461 Solution

In the interrogation room, Charles saw Constantine sitting behind the one-way glass. He sat under the ghastly white light and on a chair without any armrests or back. His back was straight and he would not answer no matter what the interrogator asked. He just closed his eyes and waited silently.

"The old guy refuses to talk." Someone asked, "Should we try a Mind score?"

Ye Qingxuan could not help but scoff. Mind scores had shocking control over people but it was not all-powerful. It depended heavily on timing. Constantine's rejection would be the strongest in somewhere like an interrogation room. He would not give anyone the chance to plant a hint. And even if the planting was successful, Ye Qingxuan knew at least a dozen ways to fight against it.

The simplest was 'destruction of all.' One would plant a self-destruction hint beforehand in his own mind. Once a Mind music score entered the brain, his heart would stop automatically, cutting off the oxygen supply to the brain, and disrupting the hormone secretion. He could die happily within seconds.

"It's useless." Wolf Flute shook his head and pointed at the back of Constantine's head. "He's the deputy general of the Revolutionaries and controls the information web. He probably can't even count how many dirty secrets he knows. You think he won't have any safety precautions? You'll know if you look at his hairline."

Under the white light, under Constantine's thin white hair and scalp, one could see faint music notes.

"Made of flesh, do you see?" Wolf Flute said. "It's hardcore. He had someone turn his skull into alchemy. It'll be activated if the requirements are met. If I was the guy, I'd recommend he get a double insurance meal with an extra 'corpus callosum surgery' to cut the bridge between the left and right halves of the brain. He'd have enough time to kill himself…"

He paused and said indifferently, "Unless he chooses to tell you, don't think you can dig anything out. Just give up. After daybreak, he'd be handed over to the Judgement Tower. Our mission is over though it was done pretty badly. F*ck, they got off easy."

In silence, Ye Qingxuan looked to Charles. The man stood dumbly before the window, staring at Constantine.

Seeming to sense the eyes behind the glass, Constantine opened his eyes and snapped out of his thoughts. He looked over. The two stared at each other with troubled eyes from either side of the glass.

"I want to see him." Charles turned back to Wolf Flute. "Doesn't he want to see me? Let me see him." Without waiting for refutation, he said, "It's the only solution if you want to dig something out of him before daybreak."

Wolf Flute lit his cigarette in silence. Smoking it all, he snuffed it with his feet. "Let him." He glanced at the man in charge. "I'll take responsibility."

-

Five minutes later, the black door opened. Charles walked into the interrogation room and sat down under Constantine's gaze.

"Mr. Constantine…" He scratched his head, unsure what to say. After a long while, he said quietly, "I'm here."

"Long time no see, Charles." It had only been a few hours but Constantine's tone made it feel as if a long period had passed. There was no hatred in his voice, despite knowing Charles was a spy. Studying him, Constantine nodded slowly.

"Nice uniform."

"Thanks." Charles managed a smile. Before coming, he was worried that Constantine would be tortured and humiliated. He was worried that after Gaius's heartless chase, he would break down from Charles's betrayal. Now, it seemed that he was okay. Charles felt relieved for some reason. At least he was still alive.

In silence, Constantine broke the silence first. He said, "You shouldn't have followed me."

"Huh?"

Seeing his confusion, Constantine couldn't help shaking his head. "I mean, if you really wanted to fulfill your orders, you shouldn't have followed me. Even if you did, you should've abandoned ship early on." His voice was calm as if commenting on Charles's work with a tinge of sadness and regret.

"You had so many chances. You could have sold me out to Gaius to win his trust. If you wanted to know what he's planning, you should have done that."

"…Sorry." Charles was silent for a long while before asking, "Sir, did you truly never suspect me?"

"Of course I had. I suspect everyone around me." Constantine laughed casually. He made a smoking gesture. Charles pulled a cigarette from his pocket and lit it for him. The old man placed his arms on the table and smoked. Spitting out smoke, he seemed to reflect on his life.

"Charles, you'd know if you become the general of the Revolutionaries. There's no one you can trust in this world. Everyone is an enemy. You shouldn't leave your back open to anyone. You cannot let your guard down before anyone. Even if he is your decades-long old friend. Even if he is like Gaius…"

Charles did not understand. "Then why did you let me—"

"Because you're stupid, Charles." Constantine sighed. "How can there be a spy as stupid as you? I put you by my side because you're the least threatening even though you have an ulterior motive."

"Yeah." Charles laughed at himself. "I can't even become a musician, let alone something as difficult as a spy. Actually, if I have the chance—"

"Charles," Constantine interrupted, looking at him. "Stop."

Those eyes were complex yet full of pity as if looking at someone about to die, standing at the edge of a cliff.

"Charles, being a spy is hard work, just like a prisoner who chose to enter prison. When you stand in the middle, you start to doubt where you are. The feeling of your soul being split into two makes you want to go crazy, making you into…what you're feeling right now."

He put out his cigarette and stared at the painful capillaries in Charles's eyes. He shot up and grasped Charles's wrist, making it impossible for him to move away.

The old man looked at the young man and said haltingly, "If you can't find a solution to face them, I'll teach you one, Charles. Drink some wine, find some medicine, find a good doctor, a reliable Mind musician, and turn everything into a dream. Forget it all."

"Forget it?" Charles laughed emptily.

"Remember the joke I told you yesterday?" Under the alarm and warnings, Constantine let go and returned to his seat. "The young should not be depressed by temporary pain because there are many more painful days to come…"