The Way to Survive

Aiden had personally witnessed the ferocity of Professor Martin's poison. It could instantly kill an old Slaughter Beast and even disintegrate its corpse. But when it came to Eddie, it only took effect for a few minutes before it dissipated?

A normal person's resistance would never be so strong.

Eddie's identity was self-evident.

Sophia drew her dagger almost immediately and pressed it against Eddie's throat.

"Don't do it yet!" Aiden stopped him quickly. "What if he's the Fool?"

Fools. Something that does not consider itself a beast until the end of its life.

If Eddie had been the Fool, he would have posed no threat to either of them.

Sophia's eyes flickered, and she seemed to waver for a moment. But soon, her eyes turned cold again, and the dagger in her hand shone with a cold light.

"No, we can't take that risk. If he's not a Fool, we'll all die!"

Back then, one of her companions had been cruelly devoured because he had been soft-hearted towards a ferocious beast suspected to be a Fool.

She could not make the same mistake a second time!

Aiden knew he couldn't convince her. In fact, he couldn't even convince himself.

To be merciful to the enemy was to be cruel to oneself!

However, scenes from the past flashed through his mind. Since he was young, Eddie, Jack, and he were best friends. They skipped class together, chased girls together, and did many crazy things together. So much so that when he knew that his friend might be a vicious beast, Aiden would rather believe that he was a Fool.

After a long silence, Aiden made up his mind.

"I have to save him!"

As he spoke, he looked directly into Sophia's eyes, his gaze absolutely resolute.

Sophia nodded and raised the dagger to Aiden's neck.

"Then I'll kill you!"

"Then do it!" Aiden didn't blink as he stared fearlessly at Sophia.

Sophia's gaze turned cold.

"Since you're courting death, don't blame me!" The blade slowly exerted force, and the skin on Aiden's neck was immediately cut by the sharp blade. Blood slowly slid down the blade, but he still had no intention of dodging.

Sophia gritted her teeth but did not do anything further. She raised her hand and aimed the dagger at Eddie's neck again. She said coldly, "When he wakes up, if he shows any abnormalities, I will kill him without hesitation!"

"Of course." Aiden nodded. If Eddie was an aggressive dire beast, Aiden wouldn't hesitate to kill him himself.

Taking the dagger from Sophia, Aiden lifted Eddie's shirt and aimed it at his stomach. He took a deep breath and slowly pressed it down.

If he wanted Eddie to recover, he had to take out the cake before they were completely digested. Otherwise, even if Eddie was a ferocious beast, he would not be able to withstand the strong poison.

Fresh blood gushed out, and Aiden's hands trembled. Although he had seen many scenes like this in murder movies, when it really appeared in front of him, there was nothing but deep fear.

He cut open the flesh, took out the bulging stomach, and cut it open with a dagger. An unpleasant smell instantly filled the room.

Suppressing his nausea, Aiden removed the cake residue from his stomach bit by bit. Then, he activated the healing halo. Green energy gushed out of his palms and poured into Eddie's wound. The bleeding gradually stopped, and the wound slowly healed.

Ten minutes later, Eddie's wound was completely healed.

Aiden sat down on the carpet. The huge consumption of his stamina had exhausted him to the extreme, and his entire body was drenched in sweat. This was also thanks to Eddie's own terrifying healing ability. Otherwise, with his strength as a Level 1 Priest, there was no way he could heal such a terrifying wound.

From the beginning to the end, Sophia had been watching coldly from the side. She did not stop or help. It was only now that she spoke.

"Do you know what you're doing?"

"Of course I do." Aiden smiled weakly. "I'm saving my brother."

"You…"

Sophia was a little angry. She stood up and looked coldly at Aiden.

Outside the window, a gust of wind blew into the room. Her long hair was lifted, making it impossible to see her eyes. Only her emotionless voice could be heard.

"I know you're close to Eddie Valentine, but he's a beast."

Aiden said nothing.

Sure enough, what would come, would come.

The room was dark. Sophia stood in the darkness, as if about to become one with it.

"When he wakes, I'll control him and go through his memories. If he's a beast, I won't hesitate to kill him."

Aiden was silent for a moment, then looked up. "And if I don't agree?"

Sophia said without hesitation, "I will kill you too!"

Aiden knew that Sophia was not joking. Their relationship seemed ambiguous, but in reality, it was just a game. The only friendship between them was when they lived together on a farm in the countryside as children, but that was more than ten years ago.

The current situation was unexpected but he wanted to save Eddie not only because he was his friend, but also because he had other concerns.

"I know what you're worried about, but Eddie can't be killed."

"Give me a reason," Sophia said coldly, her expression unchanged.

Aiden thought for a moment, combining all the doubts he had since his awakening, and slowly said, "Although I've only awakened a few days ago, I've already deeply realized a problem. Being an Awakened is extremely dangerous. The reason why you're able to survive isn't entirely because of your vigilance."

"It's also because of my ability." Sophia knew very well that she had been exposed before. She had survived by relying on the powerful power of modifying her memories.

"That's right. Once you know the truth about the world, you will instinctively want to avoid it and begin to reject the people around you. Such behavior will undoubtedly attract the attention of the people around you. After interacting with each other for a long time, no matter how cautious you are, you will still reveal flaws. Not everyone can be like you. Even if you are discovered, you can use your ability to change the other party's memories."

"Other Awakened ones, such as Professor Martin and myself, no matter how good their acting skills are, we are always on guard against berserk beasts. We might even take the initiative to find more of our kind, but actually…"

"Actually, it's more dangerous," Sophia mused.

Seeing this, Aiden added, "Yes, vicious beasts are highly intelligent lifeforms. Could it be that they've been acting as humans for years just for fun? I don't think so. Could it be that they don't attack ordinary humans because they're also observing us?"

"Lily is the best proof. Before I awakened, she was a good partner. She was considerate and gentle. However, when I awakened, she immediately revealed her true colors and wanted to devour me."

Sophia nodded. "If a few humans are close, but show rejection to others, it will make the beasts suspicious."

Aiden sighed. "Yes, but if we don't look for other people of the same species, we won't discover the truth about the world. Even if we aren't discovered, what's the difference between living in fear of death all day long and dying?…"

Aiden thought of Professor Martin's words and his eyes were sad.

"Even then, death is an extravagant hope."

Sophia said nothing, lost in thought.

"The Fool is undoubtedly a good cover. It seems to me that the beasts must have a way of distinguishing their own kind. We just have to bring Eddie with us without attracting the beasts' attention."

"In this way, it will be much safer for us to search for Awakened organizations or other Awakened in the future."

Aiden said it all in one breath, then looked at Sophia seriously. "Is that reason enough?"

"…" Sophia was silent for a long time before slowly nodding.

"I'll believe you this once."