Working Records in a Weird World - 81

 

| WRIAWW | Your Mistake Was that You Shouldn't Have Discovered His Specialness | 81

Having achieved his goal, Joshua turned away in a good mood.

He spared no glance for the surrounding survivors. Though their favorability toward him had surged again due to his generosity, Joshua held no interest for these low-level, worthless ants.

Before leaving, however, there was one matter to address.

"Come here."

Joshua beckoned Su Yuchen: "I'll help you remove your curse."

......

"The curse is really gone! Thank you!"

Su Yuchen marveled at his now-bare wrist. Moments earlier, the golden light from the silver-haired patriarch's fingertips had effortlessly removed away the red strings, the powerful curses vanishing without trace.

As the weakest present, a mere C-level, he feared death intensely.

He is not strong to begin with and he was further weakened by the red strings... if the weird came for him, he wouldn't even be able to run.

Su Yuchen was both in awe and fearful of the 1st, he never expected him to be so gentle. He even took the initiative to remove a curse for a mere C-level like him. Overwhelmed with gratitude, he bowed repeatedly in thanks.

"The forums all said you're kind and merciful, but you're even better than the rumors!"

Joshua ignored his thanks and instead asked, "What were you doing in the movie theater next door earlier?"

"W-well, it was nothing..." At the mention of the movie theater, Su Yuchen's face flushed crimson, his words stumbling.

The humiliating image of being dragged by the hair like trash and forced to kneel before Bluebeard resurfaced in his mind. But then, that resentment was swiftly overtaken by another, far stronger emotion.

"It was Boss Zong Le!"

His voice suddenly rose, eyes blazing with excitement. "He saw me being bullied and charged right in!"

Su Yuchen gestured animatedly, as if reliving that electrifying moment. "You should've seen it. Bluebeard was completely helpless against Boss Zong Le! He couldn’t even last a single move, and that was an S-level we're talking about!"

Joshua's ice-blue eyes narrowed slightly as he observed the suddenly excited young man before him.

He was already calling him "Boss Zong Le" after just a few minutes? The fanatical look on his face was like that of a devout believer witnessing a divine miracle.

"He’s really too powerful!"

Su Yuchen, oblivious to Joshua’s scrutiny, rambled on. "I’ve never seen anyone that strong before! Moreover, he could have just ignored me..."

As he said this, his eyes couldn't help but turn red.

Thinking of how he had given Zong Le medicine before, Su Yuchen felt even more regretful. He was afraid that this incident would leave a bad impression on Zong Le.

"I see."

Joshua nodded. "So now you like him and admire him, right?"

Without waiting for an answer, he murmured to himself,

"After all, you have seen his overwhelming strength. In an place like infinite space, where survivors instinctively cling to power. Your so-called 'admiration' is inevitably tainted with self-interest, a desperate search for protection. Ah, no matter how many times I analyze it, it’s simply human nature at its ugliest."

The little thoughts that Su Yuchen thought he had hidden well were suddenly exposed, and his face turned pale.

His lips parted in confusion, unable to comprehend why the previously benevolent 1st would suddenly speak with such harsh words. "What did you—"

"There's no need say more. Now, I command you to forget all your memories of this mission, especially everything about Zong Le."

Watching the young man’s pupils dilate in instant obedience, Joshua concealed the cold light in his eyes.

It is his specialty to give a little favor, quickly improve their favorability, and then use the already reached favorability to issue a absolute command. For Su Yuchen, a simple-minded low-level survivor who only wants to cling to others to live, it was effortless, and it works every time.

The more weaknesses a person had, the easier they were to control. But someone like Zong Le, seemingly straightforward yet unshakably strong, left him at a loss.

"There was no need to bother with such an insignificant ant... Your mistake is that you shouldn't have discovered his specialness."

Joshua cast a disdainful glance at Su Yuchen, who was still standing there dumbfounded, then turned and left without another word.

That was his prey, his treasure alone, how could he allow others to taint it?

Even the mere thought was unacceptable.

......

Meanwhile, after Zong Le left alone, he aimlessly wandered around Taile Cinema for a while.

He truly had no particular plan, only feeling that regardless of whether Joshua had resurrection abilities or not, he shouldn't transfer a curse meant for others onto himself.

Moreover, this thing had no effect on Zong Le whatsoever, the string on his hand was so faint it was almost invisible. In any case, he would never be the first target.

There was also the fact that it must not be an easy task for Joshua to bear the curse of so many people. If the weird can be found and solved as soon as possible, it will be a good thing.

The problem lay precisely in this. If the weird remained hidden and left no traces of its power, it would be hard to locate. Zong Le wasn't the type skilled in searching.

After searching for while, Zong Le and the other survivors came to the same conclusion: the weird in this mission was likely not the combat-type. It had been cautious, never revealing its true form during the killings, instead manipulating red strings from behind the scenes to strangle its victims passively.

Still, they were in its domain. They needed to find a way to lure it out.

In fact, the survivors had managed to locate the lead actress. Unfortunately, after being delayed by recent events, when they found her again, she was already dead in the dressing room closet, strangled by red strings like the other three.

With this, both lead actors, the director, and the supporting actress had all died by the red strings.

"There's still the supporting actor!"

The survivors rushed to the supporting actor's dressing room, surrounding him tightly, ready to apprehend any approaching weird.

"Your right! The string on his hand is the darkest, he's definitely next on the death list!"

"Just keep an eye on him. The weird will surely come."

"With so many of us, we'll catch it for sure."

However, contrary to the direction where the group had gathered, Zong Le, having found no clues during his search, returned to the lobby.

In the center of the lobby, Joshua sat by a chair, resting his head on one hand with his eyes closed. A small golden magic circle continuously glowed on his wrist, isolating the red string while silently resisting the weird aura.

Bearing the A-level curse of fifty to sixty people at once was indeed overwhelming. While each individual curse seemed insignificant, their combined force was no less than a high-level S-level curse.

Fortunately, it only drained stamina rather than life force or inflicted more severe curses. Otherwise, Joshua wouldn't have risked himself just to maintain his image in front of Zong Le.

Despite the curse's weakening effect flooding his consciousness like a tide, Joshua's senses remained as sharp as a blade.

When the footsteps drew near, his eyes snapped open abruptly, a sharp glint flashing through his ice-blue pupils. Only upon recognizing Zong Le did the tension in his features soften slightly.

His tone shed the polite detachment he showed others, the upward lilt at the end carrying a familiarity reserved solely for Zong Le.

"You're back?"

The dark-haired youth turned his face away unnaturally. "The red string on your hand is the darkest. The weird will definitely come for you first."

"Ah, thanks."

Hearing this, Joshua's smile became thicker.

Every other survivor, under his guidance, had overlooked this subtle blind spot entirely.

Indeed, it wasn't just the movie crew who had red strings, there was also the curse he had just transferred onto himself. Unfortunately, people are often trapped by habitual thinking, and were mislead by Joshua. 

In the end, only Zong Le noticed this and came looking.

So far, the entire incident had been progressing exactly as he had planned.

The only thing that slightly displeased him was that while the number representing his favorability with Zong Le had increased by five, but the 0 beside it remained completely unchanged.

Joshua lightly tapped his fingers on the armrest, his silver lashes lowering slightly.

He thought there must still be something he had overlooked, something that was the key to breaking the ice.

Based on his extensive experience, when favorability stalls at a certain point, there's always a reason it's stuck.

Coincidentally, the other survivors had all gone off on their own tasks, leaving just the two of them alone. Seizing the opportunity, Joshua prepared to resume his talk.

The man's voice was as light as a feather brushing past: "Is it just my imagination, or do you seem to have some bias against me?"

His ice-blue eyes flickered subtly, showing a moderate degree of hurt, while maintaining a sense of distance that makes people feel relieved. This is the perfect speech opening remark that Joshua has practiced thousands of times.

Yet, to his surprise, Zong Le turned to him in confusion. "Huh? No? When have I ever been biased against you?"

"Oh, but you have," Joshua said. "You always treat me like a bad guy. In your eyes, I must be on some kind of 'watchlist,' I am no different from Bluebeard, but you haven't found any evidence of a crime yet."

"......" Zong Le was at a loss for words.

He had been mentally referring to the man as "Silver-Haired Bad Guy," but how the hell had this guy found out? He had wondered the same thing last time, could the Infinite Space provide mind-reading abilities?!

Guilt crept onto the black-haired young man's face, making his expression stiffen.

Joshua watched him with an smile but didn't press further. Instead, he posed a deeper question: "Lele, what do you think defines good and bad?"

The silver-haired man elegantly interlaced his fingers, his saintly white robes shimmering softly in the candlelight. "Although I don't think I'm a good person and I take advantage of people, I've never killed anyone purely for personal gain. Don't you think it's a little unfair, Lele, to lump me together with those scum?"

As absurd as it sounded, it was the truth.

As the Son of God, Joshua could only use the Eros Code to kill NPCs guilty of heinous crimes, like Madam Xue. The restraints embedded in his heart explicitly prohibited him from harming ordinary people.

"......"

Seeing Zong Le fall silent, a rare hesitation flickering across his brow, Joshua was satisfied.

He knew his words had taken effect.

Just like a tiny seed, with the passage of time, it will sprout and eventually grow into a towering tree.

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TL: I'm a bit confused on what the ML not being able to harm ordinary people, didn't he try to kill the MC? So I am guessing he meant that he couldn't directly hurt the survivors with his own hands but he can manipulate someone to do it for him lol