Chapter 2: Do I Look Like a Human or a God to You?
In an instant, the smile on Tris's face froze.
It was a solidification from the inside out, as if time itself had stagnated on him for a second.
In his eyes, which originally appeared shy, his pupils shrank violently, and a flash of horror and killing intent that he couldn't hide in time flickered past.
A buzzing sound echoed in his head as countless thoughts exploded.
How does he know my Pathway?
Instigator! He knows I'm a sequence 8!
Become a Demoness? What does he mean? Is this the follow-up to the Assassin Pathway?
A series of questions exploded in his heart like thunder. The kindness and shyness he had feigned were torn to shreds at this moment.
Although on the surface he only seemed stunned, his body had already instinctively tensed up. An Assassin's instinct had him prepared to strike at any moment.
"Sir, I don't understand what you're talking about." Tris's voice was much drier as he tried to regain control of the situation, using a confused tone to cover the stormy waves in his heart.
"You don't understand?" The smile on Nairn's face grew even wider; he found Tris's current reaction truly amusing.
He leaned half a step closer and lowered his voice, speaking at a volume only the two of them could hear:
"Don't be nervous. I'm just here to give you a reminder. After all, relying on inciting others' desires to digest a potion will cause problems sooner or later. When you reach sequence 7 and become a 'Witch,' that's when things will get interesting."
Witch!
This word was like a heavy hammer, slamming hard against Tris's heart.
If "Instigator" and "Demoness" could still be mere coincidences or bluffs, then the sequence name "Witch" completely shattered all his wishful thinking.
Is this the correct name for the Assassin Pathway's promotion to sequence 7?
In an instant, all the clues connected.
Tris—
Why are all the high-ranking members of the sect female!
Why was he still not told the name of sequence 7 even after reaching sequence 8 and being assigned a mission!
Why did that mysterious woman always look at him with such a strange expression!
There is only one answer (truth)—
Tris! You are! This pathway isn't the last one... where an assassin must change from male to female! Ah ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha.
Bitterness, an unstoppable bitterness.
Tris was no longer just stunned—
Shocking, the name of the Assassin Pathway's sequence 7 is actually... Is this a distortion of humanity, or a moral decline... Well, the Assassin Pathway has no humanity or morality to speak of.
He didn't have the face to mention it either; the Assassin Pathway had already distorted into bad people harming each other.
Moreover, there was a big problem right now—
This person not only knew his identity but also knew his pathway like the back of his hand! He even knew clearly about the cursed end point of eventually becoming a "Demoness"!
Tris's back was instantly drenched in cold sweat.
Looking at this man with a playful smile before him, he felt a fear originating from the depths of his soul for the first time.
This was not an enemy he could handle.
The first thought that flashed through his mind wasn't resistance, but escape.
But reason told him that in front of a mysterious powerhouse who knew his background inside out, running away was the most foolish choice.
"You... who exactly are you?"
Tris's voice already carried an uncontrollable tremble. He gave up his disguise, his eyes becoming sharp and alert like a beast cornered.
"Who I am isn't important," Nairn said, waving his hand dismissively. "What's important is that I know who you are, and I know which shady organization is behind you."
Tris's face turned completely pale.
He felt like a person with no clothes on, standing naked before the other party, with all his secrets seen clearly.
This feeling was even more terrifying than facing the sect's high-ranking members. Those high-ranking members might be powerful, but they didn't necessarily see through his core secrets and fears.
Yet this person before him, with every word, stepped precisely on his most fragile nerves.
"What do you want?" Tris took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down. He knew that since the other party had come to him and hadn't acted immediately, it meant there was room for negotiation.
"Me?" Nairn pointed at himself with feigned surprise and then smiled. "I don't want anything. I'm just an ordinary passenger who wants to arrive at Enmat Port safely and soundly."
He paused, looking into Tris's eyes, and said word for word: "So, I don't want anything unpleasant to happen on this ship. For example, a mysterious internal conflict or a bloodbath. Do you understand what I mean, Mr. Tris?"
Tris's pupils shrank violently.
He not only knows my identity but also knows what I plan to do on this ship!
This level of insight had already exceeded the scope of his understanding.
"I... I understand." Tris said these words almost through gritted teeth. He knew his plan was completely ruined. In front of this mysterious person, any small move could invite death.
"Very good." Nairn snapped his fingers, seemingly satisfied with his compliance.
But in Tris's heart, a spark of unwillingness ignited.
He was an "Instigator," with provocation and rebellion in his nature. Being suppressed like this made him feel incredibly humiliated.
Besides, although this person was mysterious, was he really that strong? He hadn't shown any Beyonder abilities; could he just be a "Mystery Pryer" or a "Swindler" who had gotten hold of some intelligence?
A trace of wishful thinking crawled into his heart like a poisonous snake.
He took a deep breath and asked tentatively: "Excellency... someone like me isn't worthy of being curious about your identity? But I want to know one thing: why did you go out of your way to tell me about that 'Witch' follow-up? You seem to know our Pathway like the back of your hand."
A great man knows when to yield; he didn't directly ask sensitive questions but instead circled back to why Nairn had specifically reminded him.
Nairn looked at the fleeting struggle in his eyes and said leisurely:
"An experiment."
An experiment?
There was no substantial information.
Yet it left Tris unable to muster even a hint of resistance.
He felt the whole thing had a flavor of absurdity, humor, and horror.
Now his head was filled with these questions:
What exactly is this person's background?
Is he a powerhouse from some secret organization? Or the incarnation of some ancient existence? Why does he know so much? Since he knows the truth about the "Demoness," does it also mean he has a way to solve this curse?
Countless thoughts rolled in his mind: fear, doubt, and a trace of... longing that he hadn't even noticed himself.
"It seems you still have many questions." Nairn looked at him and suddenly smiled.
Verbal intimidation alone wasn't enough; he needed something more direct, something that better reflected his "status."
"No! Absolutely not!" Tris shook his head like a rattle.
"Is that so?" A playful curve hooked at the corner of Nairn's mouth. "Aren't you curious about who I really am? Aren't you curious why I know the secrets of your Pathway? Aren't you curious why I appeared on this ship?"
This series of questions made Tris break out in a cold sweat.
Of course he was curious! He was so curious he was going crazy!
But he didn't dare ask!
"If you want to know, then look up at me." Nairn's voice carried a kind of irresistible magic.
Tris's body felt as if it were controlled by invisible strings, and he lifted his head little by little, uncontrollably.
Then, he saw it.
Nairn's face was still that ordinary, smiling face.
But behind him, beyond the silhouette of his body, something... leaked out.
It was a flash of imagery that couldn't be described in words.
He saw a chaos.
Countless distorted faces floated and shrieked within that chaos. Those faces were sometimes men, sometimes women, sometimes the elderly, sometimes children, and there were even some forms that didn't belong to humans at all. They were constantly merging, tearing apart, and recombining, performing all the joys and sorrows of the world.
In the center of these countless faces, a silhouette so vast it was beyond imagination slowly emerged.
It had no fixed form, as if it were composed of pure lies, change, and narrative itself.
Merely catching a glimpse of a corner of it made Tris feel his rationality wailing; his perception was being forcibly distorted and torn apart!
That wasn't a biological creature; it was a phenomenon, a concept, a... Mythical Creature form that could cause any intelligent being that looked directly at it to instantly suffer a mental breakdown!
Although it was only a fleeting flash, so fast it seemed like a hallucination.
But Tris's spirituality as a Beyonder let out a heart-wrenching shriek at that moment!
He felt as if his eyeballs had been seared by a red-hot iron, and a whole piece of the mad Cosmos had been stuffed into his brain.
Countless chaotic pieces of knowledge and ravings exploded in his mind, giving him a splitting headache and making him nearly faint.
Just as he was on the edge of a mental breakdown, a warm hand pressed onto his shoulder.
All the madness and chaos receded like a tide.
Nairn's voice, like a divine decree from beyond the heavens, softly sounded in his ear.
That voice carried a hint of curiosity and a hint of teasing, as if an ancient existence were playing with an ant that had accidentally stumbled into His garden.
"Do I look like... a human, or a god to you?"