The revelry lasted for an unknown amount of time. People didn't remember how many times they had hurled filth at the man, nor did they remember how many people had thrown their stones.
The pristine white space had been stained a different color by the man's blood.
Everyone stood upon high platforms, looking down at the only impurity, the only filth here—the man lying motionless in a pool of blood.
Is he dead?
Not yet. Lin was still breathing. Under the watchful eyes of the multitude, he pressed his hands into the blood-soaked ground and slowly, powerfully, propped up his body.
Can a small, smooth stone half the size of a fist wound a person? Perhaps making someone cry out in pain is the limit.
But what if hundreds, thousands, tens of thousands of stones are thrown at the same person?
Those stones had already spread out beneath him, filling the circle where he stood, even piling up two or three layers deep like mounds in a graveyard.
At some point, the people stopped. Just like the silence at the beginning, those who still had stones in their hands held them up hesitantly, staring blankly at the battered figure, unsure if they should throw again.
Where did this man get the willpower to stand up?
"...Please... come... back... with me..." His voice was intermittent, filled with the weakness of severe injury.
Yet they could hear the determination in his voice; it hadn't changed at all.
"..."
"..."
The Eighth Herrscher's expression was cold. She didn't bother looking at the others; her eyes remained fixed on Lin.
Is his will truly unshakeable? Even after experiencing this, she still couldn't find a crack in his consciousness.
"...What is your name?"
At that moment, an elderly voice broke the eerie silence.
The others turned to look and saw a withered old man standing in an inconspicuous spot. He was hunched over, his clouded eyes passing over the crowd to land on Lin.
He hadn't touched the stone by his hand, but he hadn't tried to stop others from throwing stones at Lin either.
"...Lin."
"Lin. A good name." The old man's speech was clear, lacking the mumbles of other elders. "Do you know why that girl called the Eighth Herrscher let us confront you?"
"..."
"Because she wasn't wrong. We are a bunch of scumbags."
"What are you saying, you old fossil!" Some grew furious upon hearing this, but the elder continued regardless—
"As long as we don't have to return to that reality that offers us no hope, we are willing to pay any price—including the lives of others, and the so-called future of humanity." The old man's voice wasn't loud, but it was forceful. "In other words, no one here is capable of sacrificing for others like you. We are all 'selfish ones.'"
"What did we do wrong! Must we really..."
"Must we be the ones to sacrifice? Must we be the ones to consider others?"
The elder glanced at the agitated person, then raised his head toward the vastness, looking toward nowhere in particular. "That's right... I thought so too..."
"The people here are those who do not wish to wake up. But were we always this unwilling to face reality from the start? How many were driven to escape by others? How many were pushed to a dead end by reality?"
"Reality has no place for us. And now we are asked to return this sudden happiness for the sake of that reality that drove us to the brink?"
"Do we not know that the girl has ill intentions? Do we not know she lied to us? But so what? At least she gave us the right to dream."
"Compared to the fate of humanity being destroyed, what we care about more is the invisible future for people like us—those who cannot make their voices heard and cannot leave behind a name."
"And you, Lin, what can you change? Can you ensure we won't be oppressed by the world after we go back?"
The old man's gaze settled back on the silent man. He sighed softly.
As these words were spoken, silence and sorrow spread through the crowd. They were no longer irritable, bloodthirsty, or violent. Instead, some wept in secret, while others cast looks of hope upon Lin.
Humans are forever contradictory. They escape from reality on one hand, yet expect someone to give them a different reality on the other.
This man, Lin—could he change reality?
They had already witnessed his determination. Asking themselves honestly, was there anyone among them who could be insulted and attacked like that by people like them, yet not strike back and still want to take them all back? Likely not a single one.
But...
Lin raised his head. Where his hollow eyes were, there was nothing.
"I... cannot."
"..."
"..."
Words so low they were almost inaudible were coughed out from his throat.
It felt like the sinking of Noah's Ark, or the fall of the gods at Ragnarök.
And this drained away all their hope.
"I... cannot... promise you... that your situation... will change... after you return to reality..."
"The injustice you suffer... the hardships you encounter... might still continue..."
Lin weakly moved his mangled lips; blood-tears flowed from his crushed eye sockets. "I am very sorry... that I must bring you back to the reality that gave you endless pain..."
"Is that so..."
The elder let out a long sigh. He shook his head and closed his eyes.
"Then, kill us."
"I won't resist, and I won't throw stones at you. As for the others... I don't know."
"..."
No one opposed him, and no one echoed him.
Those who had thrown stones were no longer able to resist; those who hadn't thrown stones simply watched Lin in silence.
Rather than returning to a world where living was worse than death, it was better to die right here. At least they had dreamed.
"...I, cannot." Lin slowly grit his teeth, overcame the trembling in his legs, and stood up.
"You..."
"I promised someone... I wouldn't do the Trolley Problem anymore." Lin eyes were still bleeding; he felt his eyes burning, his soul burning in a raging fire. "I cannot... promise you that this imperfect world will change because of me... but I believe you will change..."
"What are you saying! What else do we have left to change! This is just the kind of people we are! Giving up hope, giving up life, giving up dignity, giving up morality! What else do you need us to change!"
Who was speaking?
Was it one person? Or was everyone roaring their heartfelt cries?
"I... changed..."
Lin raised his head.
"I was changed by humans just like you. They gave me familial love, friendship, and romance. They taught me self-respect, self-love, and self-improvement. They were the ones who gave me emotions; they were the ones who used their lives to push me forward."
"Even when I was that hopelessly immature, they never gave up on me."
"So..."
A dazzling flame burned within Lin body. Through eyes without eyeballs, he clearly saw every single person.
"So I will absolutely never... give up on any one of you..."
"I believe in you, I believe in humanity. Even if it's not possible now, there will be a future, there will be continuity... We will surely be able to change ourselves, to change this imperfect world..."
"To walk from illusion toward reality—is that not walking from immaturity toward maturity?"
He stood tall, his frame firm and towering.
A blinding white light, like the shining sun.