Shadows and Schemes: Chapter 35 Bloody Footprint

On the way to the train station, Blood Extinguisher finally couldn't help speaking some nonsense as usual.

"Congrats, you got the money within two days. How does it feel? Does it feel good to benefit yourself through deceit and trap?"

The Blood Pupil stared at Idiot, its glow almost turning the floating snowflakes red.

But the brat's face remained expressionless. He ignored the excitement and madness in the Blood Pupil, walking towards his destination.

He didn't feel good or happy. He was numb in his heart. For him, trickery wasn't about oppressing others or proving himself, but a tactic for survival.

His intention was never to hurt or to cheat others but to make a living by any means. 

Like a rat hunting cockroaches to fill its belly, there was no joy, excitement, or comfort, only survival. Whether framing others or causing misfortune, he just lived this way, as normal as eating or sleeping.

The emotionless Idiot moved quickly towards the train station, his indifference dampening Blood Extinguisher's mood. But soon, it shifted its attention to enjoying the "scenery" on both sides of the road.

Theft, robbery, murder, and even darker crimes had emerged in the chaotic city, where crimes and chaos reigned like a towering tree. The Republic was also unwilling to put much effort into saving the town from chaos because of the little importance of the town and its poor national food stock in winter.

Also, the low spread speed of the message and the time needed to transfer food outside into the town made the government unable to solve the problem before starvation and crimes filled the town.

"Help! Save me! Please don't do that!"

A teenage girl, around fifteen or sixteen, ran out of an alley, her clothes torn and face tear-stained, her bare skin bruised. She dashed past the idiot.

"Damn, she dares to run! Did her dad spare us when he pressed us for debts?!"

Before she could escape the alley, three strong hands grabbed her hair, shoulder, and arm. A muscular man, smirking, dragged the girl back into the depths of the alley. The girl, tears streaming down her face, reached out to Idiot for rescue.

But Idiot's expression didn't change. He didn't even glance at the girl, just walked past the alley and continued to the train station. The man's lewd laughter and the girl's fading cries from the alley didn't slow him down at all.

He'd seen this too often, so much that he considered it part of life. In the dark side of Senag, murder and rape were common, and for Idiot, it wasn't about right or wrong, just whether you were fit to survive. It was that simple.

"Damn, she dared to bite me!"

A man's angry shout came from the alley, followed by a sudden silence of the girl's shouting. Minutes later, three men, not even bothering to pull up their pants, rushed out of the alley and ran away.

The idiot kept walking, amidst Blood Extinguisher's laughter and the swirling snowflakes. He reached the train station and bought a ticket stained with the blood of many from the town.

Why?

The idiot looked down at the baby girl in his arms. Her eyes were closed, seemingly feverish again. Her tiny body shivered from the cold… 

Cold? 

But she never shivered like this two days ago. Why did she feel cold now? Idiot couldn't figure it out, so he chose not to think about it, as the thoughts of an infant are always a mystery. 

He entered the waiting hall, silently standing among the crowd waiting for the train to leave the town.

Inside the waiting room, tragedies continued to unfold.

"You damn, it's all your fault! You ruined our home! Return the money for the child's education, How could you dare take high-interest loans to make money, the money earned from exchange rates not even one percent of the interest."

A woman's cries filled the air. Idiot also didn't pay attention, uncaring of any other matters always. 

But Blood Extinguisher was very interested in the scene, slightly opening an eyelid to enjoy the tragedy. 

A family of four stood there. The man looked weak and useless, his left hand holding the hand of a little girl around eight or nine years old, his right hand carrying a travel bag. The woman next to him was holding a boy about two or three years old in her arms, constantly scolding her husband.

"Asshole, are you dumb now? Say something! I must have been blind to marry a man like you, utterly useless, just burying your head in hard work all day without any wisdom. Each of my sisters married a rich man, but why did I marry you? And now, Ha.. just great, the only time you tried to be smart, you lost our house! How are you going to make it up to me? Damn. You only think with your ass?!"

The woman was crying and making a scene, unconcerned about the stares of the people around her. Maybe because she felt it wasn't enough, she started pinching the man's arm.

The man endured it, just lowering his head, and staying silent. It seemed he was indeed as honest as his wife had said. Seeing him not fighting back, the woman got even angrier, pinching him harder and more violently. His arm was marked with nail prints, yet he still didn't dare to say a word.

The two children began to cry, their wailing making the woman even more upset. She cried too, all the while cursing the man, her grasping turned to twisting, to scratching, to hitting.

As the woman's hysterical cursing continued, the train arrived. The black train with a big chimney quickly approached the station, entering the platform.

The woman's curses were drowned out by the steam whistle of the magic-powered train. As the train was about to reach them…

The man dropped the luggage, grabbed his wife's hand, and with their two children, they all jumped onto the tracks.

The crowd stepped back.

Panic calls were covered by the loud whistle of the train, unheard by anyone. The splashing blood sprayed onto the faces and bodies of the people who were too slow to dodge, leaving them to open their mouths in silent screams under the roar of the whistle.

Blood also splattered on the Idiot's face, cold as if life was always meant to be that way for the boy. His gaze remained unchanged, as if nothing had happened, quietly witnessing the train come to a stop, the doors opening. 

On the steps leading to the train carriage hung a small piece of a child's forearm, dripping blood, staining the steps red, and flowing to the ground.

The Idiot stepped forward, his expression still unchanged. He walked up the bloody steps onto the train.

Blood Extinguisher was laughing, his blood-colored pupil admiring the idiot a little more. The aisle he walked along was marked with his bloody footprints of varying shades, leading to the seat corresponding to his ticket.

When the Idiot found his seat and sat down, the voice of the so-called Sword of the Demon Emperor echoed in his mind again.

"The first step on the magnificent path of darkness, you've taken it well. Hehe… Hahaha… Hahahahaha! There are many ways to massacre a town with me, but you chose to destroy it with your wisdom. Hahahahaha! How intriguing you are. "

The mad laughter echoed in his mind, annoyingly. The Idiot lifted his right hand, heavily chained, wiping the blood from his face. 

He felt tired; these past days, he was on high alert, fearing any miscalculation and failure. Now, he could finally relax a bit, leaving this small town that he had fully utilized.