"Do you think I will hold you back? How is this possible?"
As if to relieve his nervousness, Hercule grabbed the gun and wiped it repeatedly.
He used to be a police officer, but that didn't mean that Hercule was very good at fighting. After becoming the breeder of the Rat King, he rarely visited such dangerous places. Now that he was facing danger for the first time in a long time, he felt that his heart was beating fast.
.
"No, no, no, I'm not nervous. I really am not. I'm just a little excited, right?"
Hercule was sitting on the shore of the pier. According to Haybold, this is where the Clippers met.
Although he said so, Hercule was already extremely nervous. He was all wet because the impact of the gas explosion not long ago had spread to this place. Although it was extremely weak, it still shocked Hercule.
, and the whole thing fell into the sea.
It was already dark, but probably because of the explosion and chaos, people who lit lamps hid in fear. Most of the city was shrouded in darkness, and the firelight barely illuminated it, but it only brought panic and wails.
"Huh, just like I thought before, I'm waiting for Lorenzo and the others on the ship. I can provide some fire support if necessary."
"Aren't these pistols of mine considered fire support?"
"You said it got water in it? Damn it!"
Only then did Hercule realize that his pistol had also been soaked in water. He knocked hard and saw a little more water stains on the ground.
Probably due to the blows coming one after another, coupled with the psychological tension, Hercule seemed a little crazy at the moment.
"Stop it, bastard! I know! I know!"
Hercule muttered to himself, as if he couldn't bear it anymore, and he cursed angrily.
"Shut up, you damn rat, you're annoying me!"
Unable to stand the squeaking noise around him, Hercule turned his head and shouted at Poirot.
"But this is a fact. Are you nervous? Extremely nervous? And the lives of Lorenzo's guys are all in your hands. If you don't catch them? They will die in the encirclement of the enemy."
Poirot said expressionlessly... To be precise, Hercule couldn't see any expression on this big mouse's face. It was jumping around and hovering next to Hercule.
"Lorenzo is right, Hercule? You should have left right then? This situation is not suitable for you. You may have picked up the gun before, but you put it down for too long, and it became extremely strange.
"
"But what can I do now? Run away?"
asked Hercule? He looked distressed.
"Would you do that?" Poirot asked.
"how could it be possible!"
Did Hercule reject Poirot's words? He couldn't help but grip his hair tightly, as if something was squirming in his head, causing a faint pain.
It was a bad trip, a very bad trip.
Hercule was not as rude as he is now. In Lorenzo's eyes, he always looked calm, as if everything was under control.
That's right? That's right, in Erweg? Hercule has an extremely detailed information network, countless safe houses and secret passages.
He is like a mouse, hiding in his own fortress, Hercule believes. Even if Lorenzo wants to kill him, it will be difficult for Lorenzo to do so due to the intertwining of his complex tunnels and information.
everything.
But it was different now. He was in this strange Gaul Nalo. Hercule finally found the uneasiness he had always felt. Here he had no information network and no safe house. After Operation Lorenzo began,
, the whole Gaulnaro is his enemy.
A mouse cannot be exposed to sunlight, as the intense light will burn it to ashes.
"Wait a minute... Poirot, you're fucking talking!"
At this moment, Hercule suddenly realized this in surprise. Perhaps he was too shocked, and for a moment he forgot about the inexplicable depression in his mind.
“What’s wrong with rats talking?”
Poirot didn't understand why Hercule's reaction was so big. He licked his own fur as he spoke. When Hercule fell into the water, a lot of seawater splashed on him.
"Problem? What a big problem! You are a mouse! A chinchilla! How can something like you talk?"
Hercule felt like his brain was going to explode.
"Then the question is, can you hear me? Hercule." Poirot asked.
"Yes!" Hercule replied.
"Then the problem is solved, mice can talk," said Poirot.
"No, no, no, wait a minute! Wait a minute!"
Hercule quickly stopped this damn conversation. He suddenly felt a vague sense of familiarity, and a breeze was blowing, carrying the breath of the ocean.
For a moment Hercule remembered the terrible experience he had in the past.
shipwreck.
Ever since he came back alive from the sea, Hercule has been resisting returning here. Today, many years later, due to Lorenzo and other reasons, he once again set foot on this roaring and rolling ocean.
Because of that nightmarish experience, Hercule suffered from many strange sequelae after he came back alive, such as a frightening memory, seasickness and other strange symptoms as soon as he went to the sea, and of course, he also had trouble with Poirot.
dialogue.
"I remember this is not the first time I have spoken to you."
Hercule suddenly calmed down. During the shipwreck, he also spoke to Poirot, but it turned out that it was just his imagination. The mouse had long since sunk to death on the sea.
"Yes, yes, it's not the first time, but this time it's not bad."
Poirot said, raising his head and looking at the slightly cold night.
"My fur is too thick, and the temperature is just right. Compared with the strong sun at that time, the rats feel more at ease here."
One person and one mouse were sitting right next to each other, with the burning city behind them and the endless dark ocean in front of them. Thinking about it carefully, this scene seems quite interesting now.
"How funny! No...no, you are the second generation Poirot. The first generation Poirot has died long ago."
Hercule felt that his mind was starting to get confused. The first Poirot in his memory had died at sea long ago, so where did the memory of the second Poirot in front of him come from.
"Poirot? Poirot is Poirot, Hercule, you are the one with the brain problem, right?"
Poirot said helplessly.
"my question?"
Hercule thought for a while, and then was actually moved by Poirot.
"Yes, I'm actually talking to a mouse. I'm the one with a brain problem..."
One person and one mouse fell silent. After an unknown period of time, Poirot suddenly looked at a place on the sea and said.
"I said, Hercule, is that the ship that comes to pick you up?"
Hercule raised his head and saw something squirming at the end of the dark sea. Judging from the distance, the thing was moving very fast, and the blurry outline became bigger and bigger in the blink of an eye.
"probably……"
Hercule said with some uncertainty.
"You look a lot changed, Hercule," Poirot added.
"Why do you say that?" Hercule asked.
"After many years, you finally climbed out of the dark sewer and risked yourself to death," Poirot said. "This is something you would never have done before. That shipwreck made you a
Be cautious and wish you could hide in the shadows all your life."
"What made you change?"
Faced with this question, Hercule was stunned. He thought for a while and didn't know what the answer was. After a long time, he said slowly.
"I used to long for secrets, all the information, and having everything in my hands. Although I also long for these now, I suddenly feel that the process of discovering the secrets is more exciting than knowing the secrets."
Hercule's voice became strange as he spoke.
"I peel off the cocoons little by little, knocking open those dusty doors little by little. Sometimes I feel that the secret is not important anymore. At the moment of discovery, it is a great pleasure... just like this ghostly action."
"So you're here and you still don't want to leave?"
"Because I want to see it until the end."
"Is that so?"
The conversation was interrupted again, and after one person and one mouse were silent again for a long time, the vague outline gradually became clear. It was a strange-looking ship, most of which was hidden in the dimness, and Hercule could not see clearly.
But he could clearly see the painting on the ship.
It is a snake, a snake that bites its own tail in an infinite loop.
"So...Hercule, how do you overcome your fear of the sea?" Poirot finally asked.
"Fuck this!"
Hercule's voice was a bit joyful. He took out a bottle of seasickness medicine from the doctor, and then took a big handful under Poirot's gaze. Because there was no water,
He swallowed it hard, saliva splashed everywhere, and his expression was ferocious.
"Oh oh oh! Let's do it!"
Hercule screamed.
…
"Who is that guy?"
On the Silver Fish, the captain looked at the weird guy on the dock and asked questions.
He discovered the existence of Hercule early in the morning, because this guy behaved very strangely. He was like a patient who escaped from a mental hospital, holding a mouse and talking to himself, with a very rich expression.
, just like role playing.
"Hercule Christie, one of Lorenzo's friends, is also a member of this operation. It seems that he is responsible for the response."
The sound came from the back of the narrow cabin. The design of the Silver Fish is different from that of conventional ships. The overall shape is like a slender sword. Because of this design, its cabin is extremely narrow and its capacity is also very small.
, except for the captain, there was only this guy accompanying him on the whole ship.
"Hebold reported to us before, but after leaving Yin Erweg, we no longer received information from him."
The guy at the back rolled up his sleeves and was covered in sweat. It was still too difficult for the two of them to launch the ship, but in order to accommodate these evacuating guys, they had to leave room.
"Is that so? Then I will dock. I hope they will move faster. If we are discovered, it will be very difficult for us to escape from the Gallonalo Sea."
The captain said worriedly.
"I know, I know, don't worry, this thing is the latest work of the Perpetual Pump, I am full of confidence in it."
I just heard a clanking sound, and I didn't know what the guy behind was doing. Due to the narrow space, it was very difficult for the captain to turn around.
"But I really didn't expect that you can actually sail a boat. I always thought you were only good at playing cards and robbing."
The guy behind said.
"If you can't be a gang boss, you have to be more like it. As for sailing the ship, it happened earlier, but it's just a bad memory. I almost died at sea."
The captain's voice actually weakened as he spoke. Probably because he had been under pressure for too long, his voice suddenly became angry.
"Fuck! Fuck! What kind of bullshit mission is this? I feel like I might really die at sea this time."
"Don't worry, this is equipped with our new engine. It runs very fast. Gaulonaluo's ship will never be able to catch up with us."
Nikolai comforted the shrike as much as possible.
"You fart, I almost died in that original sin armor of yours last time!"
Shrike howled for a while. He was really fed up with the crazy things like the Perpetual Pump, not to mention that it was Nikolai who came this time.
To be honest, it is outrageous for Nikolai to join such a fatal job. The risk for a scientific researcher like him to go deep into the front line is very high. If he dies here, it will be a heavy blow to the perpetual pump.
At first, when Shrike was appointed and cooperated with Nikolai, he felt that the superiors really valued this operation and sent such a valuable Nikolai, but he didn't know why until the operation started.
Because the Silver Fish was a complete experiment, no one except Nikolai knew anything about it. Nikolai kept knocking on the equipment behind him along the way, and even asked Shrike to hand over the screws.
"Okay, okay, in the process of science, there will always be some sacrifices."
Nicholas continued to speak, but as he said this, he did not care at all about the victim's mood.
The Silver Fish slowly docked, but before it could reach a stable position, a black shadow suddenly appeared on the boat, and Hercule's somewhat panicked face could be seen through the glass.
"you……"
Shrike was about to say something, but was sharply interrupted by Hercule.
"Get ready to evacuate! They're coming here!"
Hercule's eyes were filled with horror. He heard, just now he heard Lorenzo's voice, the voice that echoed directly in his mind.
Perhaps because the information carried by the words was so shocking, for a moment he didn't even think about why Lorenzo's voice rang directly in his mind. Without hesitation, he rushed directly to the Silver Fish.
Hercule has known Lorenzo for so long, but he has never heard such a tone, fear, anger, confusion...
He is saying to himself.
"Run! Run away!"
The melodious whistle sounded under the night, one after another, like monsters waking up together, and thick smoke rose from the end of the sea level.