Chapter 2212: Chapter 2212

After pouring out her story to Jenkins, the woman’s haggard face relaxed with an expression of relief.

“I rarely speak of my life to others.”

“Don’t you have friends at the factory?”

“Everyone is very busy. Besides, sir, do you find me pitiful?”

There were far more pitiful people than her. At the very least, she could still scrape by, a luxury many could only dream of.

“Every family has its story, and mine isn’t particularly unusual, which is why I seldom tell it. I don’t want people’s pity, and besides, I don’t think I need it.”

They finally reached the crest of the gentle slope, where the road ahead straightened out. The light of the setting sun, breaking through after the rain, was exceptionally brilliant—an orange-yellow glow that carried an almost fierce warmth.

With the rain gone, the streets had grown more crowded. Every scene here was a tableau of this magnificent, turbulent era. Jenkins even thought that if someone could document everything that happened on this single street, those records alone could paint a complete picture of Nolan in the summer of 1865. Updates are released by NoveI(F)ire.net

“Do you find life exhausting?”

“How could it not be? But since this is the life I chose, I have to accept it.”

Two children chasing each other darted past them, and they paused, waiting for the pair to scramble to the side of the road.

“Sometimes I think how blissful it would be to fall asleep and never wake up. But whenever that happens, I force myself to get up and go to work. I have no choice. After all, I still have them.”

She was a plain-looking woman, her appearance worn down by physical labor and the pressures of life. But Jenkins found himself drawn to her face at that moment, a face that represented the vast majority of people in this world.

“Some people work to make money; others work simply to survive. I don’t think there’s anyone who doesn’t feel tired. Everyone knows how tedious and grueling factory work is. But so what? We don’t have a choice. Or rather, the choices we made when we were young led to this life.”

“So, do you resent your life, or do you resent the man who abandoned you and your children?”

“I resent them both. That man and this life... they both make me miserable. But I resent myself, too... But what does it matter?”

The woman posed the question once more.

“Life has to go on. Work, live, and watch the children grow day by day. Maybe their lives will be worse than mine, or maybe they’ll be better than I can imagine. But none of that matters anymore. I never dare to look ahead. I just keep my head down and walk, walking as fast as I can. That way, I can forget my troubles for a little while. I suppose you could say I’m a very hardworking woman.”

She said the words herself, without any prompting from Jenkins.

“If my family had been happy, I would have been a good housewife. But since this is how things turned out, all I can do is work harder. Otherwise, my children will truly have no future.”

At an intersection, they turned into a side alley, leaving the main road and entering the tangled labyrinth of the slums. The population density here was immense, and on this warm summer evening, the narrow lane was teeming with people.

Children laughed and played while housewives sat on their doorsteps washing vegetables. Men gathered in small groups, chatting about everything and nothing, or perhaps discussing their recent earnings.

The woman’s home was nearby; she was just like everyone else here. People greeted her, and she returned their greetings.

“Look at the people here. Is any one of them different from me? I believe that even in cities I’ve never been to, most people are just like me. Life is a constant hustle. We work hard. I suppose that’s just what life is.”

Walking side by side, they finally arrived at the woman’s door. The younger girl, watched over by the older boy, sat on the ground, blissfully playing with sand. The eldest girl emerged with a spatula in hand to welcome her mother.

The family of four went inside, but Jenkins didn’t follow. Instead, he reached out and caught the heart-shaped diamond that floated toward him.

Patting the well-behaved cat on his shoulder, Jenkins turned to face the mechanical man that had been following him the entire time.

“How strange,” he said. “I didn’t even do anything.”

Jenkins hadn’t wanted to use a painted future to trick the woman into working hard. His plan had been to inspire her to love life and cherish the present. He’d intended to have the conversation in her home, where it would have been easier.

But he hadn’t done a thing, and the diamond had appeared. He had merely been a listener, exchanging a few words with the woman, but exerting no influence whatsoever.

“The seven objectives vary in difficulty. Perhaps this one was simply the easiest of them all,” the mechanical man said, joining Jenkins in looking at the diamond in his hand.

The rain had stopped, the clouds had scattered, and in the magnificent light of the setting sun, the facets of the diamond still refracted a dazzling brilliance. It wasn’t large, nor was it particularly warm, but it was undeniably real.

“Do you pity this woman?” the mechanical man asked.

“Yes. I didn’t feel it on the way here, but looking at this diamond, I truly pity her. At the same time, I also want to smash your head in.”

“But her life has nothing to do with me. I did nothing. I merely brought you here to see all this.”

It was right. The woman’s current life was indeed unrelated to it, but that didn’t stop the disgust for the Difference Engine from growing in Jenkins’s heart.

It wasn’t because it had brought him to witness this scene; Jenkins wasn’t so petty. He detested the Difference Engine's deliberate attempt to toy with his emotions. This Mysterious Realm was clearly designed to target his state of mind.

The ninth Mysterious Realm was the last. Perhaps the Difference Engine wanted to make Jenkins hesitate before the final battle, to make him falter. But all it did was strengthen his resolve to destroy it.

“Even if I hadn’t brought you here, this person would still exist; you simply wouldn’t have seen her. Or is your anger merely because I brought you to see something you didn’t want to see, to think about something you didn’t want to think about?”

“I’m not that shallow,” Jenkins replied. He tossed the diamond to the mechanical man and turned toward the woman’s door. Pushing it open, he found himself back in Pops Antique Shop.

“You see, Savior Williams, not seeing something doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist. I brought you to see—”

The mechanical man followed Jenkins back into the shop, then fell silent. Together, they saw that Papa Oliver’s chair was now empty.

“See? I knew something unexpected would happen. Things always do. That’s been my experience over the years.”

The mechanical man scurried back behind the counter.

“When creating any model, one must account for variables. The complexity of reality presents a countless number of them, and only an existence like myself can possibly calculate every eventuality. I predicted that someone would enter the final Mysterious Realm ahead of schedule, but not in this manner. It seems I underestimated the Orthodox Church. But they are the churches of the Righteous Gods, after all. It’s only natural they’d possess some abilities beyond my calculations.”

“Papa Oliver was really here?” Jenkins mused for a moment before asking, “Aren’t you going to stop him?”

“Why would I? The owner of this antique shop has undoubtedly gone to the final clock tower. We are headed there as well, so there’s no need to intercept him.”

“Aren’t you worried that I’ll stall for time here, giving Papa Oliver more time to prepare in the clock tower?” Jenkins asked.

“Of course not. Why do you think I’ve spent so much time talking with you in the ninth Mysterious Realm?” the mechanical man countered. Jenkins answered without hesitation.

“To buy time, so your core can fuse as much as possible.”

“You figured it out?”

“Then why were you willing to waste words with me here? You couldn’t have just thought of this, could you?”

Jenkins smiled, leaning against the counter as he set his cat down and stroked it with one hand.

“Actually, I’d be quite happy to see you become a Calamity Beast.”

“If I stop you, I’ll have prevented the apocalypse, but it would mean the Eighteenth Epoch is missing a Calamity Beast. So, while we’re busy dealing with the aftermath and waiting for the divine decree to announce the start of the Nineteenth Epoch, another Calamity Beast is bound to appear—one that nobody knows anything about.

Therefore, rather than face an unknown enemy, it’s better to let you become the Calamity Beast, and then let me defeat you. Wouldn’t that be much more convenient?” Jenkins declared.

“You’re that confident? Confident that even after I become a Calamity Beast, you can still handle me?”

“If you don’t believe me, why don’t we skip the clock tower and have our final battle right here? Of course, that’s assuming your core dares to show itself to me right now.”

The mechanical man had yet to react to Jenkins’s taunt, but Chocolate, under his hand, perked up. It had been lounging on the counter, letting Jenkins scratch its head. Now, forgetting its owner’s affection, it shot to its feet, eyes wide with excitement, eagerly scanning its surroundings as if hoping the battle would begin at any moment.

Chocolate believed its moment to shine had finally arrived.

“We must all follow the rules. Since it was decided that you would meet me at the end of the ninth level, you must complete the adventure of this Mysterious Realm before you can see me.”

“You still want more time to fuse the primordial steam engine and the Mechanical Heart, don’t you? See, you’re still afraid,” Jenkins pressed.

“Think whatever you like.”

Because it wasn’t a direct answer, Jenkins’s divine domain couldn’t determine if it was a lie.