𝙍𝙚𝙙𝙚𝙢𝙥𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣 [𝘼𝙐 𝙕𝙝𝙤𝙣𝙜𝙘𝙝𝙞 +18]

2: Rays of Sunlight

Zhongli closed the car door, it was five minutes to nine in the morning. He pulled his jacket sleeves and lapels tightly into place, walking to the door where one of the prison guards was waiting for him. He'd been late the day before because of Hu Tao, who'd wasted his time before he'd even left the FBI building, and from what he could tell Ajax wasn't too happy to see him —though he hadn't expected otherwise either. Zhongli was a little surprised that Ajax remembered him from only seeing him at the trial, perhaps he was too serious about hating everyone there. He had plenty of reasons to do that, and he didn't know if he might have reacted that way too.

He waved to the man, who waved back and motioned for him to follow. Zhongli obeyed, walking only a few steps behind the other and into the prison again. He had been in prisons several times before, but the previous day was the first time he had walked into one of the most dangerous modules in all of Liyue. Well, the crime rates weren't that high compared to other nations either, but without a doubt, the module where Ajax was locked up was certainly one of the most dangerous.

As soon as he was assigned the case and ordered to collaborate with Ajax, his first impression was to think how unintimidating he was, as he remembered from the trial. The photograph they had put in his file had not been updated, so he appeared glassy-eyed from crying and eighteen years old. Of course, being sentenced to life imprisonment at that age couldn't have been very pleasant, especially for someone who had been convicted with hardly any incriminating evidence. The multiple murders for which he was charged had hardly any errors, so the person who handled the case and the judge simply blamed him. The circumstances of his arrest were classified as top secret, along with the evidence of the crimes he had allegedly done. Zhongli could not read those files because of his rank, but now he could ask him himself.

If Ajax decided to respond of course.

They left him waiting in a room, disappearing through the door to go find Ajax. The room was not very big, there were just several chairs against the wall to sit on, next to a water tank that did not seem to have been used much. Zhongli remained standing, glancing sideways at the painting he hung on the wall, it being a crude replica of Calx's painting.

When he first saw Ajax face to face, his impression of him changed. It was... Quite different from how he had imagined him. Ajax was no longer as young as in the records, he was twenty-two years old: the appearance of him being his was that of a young adult. Normally for someone who had been sentenced to be behind bars, his appearance would be deteriorated by stress, or in the defect strengthened to be able to survive in that violent environment —more if they had to stay there for the rest of his days. But contrary to what Zhongli had thought, Ajax didn't look that way (not taking into the mind his injuries, of course). Spending his entire life in prison could be dangerous, so Zhongli was surprised to see that he was considerably more scrawny than he had thought. Perhaps the baggy clothes had given him the wrong idea, but that's what it seemed at first glance. His personality... It was what he more or less expected, so it would be difficult for him to work with someone like that.

When he was called to say that Ajax was unable to see him due to injuries he had sustained in a fight, he began to get used to the idea that the boy who had been crying uncontrollably at the trial had disappeared. His eyes at that moment already radiated anger when he looked at the place where the police and agents who had participated were, the look he gave to his friends and family. Zhongli could see the same gleam of hatred and rancor in his eyes the day before, and his injuries to his face were the only evidence needed to remove the tearful image from the documents in his idealization of Ajax.

The same guard returned along with two others, escorting the redhead, who was handcuffed and in shackles around his ankles. He was wearing the prison uniform clothing and had no belongings with him. His blue eyes scowled at him, giving him a look of displeasure. Zhongli decided to ignore that, looking into his eyes.