Chapter 877: The Self-Punishing Man

The old beggar did not answer. Instead, he looked down at his collar, at that small black snake.

If he moved even half a step, Ye Qiyan's Imaginary Number Mechanic Snake would detonate immediately.

He reached out with his withered, bony hand and grabbed toward the inside of his collar.

"You'd better not move."

A Skull-Piercing Thorn pressed against the top of his head.

A dangerous gleam also appeared in the Imaginary Number Mechanic Snake's eyes.

Ye Qiyan still stood at the intersection of light and shadow. Not far behind him, the three bakery employees who had been fighting over gold coins were now biting and tearing at each other in broad daylight, frantically snatching at the other two's coins.

"So? Senior, do you plan on saying anything? I did help you get revenge, you know. You owe me a favor."

The old beggar's dull gray eyes were filled with blankness. He paid no attention to the Skull-Piercing Thorn above his head and pulled a pouch from the inner pocket of his clothes. "This is my... last stash of Train Coins. One hundred and seven. I beg you, please go and deal with the master of this City-State."

Ye Qiyan reached out to take it.

A little over a hundred Train Coins was obviously not much.

But this was a Hunting Platform, after all.

The greatest gains from such a platform were never wealth.

Having something was always better than having nothing.

But right now, compared to that hunting target, this old beggar was far more intriguing to him.

"The money doesn't matter. I'm more curious about someone like you, who can even hide his own name from the System. Just what is your background? And, heh, 'the Forgotten' and 'the Escapee'? I've never even heard of these two Titles before. Care to tell me about them?"

Demon's Whisper sounded beside the old beggar's ear.

The melody of Bewitchment resonated within his heart.

When the old beggar heard Ye Qiyan speak those two Titles, his body trembled slightly.

Especially at the latter one, the Escapee.

His expression became extremely complex.

It was a look of shame, agony, and sorrow.

The power of Bewitchment forced him to open his mouth, yet another power, from somewhere unknown, countered and offset the Bewitchment.

This kind of thing... was happening for the first time.

Even though he had not used Defiance in conjunction with Bewitchment.

But the power of Bewitchment could probably even affect the train system. Even that Lady Mo Shi of Death had answered when they first met.

Yet this old beggar did not.

There were many possibilities.

Perhaps this fellow carried some kind of Module that could exempt him from effects like Bewitchment, or perhaps some item or ability on the same level as a Card Sequence.

Either way, this old beggar's identity was absolutely not ordinary.

The emotions in his eyes gradually faded, replaced by infinite confusion.

Ye Qiyan held Bewitchment between two fingers.

The Black Cross of Defiance surfaced in his eyes.

This time, the power that had offset Bewitchment could not succeed again.

"I... don't know... I've just always stayed here. I'm a sinner, but I don't remember what crime I committed. I... seem to have escaped... I can't remember..."

He could not lie, so his answer was the truth.

A sinner, escaped?

Too little information to know who he was.

Then... what about his name?

"Can you tell me your name?"

"...I think... my surname is Zhou? Zhou something... I don't remember..."

Ye Qiyan frowned.

Having only a surname was no different from having nothing.

It seemed he had truly forgotten everything.

And there was a strong possibility it was a deliberate choice to forget.

Do not forget the name of this station.

Day of Escape.

This definitely had a strong connection to this old beggar.

Add to that the fact that the area the Sand Table's light point had indicated was right nearby.

Clearly, the old beggar was the strongest unit in this world.

The target to be hunted on this station might very well be him.

Lisette's Skull-Piercing Thorns gradually dispersed, and the Imaginary Number Mechanic Snake also vanished from his body.

A cluster of Nano Giant Sting Bees gathered, lifted the coin pouch, and opened it midair to inspect.

Although it was only the lowest-grade space pouch, it indeed contained one hundred and seven Train Coins.

"So, it was you who called the Train Conductor to this world?"

The old beggar slowly nodded, then pulled out a black bread soaked in sewage from inside his clothes and began eating it with a blank expression.

"I don't know... but the newly appointed ruler of this City-State is very hateful... It, collects so much money. The previous lord distributed free food every day. He doesn't... I want to replace him with another lord..."

"Just because of that? You're a surprisingly good person. But is that lord of this place very strong? Why don't you do it yourself?"

"I have no power... I'm just... an ordinary person..."

This was no lie. At least in his own self-perception, he truly was a powerless, ordinary beggar.

"Then if you have no power, where did these coins come from?"

"...I... I don't know... I can't remember. I've just always kept them. They... can grant wishes..."

Troublesome. Should he just kill him?

Ye Qiyan thought for a moment, then temporarily abandoned the idea.

He actually possessed a means that could help this fellow recover his memories.

[Memories' Obelisk (Level 10)]

[Can be used to restore Memories]

This reward item obtained after clearing RUN Company had not been used yet, but the appraised information was generally not wrong.

But there was no rush.

At least not until WALL-E found the treasure, and not until he had cleared this Station World, was there any need to do such a thing.

"Fine then. In that case, enjoy your lunch slowly. I'll hang that lord you mentioned on a street lamp."

Ye Qiyan did not stay any longer. He turned and left.

The old beggar surnamed Zhou remained in that damp, cold, pitch-black alley, eating his awful black bread with sewage water.

Everything he did seemed like some kind of punishment he was inflicting on himself.

After moving far away from that alley, Ye Qiyan and Lisette boarded a steam car and headed for the most luxurious restaurant in the city.

On the way, Lisette spoke up and asked, "Master, are we just walking away like this?"

"Mm. Why not?"

Lisette blinked and gently drew a finger across her snow-white neck in a throat-slitting gesture.

"Should I... deal with him?"

A small portion of her Second Hand projectile still lingered above that alley. At Ye Qiyan's command, she could take the old beggar's life at any moment.

Ye Qiyan let out a soft laugh and reached up to pat Lisette on the head.

"We are civilized people. We can't always think about killing. At the very least, we should first figure out what exploitable benefits remain on him before considering such a thing."

"Mm~ Master is the most civilized, ah, no, I mean, the worst."

"I like hearing that~ Say more of it in the future."