svrash

Does having a heartbeat count as being alive?

Or is being alive watching your loved one's body get dragged away like an old rag?

Or watching other people die in front of your eyes because they can't get medicine?

I don't know how to be alive anymore. All I know is how I want to die.

It was supposed to be me and the old man dying here today.

I would've told him that his son still lives. Then I would've killed him, and then myself.

That's all I wanted. My one and only desire.

So why did you have to stomp out the embers of even that last little bit of desire?

You rejected my help, so I can only resolve this using my own methods.

Haha... that's right. That's exactly the kind of person you are.

Also, I can assure you of at least one thing. The Viscount already knows.

The look of horror on his face when he heard his son was still alive was positively brilliant.

Hoping I'll die slightly more at peace?

Indeed, that was my intent.

Then I've changed my mind, Enciodes. I'll kill you, then I'll kill the old man.

And what about after that?

We'll see when we get there!

Die for me!

You've woken up.

You... Why...

Why didn't you kill me? Out of pity?

Carle, when you said that there was nothing I could do for you, what you really meant was that I don't understand the plight of the Infected.

And I must admit, that is true.

As I was returning to the Viscount, the Doctor asked me a question.

What would I use to bargain for your life?

I thought about it for a long time. I didn't want to answer with words like revenge, hope, or the future.

Finally, I reached my conclusion.

I will use the lives of all of your friends to save yours.

What?!

As of now, all of them in this city have already died. Including you.

Next, they will move to one of my branch offices in a neighboring city and begin a new life there.

The same goes for you. Of course, if you have any objections, I will respect your wishes.

They... aren't dead?

The people chasing them are my men.

Ha... Haha... You bastard... How arrogant can you get?

I won't deny it.

You don't need to worry about the Viscount. The only problem is your sister... I'm very sorry, but you two will have to be separated.

I wouldn't have gone to see her even without your arrangement.

She's better off forgetting about this good-for-nothing brother of hers.

But... give me some time. To think it over.

You have all the time in the world.

Doctor.

We make a pretty good duo, huh?;You should be thanking me.

Flawless.

True.

This commission was originally my way of apologizing to you, but as it turns out, now I owe you an even bigger favor.

Also, I failed to help you establish a connection to Viscount Walden.

Truly, a series of uncharacteristic gaffes on my part.

Regardless, this incident has provided me with a novel perspective on certain matters.

Give me some time, Doctor, and I will pay you back in a way that satisfies you.

I've finished reading the report.

In terms of outcomes, this was a resounding failure. Not only did we fail to establish a relationship with Viscount Walden, we might even be blacklisted by him now.

Therefore we no longer have the option of using his network to find a stopover point for Rhodes Island.

Sorry.;I don't regret it.;You know you'd have done the same thing.

I wasn't finished.

But from the standpoint of Rhodes Island, you made the correct choice.

You shouldn't, as you've done nothing that warrants regret.

Rhodes Island has no desire to be involved with that sort of nobleman anyway, unless absolutely necessary.

I might have taken an even more decisive approach.

Although I won't deny that the results would probably be similar.

Besides, we didn't walk away from this commission empty-handed.

Although even I cannot predict what effects this will bring about down the road.

While speaking, Kal'tsit pulls out a document from the archive's sky-high pile of papers and hands it over.

It looks to be a temporary operator cooperation request. The operator in question calls himself SilverAsh.

Enciodes.

How is this possible?!;......;He...

This arrived just yesterday.

You can imagine the HR Department's confusion when he requested to join Rhodes Island as an operator.

In the end, I was forced to handle the situation in person, and to cut straight to the result—

He accepted all the conditions I laid out for him, and passed the operator exam with flying colors.

No wonder everyone on the way looked so bewildered.

He's waiting for you in the reception room right now. You should give him a tour of Rhodes Island while you're there.

What's the meaning of this?;This is your way of paying me back?;SilverAsh?

Ensia has been receiving treatment here while working as an operator. As her older brother, naturally I was concerned and decided to follow suit.

Is there something wrong with that?

That's right.

This is the end result of a thorough deliberation.

Using my clan name as my code name is easy to remember, no?

Carle accepted my offer. Rest assured, no one will know where he or his friends ended up.

Speaking of which, the new monitoring bracelet you gave me is much better than the previous one.

I'm interested in purchasing a batch myself.

Perhaps we can sit down to discuss it.

Why would you become an operator?;I thought I misread it when Kal'tsit showed me.

Are you asking why I signed that lopsided contract Madam Kal'tsit drafted?

That is simply a price I'm willing to pay to become a member of Rhodes Island.

You know that's not what I'm talking about.;Why?;Rhodes Island isn't a good fit for you.

No need to be so pushy.

If I had any ulterior motives, I wouldn't be going through all this, now would I?

Surely someone as smart as you would be able to guess the reason?

No need to be so diplomatic. 'You don't belong here.'

I must admit, this is a rather bold experiment, even for my tastes.

Get to the point.;What are you trying to do?

I want to be your friend, {@nickname}.

Does the president of Karlan Trade lack friends?;I thought we were already friends.

I have plenty of business partners, subordinates, competitors, and enemies. What I'm missing is—

A friend.

I trust we've already reached a tacit understanding, to some degree.

But understanding between individuals is always asymmetric, which is why I do not trust tacit understandings, Doctor.

The best way to know what someone else is thinking will always be to ask them directly, no?

There are plenty of others who could do it.;A lot of people understand you.