In that freezing vehicle, with her heart clenching in agony, Julia looked at Kyle. Her eyes were utterly devoid of any desire for cheap revenge. "I am not a pawn in your dirty war, Kyle," she said with unwavering resolve. "I won't sell my soul to overthrow one tyrant just to put another on the throne."
Julia returned to the Village of the Outcasts, dragging her feet like a defeated army. The moment she opened the cabin door and saw her mother, she collapsed into her arms, weeping with the bitter sting of betrayal. Her mother listened to the tragic tale, stroking her daughter's hair with deep sorrow. The mother's gaze drifted, drawn back to a buried past; a young man had once loved her deeply, but she had coldly broken his heart to marry Julia's father. Is fate punishing me through my daughter? she whispered inwardly, choking back a tear. Is my old debt being paid with her broken heart? But she quickly shook off the thought and gripped her daughter's hands tightly.
Meanwhile, in the capital, at the very top of Zoro's citadel, Jin entered his quarters. The place was as cold as a marble tomb. A burning tear froze in his eye as he stared at the corners of the room; he could almost see Julia's ghost running about, could almost hear her laughter echoing through the space. He leaned his head against the wall and whispered, torn apart: "What have I done? I shattered your heart to protect you from this dark world... This terrifying city is no place for you, but... will there ever be a place for us together in this universe?"
The sound of the sliding door interrupted his grief. Caroline walked in, elegantly dressed, and said with feigned coldness, "Congratulations on our marriage."
Jin didn't even bother to turn around. "Get out," he snapped sharply.
Caroline ignored his command. She walked calmly toward the massive glass window, gazing out at the dim city lights. Without thinking, she let slip words that changed everything: "You never change... You inherited your parents' stubbornness." The moment she realized what she had said, she gasped and quickly covered her mouth.
Jin spun around like a pouncing leopard, his eyes blazing with suspicion and fury. "Repeat what you just said! I inherited what? Do you know my parents?!"
Caroline tried to backtrack, feigning confusion. "Never mind me, I'm just rambling from exhaustion and stress."
But Jin gave her no chance to escape. He lunged at her, pinning her forcefully in the corner between his arms. He leaned in close to her face, threatening, "Who told you about them? Speak!"
At that exact moment, the suite door slid open slowly, and Kyle stood there. With a lightning-fast movement, he snapped a photo of the scene. The angle of the shot made it look as though Jin was in an intimate moment, passionately embracing Caroline.
Kyle hid his device and started a fight, saying maliciously, "Let her go, Jin! She doesn't want to tell you the bitter truth... the truth that you are just a bastard, and that your parents were murdered!"
Jin froze. He turned back to Caroline, completely ignoring Kyle. "Look at me! What did you mean when you said they were stubborn? Where did you hear that?"
Caroline replied in a tone she tried to make provocative to cover her slip: "I just wanted to provoke you! I don't even know who they are, why they were killed, or why they threw you away. All I know is that Zoro brought you in, took pity on you, and made you his right hand. But you are a traitor by nature... Betrayal runs in your blood!"
Jin kicked everyone out of the room with a furious shout. As they were leaving, Kyle leaned close to Caroline's ear and whispered so only she could hear: "Our meeting is after midnight... don't forget."
As soon as the door closed, Jin made a vow to himself. The era of blind obedience was over. He would turn this city upside down to uncover the truth about his parents, find out why Zoro had found him abandoned, and if they were murdered... he would find their killer.
Back in the wooden cabin at the Village of the Outcasts, the old communication device received an encrypted message. Julia's mother opened it, only to find a picture of Jin and Caroline in what appeared to be a highly intimate position. Her eyes flared with anger; she realized someone was intentionally trying to hurt her daughter.
Julia suddenly walked into the room and asked, "Mom, what are you holding?"
Swiftly, she snatched the device from her mother's hands. Her eyes glued to the screen. The scene tore through whatever was left of her heart. Her lover, the man she had sacrificed everything for, was trapping his wife in his arms in their room.
Julia boiled with fury and grief as her mother approached to console her. "He doesn't deserve you. He's just an obedient dog to the Machine System. What did you ever love about him?"
Julia stared into the void, tears filling her burning eyes. She replied in a voice that was faint, yet terrifying: "I felt... like we were meant for each other."
After midnight, in a deserted secret basement hidden from the cameras, Kyle and Caroline met with a group of rogue engineers. The discussion revolved around the "Biological Heart" of the Central System and the Mother Chip located deep beneath the capital, which granted Zoro his absolute control.
For underneath the capital lay Zoro's deepest secrets, buried underground in a mysterious vault that no one knew anything about.
Caroline spoke firmly: "I married Jin and didn't object solely to earn Zoro's blind trust. But that's not enough for him to send me beneath the capital. Zoro is the only one who has the clearance and the ability to cross the main tunnel."
One of the engineers chimed in, spreading an old digital map across the table. "According to these maps, there is another secret tunnel we can use to cross. But the problem lies at the 'Lion Doors'. Down there, the guards aren't robotic soldiers... they are genetically modified, starving biological lions that devour anyone who crosses their path."
Kyle asked in frustration, "What's the solution then? How do we kill them without leaving a trace that would alert Zoro?"
Suddenly, Kyle stopped talking. He sensed a slight movement in the dark corridor outside the room. He drew his weapon and approached cautiously, only to find a small cat sneaking between the pipes. Kyle shooed it away and returned to finish his conversation.
Little did they know that behind those twisting pipes, Dr. Aris stood frozen, holding his breath with extreme difficulty.
The doctor slipped away as quietly as a shadow, heading straight for Jin's suite. He entered the room to find Jin drowned in his dark thoughts.
The doctor asked him, "How are you, my son?" Jin answered bitterly, "I am no longer well, Doctor. I broke an innocent heart that truly loved me."
The doctor patted his shoulder affectionately. "Don't be so hard on yourself, Jin; you did it to protect her. She will understand one day, and you two will go back to the way you were. But right now... I have some heavy news for you."
The doctor recounted everything he had heard in the basement. Jin was astonished by the extent of Kyle's malice and Caroline's cunning, and immediately began plotting his next move. Dr. Aris smiled confidently and said, "Don't worry. I have an idea that you are going to love."
Early the next morning, before the sun even rose, Jin could no longer bear to stay away. He drove his vehicle in disguise toward the Village of the Outcasts. He stood in front of the cabin and knocked on the door eagerly.
Julia's mother opened the door, and without uttering a single word, she raised her hand and slapped him hard across the face.
She screamed in his face, "This is the price for what you did to my daughter! Mark my words, Jin, I will make you regret every single tear she shed!"
Jin held himself together, suppressing his anger, and asked with a trembling voice, "Where is Julia now? I need to talk to her."
The mother snapped back sharply, "You answer me! Where is my daughter? She left early this morning with Jax to meet you!"
Jin was stunned. His eyes widened in sheer terror. "To meet me?! I was in the City of Darkness! What is she planning? She never came to me!"
Jin didn't wait to hear another word. He sprinted to his vehicle and shot off like an arrow back to the capital, while the mother stood watching him leave, her heart gripped with terror over her daughter's fate.
Jin reached the gates of the City of Darkness and spotted Jax standing near the walls of the main citadel. He ran toward him, grabbing him by the collar, and yelled, "Where is Julia?! Why did she come back here?"
Jax replied, his face full of anxiety, "I don't know what she's planning this time, Jin! She went inside. Go after her before she gets herself killed!"
Jin sprinted through the citadel's corridors, his heart pounding like war drums, his breath quickening with fear of Zoro's wrath falling upon her. He dashed toward the main throne room, but as soon as he reached the doors, he froze in his tracks.
There, in the center of the hall, stood Julia. She was no longer the simple, broken girl from the Village of the Outcasts. She appeared as an entirely new entity; elegant, resolute, standing with unwavering courage and pride before Zoro, who sat upon his throne.
While Jin watched the scene in speechless shock, Julia spoke words that were heavier than mountains, in a voice that held not a single ounce of hesitation: "I want to join the Central System and receive the chip. I want to be one of your soldiers, sir."