The battle in the abandoned training grounds ended with [False Flame Master · Roz]'s severe injury and defeat. Rin, in his "Blade of Demise" form, displayed unprecedented power, and Ye Xue, in her struggle with her "Blade of Demise persona," completed a kind of transformation. Roz fled in disarray, but Rin knew this was only a temporary victory. The entire academy was already an inescapable trap; they had to find a breakthrough quickly.
Rin led Ye Xue, evading the organization's pursuers, and rushed towards the abandoned instructor dormitories deep within the academy. He knew that in such a tightly sealed environment, traditional escape methods were almost impossible. He needed to find an unconventional path, a clue that could completely turn the tide.
"This is the oldest part of the academy; many things haven't been destroyed here. Maybe we can find something," Rin whispered to Ye Xue, cautiously observing their surroundings.
Ye Xue followed him closely, her eyes clearer than ever before. Although her face still bore traces of tears, the confusion had dissipated, replaced by a firm and resolute protectiveness. She was no longer a manipulated "weapon," but truly a guardian who had chosen to fight for Rin.
They soon infiltrated a long-abandoned instructor dorm. Dust permeated the air, and furniture was dilapidated, but Rin's gaze went straight to a recessed area in the corner of the wall, obscured by clutter. Hidden there was a secret only he, in his past life, would have known.
Rin stepped forward and pushed aside the clutter, revealing a small compartment hidden within the wall. Inside the compartment, a palm-sized black rhomboid object was conspicuously placed. Its surface was smooth, without any ports or screens, looking like an ordinary ornament.
However, Rin's pupils sharply constricted—this was a "Shadow Terminal · Fragment" he had used in his past life to store top-secret intelligence!
Such terminals were the highest-level encrypted storage devices within the organization, capable of recording and storing the user's most core memories and intelligence. Only authorized individuals could access them, and each fragment possessed a unique user imprint. Rin had once owned a complete "Shadow Terminal," and this piece was his most precious "fragment" left from his past life.
Rin unhesitatingly reached out. The moment his fingertip touched the black rhomboid object, a powerful mental current instantly surged into his brain!
"Hum—!"
He felt his consciousness being violently pulled into a deep vortex. Before his eyes, countless blurred images surged like a tide. Those blocked, deliberately forgotten memories were forcibly breaking through barriers in a brutal manner, re-emerging in his mind.
He saw his past life's identity—"Blade of Demise," that cold and ruthless assassin.
He saw countless bloody missions, saw the countless sins staining his hands.
He saw the organization's vast and twisted conspiracy, and the "weapons" that were sacrificed…
However, what shocked him the most was a clear and painful memory fragment:
He saw Ye Xue.
She was kneeling in a dark, damp room. Several high-ranking officers, wearing the organization's uniform and with blurred faces, stood before her. She was severely wounded, blood staining the ground, but her eyes were exceptionally firm, filled with a plea that bordered on despair.
She did not plead for herself.
She did not mention her own pain.
She spoke with a hoarse voice, constantly begging, even vowing with her life, using every humble gesture:
"Please… please spare him…! The mission failed… it's my responsibility… I am willing to atone for him… for 'Blade of Demise'…!"
She repeated it over and over, every word like a sharp knife, piercing deeply into Rin's heart. She kept her head down, her clear eyes now filled with endless tears, but she said nothing, merely enduring the cold scrutiny of the high-ranking officers.
"I am willing to give all my life for his!"
"I am willing to accept any punishment… I am willing to be erased… I am willing to be re-molded… as long as… as long as he can be saved…"
"Please… I beg you…!"
The memory fragment abruptly ended with Ye Xue's desperate pleas.
Rin violently recoiled from the memory, his body trembling uncontrollably, large beads of sweat breaking out on his forehead. His face was ashen, his eyes filled with unprecedented shock and remorse.
He had always believed that his past life's "betrayal" was the beginning of his rupture with the organization. He had always believed that Ye Xue's absence at that crucial moment was proof of his execution, his "sacrifice." He had even, countless times in his dreams, hated Ye Xue's "coldness" and "abandonment."
However, this memory fragment, like a thunderclap, completely overturned all his understanding of his past life!
It turned out… Ye Xue had not betrayed him!
She was atoning for him! She was using her life, everything she had, to buy his survival! The "thought re-molding" and "memory erasure" she suffered were not because she betrayed the organization, but because she, in trying to save him, angered the organization at all costs!
Rin suddenly looked at Ye Xue beside him. Her face wore a blank expression; she clearly hadn't received this painful memory. But her hand, at this moment, tightly gripped Rin's, as if sensing his pain.
"I… I was wrong…" Rin whispered hoarsely, his eyes filled with tears of remorse. He had hated her so much, hated her "coldness," hated her "betrayal," only to find out that she was the one who sacrificed everything for him, yet was the most deeply misunderstood person by him!
All the questions, all the clues, at this moment connected completely, forming a clear and cruel truth:
The organization's purpose all along was to "retrieve" and "eliminate" "weapons" like him who possessed independent will and threatened the organization's control. And Ye Xue, because of her "bond" with him, because she tried to protect him, was deemed an "unstable factor" and forcibly "re-molded."
"Risk Taker X"… perhaps referred to "weapons" like him who had awakened independent will and refused to be controlled!
The execution of "Blade of Demise" was not just a simple punishment, but a means for the organization to deter other "weapons" and erase the existence of "Risk Taker X"!
Rin's heart was filled with intense pain and anger. He had been deceived! He had been manipulated! He and Ye Xue, from the very beginning, were just pawns being used! And his "rebirth," which he had once been proud of, might only be a way for the organization to "retrieve" him, or to verify if he had truly been "cleared" completely!
He tightly gripped the "Shadow Terminal Fragment" in his hand, his eyes gleaming with unprecedented resolve and coldness.
He not only had to survive, he also had to seek justice for Ye Xue, find the truth about his sister's "death," and utterly tear away the facade of this hypocritical organization!
"I won't let anyone hurt you again…" Rin whispered to Ye Xue beside him, his voice filled with extreme tenderness, yet also containing a resolve to destroy everything.
Ye Xue felt his body tremble. She said nothing, just leaned her head on his shoulder. Her subconscious was resonating with Rin's memory fragments; she knew that between them existed a vast, hidden past.
And that past, at this moment, was becoming their greatest strength for counterattack.