“…They’re late.”
Ferris was waiting for her servants’ information in the Eris gardens. Sion had arranged for Calne, a strangely cheery servant, and Eslina, a rather huffy servant, to find information regarding Ryner’s whereabouts at once and then report back to her, but…
She looked up. The evening sun was dying the Eris lands a pretty color as it sunk past the trees in the distance…
“They’re way too late…”
She was starting to lose her patience.
Ryner had checked out of his inn yesterday. A whole day had passed. He could have crossed the border and left the country in that time.
She knew that she was the most capable person when it came to looking for him, but here she was, waiting in a place like this. She didn’t even have any clues.
“…It’s probably impossible to find him by now,” she said, as expressionless as always. But her annoyance and impatience were getting stronger the longer she waited. The red of the setting sun was irritating her.
She recalled Ryner from when she last saw him. He was the same unmotivated, lazy, and worthless man as always. But…
She was hit by a sense of uneasiness.
There was just…
“……”
There was just something different about him yesterday. She thought it then, too. Something about his face was weird. Back when she met Ryner for the first time, she noticed that he had a certain way of smiling. It was more ambiguous than most people’s - an incomplete, half-way there sort of smile…
“…Mgh.”
Something was irritating her. And on top of that irritation, she felt a vague sort of pain in her chest…
She was surprised at these feelings. Because she’d never felt them before.
“What is this…”
It felt like it was squeezing her heart.
“It’s…”
She thought of that smile.
“It’s…”
It was really an incomplete smile.
She suddenly heard Ryner’s voice in her head.
“Uhehehheh. I sure stood you up. Did you seriously think I was gonna meet up with you? That’d be such a pain. I’d rather ditch this country on my own so I can attack as many women as I want and take as many naps as I want! Yahhooooo!”
“What a bastard. I will definitely kill him once I find him.”
Apparently that was what this feeling was. She really, really wanted to punch Ryner’s stupid face right now, but he wasn’t here to punch, so she was getting irritated.
So he was the source of her anger.
“I see,” she said to herself. She felt a bit calmer now that she’d identified the cause of the pain in her heart. “Geez… what is that Calne fellow even doing—”
She abruptly stopped as she felt something change. She looked away from the sunset and to a garden stone.
“What do you need from me? Brother.”
He appeared on the stone as she spoke to him. He had the same blond hair and porcelain skin as her. His eyes remained closed.
Lucile Eris.
“…How long have you been watching me?” Ferris asked.
“Since always,” Lucile said with a smile. “I’ve always been watching after you ever since you were a kid.”
Ferris remained expressionless despite her brother’s smile. She looked back at the sky. The sun was setting and it was getting dark. The day was ending. That meant that it was over 24 hours since Ryner was last seen. He was surely…
Ferris’ eyes narrowed. She looked away from the sky.
“Brother.”
“What is it?”
“What did you do to Ryner?”
Lucile’s smile didn’t falter. “I warned him against making a pass at my sister.”
“……”
Lucile was certainly smiling. But it was a smile devoid of emotion. It was like a mask. And it scared her.
She was different. They had the same hair, the same eyes, and the same features… but they were different.
He wasn’t just emotionless. He was empty. There was truly nothing inside of him.
His expression was inorganic. It lacked human kindness. No, it lacked any humanity at all…
And then his expression changed. It became troubled. Bitter. But that too was a purposefully constructed fake… “Oh? You’re glaring at me? This is a new expression for you. I have never seen you make it before. You’ve felt another new emotion, haven’t you?”
“……”
The mask continued. “You’re becoming an adult now too, aren’t you? Even though you used to be so little…”
“……”
She was frozen. Frozen and shivering.
The thing in front of her… what was this thing in front of her?
She didn’t know, so she couldn’t stop shivering.
Things had always been this way, ever since that day. He saved her then, but was always…
“Really,” Lucile said kindly. “On one hand, I’m happy to see my beloved sister growing up so fast. But on the other hand, it’s a little tough, you know?”
“……”
She shivered at the words she couldn’t say: what did her brother do on that day?
“It’s really tough. Because it feels like you’ll end up somewhere that I won’t be able to reach, you know?”
“……”
He changed on that day. That was the unmistakable truth. And he probably changed… so that he could save her. But her brother…
“Brother, what did you do on that d—”
“They’re here, Ferris.”
“Mm?” Ferris turned to check the path. But nobody was there. “What do you m…”
Lucile was gone when she looked back.
“…He dodged the question…”
That or…
She heard the back gate open. But it was a faint sound that was very difficult to hear because the gate was pretty far from where she was now. She wouldn’t have heard it if Lucile hadn’t brought her attention to visitors and caused her to start listening. But he said that before the gate opened. So he must have noticed the visitors before they ever reached the gate.
“……”
There was an overwhelming difference in what they were capable of. But that had always been the case. She’d never been able to compare to him. He was a genius. A textbook genius.
She watched the butler, Croseli, lead her guest to the garden. It shouldn’t have been possible for anyone to sense a visitor from that distance. And if they could…
“……”
Ferris didn’t say anything. But her usual expressionless face took a bit of emotion - a little sadness, and a little pout.
“Brother… Just where did you…?”
But she didn’t finish that thought, in the end.
---
Eslina’s eyebrows were scrunched up earlier in Reylude’s castle town. “Geez,” she said. She had amber hair and was more grounded and reliable than most fourteen year olds. She looked to her boss at her side. “Calne, are you even motivated!?”
“Huh? Oh, of course I am!” Calne said. He was eighteen, too old to be called a boy, but his face was rather boyish nonetheless, and his wavy blond hair, childish expression, and delicate body only added to the overall impression. “Hmhmhmm~”
His humming didn’t help him look his age either, Eslina thought.
His official title in the Roland Empire’s army was Major General Calne Kaiwel. He’d been an right-hand man to Claugh and Sion back in the revolution, so he ended up reaching a pretty high rank, but…
“Oh, Eslina! Look!”
“Huh? What is it?”
“That bakery’s owner is a real babe, right?”
“Calne, I already asked you to stop talking about that stuff all the time! Also, this really isn’t the time for it!” Eslina yelled, then huffed a sigh. Then she stole a glance at the bakery owner. Yes, she was beautiful. She was, but she was in her forties or fifties already…
Eslina scowled. She knew that Calne liked adults… no, women who were in their late adulthood. But she couldn’t help but sulk knowing that he’d always prefer them to a girl like her… but she still believed that he’d turn back and see her one day once she became an adult too…
She was only fourteen now, but she was starting to understand the things Calne liked little by little. She’d have a chance in a few years.
That’s what she believed. But the woman who His Majesty introduced Calne to today was young, too - about the same age as Calne. She wasn’t his demographic, but he still seemed to be into her. She was even pretty enough for him to forgive her even though she called him her servant on their first meeting. It made her feel ignored as a woman, even though she was doing her best to become a woman that he’d like…
How cruel.
And he’d said that he was excited to work with such a beauty, and that Sion was the best for introducing them.
How cruel.
She really thought that. Because she was out here trying her best… but Calne wouldn’t look at her like a woman at all. Did she just not have any appeal? Or was it because she was Fiole’s sister…?
Calne’s eyes narrowed with excitement. “Ah, the bookstore owner’s—”
“God! Why are you always, always… just do your job! We need to work hard and find that Ryner Lute guy…”
“Huh? But I’m not searching for him.”
“Whaaat!?” Eslina yelled. His Majesty just told them yesterday to look for Ryner Lute. But he wasn’t searching at all… “Then… then what are we doing right now?”
“Searching for someone.”
“B, but Ryner—”
“Yeah, we’re not looking for him.”
“Then who—”
“We’ve found him, Major General,” someone suddenly said from behind them.
“Huh!?” Eslina gasped, and turned back to see four men.
Eslina knew them. They were Calne’s subordinates. But she didn’t think they were in the military since they never wore military uniforms. They were all several years apart, each somewhere in his twenties or thirties. Just by looking one could tell that they weren’t ordinary people - they were sharp, perfectly alert, and didn’t leave any room for attacks. They bowed to Calne. “I apologize that we took so—”
“It’s fine,” Calne said with a smile. “Honestly, you guys were pretty fast.”
The men bowed again. They showed nothing but loyalty towards Calne. It was a strange sight, seeing a bunch of grown men bowing to a teenager.
“Anyway, let’s go, Eslina. Since they found the person we were looking for and all.”
“But Ryner—”
“I already told you, we’re not looking for him.”
“Th, then who—”
“You’ll see,” Calne said and looked back to the men. “So where is he?”
“He’s presently between alleyways.”
“Hmm. Then we better hurry up.”
“Seriously, who…” Eslina had started to speak, but stopped when she felt Calne’s hand tightly grip hers. She felt her face get hot. Then she remembered that holding a girl’s hand was an everyday affair for Calne. She felt ashamed of her heart beating fast from it. “…G, geez. Let go of my hand already.”
“I won’t let go.”
“Huh…”
He gripped her hand tighter.
“U-um, th, that hurts, Calne…”
He just gripped it tighter. For a moment she thought he was going to hug her - his body was closer, his face was closer, and then… he moved right out of the way. “Whew… that was… dangerous, hrgh.” He then collected himself again.
“What was th—” Eslina had started to ask, but then she turned around to see four men collapsed on the ground in the alley - Calne’s subordinates. “Whaaat!?
One man stood in the darkness. He’d probably been the one to knock Calne’s subordinates out… wait, was she just attack too!?
“C-Calne,” Eslina said with a shiver to her voice. “We should esc—”
They needed to do their best to get away, even if only one of them could make it. But then she was pushed back onto her bottom.
“Sorry, Eslina,” Calne said. “But I really need to talk to him, okay?” Calne’s eyes shone with excitement. He looked like a totally different person now, his sharp smile on a totally different level even when compared to his subordinates’.
The man standing off against Calne had an equally sharp aura. Her impression from looking at him was that he was a little older than Calne - perhaps he was in his early twenties? He had cold eyes and wore Roland’s military uniform on his thin but well-trained body. “Why did you assign a tail to me?”
Calne glanced at his subordinates again, then shrugged. “Couldn’t I say the same to you? You’ve been tailing my subordinates… Lear Rinkal.”
Lear’s expression only got colder. “And you, Calne Kaiwel. You’re Sion Astal’s right-hand man just as much as Claugh Klom is. You—”
Lear interrupted himself to jump forward with incomprehensible speed, throwing a fist straight at Calne. Eslina couldn’t even scream in shock in time. It was just too fast.
But Calne just smiled. “I thought that was coming,” he said and caught Lear’s fist.
“Mm.” Lear took a couple light steps back.
That wasn’t enough to stop the fight, though. Calne threw a kick that landed with ease.
“Gh,” Lear groaned as he was shot back from the impact.
Eslina almost yelled ‘yay,’ but… Calne groaned too. He massaged his right arm like it hurt. When she got a closer look, it was bent unnaturally…
Eslina wanted to scream, but Calne put his other arm on it and cracked it back into place quickly… It made a gross sound as he did.
“Geez, that hurt. Now my hand’s all weak… You’re horrible. My muscles are going to ache all day!” Calne said and glared.
“…I meant to break it. But instead I’m the one with a cracked rib.”
“I cracked it? I meant to break it… well, anyway, it seems like we’re evenly matched. You wouldn’t come out of this unharmed no matter who won.”
“……”
“That’s what you want, right? You knew that we wouldn’t be able to have a truthful conversation without fighting, so…”
“Whose orders are you acting on?” Lear asked.
“Sir Sion’s, obviously.”
“Lies.”
“I’m telling the truth. He ordered me to search for you and Sir Luke both.”
So this was who Calne had been looking for. But why? Eslina couldn’t help but wonder why Calne prioritized searching for Lear over their search for Ryner Lute.
Lear put a little more distance between Calne and himself, never letting up on his guard. “That’s a lie, too.”
Calne tilted his head to the side. “Why do you think so?”
“……”
Lear thought for a long moment. It was hard to tell if their conversation was over or not… and it looked like Lear was wondering that, too. He just stood there for some time, thinking about what to do…
Calne looked a bit troubled. He put both of his hands up. “What about this, then?”
Lear’s expression changed. But Eslina still didn’t know what was going on.
“…What are you doing?” Lear asked, his expression guarded. “Do you want to die?”
Calne shrugged. “I won’t die if you don’t kill me.”
Lear’s eyes widened. “I’ll kill you if you’re my enemy.”
“I’m not.”
Lear fell into thought once again.
“What are you so scared of?” Calne asked. “I read all about your past. I didn’t think that you were the anxious type. Instead, you’re cool and collected. You handle situations in the most beneficial way possible. That ability alone puts you at about Claugh’s level, though Luke outshines you. And you dislocated my arm so easily…”
Calne massaged his arm for a moment before continuing.
“…What are you so scar—”
Lear flew at Calne, slamming him into the wall. Then he pulled a knife out of one of his pockets and held it against Calne’s neck.
Eslina screamed and move to save him, but—
“Don’t move, Eslina!” Calne shouted.
Eslina froze. “Ah…”
Calne smiled kindly. “Sorry for shouting. Just stay still for a sec, okay~? Because you’re already in the perfect position.” Then he looked back to Lear. “So? What’s made you lose your cool?”
Lear’s grip tightened as he dug Calne deeper into the wall. “Luke… Sergeant Luke Stokkart and Lieutenant Milk Callaud have been missing since the day before yesterday. Lach Velariore started to search for them yesterday and hasn’t shown back up, and then Moe Velariore disappeared this morning… I’m the only one left now, and I’m thinking you guys are the ones behind it all.”
“What!?” Eslina said.
“Huh? Why us?” Calne asked, his eyes wide. “I really have been doing what Sir Sion asks—”
“I looked into things, and the military’s been moving,” Lear continued, ignoring Calne’s objection. “But I can’t figure out why. Maybe it’s for noble money? But why would they capture us? And I really don’t think that the nobility would be able to do anything about Luke…”
The knife dug a little into Calne’s flesh.
“But… Calne Kaiwel. You’re strong. Smart. Who are you really working for? Answer me.”
The knife dug deeper.
“I told you… it’s Sion—”
“Liar.”
The knife dug deeper. Blood began to drop out through the fresh wound.
Stop…
Lear lifted the knife just as Eslina was about to scream.
“Give me the truth. The whole, unstretched truth. I’ll kill her if you don’t.”
Eslina shivered. His aura was murderous. He was serious.
“Not just yet,” Calne said. “You can’t do that—”
“I’m not someone who can stay calm even when my friends are hurt,” Lear said.
“Hm. So you’re serious?” Calne asked.
“Do you need proof?” Lear asked.
“…You’re supposed to laugh when you’re telling jokes,” Calne said. His eyes narrowed. The final trace of friendliness between them faded. Then Calne spoke lowly. Lower than she’d ever heard him. “I’ll kill you if you raise a hand against Eslina.”
“Not if I kill her before you can move.”
They both moved.
“Tch!”
Calne had grabbed Lear by the arm holding his knife, then threw his whole body in Eslina’s direction.
Eslina watched as Calne flew around just to protect her.
A faint smile rose to Lear’s face. He pocketed his knife… and that was that.
“I’ve told you before. I hate those jokes worst of all!” Calne yelled. But it was his regular pitch. Hearing it made Eslina feel relieved.
“I see,” Lear said. “You will fail in your duty if you die now, but you still protected her… understood. I’ll believe you.” He sounded awfully polite, but it suited him - it sounded like this was how he usually spoke; coldly, politely, and yet his expression was somehow kind.
Eslina suddenly felt like she could relax. She sighed.
Lear straightened his posture, then continued. “I apologize for waiting so long to introduce myself. I am Corporal Lear Rinka. Your Excellency Major General Calne Kaiwel, and…”
Eslina smiled and nodded politely. “Eslina Folkal. I am employed as Sir Calne’s secretary.”
Lear bowed deeply. “I do apologize for being so rude to a woman—”
“Ah… n, no, you needn’t bow.”
Calne looked a little worn out just from listening to them. “Your Excellency?” He repeated. “I guess I am a higher rank, but… hey, wait, why are you only a corporal? Is Sion’s head on right?”
Then again, Lear was loyal to Sergeant Luke… who followed Major Rahel Miller. Their strangely low ranks continued up the ladder. It really wouldn’t be strange at all if Luke or Miller were promoted above Calne, but apparently they kept refusing promotions.
Lear continued to ignore everything Calne said. “So, Your Excellence. What exactly did you need from me?”
Calne grimaced. “Can you stop calling me that?”
“Your Excellency!!” Eslina said.
Calne pressed a hand to his head, tired. “Don’t act like a kid, okay?”
“I-I’m not a kid!”
“You’re fourteen. You’re a kid.”
“You’re only four years older than I am!”
“What age do you think people stop being a kid?”
“Um… thirteen…?”
Calne sighed.
“Wh-why are you sighing at me!? You aren’t even a good judge of age! You think that adults are people in their forties or fifties!” Eslina yelled, the fire inside her growing.
The two of them fought like kids. Lear smiled as he watched it, then seemed to recall something that made him sad. “Oh, I sure hope Chief Milk’s okay…”
“Huh?”
“Nothing,” Lear said, easily returning to his usual cool-headed self. “So what did you need—”
“Isn’t going missing, like, super in vogue lately?” Calne asked.
“What?”
“I don’t know if it’s related to Luke and the others going missing,” Calne continued, not minding Lear at all. “But the taboo breaker you guys were after, Ryner Lute, has also up and disappeared, you know?”
Lear tilted his head in wonder. “He’s gone?”
Calne nodded. “He disappeared yesterday. Ferris Eris, his travelling partner, is also unaware of his whereabouts. Eslina and I were ordered to search for him… so that’s what we came to ask you about. You should be pretty knowledgeable about him by now, after all…”
“…I see. Hm. So it’s gone missing… My subordinates did mention that he was preparing to leave his inn by himself. I did think it was strange, but…”
“You knew he was leaving!?” Eslina and Calne shouted in unison.
“Taboo breakers are people who have fled the country despite knowing the secrets of our magic, and it’s a Taboo Hunter’s job to find and capture them,” Lear said matter-of-factly. “My job in particular is to gather information about our target’s whereabouts to prepare for capture.”
Eslina and Calne exchanged a look.
“So where is he now?” Calne asked.
“Estabul. But he’s not taking the typical route into the region. He’s passing through the western mountains to avoid garnering too much attention. However, contrary to what he might expect, the route with less people…”
“…Is actually the easier place to capture him,” Calne finished. “Because it’s a pretty straightforward path, not one with a bunch of different forks. Man, you really saved us, Lear. Okay, that’s one job out. Now.” Calne looked to Eslina. “Eslina, can you go tell Ferris what Lear just told us?”
“Yes, sir!”
“The search party, too…”
“Understood. I will also send a messenger to His Majesty, who will be departing for Estabul tomorrow, and help prepare the search party…”
“You’re a great help,” Calne said and smiled.
Seeing it made her happy. This was what she worked so hard for. It looked like they’d be busy for a while. But…
Calne sighed, then raised a fist. “Okay! It’s our job to protect the base while Sion’s away, so let’s do it well~! Go, team!”
“Yeah!!” Eslina said, raising her fist with him.
That was how they always worked.
Lear watched them sparkle, dumbfounded.
“Come on, now. You too, Lear.”
“Huh? Oh, um… I guess… if it’s a superior’s orders, then… y, yeaah,” he said quietly.
Calne and Eslina both laughed.
“Alright,” Calne said. “Now the Great Detective Calne Kaiwel will conduct his search for the remaining missing persons and beauties—”
“There’s a beauty right here!” Eslina yelled.
“……I guess so.”
“What!? Why do you look so dejected!?”
Calne ignored her and turned back to Lear. “No need to worry anymore, Corporal Lear. I’ll use all this crazy power that Sion’s left me to find Luke as fast as possible for you,” he said and puffed his chest out.
He looked really reliable. Eslina couldn’t help but smile. When she did, Lear looked at her, and then looked at Calne…
“I feel even more nervous about it now,” Lear said.
“Why!?”
And so the days of Sion’s absence began.
---
Time once again returned to before, when the sun had already fallen completely past the horizon.
Eslina had come to the noble’s district, hurrying as fast as she could, and had just arrived at her destination. Now the butler, Croseli, was leading her through the garden…
A very beautiful woman waited for her there - Ferris Eris. She was beautiful in daylight, too, but in the light of the moon… she was honestly even more lovely than a goddess. Any man would become captivated by her. Even Eslina was at a loss for words for a moment.
She recalled the face Calne had made when he first saw her. Seeing Ferris now, Eslina understood his reaction entirely. She didn’t intend on losing, but… yeah, there was no way she could win again someone this beautiful.
“What were you doing?” Ferris asked. “You’re late. What are you, a tortoise? A slug? You horrid servant.”
“……”
Maybe she could win after all…
Leaving that aside.
“Er, I have some information for you,” Eslina said rather timidly. “We have determined Ryner Lute’s location.”
“Mm.”
“He is currently in Estabul, skirting the western edges—”
Ferris didn’t wait for her to finish. “Estabul… Hehe, hehehhehehe. Ryner, you cad. My chance to shadow you has finally arisen. Croseli, I’m leaving. Get me a map of Estabul.”
“Yes, my lady,” Croseli said happily. He handed over a map that he’d apparently prepared in advance.
“Oh, um… uh, the search party is still being formed…”
Ferris ignored her. “It’s over for you now, Ryner,” she said emotionlessly. “I’ll make your head fly through Estabul’s skies.”
Then she ran off, leaving their conversation on a scary note.
“Wha…”
She was fast to the point where it was unrealistic and soon disappeared out of sight.
“I-is she planning on looking for him alone? It must be difficult to find him all alone though…”
Then the butler suddenly spoke. “I am grateful to you.”
“Huh? Umm… for what?”
“For finding Lord Ryner. It appears to have calmed the lady down quite a bit.”
That… was calm?
That?
“……”
Apparently real beauties really did live in another dimension!
Now Eslina felt like an idiot for being jealous of her before.
---
The worst times always came when one least expected them.
Ryner’s expression was one of anguish. He groaned quietly.
He’d passed Roland and gone a ways into Estabul already. It’d take a normal person two weeks of leisurely travel to reach the village he was in now, so Ryner naturally took four weeks to get there. He was travelling on his own time now, after all. He napped here and there, but he also didn’t know if he was being followed or not, so he left the road often to throw anyone who might be around off. He was careful to come and go with a sign that he’d ever been there.
He’d been staying at his current inn for three days now, and he still couldn’t sense any pursuers. It was unlikely that anyone was after him at all.
“……”
That was good…
It was easier being alone. He could nap all he wanted. But…
“…Uuuugh.”
He groaned again, his face scrunched up with pain.
The inn he was staying at now was actually pretty big, considering the size of the village it was located in. The food was good and the building had fifteen whole rooms, all of which were perfectly maintained. But only three people were staying at in now, including Ryner. But that was more than before. He’d been the only one back when he arrived. The inn didn’t seem to be doing all that well…
Ryner commented on that fact during dinner yesterday, and the inn’s owner had said the following: “That’s not true at all. We don’t get many guests this time of year, but there’s a special constellation here that you can see in winter… It’s called the Rolika constellation. Have you heard of it?”
Ryner tilted his head. “Hmm. Rolika? Ahh, in Roland we call the one you can see in winter the Serrol constellation…”
The owner visibly tensed. “My, you’re from Roland?”
“Mm, I’m someone who ran away from Roland.”
The owner smiled. “Good, then. I’m relieved.”
Ryner wasn’t really sure what she was relieved about, though. He’d think that a regular citizen of Roland would be a better guest than a runaway criminal from Roland, but whatever. That was how Roland and Estabul were now. They had long histories of fighting and killing each other, and even the stars went by different names…
They weren’t that different, everything considered. But they still fought every time they met.
“It’s so dumb,” Ryner muttered to himself sleepily.
“Hm? Did you say something?”
“Not really. Just sayin’ your food’s delicious.”
She looked pleased to hear that. “I bet. I mean, you came from Roland. Their food is horrible. And it does make me happy to see guests eat a lot of good food, you know. I’ll give you a third serving for free, okay?”
Ryner scrunched up his face and groaned again, his face pained.
“My, is something wrong?”
“No, not at all…”
“How can you say that while making that face? Does your stomach hurt?”
Ryner shook his head. This wasn’t that sort of problem. He reached into his pocket to grab his wallet. It was thin. It was clearly empty. “Uuu…”
“Really, what’s wrong?” She asked, worried. But that motherly expression of hers only made him feel worse.
He was currently eating lunch. He’d eaten breakfast earlier today, too, and hadn’t paid for it yet. “Uugh, geez…” He was such an idiot. Why didn’t he steal some money from Sion while he was there… well, there was nothing he could do about it now that he was in Estabul.
Ryner held his head in his hands.
“Hey, are you really o—” Her words cut off, then her tone changed to something more harsh when she faced the kitchen. “Hey! You!”
A bearded man stood there. He was her husband - the inn was run by the two of them and their daughter. The daughter was at school now though… but that was whatever.
He needed to find a way out of the hole he’d dug himself into.
Should he tell her that he’d go earn some money working and ask her to put things on his tab for a while? Well, working was a pain, so that was out.
How about he asked her if he could work here to earn his food? Well, working was a pain though, so that was out too.
How about his third option? He could just dine and dash.
“……”
Anyway, he only had the one option since the beginning. That’s why he was so pained. He really didn’t feel like working, so…
“H-hey, are you alright?” The woman’s husband asked.
“Your stomach hurts, doesn’t it? Oh, I’m in the wrong here. I just love seeing guests eat their fill happily, so I got carried away and gave you too much, didn’t I!”
He looked at them. They were acting like parents worried about their son. They really were good people. Then he glanced at all the empty plates. One, two, three, four, five… actually, counting was a pain. But there were a lot. If you tell a guy with no money to eat all he wants, he’ll eat like a horse… And it was all for the price of one meal. Because they made a comfortable profit even though it was pretty empty lately.
If only he had the money to pay for it…
“Uugh…”
“Why don’t you try using the bathroom?”
Ryner nodded. “Uhh, yeah. I’ll try that.”
He made his decision. He’d escape through the bathroom window…
It’d be fine. They didn’t have many customers now, but this was a big seasonal tourist destination. They probably weren’t strapped for cash. In fact, maybe he should steal some of their money for his travels…
But just as he was thinking about that…
“Do you want me to call the doctor from the next town over?”
“…N-no, I’m okay.” Maybe he shouldn’t steal from them after all.
“Can you stand? Do you need me to help you to the bathroom?”
They were so worried about him. Now that he really thought about it, maybe getting out through the bathroom window was a pain, too. Maybe they’d help him escape…
“…You don’t need to go to that kind of trouble for me…”
He was clearly misunderstanding something about humans.
He stood, walked to the bathroom, and opened the door. His eyes narrowed.
“……”
Maybe he should use the second floor’s bathroom instead. The window here was kinda oddly placed. But maybe it was like that on the second floor, too.
The window here was close to the road. There was a good view of the town, making it easy to see if anyone was coming but also making it easy for them to see him… but there wasn’t even a curtain, so it was obvious - they’d chained up the latch to keep guys like Ryner who’d dine-and-dash from going through with it. There went his idea of running off today… he couldn’t just escape through the window and leave his breakfast and lunch debts unsettled now.
Maybe he should just leave through the front door. Yeah. They were good, trusting people here. He’d leave through the front door.
Just as he made his decision, he saw a shadow from the other side of the window.
“Aww, someone really did notice me here. People can see right into here from outside—”
He couldn’t see them perfectly because of the angle, but what he did see was beautiful golden hair. And then they turned. Looked at him with that pretty face and blue, almond-shaped eyes. Stared right at him. Her pink lips opened and closed.
He couldn’t hear her through the window. But he already knew what she was saying: “I’ve found you, Ryner. I’m sure you’re prepared for what happens next.”
“Y-you’ve gotta be kidding me,” Ryner said and shivered.
She was expressionless like a doll, and yet Ryner still understood that she was pissed. She readied her sword…
“S-seriously!? It’s already unsheathed and everything!?” He was terrified.
Her lips moved again. He read them to see, “Heheh. The weather’s nice today. I’m sure your head will fly nice and f—”
Ryner turned to bolt before she finished, but…
He heard the strange sound of something being sliced open.
“Ry~ne~r~”
Her voice wouldn’t carry that well though the window. He turned to check, but soon regretted it.
His bill was getting even bigger… now he’d have to pay for the window, no, the whole wall to be repaired…
“H-hey, Ferris! You’re breaking way too m—”
Her sword swung at him.
“—You’re kidding, right!?” Ryner yelled as he narrowly dodged her strike. “This is b—”
She swung the dull side of her sword and hit him square on the head. He felt his mind waver. She’d hit him way harder than usual. His body flew from the bathroom towards the dining room. He’d normally have been able to soften his fall, but… it’d been four weeks. Four weeks since he and Ferris had last seen each other, and his reaction speed had already gotten too slow to react to her sword… but to be fair, she was swinging faster than usual, too.
She’d knocked him right into the dining room table. He jumped back up on his feet and glared at her. “H, hey, that was too much! You can still kill me with the dull side, you kn—”
She shot towards him, swinging again.
“Seriously!?” Ryner yelled as he twisted his body to dodge her. But that made him lose his balance and fall to the floor.
Ferris straddled him to keep him in place. “Die, Ryner,” she said and lowered her sword on him like a guillotine…
Ryner heard a scream. It was the woman who ran the inn.
“S-stop!” Her husband yelled soon after.
And then… Ryner understood. He really felt that he did. He looked up at Ferris with half-lidded, sleepy eyes. “I get it. You’re the person they sent to kill me, aren’t you?”
Her sword stopped as if it’d been halted by divine intervention. It had stopped a little into Ryner’s neck. A little blood dripped out, and the wound itself was painful in a dull sort of way.
“……”
Ferris didn’t say anything.
Ryner didn’t say anything, either. He just stared into nothing listlessly.
The inn’s owners spoke behind them.
“M-murderer… we, we need to call someone…!”
“G-give up, woman. I’ll—”
“Shut up, outsiders.”
“…Outsiders…?”
“…Outsiders…”
The owners exchanged a glance, then looked back to Ryner and Ferris. To Ferris, who was straddling, and Ryner, who was being straddled.
“Haha… I get it now.”
“Huh? What!? You’ve gotta be misunderstanding something,” Ryner said.
“Oh, to be young… You must be so full of passion to run and jump into it.”
“Haaaah?! The hell are you guys—”
The husband smiled wryly. “Come on, boy. I understand that men will be men and cheat, but you can’t make a girl cry.”
“I’m telling you, I… c’mon, Ferris, say something!”
“……”
She didn’t. She just glared at Ryner.
“She’s too full of passion, isn’t she?” The wife said. “Oh, fine. You two can use the dining room. You haven’t seen each other in a while after all, right? Just be sure to clean up when you’re done.”
“Whaat!?” Ryner screeched. “What the hell! Why’s that the conclusion you’re coming to here!? W… it’s…”
Ryner’s objections fell on deaf ears. The owners left, satisfied with themselves like they’d just seen something great.
“Heeeeyy,” Ryner tried one last time, but they didn’t look back. They were already in their own imaginary world now, and reality wouldn’t reach them.
Ryner sighed. Then he glanced at the window. It was a perfectly natural countryside out there, overflowing with nature. It had fields, too… well-kept fields filled with crops…
It was the kind of afternoon he’d like to leisurely nap away. He even began to wonder which patch of grass might be the most comfy to nap under the sunlight in… but then he heard a voice from above. So he looked up.
“…The person sent to kill you? What does that mean?”
Ryner scowled. “Can you get off of me first? Your hair’s tickling my face and it’s really annoying.”
Ferris moved off in a rare display of her ability to listen. Ryner stood, then looked back at the broken table and scrunched up his nose. “Hey… do you have the money for repairs?”
“That’s not what I came here to talk about.”
Ryner looked back to Ferris, but soon averted his eyes again. Because she was glaring at him so hard that it physically hurt.
“I’ll ask you again. If you don’t answer, then I’ll really behead you…”
“…That’d be bad. If you get blood all over that nice couple’s ceiling, it’ll be hard to look them in the eyes…”
“…What did you mean when you asked if I was the person sent here to kill you?”
“……”
Ryner looked at the window. He really didn’t want to look her in the eyes now. Her hand was on her sheathed sword. She could really send his head flying whenever she wanted to. She’d unsheathe faster than he could react and come for him if he said anything that wasn’t what she wanted to hear. Then she’d hit him. How many times had she hit him while they were travelling together…?
Ryner shivered at the memory. He shivered, but… she’d never actually behead him. He knew that. He’d seen it in his blurry consciousness back when he’d gone berserk in front of her. The other Ryner in him had wished for nothing but destruction and began to scatter it through the world, but she put her sword away.
She was always swinging her sword around willy-nilly, but that one time… she put it away.
In other words, Ferris was just contrary. The one thing she’d never do was always the one thing he wanted. She didn’t escape when his heart was screaming at her to run away. She had just stared at him intently, just like she was doing now, and said…
“Hey, Ryner… You wanted to move forward, right? You hated being called a monster, right? You hated killing, right? I’ve already dodged five of your attacks, but I won’t dodge the next one. After that, you need to make a decision. I don’t think you’re a monster. Okay? You aren’t a monster. You’re my ally, my slave, and my friend who I drink tea with. You’re nothing like a monster. Can you hear me, Ryner?”
He’d heard her. But all he could do was wonder what he’d do if he killed her.
And then…
“Can you hear me, Ryner?”
He could. He could hear her.
He did want to move forward. Just not with her. Not with Sion. That was all. Because people who were by his side, people who he held dear… were people he’d end up killing.
“What did you mean?” Ferris asked one more time.
Ryner smiled bitterly. “Sorry. Just a misunderstanding. Forget about it.”
“What kind of an answer is—”
“I know most of all that you can’t kill me,” Ryner said. He still wasn’t meeting her eyes. He was staring at the scenery outside as he spoke.
“……”
Apparently she finally got the hint.
“I have one more question,” Ferris said.
Nevermind. She didn’t get the hint. “What a pain,” Ryner said and cradled his head in his hands.
“What did Lucile say to you?”
“Nothing,” Ryner said and shook his head.
“What did he say.”
“Nothing important.”
“…What. Did he say.”
“Man, you’re persistent. He didn’t say—”
“He said not to make a pass at his sister,” Ferris reminded him.
Hearing that made some of what Lucile said spin around in his head again.
“What kind of impossible dreams do monsters have?”
He was right. Monsters shouldn’t dream at all. “I’m glad you have a brother that worries about you.”
“Is he the reason you ran away?” Ferris asked, ignoring Ryner’s comment.
“Nope,” Ryner said and shook his head.
“Did you run away because he threatened you?”
“…Mm? Uh, well… I mean, anyone’d run away after that kind of threat, but… that’s not my reason.”
“Night after night the billions of older brothers and fathers out there attack the women and children of the world. They’re always yelling, ‘P-please, spare my daughter… at least spare my daughteeeerrrr!’
“But her begging was soon interrupted. ‘Fuhahaha, who’d quit now! We won’t stop until all the women and children of the world have bowed down before the Demon King of Perversion, Ryner Lute!’ And so on and so on. As you can see, their wretched nature has no limits. You shamelessly ran from my brother and father because you don’t want to be attacked, correct? Do you have no pride as a demon king!?”
“…I’m not too big on pride, honestly. Also, I don’t actually think there are actually billions of father-son pairs that act like that? But whatever. Maybe he did threaten me a little,” Ryner said, defeated.
Ferris glared openly again.
“…You’re seriously mad, aren’t you?”
“I am,” she replied instantly. “I was all prepared that day, fourteen backpacks full of dango at the ready.”
“Ah… yeah, I can see that. Fourteen, huh? I guess you couldn’t have carried them all yourself,” he said and began to picture her waiting there in front of the dango shop surrounded by backpacks. Expressionless, but probably humming a little song or something.
But Ryner didn’t come.
So she probably stopped humming, surrounded by all that dango that she couldn’t carry by herself… it seemed like a pretty sad scene when he imagined it. Then she probably got angry, swing her sword out of her sheath, and yelled ‘death penalty!’ and started running for him…
He could picture it clearly. “Y-yeah, that’s real anger. No doubt about it,” Ryner said and shivered.
Ferris nodded. “You seem to have prepared yourself.”
“N-no, not at all. Can you put your sword away for a minute—”
Then he heard someone at the entrance to the inn. “Heya. Is the food ready?” It was a man. Probably another guest.
“Oh, Zepaad, welcome! I’m very sorry. There won’t be any food today.”
“Huh? Really?”
“Y-yes, well… some guests are shut up in there, you see.”
“Really? Man, I give. To tell you the truth, my wife is away visiting her family. So no one’s been around to make food for me all day…”
“Did you two have a fight?”
“Oh, no, nothing like that… ah…”
He heard the sound of something cracking.
“Huh? Z-Zepaad? Are… a…”
Their conversation died unnaturally in the middle…
“What’s going on?” Ryner wondered. He turned his head towards them and heard another sound. This one was like something spurting up.
It was a sound that Ryner recognized.
“Ryner,” Ferris said.
“Mm?”
She was looking out the window, so Ryner followed her gaze to look out. It was the same country landscape that he’d looked out at just a little while ago. But the dirt road that ran through the town… was now littered with pieces of meat and stained red…
“…Is that blood?”
Then he heard the husband’s throaty, deep voice from the second floor. “I’m sorry, Zepaad. I can make you a boxed lun… ah… gh…”
The same cracking from before rang out, and his words faded.
“H-hey, Ferris…”
“I know!”
“Hm, that wasn’t it either,” someone said from outside. “Weird.” It was a man’s voice. He sounded pretty elegant. “I should be able to meet them here. Where are they?”
Then he tried the door to the dining room.
“Here, maybe?”
He very slowly pushed the door open.
Ryner tensed. He didn’t know what was going on, but…
A young man peeked his head through the gap in the door. He had black hair, black clothes, and even black shoes. He was a dark spot in the room, all the way down to the floor…
“…You bastard,” Ryner said and scowled.
The floor outside the dining room… was red. Red with blood.
The man’s mouth was red, too. Like he was a kid who’d gotten a little messy eating strawberry sauce. But that wasn’t what was on his mouth now. It was blood.
“You bastard… what do you think you’re doing?”
The man looked between Ryner and Ferris. “Hmm. Which one…?” He took a step into the room. When he did, a sound followed him like he was dragging something.
Ryner looked at it… and silently screamed. Ferris groaned behind him.
He’d… been dragging hair. A woman’s bloody hair. The inn’s owner…
The man followed Ryner’s gaze. “Her meat was really tender, but she’s really week so it wasn’t very tasty.” He let go of her head completely, letting her remains fall gracelessly to the floor. Then he looked back at Ryner happily. “I don’t want to eat cheap meat anymore now that I’ve seen you guys. You want it?”
“Wh-what the hell,” Ryner spat.
“…Apparently he’s even more of a pervert than you are,” Ferris said. “But…”
Ryner understood without her saying it. This guy was strong. Overwhelmingly so. One could tell just watching the fluid way he moved. He left no gaps. He seemed to notice everything.
He was even stronger than Ryner. He could tell with just one glance. He couldn’t feel the powerlessness and despair he’d felt when he confronted Lucile, but… still.
“You two seem really strong… and you smell really tasty… I’m getting hunger pains standing here. Lafra was right. It has to be one of you two. I’m gonna figure it out, okay?” The man said and began to walk towards them.
Ryner spoke. “Don’t m—”
“What?”
“Whoa!?”
He’d appeared before Ryner instantly, forcing him to dodge. Then he tried to grab Ryner’s face.
Ryner threw himself down to dodge again.
Ferris swung her sword to keep the man from Ryner… but he fell back, easily dodging her.
His reaction speed was unbelievable. He didn’t seem worried at all, either. He moved without tensing himself, whether he was moving or attacking. He seemed to watch his opponents muscles twitch and move so he could perfectly calculate how they’d move before they did. Then he jumped forward again with his full speed.
“Shit… he’s fast,” Ryner said.
“But not to the point where we’re helpless,” Ferris said.
Ryner nodded. “I know. We can do this.
The man watched them, surprised. “Two two have good eyes. To the point where I wouldn’t think you’re human.”
“You’re even farther from human than we are, moving like that,” Ryner spat.
The man tilted his head. “Huh? I look human to you?”
“Huh? What?”
“…I guess you’re human, then. I guess it must be the blonde.”
“What!? I don’t get you,” Ryner said. “My head hurts.”
“He’s strong,” Ferris said. “Don’t shittalk him.”
“Can we really take him?”
“It’s your turn.”
“Well, I’ll be fine,” Ryner said and smiled. Their enemy might be super fast, but he and Ferris had fought all kinds of monstrous enemies together. People who’d used those terribly strong Heroic Relics, for example… so their strategy for fighting an opponent like this had already been decided.
Ferris guarded.
“Mm,” she said and moved in front of Ryner and swung her sword. Her speed always surprised him. He understood why the other guy thought she wasn’t human. But the man easily moved away. He was the real deal, that was for sure. They might not be able to win.
Ryner opened his mouth to say the incantation for a spell that sped him up drastically as he drew letters in the air. It was a spell he’d copied with his Alpha Stigma back when he fought Estabul’s Magical Knights.
“I dedicate the words of our contract - give birth to the beast of malice sleeping within the earth!”
His body began to shine faintly. He’d be faster now, about as fast as Ferris.
“Magic?” The man asked.
Ryner didn’t answer. He kicked off the floor, then the wall, to arrive behind the man. Then he started another spell up by drawing a magic circle. Now that he’d accelerated his movements with magic, it was much faster than casting the first spell. Light gathered in his magic circle.
The man dodged Ferris’ sword again, putting him in just the right place.
“It’s over,” Ryner said. “I wish for thunder - Lightning Flash!”
Light gathered in the center of his magic circle. There was no way he’d be able to dodge this.
The man watched the lightning bolt form… and smiled. Opened his eyes up wide. When he did, a strange symbol appeared in them. It was a cursed symbol, much like Ryner’s pentagram. But it was a different shape. It was a scarlet cross. “I devour…”
The lightning was sucked up into his eyes. The acceleration magic, too. Ryner lost his balance from the lowered velocity of his movements and fell to the ground. But he didn’t take his eyes off of the man’s eyes.
Ferris swung her sword, but the man didn’t mind it. He had a joyed… no, pleasured expression on his face… “Ah, ahhh… amazing… your power’s so amazing…”
Ferris’ sword was fast approaching.
So the man whispered. “And then fire.”
Ryner lost sight of the man. Then his face was grabbed and slammed into the wall. Ferris’, too.
“…You monster,” Ferris muttered.
The man looked at Ferris with eyes that seemed to go right through her… and then smiled happily. “I’m sure the cows and pigs that you guys eat every single day look at you with the same eyes you’re looking at me with now. They look up at their predators with fear… and with eyes that have given up…”
Then he looked back at Ryner. At his eyes. He peered into him with his cross-covered eyes… and nodded, satisfied with himself. “I’ve finally found you. It’s pretty faint, but your scarlet pentagram’s risen up… your Alpha Stigma, I mean.”
“Y-you…”
“My name is Tiir Rumibul. I’m sure you can tell by looking at me, but… I bear the God’s Eyes Iino Doue. I came here to pick you up.”
It was sudden. Even if he was trying to explain, it just made Ryner more confused. An Iino Doue bearer? He meant the scarlet cross in his eyes, right? Then…
“God’s Eyes,” Ryner repeated.
“Hey,” Ferris said. “Don’t listen to h—grk!”
Tiir had gathered a little power. That alone was enough to silence Ferris.
“H-hey!” Ryner said.
“Don’t worry. I won’t kill her yet,” Tiir said. “There’s something I have to check first… But… I see. I don’t know how you guys say it here in the south, but… have people looked down on you and called you a Cursed Eye before?”
What a strange question… Ferris was right. This wasn’t the time to be chatting with him. And yet. And yet, he’d started thinking of the answer in his mind.
This guy knew things about Ryner that he himself didn’t. He had those eyes, too… eyes Ryner had always wanted to know more about…
Cursed Eyes… wasn’t a phrase used in Roland. But he’d heard those guys from Gastark say it back when they were trying to make him go berserk… They’d said something about Alpha Stigmas not being all that high-leveled among the Cursed Eyes until they went berserk.
“Cursed Eyes… are you talking about my eyes?” Ryner asked.
“That’s an insult humans use against us,” Tiir said. He was actually pretty mild-mannered. “The correct term is God’s Eyes.”
“I honestly don’t care what you call them. But… do you mean there are more? It’s not just the Alpha Stigma?”
Tiir looked a little troubled and sighed. “Ahh… so I need to explain all the way from the beginning… I heard that there were few God’s Eyes bearers in the south, but I didn’t think it was this bad… well, there’s nothing I can do about that now. I’ll explain. Come on, let’s go.”
“Huh? Where?”
“To where my friends are. I came here specifically to pick you up.”
Ryner was left confused once again. Friends? Like, other Cursed Eyes? And they were all gathered somewhere? Wait, more importantly… Tiir came here to pick him up? “I dunno about that,” Ryner said with a glare. “How did you even know where I was?”
Tiir sighed like this was a joke to him. “Like I said, there are different kinds of eyes… oh, whatever. We can talk about that later—”
“I have something else I need to ask you first, too.”
“What is it?”
Ryner looked out through the door to the dining room. At the sea of blood that coated the floor out there. “Why did you kill the owners…?”
Tiir just sighed even deeper. “Ughh, low-ranked eyes… especially Alpha Stigmas. We’d save so much time by not having this conversation if you were Will Heim…”
“Huh? Will… what’s that?”
Tiir ignored him, then looked to Ferris, perplexed. “So… is this thing important to you, or something?” Tiir asked. But he sighed again before Ryner could even answer him. “Hmph. I can’t say it’s very smart for an Alpha Stigma bearer who might go berserk to have a pet they care about—”
“That’s enough,” Ferris interrupted. “Prepare yourself.”
Prepare? For what? Ryner was about to ask, but… the window suddenly shattered. An arrow broke straight through it, then landed in Tiir’s shoulder.
“Mgh…”
Ferris jumped up to act now that the opportunity had presented itself. “Hide. More arrows are coming.”
“Huh? Wait, but… from where?” Ryner asked. He turned towards the window. Countless Rolandic soldiers stood outside. And at the front of their army… stood a man with silver hair and unforgettably confident golden eyes. “S-Sion!?” Ryner yelled.
Ferris grabbed Ryner by the hair, then pulled him back and broke out in a sprint.
Tiir whipped his head to look at them. “I won’t let you esca—”
Ferris’ sword interrupted him. She swung it, and he did dodge. But he backed into the arrows’ firing range, and was soon impaled in his leg, then an arm, bis back…
An arrow hit.
“Uuuhh…”
Another.
“Youuuu…”
He just kept getting hit. Now there were ten stuck in him…
Then Ryner and Ferris made it out, leaving Tiir out of sight. Then they ran to the bathroom, then through the wall that Ferris had broken in advance…
The whole inn was surrounded by soldiers. It was like a battlefield.
“Don’t use magic under any circumstances!” Sion yelled to the soldiers. “Our opponent is able to absorb its power. Fight with bows and swords, no matter what!”
“Bows?” Ryner repeated. As far as he knew, bows hadn’t been major a thing in war for over a hundred years. At least not in Roland. Magic overtook their use for shooting arrows when it became more complex… but that was just Roland. He was sure they still used them in other places. But anyway, they didn’t really make them here anymore… so it was really surprising when he looked around to see everyone holding a bow.
Sion caught Ryner’s eyes and ran over. “Hey, lost kiddo. Are you hurt anywhere?”
“Lost… what am I, a preschooler!?”
“You are,” Ferris said.
“Aren’t you?” Sion asked. “I mean, you ran away from home the second you weren’t happy about something. Come on, now, your daddy’s got lots of money. Do you want anything? Just say the word.”
He was just being made fun of… “I suddenly want to run away from home again,” Ryner mumbled to himself.
“Sion! The hell are you dilly-dallying for!” A redhead yelled as he approached. He had red eyes and a muscular body. He looked really strong despite the fact that he was missing his whole right arm. “I’m gonna go check if that monster’s dead or not.”
Mon…ster…
Ryner looked at the redhead.
Sion shook his head. “No, Claugh. Don’t get too close to the inn. I already said this, but we need to restrain him with bows and arrows alone.”
“But… even a machine could tell that guy’s—”
“Don’t. We’re not here for you to get revenge. Forget about your arm and the people he killed. You haven’t recovered yet. I can’t lose you here…”
“Agreed!” A young soldier piped up from behind.
“Ggh… Damn you, Shuss…”
“Are you really gonna ignore what I’m saying in front of the other soldiers?” Sion asked.
The redhead scowled. “I, I apologize for my rudeness… Your Majesty.”
Then the redhead lead the young soldier away.
Ryner looked at Sion. He never really got to see him acting like a king… “H-hey,” he whispered. “You’re like, acting like a king right now.”
“It’s only an act,” Ferris said. “It has to be. He’s trying to look good in front of us.”
“Ahh… yeah, Sion does do that sort of thing. He’s always tried super hard to be popular and stuff, ever since our school days…”
“…Hey, you two,” Sion said, tired. “Can you at least try to be quiet? I don’t want my subordinates hearing that.”
“Thank us first,” Ferris said.
Ryner gave an exaggerated nod. “Yeah, she’s right. Only if you thank us first.”
“This isn’t really the time for that,” Sion said, then shot a pained look at the inn. “The arrows aren’t having the effect I was hoping for… This is ba—”
A black shadow suddenly shot up into the sky. It flew through the air, then landed gracefully in front of Sion’s feet with a dull sound.
“…This is bad,” Sion said one more time. Then he looked down. A dead body had just landed in front of his feet.
Ryner recognized the body. It was one of the other guests who’d been staying at the inn. The body was in a pitiful state. It was half-eaten, like a beast had gnawed at for nourishment…
And then they heard a voice.
“Arrows, arrows… but not magic ones. Normal arrows from normal bows… amazing. Bullseye. You hit my weakness right on the mark. I might have died if there wasn’t a meal waiting for me on the second floor…”
Ryner looked up towards the voice. Tiir was sitting on the railing of the inn’s second floor’s porch, gripping part of his ‘meal,’ as he called it.
Sion looked up, too. “I see. So you don’t need to absorb it from magic. You can get it from cannibalizing people, too… and in doing so your wounds heal to the point where you feel comfortable appearing in front of an army and chucking a dead body at us. But arrows are made of wood - you can’t get anything from them. Because what you’re absorbing from magic and bodies is their spirit, right? You can’t absorb it directly from the air. You need someone else to gather it up first, whether in their body or in the air for magic. So you’re trapped, now, as long as we don’t use magic.”
Sion spoke with full, unwavering confidence. But the soldiers behind him had lost their calm.
Sion had voiced his theory and was now observing his opponent for a reaction. Whether he was right would decide if they could win or not. He’d withdraw without hesitation if Tiir laughed at his theory.
But Tiir didn’t laugh. His eyes opened wide like he was surprised. When they did, his scarlet cross-shaped brand appeared in their depths.
“…Not bad,” Tiir said. “Your nerves must be tasty. Every now and then one of you pop up. Humans like you, I mean.”
“Hm. So I was right.”
“Yes, I suppose I’d say so.”
“Do you want to eat me?”
“I do.”
Sion smiled meanly. “But you won’t be able to.” Then he raised a hand. “Bows at the ready!”
The soldiers all readied their bows at the sound of his command.
“I’ll only ask once,” Sion said. “Will you surrender?”
“Nope.”
“Then you’ll die here.”
Tiir shrugged, calm as could be. “Can I tell you the flaws in your theory first?”
“No. I’m not open to bargaining,” Sion said.
Tiir smiled. He wasn’t bothered at all.
They couldn’t shoot him like this. They couldn’t shoot him without confidence. They couldn’t realistically fight an enemy whose abilities they didn’t know - they’d all die if he ended up able to do something that they didn’t expect. Sion, who the soldiers were devoting their lives to, felt that more than anyone.
“The first mistake in your theory is assuming that I can’t take energy in through the air. I can. It just takes time. It happens even when my eyes technically activated, so I can’t use magic at all because of it. I’d just absorb it again. And it’d not as effective as getting it from magic or people. But I’ve been sitting here eating out of the air this whole time, so now I can easily kill all of you before you ever shoot me.”
Sion glared at Tiir. “Hah. Why don’t you come do that then?”
Tiir smiled happily. “The second hole in your theory… is that I can’t eat you if I’m not strong enough.”
“How can you say that?”
Tiir pointed down… at Ryner. “Because if I killed all of you right now, then that Alpha Stigma bearer would go berserk,” Tiir said. Loudly, too. So that every single person here could hear him say it.
Sion grimaced. “This is bad.”
It was too late for him to do anything about it, though. He’d already lost control of the situation. Because his words had reached all the soldiers, who were already making a commotion.
“…One of our allies?”
“An Alpha Stigma bearer…”
“Him.”
“He’s one, too…”
He was used to it. Because he’d heard it so, so much by now.
“He’s a monster, too.”
“Shut up!” Sion screamed.
The commotion stopped. They were a pretty obedient army. But…
“See?” Tiir asked. “That’s humans for you. They aren’t compatible with you in the slightest. But I understand that these humans are dear to you. So I won’t kill them. But I think it’s better for you if you come with m—”
“Don’t fuck with me!” Sion yelled. “Ryner’s… Ryner’s different from you! He’s not a—”
Tiir smiled. Smiled like he’d been waiting for this. “He’s not a ‘what’ like me? A monster like me, right? Isn’t that what you were going to say…?”
“Uugh,” Sion groaned.
“So your name is Ryner. Okay, Ryner. Come with me. This place doesn’t suit you.”
“……”
Ryner didn’t reply. He just stared up at Tiir’s face… no, into nothing.
“Hey, Ryner. You don’t need to listen to him,” Ferris said.
“……”
“They’re looking down on you, thinking of you as a monster… they fear and loathe you. Is there really any need for you to stay there with them? Are they really something you need to protect?” Tiir raised a hand up. “Come with me,” he said, then moved that hand back to point it at himself. “Fire some magic at me. Then I’ll have the power to take you from this place.”
“Shut up! Ryner won’t use magic on you!” Sion yelled.
But Tiir smiled, perfectly composed. “He’ll do it. That’s the final difference between your theory and the reality of the situation. You guys can’t understand how dark our hearts have gotten after being betrayed countless times by humans. Right, Ryner?”
Sion and Ferris looked at Ryner. At his expression. When they saw it, they were at a loss for words. Ryner didn’t know what face he was making. It was only when they looked at him that he understood.
Ryner smiled. Or at least tried to. But he failed…
“It’s… it’s not your faults,” Ryner said. “I love you guys.”
Ferris glared at him. “I didn’t chase you down just to hear that.”
“I won’t let you go,” Sion said. “You’re my—”
“I don’t want to be a burden to you anymore,” Ryner interrupted. “It’s hard keeping a monster who might go berserk at any time as a pet, right?”
“I… since when—”
“The orders you gave Luke Stokkart…”
“……”
So that was his answer.
Ryner didn’t need to hear anything but his silence. So he really did order Luke to do that.
“…The person sent to kill you,” Ferris mumbled like she’d just realized something. Sent to deal with him… to kill him… for being a monster.
Tiir smiled. Like he was enjoying this.
“…You’re wrong,” Sion said. The pain in his voice was palpable, but… he never did say what part of it was wrong. So there was no need for him to look so pained in the first place. Ryner wanted to tell him that. He was the one in the wrong, not Sion. He could make Sion that pained just by being here, after all…
But it was okay. Because this was the end. Ryner raised his hand to draw a magic circle in the open air. “I wish for thunder…”
Sion scowled, then looked up at Tiir. “No! I definitely… I definitely won’t let you do that! Everyone, fire! Kill the monster!!”
Everyone’s arrows fired on his orders. The sky became a sea of arrows. But Tiir was still smiling. He raised his hand towards Ryner. “Come on.”
“Don’t, Ryner!” Sion screamed. It sounded like he was on the verge of tears.
“Sorry,” Ryner said. His magic circle gathered the last of the light it needed. “Lightning Flash.”
His spell shot through and burned countless arrows on its way to the second floor of the inn.
Tiir’s eyes opened wide as he smiled, proud of his victory. “I devour power… and fire it!” He said as he absorbed Ryner’s spell. He really was enjoying this. “Let’s go. Our friends are waiting.”
Tiir moved faster than the human eye could follow. The army… even Sion probably didn’t see him. They probably just saw him take arrows and think that he might’ve died. But Ryner and Ferris could see him and react.
“I won’t let you,” Ferris said. She reached her hand out, but… Ryner swatted it away.
Her eyes widened in shock.
When Ryner saw that, he thought he should try to smile one last time, but… Tiir gathered him up in his arms, then bolted away with unreal speed. Ferris was out of sight in seconds.
“…See you, Ferris,” Ryner said. He wasn’t really able to smile as he said it, in the end.
---
And with that, Ryner disappeared from their side.
“…They’re late.”
Ferris was waiting for her servants’ information in the Eris gardens. Sion had arranged for Calne, a strangely cheery servant, and Eslina, a rather huffy servant, to find information regarding Ryner’s whereabouts at once and then report back to her, but…
She looked up. The evening sun was dying the Eris lands a pretty color as it sunk past the trees in the distance…
“They’re way too late…”
She was starting to lose her patience.
Ryner had checked out of his inn yesterday. A whole day had passed. He could have crossed the border and left the country in that time.
She knew that she was the most capable person when it came to looking for him, but here she was, waiting in a place like this. She didn’t even have any clues.
“…It’s probably impossible to find him by now,” she said, as expressionless as always. But her annoyance and impatience were getting stronger the longer she waited. The red of the setting sun was irritating her.
She recalled Ryner from when she last saw him. He was the same unmotivated, lazy, and worthless man as always. But…
She was hit by a sense of uneasiness.
There was just…
“……”
There was just something different about him yesterday. She thought it then, too. Something about his face was weird. Back when she met Ryner for the first time, she noticed that he had a certain way of smiling. It was more ambiguous than most people’s - an incomplete, half-way there sort of smile…
“…Mgh.”
Something was irritating her. And on top of that irritation, she felt a vague sort of pain in her chest…
She was surprised at these feelings. Because she’d never felt them before.
“What is this…”
It felt like it was squeezing her heart.
“It’s…”
She thought of that smile.
“It’s…”
It was really an incomplete smile.
She suddenly heard Ryner’s voice in her head.
“Uhehehheh. I sure stood you up. Did you seriously think I was gonna meet up with you? That’d be such a pain. I’d rather ditch this country on my own so I can attack as many women as I want and take as many naps as I want! Yahhooooo!”
“What a bastard. I will definitely kill him once I find him.”
Apparently that was what this feeling was. She really, really wanted to punch Ryner’s stupid face right now, but he wasn’t here to punch, so she was getting irritated.
So he was the source of her anger.
“I see,” she said to herself. She felt a bit calmer now that she’d identified the cause of the pain in her heart. “Geez… what is that Calne fellow even doing—”
She abruptly stopped as she felt something change. She looked away from the sunset and to a garden stone.
“What do you need from me? Brother.”
He appeared on the stone as she spoke to him. He had the same blond hair and porcelain skin as her. His eyes remained closed.
Lucile Eris.
“…How long have you been watching me?” Ferris asked.
“Since always,” Lucile said with a smile. “I’ve always been watching after you ever since you were a kid.”
Ferris remained expressionless despite her brother’s smile. She looked back at the sky. The sun was setting and it was getting dark. The day was ending. That meant that it was over 24 hours since Ryner was last seen. He was surely…
Ferris’ eyes narrowed. She looked away from the sky.
“Brother.”
“What is it?”
“What did you do to Ryner?”
Lucile’s smile didn’t falter. “I warned him against making a pass at my sister.”
“……”
Lucile was certainly smiling. But it was a smile devoid of emotion. It was like a mask. And it scared her.
She was different. They had the same hair, the same eyes, and the same features… but they were different.
He wasn’t just emotionless. He was empty. There was truly nothing inside of him.
His expression was inorganic. It lacked human kindness. No, it lacked any humanity at all…
And then his expression changed. It became troubled. Bitter. But that too was a purposefully constructed fake… “Oh? You’re glaring at me? This is a new expression for you. I have never seen you make it before. You’ve felt another new emotion, haven’t you?”
“……”
The mask continued. “You’re becoming an adult now too, aren’t you? Even though you used to be so little…”
“……”
She was frozen. Frozen and shivering.
The thing in front of her… what was this thing in front of her?
She didn’t know, so she couldn’t stop shivering.
Things had always been this way, ever since that day. He saved her then, but was always…
“Really,” Lucile said kindly. “On one hand, I’m happy to see my beloved sister growing up so fast. But on the other hand, it’s a little tough, you know?”
“……”
She shivered at the words she couldn’t say: what did her brother do on that day?
“It’s really tough. Because it feels like you’ll end up somewhere that I won’t be able to reach, you know?”
“……”
He changed on that day. That was the unmistakable truth. And he probably changed… so that he could save her. But her brother…
“Brother, what did you do on that d—”
“They’re here, Ferris.”
“Mm?” Ferris turned to check the path. But nobody was there. “What do you m…”
Lucile was gone when she looked back.
“…He dodged the question…”
That or…
She heard the back gate open. But it was a faint sound that was very difficult to hear because the gate was pretty far from where she was now. She wouldn’t have heard it if Lucile hadn’t brought her attention to visitors and caused her to start listening. But he said that before the gate opened. So he must have noticed the visitors before they ever reached the gate.
“……”
There was an overwhelming difference in what they were capable of. But that had always been the case. She’d never been able to compare to him. He was a genius. A textbook genius.
She watched the butler, Croseli, lead her guest to the garden. It shouldn’t have been possible for anyone to sense a visitor from that distance. And if they could…
“……”
Ferris didn’t say anything. But her usual expressionless face took a bit of emotion - a little sadness, and a little pout.
“Brother… Just where did you…?”
But she didn’t finish that thought, in the end.
---
Eslina’s eyebrows were scrunched up earlier in Reylude’s castle town. “Geez,” she said. She had amber hair and was more grounded and reliable than most fourteen year olds. She looked to her boss at her side. “Calne, are you even motivated!?”
“Huh? Oh, of course I am!” Calne said. He was eighteen, too old to be called a boy, but his face was rather boyish nonetheless, and his wavy blond hair, childish expression, and delicate body only added to the overall impression. “Hmhmhmm~”
His humming didn’t help him look his age either, Eslina thought.
His official title in the Roland Empire’s army was Major General Calne Kaiwel. He’d been an right-hand man to Claugh and Sion back in the revolution, so he ended up reaching a pretty high rank, but…
“Oh, Eslina! Look!”
“Huh? What is it?”
“That bakery’s owner is a real babe, right?”
“Calne, I already asked you to stop talking about that stuff all the time! Also, this really isn’t the time for it!” Eslina yelled, then huffed a sigh. Then she stole a glance at the bakery owner. Yes, she was beautiful. She was, but she was in her forties or fifties already…
Eslina scowled. She knew that Calne liked adults… no, women who were in their late adulthood. But she couldn’t help but sulk knowing that he’d always prefer them to a girl like her… but she still believed that he’d turn back and see her one day once she became an adult too…
She was only fourteen now, but she was starting to understand the things Calne liked little by little. She’d have a chance in a few years.
That’s what she believed. But the woman who His Majesty introduced Calne to today was young, too - about the same age as Calne. She wasn’t his demographic, but he still seemed to be into her. She was even pretty enough for him to forgive her even though she called him her servant on their first meeting. It made her feel ignored as a woman, even though she was doing her best to become a woman that he’d like…
How cruel.
And he’d said that he was excited to work with such a beauty, and that Sion was the best for introducing them.
How cruel.
She really thought that. Because she was out here trying her best… but Calne wouldn’t look at her like a woman at all. Did she just not have any appeal? Or was it because she was Fiole’s sister…?
Calne’s eyes narrowed with excitement. “Ah, the bookstore owner’s—”
“God! Why are you always, always… just do your job! We need to work hard and find that Ryner Lute guy…”
“Huh? But I’m not searching for him.”
“Whaaat!?” Eslina yelled. His Majesty just told them yesterday to look for Ryner Lute. But he wasn’t searching at all… “Then… then what are we doing right now?”
“Searching for someone.”
“B, but Ryner—”
“Yeah, we’re not looking for him.”
“Then who—”
“We’ve found him, Major General,” someone suddenly said from behind them.
“Huh!?” Eslina gasped, and turned back to see four men.
Eslina knew them. They were Calne’s subordinates. But she didn’t think they were in the military since they never wore military uniforms. They were all several years apart, each somewhere in his twenties or thirties. Just by looking one could tell that they weren’t ordinary people - they were sharp, perfectly alert, and didn’t leave any room for attacks. They bowed to Calne. “I apologize that we took so—”
“It’s fine,” Calne said with a smile. “Honestly, you guys were pretty fast.”
The men bowed again. They showed nothing but loyalty towards Calne. It was a strange sight, seeing a bunch of grown men bowing to a teenager.
“Anyway, let’s go, Eslina. Since they found the person we were looking for and all.”
“But Ryner—”
“I already told you, we’re not looking for him.”
“Th, then who—”
“You’ll see,” Calne said and looked back to the men. “So where is he?”
“He’s presently between alleyways.”
“Hmm. Then we better hurry up.”
“Seriously, who…” Eslina had started to speak, but stopped when she felt Calne’s hand tightly grip hers. She felt her face get hot. Then she remembered that holding a girl’s hand was an everyday affair for Calne. She felt ashamed of her heart beating fast from it. “…G, geez. Let go of my hand already.”
“I won’t let go.”
“Huh…”
He gripped her hand tighter.
“U-um, th, that hurts, Calne…”
He just gripped it tighter. For a moment she thought he was going to hug her - his body was closer, his face was closer, and then… he moved right out of the way. “Whew… that was… dangerous, hrgh.” He then collected himself again.
“What was th—” Eslina had started to ask, but then she turned around to see four men collapsed on the ground in the alley - Calne’s subordinates. “Whaaat!?
One man stood in the darkness. He’d probably been the one to knock Calne’s subordinates out… wait, was she just attack too!?
“C-Calne,” Eslina said with a shiver to her voice. “We should esc—”
They needed to do their best to get away, even if only one of them could make it. But then she was pushed back onto her bottom.
“Sorry, Eslina,” Calne said. “But I really need to talk to him, okay?” Calne’s eyes shone with excitement. He looked like a totally different person now, his sharp smile on a totally different level even when compared to his subordinates’.
The man standing off against Calne had an equally sharp aura. Her impression from looking at him was that he was a little older than Calne - perhaps he was in his early twenties? He had cold eyes and wore Roland’s military uniform on his thin but well-trained body. “Why did you assign a tail to me?”
Calne glanced at his subordinates again, then shrugged. “Couldn’t I say the same to you? You’ve been tailing my subordinates… Lear Rinkal.”
Lear’s expression only got colder. “And you, Calne Kaiwel. You’re Sion Astal’s right-hand man just as much as Claugh Klom is. You—”
Lear interrupted himself to jump forward with incomprehensible speed, throwing a fist straight at Calne. Eslina couldn’t even scream in shock in time. It was just too fast.
But Calne just smiled. “I thought that was coming,” he said and caught Lear’s fist.
“Mm.” Lear took a couple light steps back.
That wasn’t enough to stop the fight, though. Calne threw a kick that landed with ease.
“Gh,” Lear groaned as he was shot back from the impact.
Eslina almost yelled ‘yay,’ but… Calne groaned too. He massaged his right arm like it hurt. When she got a closer look, it was bent unnaturally…
Eslina wanted to scream, but Calne put his other arm on it and cracked it back into place quickly… It made a gross sound as he did.
“Geez, that hurt. Now my hand’s all weak… You’re horrible. My muscles are going to ache all day!” Calne said and glared.
“…I meant to break it. But instead I’m the one with a cracked rib.”
“I cracked it? I meant to break it… well, anyway, it seems like we’re evenly matched. You wouldn’t come out of this unharmed no matter who won.”
“……”
“That’s what you want, right? You knew that we wouldn’t be able to have a truthful conversation without fighting, so…”
“Whose orders are you acting on?” Lear asked.
“Sir Sion’s, obviously.”
“Lies.”
“I’m telling the truth. He ordered me to search for you and Sir Luke both.”
So this was who Calne had been looking for. But why? Eslina couldn’t help but wonder why Calne prioritized searching for Lear over their search for Ryner Lute.
Lear put a little more distance between Calne and himself, never letting up on his guard. “That’s a lie, too.”
Calne tilted his head to the side. “Why do you think so?”
“……”
Lear thought for a long moment. It was hard to tell if their conversation was over or not… and it looked like Lear was wondering that, too. He just stood there for some time, thinking about what to do…
Calne looked a bit troubled. He put both of his hands up. “What about this, then?”
Lear’s expression changed. But Eslina still didn’t know what was going on.
“…What are you doing?” Lear asked, his expression guarded. “Do you want to die?”
Calne shrugged. “I won’t die if you don’t kill me.”
Lear’s eyes widened. “I’ll kill you if you’re my enemy.”
“I’m not.”
Lear fell into thought once again.
“What are you so scared of?” Calne asked. “I read all about your past. I didn’t think that you were the anxious type. Instead, you’re cool and collected. You handle situations in the most beneficial way possible. That ability alone puts you at about Claugh’s level, though Luke outshines you. And you dislocated my arm so easily…”
Calne massaged his arm for a moment before continuing.
“…What are you so scar—”
Lear flew at Calne, slamming him into the wall. Then he pulled a knife out of one of his pockets and held it against Calne’s neck.
Eslina screamed and move to save him, but—
“Don’t move, Eslina!” Calne shouted.
Eslina froze. “Ah…”
Calne smiled kindly. “Sorry for shouting. Just stay still for a sec, okay~? Because you’re already in the perfect position.” Then he looked back to Lear. “So? What’s made you lose your cool?”
Lear’s grip tightened as he dug Calne deeper into the wall. “Luke… Sergeant Luke Stokkart and Lieutenant Milk Callaud have been missing since the day before yesterday. Lach Velariore started to search for them yesterday and hasn’t shown back up, and then Moe Velariore disappeared this morning… I’m the only one left now, and I’m thinking you guys are the ones behind it all.”
“What!?” Eslina said.
“Huh? Why us?” Calne asked, his eyes wide. “I really have been doing what Sir Sion asks—”
“I looked into things, and the military’s been moving,” Lear continued, ignoring Calne’s objection. “But I can’t figure out why. Maybe it’s for noble money? But why would they capture us? And I really don’t think that the nobility would be able to do anything about Luke…”
The knife dug a little into Calne’s flesh.
“But… Calne Kaiwel. You’re strong. Smart. Who are you really working for? Answer me.”
The knife dug deeper.
“I told you… it’s Sion—”
“Liar.”
The knife dug deeper. Blood began to drop out through the fresh wound.
Stop…
Lear lifted the knife just as Eslina was about to scream.
“Give me the truth. The whole, unstretched truth. I’ll kill her if you don’t.”
Eslina shivered. His aura was murderous. He was serious.
“Not just yet,” Calne said. “You can’t do that—”
“I’m not someone who can stay calm even when my friends are hurt,” Lear said.
“Hm. So you’re serious?” Calne asked.
“Do you need proof?” Lear asked.
“…You’re supposed to laugh when you’re telling jokes,” Calne said. His eyes narrowed. The final trace of friendliness between them faded. Then Calne spoke lowly. Lower than she’d ever heard him. “I’ll kill you if you raise a hand against Eslina.”
“Not if I kill her before you can move.”
They both moved.
“Tch!”
Calne had grabbed Lear by the arm holding his knife, then threw his whole body in Eslina’s direction.
Eslina watched as Calne flew around just to protect her.
A faint smile rose to Lear’s face. He pocketed his knife… and that was that.
“I’ve told you before. I hate those jokes worst of all!” Calne yelled. But it was his regular pitch. Hearing it made Eslina feel relieved.
“I see,” Lear said. “You will fail in your duty if you die now, but you still protected her… understood. I’ll believe you.” He sounded awfully polite, but it suited him - it sounded like this was how he usually spoke; coldly, politely, and yet his expression was somehow kind.
Eslina suddenly felt like she could relax. She sighed.
Lear straightened his posture, then continued. “I apologize for waiting so long to introduce myself. I am Corporal Lear Rinka. Your Excellency Major General Calne Kaiwel, and…”
Eslina smiled and nodded politely. “Eslina Folkal. I am employed as Sir Calne’s secretary.”
Lear bowed deeply. “I do apologize for being so rude to a woman—”
“Ah… n, no, you needn’t bow.”
Calne looked a little worn out just from listening to them. “Your Excellency?” He repeated. “I guess I am a higher rank, but… hey, wait, why are you only a corporal? Is Sion’s head on right?”
Then again, Lear was loyal to Sergeant Luke… who followed Major Rahel Miller. Their strangely low ranks continued up the ladder. It really wouldn’t be strange at all if Luke or Miller were promoted above Calne, but apparently they kept refusing promotions.
Lear continued to ignore everything Calne said. “So, Your Excellence. What exactly did you need from me?”
Calne grimaced. “Can you stop calling me that?”
“Your Excellency!!” Eslina said.
Calne pressed a hand to his head, tired. “Don’t act like a kid, okay?”
“I-I’m not a kid!”
“You’re fourteen. You’re a kid.”
“You’re only four years older than I am!”
“What age do you think people stop being a kid?”
“Um… thirteen…?”
Calne sighed.
“Wh-why are you sighing at me!? You aren’t even a good judge of age! You think that adults are people in their forties or fifties!” Eslina yelled, the fire inside her growing.
The two of them fought like kids. Lear smiled as he watched it, then seemed to recall something that made him sad. “Oh, I sure hope Chief Milk’s okay…”
“Huh?”
“Nothing,” Lear said, easily returning to his usual cool-headed self. “So what did you need—”
“Isn’t going missing, like, super in vogue lately?” Calne asked.
“What?”
“I don’t know if it’s related to Luke and the others going missing,” Calne continued, not minding Lear at all. “But the taboo breaker you guys were after, Ryner Lute, has also up and disappeared, you know?”
Lear tilted his head in wonder. “He’s gone?”
Calne nodded. “He disappeared yesterday. Ferris Eris, his travelling partner, is also unaware of his whereabouts. Eslina and I were ordered to search for him… so that’s what we came to ask you about. You should be pretty knowledgeable about him by now, after all…”
“…I see. Hm. So it’s gone missing… My subordinates did mention that he was preparing to leave his inn by himself. I did think it was strange, but…”
“You knew he was leaving!?” Eslina and Calne shouted in unison.
“Taboo breakers are people who have fled the country despite knowing the secrets of our magic, and it’s a Taboo Hunter’s job to find and capture them,” Lear said matter-of-factly. “My job in particular is to gather information about our target’s whereabouts to prepare for capture.”
Eslina and Calne exchanged a look.
“So where is he now?” Calne asked.
“Estabul. But he’s not taking the typical route into the region. He’s passing through the western mountains to avoid garnering too much attention. However, contrary to what he might expect, the route with less people…”
“…Is actually the easier place to capture him,” Calne finished. “Because it’s a pretty straightforward path, not one with a bunch of different forks. Man, you really saved us, Lear. Okay, that’s one job out. Now.” Calne looked to Eslina. “Eslina, can you go tell Ferris what Lear just told us?”
“Yes, sir!”
“The search party, too…”
“Understood. I will also send a messenger to His Majesty, who will be departing for Estabul tomorrow, and help prepare the search party…”
“You’re a great help,” Calne said and smiled.
Seeing it made her happy. This was what she worked so hard for. It looked like they’d be busy for a while. But…
Calne sighed, then raised a fist. “Okay! It’s our job to protect the base while Sion’s away, so let’s do it well~! Go, team!”
“Yeah!!” Eslina said, raising her fist with him.
That was how they always worked.
Lear watched them sparkle, dumbfounded.
“Come on, now. You too, Lear.”
“Huh? Oh, um… I guess… if it’s a superior’s orders, then… y, yeaah,” he said quietly.
Calne and Eslina both laughed.
“Alright,” Calne said. “Now the Great Detective Calne Kaiwel will conduct his search for the remaining missing persons and beauties—”
“There’s a beauty right here!” Eslina yelled.
“……I guess so.”
“What!? Why do you look so dejected!?”
Calne ignored her and turned back to Lear. “No need to worry anymore, Corporal Lear. I’ll use all this crazy power that Sion’s left me to find Luke as fast as possible for you,” he said and puffed his chest out.
He looked really reliable. Eslina couldn’t help but smile. When she did, Lear looked at her, and then looked at Calne…
“I feel even more nervous about it now,” Lear said.
“Why!?”
And so the days of Sion’s absence began.
---
Time once again returned to before, when the sun had already fallen completely past the horizon.
Eslina had come to the noble’s district, hurrying as fast as she could, and had just arrived at her destination. Now the butler, Croseli, was leading her through the garden…
A very beautiful woman waited for her there - Ferris Eris. She was beautiful in daylight, too, but in the light of the moon… she was honestly even more lovely than a goddess. Any man would become captivated by her. Even Eslina was at a loss for words for a moment.
She recalled the face Calne had made when he first saw her. Seeing Ferris now, Eslina understood his reaction entirely. She didn’t intend on losing, but… yeah, there was no way she could win again someone this beautiful.
“What were you doing?” Ferris asked. “You’re late. What are you, a tortoise? A slug? You horrid servant.”
“……”
Maybe she could win after all…
Leaving that aside.
“Er, I have some information for you,” Eslina said rather timidly. “We have determined Ryner Lute’s location.”
“Mm.”
“He is currently in Estabul, skirting the western edges—”
Ferris didn’t wait for her to finish. “Estabul… Hehe, hehehhehehe. Ryner, you cad. My chance to shadow you has finally arisen. Croseli, I’m leaving. Get me a map of Estabul.”
“Yes, my lady,” Croseli said happily. He handed over a map that he’d apparently prepared in advance.
“Oh, um… uh, the search party is still being formed…”
Ferris ignored her. “It’s over for you now, Ryner,” she said emotionlessly. “I’ll make your head fly through Estabul’s skies.”
Then she ran off, leaving their conversation on a scary note.
“Wha…”
She was fast to the point where it was unrealistic and soon disappeared out of sight.
“I-is she planning on looking for him alone? It must be difficult to find him all alone though…”
Then the butler suddenly spoke. “I am grateful to you.”
“Huh? Umm… for what?”
“For finding Lord Ryner. It appears to have calmed the lady down quite a bit.”
That… was calm?
That?
“……”
Apparently real beauties really did live in another dimension!
Now Eslina felt like an idiot for being jealous of her before.
---
The worst times always came when one least expected them.
Ryner’s expression was one of anguish. He groaned quietly.
He’d passed Roland and gone a ways into Estabul already. It’d take a normal person two weeks of leisurely travel to reach the village he was in now, so Ryner naturally took four weeks to get there. He was travelling on his own time now, after all. He napped here and there, but he also didn’t know if he was being followed or not, so he left the road often to throw anyone who might be around off. He was careful to come and go with a sign that he’d ever been there.
He’d been staying at his current inn for three days now, and he still couldn’t sense any pursuers. It was unlikely that anyone was after him at all.
“……”
That was good…
It was easier being alone. He could nap all he wanted. But…
“…Uuuugh.”
He groaned again, his face scrunched up with pain.
The inn he was staying at now was actually pretty big, considering the size of the village it was located in. The food was good and the building had fifteen whole rooms, all of which were perfectly maintained. But only three people were staying at in now, including Ryner. But that was more than before. He’d been the only one back when he arrived. The inn didn’t seem to be doing all that well…
Ryner commented on that fact during dinner yesterday, and the inn’s owner had said the following: “That’s not true at all. We don’t get many guests this time of year, but there’s a special constellation here that you can see in winter… It’s called the Rolika constellation. Have you heard of it?”
Ryner tilted his head. “Hmm. Rolika? Ahh, in Roland we call the one you can see in winter the Serrol constellation…”
The owner visibly tensed. “My, you’re from Roland?”
“Mm, I’m someone who ran away from Roland.”
The owner smiled. “Good, then. I’m relieved.”
Ryner wasn’t really sure what she was relieved about, though. He’d think that a regular citizen of Roland would be a better guest than a runaway criminal from Roland, but whatever. That was how Roland and Estabul were now. They had long histories of fighting and killing each other, and even the stars went by different names…
They weren’t that different, everything considered. But they still fought every time they met.
“It’s so dumb,” Ryner muttered to himself sleepily.
“Hm? Did you say something?”
“Not really. Just sayin’ your food’s delicious.”
She looked pleased to hear that. “I bet. I mean, you came from Roland. Their food is horrible. And it does make me happy to see guests eat a lot of good food, you know. I’ll give you a third serving for free, okay?”
Ryner scrunched up his face and groaned again, his face pained.
“My, is something wrong?”
“No, not at all…”
“How can you say that while making that face? Does your stomach hurt?”
Ryner shook his head. This wasn’t that sort of problem. He reached into his pocket to grab his wallet. It was thin. It was clearly empty. “Uuu…”
“Really, what’s wrong?” She asked, worried. But that motherly expression of hers only made him feel worse.
He was currently eating lunch. He’d eaten breakfast earlier today, too, and hadn’t paid for it yet. “Uugh, geez…” He was such an idiot. Why didn’t he steal some money from Sion while he was there… well, there was nothing he could do about it now that he was in Estabul.
Ryner held his head in his hands.
“Hey, are you really o—” Her words cut off, then her tone changed to something more harsh when she faced the kitchen. “Hey! You!”
A bearded man stood there. He was her husband - the inn was run by the two of them and their daughter. The daughter was at school now though… but that was whatever.
He needed to find a way out of the hole he’d dug himself into.
Should he tell her that he’d go earn some money working and ask her to put things on his tab for a while? Well, working was a pain, so that was out.
How about he asked her if he could work here to earn his food? Well, working was a pain though, so that was out too.
How about his third option? He could just dine and dash.
“……”
Anyway, he only had the one option since the beginning. That’s why he was so pained. He really didn’t feel like working, so…
“H-hey, are you alright?” The woman’s husband asked.
“Your stomach hurts, doesn’t it? Oh, I’m in the wrong here. I just love seeing guests eat their fill happily, so I got carried away and gave you too much, didn’t I!”
He looked at them. They were acting like parents worried about their son. They really were good people. Then he glanced at all the empty plates. One, two, three, four, five… actually, counting was a pain. But there were a lot. If you tell a guy with no money to eat all he wants, he’ll eat like a horse… And it was all for the price of one meal. Because they made a comfortable profit even though it was pretty empty lately.
If only he had the money to pay for it…
“Uugh…”
“Why don’t you try using the bathroom?”
Ryner nodded. “Uhh, yeah. I’ll try that.”
He made his decision. He’d escape through the bathroom window…
It’d be fine. They didn’t have many customers now, but this was a big seasonal tourist destination. They probably weren’t strapped for cash. In fact, maybe he should steal some of their money for his travels…
But just as he was thinking about that…
“Do you want me to call the doctor from the next town over?”
“…N-no, I’m okay.” Maybe he shouldn’t steal from them after all.
“Can you stand? Do you need me to help you to the bathroom?”
They were so worried about him. Now that he really thought about it, maybe getting out through the bathroom window was a pain, too. Maybe they’d help him escape…
“…You don’t need to go to that kind of trouble for me…”
He was clearly misunderstanding something about humans.
He stood, walked to the bathroom, and opened the door. His eyes narrowed.
“……”
Maybe he should use the second floor’s bathroom instead. The window here was kinda oddly placed. But maybe it was like that on the second floor, too.
The window here was close to the road. There was a good view of the town, making it easy to see if anyone was coming but also making it easy for them to see him… but there wasn’t even a curtain, so it was obvious - they’d chained up the latch to keep guys like Ryner who’d dine-and-dash from going through with it. There went his idea of running off today… he couldn’t just escape through the window and leave his breakfast and lunch debts unsettled now.
Maybe he should just leave through the front door. Yeah. They were good, trusting people here. He’d leave through the front door.
Just as he made his decision, he saw a shadow from the other side of the window.
“Aww, someone really did notice me here. People can see right into here from outside—”
He couldn’t see them perfectly because of the angle, but what he did see was beautiful golden hair. And then they turned. Looked at him with that pretty face and blue, almond-shaped eyes. Stared right at him. Her pink lips opened and closed.
He couldn’t hear her through the window. But he already knew what she was saying: “I’ve found you, Ryner. I’m sure you’re prepared for what happens next.”
“Y-you’ve gotta be kidding me,” Ryner said and shivered.
She was expressionless like a doll, and yet Ryner still understood that she was pissed. She readied her sword…
“S-seriously!? It’s already unsheathed and everything!?” He was terrified.
Her lips moved again. He read them to see, “Heheh. The weather’s nice today. I’m sure your head will fly nice and f—”
Ryner turned to bolt before she finished, but…
He heard the strange sound of something being sliced open.
“Ry~ne~r~”
Her voice wouldn’t carry that well though the window. He turned to check, but soon regretted it.
His bill was getting even bigger… now he’d have to pay for the window, no, the whole wall to be repaired…
“H-hey, Ferris! You’re breaking way too m—”
Her sword swung at him.
“—You’re kidding, right!?” Ryner yelled as he narrowly dodged her strike. “This is b—”
She swung the dull side of her sword and hit him square on the head. He felt his mind waver. She’d hit him way harder than usual. His body flew from the bathroom towards the dining room. He’d normally have been able to soften his fall, but… it’d been four weeks. Four weeks since he and Ferris had last seen each other, and his reaction speed had already gotten too slow to react to her sword… but to be fair, she was swinging faster than usual, too.
She’d knocked him right into the dining room table. He jumped back up on his feet and glared at her. “H, hey, that was too much! You can still kill me with the dull side, you kn—”
She shot towards him, swinging again.
“Seriously!?” Ryner yelled as he twisted his body to dodge her. But that made him lose his balance and fall to the floor.
Ferris straddled him to keep him in place. “Die, Ryner,” she said and lowered her sword on him like a guillotine…
Ryner heard a scream. It was the woman who ran the inn.
“S-stop!” Her husband yelled soon after.
And then… Ryner understood. He really felt that he did. He looked up at Ferris with half-lidded, sleepy eyes. “I get it. You’re the person they sent to kill me, aren’t you?”
Her sword stopped as if it’d been halted by divine intervention. It had stopped a little into Ryner’s neck. A little blood dripped out, and the wound itself was painful in a dull sort of way.
“……”
Ferris didn’t say anything.
Ryner didn’t say anything, either. He just stared into nothing listlessly.
The inn’s owners spoke behind them.
“M-murderer… we, we need to call someone…!”
“G-give up, woman. I’ll—”
“Shut up, outsiders.”
“…Outsiders…?”
“…Outsiders…”
The owners exchanged a glance, then looked back to Ryner and Ferris. To Ferris, who was straddling, and Ryner, who was being straddled.
“Haha… I get it now.”
“Huh? What!? You’ve gotta be misunderstanding something,” Ryner said.
“Oh, to be young… You must be so full of passion to run and jump into it.”
“Haaaah?! The hell are you guys—”
The husband smiled wryly. “Come on, boy. I understand that men will be men and cheat, but you can’t make a girl cry.”
“I’m telling you, I… c’mon, Ferris, say something!”
“……”
She didn’t. She just glared at Ryner.
“She’s too full of passion, isn’t she?” The wife said. “Oh, fine. You two can use the dining room. You haven’t seen each other in a while after all, right? Just be sure to clean up when you’re done.”
“Whaat!?” Ryner screeched. “What the hell! Why’s that the conclusion you’re coming to here!? W… it’s…”
Ryner’s objections fell on deaf ears. The owners left, satisfied with themselves like they’d just seen something great.
“Heeeeyy,” Ryner tried one last time, but they didn’t look back. They were already in their own imaginary world now, and reality wouldn’t reach them.
Ryner sighed. Then he glanced at the window. It was a perfectly natural countryside out there, overflowing with nature. It had fields, too… well-kept fields filled with crops…
It was the kind of afternoon he’d like to leisurely nap away. He even began to wonder which patch of grass might be the most comfy to nap under the sunlight in… but then he heard a voice from above. So he looked up.
“…The person sent to kill you? What does that mean?”
Ryner scowled. “Can you get off of me first? Your hair’s tickling my face and it’s really annoying.”
Ferris moved off in a rare display of her ability to listen. Ryner stood, then looked back at the broken table and scrunched up his nose. “Hey… do you have the money for repairs?”
“That’s not what I came here to talk about.”
Ryner looked back to Ferris, but soon averted his eyes again. Because she was glaring at him so hard that it physically hurt.
“I’ll ask you again. If you don’t answer, then I’ll really behead you…”
“…That’d be bad. If you get blood all over that nice couple’s ceiling, it’ll be hard to look them in the eyes…”
“…What did you mean when you asked if I was the person sent here to kill you?”
“……”
Ryner looked at the window. He really didn’t want to look her in the eyes now. Her hand was on her sheathed sword. She could really send his head flying whenever she wanted to. She’d unsheathe faster than he could react and come for him if he said anything that wasn’t what she wanted to hear. Then she’d hit him. How many times had she hit him while they were travelling together…?
Ryner shivered at the memory. He shivered, but… she’d never actually behead him. He knew that. He’d seen it in his blurry consciousness back when he’d gone berserk in front of her. The other Ryner in him had wished for nothing but destruction and began to scatter it through the world, but she put her sword away.
She was always swinging her sword around willy-nilly, but that one time… she put it away.
In other words, Ferris was just contrary. The one thing she’d never do was always the one thing he wanted. She didn’t escape when his heart was screaming at her to run away. She had just stared at him intently, just like she was doing now, and said…
“Hey, Ryner… You wanted to move forward, right? You hated being called a monster, right? You hated killing, right? I’ve already dodged five of your attacks, but I won’t dodge the next one. After that, you need to make a decision. I don’t think you’re a monster. Okay? You aren’t a monster. You’re my ally, my slave, and my friend who I drink tea with. You’re nothing like a monster. Can you hear me, Ryner?”
He’d heard her. But all he could do was wonder what he’d do if he killed her.
And then…
“Can you hear me, Ryner?”
He could. He could hear her.
He did want to move forward. Just not with her. Not with Sion. That was all. Because people who were by his side, people who he held dear… were people he’d end up killing.
“What did you mean?” Ferris asked one more time.
Ryner smiled bitterly. “Sorry. Just a misunderstanding. Forget about it.”
“What kind of an answer is—”
“I know most of all that you can’t kill me,” Ryner said. He still wasn’t meeting her eyes. He was staring at the scenery outside as he spoke.
“……”
Apparently she finally got the hint.
“I have one more question,” Ferris said.
Nevermind. She didn’t get the hint. “What a pain,” Ryner said and cradled his head in his hands.
“What did Lucile say to you?”
“Nothing,” Ryner said and shook his head.
“What did he say.”
“Nothing important.”
“…What. Did he say.”
“Man, you’re persistent. He didn’t say—”
“He said not to make a pass at his sister,” Ferris reminded him.
Hearing that made some of what Lucile said spin around in his head again.
“What kind of impossible dreams do monsters have?”
He was right. Monsters shouldn’t dream at all. “I’m glad you have a brother that worries about you.”
“Is he the reason you ran away?” Ferris asked, ignoring Ryner’s comment.
“Nope,” Ryner said and shook his head.
“Did you run away because he threatened you?”
“…Mm? Uh, well… I mean, anyone’d run away after that kind of threat, but… that’s not my reason.”
“Night after night the billions of older brothers and fathers out there attack the women and children of the world. They’re always yelling, ‘P-please, spare my daughter… at least spare my daughteeeerrrr!’
“But her begging was soon interrupted. ‘Fuhahaha, who’d quit now! We won’t stop until all the women and children of the world have bowed down before the Demon King of Perversion, Ryner Lute!’ And so on and so on. As you can see, their wretched nature has no limits. You shamelessly ran from my brother and father because you don’t want to be attacked, correct? Do you have no pride as a demon king!?”
“…I’m not too big on pride, honestly. Also, I don’t actually think there are actually billions of father-son pairs that act like that? But whatever. Maybe he did threaten me a little,” Ryner said, defeated.
Ferris glared openly again.
“…You’re seriously mad, aren’t you?”
“I am,” she replied instantly. “I was all prepared that day, fourteen backpacks full of dango at the ready.”
“Ah… yeah, I can see that. Fourteen, huh? I guess you couldn’t have carried them all yourself,” he said and began to picture her waiting there in front of the dango shop surrounded by backpacks. Expressionless, but probably humming a little song or something.
But Ryner didn’t come.
So she probably stopped humming, surrounded by all that dango that she couldn’t carry by herself… it seemed like a pretty sad scene when he imagined it. Then she probably got angry, swing her sword out of her sheath, and yelled ‘death penalty!’ and started running for him…
He could picture it clearly. “Y-yeah, that’s real anger. No doubt about it,” Ryner said and shivered.
Ferris nodded. “You seem to have prepared yourself.”
“N-no, not at all. Can you put your sword away for a minute—”
Then he heard someone at the entrance to the inn. “Heya. Is the food ready?” It was a man. Probably another guest.
“Oh, Zepaad, welcome! I’m very sorry. There won’t be any food today.”
“Huh? Really?”
“Y-yes, well… some guests are shut up in there, you see.”
“Really? Man, I give. To tell you the truth, my wife is away visiting her family. So no one’s been around to make food for me all day…”
“Did you two have a fight?”
“Oh, no, nothing like that… ah…”
He heard the sound of something cracking.
“Huh? Z-Zepaad? Are… a…”
Their conversation died unnaturally in the middle…
“What’s going on?” Ryner wondered. He turned his head towards them and heard another sound. This one was like something spurting up.
It was a sound that Ryner recognized.
“Ryner,” Ferris said.
“Mm?”
She was looking out the window, so Ryner followed her gaze to look out. It was the same country landscape that he’d looked out at just a little while ago. But the dirt road that ran through the town… was now littered with pieces of meat and stained red…
“…Is that blood?”
Then he heard the husband’s throaty, deep voice from the second floor. “I’m sorry, Zepaad. I can make you a boxed lun… ah… gh…”
The same cracking from before rang out, and his words faded.
“H-hey, Ferris…”
“I know!”
“Hm, that wasn’t it either,” someone said from outside. “Weird.” It was a man’s voice. He sounded pretty elegant. “I should be able to meet them here. Where are they?”
Then he tried the door to the dining room.
“Here, maybe?”
He very slowly pushed the door open.
Ryner tensed. He didn’t know what was going on, but…
A young man peeked his head through the gap in the door. He had black hair, black clothes, and even black shoes. He was a dark spot in the room, all the way down to the floor…
“…You bastard,” Ryner said and scowled.
The floor outside the dining room… was red. Red with blood.
The man’s mouth was red, too. Like he was a kid who’d gotten a little messy eating strawberry sauce. But that wasn’t what was on his mouth now. It was blood.
“You bastard… what do you think you’re doing?”
The man looked between Ryner and Ferris. “Hmm. Which one…?” He took a step into the room. When he did, a sound followed him like he was dragging something.
Ryner looked at it… and silently screamed. Ferris groaned behind him.
He’d… been dragging hair. A woman’s bloody hair. The inn’s owner…
The man followed Ryner’s gaze. “Her meat was really tender, but she’s really week so it wasn’t very tasty.” He let go of her head completely, letting her remains fall gracelessly to the floor. Then he looked back at Ryner happily. “I don’t want to eat cheap meat anymore now that I’ve seen you guys. You want it?”
“Wh-what the hell,” Ryner spat.
“…Apparently he’s even more of a pervert than you are,” Ferris said. “But…”
Ryner understood without her saying it. This guy was strong. Overwhelmingly so. One could tell just watching the fluid way he moved. He left no gaps. He seemed to notice everything.
He was even stronger than Ryner. He could tell with just one glance. He couldn’t feel the powerlessness and despair he’d felt when he confronted Lucile, but… still.
“You two seem really strong… and you smell really tasty… I’m getting hunger pains standing here. Lafra was right. It has to be one of you two. I’m gonna figure it out, okay?” The man said and began to walk towards them.
Ryner spoke. “Don’t m—”
“What?”
“Whoa!?”
He’d appeared before Ryner instantly, forcing him to dodge. Then he tried to grab Ryner’s face.
Ryner threw himself down to dodge again.
Ferris swung her sword to keep the man from Ryner… but he fell back, easily dodging her.
His reaction speed was unbelievable. He didn’t seem worried at all, either. He moved without tensing himself, whether he was moving or attacking. He seemed to watch his opponents muscles twitch and move so he could perfectly calculate how they’d move before they did. Then he jumped forward again with his full speed.
“Shit… he’s fast,” Ryner said.
“But not to the point where we’re helpless,” Ferris said.
Ryner nodded. “I know. We can do this.
The man watched them, surprised. “Two two have good eyes. To the point where I wouldn’t think you’re human.”
“You’re even farther from human than we are, moving like that,” Ryner spat.
The man tilted his head. “Huh? I look human to you?”
“Huh? What?”
“…I guess you’re human, then. I guess it must be the blonde.”
“What!? I don’t get you,” Ryner said. “My head hurts.”
“He’s strong,” Ferris said. “Don’t shittalk him.”
“Can we really take him?”
“It’s your turn.”
“Well, I’ll be fine,” Ryner said and smiled. Their enemy might be super fast, but he and Ferris had fought all kinds of monstrous enemies together. People who’d used those terribly strong Heroic Relics, for example… so their strategy for fighting an opponent like this had already been decided.
Ferris guarded.
“Mm,” she said and moved in front of Ryner and swung her sword. Her speed always surprised him. He understood why the other guy thought she wasn’t human. But the man easily moved away. He was the real deal, that was for sure. They might not be able to win.
Ryner opened his mouth to say the incantation for a spell that sped him up drastically as he drew letters in the air. It was a spell he’d copied with his Alpha Stigma back when he fought Estabul’s Magical Knights.
“I dedicate the words of our contract - give birth to the beast of malice sleeping within the earth!”
His body began to shine faintly. He’d be faster now, about as fast as Ferris.
“Magic?” The man asked.
Ryner didn’t answer. He kicked off the floor, then the wall, to arrive behind the man. Then he started another spell up by drawing a magic circle. Now that he’d accelerated his movements with magic, it was much faster than casting the first spell. Light gathered in his magic circle.
The man dodged Ferris’ sword again, putting him in just the right place.
“It’s over,” Ryner said. “I wish for thunder - Lightning Flash!”
Light gathered in the center of his magic circle. There was no way he’d be able to dodge this.
The man watched the lightning bolt form… and smiled. Opened his eyes up wide. When he did, a strange symbol appeared in them. It was a cursed symbol, much like Ryner’s pentagram. But it was a different shape. It was a scarlet cross. “I devour…”
The lightning was sucked up into his eyes. The acceleration magic, too. Ryner lost his balance from the lowered velocity of his movements and fell to the ground. But he didn’t take his eyes off of the man’s eyes.
Ferris swung her sword, but the man didn’t mind it. He had a joyed… no, pleasured expression on his face… “Ah, ahhh… amazing… your power’s so amazing…”
Ferris’ sword was fast approaching.
So the man whispered. “And then fire.”
Ryner lost sight of the man. Then his face was grabbed and slammed into the wall. Ferris’, too.
“…You monster,” Ferris muttered.
The man looked at Ferris with eyes that seemed to go right through her… and then smiled happily. “I’m sure the cows and pigs that you guys eat every single day look at you with the same eyes you’re looking at me with now. They look up at their predators with fear… and with eyes that have given up…”
Then he looked back at Ryner. At his eyes. He peered into him with his cross-covered eyes… and nodded, satisfied with himself. “I’ve finally found you. It’s pretty faint, but your scarlet pentagram’s risen up… your Alpha Stigma, I mean.”
“Y-you…”
“My name is Tiir Rumibul. I’m sure you can tell by looking at me, but… I bear the God’s Eyes Iino Doue. I came here to pick you up.”
It was sudden. Even if he was trying to explain, it just made Ryner more confused. An Iino Doue bearer? He meant the scarlet cross in his eyes, right? Then…
“God’s Eyes,” Ryner repeated.
“Hey,” Ferris said. “Don’t listen to h—grk!”
Tiir had gathered a little power. That alone was enough to silence Ferris.
“H-hey!” Ryner said.
“Don’t worry. I won’t kill her yet,” Tiir said. “There’s something I have to check first… But… I see. I don’t know how you guys say it here in the south, but… have people looked down on you and called you a Cursed Eye before?”
What a strange question… Ferris was right. This wasn’t the time to be chatting with him. And yet. And yet, he’d started thinking of the answer in his mind.
This guy knew things about Ryner that he himself didn’t. He had those eyes, too… eyes Ryner had always wanted to know more about…
Cursed Eyes… wasn’t a phrase used in Roland. But he’d heard those guys from Gastark say it back when they were trying to make him go berserk… They’d said something about Alpha Stigmas not being all that high-leveled among the Cursed Eyes until they went berserk.
“Cursed Eyes… are you talking about my eyes?” Ryner asked.
“That’s an insult humans use against us,” Tiir said. He was actually pretty mild-mannered. “The correct term is God’s Eyes.”
“I honestly don’t care what you call them. But… do you mean there are more? It’s not just the Alpha Stigma?”
Tiir looked a little troubled and sighed. “Ahh… so I need to explain all the way from the beginning… I heard that there were few God’s Eyes bearers in the south, but I didn’t think it was this bad… well, there’s nothing I can do about that now. I’ll explain. Come on, let’s go.”
“Huh? Where?”
“To where my friends are. I came here specifically to pick you up.”
Ryner was left confused once again. Friends? Like, other Cursed Eyes? And they were all gathered somewhere? Wait, more importantly… Tiir came here to pick him up? “I dunno about that,” Ryner said with a glare. “How did you even know where I was?”
Tiir sighed like this was a joke to him. “Like I said, there are different kinds of eyes… oh, whatever. We can talk about that later—”
“I have something else I need to ask you first, too.”
“What is it?”
Ryner looked out through the door to the dining room. At the sea of blood that coated the floor out there. “Why did you kill the owners…?”
Tiir just sighed even deeper. “Ughh, low-ranked eyes… especially Alpha Stigmas. We’d save so much time by not having this conversation if you were Will Heim…”
“Huh? Will… what’s that?”
Tiir ignored him, then looked to Ferris, perplexed. “So… is this thing important to you, or something?” Tiir asked. But he sighed again before Ryner could even answer him. “Hmph. I can’t say it’s very smart for an Alpha Stigma bearer who might go berserk to have a pet they care about—”
“That’s enough,” Ferris interrupted. “Prepare yourself.”
Prepare? For what? Ryner was about to ask, but… the window suddenly shattered. An arrow broke straight through it, then landed in Tiir’s shoulder.
“Mgh…”
Ferris jumped up to act now that the opportunity had presented itself. “Hide. More arrows are coming.”
“Huh? Wait, but… from where?” Ryner asked. He turned towards the window. Countless Rolandic soldiers stood outside. And at the front of their army… stood a man with silver hair and unforgettably confident golden eyes. “S-Sion!?” Ryner yelled.
Ferris grabbed Ryner by the hair, then pulled him back and broke out in a sprint.
Tiir whipped his head to look at them. “I won’t let you esca—”
Ferris’ sword interrupted him. She swung it, and he did dodge. But he backed into the arrows’ firing range, and was soon impaled in his leg, then an arm, bis back…
An arrow hit.
“Uuuhh…”
Another.
“Youuuu…”
He just kept getting hit. Now there were ten stuck in him…
Then Ryner and Ferris made it out, leaving Tiir out of sight. Then they ran to the bathroom, then through the wall that Ferris had broken in advance…
The whole inn was surrounded by soldiers. It was like a battlefield.
“Don’t use magic under any circumstances!” Sion yelled to the soldiers. “Our opponent is able to absorb its power. Fight with bows and swords, no matter what!”
“Bows?” Ryner repeated. As far as he knew, bows hadn’t been major a thing in war for over a hundred years. At least not in Roland. Magic overtook their use for shooting arrows when it became more complex… but that was just Roland. He was sure they still used them in other places. But anyway, they didn’t really make them here anymore… so it was really surprising when he looked around to see everyone holding a bow.
Sion caught Ryner’s eyes and ran over. “Hey, lost kiddo. Are you hurt anywhere?”
“Lost… what am I, a preschooler!?”
“You are,” Ferris said.
“Aren’t you?” Sion asked. “I mean, you ran away from home the second you weren’t happy about something. Come on, now, your daddy’s got lots of money. Do you want anything? Just say the word.”
He was just being made fun of… “I suddenly want to run away from home again,” Ryner mumbled to himself.
“Sion! The hell are you dilly-dallying for!” A redhead yelled as he approached. He had red eyes and a muscular body. He looked really strong despite the fact that he was missing his whole right arm. “I’m gonna go check if that monster’s dead or not.”
Mon…ster…
Ryner looked at the redhead.
Sion shook his head. “No, Claugh. Don’t get too close to the inn. I already said this, but we need to restrain him with bows and arrows alone.”
“But… even a machine could tell that guy’s—”
“Don’t. We’re not here for you to get revenge. Forget about your arm and the people he killed. You haven’t recovered yet. I can’t lose you here…”
“Agreed!” A young soldier piped up from behind.
“Ggh… Damn you, Shuss…”
“Are you really gonna ignore what I’m saying in front of the other soldiers?” Sion asked.
The redhead scowled. “I, I apologize for my rudeness… Your Majesty.”
Then the redhead lead the young soldier away.
Ryner looked at Sion. He never really got to see him acting like a king… “H-hey,” he whispered. “You’re like, acting like a king right now.”
“It’s only an act,” Ferris said. “It has to be. He’s trying to look good in front of us.”
“Ahh… yeah, Sion does do that sort of thing. He’s always tried super hard to be popular and stuff, ever since our school days…”
“…Hey, you two,” Sion said, tired. “Can you at least try to be quiet? I don’t want my subordinates hearing that.”
“Thank us first,” Ferris said.
Ryner gave an exaggerated nod. “Yeah, she’s right. Only if you thank us first.”
“This isn’t really the time for that,” Sion said, then shot a pained look at the inn. “The arrows aren’t having the effect I was hoping for… This is ba—”
A black shadow suddenly shot up into the sky. It flew through the air, then landed gracefully in front of Sion’s feet with a dull sound.
“…This is bad,” Sion said one more time. Then he looked down. A dead body had just landed in front of his feet.
Ryner recognized the body. It was one of the other guests who’d been staying at the inn. The body was in a pitiful state. It was half-eaten, like a beast had gnawed at for nourishment…
And then they heard a voice.
“Arrows, arrows… but not magic ones. Normal arrows from normal bows… amazing. Bullseye. You hit my weakness right on the mark. I might have died if there wasn’t a meal waiting for me on the second floor…”
Ryner looked up towards the voice. Tiir was sitting on the railing of the inn’s second floor’s porch, gripping part of his ‘meal,’ as he called it.
Sion looked up, too. “I see. So you don’t need to absorb it from magic. You can get it from cannibalizing people, too… and in doing so your wounds heal to the point where you feel comfortable appearing in front of an army and chucking a dead body at us. But arrows are made of wood - you can’t get anything from them. Because what you’re absorbing from magic and bodies is their spirit, right? You can’t absorb it directly from the air. You need someone else to gather it up first, whether in their body or in the air for magic. So you’re trapped, now, as long as we don’t use magic.”
Sion spoke with full, unwavering confidence. But the soldiers behind him had lost their calm.
Sion had voiced his theory and was now observing his opponent for a reaction. Whether he was right would decide if they could win or not. He’d withdraw without hesitation if Tiir laughed at his theory.
But Tiir didn’t laugh. His eyes opened wide like he was surprised. When they did, his scarlet cross-shaped brand appeared in their depths.
“…Not bad,” Tiir said. “Your nerves must be tasty. Every now and then one of you pop up. Humans like you, I mean.”
“Hm. So I was right.”
“Yes, I suppose I’d say so.”
“Do you want to eat me?”
“I do.”
Sion smiled meanly. “But you won’t be able to.” Then he raised a hand. “Bows at the ready!”
The soldiers all readied their bows at the sound of his command.
“I’ll only ask once,” Sion said. “Will you surrender?”
“Nope.”
“Then you’ll die here.”
Tiir shrugged, calm as could be. “Can I tell you the flaws in your theory first?”
“No. I’m not open to bargaining,” Sion said.
Tiir smiled. He wasn’t bothered at all.
They couldn’t shoot him like this. They couldn’t shoot him without confidence. They couldn’t realistically fight an enemy whose abilities they didn’t know - they’d all die if he ended up able to do something that they didn’t expect. Sion, who the soldiers were devoting their lives to, felt that more than anyone.
“The first mistake in your theory is assuming that I can’t take energy in through the air. I can. It just takes time. It happens even when my eyes technically activated, so I can’t use magic at all because of it. I’d just absorb it again. And it’d not as effective as getting it from magic or people. But I’ve been sitting here eating out of the air this whole time, so now I can easily kill all of you before you ever shoot me.”
Sion glared at Tiir. “Hah. Why don’t you come do that then?”
Tiir smiled happily. “The second hole in your theory… is that I can’t eat you if I’m not strong enough.”
“How can you say that?”
Tiir pointed down… at Ryner. “Because if I killed all of you right now, then that Alpha Stigma bearer would go berserk,” Tiir said. Loudly, too. So that every single person here could hear him say it.
Sion grimaced. “This is bad.”
It was too late for him to do anything about it, though. He’d already lost control of the situation. Because his words had reached all the soldiers, who were already making a commotion.
“…One of our allies?”
“An Alpha Stigma bearer…”
“Him.”
“He’s one, too…”
He was used to it. Because he’d heard it so, so much by now.
“He’s a monster, too.”
“Shut up!” Sion screamed.
The commotion stopped. They were a pretty obedient army. But…
“See?” Tiir asked. “That’s humans for you. They aren’t compatible with you in the slightest. But I understand that these humans are dear to you. So I won’t kill them. But I think it’s better for you if you come with m—”
“Don’t fuck with me!” Sion yelled. “Ryner’s… Ryner’s different from you! He’s not a—”
Tiir smiled. Smiled like he’d been waiting for this. “He’s not a ‘what’ like me? A monster like me, right? Isn’t that what you were going to say…?”
“Uugh,” Sion groaned.
“So your name is Ryner. Okay, Ryner. Come with me. This place doesn’t suit you.”
“……”
Ryner didn’t reply. He just stared up at Tiir’s face… no, into nothing.
“Hey, Ryner. You don’t need to listen to him,” Ferris said.
“……”
“They’re looking down on you, thinking of you as a monster… they fear and loathe you. Is there really any need for you to stay there with them? Are they really something you need to protect?” Tiir raised a hand up. “Come with me,” he said, then moved that hand back to point it at himself. “Fire some magic at me. Then I’ll have the power to take you from this place.”
“Shut up! Ryner won’t use magic on you!” Sion yelled.
But Tiir smiled, perfectly composed. “He’ll do it. That’s the final difference between your theory and the reality of the situation. You guys can’t understand how dark our hearts have gotten after being betrayed countless times by humans. Right, Ryner?”
Sion and Ferris looked at Ryner. At his expression. When they saw it, they were at a loss for words. Ryner didn’t know what face he was making. It was only when they looked at him that he understood.
Ryner smiled. Or at least tried to. But he failed…
“It’s… it’s not your faults,” Ryner said. “I love you guys.”
Ferris glared at him. “I didn’t chase you down just to hear that.”
“I won’t let you go,” Sion said. “You’re my—”
“I don’t want to be a burden to you anymore,” Ryner interrupted. “It’s hard keeping a monster who might go berserk at any time as a pet, right?”
“I… since when—”
“The orders you gave Luke Stokkart…”
“……”
So that was his answer.
Ryner didn’t need to hear anything but his silence. So he really did order Luke to do that.
“…The person sent to kill you,” Ferris mumbled like she’d just realized something. Sent to deal with him… to kill him… for being a monster.
Tiir smiled. Like he was enjoying this.
“…You’re wrong,” Sion said. The pain in his voice was palpable, but… he never did say what part of it was wrong. So there was no need for him to look so pained in the first place. Ryner wanted to tell him that. He was the one in the wrong, not Sion. He could make Sion that pained just by being here, after all…
But it was okay. Because this was the end. Ryner raised his hand to draw a magic circle in the open air. “I wish for thunder…”
Sion scowled, then looked up at Tiir. “No! I definitely… I definitely won’t let you do that! Everyone, fire! Kill the monster!!”
Everyone’s arrows fired on his orders. The sky became a sea of arrows. But Tiir was still smiling. He raised his hand towards Ryner. “Come on.”
“Don’t, Ryner!” Sion screamed. It sounded like he was on the verge of tears.
“Sorry,” Ryner said. His magic circle gathered the last of the light it needed. “Lightning Flash.”
His spell shot through and burned countless arrows on its way to the second floor of the inn.
Tiir’s eyes opened wide as he smiled, proud of his victory. “I devour power… and fire it!” He said as he absorbed Ryner’s spell. He really was enjoying this. “Let’s go. Our friends are waiting.”
Tiir moved faster than the human eye could follow. The army… even Sion probably didn’t see him. They probably just saw him take arrows and think that he might’ve died. But Ryner and Ferris could see him and react.
“I won’t let you,” Ferris said. She reached her hand out, but… Ryner swatted it away.
Her eyes widened in shock.
When Ryner saw that, he thought he should try to smile one last time, but… Tiir gathered him up in his arms, then bolted away with unreal speed. Ferris was out of sight in seconds.
“…See you, Ferris,” Ryner said. He wasn’t really able to smile as he said it, in the end.
---
And with that, Ryner disappeared from their side.
