Kivotos, I was deeply shocked!

I felt that the teacher was worthy of being a teacher. In just less than a month - and while she was constantly busy dealing with some inexplicable trivial matters of the students - she actually got something that could threaten their lives.

If he was not mistaken, the black bullet was not something you could find everywhere. It might even be a [noble] relic left over from the last century.

But looking at it from another angle...

Looking at the pool of blood on the ground and the blood slowly flowing around, the man in black clothes standing in the flames couldn't help but laugh.

Even though his lower jaw was torn and every muscle twitch brought a sharp pain like a knife cutting, Heifu still couldn't help but laugh.

Teacher, collect these ancient objects specifically for [Noble] and students...

Do you also have some doubts about these students in Kivotos, some kind of...

What about not-so-good ideas?

Thinking of this, Heifu no longer felt the severe pain that was tearing his nerves, and his face showed a happy expression.

He patted his clothes which had been extinguished at some point, leaving only a wisp of green smoke. He gestured in the direction where the bullet had passed his head, stepped on the flames, and walked to the corner of the room.

Whether from the perspective of research value or commemorative value, he felt that he needed to preserve the bullet well.

The man in black stretched out his hand to wave away the flames and smoke that blocked his way, while estimating where the bullet might fall and walked forward.

"..."

After a moment, looking at the round bullet hole on the wall and the empty dust in the bullet hole, Heifu fell silent.

So that was a disposable bullet?

-------------------------------------

Si Wang looked up at the loud noise that suddenly came from the top floor of the Caesar Building. He calculated the time with his fingers and estimated that the man in black should have seen the emoticon he left.

Then he took a step back.

Bang!

A piece of glass covered with milky white cracks and still barely stuck together suddenly smashed in front of him. Countless tiny fragments flew out, instantly covering the air in front of the Caesar Building, reflecting countless dazzling lights.

Si Wang tiptoed and walked out in the gaps between the fragments. A black dot in the sky also followed Si Wang's awkward posture and flew towards him crookedly.

"Thank you~"

Si Wang spread out his right palm, and the red [aphid] holding a black bullet almost the same size as itself swayed and fell into Si Wang's palm.

After reaching its destination, it quickly shook off the obstruction and rubbed its six slender limbs vigorously, as if it had cramps.

During the previous conversation with Heifu, and after confirming that Heifu had not made any further arrangements with Kotori Yui Hoshino, Si Wang ordered the [Aphid] following Kotori Yui Hoshino to commit suicide quickly, as he had an urgent task to give it.

Although [Aphid] kept cursing, because all of its words were emotional interjections, Si Wang found it difficult to understand whether it was dissatisfied with his order for it to commit suicide, or dissatisfied with his request for it to carry out a bullet heavier than itself from the crematorium.

Maybe a little bit of both.

Si Wang didn't pay much attention to such a small matter. He took out a wireless headset that was flashing green and was always in communication from his pocket and put it into his ears.

Chapter 181: Stick and Rope

"So, Hoshino-san~"

Si Wang poked Aphid's head with his finger, teasing his other self who was furious, and asked, "After listening to the teacher's frank words with Heifu just now, can you tell me what you think now?"

"teacher……"

Like the weak voice of a dying person floating in the empty underground world, Hoshino Kotori, who was kneeling on the steel altar, trembled his shoulders, and his fingers had been deeply embedded in his palm, leaving a bright red blood mark.

“You…” The girl’s voice was as hoarse as if it had been rubbed by sandpaper, and she trembled uncontrollably. “Are you really going to… going to… going to… do that?!”

After swallowing, chewing, inhaling and exhaling repeatedly, Hoshino Takanashi still couldn't muster up the courage to say "suicide" twice.

Only the sobs with a crying tone lingered in the throat.

"Ah, you mean [Self-Destruction], right? Such an extreme method can't be used casually. At that time, it was more for gaining an advantage in the conversation with the black server. Just like in cartoons, the protagonist will not rush to try to die together with the final boss right from the start. No matter what, you have to try it first, express some emotions, lay the groundwork, and make enough tears before doing this."

The whale's eyes, which were cherished and tightly covered in the pocket on his chest, suddenly flashed red. Si Wang spoke in a comforting tone, but words that were not intended to comfort him came from it, "We haven't fought the black server yet, and we haven't made any emotional preparations, let alone the classic scene of hugging and crying. How can I just blow myself up with the black server casually?"

"..."

No! No, no…

It shouldn't be like this.

Hoshino Kotori bit her lower lip so hard that blood shone out. Fear crawled up her spine bit by bit, slowly and coldly, like a wriggling centipede, scraping her bones and rubbing her nerves with its thousand moving legs.

It was like a dead person's hands stretched out from the cemetery, reaching into her body and rummaging around in something. The smell of decay and death poured directly from her stomach into her mouth, filling every inch of her five senses: eyes, nose, mouth, ears, and throat.

A severe dizziness hit Hoshino Kotori's head, and his stomach began to twitch uncontrollably.

I feel dizzy, painful, uncomfortable, and want to vomit...

But this feeling... this feeling...!!!

In a trance, Hoshino Takanashi discovered that the invisible and intangible darkness in front of him seemed to be distorted.

I seem to have felt somewhere...

The darkness is like an oil painting that has been soaked in water and then had its rewind button pressed. The chaotic lines gradually become regular after repeated rotations, and the blocks of color of varying depths gradually become clearer as the lines twist.

Long blue hair, a bright smile, always likes to hug me suddenly and rub my face hard...

Senior Dream...

Past and present.

Seniors and teachers.

Two completely opposite images gradually overlapped before my eyes.

The same smile, the same look, the same encouragement and comfort to oneself at the last moment.

puff-

Blood, blood, blood.

Death, death, death.

"vomit……"

Memories are like a sharp knife. It pierces out fiercely from the dark corners of memory that we thought had been forgotten long ago, stabs into the stomach, and stirs the internal organs vigorously.

"vomit!"

Hoshino Takanari curled up on the floor, coughing desperately as if she wanted to vomit out her stomach and intestines. Her long pink hair that reached below her knees covered her like a shroud.

"Hoshino-san."

When the rapid coughing sound turned into intermittent retching, the whale doll's eyes lit up red again, and Si Wang's voice came belatedly, "Do you know the meaning of the rope and the stick?"

"S-Sorry, teacher, I'm sorry."

Not knowing which question he was apologizing for, Hoshino Kotori pressed his forehead against the floor, trying to use the cold metal to cool his spinning brain. A weak voice floated out from the side of his mouth, "N-Never heard of it."

"It doesn't matter. There's no need to apologize for such a small matter. Besides, I don't think anyone in this world has ever heard of this interesting little explanation."

The whale doll's eyes flickered. Si Wang also didn't explain what it was about. He just chuckled and continued, "Ropes and sticks can be said to be the two earliest tools invented by humans. Sticks can drive away danger, and ropes can retain beauty. Both are our earliest friends, and both were created by us. Even now, wherever there are people, there are still ropes and sticks. They just continue to be with us in a different form."

His stomach and brain still twitched from time to time. Hoshino Takanashi used all his strength to force himself to focus all his attention on Si Wang's voice, trying not to miss a single word.

"Of course, there is no need to explain the sticks. From swords in ancient times to bullets and cannons today, you have used them to thwart the conspiracies of the Caesar Group, to protect the existence of Abydos, and to protect your homeland. So let's focus on the ropes."

“Friendship, love, family affection… these emotions are intertwined and woven into strong ropes that firmly maintain our existence and warm our souls, so that we don’t have to walk alone in the darkness, shiver alone in the cold wind, or fight alone in danger.”

"So..." The red light in the whale doll's eyes went out for a moment, then lit up again, and Si Wang's voice rang out along with it, "When the beautiful thing at one end of the rope suddenly falls into the abyss, pulling you back continuously, will the beautiful thing at the other end of the rope cut the rope without hesitation and break free? Or will it hold on to the rope with all its might, pulling it to a bloody mess, breaking bones, until it pulls the beautiful thing at the other end up on the cliff or falls into the abyss together?"

Countless images flashed through Hoshino Kotori's mind at this moment.

I changed my personality for Yume-senpai, my junior risked his life for me, and...

The teacher who became extremely cruel because of them.

Di-

After a beep, Si Wang's voice disappeared, and explosions and roars instantly came from the whale doll, mixed with the non-stop requests for help, shouts and roars from Sand Wolf Baiko, Izayonomiya, Kuromi Serika, and Okumura Ayane.

Hoshino Takanashi could also hear the muffled groans of his juniors when they were shot, the painful cries when explosions occurred, and the determination of their juniors to hold on with gritted teeth and no one retreated.

Today, I will either go back to Abydos with Senior Hoshino...

The sound of the bomb exploding resounded through the sky, followed by a series of bullets piercing through the smoke, forcing back Caesar's soldiers who were surrounding them.

Or let's bury them here together!

Chapter 182: Independence is a sign of maturity

Fear was like a gust of cold wind, blowing from the bone marrow and spreading throughout the body along the blood vessels. Every inch of flesh and blood was shivering in the biting cold.

Hoshino Kotori felt dizzy. Just by the sound, horrific images popped into her mind one after another, lined up in a row, inserted into the projector, and then projected into the pitch-black darkness...

The blurry images gradually became clear, the stuck frames gradually became smoother, and finally, they ran incredibly smoothly and turned into a black and white animation full of noise.

Everything is so gray, everything is so silent, except for the red color - blood-red, piercing like a sharp blade.

dong dong dong... dong dong dong...

Abydos was torn into pieces, the silent sand wolf Baizi, the blood-soaked Jukunomiya, and the missing Kuromi Serika...

dong dong dong, dong dong dong!

There was also Ayane Okumura, who was holding her head, looking at the empty classroom, alone and in despair.

dong dong dong!dong dong dong!

No matter how the plot develops, no matter what choices are made, the ending of the anime will eventually go to bright red, dark and empty.

The heavy heartbeat became more and more rapid and violent, as if it was about to hit her head, shaking the brain madly and hitting the skull, desperately trying to rush out of her body.

"Take a deep breath, Hoshino-san, take a deep breath..."

Si Wang seemed to be able to see the current state of Hoshino Kotori. His unhurried and very personal voice came from the whale doll in time, "Then spit it out slowly."

Without any thought, Hoshino Takanashi almost subconsciously took a deep breath and slowly exhaled according to Si Wang's words.

The whale doll's eyes twinkled, "Are you feeling better, Hoshino-san?"

"..."

On the empty underground altar, in the silent darkness, Hoshino Kotori lowered her head, her pink bangs sliding down from both sides like water, covering her eyes.

It was as if Si Wang was not talking to her through the communicator hidden in the whale doll, but was standing in front of her and looking at her seriously as he did in the past.

So Hoshino Kotori didn't dare to look up, for she was afraid to see the disappointment in Si Wang's eyes.

I worked so hard and put in so much effort, but in the end, it was all ruined by my own self-righteous stubbornness.

"well……"

As soon as he opened his mouth, Hoshino Takanashi was shocked by his own hoarse voice, which sounded like a person being hanged.

She immediately exerted force and tried her best to move her tongue, trying to change her voice back to the way it was in front of Si Wang before.

That lazy, unmotivated look, but never a cause for worry.

"..."

However, no matter how hard Hoshino Kotori tried or how anxious she was, her mouth just kept opening and closing, opening and closing, a meaningless movement. Her tongue twitched as if it was tied in a knot, and she couldn't utter a complete word, let alone a complete sentence.

Finally, Hoshino Takanashi gave up struggling and buried his head deeper.

"Sorry, teacher."

Hoshino Kotori looked away from the whale doll's glowing red eyes, and an inaudible voice floated out of her throat, like a mist that dissipated at the touch of a finger, "I'm sorry..."

"Then remember this feeling well, Hoshino-san."

Si Wang neither accepted Hoshino Kotori's apology nor tried to comfort her pain as he did in the past. He just said in a very calm tone, "Anger, fear, despair, anxiety, despair... everything you feel now is what Bai Zi and the others are feeling now, and the situation you are in now is also the situation that Bai Zi and the others are in."

"No matter how painful it is, no matter how desperate it is, no matter how unreasonable it is, Hoshino-san, you will still be the last one to fall, you..."

Si Wang paused as thousands of thoughts flowed through his mind. Finally, he chose to speak out what was in his heart, "...it is more important than you think."

"!"

With a buzzing sound, Hoshino Kotori's head went blank.

At this moment, the world seemed to be infinitely far away and yet infinitely close. All the fierce and violent emotions like a tsunami were swept into her mind at this moment of pulling, filling every brain cell of hers, so that time seemed to have stopped.

"I am more...important than I thought?"

Thousands of words came to his mind but he didn't know where to start. With an empty mind, Xiao Niao You Xingye just breathed subconsciously and repeated Si Wang's words subconsciously.