Chapter 466: Those Once Great (Part 2) (Patreon)

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As the agents were blown away by the airflow, Kayla frowned deeply. She looked at Alfred's expression and asked him, "Aren't you curious about who that person is?"

Alfred shook his head and replied, "I'm just an aging butler. The great events about to unfold in this world have nothing to do with me."

"What did you mean by that thing you said earlier?"

Kayla walked over to Alfred's side and looked at him. Since he had spoken those words, Alfred seemed somewhat tired.

If it were an ordinary elderly person, Kayla might think he was just fatigued from thinking and talking, but Alfred was still robust, despite not being young anymore. She had no doubt that she couldn't win against this old butler.

"Valeria, in your previous letter, you asked me about my thoughts on your future life plans. In my reply, I didn't mention that part not because I don't have thoughts, but because I'm afraid that you don't want to hear them..."

Kayla tilted her head, not understanding the meaning behind Alfred's words. She thought for a moment and said, "Are you worried that I won't take your advice? It's alright; I believe in listening to different opinions. Even if some advice doesn't align with my expectations, I'm happy to take it as a reference and appreciate the person giving it..."

"That's why you've made such rapid progress, but at the same time, it's also why you might not want to listen to my advice."

Kayla thought Alfred was still worried about her not accepting advice. She walked up to him, looking into his eyes, and said, "Oh, Mr. Pennyworth, you really don't need to worry about that. I've always regarded you as my teacher and The Godfather..."

"...My advice is to bring your family to the U.S. as soon as possible and find another job to spend the rest of your life peacefully without mentioning any part of your past identity to anyone."

Kayla's eyebrows slowly furrowed, her chest rising and falling faster. It was evident that she was getting angry, but she still tried to remain patient and asked, "Why?"

Before Alfred could answer, Kayla couldn't help herself and said, "How could I betray my career? How could I betray my ideals? Lake Baikal is my hometown, and I will eventually return there."

She grew more agitated as she spoke, and her emotions were stirred up as she thought of her hometown. Her voice trembled as she said, "Yes, I know that most people have a negative impression of Siberia, thinking of it as a frozen land..."

"But it is also a place where great mother nature nurtures her children. Lake Baikal is the pearl on her forehead, the tear in her eye. It's my homeland; I was born there, and I will die there."

"Calm down, Valeria. I don't deny that. That's why I said my advice might not be what you want to hear."

"You still have to tell me the reason, Alfred. Otherwise, how can I accept this absurd advice?"

Alfred sighed and said, "Decades ago, I was as passionate and idealistic as you..."

"Even when I completed the task of hiding the list, I was intoxicated by the beautiful vision of achieving a great cause..."

"But everything changed because of one decision I made."

"What was that decision?"

"I mentioned before that after hiding the list, I didn't return directly to the U.K. to meet my superiors and contacts. Instead, I went to Moscow."

Kayla furrowed her brows, saying, "I've been wondering about that. Going to Moscow directly should be against the rules, right? Even as a Soviet citizen, I couldn't do that easily."

"Correct. But I had no choice at that time because I knew only the scientists in Moscow had a chance to deal with that monster's egg."

"The process of obtaining that egg from the owl was exceptionally dangerous, and during it, we witnessed things that ordinary people never see. I realized that some dark force might be threatening the world, and we had to find a way to stop it."

"At that time, I felt the crisis was imminent, and compared to that, regulations didn't seem that important. So, I found a way to get to Moscow."

"And then?"

"I was arrested... Of course, that wasn't surprising since I had broken the rules. But afterwards..."

Alfred sighed and continued, "By then, Philby had already returned to Moscow. He vouched for me, and the Moscow side decided not to pursue my violation of regulations."

"But when I told them everything, their first reaction wasn't about how to deal with the monster's egg and that mysterious dark force, or ensuring the safety of the world's people. They misunderstood it as a new kind of weapon developed by the U.S...."

"They asked me for detailed parameters of this weapon, hoping to get more information. I repeatedly emphasized the danger of that thing and the necessity of dealing with it to eliminate hidden dangers for all humanity."

"But the answer I received was disappointing."

"The person I communicated with told me that to ensure that this newly developed weapon wouldn't be used against them by the U.S., they would send other agents to investigate the matter."

"And if that was just an uncontrollable, unexploitable monster, they would happily accept it as such, and the U.S. would be the first to suffer."

Kayla fell silent. When Alfred spoke these stories so casually, she felt the disappointment and anger as if it were her own.

"Actually, at that time, I tried to convince myself. For example, the Soviet Union's financial situation was also worrisome, so there was no way to invest heavily in such a seemingly elusive project. Or, maybe I didn't have more solid evidence to prove the danger of that thing...""Perhaps... I also think that, in the end, no one is obligated to save all of humanity."

Kayla could hear Alfred's voice choking up, especially when he uttered the last sentence. His old and hoarse voice seemed to carry a sense of shattered clarity, and when it reached Kayla's ears, it made her feel suffocated.

"But what truly disappointed me was that, on my way out of Moscow, I was attacked."

"At that moment, I thought it must have been U.S. spies lurking in Moscow trying to get rid of me. They nearly succeeded. The person who attacked me was skilled; two bullets hit my thigh and chest."

"I narrowly escaped death. But when I recovered from my injuries and intended to investigate the incident, I found out that the attacker was not a U.S. spy; it was... one of our own."

Kayla widened her eyes and said, "How is that possible? Why would they..."

"Because what I knew about the monster's egg and the information about the dark force could seriously shake the confidence of our military. They didn't want me to spread panic..."

Alfred closed his eyes and continued, "Once, we walked on a path that would never fear anything. When we wanted to move forward, we didn't need to go around the mountains; the mountains would go around us out of fear."

"All of that came to an end during that moment of hesitation."

"Maybe in this world, no one is truly obligated to save the world. Perhaps all of it is just an unrealistic fantasy. But when we give up on that fantasy, we give up on everything."

Kayla saw the wrinkles on Alfred's face trembling, and she suddenly realized that his old age didn't seem to come from physical decay, but more from the collapse and exhaustion of his spirit after being shattered and rebuilt.

She understood that Alfred didn't give up this career because of his feelings for Bruce. Rather, after he abandoned his beliefs, Bruce became his only spiritual support.

Thinking this, Kayla became somewhat anxious and said, "Wait, Alfred, Benjamin got hold of your materials before. It documented your past experiences..."

"If what you said is true, that you never developed young Wayne into a member of the organization, and he doesn't even know about your past, then you must hurry and destroy those materials!"

"Follow me; I'll take you to that room!"

Alfred looked at Kayla with some surprise in his eyes and said, "I thought you would reprimand me for fabricating the story, or you would be unhappy with me deliberately tarnishing her image..."

"You're not that kind of person."

Kayla's steps halted, and she turned around, hesitating for a moment before looking back at Alfred, saying, "During these difficult times, people like you and Philby have withstood unimaginable pressure, trying to turn the tide. And indeed, you've done it."

"At the moment of your death, you can say, 'My whole life and all my energy have been devoted to the world's grandest cause - the struggle for the liberation of humanity.'"

Kayla paused, her voice trembling as she continued, "Perhaps all of humanity won't be liberated..."

"Alfred..." Kayla looked into Alfred's eyes and asked, "...But do you regret what you've done for the cause?"

Alfred also looked into Kayla's eyes, remained silent for a moment, and then slowly shook his head.

Kayla turned away from him, pausing for a moment, and then resumed her steps.

Her voice echoed in the room, like an actor who, as the curtain of the play was about to fall, was still striving to deliver the final line.

"I don't regret it either."

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