Durin's Diary

Chapter 171 Grown-up's Paradise
"Young man, how does it feel to be a father for the first time?"

The dwarf Big Toe, who was sitting in the hall, smiled at the half-elf who walked in with a pair of dark circles under his eyes.

"The child's face is more wrinkled than a dishcloth. It's so ugly." The young half-elf dragged a chair over to the dwarf and sat down. "I've never been so tired as I am today, brother."

As soon as he sat down, he opened his mouth and yawned hugely.

"I didn't sleep well when my first child was born, and you'll have your work cut out for you. If you can't handle it, go to the lounge and take a nap. I'll take care of your business." The dwarf said, then stood up. "You look like you'll fall over if the wind blows. How about a cup of coffee?"

"Thank you so much," the half-elf said, covering his mouth again.

The dwarf looked at his junior and shook his head with a smile. He picked up his and the half-elf's cups, walked to the hot water bucket, took a portion of coffee powder from the coffee powder machine next to it, and then brewed it with hot water.

"By the way, where's Shawnee?" asked the young man who took the coffee.

"Shawnee has gone out with the boss. It's a turbulent time these days, so you'd better be careful." The dwarf said as he glanced at the jar placed on an empty table nearby.

Using Jack Leonard's ashes as bait is really not the style of the secret police. In the past, even if a member of Northernism was killed, the ashes would be burned and placed on the shelf in the cemetery. The identity of the deceased would be specially marked, and even if someone took him away, they would turn a blind eye.

This is the unspoken understanding between the secret police and Northernism - both sides kill each other, but there is definitely a boundary, that is, when a person dies, all affairs are over, and the family will never be harmed.

But it passed this time.

Do the Crown Prince and his men understand that once they cross the line, what awaits both sides is endless killing of each other, and each other's families, parents and children will fall in a pool of blood. There will be no mercy and no forgiveness.

They knew nothing and naively believed that the bloodshed and sacrifice of the secret police were due to their stupidity.

Hopefully, they will remain calm when the agents of Northernism knock on their doors and slit the throats of their parents and children.

Thinking of this, the dwarf saw a hunched old man walking into the hall.

He was wearing a professor's trench coat from the University of Copenhagen and a slightly oversized hat on his head. "I'm Jason Kane, a mathematics professor from Copenhagen, and I'm here to pick up my students."

The half-elf's eyes widened. "He came here in person, doesn't he know?"

The young girl behind the counter in front wanted to guide the professor, but the dwarf quickly came over, drove her away, and led the old professor to the jar.

Jason Kane, the most remarkable professor of mathematics and the most remarkable scholar of humanities, spent ten years with his team traveling throughout the countryside of the Northern Kingdom at the age of thirty-eight, recording countless data. Even His Majesty admired his truth-seeking and pragmatism.

Everyone knows that he is a Northernist, but he is old and has retired from the front line. Now he is just an old professor. Both the Northernists and the secret police want to downplay his existence, because such a great mathematician... should not die at the hands of his compatriots.

But he came here with a mentality of seeking death, dancing with lunatics and walking with madness.

Didn't he know the terrible consequences his death would have?

He knew, so he came. From today on, blood will flow like a river.

It’s okay, I’m here.

"I seem to have seen you before. That year, were you following your old director?" the old professor suddenly asked with a smile.

"...Well, that year, when the Northerners' carriage loaded with explosives hit us, the old director protected me behind him. He and seven seniors all died. Only I, who had been here for less than a year, survived. Until now, only one of my ears is deaf." The dwarf, who didn't know how to respond for a moment, finished his words somewhat awkwardly and walked to the jar with the old man.

"My student...is he brave?" The old professor stretched out his hand and stroked the jar in front of him.

His eyes were filled with tears.

"Very brave! Five of my men died in order to capture him alive, including a father and a grandfather... but he saved the last bullet for himself. The last person so brave... was your fiancée." The dwarf said as he reached out to help the old professor wrap up the jar.

He wrapped it very carefully and cautiously, fearing that he had not tied it properly.

"Yes, last time it was my fiancée, this time it's my adopted son. Suffering is always similar. This is retribution for people like us, and it will also be the blood money that our descendants will never be able to collect." The old professor reached out and picked it up. Feeling that it was good, he nodded happily and said, "Your skills are really good. It's tied very well. Thank you."

"Over the years, I've sent so many people away, ours and yours. I tied the cloth around each of their jars myself, so you don't need to thank me. I never know when your comrades will come to retaliate against us, and I'll be the perfect target. Maybe soon, someone will come and tie the jars around me and my family." At this point, the old dwarf became a little confused: "Professor... ah, no, Mr. Mentor, you're putting yourself in danger for an adopted son... is it really worth it?"

"When I brought him back, I just felt sorry for him, but he is very smart and clever. I thought he could take over my mantle and become a new generation of mathematician, and inherit Kane's surname after I die... But I was wrong. He also embarked on this path without hesitation. He has no regrets, so what should I be afraid of? Brother, I will definitely die today, but I believe that my people will definitely avenge us father and son. There are no cowards in Northernism. After so many years, the blood between us has not been shed enough... and there will never be a day when it is enough." After speaking, the old professor picked up the wrapped jar and walked towards the door without hesitation.

The dwarf watched the old professor disappear outside the door, then looked at his colleagues from Building B who pushed the door open and walked out.

Their leader pointed at the dwarf angrily: "Do you know what you are doing?"

"I know. He was the one who led the team that blew up the old director. I was the one who led the team that captured his girlfriend, and I fired the first shot. The hatred between him and me is as deep as the ocean, and the resentment is deeper than the abyss. Now that we've finally come to an end, how can we, old friends who risked our lives, really not sit down and have a good chat one last time?"

After saying that, the dwarf spat on the ground.

"Wait until His Highness and the Director return! You'll be in trouble!" the official said, pointing at the half-elf. "You! Lead the way!"

"He can't go with you!" roared the dwarf.

"Then I'll kill you now!" The person in charge pulled out a gun and pointed it at the dwarf.

"That's enough, brother. I'll go with them." The half-elf drank the coffee in his cup with one gulp, then stood up and walked over to the person in charge. "Put down your gun too! Our boss may not be a human being in the eyes of you nobles, but he's also a loyal subject of His Majesty. You're killing his people here today. Aren't you afraid of being shot in the back someday?"

"If you've got guts, let's go." The person in charge smiled, sheathed his gun, and was the first to head for the exit, speaking loudly: "In our line of work, the previous generation has already paid the price! Where were you when they were uprooted by Northernism and hanged from streetlights? We're here now to get this blood money back with interest!"

　Grown-up's Paradise
　　Siren Records
　　The PV single for the 5th anniversary of Moonlight Car.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)