Mission 1 Mysterious Man in Red

This is a dream. Nero kept telling himself, but he trembled uncontrollably.

... In front of us is a scene that can only be seen in hell: scarlet flames emerge from the dry soil, magma surging in the river, and every surging bubble rupture is a small volcanic eruption, sounding like a devil laughing wantonly. Looking up, the blood-red sky was unpredictable and unpredictable. The hot storm swept the fire and rain and danced wildly on the lifeless scorched earth... Nero in the dream struggled to move forward. He seemed to know the dream before, but he didn't remember what he was going to do. He only knew that if he climbed the hill full of corpses, he would see it. ......

......Jiliye!!

On the other side of the hill, the delicate girl in white staggered in the boiling mud, and the flame climbed up from the skirt and suddenly lit her whole body. The distant figure, as if feeling something, slowly turned to him and his lips moved...

Nero couldn't hear what she was saying, but subconsciously stretched out his hand to the girl in the distance to take her away from the flames.

But the right hand suddenly felt wrong, as if there were countless angry beasts twisting crazily in it, trying to break free from the cage.

He turned his head and took a look...

The huge claws that clearly glowed blue and white like a plasma body, lifting a scorching tornado and rushing towards her!

Jiliye's frightened cry was annihilated in the roar of the storm...

The white figure disappeared, and there was only the last wisp of Mars and ashes left where she had just stood, and was swept away in an instant...

The powerful fear tore open the gap between the two worlds and pulled him out of the nightmare. Nero woke up in a cold sweat and looked around in confusion. For a long time, he couldn't figure out where he was.

Since his body changed, he often had nightmares. Every time, it's like this.

But it's worse today. Before his mind recovered from the almost cracked pain, a few long bells in the distance began to hit his nerves.

"Uh..." Nero hugged his head and moaned, but instantly realized a more deadly problem than a headache.

It was the bell that called everyone to go to Mass on Sunday morning.

A few minutes later, Ji Liye will stand in the center of the cathedral and sing her song of pity.

Nero immediately forgot everything. In front of him, only she showed an expression when he saw his empty seat. He immediately regretted that he slept in an abandoned building after sneaking out of the city last night and did not go back overnight.

He grabbed his coat, crashed into the window, jumped down, and ran with all his strength.

The bright morning light illuminates the dilapidated buildings, giving the long-abandoned neighborhood a trace of vitality. The dusty window reflects the figure of the silver-haired boy passing by, as if the soulless spirit opened its eyes and stared at the galloping guy. In front of you, the Goth spire of Futina Cathedral is magnificent in the morning sun.

It's not as far as estimated. Nero's face finally showed his first smile today. I will probably miss the beginning, but I will definitely arrive before she finishes singing. Unfortunately, his right hand is still fixed in plaster on his chest, otherwise he can still give a round of applause. He touched the left coat pocket again to make sure that what was inside had not been lost on his way. That's a gift for Ji Liye. If it hadn't been for this, it wouldn't have been so hard to sneak out of the city.

Probably the sound of running footsteps was too noisy in the empty ruins, and groups of monster-shaped twisted figures began to swing back and forth at the end of the street. By the way, it's also good to use low-level monsters to do morning exercises to relax muscles and bones. As soon as he was excited, he launched an irresistible assault on opponents who were not opponents at all. The fists and feet were staggered, and the long-lone ruins ushered in a lively morning.

Since the age of 12, Juliet must offer a mass for the Pope every Sunday at the Futina Cathedral, and this time is no exception. However, today is still her 25th birthday. The bell has rang, and the low whisper has receded like a tide. She walked to the circular stage in the center of the church and bathed in the colorful and soft sunlight reflected by the colorful rose windows. Behind him is a stone statue of the savior with a height of more than 20 meters, with two horns, arms across the front chest, and standing with swords together.

In the face of thousands of congregations who came to attend Mass, she has long been accustomed to it, but she is still a little uneasy today. Maybe it's because the seat is still empty.

Ji Liye turned her head slightly, and the serene and solemn look of the stone statue came into her eyes, which calmed her down a little. She took a deep breath, and the song as clear as a spring began to echo between the magnificent dome and columns of the cathedral.

Nero will definitely come.

Although he has used all possible body language to express his boredom with religious rituals and contempt for the church itself, he still comes every time as long as there is no task. It's just that sometimes it's late, sometimes it leaves early, and sometimes it's both. The only thing that is absolutely good is Ji Liye's singing.

At this moment, she should have been immersed in the inspiration of nature and the investment of detachment from the world, but she couldn't help but be distracted.

At the end of the last chorus part, she turned her eyes to that corner again... The sleepy-eyed guy with messy silver hair and too late to comb was already yawn there, and then smiled at herself.

She sang the perfect ending treble with satisfaction, with lingering rhymes and applause sounded like rain.

"...Two thousand years ago, the Black Knight Sparta drew his sword and did not hesitate to meet his compatriots in order to save human beings in deep trouble. Although he succeeded in sealing the gate of hell, he could not escape death because he was also a demon. I believe that everyone here knows this legend of salvation. However, to this day, my Lord's noble dedication may have been left behind by most of our generation..."

The old pope's uniform preaching on the pulpit could be heard for less than five minutes, and Nero was like sitting on pins and needles, feeling uncomfortable. He turned the volume of MP3 to the point where everyone could be happy, and still couldn't help scratching his ears and cheeks, which was particularly eye-catching in the breathless crowd.

"Nero, come on, Credto will teach you a lesson again." Ji Liye quietly approached him. Nero looked up listlessly. Her brother, Creto, also his immediate superior, the head of the Magic Sword Knights, was standing on the side of the pulpit, staring at this side with frowns. And the believers beside him also looked dissatisfied at this time.

He deliberately put on the headset that had been pushed around his neck and stared back at the man. The other party hurriedly turned his face to avoid it. Cetto also turned his head with a "look" expression. Ji Liye did not find this brief tit-for-tat, and her attention was attracted by a small gift box that seemed to be thrown casually in the empty seat beside Nero - the sky-blue wrapping paper was wrinkled and she made a crooked bow with a light ribbon.

Imagining him clumsily fiddling with the scissor tape and wrapping it up, she laughed.

"Don't..." Nero's frustrated low roar was interrupted by Ji Liye's gentle expression.

"They said you left the city yesterday, but Creto told me that you didn't have a mission. Is it for this?"

"...ah." He raised his legs.

"But you..." She stopped talking and thought for a moment and whispered, "Thank you."

"..." The four words I really wanted to say couldn't come out of. Nero was speech for a moment, and Ji Liye clung to the gift and stopped talking. The atmosphere suddenly became strange.

"...If history repeats and the door connecting the two worlds of man and demons opens again, how will we, the weak human beings, resist our own fate of being enslaved?" The Pope's old voice continued, "Therefore, today, we gather together to pray for the future that is still in the dark: May the Almighty Lord bless our lost lambs at the end of chaos..."

"Let's pray!" He closed his eyes, and everyone did the same.

Nero was upset and got up and left regardless. Four faint whispers, quite a few words.

"It's not over yet," Ji Liye asked helplessly, "Can't we go together?"

"...I can't stand it anymore. You know this thing is simply hypnotic for me."

"But..." Before she finished her words, she suddenly found that his expression suddenly changed, and the second half was swallowed back.

...But today is my birthday.

Nero stared at his right arm wrapped in bandages and layers of plaster - at this moment, it suddenly faintly revealed a strange blue light, as if there was a cyan phosphorus fire burning inside.

No, not only that, but also the uncontrollable abnormal oppression: it's like there are a lot of brute wolves rushing in it, eager to break free from the confinement and rushing out... In an instant, the nightmare that had been put in front of my mind came to my face - scorched earth, flames, blue and white giant claws attacked the burning Ji Liye...

The whole world around him has disappeared, and every heartbeat is like a vibration that spreads all corners of his body.

He seemed to hear the beasts in his right arm screaming into the air, so he raised his head completely instinctively...

Above the Goth dome, the gorgeous rose window burst. Tens of millions of crystal debris are comparable to colorful showers, mixed with a figure falling from the sky, and the crimson dress dances and flips, like giant bat wings...

...beautifully set on the podium in front of the Pope.

The sound of fragments falling to the ground is like a jade plate, clear and light.

The man in red slowly raised his head. Nero was shocked that he seemed to be able to look at him through the Pope's eyes.

A pair of ice-blue eyes stared at him from the gap between his silver hair...

... sharp, cold and murderous.

The field of vision was completely occupied by the dark muzzle.

The fire flashed, the gunshot roared, and the sound waves entered the water like a boulder, echoing for a long time among the vertical columns.

The Pope's thin body was hit by a powerful impact and fell a few meters away.

In a thousandth of a second, Nero felt that it was himself who was shot. Consciousness extends indefinitely in front of death, time freezes, and everything is like a movie slow mirror.

In the church, the guards and the congregation are dumbfounded. The man in red turned around proudly, looked arrogant, and his eyes slowly swept over thousands of stunned and inexplicable audiences, and finally fell on Nero.

They looked at each other again.

In Nero's solidified spiritual world, the guy smiled silently, as if he was proud of a perfect gift.

His cheeks were splashed with blood, like a scarlet devil...