In the end, vengeance made the decision for Roland instead of compassion.

"Angela. The reason I give you a painless death, as opposed to my initial plan…Well, let's call it a last bit of consideration for you—as my friend. Alright?"

Durandal carved through the air.

"It's all over… Angelica…"

As Angela's head toppled to the floor, the Library crumbled with her.

A solitary man stands in the middle of the City.

Next to him was a machine soaked in red.

The Library vanished, as if it were an illusion all along.

And the man disappeared into the City once again.

...

Aimlessly wandering from day to day, he took whatever jobs he could get and raised his blade to empty his mind. The bodies grew as he killed and killed and killed.

At first Roland thought that as long as he accomplished his revenge, he would be able to endure it.

"Such is the nature of the City. No matter how much I want to, it's impossible to break the cycle." he convinced himself.

But even after decapitating Angela, his sorrow only grew stronger.

He ended up spending his time inflicting his sorrow on others. So that he could run away from the pain.
Or maybe so that he could vomit out what had consumed him from inside.

A dark chasm, sinking deep into the earth, fill with more corpses than the light can reach. The further down it goes, the blurrier it get, until all that meet the eyes is a void. No anger, no past, no future, a single path to the end...

A bloodied Astolfo stared at the man bleeding out in the gutter.

"What did I tell you, Roland… You've killed too many… I warned you that if you relish murdering so much… you'll lose yourself."

The man should have sank into oblivion, and that would be the end of the Black Silence.

But in his final, dying moments, he saw something inconceivable.

An invitation.

So, a Roland who chose revenge met a Roland who chose forgiveness.

"After seeing her choice, you... couldn't forgive her."

"Aah... I see. I thought it was weird... But if that's the case, everything makes sense."

"How can you be so calm? Just breathing from that day on was painful. I believed the only way to end it was by completing my revenge. Who...? A warm voice... oh... yes... you were there. No, I... didn't wish for that...You can't possibly want this... Stop...stop it!"

"Roland, are you sure you can handle this?"

"That me has reached the point of no return. So at least, before he can suffer anymore... Before he can inflict any more suffering, I have to finish this with my own hands. Even if I'm against myself, I won't back down."

"I wished to see the City's agony. It kept turning despite taking Angelica's life. At least, I should have hated it to that extent. But I feel like if I am released from this sorrow, there will be nothing left. I'm scared of what happens after the cycle breaks."

...

"Roland, are you alright?"

"No, not entirely. Even now I'm still feeling strained... Especially after knowing I can Distort like that."

"The other me had so many doubts. 'Is this truly alright?' He thought. But, the answer to that question was held deep within his heart. However when he came here, he finally found it. But it came to him too late..."

...

Elite Operator Ace saw something fall out of the sky, and the crackling of flames grew muted. No, all sounds grew faint, even the sound of his own heartbeat. A figure clad in black, but something was wrong about it. His cognition slid off it, refusing to focus. A reserve operator, a reunion grunt, a local police officer... His mind couldn't decide on who he is seeing. Another wave of flames swept across the plaza, and he ran in front of the figure and raised his shield, grimacing as the edges began to soften and melt. A shame his Arts can't redirect heat easily. The indiscernible figure seem to nod at him, and the surrounding rubble shattered in a burst of speed. An instant, and they were gone.

Roland ducked under a blast of superheated air as he surveyed the battlefield he had found himself in. An encirclement of white clothed figures, and a cadre of blue and black figures. A leader with flame focused weaponry. Another with a shield and hammer. Outfits didn't belong to any syndicate or fixer office he knew.

A difficult situation, but not impossible.

First, drive off the fiery one. He blurred in front of the woman, taking advantage of a lull in her barrage. Greatsword met Greatsword, steel cracking against X-Corp alloy. His other gloved hand slammed down and the axe barely missed her shoulder, only for the greatsword to disappear as he slashed under the guard with a dagger. Claw. Spear. Hammer. Durandal. Mace. Katana. Shortsword. Blood splattered across the ground. The woman had heated the ground beneath him, weakening his footing in certain moments to dodge blows, but enough had landed. An explosion of flame, too close to dodge.

A single-use T Corp device activated, something he had bought after the fall of the Library. It could shift time and push his actions forward 10 seconds ahead - a relative eternity in a battle. Before the flames burnt Roland, he became his attacking-self who was 10 seconds in the future. His shotgun's roar was muted under the influence of his gloves, the buckshot tearing into an arm and shattering the blade of her greatsword. He kicked her square in the chest, sending her flying.

Now, to break through the encirclement.

Ace followed as the dark blur carved through the encirclement. Rubble ripped through the air, crushing a group of Reunion casters. A masked body flew through the air, chest caved in and skull crushed, a sword slicing through the entire body of another at an angle. There was no screaming or other noises. Only the sound of weapons moving, as quiet as a breeze. Who exactly was this? An Ursus operative? A deniable asset they want to quietly test? Whoever this was, Ace knew that dealing with them would open another can of worms. Still, he would trust in the Doctor and Kal'tsit to see them through.