episode_0089
by fnovelpia
“Think about it seriously.”
“……”
He took the card out of his pocket and tossed it to Daniela.
She stared at the card thrown onto the book on her lap for a long time.
[Green Arms]
The name of the bar was written there, plainly.
Daniela looked up at me, her eyes glued to the card, and asked.
“What is this?”
“A store in a commercial district, a place where like-minded people gather.”
“Us?”
“Me, and you.”
“When did I-”
Daniela tried to question me, seeing as I was already on the same boat. But I turned my back and left before she could finish speaking.
Behind the sound of footsteps, Daniela’s confusion could be felt.
“Be, Beatrice-! How is this book… .”
“Oh, that? Don’t be late. From now on, you can borrow in my name. That’s about it between us.”
“Jeong, really?”
“Yeah, please take that as an apology for bringing up your hidden hobby.”
He turned his head and smiled.
Daniela had been keeping her secret hobbies in the library because of her shame. So this time, she left the library and lent books in my name. It was a kind of investment.
Rather than just looking at a book like that on the bookshelf and running into a knife, it would have been much better to have her borrow it under my name and have her locked up in the dorm. Besides, unlike her, I don’t care what books I borrow under my name or what the librarian who manages my borrowing history thinks of me.
Ttukbuk-
Ttukbuk-
After walking for a while, I looked back and saw Daniela still there, holding the card I gave her in her hand.
Even from a distance, you could tell she was in deep distress.
Should I visit Green Arms?
It won’t be easy to attract her while hiding my identity. But the Daniela I know will definitely come. I know the heroine who is struggling to embrace her innate destiny.
Before she could make up her mind, before she could greet customers in the stylish tavern in the commercial district… .
I think I should go and talk to Matthias.
By welcoming two noble ladies who have become interested in the rebels.
*
There is always a shadow behind every shining city.
The island of Montrea was no exception; the slums surrounding the holy land that formed the most advanced and brilliant civilization on the continent were always a headache for the empire.
This place, also called ‘the ghetto’, is so poor that it makes you wonder if it is really the same empire.
It was unclear whether the Imperial Guard was unable to properly control and regulate the situation, or had given up on controlling it. However, many people would think it was the latter. It was that dangerous of an area.
The empire left this shadow behind. No, it pretended as if it did not exist. So, in the perception of the people of the empire, the ghetto became an institution but not an institution, a part of the empire but not the empire.
The ghetto, boasting of its extremely strict public security, may at first glance appear to be a lawless place, but there were rules that applied even within it.
That’s the sequence.
The ghetto is governed by a strict logic of power. The weak are eaten, the strong are eaten. The ghetto operates under simple and clear rules.
Ordinary people who dream of an escape, mercenaries who want a big reward for taking risks, people who want to solve secret business that cannot be discovered by others… many people visit the ghetto.
So, although this shadow of the empire is a dark and sinister area, it is not an uninhabited wasteland. Rather, it boasts of splendor.
Even though its splendor, the lights emanating from the ghetto, are of a different nature from the Montrea system…
Even in the dead of night, you should be careful not to go out on the streets, as the night streets of the system and the night streets of the ghetto are different in terms of danger.
And yet here, a man was wandering the streets of the ghetto at night.
“Stop, you can’t go in here.”
The robed man was about to enter a shabby tavern, but the men blocking the entrance prevented him from doing so.
They were not hired to guard the tavern, much less the security force, yet they acted as if they had the right to block entry.
“Why can’t I enter?”
“Our captain is feeling uneasy. You’d better go back quietly.”
“……”
The men spoke contemptuously of the man in the robe. The general they spoke of was an object of fear, so most of them turned away with a shudder in their eyes.
The man in front of me would be no different. That’s why I laughed. I bet on when that man would turn back in fear.
“There’s no particular reason why you can’t get in.”
“Ha, did you come here to find a place to die? Or… That’s right! You were the one who brought the women!”
The men frowned, thinking they had misheard, and then remembered that there was someone who would soon bring prostitutes for their leader. They rubbed their palms and looked at the man, wondering if he had brought a woman to pair them up with.
“You will find the woman in the afterlife.”
“!?”
A cold voice was heard, as if it was annoying. With those words, the men’s throats were cut off. Before the sharply severed throats could be separated from the bodies, before the blood could spurt out, the man opened the door and disappeared.
Thud-
The necks of the men fell off belatedly, and their bodies, having lost their strength, fell to the ground. No one witnessed this unrealistic and sudden death. Only the one called the captain noticed it from beyond the door.
That an unusual guest had arrived.
*
“You’re doing something childish.”
These are the words spoken by the man in the robe as he entered the tavern.
“……”
The man who was looking at him, the man called the captain, slowly put down his glass. His auburn hair was reflected in the glass.
“I want to talk to you alone.”
In the tavern was a man with reddish brown hair and his men. They were a mercenary group that had recently become notorious in the ghetto.
Because of their brutality and the skills of the man they called the leader, they were a group that was feared and perfect for requesting secret and dirty work.
The man who came to the tavern where the mercenary group, which had become the unofficial rulers of the ghetto, was no different from coming to die on his own feet. The crime of interrupting a pleasant dinner party was truly serious. The subordinates growled and acted as if they would attack the opponent at any moment.
“Everyone, get out. Go play somewhere else.”
However, the captain unexpectedly followed the suggestion of the man in the robe. He sat down on his chair, put his feet on the table, and gave orders. The subordinates, knowing his personality, left without saying a word. If they questioned his words, there would be more corpses to clean up.
Thud thud-
As the sound of the mercenaries’ footsteps leaving the tavern died down, the red-haired man opened his mouth again.
“What do you want?”
“You seem to know who I am?”
“Roughly, looking at the force used to kill the subordinates outside… .”
A low laugh was heard from within the robe. It was as expected.
“How does it feel to witness a familiar force? Did you miss it?”
“Well, not really. I guess there’s one more ghost from the past.”
“Haha… It’s a shame that you, a once noble knight, now call yourself a ghost.”
“I like it now. I’m free.”
Saying that, he picked up his glass again and took a sip.
“Ringcaps.”
“……”
The red-haired man who had been drinking peacefully looked at the robed man with the corners of his eyes. There was a sharp edge in his gaze.
“You’d better not call it by that name.”
“Oh, forgive me. You’re called Alex now, right?”
Alex answered by quietly putting down his glass.
“Alex, I have no intention of antagonizing you. I just came to warn you.”
“?”
“That someone has appeared who threatens your freedom.”
Alex’s eyes flashed as he ran his hand over his auburn hair that tickled his forehead as if it was annoyance.
“… Is it green?”
“They say they’re recruiting rebels to reclaim the empire. They might even reach out to the ghetto here, since they’re weak. They wouldn’t hesitate to use mercenaries if it would help them.”
“Nothing will change even if they come looking for me. Because I am free from the bondage.”
“Of course I know. You are the one who is living now, doing whatever you want.”
Alex snorted at the words that seemed to see through everything. It had been like that before, but he felt once again that the person in front of him was really rough and unpredictable.
“Still, isn’t this an interesting thing in a life that was free?”
“Green reappeared?”
“Looking at the princess who reached out her hand without even knowing her true identity.”
“Wow, this time it’s the princess.”
As Alex smiled with interest, a low laugh was heard from within the robe as well.
“What do you think, does it appeal to you? It will definitely be fun. Watch from the side, the princess struggling to reclaim the empire!”
The man in the robe spread his arms wide in excitement, as if he was having so much fun imagining what was to come.
“Then, at the last moment! You reveal your identity while looking into the eyes of the princess who is rejoicing at having achieved everything. Of course, the noble princess will be crushed beneath you.”
“That’s right… .”
Alex was tapping his toes on the table, listening to what the man in the robe was saying. Then he slowly opened his mouth, a wicked smile spreading across his lips. It was so primitive and base an expression that it was hard to believe that he had once been a noble knight.
“That would be fun. I can’t wait. Green’s eyes, dyed in despair, I could do that all day long.”
“I’m glad you like my suggestion.”
“Keep on going, okay. I’ll dance to your beat. But I need to know what you want.”
“Isn’t it obvious what I want?”
He answered in a disappointed voice, as if asking an obvious question.
“You’re trying to start the Great War again.”
“It never ended in the first place.”
“Well, good. It’s good because my body was sore.”
“Do you intend to protect humans like that?”
The man in the robe already knew the answer, but he asked anyway because he was curious about Alex’s reaction.
“I just do whatever I feel like doing.”
“We might be enemies again.”
“But this time, I really like your proposal. Like a new stimulus.”
“I’m glad it helped.”
Alex, who had been laughing for a while, put down his legs that had been on the table and stood up from his seat.
“Where, I wonder what our princess looks like. Since she’s green, she’s definitely a woman worth destroying.”
“Be careful, don’t get carried away by your passion and pluck the flowers before they bloom.”
“What are you saying? I got this opportunity somehow, so don’t worry, I’ll wait for the right time and savor it.”
“Then, let’s see again.”
With those words, the man left the room, his robe fluttering in the wind.
He didn’t feel Alex’s gaze as he turned around and walked away. He was more interested in the toy called the princess. The man in the robe smiled with satisfaction, realizing that things were going smoothly.
When I summoned Eligos through Fabian, it was unexpected that the royal family stopped him. However, it was actually a good thing. It allowed me to move my plan forward a lot.
When I suddenly found out that the royal family member who appeared was the princess, I wasn’t surprised. I just thought about how I could use this situation. As a result, I came to find Alex now.
The Guardian Knight, once known as Ringcaps, uses Alex to destroy the princess.
It was a thrilling experience, even for him to think about it. Surely, the arrogant Green would never dream of being betrayed by the Guardian Knight.
No, in the first place, he wouldn’t know that Alex was a Guardian Knight. Since he had become a being that had escaped, no matter how much of a master he was of magic, he wouldn’t be able to sense the aura of the weathered retinue.
A being who has thrown off his duties as a servant has lived only in pursuit of primal instincts and pleasure. His cruelty and cunning are well known.
I will throw the princess as prey to the hungry Alex.
Thus, the princess’s soul, which was torn to pieces, is sacrificed and the demon world descends here once again.
It was a perfect plan. There were still things I needed to prepare, but the framework was set.
Unable to hide his excitement about the future that lay ahead, the man in the robe wandered the streets of the ghetto at night.
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