brazen request.

Asking something of Oliver now was risky, and Nora wasn’t foolish enough to be unaware of that.

Once, she had let her emotions get the better of her and tried to poison him, but even she had learned from her mistakes. She had learned how her actions could affect Joe.

Nevertheless, she made the foolish request because she knew that if she didn’t act now, she would never have another chance.

Seeing the audacity of her actions, Oliver responded.

“Ha… Ha, ha.”

Not with words, but laughter.

Everyone’s body stiffened. Most of them had never heard Oliver laugh before.

Naturally, they didn’t know how to react, so they just watched in shock.

“Eve. Pandora.”

Oliver called out into the air.

Two women emerged from the crowd in response.

Pandora now had a new body, and Eve was housed in a fake body Oliver had crafted from wood. Fortunately, it seemed to be functioning well.

They had been waiting in standby until Oliver summoned them into action.

“There’s something I need you to check on. Can you do that?”

Oliver immediately got to the point.

Both Pandora and Eve showed curiosity about what it might be.

“I’ve heard that Puppet is preparing something in the capital. Can you look into it for me? Wallace mentioned a few things to me.”

Wallace. One of the leaders of the Kel Independent Free Army.

Oliver had first met him when Wallace discovered that the Crown Prince of the United Kingdom was worshiping the Devil. In the end, Wallace fled to Randa with a Druid.

That Druid also knew that the Crown Prince wasn’t just involved with the Devil, but was closely connected to Puppet, and that Puppet was preparing something based on that connection.

Pandora responded.

“Yes, Father.”

“Really?”

“Yes, I’ve already learned some of it on my own through personal investigation.”

“What did you find?”

“They are currently preparing to summon a demon in the heart of the most advanced and powerful kingdom.”