‘…This is starting to get a little difficult.’
I could feel the sweat drip down from the side of my face.
It felt strangely cool.
“Kh.”
I took a deep and steady breath.
I was slowly starting to tire out. Staring at the numerous puppets ahead of me, I flicked my hand and cut the threads above them before sending them behind me.
‘How long have I been doing this for?’
I had lost count by now.
All I knew was that I had been going at this for at least several hours.
I was on the verge of exhaustion, and when I looked to my right, I saw Caius standing calmly.
“You can switch with me when you’re done.”
“…Yes, I’ll switch soon.”
I probably could’ve pushed myself further than this. This wasn’t my true limit. If I wanted to,
I could squeeze myself until utter exhaustion, but…
‘I don’t have to do that.’
Yes, I didn’t have to do that.
I wasn’t alone.
I didn’t need to suffer like I once did.
Therefore,
“I’ll hold them back for a minute longer. Get… ready.”
“Okay.”
This was good.
I felt liberated, but at the same time, it felt strange.
“This is probably the first time I haven’t pushed myself to the point of death.’
A part of me wanted to keep pushing, but I also knew I shouldn’t.
Staring at the puppets who were mindlessly moving in my direction, I took a deep breath. Taking a step forward, the gravity intensified and their movements slowed down even further.
Raising my hand, threads emerged from out of nowhere, slowing the puppets further. “Hooo.”
I took one final deep breath and looked at the puppets.
“There’s a lot.’
I could count more than several dozen.
There were even more behind.
“A minute is almost up. Tell me when you’re done.”
“….You’ll know.”
With a light laugh, I let out all the air within me.
The grass beneath me started to wither and the sky slowly started to fade.
Darkness once again engulfed my surroundings, exposing a raw and untainted domain.
Snap, snap-
Seeing the threads I had set up to block the puppet’s snap, and them coming out of the area of supervision, I knew it was time.
Holding my palm forward, the world turned purple.
Caius’s expression paused from beside me as he stepped back.
“Close.”
That was the moment I closed my palm and the entire domain started to disfigure, turning into one large purple hand that clenched down on the puppets within.
” “
Clenching my teeth, I stepped back and the domain shrank rapidly, closing in on the puppets as the background returned to how it once was-to the room above the trapdoor.
Thump, thump!
Several bodies appeared shortly after, and without hesitation, I sliced my hand in the air and severed the threads above them before sending them behind me.
Caius took over from them.
Pressing his hand forward, the puppets that were left unaffected by the domain stopped moving.
Seeing him effortlessly contain the remaining puppets, I finally let go and slumped down on the ground.
Thump!
“Haa… Haa…”
My lungs were on fire and my hand slightly trembled, but my mind was still clear.
‘All in all… I think I did a good job.’
I was happy with my progress.
Still, things were far from over. Turning around, I was just about to help the others when I realized something.
|| ||
Over several dozen eyes were staring in my direction, all wearing the same stupefied looks on
their faces.
“Oh, there’s… a lot more of you than I thought.”
“You…”
When I turned to look at Kora, she was sporting a similar look of surprise as the rest. However, she was also quick to snap out of it as she swallowed her words and started speaking.
“Yes, thanks to you we were able to free a total of forty-seven people. Almost everyone has recovered and it’s become a lot easier to treat the people you sent back.”
“I see, that’s good.”
She wasn’t lying.
Staring at the other people alongside her, I could see that they were almost fully conscious.
“They probably can hold back the puppets by themselves if I let them.’
Unlike before, the puppets were now significantly weaker.
With the mastermind’s attention fully focused on the old man, it probably had no time to
fully control the remaining puppets.
…That was also a cue telling me to speed things up.
The moment the old man was converted, there was no escaping.
Time was running out. I needed to save as many people as possible. The more people we had,
the better it was for us when trying to leave this place.
“We should do as you said.”
Looking at Kora and the others, I stood up and ate a few pills.
“I don’t know how much time we have left. Since that’s the case, we should speed things up.
For those that can fight, please form multiple groups. Each group can go out and repeat the process that we’re doing. The more people we free, the easier things will be for us.”
||
||
I thought I’d be met with looks of understanding the moment I issued my orders, but…
“Why should we listen to him?”
“….I don’t trust him at all.”
Instead, I was met with looks of doubt and rejection.
That’s when I realized,
‘Did they all figure out we’re from the Empires?’
owning, I was just about to say something when Kora beat me to it.
“Are you all stupid?”
All eyes fell towards her.
“Let’s forget about his origins for a second. He’s literally telling you to save our own, and you
are here wasting time because you think he’s not trustworthy? Since when have we become so stupid? Aren’t you just feeding directly onto our stereotypes?”
Standing up, she eyed the group with a fierce expression as her brown hair fluttered silently.
“If you can’t trust his orders, then trust mine. Form groups and start saving people. I don’t know the exact situation as well, but time is of the essence. Hurry up!”
“Yes!”
“Understood…!”
The difference between us was night and day. The moment she spoke, everyone listened to her orders as they all stood up in unison and started forming groups.
I could tell from her words alone that her position within the House of Astrid was nothing to
scoff at.
Shortly after that, several started to help out Caius while others rushed out of the room.
I stared at the scene speechlessly before Kora stopped next to me.
“Do not blame them for their hesitation.”
I turned my head to look at her.
“…Do you know why many of us in the Kasha hate those of the Empire?”
“Because they don’t let you in?”
“Pftt, it’s more than that.”
Giggling, Kora’s expression gradually turned serious.
“Why do you think there aren’t that many beggars within the Empires?”
“Because…”
Because? Because…?
I didn’t know the answer. Wasn’t it simply because the Empires were prospering?
And it wasn’t like I never saw beggars before.
I had been to the slums in Bremmer.
“It’s because most of the beggars get thrown here. We’re the discards of the Empires. Descendants of those that have been banished by them, or people that have been directly banished by them. For what reason? Because we were born unfortunate?”
“…..
I wanted to rebuke her words, but I didn’t know how to.
I didn’t even know this
thing until now.
“See? You’re probably not aware this is happening. You probably just see enough beggars to
think that everything is normal, but that’s the furthest thing from the truth. Every day people get thrown out of the walls. Resources are scarce and the worthless ones get thrown out.”
“That’s why I’m telling you to understand their resentment and why no one trusts you. How
can you trust the same people who kicked you out of your own home? If we were useless to you, would you discard us?”
Placing her hand over my shoulder, she smiled and left.
I stood on the spot, blankly staring at her back without being able to find any words for her.
‘If we were useless to you, would you discard us?’
I thought back to the old man and closed my eyes.
That was when everything became clear to me. “Ah.”
I should’ve realized it sooner.
…And I finally found my voice again.
“Wait up, I have something to say.”
***
The more puppets were converted, the faster things progressed.
In less than an hour, since the groups split up, the number of people that had been converted
back was well over a hundred.
By the time the second hour passed, over three hundred had been converted, and by the time
the fourth hour passed, everyone within the mansion had been converted back.
Courtyard.
“Is there anyone missing? Has anyone found anyone else?”
“No, there’s more outside but everyone within the estate has been converted back.”
“Good.”
Kora stood alongside six other people.
They were the six other spears of the Astrid family, and they were currently the main people in
charge.
“Any news about the elders?”
The reason why the seven of them were in charge was because the elders were somehow
missing.
“There’s no news yet. I believe they are outside of the estate.”
“I see.”
Kora nodded before looking around. Everyone was currently gathered in the courtyard, ready
to leave at any moment.
“Since everyone is here, should we leave?”
Kora looked at the seven other spears and pursed her lips.
Common sense dictated yes, but recalling the last conversation she had with the one from the
Empire, she found herself stopping.
She didn’t know how to feel about them. It was true that they had indeed saved them, but they
were still people from the Empires.
People who had thrown them or their parents away for being what they were.
How could they trust such people? Still, it was true that they had saved them.
‘For saving us, I’ll believe you this once.’
And thus…
“No.”
All heads turned in her direction.
Pursing her lips even more tightly, Kora looked towards everyone present and closed her
eyes.
“Get everyone ready.” “Ready? Ready for what?”
Opening her eyes, Kora’s lips parted open as she mumbled,
“…A grand wedding.”
***
It was dark.
‘… They… should… be gone… now.’
Amidst the darkness, an old man sat with his legs crossed. His body was entangled in a web of
threads, and he looked older than he previously did.
He was now truly an old man.
Even the vitality in his eyes almost seemed to have faded.
He didn’t have very much time left.
But even so…
“Hee.”
He wasn’t sad.
He thought back to the three idiots he had met and knew that they had completed their task.
They were idiots, but they were competent idiots.
That’s why he felt at ease.
So long as his people could get out, what did he care about himself?
“Cough…! Cough!”
Coughing, the old man turned to look at the piano and reached out for it, but…
|| ||
His arms refused to move.
His eyes dimmed.
If only…
Bang, Bang-
All of a sudden, he heard muffled bangs coming from above.
They were faint at first, but with time they grew progressively louder and the old man had no
choice but to raise his head.
‘What… this?’
The old man’s confusion merely lasted a few seconds before he heard a loud ‘bang’ and light
filtered through.
Bang-!
“Uh?”
Three figures appeared shortly after and his expression changed.
“You… What are you… doing here?” “What do you mean what are we doing here?” Stepping forward, Julien looked to his right and left.
“Didn’t you say it yourself?”
He laughed.
“We’re idiots.”
Two stupid idiots and me.