Overturned Tower

"...of course!"

Hearing Russell's words, Xiaoya's face subconsciously showed a look of joy.

But she suddenly thought of something and glanced at the strangulation, with a hesitant and worried look in her eyes: "It's just..."

Russell knew what she was worried about.

"Don't worry, it won't bother me in any way."

He smiled gently and said: "Because I am not short of money at all, and I don't need such a thing as 'money' at all. The strangulation... or Mr. Mahavira does not need to pay any price for this."

Of course Strangler knows that "Ultramar" does have the capital to say such things.

But he was somewhat instinctively allergic to this kind of pure goodwill - Mahavira grew up in an environment full of malice. If he easily believed in anyone's "goodwill", he might fall into an eternal fate. In the abyss. But now, with his not-so-stupid brain, he can naturally clearly understand that today is different from the past, and his environment is fundamentally different from before...

However, instinct is not something that can be easily changed.

He didn't want to show off his useless spikes like a hedgehog that would only hurt his friends, but he couldn't control himself. So he will choose to stay away from the crowd...

Normally, he would unconditionally reject Ultramarine's kindness.

Any favor will come at a price - even if the other party has no intention of asking for it, Strangler still needs to find an opportunity to repay the favor and repay the favor. And the greater the kindness, the harder it is to repay it. If you look for something like "spiritual modification surgery" in a high-end department... Even with his experience, he knows that the cost of the surgery will cost at least hundreds of thousands of credit points, and will most likely exceed seven figures. This does not include finding connections with good doctors... It is said that priceless connections are more expensive than valuable surgery fees.

How could he repay this level of favor?

He doesn't want to die. So he didn't dare to ask for it.

...But now, this matter involves Xiaoya. In his entire life, Hangzhou has never done anything for others. In order to protect Xiaoya, he sacrificed his life - this was the first time in his life.

For the first time, I did not retreat, but stood to the end.

Like some kind of sunk cost. He thought that since Xiaoya had been saved by him at the risk of his life, if she could not get happiness, the risk he had to pay would be like wasting money. Even if it was just to make the risk she took more valuable, Xiaoya should survive in a more magnificent manner.

She wanted to get a pair of legs.

——I’m ashamed to say that Strangler really can’t appreciate the “fish tail” aesthetic. He felt shameful for the despicable and vulgar thoughts in his heart...but he really wanted to see Xiaoya have a pair of beautiful and long white legs. And just realizing the desire hidden in his heart made him feel angry for himself.

What a beast, what a bastard I am. he thought.

His inner desires overlapped with Xiaoya's thoughts, and he could not refuse Ultran Qing's kindness no matter what. This gave him the illusion of being tied up and a collar put around his neck. This made him feel a touch of sadness... Once upon a time, would he have ridiculed those whose weaknesses were pinched by the company like this?

At the time, he thought he was noble, moral, and different.

Now it seems that he is just too selfish. Because he doesn't care about anything, he has no weaknesses.

"I agreed on behalf of Xiaoya, Mr. Ultramarine," he suddenly said, bowing his head slightly towards Russell, "I really... thank you very much. Thank you."

Mahavira had never thanked anyone so formally and solemnly.

This "thank you" weighed more than a thousand pounds in his mouth, and he felt as if he was kneeling down, which made his face flush a little. Fortunately, he had thick white hair on his face, which temporarily covered up some of his embarrassment.

"If you really want to thank me, please answer me a question sincerely, Mr. Mahavira."

Russell looked at Strangler and said softly: "Please answer from the bottom of your heart and give the truest answer."

"I swear on my name," Mahavira said slowly after being silent for a while, "I will never lie to you."

"Mr. Mahavira, what do you think of the barber now?"

Russell asked with a smile.

The sly but not annoying smile on his face made Mahavira think he was talking to the barber.

...Ah, speaking of which, Ultramarine and the Barber are close friends.

At this time, Mahavira belatedly realized this setting. Although he knew about this matter half a year ago, because the two people had never shown any intimacy in front of him, he subconsciously ignored it - or in other words, he regarded it as "ultramarine" "The character played by this hero.

In other words, Mahavira actually thought that "ultramarine" and "barber" were not that familiar.

He just declared that the barber was his friend and Fuji Society was his power as a mentality of investment and protection. And he must have his own purpose - after all, the so-called "professional heroes" are just some "stars" and "businessmen". They won't do anything that doesn't do any good.

But now it seems... they may be true friends. Just like myself and that inferior guy...

Mahavira was silent for a while, then said in a deep voice: "If you give me this money to stop me from betraying my godfather, then you may be disappointed."

"oh?"

Russell raised his eyebrows and smiled gently: "How should I put it?"

"You must have heard from the godfather that I have said to him face to face many times - 'When he declines, I will betray him,' so you are worried about him.

"That is not a lie, nor is it duplicity."

Mahavira replied calmly: "Even so far, he has not fully gained my approval. He is not domineering, ambitious and aggressive enough, and he is not aggressive enough - if I want to serve him from the heart A certain lord, he should show me his almost absurd ambition. That kind of madness that if it is not to rule the world, it will destroy the world, and for this reason, he will never take a step back.

"Only in the hands of that kind of person can I feel at ease. Because I can know that he will accept me no matter what - he is too ambitious, so as long as I am useful enough, no matter what kind of bad person I am, no matter what I am to Whether he is respectful or not, he must also respect me.

"But... that godfather guy, he is too rational. Unlike us bastards who were born in the mud, his heart is clean but his hands are dirty. This kind of person can never give me a sense of security. ...Because I'm not as clean as him. If I can't change myself, I will eventually be given up by him. He controls it like a guard dog - not to kill someone, but to To guard the house.

"But I'm not stupid, Mr. Ultramarine. I don't think I can change myself... If the watchdog bites the thief to death, he may be punished or even lose his life. Because like that, I am just a thief at best. A dog.

"That's why I want to be the king - if I am the leader, then I can give him enough trust, or in other words, the highest trust. Just like when he was under my command at the beginning. He will become my brain. , I will give him all the power I can give him until he is unblockable.

"——That's why I told him that I will betray him eventually."

Mahavira sighed slowly, as if smoking. But he never smoked.

"But I will say this, it's not that I really want to betray him. I have never planned a betrayal. This is just a safety plan... If one day, someone wants to kidnap him to threaten me, I can escape calmly. ——Because I have declared so, this is not a betrayal. Because I have declared that I will betray him, so we are not friends."

If the godfather is captured or kidnapped because of this, he does not need to risk his life to save him;

If the godfather was disappointed with him or decided to punish him, he would not have any position to defend himself;

If the godfather decided to abandon him who had become useless, he could pack up and leave as if nothing had happened without feeling sad;

If his godfather dies in front of him and he can't do anything - there is no need to feel pain and regret.

——Because they are not that familiar. Because they are not friends, but hidden enemies.

"But I've given up now."

Hangsha sighed: "I don't want to be a 'king' anymore. I am already twenty-nine years old this year, and some people even think that I am already in my thirties or forties. But now, I have finally escaped from the teenage period of fourteen or fifteen years old.

"I don't care about paths, ambitions, or spells. I no longer have that confused anger, and I don't need to do anything in the name of the 'White Lion Group' anymore. I just want to be good. alive...

"Compared with those lofty but empty 'great ambitions', I now have something I want to do more."

As he said that, he subconsciously looked at Xiaoya.

The lion's dark golden pupils revealed a cat-like softness.

"I have no reason to betray him anymore."

Strangler took a deep breath, and then slowly exhaled.

His tone was clear and calm, and the ever-overflowing anger and alienation from the world had faded away: "Because I am... no longer afraid. On the contrary, I want to thank him - exactly Because he gave me this task, it was possible for my life to change. Even if he didn't regard me as a friend, I already regarded him as a friend. It's embarrassing to say that now, when I look back and think... Only then did I realize that he had already helped me a lot. Before, I was too stubborn and ignorant.

"So, Mr. Ultramarine - please change your request. I can't do what I have agreed to do in my heart and sell it at a price that makes me lose my heart."

Hearing the words of strangulation, Russell and the inferior looked at each other, and then looked at Delphinium.

A strange smile appeared on the faces of the three of them... It was a smile that Strangle could not understand.

"In that case," a sly smile belonging to a godfather appeared on Qunqing's face, "then let's use it as a betrothal gift to 'my friend' in advance..."

Halfway through his words, his features began to melt like wax.

In just an instant, the "ultramarine" that was originally 1.69 meters tall became the "barber" that was 1.76 meters tall.

Under the stunned gaze of the strangulation, the blue-haired young man, who was respected as the "godfather" by the uncoded people of the Seven Islands, showed a cheerful smile.

"If there is anything I can do in return..."

The godfather raised his finger, put it in front of his lips, and tilted his head slightly. He closed one eye and showed a mysterious and unhurried smile.

That smile was so standard that it looked like some kind of painted skin. But the comforting affinity exuded in his words gives this "standardization" an indescribable magical charm.

"——Then let your future children recognize me as their godfather."

The godfather said gently.

Strangler's eyes widened as he watched this scene that overloaded his brain.

As a mage, his resonance allowed him to be sure that the person appearing in front of him was indeed the "godfather". Not fake at all.

Past events are all emerging before our eyes——

Strangler seemed to suddenly understand why the Godfather and Ultramarine had never appeared at the same time.

He also suddenly wanted to understand why the godfather appeared in their eyes for the first time on the day when the bad guy entered the Lower City; and why he was arranged to go to the Lower City by the barber after the bad guy left the execution department.

Someone once joked in the Fuji Society that "The Godfather and Ultramarine never appeared at the same time, so they are the same person"; but no one thought that way whether it was malt wine or strangulation. But Malt Liquor seemed to have expected it... because in the past six months, her attitude towards Ultramarine had suddenly become much more respectful. It's just that Strangler didn't realize what it was for.

After all, psykers can't become mages, they all know that. Even if you think the godfather doesn't look like a downtown resident, your doubts were answered after he revealed his past as "Little Liuli".

But Strangler never expected that the barber would be Ultramarine!

Ultramarine’s spiritual power is to become someone else——

...Speaking of which, do you want to silence that guy? The lucky guy who guessed the truth unconsciously... wouldn't he have some nefarious information channels?

Strangler's mind was a little confused.

He felt that if he spoke at this time, he would be talking nonsense.

Moreover, since "ultramarine" is "barber", then what I just said was in front of a barber...

"...Pfft."

Looking at the shocked expression on Strangler's face, the inferior couldn't help but turn his head and laugh out loud.

"The identity of the barber does belong to 'Xiao Liuli'," Russell explained himself, "but the real 'Xiao Liuli' has been dead long ago. But my spiritual energy copied her personality and consciousness, and I His body can transform into 'Lan Ge Yuan', which was his name before he became Xiao Liuli.

"I told you when we first met in the dream world - 'I' have a codename, and it's called Blue Songbird. It's true. It's just that you didn't believe it."

This was the first time Russell explained his ability to Strangler... and it was also the first time he explained his specificity without reservation to someone he met for the first time.

Prior to this, Russell had always been extremely cautious, hiding his ability to copy and change into others. He didn't dare tell anyone except the people he could completely trust.

And now...

Russell finally didn't need to hide anymore. This refreshing feeling also made him relax.

Because he already has the confidence to be fearless.

"Don't laugh either...Lang Yan."

Russell looked at the inferior, the corner of his mouth raised slightly: "We saw the first love of Strangler... So, what about yours?

"Why don't you bring your new little girlfriend for us to meet?"

Hearing this, Strangler's eyes became sharp.

"...She can't be considered my girlfriend."

The smile on the inferior man's face suddenly couldn't be held on.

He waved his hand reluctantly and said something he didn't even believe: "I actually haven't thought about who she is to me..."

"——It must be [lover]."

Russell interrupted: “No matter what, it’s your loved one.

"You have all found someone you are willing to love, which is good. It's really good. People only truly live in this world when they love the world. And falling in love with the first person other than yourself , is a good start.

"The emperor once said that there is no 'hero' in this world who can save others but cannot save his own children..."

When Russell said this, he paused slightly: "I now think that he is right.

"A hero is a powerless thing..."

A piece of the past suddenly appeared before his eyes.

At that time, he was the same "barber" as he is now.

But at that time, he had not yet completed the migration, so he did not realize the name of his psychic ability.

The "barber" at that time spoke sad words to Morgan, who had not yet become his mask.

[…A hero is a powerless thing]

The former "barber" had dark eyes and took a deep breath, as if he was holding his breath or as if he was too sad to breathe.

[Something must be sacrificed and some tragedy must occur before a hero can be born. Many costs are borne by the heroes' relatives and friends, some costs are borne by innocent people...Only a very small number of costs are borne by the heroes themselves]

[——Heroes can save many people. The only person who can’t save the day and night that made him a hero]

"——But if you can't even save the one you love, what's the point of being a 'hero'?"

Today's "Barber" looks up at the strangulation: "How can a so-called 'hero' save others and save the world if he can't even save the [one person] he wants to save most?"

His eyes were shining with confidence.

He spoke slowly: "You once asked me what my real goal was in establishing the Fuji Society. Now, I will tell you...

"I want the dead to have an immortal name, and the living to have immortal love. Having love will never make people weak...but will make people stronger. Let the confused people become sober, Let the confused people become firm. Starting from you, starting from the people around me, and then extending to the most people I can touch. Not for any truth, nor for any justice.

"I want you all to truly gain happiness - not some illusory 'happiness', but a tiny happiness that can actually be felt and within reach.

"I want people to be able to remember the past so they can cherish the present...and then dream of the future."