My Notoriety Spreads Throughout the World-Chapter 333 - 297: Storm Song—Behind the Curtain (5) [Two-in-One]

The small figure leading the way looked like a child under ten, crawling forward, baring its teeth and claws, trying to scare away the figure ahead that brought it a strong sense of crisis.

The mouth on its forehead repeatedly opened and closed rapidly, mechanically and coldly repeating the word ’run away,’ while the eyes in the mouth’s original position blinked rhythmically. Eyes were also open on its cheeks, but these had no eyelids or lashes; the constricted pupils were fixedly staring at the red-haired woman.

Its instinctive sense of peril made it ignore the man in front, focusing all its attention on the red-haired woman. Its remaining intuition told it that, compared to the Black Dog who smashed its companion’s head with a Thunder Hammer, the red-haired woman was far more dangerous!

"Hey, hey, where are you looking!"

The Black Dog shouted, sweeping the Thunder Hammer in his hand towards the monster’s head, smashing its entire head into a splatter of blood mist and flesh.

"And you guys! I’m going to smash every one of you to pieces!"

The remaining monsters suddenly rushed towards each other, curling up into a ball. Their skin and organs melted like liquid, merged with each other, and in no time condensed into a large hand-like shape, violently grabbing the man and maddeningly slamming him in the alley, destroying nearby walls and old residential buildings.

The red-haired woman seemed long accustomed to this, expressionlessly shielding her lighter with her hand, and exhaled a long puff of smoke.

Behind her, the Black Dog was embedded in the ground like a dead dog, formed into a Heavy Hammer, hitting down hard on his body again and again, embedding him deeper into the ground with each strike.

These monsters are the Exhausted, also known as the Faders. Those blessed by the Stars of Art constantly gain inspiration, but are also cursed by the starry sky above them. Once their inspiration is exhausted and they can no longer create any form of "art," all the colors of their body fade away, turning them into such monsters.

As the head of the Tuning Hall, she had long been accustomed to people fading into the Exhausted in apartment residential areas, attacking the urban areas, and threatening city safety. It was no surprise when even the most famous artist suddenly became exhausted one day.

What caught her attention was that in recent days, reports of sightings of Exhausted had more than doubled compared to usual, probably due to the influence of the "artists."

She had witnessed too much of this city’s pathological state. People pursued art to an abnormal extent, repeatedly experiencing pain, confrontation, and fear in the process, injuring themselves all over and giving birth to the Ascetic Sect, "artists," and countless Exhausted.

Numerous families fell apart because of this, social relations were fragmented, and everyone knew the city was sick, yet no one influential ever pointed out the city’s pathological spots.

There was a pathetic gulf between everyone; an invisible heavy barrier separated people from one another, so people always watched indifferently, rising to salute at the drama’s end on stage, but remained unmoved by real-life tragedies.

As an executioner, she didn’t understand what caused the city’s illness, nor did she care. She knew that there was nothing she could achieve alone, and perhaps she had long become one of the spectators under the curtain, her original emotions worn down to dullness.

She had handled such cases countless times, to the point that now, upon seeing those eyes dim and devoid of light, she only felt a sense of absurdity and ridicule.

Reap what you sow.

That was the only phrase she could think of; this was heavenly retribution upon them.

"Katina, senpai," a girl’s restrained voice came from beside her.

"Oh, Elys,"

Katina tiredly smiled as she greeted the girl. She liked this enthusiastic and lively girl, at least she brought some joy to her monotonous life.

At the same time, she felt sympathy for the girl’s choice to become a Tuner at such a young age, hoping that in the days to come, the tragedies that played out day after day wouldn’t overwhelm her.

At the very least, don’t let her personally take action again.

"There’s a question that’s been bothering me for a long time, senpai." The auburn-haired girl held the book in her arms, hesitated for a moment, but voiced her doubts.

"Why do the people blessed by the Stars of Art exhaust and lose all color after turning into monsters?"

Katina pressed her thumb against her brow, exhaled a puff of smoke, and spoke meaningful words.

"Because the color of their souls can’t wait to escape their broken bodies."

"What sustains those monsters is merely an empty shell."

Elys stood there dazed, silently mouthing the sentence, as if trying to understand its meaning.

Soon after, she stepped forward to hold Katina’s hand: "If this city is sick, senpai, with your power you could surely change something."

"At least, you could reduce people’s suffering, make tragedies happen as little as possible..."

As the girl continued, her voice grew weaker, as thin as a mosquito’s buzz.

"You overestimate me. I’m just an ordinary Fifth Tier Cleaner." Katina flicked the cigarette ash onto the ground, "Besides, I’ve long been worn down of emotion and energy, uninterested in such noble sacrifices."

"Don’t forget, someone indifferent at their mother’s funeral could be sentenced to death."

Elys’s brows furrowed, clearly not understanding the meaning behind those words.