Falling into the Abyss

“Well, what are you doing sneaking around here?” A hand suddenly slapped Ethan on the back, and he almost jumped up. When he turned around, he saw Kim Ki-joon, who worked in the pipeline maintenance department with him. His old face looked blurry under the illumination of the spotlight, so he appeared like a ghost when Ethan looked at him.

Ethan’s thoughts started spinning in his mind as he pointed to the people on the bank who had begun to sing hymns in unison. “I heard about the sermon here, so I wanted to join.”

Kim Ki-joon had an unfathomable look on his face, and it was unknown whether he believed what Ethan had said. “Then why didn’t you head over?”

“……I wanted to listen to it first.”

Kim Ki-joon suddenly grinned and grabbed him by his shoulders before pushing him out and saying, “I’m to blame since I forgot to tell you about the gathering. I had thought that someone from the upper echelons like you would look down on these activities.”

Ethan was speechless. Being called ‘someone from the upper echelon’ was not a good thing in the Forbidden City.

“Teacher, we’re going to have a new member!” Kim Ki-joon yelled.

Chen Zeng’s eyes immediately fell on Ethan, and he showed a sincere and happy smile. “So it’s you, long time no see!”

Perhaps it was rare to see their teacher be so familiar to someone and even greet them, but the nonhumans’ gazes all turned towards Ethan. Ethan felt the pressure of their disbelieving gazes pressing down on him, but he had to smile, speaking with slight formality, “Yes, long time no see.”

Chen Zeng jumped down from the big stone where he was giving the sermon and strode over to Ethan. He patted Ethan on the shoulder and gestured like an elder. “It was all thanks to you the last time that we were able to escape from Red Earth successfully. I haven’t had time to express our thanks to you. How’s Samuel recently?”

Ethan remembered that he did not have much contact with the cult leader on Red Earth. Now that he was suddenly so kind to Ethan, he was at a loss. He had to reply politely, “He’s fine. Thank you for your concern.”

Chen Zeng suddenly patted him on the back and turned to all the nonhumans in front of him, saying, “This person, Ethan Eldridge, was one of the seven people who saw the Great Evil God along with me. In the face of powerful evil that was simply unimaginable, he once voluntarily sacrificed himself. However, his kindness and strong faith caused a miracle to descend upon him. He successfully drove back the Great Evil God temporarily, giving us a chance to escape. Such courage and faith should serve as an example to all of us here!”

Whenever someone mentioned the parallel universe, Ethan’s heart would tremble. In the face of the numerous pairs of eyes that were suppressing their fanaticism, he suddenly returned to the time when he stood in the gradually disintegrating ship, despised by everyone. After a moment’s hesitation, he gave a very concise description of how that universe’s laws had slightly infected the space station. He omitted the part where he was thrown out by other nonhumans, as well as Tanisiel’s involvement. The nonhumans showed expressions of shock as he narrated the events, and endless exclamations could be heard.

Finally, Ethan left early on the pretext that he was not feeling well. Walking alone along the dark, winding waterway, he felt that his skin had become increasingly dry and itchy as it spread from the back of his neck to his shoulder blades. When he reached back, he felt a few bumps on his skin with a moss-like texture. He sighed impatiently, thinking about how he had never developed such ailments previously. Could it be that there were some bacteria in the dirty sewer?

After climbing out of the sewer, he went to the building to return the tools. He originally planned to go to the clinic and queue up to see what had happened to the skin on the back of his neck. However, the guard responsible for registering patients told him to report to the Eastern Area’s security hall. They said that one of the members of the Forbidden City Council had come to see him. Although the Council was named ‘Forbidden City’, the members of the committee were like gods to the nonhumans—the nonhumans only heard their names but never saw those people. They were the ones who set the nonhumans’ resting time and relevant regulations in the Forbidden City. The score of each atonement mission, and even which nonhuman joined which missions, were decided by them.

Naturally, for those people to ask to see him felt very suspicious.

Ethan anxiously arrived at the security hall, the tallest and most solemn-looking rectangular building in the Forbidden City. After a series of careful checks, he was even taken to a small room to strip and be subjected to security scans before he was allowed to enter. Ethan was already used to it. Now, even if he took off his clothes and stood before the mocking eyes of the guards, he would only blush slightly at most and would not feel very ashamed. Then, he was taken in front of two very retro-looking oak doors. The guard who led the way knocked on the door and announced in a very respectful voice, “Eldridge has been brought here.”

From behind the door came a very majestic voice, “Enter.”

Although the hall behind the door was beautifully decorated, the furnishings were simple. It seemed that people did not use it often. In the middle of the wall, as always, there was a portrait of President Appiah. It was a genuine oil painting, not a digital oil painting projected on the wall. Under the huge painting was a long black wooden desk, flanked on both sides by armchairs that were currently occupied.

Ethan saw Tanisiel sitting on the right side of the office, and felt his heart skip a beat.

Although Ethan remained expressionless, his brain seemed to suddenly fill with countless bubbles, causing his sight to look blurred and surreal. All his attention was momentarily drawn to the priest’s body, and he didn’t notice that Sergeant Schneider and Gray Fur were sitting in chairs to the side.

At this time, an Alpha who appeared about 70 or 80 years old tapped on the desk with his knuckles. He had sparse white hair and a neat beard, and although his face was full of wrinkles, they were contrasted by the cold and stern look in his blue eyes. It could be seen that he was a person who would not ‘be easy to deal with’.

He stared at Ethan with a cold, distant look before opening his mouth to speak slowly, “I’m Charlie Hopkin, the chairman of the Forbidden City Council.”

Ethan nodded, looking down to show humility and obedience as he greeted, “Mr. Hopkin.”

His attitude seemed to be well-received by Hopkin. Although his thin lips were still tightly pursed, his body was already leaning back into the soft and wide chair, and he played with a pen in his hand. “I called you today because there is a long-term mission for you. I think the priest Tanisiel has already mentioned something to you, and you should know more than I do, due to your former job and the charges you carry.” He paused to look at Ethan’s face clearly before continuing, “Project Zero has now been downgraded to the joint responsibility of the Energy Bureau and the Eve’s ambassador Tanisiel, who has declared that he needs your help. From this moment onwards, you will go to Mars for a few days every month to assist him in the necessary research work. Do you have any objection to that?”

Ethan’s heart thumped vigorously within his chest. He shook his head a little too quickly as he replied, “No.”

“Very good.” Hopkin uncapped his pen and wrote something on a piece of rare white paper without lifting his head. “But before that, we need to ask you in detail about what happened before you entered the Forbidden City. Especially your relationship with Roland Goering.”

Suddenly hearing the name that he thought would only appear in his nightmares, Ethan’s body stiffened, and he raised his head with a perplexed look. “Why are you asking this?”

“Because according to your history and the record of the increases and decreases in your moral value, you had always been an excellent assistant secretary who was on guard and considerate before you met that person. Your colleagues and your boss gave a good evaluation of you. However, after this person appeared, you seem to have abandoned all your previous values and moral views and began to develop impulsive behaviors, such as driving a spaceship after drinking, running red lights, arguing with others in public places, and even fighting with others, which are quite inconsistent with your early behavioral characteristics. These moments all led up to until you finally betrayed the country. We don’t trust traitors, but the priest Tanisiel has insisted on you, so all we can do is make sure you don’t get a chance to make the same mistake.”

“The same mistake……ha……” Ethan’s trembling and cautious expression gradually faded away. “I don’t even count as a human now. How would I have a chance to betray the nation again?”

“That’s not my concern. I just need a complete account of your interaction with that agent Roland.” Hopkin took out an information capsule, before turning on the recording device and rapping the table again with his knuckle. “So, let’s get started.”

Ethan hesitated.

He didn’t want to reveal those memories. He just wanted to bury that past year in his subconscious, never to recall it again. He shook his head and asked, “If I don’t say it, then I will have to forgo the mission, right?”

However, Hopkin laughed sarcastically and said slowly, “Eldridge, you have no choice. All we need is a Heavenbounder’s lineage. If you don’t cooperate, then your mother who is struggling on the edge of life and death is also a good choice.”

Ethan’s eyes suddenly widened. He could not believe that the other party would threaten him with his parents. “What do you mean? She is not a nonhuman!”

“Indeed, she’s not. But if she heard that giving a little blood might allow you to receive 10 points, do you think she would accept?”

Ethan’s lips trembled and he glanced at Tanisiel. The pair of green eyes caused Tanisiel to be a bit distracted, and it was unclear whether Ethan was pleading for his help.

However, Tanisiel remained smiling, and said nothing.

It was as Ethan had expected, but an inexplicable grievance still burst in his heart. Ethan bit hard on his inner lip, until he tasted blood on the tip of his tongue. He clenched his fist and steeled himself.

Just think of it as a story. Just treat it as telling a story that has nothing to do with yourself.

”My first meeting with him occured when I took over for the director, who was unable to attend because the State Council called him in. He was supposed to receive several researchers who were cooperating with us from the Third Empire, who specialized in the field of energy. Roland Goering was one of them. I didn’t know his real name until now……” Ethan said, with a bitter sneer, as if mocking himself, “I showed them around the Energy Bureau, and accompanied them to the apartments that were prepared for them. When I finished my day’s work and said goodbye to them, Roland asked me if I wanted to go out for a drink with him.”

Only Ethan knew how simple the language was using to narrate was, and how it paled in comparison to his memories.

He still remembered vividly how amazed he was when he first saw Roland. He had been in a daze for five seconds, causing the other researchers to feel a little embarrassed.

It was not the first or second time that Ethan had taken the director’s place to receive foreign guests. However, this was the first time that he has been so disrespectful. The man perfectly conformed to all of the characteristics of the perfect man from Ethan’s imagination. He was a tall and vigorous Alpha, with an elegant and steady gait and thick and soft black hair. His handsomeness contained a trace of uninhibitedness on his face, with a pair of violet eyes that seemed capable of emitting electricity.

That man’s voice was perfect, a bass tone capable of piercing people’s hearts. In the words of many Omegas, it was a voice that would get you pregnant if you listened to it for a long time.

As the day rapidly passed by, Ethan’s explanations had seemed a little nervous, and he occasionally stuttered, causing him to laugh at himself in embarrassment. However, Roland never sneered at him. He simply followed him, listening attentively to his speech, with his piercing blue eyes staring at him. Ethan was not a child without dating experience. Although he had never been with an Alpha, he had never acted so confused in his two relationships with an Omega and a Beta. He was just like a teenager who had suddenly met his ideal lover.

So, it could be imagined that when Roland stopped him when he was about to leave and invited him to go out at night, his heart was so excited that it seemed that there were thousands of colorful fountains bursting into the sky, joined by melodious music. However, Ethan maintained his self-control and calmly agreed.

In retrospect, when Roland had probably planned it after seeing the ridiculous surprise and infatuation in his eyes during the first time they met. He would weave a beautiful net for Ethan that he couldn’t refuse, allowing him to abandon everything he once insisted upon willingly.