Chapter 87: Unexpected Meeting (2)

Unexpected Meeting (2)

I crawled under the blazing sunlight and the dusty streets.

「ーOh my… I can finally walk on the surface again」

After somehow crossing the strict Nomats Order, I—Methia Rustedda—settled myself in a provincial city of Gohgassa, located in the northern part of the Nomats Kingdom.

Gohgassa was relatively near the 〈Yatagarasu〉’s headquarters. It was also roughly the same size as the Gaumn City, which was also relatively close to 〈Yatagarasu〉’s headquarters. In other words, it was one of the modest provincial cities that lacked stimulus.

The war with Tamatama two years ago ended in a stalemate, which left areas like Gohgassa in serious famine. It was so horrible that Gohgassa still hadn’t regained its footing. The people who still had some strength resorted to burglary or pickpocketing. The ones who didn’t were begging around. Those who couldn’t even beg waited patiently while lying on the corner of dusty alleys, waiting for salvation named death, most often by starvation.

Compared to the other residents, obviously, my appearance stood out like a sore thumb. Even though I was 【Walking on the surface】, I still had to spread a thin veil of 【Hypnotism】 to deceive people around me. I used it back in Crow’s Nest as well.

I played the role of a beautiful woman with a tough but jealous personality. A sadistic "pastor" in 〈Yatagarasu〉 who was in love with Hazime. However, not all of that persona was a lie. If you fabricate everything from A to Z, if one lie is exposed, everything would just crumble in an instant.

Yes, I am quite beautiful. Yes, I had a rather tough personality. Yes, I also had a sadism tendency. However, I didn’t feel much appeal from such a dangerous guy like Hazime, nor am I a fanatic who believes in the doctrine of 〈Yatagarasu〉.

Sprinkle some truth into the lies. Reverse the colors in several places. Prepare as many hooks as possible to catch them from the deepest part of their mind. That virtual personality, refined by an infinite amount of practice and effort, was the one that I played. People tend to get lost between mere lies and hard truths.

Looking at the whole city entangled in such a state of mind, some people rather sought the temporary happiness of insanity. And so, with the lack of such sensibilities, you could create a fake persona to deceive those people. It was a good place to live. There was no other way for me to get this much… stimulus. There was no other way except if I had a new ancient ruin to excavate.

ーNobody, nobody could get my point. Assuming you could resist the piercing loneliness from being absorbed in yourself, there was no safer situation than this. Even so, there was only one individual who could see through my façade with a glance, like seeing through light diffused inside a crystal.

I heard a cat’s meowww~ after I finished grabbing my daily necessities in the common Gohgassa marketplace. Between the forgotten seat of houses made from poorly baked bricks, a single beast lingered. Although, it’s just a regular cat that you could find anywhere. Its fur was rustled and covered in dust. I thought that its fur was supposed to be white, but no one could see its color under the thin layer of sand. The only different thing was one of its eyes was glowing in blazing red.

I gave the cat a chase, following it into the back of an alley. Of course, I wasn’t that foolish to let anyone see me. With my 【Hypnotism】, it’s possible for me to skip through people’s perception without them noticing.

In the depths of the alley, the cat turned over.

『ーIt’s been a while, Methia』

The cat speaking fluently in human tongue—No. In reality, the cat was just sitting there, not opening its mouth at all. I didn’t know the secret behind this trick. Was it magic? Skill? Or was there any other method? I was interested, but I wasn’t that curious that I would risk my life to get the answer.

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The cat sounded like a young girl, but my intuition told me that the one behind this voice is a man. Moreover, a man who doesn’t care for sexual desires. ……Personally, it was the hardest type for me to control. For now, let’s address him like a female.

「Hello there. Would you be so kind as to tell me your name?」

『I have to apologize, but I think it’s best for both of us to not know what we shouldn’t know』

「Well then, Mrs. cat. I am not interested in your circumstances and I wish to not take any role in any of it. Unless there is something in it for me, of course」

『A reward, is it? Then I’m sure that I have something that will pique your interest. But for you who love the act of deceit, who toys with other people’s hearts, who scrounges through ancient ruins to seek ancient wisdom. I’d say, you will fit more nicely right by my side』

Such a promising reward only made him look more daunting in my eyes.

「Personally, I wonder how much I must offer just to make this trade fair. And so, what can I do for you today? If you could do me a quick favor, would you be so kind as to overlook my whereabouts? People are not supposed to know about where I am」

『That was harsh. My request today was actually quite simple. There are several questions that I want you to answer』

「Something you wanted to ask me? Arra, I never thought that there’s something about me that you didn’t already know」

『There are many things that even I don’t know. Be as it may, there’s not much point in continuing this idle chatter. I just wanted to ask about simple things, like what you’ve been doing lately, or so to say』 Thanks for reading on ManaNovel!

「By the looks of it, it seems that you already know that I infiltrated 〈Yatagarasu〉 in the past」

『Let’s see……』

He feigned ignorance. Apparently, this man had a habit of trying to get his answer without asking permission.

Is this person interested in 〈Yatagarasu〉? As an ex-member of an assassination cult, he probably found me because he had some interest in that desecration of humanity, the brainwashing system. However, for a guy with a heart this black, he should be able to prepare such things all on his own.

Then, was it about the ancient ruin under the Crow’s Nest? But why would he? This man clearly didn’t actively seek the romance of ancient times. If I had to guess, this man only interested in what he will do in the future. Things like the past were only there to improve his future works.

Then, is it about Hazime Nyunzer? No, that couldn’t be it. That might be possible if the owner of this voice was… say… homosexual, but if I had to guess, he was probably interested in what I didn’t say as the member of 〈Yatagarasu〉. (TL: I just wing it somehow. Saw text is などと思ってしまうのは、〈Yatagarasu〉でまとっていた仮想人格が抜けきっていないせいだろうか。)

「I wonder if your research turned out to be fruitful. I heard that somebody snatched a harpy queen away to who knows where」

『You heard it right. The result was… passable… if I had to say. Since we didn’t gather as many samples as we hoped, it didn’t produce as much result as we initially planned』

「You don’t have to tell me the details. It sounded like something that makes your chest go from bad to worse」

He chuckled though he didn’t mind me asking him to spill the beans.

『The flock ran wild because we kidnapped the queen. Since Crow’s Nest wasn’t that far from Gaumn City, I was worried whether you were in some kind of danger』

「Far from harpies, it was hit by a group of wyverns. I heard that a fire dragon came out as well」

『Hoo, a fire dragon?』

「Wait a second… that was also you?」

I think I heard something I wasn’t supposed to hear. He brushed my question aside like nothing.

『However, speaking of crow’s nest, I heard that 〈Yatagarasu〉 was destroyed in the end』

The man tried to change the topic. Is it perhaps…? Let’s play dumb for now.

「Dunno about it. I still value my life, so I escaped from the chaos at the nest. So I don’t know much of the details」

『I see. Such a pity, isn’t it? Were your acquaintances safe?』

「There isn’t anyone who I particularly close with」

Fufu. Apparently, this man took an interest in my relationships in the crow’s nest.

………

Though after thinking about it, I finally noticed. What he was interested in wasー

『That’s even better, isn’t it? It seemed that there was a certain ancient ruin under the Crow’s Nest. I’m sure you must have spent some time there, isn’t that right?』

The man changed his topic again so I didn’t notice what he was interested in. But this is where I started hesitating. From the way he directed the conversation, surely this man wanted to know about what is 「that certain person」’s real objective.

「I was working as the pastor until the very end. I didn’t have much involvement in the ruin」

I made an extra caution so that he didn’t notice my agitation.

『Is that so? How disappointing』

「It sure is. In any case, from what I managed to look from the excavation site, it seemed more like remains of modern times, not ancient times.

『So there’s no use trying to find the romance of modern times, is it?』

「That wasn’t entirely correct, though. It was said that there’s a certain individual pulling strings from behind the scenes a long time ago in Nomats. From what was gathered by examining the traces left in the ruins, it seems that it was that person’s hideout」

『……hoo』

The man didn’t seem to be interested nor disinterested in the subject. But somehow, it seemed that it was not a miss, but also not a hit.

「ーーTalkal Vox. Since you seem so well-educated, is there a chance that you might recognize this name?」

『……No, I don’t have a clue. I am ashamed of how little I know』

「He’s the leading actor behind the fall of Nomats, also the founding father of 〈Yatagarasu〉」

『How? Then, is the fall of 〈Yatagarasu〉 was also his doing?』

「You do realize that Vox is a person from at least 50 years ago, right? How would he destroy the current 〈Yatagarasu〉?」

『Oh? Is that so…? Then I had mistakenly exposed you to another part of my ignorance. But if he’s from that long ago, there must be some value in excavating his ruins, no?』

「I don’t know about it. You see, as I said before, I’m not involved in that matter」

In truth, I sometimes went to the excavation site on my break time. A few days before the revolt in 〈Yatagarasu〉 happened, though only for a short while, we found something among the excavated ruins. It was a small room filled with furniture from an unknown foreign country. Even more so, the culprit took them carefully so we couldn’t even guess what items were taken.

ーIn other words, somebody beat me to the punch. I had no evidence, but I’m sure there was only one person who could do this. The revolt in 〈Yatagarasu〉 was impossible to happen in the first place. The one who took the items must be the one who instigated the rebellion. It was, without doubt, the leader of the revolt and the one who took the items inside the ruins is the 《Baby Scarlett》, Edgar Drebak. And so, if my guess is correct, this man must be looking for this damn infant.

No, perhaps he didn’t specifically know the existence of the abnormal infant named Edgar Drebak. Most possibly, he was contemplating whether there was a possibility that such a person could exist or not.

ーAnd with that, I had a piece at hand to solve this puzzle. With this piece, I could roughly guess this man’s real identity. But, what do I do after that? How do I deceive him? How do I toy with him? How do I destroy him? Should I tell him about the damn infant who was stealing the result who was supposed to be mine? I had a feeling that this man, by using means that I hadn’t even able to comprehend yet, will spell the greatest despair for Edgar Drebak.

I weighed everything on a scale, putting my thoughts and preferences inside. The scale tilted slightly against this cat in front of me.

「………To me, the rebellion in 〈Yatagarasu〉 was bound to happen sooner or later」

『How? I have almost no information regarding this assassination cult besides rumors and hearsays, but for an assassination cult that could nurture assassins from ground zero to be able to replace the existing members, I heard that it had quite a robust organizational structure』

「I am the one in charge of the brainwashing. No, to be exact, as a pastor, my job was to brainwash and investigate why the brainwashing was undone, then re-brainwash the mind once more」

My predecessors used to say that a pastor’s job was to guide the lost sheep. 「Pastor」… Now that’s a good way to phrase it. That term had been used since Talkal Vox’s days, so maybe this saying alsoー

『By that, are you implying that because of your line of work, you noticed the signs of organizational collapse?』

「Precisely. In recent years, the number of brainwashing that was undone was gradually increasing. The number of envoys that had to be… disposed of are increasing as well」

Those were lies. Although 〈Yatagarasu〉 really did send some envoys to their death, they rarely kill an envoy directly, even though their brainwashing was undone. Of course, it wasn’t because of some humanitarian reason, but since they can just brainwash the mind once more, killing an envoy is simply a waste of resources.

From my 【Hypnotism】 and 【Temptation】, Hazime Nyunzer’s 【Illusion Magic】 and charisma, the unidentified hallucinogen excavated from the excavated ruins under the Crow’s Nest, drugs that Hanezsh made with his 《Medical Dare》 skill, even specialized equipment that was made for simple violence and solitary confinement. With this many tools, we could quickly and easily brainwash people.

『……fufu』

The man fell silent.

『I see… So it wasn’t a sudden change that occurred, but rather a gradual one. Indeed, 〈Yatagarasu〉 was a half-century old organization, so deterioration signs like those were expected…』

「It’s surprising to see you have so much interest in 〈Yatagarasu〉. If you’re asking about how we do our stuff, I can teach you a thing or two」

『Ah no, hearing about how a collapsed organization run things won’t help be helpful in the slightest. It appears that I am overthinking things』

What he said didn’t really match the tone of his voice, but he seemed satisfied with my answer.

「I don’t know what you wanted to hear from me, but are we done here?」

『Ah yes, sorry for taking your time. I apologize for being so sudden, but we’re done here』

「Then, how about that thing that should… them… pique my interest? I wonder what you have in store for me, Mrs. Cat」

「Oh, how rude of me to neglect such things. I am terribly sorry. There’s this ancient ruin that I’m sure you will love. From your position in Gohgassa, go eastward thenー』

I listened while maintaining my indifferent expression, but deep inside, I burned his every single word to my memory. But compared to his real identity, getting the information that he gave me as a reward was just a child’s play. Well, can’t be too picky about slim pickings, right?

「Seems like our business is done here」

『Yes. I think this exchange is beneficial for both of us』

The cat turned back and walked to the back of the alley. As I watched the surprisingly lovely tail moving about, the cat looked back suddenly.

『Ah yes, I forgot to ask. The one that instigated the revolt—what kind of person he or she might be?』

The cat asked. So at the end of the day, we finally get to the juiciest part of the fruit. Does that mean that this information is important? Certainly, according to my calculation, this is the best place where this man must clearly differentiate between what is black and what is white, right?

「……About that. There’s this kid named Nevill. When he was asked 【Are you the only one behind this rebellion?】, he tilted his head like he was really confused. I wonder if the rebel had no leader who was just as charismatic as Hazime is」

Except for that information, but……

『……Is that so? Then, please do excuse me』

The cat disappeared from the alley. I stood there completely still for the next few minutes. Did the man really leave? I could never know for sure.

Even the moment I could move again, I had a feeling that if I spoke something, he would appear out from nowhere and answer me, like he had expected it since the beginning. When facing such an unbearable terror, I could only stand there and waited until my cold sweats dried. I forced myself and headed out from the narrow alley.

When I stepped into the bright streets, instead of fear, a dark excitement filled my heart.

ーThat man… is a reincarnator.

ーEdgar Drebak… is also a reincarnator.

I found scripts about it after scavenging through the ancient ruin. Since I know the concept of 『Reincarnation』, it really brought a clear reason why that man asked those questions.

This was very exciting. The concept of 『Reincarnation』 didn’t just fascinate the ancient people. Even while I was being skeptical about its existence, I was deeply fascinated by that concept. I walked from ancient ruins to ancient ruins like a love-struck maiden. And now, the concept that I loved so dearly wasn’t just a hypothesis anymore. It was real. I know it was real.

「I finally found it」

They were unexpectedly close to me. Not only one, but I even found two reincarnators. No, is it possible… Maybe even three reincarnators? Sure, he was already dead, but from what I could gather from the ancient ruins under the Crow’s Nest, I had no doubt that Talkal Vox must be a reincarnator.

「But what does this possibly mean? The two reincarnators are fighting each other…?」

That man was clearly suspicious about the other reincarnator’s contribution in the fall of 〈Yatagarasu〉. If so, at least for that man, the other reincarnator was an enemy. Edgar Drebak was very unusual for an infant, but his sense of justice was so well developed.

In that case, there was no doubt that there was a potential antagonism between that man and Edgar Drebak. Although, I didn’t have enough evidence to guess whether that man was evil or not.

「If reincarnation is only allowed by gods, then…」

There were only two gods capable of reincarnating people. The first one was the god of good, Astrazem, who controlled the cycle of samsara. The second one was the god of evil, Nongvendres, who was considered to be just as powerful as all of the good gods combined.

The former reincarnated Edgar Drebak and then the latter reincarnated that man as a response. Yes. My hypothesis was forming out nicely.

「Oh… should it be in reverse order?」

First, evil god Nongvendres reincarnated that man into this world. Seeing the danger, the good god Astrazem reincarnated Edgar Drebak to fight that man. Yes, that made way more sense.

「Fufufu… this is getting interesting」

It would be too easy for me to “sell” Edgar Drebak to that man. I could do it right here and now, but…… But why would I do that? Isn’t that such a… wasteful thing to do? There was a clue about 「A world that is different from this place」 at the deepest part of these events that were unfolding right before my eyes. Why would I try and destroy it?

「……They reincarnated from another world!!」

In the other world, there lurked wonders that no ordinary people could imagine!

「efufu…… hahaha… AHAHAHAHA!!!」

I was so absorbed in myself that I forgot to use my 【Hypnotism】.