Endless Debt-Chapter 940 - 48: Godfather of Emotions (Part 2)

In front of Maria, the figure of Nesanel flashed by. The collective had long calculated Nesanel’s various transformations, including his reaction upon learning the truth of the secret war.

"Nobler reasons, like what?"

"Like for the sake of this world."

"That word is too grand," Bologue shook his head, "I don’t care about this world, I don’t even care about the life or death of my neighbor."

Maria cleared her throat and said solemnly, "Then let’s phrase it differently."

"For the world where those you love exist."

Bologue closed his eyes, his stature slumped, elbows resting on knees, head bowed like a criminal on trial.

"Is it the collective’s calculation?"

"Yes," Maria affirmed directly, "Through calculations, you have borne too much pressure, your mind is in an overloaded state, and you are someone who is unwilling to speak much, especially about matters of the heart... You need some encouragement and motivation to boost morale."

"You remind me of my superior when I served in the army," upon hearing this, Bologue laughed, "Every time we lacked the courage to charge, he would say something inspiring, and then we’d get heated up and charge into death, in retrospect, it was quite foolish."

Before Maria could speak, Bologue continued, "I am the Devil’s, the Leviathan of Envy’s Chosen One, endowed with his Protection·Soul Sucking and Essence Stealing."

Bologue asked, "You should know the curse that comes with the protection, right?"

"A curse diametrically opposed to original sin."

"Yes, that’s it," Bologue nodded, recounting the sins he had faced, "The Gourmand is never satiated, the Greedy are never content, the Slothful can never rest, and the Lustful are eternally numb."

Bologue whispered, "And what about Envy?"

Maria responded, "The Envious crave but can never attain."

"After realizing this, I began to fear," Bologue said, "I might never get what I want, so as you said, even if I received the so-called affection, it might soon drift away from me."

Bologue thought of Adelle’s kindness and care, and this fear spread quickly, like a swarm of insects crawling over Bologue’s spine, their sharp, tiny limbs bringing a sensation that made people want to scream.

"Perhaps she has already gone."

Bologue felt his breath weaken, and the mere thought of such a possibility made him anxious and filled with guilt.

Unknowingly, Bologue had already stepped into the Devil’s trap.

"I tried to control myself, not to desire anything, but I realized that ’stopping desire’ itself is also a desire; no matter how I soothe my heart, someone will eventually disrupt it all, making me repeat the same mistakes."

Bologue’s voice carried anger, "So what do you think I should do? Collective, help me with your vast computational power!"

The surrounding temperature increased slightly in an instant, Bologue couldn’t see, but he knew it was the collective’s bloated body overheating from excessive calculations.

A few seconds later, Maria spoke.

"Didn’t you already know the answer from the beginning, Bologue?"

Bologue was taken aback, and he provided the answer himself.

"Exterminate completely."

"Time will not wait for you, nor will the enemy, not to mention the fate that binds us all; no matter how much you yearn for a new life, it will eventually fade away... You know what to do, and you understand why I, we have to do this."

In front of Maria, a chessboard appeared, black and white pieces faced off against each other, the knight on the white side was full of cracks, transforming into a bishop, stepping forward once more.

"So you can no longer be a soldier, a mere pawn; you must wield the banner and break free from the chessboard’s constraints.

You must become the chess player, you must break this destined fate."

Maria stood up; it was the first time Bologue saw her stand up. He knew this was merely a false posture constructed by the collective, but in that moment, Maria’s presence was immensely grand, yet her voice was no longer stern, it became gentle.

"I never doubt your courage, Bologue, I know, you are just too tired.

You need some time to recover, and you need to experience more things to see clearly what kind of person you are, even to grow from it."

Listening to Maria’s consolation, Bologue was both amazed by the greatness of the collective and admired Maria.

Bologue knew the real Maria was already dead, the one appearing before him now was merely a specter crossing time and space, but even so, this specter... no, the collective wearing this specter’s guise, saw through his complex and conflicted inner self.

It’s so ironic, the rational flesh-and-blood machinery saw through complex humanity.

"I... sometimes think about certain things."

Bologue tried to let down his guard and posed another long-standing question that troubled him, "I’ve seen the Devil, but this question I’ve never dared to ask."

"You are thinking about why you have obtained the Undying Body."

The collective was as clever as Bologue thought, analyzing all of Bologue’s psychological activities, even this secret that Bologue had never revealed.

"Yes, why did I make such a wish? Is it because I... fear death?"

Bologue couldn’t understand, nor dared to think about it in detail, he counter-questioned.

"If one day, you discover your true self is the exact opposite of what you thought you were, what would you do?"