Chapter 79 Chapter 78

Several children bounced and rushed down the spiral staircase. At this time, Lucas was escorted up by the security officer, ready to face death.One of the children was being chased and screamed with excitement.The scream was getting closer, and it didn't take long for them to see the children.So Bernin and Lucas hurried to the railing to make way for them. Berning put on the airs of a security officer and yelled at the children, telling them to slow down and be careful.They giggled and continued down the run.School is on holiday again today, so I don't need to listen to adults' lectures anymore.

Lucas leaned against the outer railing, considering whether to jump off.Jump off and you'll be free.He can choose how he dies.He had thought about it before when he was depressed. Bernin had been holding his elbow just now, and Lucas had no chance to jump.He could only look at the railing, admiring the graceful arc.The balustrade was evenly bent, and stretched all the way down, endlessly.He imagined the railing snaking its way deep into the ground, like a string of DNA running through the center of the bunker, around which all life surrounds.Touching the railing, he seemed to feel the pulse of the entire earth.

As they climbed up, thoughts raced through Lucas' mind.He watched the welding of the risers.Welding has a different look in each place.Some places are unevenly welded, while others are as flat as new and polished smooth.Every welding is like a signature left by a craftsman.Some places can be seen as the masterpieces of craftsmen at a glance, while some places seem to be too tired after a busy day, and they are done hastily.Some places are the decades-old skills of experienced masters, while others are the product of young apprentices' first battles. He reached out and touched the rough paint surface, feeling the uneven particles.In places the paint had peeled off, revealing layers of old paint underneath, each a different color.The color is different, maybe because of age, or maybe because of the different paint used.Seeing the layers of paint, he suddenly remembered the wooden table he had been using every day for the past month.Every dent is the trace left by the years, and every name engraved on it reveals the desire of that person.They longed to imprint their souls on that table, so as not to be wiped out in the torrent of time.

For a long time they walked up in silence, neither of them speaking.A courier passed by with a heavy load on his back.Later, another pair of young men and women passed by, and there seemed to be a guilty expression on their faces.Lucas finally left the server room.In the past few weeks, he has been looking forward to freedom every day, but the result is not what he expected.Bernard suddenly attacked him, and he was caught off guard.The journey up the stairs was humiliating to him.Everyone is looking at him.Someone stood in the doorway, someone on the landing, someone on the stairs.Everyone stared at him with wide eyes, expressionless.His former friends began to wonder if he had become their enemy.

Maybe he really is. They'd say he had a nervous breakdown and that's why he broke the taboo and said he wanted to get out.But now, Lucas already understood why those people were sent out in the past.He is like a virus.If he spoke his mind, everyone he knew would die.Juliet was sent out in the same way, and was framed in the same way.He trusts her.He has always believed in her, and has always known that she has done nothing wrong.But now, he really understood the truth behind it.She was just like him, the two were so similar, but the difference was that he knew he had no chance of surviving.Bernard had already told him.

After they left the information area and climbed ten floors, Bernin's radio suddenly rang out.He let go of Lucas' elbow and turned up the volume to see if it was him. "I'm Juliet. Who are you?" The sound—Lucas was about to jump, but when he heard the sound, his heart was beating wildly.He kept his eyes fixed on the railing, pricked up his ears and listened carefully. Bernard also spoke.He told everyone to turn off the radio.Berning picked up the radio and turned down the volume, but didn't turn it off.As they climbed, they listened to the conversation on the radio, listening to the two men go head-to-head.Every time Lucas stepped up, those words pierced his heart like an arrow.He stared at the railing and began to really want to jump.That is true freedom.

Grab the railing and jump out, then plummet all the way to the bottom. He began to imagine the series of actions in his mind, bent his knees, and jumped out. The two were still arguing over the radio.Someone thought that no one was listening now, so he casually said a lot of things that violated taboos. Lucas kept repeating the action of jumping out of the railing in his mind.His ultimate fate lay beyond that railing.The sight was so seductive that it seemed to interfere with his legs.Involuntarily he crawled slower and slower. He started to slow down, and Bernin slowed down with him.Listening to Juliet and Bernard going back and forth, the two of them walked slower and slower, as if hesitant to continue climbing.Lucas' urge suddenly vanished.He decided not to dance.

And Bernin also began to have other ideas.