Stern almost stormed into the underground station, and upon entering he saw Illari still fiddling with those poppets, while Bloren was leisurely sitting on the sofa, wiping a dagger in his hand.
Suppressing his anger, Stern asked, "Why did you send Abigail to contact Prometheus so soon? We haven't even formulated a complete plan! It's too risky!"
Bloren casually raised his eyes, his expression inscrutable:
"I have my considerations, Rolando. Timing waits for no one, and we don't have much time left."
"Considerations? What considerations?"
Stern stepped forward, urgently asking, "Those guys are all lunatics. Cooperating with them can never have a good outcome! The purpose of our organization is purification, to eliminate the threat of wizards, not to sit at the same table with greater evil!"
His voice echoed across the empty platform, carrying an almost hoarse tone.
The previously dormant poppets in the station seemed to be awakened and began moving, gazing at Stern.
"There, there, it's alright!" Illari hurriedly soothed, "Stern is not here to harm the leader, just stay put."
Most of the poppets slowly closed their eyes.
Bloren let out a cold laugh, slowly stood up, and said:
"Meaning? Evil?"
"Dumbledore and Grindelwald may have already joined forces. Vid Gray and his army of poppets could appear at any moment, and our external forces are being completely swept away by the IRS!"
"The survival of the organization is now a question, and you're still talking to me about good and evil? Rolando, the most important thing now is to keep the organization alive!"
"Do you think I don't know Prometheus are madmen? But they have money and resources, they can even influence the actions of the IRS! We need them!"
"But…" Stern's face turned pale, still unwilling to give up, "We could weather these crises by laying low for a while! Considering Prometheus's actions, I think..."
"Rolando Stern!"
Bloren suddenly said harshly, seeing Stern's voice cut off, and then asked softly:
"I'm really confused, Rolando... when Cassius Thorne was leading, you always obeyed his stupid orders. Why do you repeatedly question my decisions now that it's me?"
"Tell me," he said with cold eyes, "where does your stance truly lie?"
"I..."
Stern felt a chill running up his back, unsure if it was disappointment or fear, and his voice trembled:
"My stance... is certainly for the organization!"
"For the organization?"
Bloren let out a short, cold scoff:
"I've always been puzzled, Rolando... You have the blood of a true wizard flowing in you, why do you hate your own kind so much?"
The color drained from Stern's face, as if an invisible fist had struck his abdomen.
"I've said before..." Stern's voice was dry and hoarse, "it was wizards... who killed my mother."
"Yes, but don't Muggles kill people too?"
Bloren hit the nail on the head:
"You have magic and intellect, but instead of seeking revenge on the wizard who killed your mother, you think all wizards deserve to die..."
He mocked, "And yet you accuse me—the one who collaborates with Prometheus, who experiments on wizards—as wrong?"
The words were like salt, sprinkled on Stern's never-healed wound, instinctively causing him to take a step back, fingers curling unconsciously.
In that moment, his fervor, his persistence, were shattered, leaving only a bare, unhidden embarrassment and pain.
Only a once-close friend knows how to strike his weak point with a sentence, bringing him the greatest pain.
Seeing this, the suspicion and anger on Bloren's face slightly retracted, reverting to a touch of coldness, sitting back down.
"Stopping me now is meaningless, Rolando." Bloren said leisurely, "To tell you the truth—the cooperation has in fact already begun."
Stern suddenly raised his head, instinctively refuting, "Serra just left to make contact, didn't she?"
Before the words were out of his mouth, he saw the meaningful cold smile on Bloren's lips, and a terrifying thought instantly emerged in his mind.
"You..." he trembled, "You deceived Serra... She wasn't going to inquire about cooperation intentions; she herself was the 'sincerity' you gave to Prometheus?!"
Bloren did not answer, but seeing his expression, Stern already knew the answer.
He didn't bother to say another word, immediately turned around, and was about to rush out to stop Serra Abigail from leaving the base.
However, at that moment, Bloren's icy voice came from behind:
"Rolando, you really are the most hypocritical person I've ever seen."
Stern's footsteps abruptly stopped, turning to look in shock at his former friend.
Bloren supported his chin with his hand, his voice like a poisoned dagger:
"It was you who personally told me, Serra can't be trusted. You said she's often absent-minded since leaving the training base, likely her memory is recovering."
Stern gripped his fists tightly.
"It was also you..." Bloren continued, "who repeatedly emphasized to me that to completely eliminate wizards and magic, we should use any means necessary."
Under his gaze, Stern unconsciously stepped back another half step.
"But now," Bloren mocked, "you want to stop me because I really used any means necessary!"
His other hand dangled a real dagger, suddenly, the tip pointed at Stern's throat across the air.
"Tell me, Stern—"
Bloren slowly said, "—what do you really want?"
…
Stern sat beside the soon-to-be extinguished furnace, Bloren's questioning echoed like a magic spell in his mind.
"—What do you really want?"
He clasped his hands tightly, his expression pained, in his mind, his mother's mad face flashed over and over.
"Stern... Mr. Stern?"
A freckled girl with a ponytail hesitantly stood at the door, quietly asking:
"I heard that Teacher Abigail went on an important mission, can I... can I go along?"
Her face was full of anticipation and enthusiasm, "I also want to contribute to the organization; I've mastered many magic spells already!"
"No!"
Stern said loudly, his voice exceptionally loud and sharp.
The girl was startled, looking at him in confusion.
Stern closed his eyes, saying tiredly:
"Abigail's mission is very dangerous, you haven't graduated yet, you can't participate."
"However... you can help me ask a question..."
He looked at the girl's confused face, said word by word, "She left in too much of a hurry, didn't bring the item they wanted, how can they trust the organization's sincerity?"
Whether she understood or not, the girl nodded vaguely, then ran off like a rabbit.
Listening to the footsteps fading away, Stern bent down powerlessly and buried his face in his hands.