episode_0091
by fnovelpiaA pillar of fire rising from the island, and a thick, thick smoke rising in clumps.
‘What is this feeling…?’
Cesar Lee stared blankly at it, a melancholic feeling slowly seeping out from deep within him.
Are you relieved? Yes. I feel satisfied and relieved because I have punished the arsonist and the first step of my plan has been successfully completed.
Do you regret it? No. This was the right way to use anger, and it was a legitimate expression of hatred. Although Cesar regretted not having secured more reliable firepower, he did not regret what he did.
So, are you happy?
“… … .”
I’m not happy, strangely enough.
Every night, I lay awake thinking about what would happen that day. I dreamed of this day coming, and while sleeping, I meticulously prepared to perfect my plan, and I ran while dreaming of the future that would come after that.
So, yes. Caesar definitely planned and executed his revenge over the course of three years. The first step was laid perfectly.
But why?
‘Why on earth?’
Is there no smile on your face?
Why is it that I only feel sad and bitter? Cesar’s melted face trembled.
Every night, haven’t you dreamed of the taste of revenge? Haven’t you longed for an exhilarating and thrilling pleasure?
To become an agent of revenge, to take the place of those who burned while screaming. Didn’t you want revenge more than anything else in this world?
And finally, he got his revenge.
…the taste of revenge was not sweet.
‘… No, no.’
Cesar shook his head. His revenge was not yet complete. The biggest prey remained. Cesar’s one remaining right eye sank coldly.
“Looks like the bomb went off. Glad it worked.”
His colleague, who was driving the car he was riding in, glanced behind him and said. Cesar nodded slowly.
“Yeah. But, this is just the beginning.”
“That’s right. It’s just the beginning… Those bastards, they haven’t tasted the heat yet.”
There were two places where the bombs exploded: the tavern of the agent who had committed the arson, and the mansion of the Duke of Adelheid, located on the opposite side of the island.
Although, because Duke Adelheid’s mansion was heavily guarded, they were only able to blow up the entrance and courtyard of the mansion… .
‘It was a great warning.’
Caesar bowed his head toward the two places spewing out black smoke. The number of people assigned to the Adelheid Duke’s mansion and tavern was five and four, respectively. The distribution of personnel was based on skill and the appropriate number of people.
Of course, they would all have died in the aftermath of the explosion. That wasn’t what Cesar had instructed.
Immediately after the war ended, retired soldiers who had not received any compensation. Ordinary soldiers who had not served as officers, non-commissioned officers, or even military chaplains had to live without losing everything.
For example, you might lose an arm. Or you might have a finger cut off. Or you might have a serious head injury.
Even though they lost the things they held dear, they were just thrown into a cold and indifferent society.
To a society that is more brutal than a battlefield and colder than the howling of steel that pounded the earth every day.
Cesar was discharged with the rank of sergeant. He was given a considerable amount of money, but that was the end of it.
It was not enough to forget the pain of war, and those who had been waiting far away from the scene of the massacre were regularly receiving a considerable pension, and it was more than enough to make fun of the blood and sweat of soldiers, including Cesar.
Soldiers died in great numbers in the great war, and only those with irreparable wounds survived. And so, peace came to the empire.
And there was no place to take in the veterans who had lost everything.
Some people were reluctant to admit that they had killed people, while others were only outwardly grateful for their sacrifices and deceived others. Some people pretended not to know and did not care.
Those who returned to the system after the victory looked like defeated soldiers, and the public, unaware of their hard work, were simply intoxicated by the glory of their short-lived victory. There was no one to welcome the retired soldiers.
Those who shared life and death with him lived a difficult life as cold rice. Most of them ended up on the streets, and among the retired soldiers who were just waiting for the war to end, there were some who made extreme choices due to the humiliation of society that turned into a dagger.
As Cesar looked upon this society, he gradually became disillusioned. Even though he had been discharged as a non-commissioned officer, the way the soldiers looked at him was no different from that of the soldiers.
They protected countless people in the empire who lived a safe and idyllic life, hiding behind the walls of security that they had thrown their whole body into to protect themselves from the strong waves of foreign powers.
And what came back was the terribly cold gaze of the public. Cesar gritted his teeth.
‘…Fuck.’
Cesar’s fists clenched. The veterans who had planned with him had nothing to lose.
That is why they did not hesitate to even throw away their lives. Cesar let out a trembling sigh as he thought of the nine souls that would have perished in that hot pillar of fire.
Nine people died, but their deaths were merely a distraction. Nine people died in exchange for opening the prologue to the plan.
He felt so guilty about that fact that he couldn’t bear it. Cesar tried to calm his mind and harden his expression.
“Don’t forget.”
Their sacrifice. The society that made them like this. And those who recreated themselves as the incarnation of revenge.
“Don’t forget… . Never.”
Those were words spoken to Caesar himself.
Cesar’s expression hardened again. What happened was done, and there was no turning back.
“How long will it take?”
“Just a little bit more.”
“Okay. Send the other teams to the annex, and we’ll enter the main building.”
The completion of revenge that was honed sharply with gnashing of teeth, and the strange life that was lived so vaguely.
Today, it all comes to an end.
* * * * *
“Professor, be careful. I will send people to the Academy as soon as possible, so don’t worry too much.”
“… Yes, I understand.”
With those words, Chief Kerbane hurried back to the information department. I looked at the moving vehicle and caressed something hard in my arms.
It was the pistol that Chief Kerbein had given me for self-defense in case of an emergency. The feeling of the iron lump in the shape of a letter “Y” was infinitely familiar and cool. I pulled my hand out of my bosom.
‘…shit.’
It was something I never wanted to touch again. It was a cold sensation I never wanted to feel again, a killing sensation I was sure I would never see again in my life.
But, unfortunately, time went around and around and came back to me. I clenched my hands that were about to tremble without any mercy.
‘Calm down. Calm down.’
As I barely held back the nausea that was about to rise, Deacon Sophia and Professor Esther, who were left next to me, looked at me with worried expressions.
“Chief Priest, are you okay?”
“Professor Lucio. Please come inside… .”
“Okay, okay. First, we need to move to the main building.”
So, I headed to the main building with the two of them. Meanwhile, I tried to keep my head as calm as possible.
The cause of the explosion is still unknown, but for some reason I have a strong feeling that it was Cesar’s doing.
Why is that? Because I had a conversation with Cesar at the Academy a few days ago? Because in that conversation, Cesar had threatened cold revenge?
In the first place, why did Cesar want to meet me? How did Chief Curbane know that Cesar and I had met?
If you think about it, it doesn’t make sense. Even the fire department had already treated him as a dead person. The fact that he was alive couldn’t be judged just by his completely melted face.
However, the Intelligence Service has discovered that Cesar is alive and that he is plotting against the Duke of Adelheid. Is this possible?
When I met with Cesar, there was clearly no one around. We didn’t even talk loudly, and Cesar had become a completely different person after the fire.
The Intelligence Service found out about Cesar’s appearance and found out about my conversation with Cesar in just a few days, and came looking for me? It would have been more reasonable for Duke Adelheid to kneel before Cesar and apologize.
Let’s think about it. If the information about my conversation with Cesar reaches the ears of the intelligence agency, who will benefit the most?
‘… Damn, I don’t know.’
While I was thinking complicated thoughts, the car carrying Chief Kerbein was moving further and further away, and was now on the verge of disappearing from sight.
As I looked at Chief Kerbein’s vehicle, which had soon completely disappeared, I put my complicated thoughts aside for a moment… .
“… … .”
Suddenly, this thought occurred to me.
What Cesar wants is revenge on Duke Adelheid. Cesar tells Duke Adelheid, who drove him to ruin, that he will make him pay a price commensurate with the pain he suffered.
What was his revenge? Why did he show up at the Academy?
He said that he got a job as a mechanic with his colleagues. I often saw mechanics wearing the same uniform as him, fixing the streetlights at the academy.
– Actually, I wanted to draw you over to us, so I watched you for a while… . But you were already living your own life.
Academy. The reason you showed up at the Academy. You’ve been watching me as I’ve been living as a professor at the Academy, and the reason you suddenly approached me a few days ago is.
– I no longer have any desire to involve you… but I wanted to talk to you for the first time in a while.
Really, did you just want to have a conversation with me?
or not….
“… No way.”
A few days after my conversation with Cesar, who approached me out of the blue, Director Kerbane, the head of the Federal Intelligence Service, came to see me.
Because of this, the leadership of the Federal Intelligence Service is temporarily vacant. If ‘something’ happens in the system, the Intelligence Service is delayed for a while in dealing with the incident.
The explosions occurred on opposite sides of the system, far from the academy. Is this a coincidence?
What if we think about it this way?
Cesar pretends to have a conversation with me by chance, and sneaks information about the conversation to the intelligence department.
Even before that, if Cesar had intentionally leaked the fact that he was alive and even subtly inserted the fact that he would take revenge on Duke Adelheid.
If the Director of Federal Intelligence, who found out about this, came to see me to question me about my relationship with Cesar.
In the meantime, if I cause chaos in the system, if I cause panic in the Federal Intelligence Service that came looking for me, and if they turn their attention to other cases.
‘I was the bait.’
In that case, I was the bait. Cesar will still be after Duke Adelheid, but he will not approach him. Rather, he will prepare thoroughly and draw Duke Adelheid in.
With the administrative power thus dispersed, what would be the prey that Cesar could lure in Duke Adelheid for?
“… Laura.”
For me, who thought I had nothing to lose, there was still a mountain of things to lose.
The moment I realized that, I was already running like crazy.
“Professor Lucio! Why are you running all of a sudden…!”
“Ouch, really… !”
I ran with Deacon Sophia and Professor Esther, who were running along with me, out of breath.
I must protect it. No matter what happens, I must protect it. I will not tolerate two failures.
Even while running without rest, I prayed earnestly.
“Fuck…! Fuck!”
Please, I hope I’m wrong.
I hope my earnestness won’t become a fleeting wind like before. I hope it won’t lead to a sad ending for everyone.
I prayed with all my heart.
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