The alarms in the medical bay were still echoing shrilly.
Former comrades, now reduced to puppets controlled by the crimson Spinebugs, roared as they lunged forward.
Suppressing his shock, Marc charged forward, brandishing his dagger. He couldn't kill them; they were his comrades!
Therefore, he had to be fast and precise. He had to detach them!
The dagger bypassed their vital torsos, slashing accurately at the nerve bundles connecting the Spinebugs to the hosts' napes.
*Slash!*
Sparks flew. A Hunter's body suddenly stiffened and fell straight down. The monster on his back let out a sharp shriek and shriveled up.
Marc dodged another puppet's claw strike with a sidestep and delivered a backhand slash, severing another writhing crimson tentacle.
The battle raged in the narrow corridor. The other Hunters coordinated flawlessly, striking down and restraining their parasitized companions one by one.
Only one was left.
As if sensing its impending doom, the Spinebug struggled frantically within its host. Its dying appendage blurred into a bloody afterimage, thrusting viciously at Marc.
Marc raised his blade to block, slicing the tentacle in half.
However, a broken spike still tore through his combat suit, piercing deeply into his arm.
*Squelch!*
Agony flared, and Marc let out a muffled groan.
His mind buzzed violently as countless bizarre and dazzling images exploded within his head.
He saw a colorful fungal carpet heaving like a breathing chest; he saw massive vines erupting from the ground, blooming with magnificent flowers of life; he saw countless creatures being born, evolving, and coexisting in this world brimming with life energy.
A vast, ancient consciousness whispered in his mind.
'This is not a graveyard; it is the cradle of life.'
"Marc!"
An anxious cry yanked him back to reality.
Ran Bing rushed over. Ignoring the blood and grime covering him, she hugged him tightly. Her body was trembling slightly.
Marc stiffened. The intense pain in his arm and the lingering illusions in his mind left him dizzy. All he could feel was the warmth and fear radiating from the girl in his arms.
The surrounding Hunters stopped what they were doing. Watching this scene, a knowing smile touched their exhausted faces.
"What a touching scene, Captain Marc."
An untimely, mocking round of applause rang out.
Charles parted the crowd and walked out, clapping his hands. Behind him followed a squad of heavily armed Law Enforcement Guards.
The smile on his lips was cruel and gleeful.
"But you seem to have forgotten that the laws of the Lighthouse forbid any form of romantic love. You and Miss Ran Bing are openly defying the Lighthouse's ironclad rules!"
That single sentence instantly froze the recently eased atmosphere.
The gathered crowd and guards began to whisper among themselves. Their gazes swiftly shifted from admiration to scrutiny and suspicion.
The "blasphemy" scandal that had just died down was instantly reignited by this accusation of "violating the law."
Ran Bing's face instantly turned deathly pale, and she hurriedly let go of Marc.
Looking at Charles's smug face and feeling the questioning stares around him, Marc subconsciously chose to uphold the set of rules he had always believed in.
He straightened his posture and declared, "It's not what you think! We are just ordinary teammates."
Those words were like an invisible blade plunging deep into Ran Bing's heart. She looked at Marc in disbelief, her body swaying slightly.
"Oh? Is that so."
Charles smiled in satisfaction. Feigning sudden realization, he took a step forward, his voice abruptly rising in pitch.
"Then that's perfect. I am here to announce a new 'Divine Oracle'!"
He spread his arms in a fanatical posture.
"So that the glory of the Lord of Light and Shadow may continue upon the Lighthouse, and for the future of humanity, the Lighthouse requires new life! Miss Ran Bing."
His gaze fell upon Ran Bing as he pronounced the Lord's oracle, "Due to your excellent genetics, you have been chosen by the Lord. Tonight, you will proceed to the Dawn Hall to carry out a Breeding Mission!"
Dawn Hall.
That name exploded like a clap of thunder in everyone's ears.
The entire hall fell dead silent.
Marc's head snapped up, staring at Charles in disbelief before whipping his gaze toward Ran Bing.
He saw the look in Ran Bing's eyes—a mix of shock and pleading.
"This is the Lord's decision, for the future of the Lighthouse," Charles said, relishing the twisted expression on Marc's face. He asked, enunciating every word, "Well? Captain Marc, do you... have any objections?"
This question forced Marc into a dead end.
On one side were the cold laws and the so-called "greater good"; on the other was the girl standing before him, who had shared life and death with him.
He saw Ran Bing's eyes lose their luster, her lips trembling as she tried to say something.
But he couldn't force the words out.
Rebel? In what name? In the name of the "ordinary teammate relationship" he had just personally denied?
He clenched his fists, his nails digging into his palms and bringing a sharp, piercing pain.
Finally, under the watchful eyes of the crowd and Charles's amused gaze, Marc squeezed out a few words through gritted teeth.
"...No objections."
He lowered his head, not daring to look at Ran Bing again.
"Complete your mission."
Ran Bing's body swayed violently. The last glimmer of light completely faded from her eyes.
She didn't cry, nor did she make a scene. She merely turned around numbly, not even sparing Marc another glance. Following the Adjudicators who stepped forward, she walked step by step toward the "graveyard" known as the Dawn Hall.
Ten thousand meters in the sky, Ian sat on his invisible throne and shook his head helplessly.
"Sigh, Marc, oh Marc, you really are a coward."
...
After Ran Bing was taken away, Charles's guards immediately surrounded him.
"Captain Marc, Lord Charles requests your presence to assist in the investigation of the Spinebug invasion."
Inside the Confinement Room, the cold metal walls reflected a glaring light.
Marc was locked in here all alone.
Charles's figure appeared behind the visitation window, his face bearing the hypocritical pity of a victor.
"Don't blame me, Marc. Who told you to get in my way? Besides, this is all for the Lighthouse. The laws must be obeyed."
He paused, shifting his tone as he threw out the real bait.
"Of course, the Lord is merciful. As long as you... are willing to let go of certain things that don't belong to you, such as giving up the position of City Lord."
"I can pray to the Lord for forgiveness, pardon your 'minor transgressions,' and even... allow you and Ran Bing to be together."
Marc didn't respond; he merely glared at him fixedly.
Charles chuckled and turned to leave.
The door to the Confinement Room slammed shut, cutting off the last sliver of light.
In the darkness, Ran Bing's despairing, hollow gaze from when she left continuously echoed in Marc's mind.
The "laws" he had always believed in, the "greater good" he had fought for—at this moment, they seemed so pale, so ridiculous.
He recalled every little moment of fighting side by side with Ran Bing in the wasteland, her absolute resolve when shielding him from attacks, and that warm embrace from just moments ago.
An emotion he had forcefully suppressed and hadn't even dared to acknowledge was like a volcano that had been dormant for ten thousand years. Finally, at this moment, it was about to welcome its most violent eruption.
His chest heaved violently. The wound on his arm, pierced by the Spinebug, began to emit waves of a strange, searing heat.