Chapter 39: The Resolve to Die
Night, two in the morning, the streets of Central City were brightly lit.
The war was unfolding just outside the city, and the atmosphere in Central City was oppressive. Food prices were skyrocketing, and the currency was severely devalued.
Over a dozen figures quickly crossed the streets, approaching the vicinity of the Presidential Mansion.
"There are no guards at the Presidential Mansion."
Olivia held her sword, eyeing the mansion warily, as if some monster lurked inside.
"That guy doesn't need guards."
Su Xiao thought of the President's strength and shook his head. He was a powerhouse who could easily slaughter other homunculi.
He tapped his finger lightly on the ground to sense, and his heart tightened.
The presence of something underground was too obvious—it felt like a gathering of countless souls.
The Presidential Mansion was empty. Not a single guard, not even a servant.
"Let's go straight in. There's no one inside."
Su Xiao walked openly toward the mansion. The others hesitated for a moment before following.
As expected, the mansion was deserted. Everyone began searching for a route downward.
"Bubu, step back."
Su Xiao cracked his knuckles. Bubu Wang shuffled backward with small steps.
"What's he going to do?"
The others looked at Su Xiao in confusion.
Su Xiao clenched his fist, wrapping it in Cyan Steel Shadow Energy. Pale blue arcs of electricity flickered.
"Could he be..."
"Hey, hey."
Ignoring their shouts, Su Xiao raised his fist and slammed it into the ground.
Boom!
Crack, crack, crack—large fissures spread across the floor. The expressions on everyone's faces varied.
"What are you doing? This will expose us!"
Edward was very displeased.
"We're already exposed. How could the Presidential Mansion be completely empty?"
Maes Hughes sighed. Their original infiltration plan had failed.
Rumble. After the cracks appeared, debris fell into the void below.
The space beneath was indeed hollow. Jumping into the pit, Su Xiao found himself in a corridor that branched in many directions.
Everyone jumped down, but they hesitated on which path to take.
It went without saying that the structure beneath the Presidential Mansion was bound to be complex.
"We'll split up."
Su Xiao said this and walked forward with Bubuteni.
"Wait."
Maes Hughes called out to Su Xiao.
"Hm?"
"It's too early to act alone."
Hughes lowered his gaze.
"No, I'm more used to working alone."
Su Xiao disappeared into the dark corridor. Hughes's expression turned grim.
"Is something wrong, Hughes?"
Olivia sensed something unusual.
"Our ally is very wrong, extremely wrong. Right now, I have the urge to turn around and leave."
As soon as Hughes finished speaking, strange sounds came from the dark corridor.
It was too late to leave now.
...
Walking through the dark corridor, Su Xiao had separated from Hughes and the others for a reason. The alliance had already been dissolved.
His plan was never to fight the Homunculus in the Flask alongside Hughes. While their general goals aligned, the differences in specifics meant they couldn't continue cooperating.
Su Xiao needed the Homunculus in the Flask to activate the National Transmutation Circle. Otherwise, all his previous preparations would be for nothing, and his promotion mission would fail.
Until the Homunculus in the Flask activated the National Transmutation Circle, Su Xiao wouldn't let Hughes and the others defeat it.
Moving through the dark corridor, Su Xiao was searching for someone—a crucial person.
After a few minutes of travel, light appeared at the end of the corridor.
It was an open, brightly lit space, filled with steel pipes overhead. If the original intelligence was correct, his destination wasn't far.
Tap, tap, tap.
Footsteps echoed from a side corridor.
Su Xiao turned his head. Seeing who it was, he frowned, then broke into a smile.
"Didn't expect to run into you. Should I call it misfortune or fortune?"
Taking a deep breath, Su Xiao began to adjust his state. His enemy was very strong.
A robust old man emerged from the corridor. He had neatly trimmed black hair, a square face, and wore an eyepatch over his left eye.
"The Flame Alchemist—no, I should call you Bai Ye, the initiator of the alliance."
This old man was none other than the President, King Bradley!
Bradley had three rapiers hanging on each side of his waist, his fighting spirit surging.
"Names don't matter. Bai Ye is just a code name."
Slowly drawing the Dragon-Slaying Flash at his waist, pale blue arcs of electricity surged across its surface.
Su Xiao contracted his perception to a range of just three meters, sharpening his senses.
Su Xiao and the President faced off.
The President held a rapier in each hand. In truth, the President wasn't a complete homunculus—he was only half of one.
The President was an orphan, adopted as a child by an organization that took in many orphans like him.
That organization trained these orphans, somewhat like assassins, but they were actually training candidates for the presidency of this country.
The President emerged from among the many candidates, but that wasn't enough to make him the nation's leader. He still had to pass one final trial.
In his youth, the President was injected with liquid Philosopher's Stone, which also contained one of the Homunculus in the Flask's emotions: Wrath.
Though the process was brutal, the President persevered and eventually became the last homunculus, Wrath—Pride.
Whether in physical combat, swordsmanship, charisma, or command ability, the President was top-notch.
Unfortunately, the President had a group of useless teammates—his homunculus "kin."
Unlike the other homunculi, the President didn't only have the emotion of Wrath. He possessed all the emotions of a normal human.
If not for the President's efforts, Amestris would have already become a living hell.
Without the Homunculus in the Flask, the President might have been able to govern this country to great prosperity. He was a born leader.
"Let's fight to the death. My time is short. You should be very strong. It's good to encounter an opponent like you at the final moment."
Though the President had a Philosopher's Stone inside him, gaining such immense power came at the cost of a drastically shortened lifespan. Living to 60 was already a testament to his incredible vitality.
Su Xiao said nothing. He took out the [Havana's Eye], curious about how strong the President truly was.
[Comparing intelligence attributes... Comparison complete. Our intelligence is 1.285 times that of the enemy. Obtained 100% of the enemy's data.]
Data as follows:
Name: King Bradley
Health: 100%
Mana: 480
Strength: 42
Agility: 40
Endurance: 37
Intelligence: 28
Charm: 29
Skill 1: Homunculus (Passive): Health +300, Mana +200, Strength +15, Agility +13, Endurance +10.
Skill 2: Swordsman Master Lv.19 (Passive): Effect: Increases sword-type weapon attack power by 81%, greatly enhances swordsmanship technique.
Skill 3: Presidential Authority (Passive): Can intimidate enemies.
Skill 4: Ultimate Eye (Passive): Dynamic vision +300%, neural reflex speed +10%, can detect enemy weaknesses.
...
Su Xiao grinned. The President was stronger than he had imagined. None of his five attributes were below 20 points. Swordsman Master Lv.19 (Passive) and Ultimate Eye (Passive) were not to be underestimated, especially Swordsman Master Lv.19.
Having mastered Blade Master Lv.18 himself, Su Xiao understood how powerful such abilities were.
Gripping his blade tightly, Su Xiao pushed aside all other thoughts. His current goal was to defeat the President, but he was already prepared to die in battle.
Fighting an enemy like this, victory was impossible without the resolve to die.
"Good look in your eyes. You already have the resolve to die, don't you? Fittingly, I have that resolve too."
As soon as the President finished speaking, Su Xiao stomped the ground and charged at him.