Omniscient First-Person’s Viewpoint

Chapter 223: CaptiveCaptiveCaptive

I hid most of the stuff about Mind Reading and the rest were moderately adapted. I changed my words, as if I had heard such a story from a separate entity entirely.

The story that smoothly progressed ended only after mentioning the flowing water of the Hamelin River.

The Regressor, who had been listening to my story from the most objective position, summarized the conversation.

"So, the Military State was trying to conduct an experiment using Anathema and you were the subject of the experiment, but you resisted and joined forces with the students to eliminate a military officer, and ultimately, to avoid the subsequent pursuit, you caused the Hamelin Incident."

With a Mmm, the Regressor nodded her head and suddenly shouted, clenching her fist.

"All the things you said last time were lies! You said the kids started a rebellion and cursed you while using you as a sacrifice!"

"Isn't it similar? If you consider each part at a time, it's all true."

"No! You talked as if you were a complete victim! Now that I hear it, you instigated it all!"

"Wait what? Hello? Then, if someone tells me ‘You’re the culprit’, am I supposed to just nod in agreement? What kind of idiot does that? I believe I have fulfilled my duty just from the mere fact of telling the truth."

"But still, besides that... Well, it was an appropriate response."

"Oh? You’re understanding of this? What's the occasion?"

"What do you mean, what's the occasion? I've always been in an objective position, you know."

The Regressor lightly retorted and crossed her arms, coldly evaluating my actions.

"It was the best judgment you could have made at the time. The Military State, vulnerable to the Arcane, imposes a news blackout order when such bizarre and sudden incidents occur. Conversely, when you create a big incident and they are cautious about investigating, that’s when vulnerabilities appear. It's a good strategy."

It was a statement worthy of someone who had once brought down the Military State. Was it perhaps because of a sense of kinship with someone who also despised the same entity? The Regressor cast a friendly gaze toward me, who had contributed to bringing down the Military State.

"...Still, it was a better story than I thought. At first, I thought you were a Special Task Force agent specially cultivated by the Military State like a Signaller or Public Security. Turns out, you're a pretty decent guy."

"Hahaha. It feels awkward to hear that from a major criminal who even cut off the Earth Sage’s arm."

"Look at you trying to grate on my nerves till the very end. Stop it already."

Hahaha. A pleasant conversation where smiles come and go. Yes, this was a real conversation.

Until now, it has been too serious and purposeful: teaching, informing, getting angry, fighting.

There was no need to use language just through the form of exchanging information. Promoting camaraderie like this was one of the beneficial functions of speech.

｢In the previous regression... When I collaborated with the Resistance, thanks to the Hamelin Incident, I was able to gather quite a bit of internal support. Well, it wouldn’t have been possible just with that. It was mainly because I waged guerrilla warfare and caused the Human Regime to run amok, but internal sentiment can’t be ignored either... What in the world? We were comrades, huh?｣

Was there ever another time when the Regressor looked at me with such warmth? Harmonious. That word fits perfectly as we smiled amicably at each other.

"I think I've greatly misunderstood you until now."

"It's fine as long as you know now. After all, humans are creatures who adapt and learn, right?"

"Look at you going off on a tangent again. Anyway, I owe you one."

｢Of course, it is only limited to the previous regression, though. I decided not to cooperate with the Resistance in this regression, so his actions aren’t much use anyway…. No, wait. Hamelin, the truth, suicide... The power of influence.｣

What the heck? Her thoughts were racing, so the content was skipping too fast to understand.

That's when it happened. Historia, who had just been listening calmly with her arms tightly bound, bit her cigarette even harder. A suppressed sound was heard.

"...Cutie. I didn’t think you’d be such a cruel person. They were Huey’s and my classmates, you know? Yet, to think you would seem so fine with them all dying."

"Eh?"

When she turned her head, the Regressor found Historia glaring fiercely at her, as if she was about to pounce at any moment. Faced with this unexpected hostility, the Regressor looked bewildered.

"What? Why? Didn’t he make it so that administrative law was set in place by using the pretense of an Arcane while the Hamelin students escaped in the confusion?”

The Regressor asked innocently.

Realizing what misunderstanding the Regressor was under, Historia scoffed and leaned back against the container wall again. Puffing out smoke from her cigarette, she smiled at the Regressor as if looking at a naive child.

"...Ahhh. So that's what you were thinking? I take back what I said. Your way of thinking is still as cute as it always was."

"Why are you picking a fight with me again? He just needed to deceive the state appropriately and extract them, right?"

"How could someone possibly deceive the eyes of the instructors on the rescue ship that followed when there were that many secondary military school students? You really are so naive and young. How did a child like you even end up with Huey?"

"Ehhh? Wait. According to you..."

｢What she’s saying is definitely reasonable. If it’s an ordinary person who can’t even properly handle Standard Magic… it would be difficult to escape unnoticed in the flowing water. Then, does that mean that they themselves actually...｣

Suddenly, chills ran down the spine as if instantaneously drenched in water. It wasn’t my emotion but that of the Regressor.

The Regressor shuddered briefly and looked at me with a twitch.

｢...Did you really kill them all? Your own classmates…?｣

"Ah, uh. This is a bit hard to explain. It might sound like I killed them, but in my defense… The deceased had a mutual agreement."

"An agreement? What kind of agreement? An agreement to die together?"

Are you kidding me? Of course not. Why would they ever make such a meaningless agreement?

"It’s similar but different. It was an agreement that not everyone could survive."

"What?"

"Those who die will die and those who live will live, after all. At the very least, for the sake of those who would survive… they resigned to die quietly."

If no bodies were found, it might be suspected that they survived. Then, it would remain merely as some escape act.

And of course, singing as if to tear their throat apart while rowing would have lost all its meaning.

"I had told everyone the method. Set up wind magic on the bio-receptors and walk under the river to escape. As long as they didn’t lose concentration, they could breathe underwater for about three minutes using Standard Magic. Whether they were swept away by the water, suffocated, or became fish food, they agreed to take those risks and walk along the riverbed… It was so that a chance was given for those who wished to live. After all, it wasn’t possible for everyone to survive."

"Wait. There’s no way that’s possible. Using wind magic underwater requires an extraordinary concentration. Even if one manages to, they would instinctively flail if they ran out of breath."

"They endured even that, you see. Among those children who participated in Hamelin's graduation practical exercise, not one cried out for help. They either died silently walking or barely survived and reached the riverbank. It was done so convincingly that it was imprinted on people’s minds."

Thus, Hamelin remained a stain on the Military State. And for those who happened to witness the scene, it became a nightmare.

A curse was not all that special. If a person filled with strong hatred and frustration repeatedly agonized over it and then expressed it in a shocking and ingenious way, thus engraving it in people's minds… that itself became a curse.

The people affected by that curse didn’t need to be found in some far away place.

"And opportunely, the direct witness is right here."

Historia was that very witness. One of the closest people who saw exactly what ending we met.

And that was why she ended up like this.

"Look at Ria. One of the Six Star Generals, the Gunmaster. The Daughter of the Military State, born under the Star of the Overlord. An audacious, supercilious genius... became all tied up just because she wanted to hear the story from her classmate. How else would such a spectacle be seen?"

"Ugh... Though that’s true…"

｢Did the Gunmaster become a key figure in the New Kingdom because of that…? Exactly how far is this guy’s reach? How much influence does he have?｣

Don’t treat me like some secretive existence, hiding in the dark. I'm an individualistic person, even among individualistic people. I never organized nor schemed in the shadows. I had always done my best to survive. That’s all.

Leaving the Regressor behind, I approached Historia.

The scar etched in her heart was a curse in itself. It remained forever, thus tormenting her, and the dense darkness emanating from that wound spread around.

Well, to the idiot who received a deep impression instead of a scar, it might seem like a blessing. But it was definitely not the case when it came to Historia.

"How about it, Ria. Did you find out everything you wanted to know?"

"...I roughly understand what happened."

"You still seem unsatisfied with something. Got anything to say?"

Though her curiosity was resolved, her expression still showed a knot of unresolved feelings. Historia raised her head from beyond the smoke of the mana herb, her eyes cold and settled as she interrogated me.

"How. Why. You could think of ways to kill all those children... Yet, why couldn’t you think of ways to save them instead? If it’s you, surely, a different method could..."

But Historia knew that lamenting was pointless. At that time, I was the one to act and Historia was the one to stand by. A bystander like her had no right to reproach me for not thinking of a more ingenious solution.

She stopped mid-sentence and turned her head sharply. Only the sound of a sigh mixed with smoke reached me. I concluded the conversation with a faint smile.

"Now, now. It was a rather gloomy story, wasn’t it? Perhaps it might have been boring for all of you."

[Boring? Of course not. It was a fascinating story. It seems this is why this nation known as the Military State has been pursuing you, as if desperate to kill you...]

For Tyrkanzyaka, who enjoyed any story whatsoever, there was only interest. After all, the suicide of a hundred people wouldn’t particularly shock Tyrkanzyaka.

[However… Excuse me, Huey, Gluttony isn't considered an authority at the level of an Anathema. Hunting prey and draining its life is the law of nature. Although the methods used by the Military State are repulsive, I hope you do not inherently despise the authority of Gluttony in itself...]

The Vampire, justifying her cannibalistic actions, displayed an attitude like a predator wanting to prove her harmlessness.

Well, it wasn’ Tyr was a wanton murderer. Understanding her position, I responded nonchalantly.

“I've never really minded it. It was just unnecessary, you know? Just like Tyr doesn’t go around stabbing every passerby to drink their blood, I don’t commit unnecessary acts either.”

[Thank you.]

“What for? As long as you just don’t eat me, it’s all good.”

Having a predator that definitely wouldn’t eat me was as reassuring as it got. As long as she didn’t attack me, we could transcend our racial origins and become very close friends, mhm.

“Woof woof.”

“…? Why are you barking all of a sudden?”

“Woof. Timing!”

“Timing? What timing?”

At any rate, having said all that needed to be said, I clapped my hands together to end the conversation.

“Well, the sun has set. It’s about time we started moving. It’s safer to move at night, after all. But before that…”

Historia seemed uninterested in making eye contact with me. She turned her gaze quickly, showing only her side profile while blowing out smoke from her cigarette. It seemed unlikely that she would cooperate fully.

Leaving her be was worrying and dragging around the Daughter of the Military State while aggroing the entire Military State didn’t seem right either.

Ultimately, I had no choice. Historia could subdue me even in her bound state, so I needed to enlist the aid of my companions. Let’s seek their opinions.

“So, uh, Mr. Shei, what should we do about Historia?”

“Ummm. Give me a moment. Let me think for a bit.”

｢She’s a Star General of the Military State and she hasn’t even reached her prime yet. Leaving her be would just cause continuous interference. Especially if, instead of the Axiom of Bullseye where she absolutely hits one out of her three shots… she awakens to the Consensus of Gun and Sword. Then, she’ll be a counter to Chun-aeng, so it’ll be even more troublesome to face her. Ummmm.｣

Ehhh? What in the world? She’s going to get even stronger? What exactly is the Consensus of Gun and Sword? Doesn’t it sound immensely powerful just from its name? What’s up with that?

Hah, my oh my. I’m kinda feeling a relative deprivation.While I lamented as I read her thoughts to my heart’s content, the Regressor also showed reluctance and sought opinions.

“…I don’t particularly want to kill her. Let’s decide to keep her alive for now.”

Hehhh? What’s that supposed to mean, all of a sudden?

“Excuse me, Mr. Shei. Are you some kind of bloodthirsty, murder-crazed devil? Why are you talking about not wanting to kill her as if you’re doing her a favor?”

“Huh? Why? I just said I don’t particularly want to kill her, though?”

Did she still not understand what was wrong with what she just said? As my mouth hung open in disbelief, Tyrkanzyaka also looked astonished and reprimanded her firmly.

[Shei. Even if you hold a grudge against the Military State, Huey is your friend, is he not? How could you even speak of killing a friend’s companion? Even a thirsty vampire would not harm a friend’s relative.]

“Uh…? Wait. Am I the bad guy?”

“See? You have no right to criticize vampires. Who cares if you don’t practice Gluttony? Not only do you dice off people’s right arms, but you also suggest slicing up a fairly obedient captive who surrendered willingly. And that’s not even taking into consideration that she was once my friend!”

The Regressor, facing unanimous criticism, vehemently denied it.

“I didn’t think of killing her either! I was just voicing an opinion!”

“You ruined the atmosphere. Nobody was thinking of killing, yet here you are saying, ‘Let’s just not kill her then,’ as if we were murderers to start with.”

[If you contemplate slaughtering a comrade's friend, who would stand by you in this harsh world? Do not mention such opinions, even by mistake.]

“I, I… didn’t mean that, though…”

Due to mine and Tyr’s combined admonition, the Regressor shrank back. Mhm, that’s right. How satisfying. As I reveled in the impact of our verbal beatdown, I suddenly sensed something off and shifted my gaze to Tyr.

Uh, Tyr. It sounds like you’re not killing her not because she’s a captive, but because she’s my acquaintance, you know…?

“Um excuse me, Tyr. What if it wasn’t Ria who was captured but the spear-wielding mister from earlier? Would you kill him?”

[...? If it is not your acquaintance, why bother keeping them alive? It is not as if you all need live humans for blood, after all.]

｢I do not wish to create animosity by unnecessarily slaughtering your friend.｣

It seemed her mindset prioritized relationships and family ties…. It was probably because her old-school mentality was literally from olden times.

Anyway, the conversation had returned to the topic of what to do with Historia. Ultimately, the choice was either to let her go or to take her with us. If we release her, how should we go about it? If we take her along, what measures should we take?

In a situation where no clear solution came to mind, an idea suddenly sparked, making me snap my fingers.

“Then, how about we do /genesisforsaken