“The aircraft flew eastward throughout the night.
In automatic flight mode, there was no need for someone to monitor the route, and the two could rest well.
Shen Siwei lay on the co-pilot’s seat, watching the news projected onto the ceiling, and said to Klet, “The refugees in City Z of the West District are receiving injections of a new type of drug.”
In the news, a long line formed in the zone between City Z and its neighboring city, as the refugees approached medical personnel one by one to receive injections of a drug that reduced fertility.
Klet turned his head and looked at Shen Siwei’s direction, “They just want a reduced sentence, don’t they?”
Shen Siwei said, “The Nightingales are giving a speech beside them.”
He enlarged the image of the news corner, where several people wearing Nightingale-patterned short-sleeved shirts were holding loudspeakers in their hands, shouting something -.
their banners flashed by: Equality for all, refuse Marg people’s rule.
“They are working hard,” Klet said, “but there are very few people willing to listen to them.”
“Because without Marg people, the living conditions would be very harsh,” Shen Siwei said, “The Nightingale finds it difficult to change people’s thinking.”
“What about you?” Klet suddenly asked, “Equality and safety, which one do you choose?”
“I…”
Shen Siwei suddenly remembered when he went to see Miller on the top floor, Adolf had asked him about his views on the social system.
At that time, his thinking was frozen twenty-five years ago, and he didn’t have much sentiment about those matters. But after reading Amor’s diary, he admitted that he had been influenced and felt that the current society might not be as beautiful as it seemed.
“I choose to remain neutral,” he said, “but I believe most commoners would choose safety.”
“Yes,” Klet sighed helplessly, “that’s why no one is paying attention to the nightingales .”
“Do you think they will launch a coup by force?” Shen Siwei asked.
“They won’t,” Klet said, “the Nightingale has been under attack in recent years, and its scale has never been able to expand. They don’t have the ability to launch a coup. And as long as people’s thinking doesn’t change, even if they forcibly overthrow the rule, they won’t win the hearts of the people.”
Shen Siwei nodded.
“Stop thinking about it,” Klet changed his heavy tone, “look ahead.”
Shen Siwei lifted his head slightly and realized that the sky had turned a pale white at some point. The golden light drove away the darkness from below, and soon the sun rose from the horizon, illuminating the devastated city.
–The two had entered the edge of the ruins.
Unlike the ruins of City Z in the West District, the ruins in the south were completely silent, with vines entwined around old buildings, like a ghost town.
Spider-like creatures the size of cars crawled on the streets, feeding on scrap metal; fierce flocks of pigeons circled the square, attacking stray cats and dogs that passed by.
Such a sunrise scenery was truly unique.
“Some birds attack aircraft,” Klet said as he reset the cruising altitude, “you continue to rest, I’ll keep watch.”
The two alternated driving the aircraft and, after the sunset, arrived at the once bustling city center.
Since they still had a whole day’s journey to the distant coastline and the aircraft’s batteries needed to be replaced, and the engines needed maintenance, the two decided to camp there.
The Science Museum, Museum, and Grand Theater were all built there. Although those buildings had long been abandoned, one could still sense the cultural heritage.
Among them, the rooftop of the museum was the most flat and open, and the two landed the aircraft there.
Shen Siwei got off the aircraft and subconsciously looked around this unfamiliar place. His attention was immediately drawn to a familiar iconic facility.
“Have you ever ridden that thing?” Klet raised his chin and asked.
“I have,” Shen Siwei said.
The Ferris wheel, something that had long disappeared from the Tree of Life.
Since the signing of the Declaration, the elementary schools and amusement parks in the Tree of Life had been gradually abolished, and things like the Ferris wheel naturally became part of the past.
“I haven’t ridden it,” Klet said, resting his hands on the railing of the rooftop, looking at the quiet Ferris wheel from a distance, “Unfortunately, there’s no electricity here.”
Shen Siwei could tell that Klet wanted to ride the Ferris wheel.”
Shen Siwei had ridden it before with his mother when he was young, but the opportunities were rare because his mother was always busy.
As he grew older, he lost interest in such things because he felt they belonged to the little children.
Thinking about this, he chuckled softly and looked at Klet, saying, “You seem like a child.”
He thought Klet would be unhappy to hear such words, but to his surprise, Klet turned his head abruptly and met Shen Siwei’s gaze. “You’ve said this before,” he said.
“Huh?” Shen Siwei was taken aback.
A few fragments flashed through his mind, like reflections in water, so close. But when Shen Siwei reached out to grab them, he couldn’t grasp anything except shattering the reflections.
He pursed his lips. “I… still can’t remember.”
“It’s okay.” Klet withdrew his hands from the railing and gestured with his chin towards the door on the rooftop. “Want to go down and take a look? There are many interesting things.”
The museum had six floors, each representing a different period.
Starting from the ground floor, the two of them walked through the Stone Age, Bronze Age, Iron Age, Steam Age, Information Age, and Smart Age. Shen Siwei felt like he was witnessing a three-dimensional “Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind.”
“Look, this is a phone from the past.” Klet took out a rectangular piece of glass from a broken display case. “Isn’t it ancient?”
Shen Siwei took it and examined it. The so-called “phone” was more like a piece of transparent screen than glass. When people separated from this screen, they could project images on their palms anytime, anywhere.
“What’s this?” Shen Siwei put down the phone and pointed at another display case.
“AR glasses,” Klet said, “In the past, you had to wear glasses to experience AR. Isn’t that incredible?”
“It’s interesting.” Shen Siwei finally understood why Klet’s house was filled with all those strange and curious little things. Collecting those items seemed really cool.
However, at that moment, the quiet museum was suddenly filled with the sound of glass shards being stepped on.
Both of them shone their flashlights towards the source of the sound, and they saw several distorted fierce dogs with red eyes and snarling mouths appearing in the hallway. Their bodies were similar to ordinary domestic dogs, but their flesh was decayed, presenting a horrifying sight.
“Quick, let’s go.” Klet pulled out his gun and fired several shots towards the hallway. “Don’t touch their skin.”
“Then you go ahead first.” Shen Siwei’s skin was immune to toxins, so it was more suitable for him to guard the rear.
The distorted dogs didn’t pose a significant threat to the two of them, but they managed to tear a large piece of fabric from Shen Siwei’s pants.
They locked the rooftop door and returned to the aircraft. Klet began replacing the batteries while Shen Siwei changed his clothes.
As he was tidying up his backpack, Shen Siwei’s communicator suddenly vibrated.
It was a call from Moran.
“Hello, it’s me,” Shen Siwei glanced at Klet, signaling him not to speak.
“I see your coordinates have reached the ruins. Do you have any clues about Amor?” Moran asked.
“Yes,” Shen Siwei said, “I discovered that Amor didn’t go missing but voluntarily left the Tree of Life.”
“Is that so?” Moran’s voice sounded somewhat surprised. “Why did he leave the Tree of Life?”
Shen Siwei thought for a moment and replied succinctly, “To elope with his lover.”
“Elope? That’s unlikely,” Moran immediately refuted, “Amor is very disciplined, that’s not something he would do.”
Shen Siwei didn’t want to explain too much to Moran and simply said, “This is the clue I found for now.”
“Alright, continue your investigation,” Moran said. Then he paused for a moment and added, “The Southern Ruins are vast, so if you can’t find anything, don’t force it. Return as soon as possible to report.”
“Okay,” Shen Siwei agreed.
“By the way,” Moran asked, “Any news from Klet?”
Shen Siwei looked at the person beside him and replied, “None.”
“Okay, that’s it then,” Moran said, “Good night.”
Shen Siwei had a sense of caution and immediately thought that Moran was testing him but he responded, “Good night.”
After ending the communication, Shen Siwei noticed that Klet, who was beside him, was staring at him motionlessly.
“Goodnight?” Klet raised an eyebrow. “Who are you saying goodnight to?”
“My superior,” Shen Siwei replied.
“You report to your superior and still say goodnight?” Klet frowned deeply.
“I’m not sure, but it seems like he implanted false memories in me,” Shen Siwei explained. “In my memory, we are lovers. I can’t make it suspicious that I doubt him.”
“Boom!”
As soon as Shen Siwei finished speaking, the battery that Klet had just taken off his hand was instantly crushed, turning into a pile of scrap metal.
“Lover?” Klet took a deep breath. “In your memory, you’re lovers with him?”
At this point, Klet cursed, and Shen Siwei could almost see smoke coming out of someone’s head.
“I don’t have any real feelings. I’ve never seen him as a lover,” Shen Siwei said.
“But you say goodnight to him.”
“I have no choice.”
Shen Siwei didn’t know why he felt the need to explain.
But looking at Klet’s displeased expression, it seemed like he was completely overreacting.
“You haven’t said goodnight to me yet.”
Klet said this statement unhappily and went to the front of the aircraft where the engine was. Shen Siwei couldn’t help but find it both amusing and exasperating.
A thirty-year-old man who was indeed quite childish, even arguing over something like this.
“Will you guard the first half of the night?” Shen Siwei asked.
The distorted fierce dog was still relentlessly banging on the door, and who knew how much longer that iron door could hold.
Klete was busy maintaining the engine and didn’t answer Shen Siwei’s question.
“klet?” Shen Siwei had to call out again, his tone carrying a hint of coaxing, as if speaking to a child.
That seemed to be effective. The noise from the front suddenly stopped, and after a while, Klet’s deep voice came, “Hmm, you go rest.”
“Okay,” Shen Siwei said, “Goodnight.”
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