Ch.60Chapter 8. The Lives of Others (2)

We descended to the hotel lobby. We needed to go to the desk to meet the man.

Camilla wasn’t dressed as a man. Instead, she wore a headscarf, put on horn-rimmed glasses, and darkened the circles under her eyes. She said it was easier to disguise yourself by looking “more” sick rather than hiding that you’re sick.

“Are you sure you’ll be okay? You dressed as a man when you came here.”

“It’s not like they remember the faces and names of every guest in the hotel. They’re not that strict. They couldn’t operate if they were. Once they’ve got your money, they probably don’t even care. By the way, there are a lot of people here.”

The overall scene looked similar to yesterday, but there were more people.

In the lobby’s internet café, people were craning their necks and frantically clicking refresh buttons. They seemed to be checking real-time exchange rates. A long line stretched in front of the “Currency Exchange.” I could see people scanning QR codes to verify if their Continental Credits were genuine.

The lobby and entrance were bustling. Many people were leaving the hotel, and many others were entering. Their ages and appearances varied, but they shared similarities. First, almost all were couples. Most were male and female pairs, but there were same-sex couples too.

Their behaviors were also similar.

The women leaving the hotel couldn’t walk properly. They couldn’t see ahead because they were sobbing, and they couldn’t spread their legs properly due to pain.

The men hurried their steps, but they looked equally empty. Dragging their feet, staring ahead with vacant faces, they muttered the same words:

“It’s not just us. Everyone does it. At least we can survive this way.”

Meanwhile, those entering the hotel hesitated when they saw the people leaving.

“Do we really have to do this? I mean, do we really have to record… that?”

They whispered to their partners.

“Well, what else can we do? Sleep on the streets and become zombies? Just do what we normally do. Just wear a mask. No one cares about us.”

Their partners replied curtly.

“You’re the person I was supposed to meet, right?” “Yes.”

People cooperating without really cooperating, based on mutual benefit.

“We have no choice. It’s either here or those cult shelters. Is that what you want?”

Some intimidated those who were reluctant to enter.

On the other hand, some people moved quickly. They hunched over and darted straight to the desk. These were guests who had enough money to pay for their stay and didn’t need to record videos.

One of them almost bumped into Camilla. He jumped forward. “I’m sorry,” he said, bowing quickly before hurrying away.

“Thank you,” Camilla smiled.

“Isn’t there anywhere else? I mean, this can’t be the only hotel around. This doesn’t seem normal.”

Camilla answered my question.

“There used to be many. Really. But now almost all of them are gone. What’s left are villas for the rich and powerful, back-alley places, or shelters run by Goddess of Hunger fanatics—none of which are places for regular people. They’re all worse than here.”

“What happened?”

“The good and trusting people were killed first. Then the good but suspicious people were targeted. Now only those who are neither kind nor good, who don’t help others or even trust them, remain. But isn’t it a bit unnatural that all these people were targeted across the country in less than three weeks?”

I stopped walking. Camilla nodded.

“Was it the Syndicate’s doing?”

“The Liberation Front analyzed it that way. They even found evidence and made propaganda with it, but no one listened. The Syndicate is Elsa’s political thug group. They fostered distrust and restructured the order to make people dependent on them. Just like Römer did to Elsa.”

I recalled what Camilla had said before. That because I had left the bag bomb far away, there was no terrorist attack here. Those words took on a completely different meaning now.

“If a bomb had gone off in Hampton…”

Camilla pressed her brow tightly after hearing my mumble.

“Elsa is a house of cards. All its components barely hold together despite hating each other. The Liberation Front failed to become a viable alternative, and the Syndicate rules the world with their own order. If a bomb had gone off, even that flimsy order would have disappeared. It might feel satisfying, but… that shouldn’t happen.”

I think I know the answer. This is what Camilla would say:

“Because people would die. Right?”

Camilla gently smiled and held my hand tightly. Just then, we heard bells.

– Ding-a-ling. Ding-a-ling.

People started murmuring. Their expressions weren’t pleasant. Most frowned.

“Oh great, it’s those guys again.” “Those zombie-herders.” “Disgusting.” “Real believers aren’t like that.”

Curious about what was causing such reactions, I moved toward the entrance. Camilla hesitated a bit but followed when she saw me going.

A strange parade was passing down the middle of the road.

There were over thirty people. They wore gas masks on their faces and had what looked like tin cans hanging all over their bodies. The design resembled the junk robots often seen in old animations, but cruder.

The metal plate seams and joints were wrapped in plastic and firmly secured with string. They weren’t carrying guns, but instead wielded something like glaives—long metal pipes with large Chinese knife blades attached.

– Repent. Repent your sins. The time of hunger has come.

Monotonous prayer sounds echoed from a recording. The source was a shopping cart in the middle of the procession.

Two wooden statues were placed in the cart. I frowned as the procession approached the hotel. Their unwavering stride suggested they were coming deliberately.

– Repent! Do not commit sin! Surrender to instinct and become a zombie. Surrender to desire and become a zombie! Reflect on your sins!

The wooden statues came closer.

The front one was a winged female angel. From a distance, she appeared to be looking up at the sky, singing a hymn. Her head was raised to the sky, and her crossed arms and hands covered her chest—a naked angel.

But it was grotesque.

Her chest was hollow. No, more than hollow—the skin was gone, revealing bare ribs. So this angel was carefully covering a non-existent chest.

The lower abdomen was even stranger. It was completely open from front to back. From the genitals, in a triangular shape. Even for a wooden statue, such a shape was disturbing.

But the most grotesque part was the face. The face was smiling, but the mouth was wide open. The gums protruded and the teeth were sharp, as if trying to bite the sky.

Behind the angel was another naked male statue.

It had no eye sockets, its nose was cut off, and only teeth and gums were grotesquely exposed. The lower part of the male statue was intact, but the part corresponding to the testicles was missing.

The face was also slightly different. Unlike the smiling woman, the man was crying. However, the protruding gums and sharp teeth remained the same. The difference was that the man seemed to be growling while looking at the ground.

“Camilla, what on earth is that?”

Unable to take my eyes off the sight, I asked Camilla. She whispered:

“Heretics. They claim those are the true statues of the Goddess of Hunger. But the ‘real’ Goddess of Hunger doesn’t look like that. She’s not… that hideous.”

“What about the male statue behind?”

“One who desired the Goddess of Hunger, they say. But that’s also heresy. There’s no such thing. The Goddess isn’t like that. I don’t completely believe in the doctrine to the bone, and I don’t know all the teachings, but that’s definitely wrong.”

“Repent!”

The person at the front shouted. Judging by how the sound projected even through the resonator, they must have quite a powerful voice.

And annoyingly, they were pointing at me.

“Repent, young man! Repent! The Goddess of Hunger has spoken. She said she would bear the sins of this world, so bury more sins in the ground, she said.

Oh, Mother! Our Mother! She said she would walk underground carrying our poison in her bosom! Look! Behold the miracle!”

Someone was busily distributing pamphlets. I lowered my hand, but Camilla, after hesitating, accepted one.

“I thought you didn’t like these people.”

“…These paper leaflets might seem like nothing, but they’re incredibly difficult to print. I know because I’ve done it. Wait a minute. This…?”

Camilla’s eyes widened. Familiar faces were there. The very people we had rescued from the resort.

“…This couple, aren’t they the ones? That middle-aged couple who said they’d worked at the resort for a long time.”

“Andy. That’s Andy. The one who liked sandwiches…”

The pamphlet read: “Miracle! Severed limbs reattached! The Goddess sends a pair of angels for the persecuted! (The mainstream media is hiding the truth! Open your eyes!)”

The people looking up at the sky with outstretched arms were indeed the ones we had rescued.

“…The tendons reattached? Is that possible?”

Whispers could be heard from all around. The pamphlet included close-up photos. Those were the wounds we had treated and cleaned.

“Isn’t it photoshopped?”

“Must be fake. That’s easy to do these days.”

“…I guess so?”

Even Camilla harbored doubts. It did seem strange to me too.

“Believe!”

Booming loudly. A voice like someone had boiled their vocal cords. I wondered just how powerful this person’s vocal cords were.

“Believe! When blinded by doubt, everything becomes suspicious. But if you open your heart just a little, if you let in just a ray of light, the illumination…!”

Splash!

Someone threw water at the gas-masked man. There was a strong smell of blood. It was hotel staff who had rushed out.

“Is that… water mixed with blood?”

Screams erupted. People backed away. Camilla and I also stepped back a bit. The hotel staff pointed guns.

“Get lost. Stop interfering with our business.”

“Listen carefully!”

The heretics pointed their metal pipes with Chinese blades. The one at the front unleashed a passionate cry:

“Those who sin alone are less evil than those who drag others into the pit of sin!”

Click. The safety was released. The heretics sharpened their blades further.

“Excuse me.”

I stepped between the heretics and the staff. The heretics raised their spears, and the staff frowned.

“Where did you meet these people?”

“They are our believers! They came to us crying miracle! They said they were liberated from slavery at the resort under the protection of a pair of angels from the Goddess! A gallant young man and a beautiful maiden, they said!”

Hmm. They have good eyes.

“Warriors of God, dazzling to behold! They are the horsemen of the apocalypse who will defeat all this disaster, the reapers of the end, those who put the final period! But not all four horsemen have gathered yet. Not all four have gathered yet.”

The man in the gas mask spoke words that could have been either pleading or lamenting.

“We hold gatherings on Saturday and Sunday evenings. There you can hear their testimonies vividly! It’s a legally approved meeting by the National Gendarmerie, so anyone interested can join anytime! The square, everyone!”

Now all the heretics were shouting, waving their spears.

“Remember the Deer Square! We won’t cause any inconvenience. We’ll cut down any zombies that come. We’ll ensure your safe return home and provide food and lodging! Please listen to us! Please.”

Just then.

Wee-ing!

– Disperse! You there, I said disperse!

A police car approached, flying the flag of the <14th National Gendarmerie>. Inside were soldiers in military uniforms armed with rifles, instead of uniformed police.

– Get back on the road quickly! Want to stop the parade? We gave you permission and this is what you do!

The heretic dripping with bloody water pointed at the staff.

“When you are consumed by greed, when you bite your own flesh from hunger, on that day. You will be left with only teeth and gums!”

Wee-ing! Wee-ing!

The heretic now pointed at me.

“Young man! Young man! You who have ears to hear! Deer Square! Please come! Please! Before all four knights gather, we must understand!”

Bang. Finally, a gendarme in the car fired a blank. As if showing off “I’m shooting,” he raised the gun barrel toward the sky before firing, so no one was startled.

The heretics retreated. The parade resumed.

That bizarre outfit, at least waterproof enough that a trail of bloody water stretched along the path they had taken. Camilla watched them with troubled eyes. I whispered in her ear.

“Shall we go, angel?”

Instead of answering, she pinched my thigh—quite a mischievous angel indeed.

* * * * *

“Welcome. I’ve heard about your inquiry. It’s crowded out here, so let’s talk inside.”

Fernando led us to an inner room.

I was worried he might lock the door and crush my fingers, but as if to reassure me, he smiled and left the door slightly ajar.

“Please sit down. Would you like some tea? It’s good black tea, exported even to Römer.”

“I’ll have a cup.” “I’m fine, thank you.”

My answer and Camilla’s were at odds. Camilla shrugged.

“Just lukewarm water, please. I’m taking medicine for body aches.”

The inner room seemed to be a converted conference room. Quite luxurious wooden walls and decorations, down to the marble floor. Shortly after, Fernando brought a cup of black tea, lukewarm water, and a small plate.

“These are honey-preserved lemon slices. They’ll help with your body aches if you put them in your water.”

Unable to refuse even that, Camilla dropped a slice into her cup. There was no “plop” sound. The viscous honey slowly ran down the side of the glass before touching the water. But it never fully mixed.

Meanwhile, my tea leaves had steeped well. When I stirred it slightly with a spoon, the fully opened leaves floated up and sank repeatedly. The aroma was also remarkably subtle. Fernando drank coffee.

“I heard you were inquiring about premium goods. Items that people don’t often seek, with low trading volume, so prices aren’t well established.”

“That’s right.”

“We do handle such products, but they go through different channels than ordinary goods. Luxury items like jewelry or expensive liquor have a limited clientele. And they won’t trade without trusted individuals or intermediaries. You can guess why.”

I thought I understood.

The other party was probably “people from the city center.” Those who have much, are completely safe from zombies, but still want more.

People for whom even setting foot in a “shabby” place like this hotel risks lowering their status and class. So they would seek trading partners through such proxies.

“I think I understand. How do we make contact?”

In response to my question, Fernando interlaced his fingers. He wore gold rings on all his fingers. The tattoos on his knuckles caught my eye. The left hand read K.I.S.S., the right hand K.I.L.L. A man with old-fashioned tastes.

“In such cases, the usual laws of supply and demand don’t apply. Supply is high, but demand is low. So you must cater to the needs of the demanders. Let me give you an example. This happened quite a while ago. Refugees drove a large truck into a human non-protected zone and looted high-end boutiques.

But since there was no one to buy those expensive items, they sold them to hotels at dirt-cheap prices before leaving. The hotels kept those items and gradually sold them to buyers who could pay the right price, making a large profit. That’s how market logic works in disaster situations.

In this case, we don’t intervene either. We simply provide a ‘meeting place.’ To put it more simply, we arrange meetings through an application.”

His taste was old-fashioned, his appearance somewhat foolish, but his explanation was academic. Strange that such a person was once a salaryman. A curious dissonance. I wondered if he was unpredictable, or simply adaptable to any situation.

“That would be true if the market continues to exist.”

Camilla stared at the man. Fernando smiled.

“The market will remain solid.”

“How can you be so sure?”

At Camilla’s question, the man rubbed his hands. “Excuse me for a moment,” he said before leaving, returning after quite some time.

“I apologize for the delay. The ‘manager’ of Continental is wondering whether to give you ‘internal network access rights’ or not. However, he said if you understand the market order, he could issue it. So this is a kind of partnership.”

It seems they want to interview us just to install an app.

This hotel is quite… interesting.