[Exorcist Boy] The whole world thinks I'm a cannon fodder

Vientiane is silent.

Suddenly, it seemed that there was no sound at all.

The master was originally facing me sideways, but at this moment he turned his head slightly, and finally there was a slight fluctuation on his expressionless face at this moment—in the deepening twilight, he was looking at me with a kind of expression that seemed never before. Knowing my gaze, he looked at me in disbelief, as if my reaction was completely unexpected, and he said something... something he would never have said.

"Tsk... This deviates too much from the plan."

After a while, he clicked his tongue, then used his fingers as a comb, and combed his hair a little irritably.

"It just so happens... that an accident happened to the person who is least likely to have an accident."

Master took a deep breath, the red light of the cigarette butt fell to the ground, he stepped on it, and suddenly took two steps closer to me.

As Master approached, time was reversed, the cold fog dissipated, and the already solemn sky was shrouded in red light again. The setting sun rose slowly in the mottled sunset glow, and the rose-like afterglow fell down, re-dyeing the rolling wheat waves A piece of hot red—it seems that all the gloom, all the coldness, and all the chills that made me feel deep and bone-chilling have dissipated with these few steps, and everything has returned and frozen in the most beautiful moment.

I took a step back almost subconsciously.

"... I also said this to that guy Allen—it has spanned 35 years, and at this moment, you have accomplished your mission well."

Master was taken aback for a moment, then softened his tone, and with a gentle expression I had never seen on his face, he half-kneeled down in front of me, and then stretched out his hand—as if I was still the same person from many years ago. The child who can only hold his calf.

"Anyway, I have been raising a child for nearly ten years. When I was young, I also cleaned up the mess for you two brats, so... If you are really scared, it is a wise choice to stay here like this. In the last few days For a while, Master can always be here with you."

So, you still... want me to die.

"Stay here, what will happen outside...?"

"...would lose consciousness, and then, no matter what happened, would be unconscious, and would come to an end in sleep, without any pain."

— the end.

"But," as soon as I opened my mouth, I felt a constant soreness hitting the nasal cavity, and there was a hot lump in my throat, and even my lips began to tremble slightly, "but I don't want to... go to the end ..."

The master lowered his eyes slightly, but did not speak.

"Master," I suddenly didn't know how to express it, but looking at the hand he extended, I took another step back unconsciously.My lips moved, trying to discuss with him, "Can't I... not die?"

Master still didn't speak.

"Why... do you want me to die?"

"Is there no other way?"

"Allen and I...can't we both live?"

Maybe he already knew that I would not put his hand on it, so the master slowly withdrew his hand, then raised his eyes, and stared at me in the red light of the setting sun.

"Allen and I," I felt that our breathing became difficult, "the two of us together, in Master's heart, there is no Neia alone...does it matter?"

After a long time, the master let out a long breath and slowly stood up.

"...One or two, give me such stubbornness." He seemed to be dissatisfied, but also seemed to curse helplessly. The elegant image that I had maintained since I could remember finally collapsed at this moment, and I paused , and scratched his hair as if to vent his anger, "A hypocrite with ostentation, a... a cold-blooded person who pretends to be normal all the time."

"—then try to get out."

The master cursed several times seriously, then closed his eyes deeply, and when he opened them again, all expressions faded from his face again.

"No matter what happens, no matter how narrow the road, no matter how cramped the environment, try to get out."

"If someone pushes you, fight with all your might."

"To taste all the pain that is carried on your body, to experience all the despair of being cornered, to accept all the pain, confusion, and separation caused by your choice at this moment, and then..."

Master's voice suddenly became very soft, and a second before it turned into light spots and scattered in all directions, he looked at me deeply without expression.

"...try to live again."

My lips trembled suddenly.

"Okay, it hurts..."

"Are you all okay? Eh? Marshal? God, Kanda! Why did you bring the marshal here too!"

"Did you take me for granted! You bean sprouts!"

"I told you my name is Allen!"

"Wait, Allen, look at Sisi quickly, there seems to be something wrong with her..."

"Huh? What's wrong with Sisi? Why don't you get up?"

But in the next second, while the noisy noise entered the ears, there was a fresh smell of fresh grass.I opened my eyes and moved my fingers convulsively. It took me a while to realize that I was lying on the grass.

I felt dazed for a while, and sat up mechanically. As soon as I sat up, I found that Allen and Jonny, who seemed to have just got up from the ground, were looking at me not far away.

I:"……?"

"Is it really Allen and the others? Ah, Allen! How did you get here—Sai, Sisi...?"

Then a familiar voice came from the oblique side without warning.

I paused, holding my breath as if being drawn by something, and turned my head carefully, just in time to meet the rabbi who was following the little girl in a maid outfit and wearing glasses—as soon as the rabbi saw Immediately, I changed from a fast walk to a run, as if blocking all the people present and only seeing me, I ran towards me.

My head is still a little dazed, and my whole body is still a little stiff, but I want to get up almost subconsciously.But I don't know if it was because of the blow I received in the dream just now, my legs and feet were weak, and I couldn't get up after crawling twice, so I had to sit on the ground and open my arms to him aggrieved.

Then the next moment, the rabbi who ran up to him hugged him half-kneeling into his arms, and kissed his hair vigorously.

"Rabbi..." I directly buried my face in his shoulder, and then I reflexively, with a very low nasal voice Looking for a sense of security in him, "You...you want me to live... right?"

"I'm talking nonsense again, what have I been thinking about all day, all day..." Then I felt him hug me even tighter.I don't know if he sensed something was wrong with me, the rabbi kissed my hair twice more, and the heat from the clothes almost ironed my cold skin.Just being hugged like this, I felt as if I was dragged out of the cold deep sea, and my whole body came back to life, "This time... this time, absolutely, absolutely, never separate again——"

So... so Master is lying.

In the warm and stable air that was gradually infected, my stiff brain finally returned to normal operation, and then I raised my hand very slowly and wrapped it around the rabbi's waist.

It's not that everyone doesn't want me to live. Even if it's just the rabbi, he will definitely...will stand on the same side as me.

Me too... As long as he is alone, only him is enough.

and so……

However, just when I closed my eyes and was about to hug and rub against the rabbi...or even hang on to him in the form of a koala, a sudden sound came from behind us obliquely. A cough.

I paused, ignored it, and continued to arch.

Seeing that neither of us responded, the voice paused subtly, and then immediately turned into a continuous cough.

Only then did the rabbi let go of me, and we both turned our heads at the same time, looking at the source of the sound dissatisfied.

"...You two are really too," and then we saw the corners of Alian's mouth twitching, "It's just us, there are others here..."

After being reminded by Alian, I shifted my eyes to the side, and then I saw Kanda who didn't bother to look at us at all, Link who said "you, you are so shameless in broad daylight", and his expression looked like Johnny, who was more excited than me and even started to wipe his tears with a handkerchief, noticed the little maid with short hair, glasses, and holding a book at the same time—the child didn’t even seem to move. It's moving, and it's staring at us dumbfounded.

And beside her, there was a flying...huh?Flying a black Tim Gambit?

"Huh? Tim...?" Allen obviously saw it, and blinked in confusion, "Wait, is that... the black Tim?"

"No, it's not Tim, it's Uru," the little girl finally realized. Although she seemed a little timid after seeing so many people suddenly, she still bravely explained, "Uru Gambi."

"But it..." Allen was still a little confused, "How could it be with Tim...?"

However, before he finished speaking, the pure black fat ball flew to Allen's side from the little maid, and flew around him as if sensing something or sniffing something. Lie on the top of Allen's head.

Allen: "..."

Before Allen had time to say anything, Tim quit. Our golden fat ball slammed into it with its teeth gritted. Even the important position of the head.He even wrapped his tail around Allen's head because his calf was too short to hold it.

Then... and then the two fat balls started fighting.

"Uru! Uru is back!"

The little maid called it several times but it didn't work. Finally, she called out the butler's name, and finally called the fat ball named Urugambi back. Then she paused and whispered that we should follow her to see her. Patriarch.

"Patriarch?" Allen blinked,

"This is... that Campbell's house," the rabbi explained to us, while pulling me up, "Well... anyway, the old man is here, so let's go in and talk about it first."

But with such a movement, a wooden dagger with a scabbard suddenly fell from my body.

The rabbi was taken aback: "This is...?"

"It's mine." Link, who had been silent like a background board since just now, walked over almost immediately, leaning over to take the dagger away.

I:"……"

"This... This is the medium used to open the ark." In a hurry, I almost let go, but I stopped in time, and just picked up the dagger before Link, and stuffed it into the pocket of the windbreaker , "It's useless for you to hold it, so let me put it here first."

This is probably something specially used to kill me. Since it has already been given out, you don't even think about taking it back.

"What? Wait! Cecilia! You..."

I ignored him and simply hid behind the rabbi. Although the rabbi didn't understand what happened, he subconsciously blocked me firmly behind him.Now I became more courageous, and even poked my head out from behind the rabbi, and gave Link a threatening and threatening look.

Link: "..."

Link obviously understood the look in my eyes, choked with anger, and stared at me for a long time, but since he couldn't say anything in front of Alian and the others, he could only suffer from being dumb.

So after taking the baby's little notebook from Allen and briefly explaining the cause and effect to the rabbi, our group followed the little maid and started walking towards the mansion.

However, as I walked, I realized that the rabbi had pulled me behind the people in front of me before I knew it.I scratched his hand, and just about to ask him what's wrong, I was dragged by him at the corner, and as if I couldn't bear it anymore, I grabbed the back of my head and leaned over.

I suddenly opened my eyes wide.

The warm wind blew past my ears, bringing Allen's question and the voice of the little maid's stammering answer, but the rabbi's palm was hot and hot, no matter how frightened I was, I patted his arm , They all held me tightly.

But it might take into account that I will meet people later, and I can't put on a scarf suddenly, so although the rabbi kissed deeply, he didn't dare to kiss for too long or too hard, and let go in a hurry after only a few seconds.

But even so, I still... I am not cold at all this time, really not cold at all.

Why is it so cold!My whole body is going to be gurgling and smoking, okay!

What did this person eat, why, how did he become more and more bold...

Now I can't remember how doggy my previous master was. I just lowered my head, stared at the ground, and was dragged back to the main army by the rabbi in a daze.They were led all the way to a certain bedroom on the first floor of the mansion, and they didn't come back to their senses until they saw the Patriarch that the little maid was talking about.

It was an elderly man with a pale face and a weak body. After being helped to sit up by the strong middle-aged housekeeper, his eyes first stayed on Allen for a while, then moved away, and then fell on me. body.

"Cersi..." she called softly and hoarsely, "Leah."

I was taken aback by the call, but rarely did I feel any discomfort.

"This is Lady Caterina," the rabbi whispered in my ear.

I have another meal.

So, this is the... Mrs. Katerina who adopted Mana and Neia?

My... aunt?

I hesitated for a few seconds before letting go of the hand I was holding with the rabbi under my sleeve, and took a few steps forward.

Mrs. Katerina seemed to want to hold my hand, but she didn't want to cough suddenly without warning midway, and it didn't relieve for a long time.The butler had no choice but to invite us out temporarily, and after telling the little maid to take care of Mrs. Katerina, he took us to the guest room on the second floor, and briefly introduced the next few rooms on the way.

After a long lapse of 35 years, the mansion is no longer what I saw in my dream—not only the outer walls are covered with dark green moss and vines, but also the inner walls and ceilings have an old color , everything that the eyes can see has become a little mottled due to the polishing of time.

"This is Mrs. Margaret's former room." The housekeeper seemed to know our origins well, and took us through the rooms on the second floor, "And this is Mr. Silas's room... ...This is the room of the two young masters."

Allen naturally wanted to see the place where Mana and Neia lived, but I paused, and chose to see the room that belonged to "Mom" a long time ago.

"Do you need me to accompany you?" After sending me to the room at the other end, the rabbi asked me in a low voice before parting.

I shook my head: "Let me...stay by myself for a while."

I closed the door with my back against the rabbi's sticky separation, and then began to look at this very elegant room that was unfamiliar to me.

The decoration is mainly in light warm colors, which is completely different from the room I lived in in the church. It is almost obvious from the decoration alone that the owner is an elegant and gentle woman.

It took me a few seconds before I moved and walked to the head of the bed.

There are several photo frames on the dresser beside the bed, and there are many photos posted on the wall—at first there were only two little girls with black hair; then they became two young girls with black hair; There was an extra boy with red hair, who seemed to have a particularly good relationship with the older girl. Every time a photo was taken, two chubby hands were either holding her arm or holding her hand.

Later, it became a wedding photo of a brunette woman and a gray-haired man; the next and last photo of the wedding photo was a photo of them happily holding a blond-haired and gray-eyed baby in their arms.

My eyes were firmly fixed on that picture.

Even though I had seen Rhodes face to face in Master's laboratory as early as three or four times in his dreams, in fact, it wasn't until this moment that I really had a real feeling and understood that I... It turned out to be Really had parents.

And this is... my parents.

It can be seen that this room is often cleaned, the photo frames and the dressing table are spotless; at the same time, the sound insulation is also very good, because there are no windows, and it is far away from Mana and Neia's room. For a while, there is almost no movement nothing.

I looked away, and just quietly looked at the endless golden sea of ​​wheat that was slightly blown by the wind outside the window. In a trance, a feeling that I had never had before, but was urgently at this moment, was born in my heart. Doubts that want to know the answer.

If... those things hadn't happened, would I...have an ordinary but happy family?

There is a father, a mother, and... a newborn brother.

Having parents, is it... what kind of feeling?

Although I have more or less seen some clips of myself getting along with my mother when I was a child, I can't figure out what it feels like.

Could it be... the way Miss Anita made me feel?

Where is my brother?Will the younger brother exist like Allen when he grows up?

And how will we get along?

I……

——How did I get to this point?

At the moment when this idea came into being, I just felt something cool suddenly spread from my chest.

Why do most people not want me to live?

Why didn't even the me...even myself, want to live?

I have never felt this way before, but at this moment, I feel that my breathing is stagnant, and my heart seems to have been dug out suddenly, and the air is leaking in.

Why... did it become like this?

I started to feel cold again.

I began to regret not letting the rabbi accompany me just now.

I don't know what's wrong with me, but I suddenly feel that I really want to see the rabbi... I want to see him.

So I didn't stop for a moment, and when I went out, I planned to go to Allen's room to find him, but when I passed the stairs, I suddenly saw the rabbi go to the first floor.

I quickly went downstairs to chase after him, seeing that the rabbi didn't find me, and I didn't know what to think, so I suddenly took a deep breath, took a run-up, and then jumped onto his back.

But because I overestimated my jumping ability, I didn’t find the right head at all, and slid directly down. It was the rabbi who supported me on a conditioned reflex, and then bumped up again, so I was able to lie on his back. , and hugged his neck by the way.

"Sisi...?" After finishing this series of actions, the rabbi slightly tilted his head.

"...I have to recite it," I just buried my head on the side of his neck, humming softly, "I have to recite it."

So the rabbi didn't ask any more questions, and directly carried me to the outside of the mansion, and started a slow walk around the house.

"...What's the matter?" Then after a while, he said, seemingly unintentionally, "Did something happen?"

"Nothing happened," I said, "I just...missed you."

"What..." Rabbi paused for a moment, although he could hear that he was trying his best to suppress it, but the ending sound still rose quite obviously, "Isn't this, isn't this just separated?"

"But... just want to."

Because only by holding him like this, only by holding his warmth like this, can I feel that I am really alive, and this person in front of me... also strongly hopes that I am alive.

The rabbi didn't seem to feel tired at all, so he walked around with my back like this, until I wanted to get down, and then put me in a certain shade.

"So you want to go back?"

"Not going back," I answered quickly, then paused, and raised my hand to grab his sleeve.He opened his mouth, opened his mouth again, and after a few seconds, under the rabbi's puzzled gaze, he asked, "Well... let me tell you what it is... how do you feel after seeing what I passed. "

"How do you feel?" The rabbi was taken aback by the question, and for a moment he didn't seem to know how to answer. After a while, he suppressed some emotions and said, "Just... know a lot of things? Got it... ...the cause of many of Sisi's habits?"

"No, those are not important," I took a deep breath, and decided to die early, "What matters is age—my entire age, yes, how old..."

"Huh? Ah, you mean that, that..."

"And I've heard what Allen said," I sullenly, with an extremely heavy expression, "Your favorite age range is between 10 and 40 years old, I...I don't fit right now. "

"No, wait Sisi, that's just..."

Watching me unconsciously change from a sullen face to a bulging face, the rabbi was stunned for a moment, then sighed dumbfounded, and poked my face with the index finger of the hand that was not played with my sleeve.

"Well, then from now on, adjust the upper limit of the range to 60 years old?"

...So you really figured out that I am 55+!

"Besides, Sisi is Sisi, and age or something, I think one is related to the physical level, and the other is related to the psychological level." After the rabbi poked one of my cheeks, he began to rub his face secretly Poke the other side, "I don't need to say more about the physical level, but the psychological level-when a person repeatedly experiences what happened to him from the age of 1 to 16, no matter how many times he experiences, his mental age There will be no increase, because psychological growth is not determined by the passage of time, but by the complexity of what a person experiences... So, does Sisi understand?"

...Should I say that he really deserves to be a family of scholars?

I didn't say a word, I just twirled his sleeve with my fingers.

"What's more..." Then I felt that the rabbi seemed to have made some kind of determination, and said nonchalantly, "Not only Sisi, but even I have that...unknown past."

Although he made up his mind, his slightly stiff arms still revealed his nervousness.

So my fingers slipped into his palm along his cuff, and then gently scratched his palm.

"...I know." I whispered.

"Know...?" The rabbi was taken aback for a moment, as if he didn't quite understand what it meant.

I took a small breath, then raised my eyes slightly to meet his.

"Actually... when I was in Rhodes' dream, that time when I was in the ark... I saw it all."

"Look, you mean...?" The rabbi's face turned completely pale, "Wait, wait a minute, isn't that what I understand? How many have you seen? All, all see?"

I paused slightly, then nodded honestly.

"That, that..." The rabbi was a little incoherent immediately, "Then, is there anything... I don't like about my...?"

"Where..." I lowered my eyes again, and concentrated on scratching his palm, "I like them all."

"But...but I was not like this before..."

"From childhood to adulthood," I directly interrupted him in a low voice, humming secretly, "I like them all."

This Rabbi seemed to be completely stunned. After several seconds, he pulled out his hand as if he couldn't restrain himself, and hugged me completely in his arms.

"Me too," he said, "I grew up liking it too."

The wind seemed to stop at this moment. I slightly raised my face against the rabbi's shoulder, and saw that there was no cloud in the sky, and it was as blue as a lake, as clear as washing.

I was clinging to the rabbi in a serious manner for a while before I remembered to ask about Allen and Shuweng.

"Ah, about that matter, I did ask the old man Panda these two days, but he has been avoiding talking about it. How should I put it, maybe I want to wait for everyone to gather before..."

Before the rabbi could finish his sentence, a fat golden ball rushed straight down from midair and hit me on the head.

I was taken aback, and after pulling some distance away from the rabbi, I just touched Tim off his head, and found that it rolled up and down several times at first, and then cried out. out.

"...No, what's wrong with Tim?"

"It's complaining." I understood it completely, but I felt very complicated. "It said that the briquettes—that Urugambi has been robbing it all the time, and asked me to beat him away."

Rabbi: "..."

"Don't worry, Tim, do you think that Allen is the kind of person who loves the new and hates the old-ah! No! Completely forget about that!"

"that matter?"

"It's just to help Allen to ask if there is any food in the kitchen that can fill the stomach-this is too bad, I completely forgot-"

So when we finally hurried back to Mana and Neia's room with several plates of desserts, the room was already filled with the gurgles from Allen's stomach.

"Really! Rabbi! What time is it, why have you been here for so long..."

"Well, didn't there be a little accident in the middle, anyway, hurry up and eat."

In fact, strictly speaking, this food is nothing at all, and it can only be used as a cushion for Allen.But when he ate more and more hungry, and even planned to borrow the kitchen immediately, and asked Link to cook something, the previous housekeeper suddenly knocked on the door and said that he had brought it from Mrs. Catalina, which belonged only to Mrs. Photo album of Mana and Neia.

"Is this...is this what Mana looked like when he was a child?"

Allen, who was leaning against a huge black ball and holding a huge yellow ball in his arms, stared blankly at the two little boys laughing and playing in the wheat field.

"And... this is Mana's younger brother, this is No. 14..."

"Although I've seen him before..." Allen murmured, "I always thought they looked different..."

"Have you seen it?" I was taken aback, "You mean that big black steamed bun?"

"It's not that, it's normal, it's just... When I was in the North American branch, he once appeared in my dream briefly, saying... the Earl of the Millennium has forgotten everything, and has become a doll who can only destroy... And said 'Three Days of Darkness' would come soon... or something..."

"...Actually, such photos are rare." The butler paused, and for some reason, suddenly interrupted Allen's thoughts, "Because at that time, Master Mana was asleep most of the time."

"Mana...was asleep most of the time? Why? Is he sick?" Allen was immediately distracted, "But when I was traveling with me, Mana obviously never...but at that time , He seems to have lost a lot of memory, he always said that he only remembered that he was a 17-year-old boy for a second, but when he opened his eyes, he became..."

Allen seemed to want to find the photos of Mana's youth, but the moment he actually saw it, his voice stopped abruptly.

"This man... and the Mana I know," he murmured, looking dazedly at the smiling young man with long hair tied low on his chest in the photo, "really It doesn't look like... at all."

"But although it doesn't look like it, it is obvious that this person is Mana..."

"I don't know how to describe it, this feeling is very strange, I..."

"Actually, Master Mana," said the butler, "has always been a gentle man."

She told Allen a lot about Mana's past. For example, Mana knit seven sweaters in a week; for example, Mana was afraid of thunder and could not sleep without Neia; When you drink tea or coffee, you always put ten sugar cubes in it, etc.

Allen listened with great fascination until the butler said something—the two young masters began to flee.

"At that time, there was no choice but to escape, because the 'Earl of the Millennium' had found this place, found...Master Manor."

I paused while listening to the story quietly, and a bad premonition suddenly rose in my heart.

"What does it mean... to find Mana?" Allen suddenly realized something, but couldn't believe it, "Mana, it's not... just No. 14... just Neia Campbell's brother? Master said Yes, the inheritance of their Noah family has nothing to do with blood, so it is normal for only one of the twins to awaken the Noah factor..."

"Their situation is different." This time it was Shuweng who spoke.

Allen looked over stiffly. After knowing that he was the last heir of Shuweng, he seemed a little unsure how to face the old man.

"Among Noah, the most common situation is that the selected human beings live to a certain age, then the Noah factor is awakened, and then Noah's memory is passed on—but this is not the case for the twins." Shu Weng Say, "Because they were not chosen, but from the beginning, Noah."

The room was so quiet that a needle could be heard, and it took several seconds before I heard Allen's almost distorted voice.

"What does it mean……?"

"Let me talk about this part." The housekeeper took the conversation.

Then, through her dictation, we learned of an unknown past that was submerged in a long time of 7000 years and buried under this land.

It was a fiery red dusk, when the flame-like light of the setting sun reflected the endless sea of ​​wheat red, and at the moment when the most beautiful scenery was frozen, the young Katerina stood under the dogwood tree , I ran into the Earl of the Millennium who had lived in this world for 7000 years.

It was just an accidental encounter, but the Earl of the Millennium was bewitched by something and chose to stay here for a while.

During that time, they read books together, drank afternoon tea together, listened to the sound of the wind together under the tree, and even named the dogwood tree Cornelia together.

However, two months later, suddenly one day, the Earl of the Millennium disappeared.

"Where he disappeared, there were only a pile of clothes and... two babies."

The butler paused.

"And the pair of babies are the next two young masters, namely... Mana and Neia."

"You mean..." Allen opened his mouth, his eyes trembling, "Mana and No. 14... and Neia, actually... are not ordinary twins, but split from the Millennium Earl... Two people?"

"Manata... used to be the Earl of the Millennium?"

Not ever... probably not now.

It wasn't until this moment that I regretted why I didn't vaccinate him earlier.

But you said who would have thought that just here, "Very well, it seems that everyone is here, so let's come to it" to be smashed down with so many messages...

"Because there are two people who were split," Shuweng rolled up his sleeves, "so in the end, it will return to one person."

"In this world, in the past 7000 years, the Earl of the Millennium has only disappeared once, and that time, he disappeared for a full 17 years."

"For those 17 years, the child always fell asleep and had nightmares. When he got older, he would see the clothes of the Earl of the Millennium everywhere."

"And it wasn't until 35 years ago, when Neia was swallowed by Mana, that the real Earl of the Millennium returned to this world—this is also the destiny of the two of them."

"So you mean, the current Earl of the Millennium..." For a moment, Allen couldn't even breathe, "Is it Mana?"

The bookman just looked at him calmly and didn't answer.

The silence like stagnant water spread out with us as the center.

"...that old man," the rabbi finally broke the silence first, "what do you mean by 'this war actually has an inside story'...?"

"...this war," the bookman said slowly, "in fact, the earl has been creating demons for a long time, not to kill people, but to promote the evolution of demons, and when they evolve to a level