Gun of Ashes

Everything that followed went smoothly... probably.

Rod was in a daze. He only remembered being carried by someone, the ground swaying as if the sky was moving. By the time it stopped, he no longer had the strength to check anything and fell into a deep sleep, waking up shortly after.

Opening his eyes, the room was dim. Rod tried to get up, but pain shot through his body, an odd sensation from the alcohol echoing in his mind. He struggled to sit up and leaned against the wall.

The drunken memories became clearer. At first, Rod was a bit panicky, but upon recollection, he realized he hadn’t done anything outrageous. In fact, his small alcohol tolerance made him seem ridiculous.

Ah... how terrible.

Rod was never good at drinking; his tolerance was very low. Drinking a little was enough to make him drunk. He remembered the first time he drank was when bidding farewell to his family before heading to Old Dunling.

Old Dunling, a beautiful city, a city of despair.

Many people yearned for it, thinking they could find what they wanted there, but most ended up collapsing at the dark ends of alleys, decaying and declining in the cold rain.

Rod still remembered his reason for coming to Old Dunling. In a childhood coincidence, he learned of Jiuxia’s existence, and since then, he had been filled with curiosity about this mysterious land.

He could recall his childhood wish to become a captain. Jiuxia people appeared from the other side of the sea. As long as he sailed along their route, he could find that mysterious land.

He naively believed this for a while, only to later find out others had tried long ago, yet ended up lost at sea, as if that country was merely a dreamy illusion, only real for a moment when they actively appeared.

Then came the pursuit of education. Rod was just an ordinary person, getting close to this mysterious land in a way he could manage, up until today.

Rod sighed, shakily standing up. He was fortunate not to have a roommate, sparing anyone from witnessing his sorry state. Yet, it was unfortunate too, as he wished to chat to someone about anything.

This was underground, without windows, accompanied only by the buzzing of a fan.

He sat in front of the desk but didn’t turn on the light. In the dimness, familiar faces constantly surfaced in his mind.

Shao Liangxi.

In the pub, she casually recounted illusory memories, even though it was something so important. From the casual talk between Lorenzo and others, you could tell they didn’t care.

Rod didn’t understand. Perhaps this was the difference between him and them. He was merely a civilian, a translator, while Lorenzo and others were warriors, already resolute before stepping into the darkness.

That’s their difference. Many things Lorenzo and others took for granted, but Rod couldn’t accept.

He was out of place with them.

But Rod could endure all of this. It wasn’t just his job; it was everything he dreamed of. If possible, at the end of all this, he wished to return to the Forgotten Great Wall with those Jiuxia people, to see that mysterious land firsthand.

Rod lay on the desk, falling into a hazy sleep.

...

”So... is this all that’s needed?”

Lorenzo and Shao Liangye stood in the hallway, neither returning to their rooms.

”Have you ever doubted the memories of Jiuxia?” Lorenzo had sobered up; the Demon Hunter’s constitution made him immune to most toxins, let alone alcohol.

”There’s no need to doubt. In the face of Demon corrosion, doubt often becomes the greatest enemy.”

Shao Liangye replied. Even if he had doubts, he wouldn’t voice them, as if that would allow him to escape.

”Have you always been this way?”

”Yes,” Shao Liangye nodded, looking at a door at the end of the hallway. ”She’s peculiar, like a streak of color in the gray, so we hesitated when taking her from the Forgotten Great Wall.”

Shao Liangye, rare for him, showed a smile.

”She always had quirky ideas. To solve this, I usually assigned her a lot of work, keeping her busy so she wouldn’t have time to think about so many things.”

”Is that so? I just didn’t expect, facing a chaotic mind, you Anonymous folk could live so serenely,” Lorenzo praised.

”It’s quite normal, isn’t it? Just like you Demon Hunters, prepared for death upon implanting Secret Blood, whereas we only pay with chaotic memories. By comparison, the cost is very cheap.”

There was little light in Shao Liangye’s eyes. Compared to Shao Liangxi, he seemed like an aged old fellow, as if he had seen through everything.

”Putting down meaningless fantasies makes life much simpler.”

Lorenzo did not respond but carefully sized up this Anonymous. Everything about him seemed ordinary, with a forgettable aura. Lorenzo knew this was the effect of the surrounding Anti-Meme.

It was constantly influencing the surroundings, even including the Anonymous themselves.

”What is that?”

Lorenzo saw something silvery at Shao Liangye’s waist, perhaps an accessory.

He had seen it on Shao Liangxi before, dismissing it as a girl’s decoration, not noticing Shao Liangye also had it.

”You mean this?”

Shao Liangye took it off, holding it up to the light.

It was a metallic five-petaled flower, with soft lines engraved on it, adorned with gold threads.

”This is the symbol of the Anonymous. We seldom have things to prove ourselves; this is one of them.”