LIGHTNOVELWORLD Chapter 9: Do you believe what he said
"Name?"
"Anthony."
"ID number?"
"I don't know."
"Age?"
"Seventeen."
"Gender?"
Anthony: "Male..."
"What are your parents' names?"
"Forgot."
...
At this moment, George was interrogating Anthony.
The previous night, after a grueling battle of over two hours, they finally managed to shake off the monsters.
Everyone was injured, so they decided to return to the camp, and they brought Anthony back with them.
On one hand, Anthony was a citizen of the Normandy Kingdom, so they couldn't just leave him to die.
On the other hand, this guy had been eating hotpot inside the White Mist Zone, so he definitely had some secrets.
Of course, George wasn't torturing Anthony—he was just asking questions.
After confirming all of Anthony's basic information, George stared at him coldly. "What were you doing inside the White Mist Zone?"
"Eating."
"Why were you eating inside the zone?"
"It was too cold outside."
George paused for a moment. He had considered countless possible answers, but not this one. Too cold?
George almost laughed in disbelief and said coldly, "You must be joking. Don't you know how dangerous the White Mist Zone is? The mortality rate for ordinary people entering is 99.96%!"
Anthony nodded:"Yeah, I know. I originally went in there to die."
George: ...
Bang!
George slammed the table, his usual composure shaken.
Gritting his teeth, George said, "You'd better be honest. Even though you're a citizen of the Normandy Kingdom, if you don't cooperate, don't blame me for being rude!"
At that moment, the door opened, and Iris entered, supporting Irvin, who was wrapped in bandages and had a cast on his arm.
Seeing who had entered, Anthony perked up. This was the man who had single-handedly held off dozens of monsters.
However, for some reason, Anthony felt something odd about this man. Instinctively, he focused his espers energy on his eyes, and then Anthony froze.
He saw a blood-red skull hovering above Irvin's head.
Iris noticed Anthony staring and made a funny face at him, clearly remembering how he had groped her the previous day.
"Captain, why aren't you resting? Is your body okay?" she asked.
Irvin waved her concern away. "Don't worry, I won't die. Have you found out anything?"
George shook his head. "Not yet. This kid is just talking nonsense."
Anthony sat in his chair, feeling a bit helpless. He had been telling the truth the whole time.
Irvin glanced at the report on Anthony's responses, and even he couldn't help but twitch a little at the corners of his mouth.
Going into the zone to die but ending up eating hotpot instead—who would believe that?
He then looked at Anthony and spoke softly, "You're Anthony, right? Don't worry, no one here will hurt you. Just tell us everything you know."
Anthony replied, feeling innocent, "But I've been telling the truth."
"You say you went into the zone to die. Why? And how did you, an ordinary person, end up in the danger zone?"
Anthony replied calmly, "Because I never left."
Huh?
Irvin and George both looked surprised. "What do you mean?"
Anthony didn't hide anything. "Seven years ago, when the White Mist Zone suddenly appeared, I've been living there ever since."
"Why? It's not easy to survive in the danger zone."
"I couldn't get out."
"Couldn't get out?"
"There was an invisible wall blocking me, not letting me leave."
Hearing this, Irvin frowned. At first, he thought Anthony was just spouting nonsense, but it seemed there was more to it.
Irvin asked, "Tell me more about this invisible wall."
"The invisible wall was huge, tall, like a dome that enveloped White Mist Zone No. 22, with a radius of about seventeen kilometers..."
Anthony quietly recounted the story of the invisible wall that had imprisoned him for seven years. Perhaps it was because this was the first time someone was listening to his story, or maybe it was because he had been suppressing it for so long and needed to let it out.
After explaining the details about the air wall, Anthony also shared the incident of losing his eyesight and entering the danger zone, though he deliberately left out the part about being able to see the zone's rules.
Anthony wasn't sure whether he could only see the rules of White Mist Zone No. 22 or if he could see the rules of all zones. He hadn't had the chance to test this out. The fact that the invisible wall shattered when he touched it indicated that the wall was somehow connected to his abilities.
The rules of the zone had troubled humanity for two hundred years, and if this information were made public, it would undoubtedly cause a huge sensation. Anthony wasn't sure if he would become a hero, but he knew he would certainly lose his freedom, possibly even being dissected like a lab rat.
Seven years ago, the rescue team had abandoned him. Anthony didn't hold a grudge; after all, there were many people in need of help at that time. However, Anthony had never aspired to be a hero. His only wish now was to go to the city, find Angela and Grandpa Alan, and live a normal life.
After hearing the entire story, Irvin's gaze toward Anthony softened considerably.
The story Anthony told was logically coherent and well-structured, something that an ordinary seventeen-year-old couldn't have made up on the spot. If everything he said was true, it was easy to imagine what those seven years had been like for Anthony.
Perhaps sensing the heavy atmosphere, Irvin decided to change the subject. "I've got the information. By the way, you've just Espers your ability. Can you sense what it is?"
"It's related to my eyes. After awakening, my vision has become clearer."
Oh?
Irvin raised an eyebrow and stepped back to the corner of the room, holding up a piece of paper. "Can you see what's written on this?"
Anthony's pupils contracted slightly before he nodded. "Yes, I can."
Seeing this, Irvin looked over at George.
Catching on, George drew a dagger from his belt and quickly slashed it through the air.
Swoosh, swoosh, swoosh...
After several seconds, George finally stopped. "How many cuts did I make?"
Anthony blinked, a bit unsure. "Sixty-seven cuts?"
Irvin nodded. "It seems you have a superhuman-type ability, enhanced vision with dynamic sight. Preliminary assessment puts your ability at grade C, which is decent. Iris, take him for a more detailed test and get his information registered."
Iris pouted, clearly not thrilled about it, but since the captain was still recovering from his injuries, she decided not to give him any more trouble.
"Anthony, right? Come with me."
Anthony followed Iris out, but as he left, he couldn't help but glance back at the blood-red skull above Irvin's head. Although he was curious, he decided not to ask.
After Anthony was gone, Irvin looked at George. "Do you believe what he said?"
George pondered for a moment. "It's unexpected, but it makes sense. The story is unusual, but the logic holds up, unless he prepared this story in advance. But our encounter with him was purely coincidental. To say there's some force planning this out within the White Mist Zone? I don't buy it. And even if there was, what would be the point? If they had that kind of power, they could just ambush you directly."