Hello, Arknights

Chapter 366 Try

The heavy vehicles rolled over the yellow sand with the low roar of the Originium engine. The long journey of these black steel beasts was finally stopped by a checkpoint. The air in the vehicle suddenly became tight. Under the strict identification of the checkpoint, the convoy was finally released after triple certification, and Penguin Logistics' escort mission was finally successfully completed.

"Texas." The blue-haired fallen angel glanced around, noticing dense ruts on the ground. From sentry posts to patrols, the soldiers here were highly disciplined, true elites. She gazed deep into the camp, where the deep ruts pointed, her expression grave. "What do you think of our mission?"

Their initial commission was to go to a designated location, hand over the strictly sealed goods, and escort the transport convoy. The bloody war not only destroyed the people of Victoria, but also the wilderness bandits. The convoy's route was carefully selected, and there were few encounters with bloody monsters along the way. She was thinking about the reason why the client bypassed the local mercenaries and commissioned an external organization.

It is definitely not a problem of manpower. Sometimes a small but high-quality team does not necessarily provide a higher level of security than a large but scattered team.

"We don't discuss the reasons for the user's entrustment, but only evaluate the value of the transportation itself. This is one of the principles of Penguin Logistics." Texas checked his weapons and waited for his companions to finish resting.

"I know. That's why I wasn't asking one of Penguin Logistics' founders, but Texas." Mostima tapped the ground with his staff, and the small area surrounding the two of them shifted slightly. His voice stopped spreading. "Through my limited experience and connections, I've learned a concerning fact."

"The infected soldiers' performance in the battle against the 'blood monsters' is even comparable to that of elite troops."

"...This batch of goods are indeed all Originium products." Texas spoke slowly. She was responsible for connecting the goods and could give a positive answer.

"... Let's go and get that guy back." Mostima withdrew her magic. Texas didn't understand the specific meaning of her sudden words, but immediately followed the action and called on Archangel and others to get in the car.

"What's wrong?" Several people were confused, but they had rested for a while and were able to set off on their journey again.

"Originium can restrain the expansion of blood-colored monsters, but Originium dirty bombs, which are used for infection, are banned weapons. This time, some high-ranking officials have found a reason to use these weapons." Mostima replaced Texas with the driver.

Texas understood what she meant. "If it's deployed, the infected front will most likely bear the brunt of the direct fighting."

Mastema nodded, feeling a severe headache.

Whether Ling Dengxian would appear in the rear or on the front line was not a question that needed to be considered at all.

Because the bagpipes can't be in the logistics.

"Then why don't you let me drive?"

"When necessary, I can go faster than you." Mostima gripped the steering wheel tightly and rode away after the checkpoint let him pass.

After leaving the camp, Penguin Logistics saw another steel beast appear in the distance, raising dust.

Mostima tapped the lock and key with his knuckles, increasing the car's speed.

What neither of them noticed was that between Croissant and Sora, who both looked worried, the red-haired Zakota was seeing everything they were doing.

Green peaks on the river, a dream of vanity, pavilion.

A drop of crystal dew hung on the eaves of the pavilion, just like a wisp of unresolved thoughts.

"I'm still so anxious even though I'm dreaming. How can I rest well?"

Ling pushed the wine cup that had been condensed with all her energy to him. Ling Dengxian couldn't resist her concern under her gaze, so he took the wine cup filled with the aroma of wine, but he couldn't reduce his anxiety, and he had difficulty swallowing the wine.

He still put down the wine cup.

"I'm sorry, Ling, I... went a little too far." Ling Dengxian gripped the edge of the table, disgusted with his current situation. "This is wrong, I know. I'm showing my anxiety to you because I'm frustrated with my own incompetence... and..."

"Is there?" Ling knocked him over with the lampstick in his hand. Ling Dengxian was caught off guard and fell on his back. What he faced was not pain and hard bricks and stones, but bright light and soft meadow.

The wine cup driven by the movement poured into his mouth on its own as if it had a spirit. There was not a trace of alcohol. The soft touch finally returned peace to him, and he was trapped in the meadow.

"Although the team isn't large, you've done your best to be responsible for everyone, and the arrangements are quite organized. You said you dumped your negative emotions on us, but you still managed to hold up a small private space for that poor person despite your own psychological burden. How could you be willing to do that, and how could you allow yourself to do that?"

"That Victorian soldier thought you were cruelly calm, cruel only to yourself."

Ling Dengxian's emotions surged. Ling's words were undoubtedly bringing up that topic. Perhaps only with her close observation could she be so certain of his... "fear."

"It's time for you to tell me what it is that has driven you to this state of mind."

He was silent for a long time, then spoke with difficulty, "I... am afraid that the smile that once made me believe again will disappear."

"It wasn't because of love, nor because of desire, but because... I didn't actually believe in her. I just regarded her as a lifeline, desperately pretending and supporting this obsession."

“I wanted to truly believe in that purity, but after leaving Qicheng Town, I lost Ling Xiran;

"I wanted to truly believe in that belief, but at Longmen, even though she clearly liked me and even though she was truly in love with me, Lin Yuxia didn't break the shackles that stood between her and me.

“I wanted to truly believe in that ideal, but in that city that burned with flames yet was freezing cold, before I made a desperate move, Tallulah did not tear the snake venom apart;

"I wanted to truly believe in that hope, but after the dazzling lights of Casimir were shrouded in mist, those people and those knights tried their best but couldn't shake the hopeless situation, until the Deus Ex Machina! You know what? I feel even more pain than Platinum's self-deprecation!

"I did get her out, but the rope holding me is about to break. Who will stop me then?!"

When Ling Dengxian left Victoria, he was indeed sure that he had made up his mind at first. He only retained a trace of caution and some of his previous gray psychological defenses. However, a series of shocks that followed questioned whether he really believed it.

And he did waver after Casimir. The rise and fall of a city is not in the hands of its people and its children themselves.

"Ling, tell me, how can I believe this except by convincing myself over and over again... Who can see through my uneasiness? Provence, Lin Yuxia, Tallulah, Wei Yanwu, Heijiao Yedao—"

"Mastema, Skadi, Texas, and Bagpipes."

Ling said calmly and pulled him up.

"You're not a natural performer. When your disguise wasn't perfect earlier, Mastema saw through your hesitation at first sight."

"Skadi is very simple, but the loneliness she exudes when you are close to her is beyond words. She thinks you are the same as her."

"Texas..." Ling shook his head and smiled, "Why do you think she's so obsessed with you? You two are so much alike. The difference is, she understands herself, while you haven't yet."

"Bagpipe, to be honest, she's the one who surprised me the most. She's not stupid at all—she's never the one to stop anyone from taking action for what they believe in. But she can't explain the precise reasoning, so she just leaves you enough room—I won't say it directly. The answer I give is not your answer."

"The Knights of Casimir, if that calamity had been replaced with a sudden, massive natural disaster that even the Messenger could not have predicted, the result would have been the same. It's undeniable that human power is indeed limited, but in reality, they were unaware of the existence of the 'Deus Ex Machina'. They were doing their best in their own ways for themselves, and that was all they believed in.

"Besides, can you really save Kavaleriaki without that Kuranta girl?"

Ling's words cleared the fog, but Ling Dengxian was only persuaded and solved many confusions, but the answer of "clearing the clouds and seeing the sun" did not emerge. That was something he would understand only after he truly reconciled with himself.

Bagpipe didn't want him to die for someone else's ideal, nor did she want him to take risks for her because of a "lifeline".

“…I understand—”

"You'd better keep it to yourself for now and try to reconcile with yourself." Ling raised his hand, and Ling Dengxian woke up from a dream. Ling was still in front of him, but his figure was illusory and he couldn't speak.

With the simple tarpaulin hanging above his head, he no longer hated the depressing color.

She blinked and looked at him, saying nothing, but it seemed to say a lot.

"White Dove." Ravshini lifted the tarpaulin and met his eyes as he sat up. "It's time to set off. Today we'll reach the location they marked on the map."

"Okay, thank you."

The "leader" of Shenchi nodded and turned to leave, but Ling Dengxian stopped her again:

"Rafushini, what kind of person do you think I am?"

Draco turned around, looked him in the eyes, and without asking why, answered, "A gentle man."