And yet, Nick still felt uncomfortable and uncertain.
"I don't feel that's accurate," Nick said. "I've done things that I am not proud of."
"Like everyone," Simon said. "Everyone has done bad things in their past, but not everyone regrets doing these bad things, and not everyone will stop doing them."
"I don't know what you have done in the past, but will you do these things again?" Simon asked.
Nick thought of Horua.
"No," Nick answered very quickly. "Never."
"And do you want to rectify the things you have done?" Simon asked.
"More than anything," Nick answered.
Simon nodded. "That's everything you can do and what we can ask for. As long as you try your best to redeem yourself, no one will fault you."
"You can't ask for more than the best."
Yet, Nick still felt uncertain.
Simon knew what Nick was thinking about.
Simon was very old, and he had seen many people in his lifetime.
"Are you okay with the Zephyx?" Simon asked.
Nick knew what Simon was referring to and nodded. "Of course," he answered.
Simon moved his right hand to Nick's head and touched his forehead with his index finger.
Nick closed his eyes and felt some kind of warm force entering his mind.
"All done," Simon said, taking his finger away. "Can you feel it?"
Nick tried to find the foreign Zephyx inside his mind.
Sure enough, Nick quickly found something at the end of his neck.
As soon as Nick sensed it, he felt an incredible feeling of danger and fear.
He felt like he would die if he provoked that force, which was actually exactly what would happen.
"I can feel it," Nick said.
Simon nodded. "If everything fails and you feel like you are about to endanger humanity, just reach out to it. Your end will be instantaneous and painless."
Nick took a deep breath.
Having an explosive in one's mind seemed to be a scary thing, but Nick just felt relieved.
The explosive signified that Nick could continue living without endangering humanity.
But then, Nick remembered something.
'Wait, yes, I am not endangering humanity anymore, but I am still endangering Crimson Fungus City by staying alive,' Nick thought.
Almost immediately, the pressure in Nick's chest returned.
"What are you thinking about?" Simon asked after he noticed Nick's change in demeanor.
Nick released a sigh.
"While I am no longer endangering humanity, my existence is still endangering Crimson Fungus City," Nick said.
Simon nodded. "Yes, you're correct, but in the grand scheme of things, it doesn't make a difference."
"What do you mean?" Nick asked.
"Envy's target is humanity, and the easiest way to deal with humanity is to destroy our cities."
"Because of that, Envy is basically always targeting a city."
"That means if you get Envy to come here and endanger this city, you are removing the danger from another city."
"You are not really endangering more or less of humanity."
"You are simply switching Envy's targets."
"If everyone knew the truth, there would be thousands upon thousands of people in Crimson Fungus City that would hate and despise you, but at the same time, there would be thousands upon thousands of people in a different city that would cry in happiness because of your actions."
Nick felt uncomfortable.
He understood what Simon meant, but he had no emotional attachment to a city he had never seen, while he had a strong emotional attachment to Crimson Fungus City.
'But that actually doesn't matter,' Nick thought as he looked to the side.
'In the end, humanity fights against the Specters.'
'In the end, the fates of individual cities do not matter.'
'It doesn't matter which city gets destroyed.'
'My feelings are unimportant in this regard.'
Nick looked at Simon, who looked at Nick with an encouraging expression.
'His viewpoint is much grander.'
'The leaders of Crimson Fungus City care about the fate of Crimson Fungus City, but the leaders of humanity care about the fate of humanity.'
'In the end, what's more important?'
'Humanity or Crimson Fungus City?'
'There's no difference.'
Nick took a deep breath.
"You're right," Nick said. "Thank you."
Simon nodded. "No problem. Is there anything else you want to know?"
It was obvious that Simon's demeanor toward Nick had changed completely after he found out that Nick was willing to sacrifice himself for a city that hadn't treated him very well.
"What will happen now?" Nick asked.
Simon sighed. "Not much," he said. "Aegis is very shorthanded, and all the Protectors are working all the time."
"If Envy's arrival were certain, there would be no issues with me staying here."
"But due to Envy's current situation, it isn't, and Aegis can't send a Protector because of a maybe."
Nick looked with concern at Simon. "So, you're leaving?"
Simon nodded. "I am one of the Protectors that are watching over Envy. I have to go back and continue watching over Envy."
"For now, Envy is not a direct danger to Crimson Fungus City."
"However, his servants are," Simon said.
"Servants?" Nick asked.
Simon nodded. "Envy has many servants all across the world. The relay you have seen is a device that allows Specters to talk with each other over great distances."
"Envy's servants use these relays to communicate with him and accept orders."
"By the way," Nick interjected, "why would Specters want to follow other Specters? I thought Specters were selfish."
"They are," Simon said. "It's actually very simple."
"Envy contacts a weaker Specter and tells them that they are now his servant."
"They get no pay, and if they refuse, Envy will either kill them himself or send one of his other servants to kill them."
"In essence, you have to follow or die."
"So, as soon as you have been chosen as Envy's servant, you are stuck."
"Follow his orders or die."
Nick furrowed his brows.
Now, Riker's and Monica's conduct made sense.
Refusing to follow Envy's orders represented certain death, while being captured by a Manufacturer only represented metaphorical and potential death.
"Speaking of," Simon said, "I may have a job for you."
"Huh?" Nick asked.