It was a terrible meeting, even a little sad, in Arthur's mind, the old friend in front of him had died the moment he entered the Black Mountain Hospital more than ten years ago, although the body still existed, and there was still some childish reason, but he knew it very well at the time.

Cole is dead, Mordred is dead, what is hidden in that body at the moment is only a body that has been eroded and corroded by most of his mind, a muddy soul, and the doctors have not euthanized him out of some kind of ethics, after all, his research value has long been exhausted.

Arthur could never have imagined that after so many years, Cole could still talk to him rationally, which is incredible.

"It's nice to be able to rethink. ”

Cole rubbed his head, and with the blessing of his sanity again, the memories of so many years also came to his mind, all kinds of unbearable and even the somewhat neurotic shouting just now, all this flashed in front of his eyes at this moment, he smiled from time to time, but then became sad again.

"No, how is this possible, your sanity is obviously ......"

Arthur couldn't believe that, according to the detection at the time, Cole had been eroded to the end of the second stage, although he would not continue to transform into a demon, but his reason was also eroded and completely shattered, but now Cole was talking to himself like a normal person.

"Maybe it's because I've been specialized as a ranger, but everything related to demons is full of mysteries, who really knows?"

Cole muttered to himself.

"You may not believe it, Arthur, for all the years that I have lost my mind, I seem to have had an incredibly long dream.

It was a pretty good dream......"

Cole said, lowering his head in confusion, he looked at himself in the water, his pupils constricted slightly, and the young face in his memory overlapped with his current old state, which made people feel a little frightened.

At the end of his memory, he was still a young fellow, but when he woke up again, he had become a rough old fellow, as if someone had stolen his precious years while he was asleep.

But this confusion and sadness did not last long, and in Cole's own perception, he was still a young man, but his mind was trapped in this old body.

Everything seemed so disconnected that his mind was so confused.

"Original Sin Armor...... Looks like you've succeeded. ”

Cole looked up at the blue shadow that was wrestling with the demons, these things only existed on the blueprints more than a decade ago, and the main force of the Purification Mechanism was still their group of Rangers.

"Yes, not only that, but we know more about demons...... I have seen the hope of eradicating the demons, and although this hope is still slim, it is much better than the previous era. ”

Arthur replied, hoping the news would make Cole feel better.

The rain of fire kept falling, and no one knew how long the scavengers would continue to baptize the land, and the corpses of the demons fell with burning fire, and the soldiers squeezed their bodies into the shadow of the bunkers as much as possible, in fact, these bunkers could not withstand the direct hits of these fire rains, and they could only pray that the fireworks of divine punishment would not fall on them.

Cole's heart was churning, and he knew what was going on without asking him more, and his emotions became extremely complicated, and finally he sighed helplessly.

At that time, he was eroded and corrupted by the attack of demons, and the last memory was lying on the operating table, listening to the whispers of the doctors, and when he regained his senses again and woke up, he was faced with this battlefield full of demons, as if two nightmares were connected together, spanning the years.

After a brief period of grief, Cole's eyes lit up, and although he was old on the outside, he was still young on the inside, and he was still on the battlefield.

"What about Merlin? I remember he was also admitted to the Black Mountain Hospital with me, is he still alive?"

"Merlin? he's gone...... No, no, he's in the hospital too, but he's not Merlin anymore, and William has a successor. ”

After all these years, the people Cole knew had either died or had been sealed away from the purge, and Arthur thought for a moment that he was referring to the current Merlin, but he quickly reacted.

"Is he still alive?" Cole became anxious.

"Yes, but like you, he's been eroded, and now he nibbles on whatever he sees. ”

Although it is ridiculous to say, Arthur can't help but feel sad when he thinks of William as he used to be.

"Where is he?"

"What are you going to do?" asked Arthur.

"We were cooperating with William in the experiment, I don't know what happened, but in the middle of the experiment, the demon erupted in the perpetual pump, I don't know why, but William said he found the truth...... You know everything next, the perpetual motion pump was hit hard, but fortunately the damage didn't spread. ”

Cole moved as he spoke, even though his body had begun to distort, and he still had to fulfill his unbroken duties.

More than ten years ago, there was a major disaster in the perpetual motion pump, when the previous Merlin, that is, William, was invaded by demons while conducting some kind of experiment, all the data were destroyed in the invasion, and the parties were also like Cole William, who were deeply eroded and became crazy.

Therefore, in the follow-up investigation, it was as if there was a hand of God playing with all this, and the purification agency could not find anything, so it could only seal the incident.

"I didn't know what was going on at the time, the disaster broke out so suddenly, and our defenses on the outside didn't encounter any enemy at all...... It was as if the demons had appeared out of thin air in the Perpetual Pump, and William knew what had happened, and if I could have come to my senses, he might have sobered up too. ”

Listening to Cole's words, Arthur's gaze quickly swept over the scorched battlefield.

William, William, where are you?

In the midst of this fierce battle, they simply had no strength left to protect these patients, and Arthur couldn't help but shout anxiously.

"Did anyone see William?"

He was greeted by a pair of confused eyes, they didn't know who William was, and even if they knew, in this case, who cared about a madman who saw something and gnawed something?

Arthur's heart was a little lost for a while, there were many reasons why the Ranger program was stopped at the beginning, the perpetual motion pump was hit hard, and the current Merlin became a madman was also one of the reasons, but due to the complexity of the mystery of the incident, this matter was concealed by the purification agency.

It felt terrible, terrible, and Arthur felt as if he wanted to touch the truth of the past, but then passed by it......

"He's in Safe House No. 2!"

Someone shouted at this moment of loss.

Eve hid under the walls of three generations of armor, slashing and slashing the approaching demons with the others, and when she heard Arthur's roar, she shouted towards the other end of the rain curtain.

"This guy doesn't know how to catch ghosts at all! he just knows how to gnaw things, so I'll lock him in a safe house...... Maybe...... Maybe he just survived?"

Eve shouted, unlike the robin, who knew the cruelty, Eve still couldn't accept the cruelty, so she finally ran back to save Arthur, and organized the sick to play ghost hunting, she just hoped that more people would survive.

Arthur listened to Eve's shout, looked at her deeply, and then rushed into the research area without looking back, shouting at the same time.

"Kestrels, now the command is handed over to you!"

"Huh, me?"

The kestrel slashed the demon with a single sword, and although the sound of the explosion was mixed with the sound of wind and rain, Arthur's words still reached his ears clearly.

I never thought that the promotion and fortune were actually today, this hellish day, the kestrel was happy and sad.

But there was no chance for them to question Arthur, and when they looked at Arthur, he had disappeared behind the rain curtain with the patients who had come to their senses.

......

At first, Arthur was ready to lead the team back to the research area after realizing that the lifting area could not be evacuated, but he gave up this idea at the thought of being caught in the interior by the demons, after all, staying in the lifting area, they had enough vision to fight the demons with the original sin armor.

The group ran wild in the darkness, and in fact there were not many patients who had recovered their senses due to the erosion, but it was certain that they had all been rangers.

Demons, demons everywhere.

After emptying the thermite rifle, Arthur could only use the folding knife in his hand, and although it had been so long, the cooperation between the two was still very tacit.

There was no room for them to hide in this narrow passage, and there was no way to retreat, they were like a spear cast of iron, trying to penetrate everything all the way, nothing could stop them, and when they stopped, it was also when the spear broke.

"How is the development of the purification mechanism?"

As he struggles forward, Cole asks from time to time, curious about this "futuristic" world.

"It's not bad, the original sin armor has been developed to the third generation, most of it is supported by machinery, not demon flesh and blood, as long as it is given to us for a while, we can make a torrent of steel, and the demons will be defeated under our fire, and a better era is coming. ”

Arthur said loudly.

"We Rangers are relics of the old days, though there is a chance that they will shine again...... But we're not the main characters anymore, and that's not bad, is it?"

This is the inheritance of mankind, the change of history, the older generation is sleeping, and the young people are coming to the forefront.

The view was obscured by the blood, and Arthur wiped his face vigorously, the liquid mixed with blood and water was wiped away by him, and it was not clear if it was the blood of the demon or his own.

He swung his sword much slower, and he had been able to cut off the demon's head with a single blow, but now he had to slash it several times.

Arthur was tired.

In fact, not long ago, he felt that he was going to die, but then he was rescued by Eve, who was killed, and it was actually quite a strange feeling at the time, the child he had been trying to protect, I don't know when he had grown up, she could not only protect herself, but also Arthur.

"It's really good, that's her child, I didn't expect it to grow so big. Cole said.

"yes, I didn't expect her to grow up unharmed, certainly not unharmed, but at least she's alive and full of energy. ”

Thinking back to the crimson figure, Arthur laughed helplessly, and then Cole laughed with him.

Screams and screams continued, their impromptu action was almost death, the dim corridor kept shaking, and no one knew how many demons were still peeking at them in the shadows of the research area.

As the team progressed, there were already casualties, and in addition to those killed by the demons, there were also those who had straggled.

They are patients, patients corrupted by erosion, and many years ago the doctors helped them stop the spread of erosion, but now, many years later, they are once again confronted by demons.

The erosion that had been stagnant for a long time intensified again, and although it was not said, everyone could feel it more or less, and the cold erosion was like an invisible vine wrapping around their bodies little by little.

Some people seemed to have a premonition of the coming erosion, and before they completely alienated into demons, they silently stopped, and instead rushed towards the demons that were surging behind them, dying as human beings.

And just like that, one after another stragglers left.

"We're almost there...... There was safe house number two in front of us, and hopefully the door was closed, or William might have been gnawed clean. ”

Arthur spoke light-heartedly, he rarely did.

Running and running, Arthur slowly stopped, he was panting against the wall with his folding knife.

"Are you alright?" Cole asked.

The voice echoed through the long space, and when I turned my head, I didn't know when they were the only ones left in the dimly lit corridor.

"There's safe house number two ahead, make sure William is safe, and then close it, the people outside attract demons, maybe he can survive this way. ”

Arthur said weakly, he was already tired, and at the same time there was the sound of hurried footsteps behind him, and the surging blood.

"I need to take a break. ”

He coughed hard, since the outbreak of the demon tide, Arthur has been fighting at a high level, the strength of the rangers has a price, and he is no longer young, his flesh is covered with wounds after these battles, and his will is also bombarded by this heavy erosion.

Cole was silent, of course he wouldn't believe Arthur's, there was only one result of resting in this kind of ghost place, being torn to pieces by the demons who followed, but he also knew that Arthur didn't want to admit defeat like this, he didn't want to say anything like that he couldn't run, saying it was admitting his failure, he didn't want to admit defeat to the demons, so he insisted until now.

"Ah...... It hadn't been long since I woke up, but it felt terrible, Arthur. ”

Cole said as he took Arthur's shoulders and dragged him forward.

"When I woke up, I found that I had been crazy for so many years, and all the good years were lying in a hospital bed...... It felt like waking up to a different world, panic and confusion, not to mention finding that the erosion was getting worse as soon as I woke up.

I woke up and was going to die again, which was too bad. ”

Cole said as he looked at Arthur's bloodied face, then laughed.

"Of course, it's even worse for you, who wake up to find that your familiar friend has become a bad old man. ”

"I'm really sorry about that...... Let me go, Cole, and make sure William is alive or dead, and come back to me. Arthur whispered.

"But I'm also very happy, when I woke up, the purification mechanism still exists, and it has not been destroyed by demons, but it has become more and more comprehensive about demons, which is really good, and you have not lost motivation due to aging. ”

Cole didn't pay any attention to Arthur's words, just said to himself.

"Actually, I was quite scared just now, after all, William has gone crazy, and no one knows if he is alive in this situation, so I choose to go to him at this time, and risk death for the information that may not be obtained...... I was scared that you would refuse the offer, but you moved and came with me to him, and you didn't think about the consequences of your death, did you?"

"It's wonderful, Arthur, that time has not made you timid, but braver. ”

"Are you speaking your last words?"

Arthur asked, with some strength.

It's a great place to tell the last words, like some tragic hero,

Arthur faltered, his consciousness became confused, and he felt that the corridor under his feet was so long that there was almost no end, and the second safe house that the two of them wanted to reach was like a holy place out of reach.

"Sort of, after all, I've been eroded, and it's only a matter of time before I become a demon. ”

Perhaps due to erosion and alienation, Cole was full of power at the moment, Arthur was dragged by him like a cargo, and his other distorted hand firmly grasped the folding knife, slashing the demons at will.

"Arthur, listen to me, during the time I was eroded, when I was living like a walking corpse, ignorant...... I don't know how to describe it...... I...... I seemed to be stuck in one place. ”

Cole shouted loudly, he didn't know how much Arthur could hear, he could only raise the volume as much as he could.

Human beings know too little about demons, and because of the erosion, a lot of knowledge is difficult to be continued, everyone can die, but before death, they must pass on that precious information.

It's an unknowable world, and they're seekers of knowledge who don't fear death.

"What did you say?"

Arthur turned his head slightly, and when he heard Cole's words, he gritted his teeth and sobered up a little.

Looking at Cole, who suddenly became excited, an indescribable power surged in his body, and the ashes that had been burned out ignited a flickering fire after many years.

"Remember what William said? Their alchemists think that the end of darkness, the end of human consciousness, is a kind of place called [gap].

For all these years, I seemed to be trapped in that place called [Gap], I didn't feel hungry or tired, I didn't die or get hurt, I was trapped in a scene I had seen in my memory, and I couldn't go in any direction.

It's like ......"

"The border, the border of hell. ”

Arthur said slowly, listening to Cole's words, his mind froze for a moment, as if there was no longer any fear to speak of.

This is what the Gospels say, and there is an expansive area between the world of the living and the world of the dead, which is called the border of hell.

I don't know if it's a coincidence or what, thinking back on all the crazy years, Cole feels as if he's been wandering around a place that resembles the border of hell, or a place called "gap".

"That's probably it, I don't know what's going on, but with the regulations of the purification agency, as long as there is anything suspicious, you have to report it, right?"

Cole's voice was muffled, and Arthur looked into his face, the cyan veins bulging beneath it, hideous.

"You need to live, Arthur, only you know this, you need to pass on this precious information, even if you want to die, wait until you tell these things to the later ones before you die, and I ...... I should have been left behind here. ”

Cole let go of Arthur as he spoke, and threw him to the cold, solid ground, Arthur didn't have time to say anything, and Cole left, struggling to his feet with his folding knife, but all that was left was the sound of footsteps moving away.

Arthur was tempted to scold Cole, he didn't have the strength to fight, but Cole left himself in this place, and Arthur didn't know if he could get to Safe House 2.

He tried to walk, but his tired body could not move any further, and great despair hung over him, but then Arthur seemed to notice something, and he looked up, and the huge iron door was close at hand.