Chapter 16: Deathbed Clues

  Kenneth Ryder lay on the cold floor, body charred, life like a candle in the wind, each weak breath carrying blood foam and painful hissing. Samuel Jones knelt beside him, futilely trying to do something, but facing this kind of consciousness-level severe trauma, he was powerless.

  Everyone's attention was drawn to the dying detective and the incredible intervention by Sophia Rossi.

  "Why?" Irina Petrova's gun barrel (though a consciousness projection, the posture still full of threat) was first to point at Sophia, gaze sharp as a blade. "Who exactly are you?"

  Sophia spread her hands, that mask of frivolity seeming to crack slightly, revealing a trace of genuine fatigue and mockery: "Me? Just a troublemaker who doesn't want things to get too boring, or rather... doesn't want certain people to have their way too easily." Her gaze meaningfully swept past Leon Schmidt, then glanced at that tightly closed equipment room door.

  "You knew the pulse would come from that direction?" Carmen Ortiz asked calmly, body slightly shifting sideways to form a pincer movement with Irina.

  "Guessed it." Sophia shrugged. "There's always someone who doesn't want the 'thing' inside to be contacted, right? Especially when... the 'cleaners' realize they might not be able to clean everything up." Her words seemed like self-talk, yet also like some kind of hint.

  Just then, Kenneth Ryder suddenly convulsed, throat making gurgling sounds, seeming to want to say something. Samuel immediately leaned down.

  "Wave... waveform... B... source... mimicry... careful..." Kenneth's voice was so weak it was almost inaudible, his charred finger struggling to lift, pointing toward Leon's screens. "B... source... mimicry... careful..."

  His eyes suddenly bulged wide, the last trace of spirit dissipating, arm falling powerlessly.

  [Ding. Abnormal consciousness activity termination detected. Attempting to reconnect... Connection failed. Unit marked. Journey continues. Wishing all passengers a pleasant journey.]

  The fifth death announcement. Kenneth Ryder, the sharp private detective, traded his life for the brief opening of the door and a fragmented dying message.

  "Waveform B... source mimicry... careful..." Samuel slowly repeated the incomplete phrase, lifting his head, gaze heavy as he looked at Leon and Anya.

  Leon Schmidt's face turned extremely ugly. He immediately pulled up the two attack sources' waveform comparison graphs. "Mimicry...? Could Source B's attack pattern be deliberately mimicking Source A? Or... mimicking certain signal characteristics of the train system itself?" He operated rapidly, trying to find any clues. "If so... then Source B's purpose might not just be killing—it's also trying to frame others, or hide its true technical characteristics?"

  This speculation made the situation even more complex.

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  Killer B may be more cunning than imagined.

  And Kenneth's final "careful"—was it a warning to everyone, or specifically identifying someone who needed watching?

  All eyes focused again on Sophia Rossi. Her recent actions defied common sense.

  "Ms. Rossi," Samuel stood, voice icy. "You need to provide a better explanation. Otherwise, we'll have no choice but to regard you as an extreme threat and restrain you."

  Sophia looked at Kenneth's corpse on the ground, then at the tense crowd before her, suddenly sighing. That frivolous mask completely vanished, replaced by a cold frankness.

  "Alright, had enough fun." She rubbed her wrists, eyes becoming sharp and direct. "I'm not a killer, but I'm not your friend either. I was hired by a... competitor of the Stardroop system, or rather, an interest group that doesn't want to see a certain new Stardroop project succeed."

  She glanced at Charles: "Marcus Wong's research touched some people's core interests. They wanted to seize or destroy both the man and the technology. My original mission was to opportunistically obtain technical data, and when necessary... ensure Mr. Wong couldn't be used by others." She spoke lightly, but the meaning was clear—she originally might also have come to silence him.

  "But clearly, the plan went awry." Sophia continued, tone carrying a trace of mockery. "Someone struck faster and harder than us. Not only did they abduct Mr. Wong, they trapped all of us in this damned trap, wanting to take everyone out in one sweep. That pulse just now," she pointed toward where it had come from, "was the 'cleaners' trying to thoroughly destroy evidence. I couldn't let them succeed, at least... not before what's in Mr. Wong's head is extracted."

  Her confession was shocking. Yet another faction with ulterior motives!

  "So you saved him just for the technology in his head?" Charles felt disgusted.

  "What else? For love and justice?" Sophia sneered. "Don't be naive, Mr. Engineer. The current situation is that we - flies scheming against each other - are all trapped on an even bigger spider's web. Either we work together to tear through this web, or we all get digested together."

  Though her words were cold, they spoke the most brutal reality. Killers (Source A and Source B), Leon (security contractor), Sophia (commercial spy), and Samuel's group (representatives of various forces)—all these originally antagonistic characters were now forced onto the same sinking ship.

  "Why didn't you say so earlier?" Irina still hadn't lowered her guard.

  "Say what? 'Hi, I'm here to steal stuff and silence witnesses, but let's work together?'" Sophia laughed exaggeratedly. "Would you believe me? If not for the emergency just now, I wouldn't have exposed myself. Now, at least my goals and theirs," she pointed toward where the pulse came from, "aren't entirely aligned. We have a temporary basis for cooperation."

  The fragile alliance became even more bizarre. A self-proclaimed commercial spy had joined the survival team.

  Leon Schmidt stared hard at Sophia, seemingly trying to judge the truth of her words. Anya was rapidly analyzing the residual energy from the deflection shield Sophia had just used, trying to verify her technical background. Carmen and Irina exchanged a glance, still full of doubt.

  Samuel Jones felt unprecedented fatigue and headache. A police officer's instinct made him want to restrain all suspicious individuals, but reason told him that any internal conflict now would be suicide.

  "Your words cannot be verified." Samuel finally said gravely. "But under current circumstances, we can temporarily... utilize your combat capability. But you will be under strictest surveillance. Any suspicious movement, and we'll solve you first without hesitation."

  "Deal." Sophia agreed readily, as if she'd anticipated this result.

  The team became seven people: Samuel, Charles, Irina, Anya, Carmen, Leon, and the questionable Sophia.

  The killers still hid among them.

  Kenneth had traded his life for clues pointing to "mimicry" and "careful."

  Behind that door lay Marcus Wong's confined consciousness.

  The train was heading toward the grave called "buffer zone."

  They had to find a way to break the deadlock before the next attack arrived. And how long could that fragile, crack-filled trust among them last?