The Gentleman at the End

Chapter 64: Chapter 63: Invitation to Assist

Yi Chen had seen countless false faces in his lifetime, even his seemingly ‘intimate’ playmates were always wearing a false mask.

If one couldn’t discern, they were doomed to become the lowest of beings.

That’s why,

when Yi Chen conversed with the old man in the sewers, he could perceive the false mask the other was wearing just from two sentences; it was too obvious, with no acting involved at all.

However,

the theater owner before him, though wearing a mask on the outside, was of a very pure essence.

There was nothing false in his words or deeds, similar to the innkeeper from Green Lake Town.

This was also the fundamental reason why Yi Chen decided to perform seriously,

as establishing a relationship with the ‘Moonfolk’ would be very beneficial for the progress of the mission.

Moreover, Yi Chen had also gleaned an important piece of information from the script they had just performed.

The main person in charge of Twilight Clinic—Doctor Macaul—was actually acquainted with ‘Moon Scar’… This information directly confirmed Yi Chen’s initial suspicion when he took on the mission, that the False Moon incident indeed had a connection with the clinic.

[Old John’s Theater], front hall bar.

The owner, transformed into a bartender, was mixing his specialty cocktail, ‘Witch and Monster,’ named after his favorite play.

Edmund and the others, being neutral with the ‘Patient’ for the first time, appeared somewhat reserved.

Only Yi Chen, holding the layered red and black cocktail, savored it carefully.

“Mr. John, before I ask for your help, I need to confirm some information.

In the play we just performed, what exactly is Doctor Macaul’s relationship with ‘Moon Scar’?”

“I’m not really sure about matters involving Lord Moon Scar.

I have fully expressed all that I know in the play, only aware that Lord Moon Scar seemed to be a special patient in the clinic at one time.

As for more specifics, I am also unclear.”

When the owner provided this key piece of information,

Edmund and the others were profoundly shocked, never expecting that the False Moon incident really had an association with the clinic… Their admiration and reverence for the noble profession of the [Doctor] suffered a certain blow.

At this moment, Edmund interjected,

“When the False Moon incident broke out, you were still in the early stages of infection, not even possessing independent consciousness… how did you come to know the association between Open Source patients and the clinic?”

“Whether you believe it or not is up to you… These pieces of information were just gleaned when I looked directly at the moon, peering into some of Lord Moon Scar’s past experiences.”

At this time, sitting at the far end of the bar, Dagbert, who rarely spoke, offered his thoughts.

“The organization’s reason for classifying the ‘False Moon incident’ as confidential could relate to the disgraceful acts behind it, which are contrary to gentlemanly conduct.

The data shown to us had also been edited, purposely concealing the clinic’s issues.”

This statement gave Yi Chen a mental stimulus, following up with Dagbert’s words,

“That’s right! Collecting secret medicine might just be the surface of our mission. The collection assignment given to us by the organization could possibly be to test our level of ‘exploration.’

Whether we can excavate the hidden truths behind the false clues.”

Listening to this,

Juliana also slightly nodded, lifting the black veil to drink the cocktail in her cup.

Captain Edmund also followed suit with his drink, sighing deeply.

“Since childhood, the elders in my family often told me… Pathological itself, and the objects it affects, aren’t frightening; with enough strength, one can eradicate and kill it.

The truly terrifying thing is to be infected oneself and be completely unaware of it.

Perhaps Doctor Macaul has already been affected in the process of combating the illness.

However, let’s excavate the truth behind the clinic ourselves before we discuss it further.”

With that, he scratched the needle marks on his neck, with more rat hair present than earlier in the day.

The theater owner had naturally noticed this detail and said quietly, “Have you had contact with that old rat up in the mountains?”

Yi Chen responded, “That’s right, our real destination in coming to Viner City this time is the abandoned clinic… The place where we need your help is also there.”

“Oh~ I see.”

The boss was a smart man, combining the pinpoint wounds, the collection of Moon Skin by everyone, he quickly unraveled the sequence of events.

“During our gathering, we, the remaining Moon people, also went to the clinic on the mountain in an attempt to find more of our kind… However, that rat hiding deep underground directly devoured two of our companions.

Cowardly and deceitful,

for some reason, he seemed to have become more powerful than us, and even closer to ‘the Moon’s distance.’ However, because of this, he was imprisoned underground, unable to escape.”

At this point in the conversation,

Yi Chen immediately seized the opportunity, his gaze meeting the boss’s silver pupils:

“Mr. John, would you be willing to help us kill that rat? With your ‘performance assistance,’ our chances of success would significantly increase.”

“I’d be delighted.”

…

There was still plenty of time before the one-week deadline.

Having confirmed the theater owner’s ‘friendliness,’ everyone decided to rest in the theater.

There was also another matter that needed to be confirmed,

which was whether the effect of the Same Space would extend to the city area; everyone waited until midnight,

to find that… there was none.

The city ruins were still pitch-dark at dawn, with no sign of the rising full moon.

This confirmed that the Same Space constructed by the moon indeed only affected the Twilight Clinic and was directly related to Mr. Lee underground.

Main hall of the theater.

The four of them were bedding down here, letting down their guard.

Edmund’s mood relaxed completely as he chatted with Yi Chen beside him before sleep.

“Huh~ Things are going smoother than expected. William, you’ve completely stolen the spotlight from me, the captain.”

“It’s nothing, I’m just better at dealing with people…”

“Dealing with Patients is completely different~ How did you manage to do it, or where did you get the experience from? You haven’t completed a single mission in the past six months.”

“It’s that incident in Green Lake Town…”

As Yi Chen became more familiar with everyone, he spoke more and recounted the experience in Green Lake Town.

“You… aren’t afraid of dying, are you? To trust Patients you only knew for two days without any guarantees, and let them take you to the Watcher’s presence?”

“Consider it a grand gamble I made in that situation.

Of course, the premise of the gamble was also based on my observations of the two. The siblings who ran the inn were similar to the theater owner; they didn’t wear masks for pretense on their faces. @@novelbin@@

It was that gamble that made me realize the importance of ‘communicating with Patients.’

In the subsequent evaluation by the organization, the examiners did not deny this action, which shows that the organization also somewhat agrees with this special interaction.”

Edmund stopped his usual carefree and sunny demeanor, became quite serious, as if remembering something.

“Communicating with patients is not as simple as it seems on the surface. Every human being living in this world instinctively rejects the Patients, who are like the world’s germs that have lost humanity’s essential nature.

It’s an inherent physiological repulsion, difficult to cast aside.”

But Yi Chen replied indifferently, “I don’t feel that way; I just judge through experience whether they can be approached, whether they are trustworthy.”

Listening to such an answer reminded Edmund of something.

“No wonder you were able to accept the Pathological Crystal before becoming a gentleman.

William, you must be the kind of person grandfather referred to…”

“What kind of person?”

“Someone who can completely adapt to this diseased world, effortlessly blend in, yet still retain their self… a ‘Madman.'”