Lin Gui led Elvia out of the antique shop.
The street outside remained deathly silent.
From the distance, occasional roars of demons drifted over—muffled sounds, as if separated by several layers of walls.
Lin Gui took a deep breath.
Now was not the time to relax.
He needed to get Elvia out of the Carter Royal Capital and beyond the radiation zone of the Dark Tide in the shortest time possible.
The historical record for the fastest start of the third phase of a Dark Tide was four days.
And from the Carter Royal Capital to the edge of the radiation zone, it would take at least two days by flying vessel.
That meant he had, at most, two days left.
The later they left, the higher the risk of running into the third phase.
Lin Gui was about to pull out the flying vessel from his robes.
Then he froze.
The street was packed with people.
They weren't knights.
They weren't soldiers.
They were commoners.
Refugees.
There were also some slightly more presentable merchants, and even a few pale-faced minor nobles.
They crowded the narrow street, extending from the entrance of the antique shop all the way to the corner.
A dense, dark mass of people.
No one spoke.
Everyone was staring at him.
And in their hands, they held letters.
Lin Gui's pupils constricted slightly.
He saw those letters.
Some of the stationery was brand new, the kind just bought from a shop.
Some of the paper was crumpled, like old items dug out from somewhere.
Some were simply scraps of cloth, with crooked characters written in charcoal.
They held those letters tightly.
Very tightly.
As if they were clutching at their last straw.
Lin Gui's gaze swept over the faces.
He saw familiar ones.
The young man who had handed him a steamed bun in the shanty town.
The woman who had been given the silk dress.
The old man who had shared the meat soup.
He even saw the faces of rebels to whom he had delivered letters before.
The flower girl.
And even more unfamiliar faces.
There were mothers holding children; the children were still small and didn't understand what was happening, merely looking around with curiosity.
There were old men leaning on canes, so unsteady they had to be supported by those beside them.
There were adventurers in worn leather armor, still carrying wounds, with blood seeping through their bandages.
There were women in heavy makeup, clearly from the cheap brothels of the lower district.
There was a butcher with a coarse face, his apron still stained with grease.
There was a scrawny youth, his eyes frighteningly bright.
They all looked at him.
They didn't speak.
They simply held their letters.
And watched Lin Gui.
Suddenly, the voice of Shadow Blade Lynn echoed in his mind.
"They don't have time to waste here."
Her tone was heavy.
"Now is not the time for you to be sentimental."
"If you don't want to die, leave immediately."
Lin Gui said nothing.
Shadow Blade Lynn continued:
"Do not forget the original plan."
"Once you find the person, leave immediately."
"Furthermore..."
She paused.
"It is impossible for these people to survive."
When she said this, her tone was not entirely certain.
Because a city-state that should have been wiped out during the first demon riot was still standing here perfectly fine.
Unscathed.
And the people who should have fled during the second phase—when the demons' desire to attack was nearly zero under the control of the Demigod—had been ordered by the King of Carter not to leave.
A bloody massacre had been carried out against those who did.
Crucially, there was that woman who even Shadow Blade Lynn felt was dangerous.
Catriona, the last Queen.
She showed no sense of urgency regarding the impending Dark Tide or the arrival of destruction.
Although Shadow Blade Lynn had lost her strength.
Her nature as a soul allowed her eyes to see the essence of souls—just like Lin Gui's Eyes of the Netherworld—and thus judge an opponent's strength.
Those knights clad in blood-red armor.
Shadow Blade Lynn could see at a glance that their strength was astonishing.
They even surpassed the dwarven warriors stationed in Shield City.
But she never believed they could withstand the impending trampling of the Demigod.
Forget them.
Even if all the powerhouses in all of Akara were gathered together.
They could not make a being who had stepped into the realm of the gods halt for even half a second.
Yet the other party was acting this way.
As if the Dark Tide did not exist.
They remained in the Carter Royal Capital.
And the most likely reason was...
The other party possessed the ability to evade the Dark Tide.
But Shadow Blade Lynn didn't know what it could possibly be.
So when she said "It is impossible for these people to survive."
There was a hint of hesitation in her voice that even she didn't notice.
Lin Gui stood in place.
Looking at the people holding letters.
Looking into those silent eyes.
He didn't move.
Elvia stood beside him, carefully tugging at his sleeve.
"Lin Gui..."
Her voice was very soft.
"Should we..."
Lin Gui didn't answer.
He just looked at those people.
Those hands.
Those letters.
Lin Gui sighed.
He couldn't refuse.
Because, if he hadn't accepted that letter commission that no one else was willing to take...
He would never have had the chance for revenge.
Instead, he would only have stayed in New Covenant City, silently waiting for death to arrive.
It was their expectations that had given Lin Gui hope.
He would not reject their anticipation.
Even if that anticipation might ultimately come to nothing.
Most of these commoners from the bottom of the Carter Royal Capital had relatives in the borderlands.
And now, the borderlands had become a paradise for demons.
This included his nominal hometown, New Covenant City.
These letters, carrying their last testaments, might ultimately have no one to sign for them.
But even so, Lin Gui would not refuse.
This was also the responsibility bestowed upon him by the Messenger System.
To convey thoughts, connecting city-states whose communications were nearly severed one by one.
Lin Gui took a step forward.
But he didn't face the commoners.
Instead, he turned around and looked at the antique shop behind him.
He looked at the golden figure still sitting in the rattan chair.
"Is it allowed?"
His voice was very flat.
Exporting letters also meant that the secrets behind the Carter Royal Capital might be spread by interested parties.
The greatest resistance to delivering the letters was the unknown force represented by Catriona.
Catriona did not reply.
She simply stood up.
She turned around.
And walked toward the backyard.
She left Lin Gui only with the sight of her back.
Before disappearing into the shadows.
Lin Gui didn't know what she meant.
He stood there dazed, unsure if this was permission or a refusal.
Just then.
The voice of a middle-aged man came from the alley at the side of the antique shop.
"It is allowed."
The voice was very deep.
"But the contents of the letters must be audited by us."
A scent of blood assailed his nostrils.
Lin Gui looked in the direction of the voice.
A few people walked out of the alley.
He recognized the one in the lead.
Count Caleb.
The High-tier Legendary assassin.
The man who had once warned him not to return to the Carter Royal Capital.
He was still wearing his dusty grey robes; his hair was white, and his face was resolute.
His body was clean.
There wasn't a single drop of blood on him.
But the assassins following behind him weren't so tidy.
They were covered in blood.
The robes of one had been largely torn away, revealing several claw marks across his chest that were deep enough to show bone.
The arm of another dangled at a strange angle, clearly broken.
The face of another was completely covered in blood and filth, making it impossible to see his features, leaving only his eyes shining bright.
They stood behind Caleb in silence.
Like a pack of evil ghosts that had just crawled off a battlefield.
Caleb looked at Lin Gui.
Within those eyes, the expression was strange and complex.
"I warned you not to return to the Carter Royal Capital."
He paused.
"I did not expect you to ultimately return after all."
"Back to this city-state destined for destruction."
"Furthermore, you even intend to deliver letters for them—send... their final testaments."
Since Caleb had agreed, the greatest obstacle had vanished.
Lin Gui said to the people around him, who were frightened by the appearance of Caleb and his men:
"Since Count Caleb has allowed it, I will deliver the letters for everyone."
Lin Gui's agreement brought looks of gratitude to the eyes of the hopeful people.
And at that moment.
The sound of a system mission triggering rang out.
[Ding! Hidden Commission updated!]
[Commission Name: Undeliverable Longings]
[Content: Deliver the letters from the residents of the Carter Royal Capital to the corresponding recipients.]
[Objective: Sign-off rate over 1%]
[Time Limit: None]
[Reward: Divine Artifact Fragment * 1]
(Note: Once you collect 5 fragments, you can synthesize one divine artifact.)
[Risk Warning: The Dark Tide is imminent, and the concentration of demons has already far exceeded expectations. It is suggested to begin the delivery of letters only after the Dark Tide has completely ended.]
Rate on N.U.
