Endless Debt-Chapter 787 - 249 Returned
Bologue felt like he had a very long dream, so long that the sense of time was diluted and became meaningless under this massive scale.
He struggled to open his eyes, the enormous fatigue seemed to grip every inch of his muscles, and even breathing became incredibly heavy. Bologue tried to move his body, but even such a simple action almost exhausted all his strength.
He barely sat up on the bed, his lungs feeling like they were pressed by heavy stones, making breathing somewhat difficult. Immediately, Bologue started coughing painfully, memories returning like a tide, he remembered running wildly aboard the Dawn, passing through carriage doors under Ewen’s wish, finally being engulfed by light...
Bologue nervously raised his head, noting that the place he awoke in was a familiar room. In this bizarre game, it wasn’t the first time he woke up at home. Bologue struggled to get out of bed, feeling anxious, and hastily drew open the tightly closed curtains.
Warm sunshine evenly fell on his face, as if a pair of gentle, large hands caressed Bologue’s body. Behind the floor-to-ceiling window no longer was cold concrete or strange scenery, but familiar buildings, crowded streets, and that obelisk-like silent construction piercing the sky.
For the first time, Bologue realized how great it was to open the window and see the Order Bureau.
Just when Bologue was immersed in the beauty of directly seeing his company, there came a flurry of footsteps outside the door, and then Palmer rushed in through his room door, wearing just shorts.
"Bo-B-Bo Bologue!"
Palmer stuttered nervously. After taking a few seconds to calm down, he screamed at Bologue, "We are back!"
"Ewen’s wish came true!"
Palmer leaned against the wall and sat down slowly, realizing the current situation made his mood incredibly complex. Should he praise Asmodeus for unexpectedly keeping her word, or thank Ewen’s fearlessness?
No, this has nothing to do with Asmodeus’s trustworthiness. The devil herself is also bound by rules. If she promised as such, then reality certainly would develop accordingly.
"Get up, we have to check on the others."
Bologue reached out and pulled Palmer up. After a brief moment of excitement, Bologue became serious and solemn again. He always felt this incident wouldn’t end so easily.
Accurately speaking, such a simple end instead made him uneasy. 𝚏𝐫𝚎𝗲𝕨𝐞𝐛𝕟𝚘𝐯𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝗺
Putting on clothes, Bologue rummaged through his pocket and took out the familiar Key of the Crooked Path.
Upon boarding the Joyful Garden, Asmodeus deprived them of all their personal belongings as if to blend into the story. Now that they’ve departed the Joyful Garden, these things returned.
Blue patterns spread across Bologue’s arm, ether filled his body, delivering waves of extraordinary satisfaction. The familiar silver-white snake crawled along his fingertips, the metallic coldness bringing Bologue a burst of joy.
Palmer swiftly dressed, Bologue inserted the Key of the Crooked Path into the lock hole, turned the key, and opened up a piece of darkness.
Stepping into the darkness, a few seconds later Bologue and Palmer arrived at the Undying Club. Oddly, the club was unusually quiet today, not a single figure visible at the bar.
Bologue guessed that the others might be sleeping. Since Serey’s disappearance, the Undying Club had been quieter. Bologue didn’t stay there for long and, with Palmer, quickly headed toward the Order Bureau.
When Bologue arrived at the Field Operations Department, Lebius’s office, a commotion was unfolding in the office. He pushed open the door to find the already small office crowded with people.
Lebius sat behind his desk as always, Yuriel stood by his side, Geoffrey sat on the couch, with Yas, the leader of the Sixth Group, beside him, and in front of the desk, seemingly as punishment, were Aimou and Hart.
Seeing the arrival of Bologue and Palmer, the intense discussion paused for a few seconds, several pairs of eyes exchanged glances. This feeling wasn’t pleasant until Bologue broke the silence first.
There was no joy of reunion, nor endless complaining. Everyone maintained a professional stance, calmly analyzing the current situation.
"How many days... how many days have we been missing?"
Lebius glanced at the calendar, "Two days."
Bologue muttered to himself, "Only two days?"
Inside the Joyful Garden, just during the resting phase in the Grand Library, he spent more than two days. Bologue wasn’t clear if the Joyful Garden distorted his perception of time or if it distorted the time flow between inside and outside.
The lands of the devils seem to possess the power to affect time, just like when he was forced to watch a movie by Belphegor.
With a troubled look, Lebius rubbed his temples hard. The sudden return of missing team members, along with their abrupt appearance, was also a significant shock to Lebius.
Bologue is an undead, there’s no need for excessive worry, but it’s different for the others. If their disappearance prolonged further, Lebius would have to consider declaring them as casualties. After all, the Joyful Garden is not a gentle place.
"After you disappeared, we escorted the original object and returned to the Order Bureau first, then dispatched other action groups to conduct a search and rescue for you. However, in these two days, no progress was made in the operation, you seemed to have vanished into thin air," Lebius said, looking at Bologue, "and then suddenly returned."
