EP.184 The Returnee Who Trampled the Sparks of Destruction in Advance Wants to Live Quietly
At the magician's warning, the Family gathered all their strength and prepared for a decisive battle.
This was also an opportunity the Family had been wishing for. JJJ, enemies of beastkin who wore strange masks and hunted them—why would they refuse when those bastards were coming to fight of their own accord?
Unlike them, for whom this was merely a night's entertainment, for the Family this was a matter of survival. The Family scraped together everyone who could fight to resist this time.
Throughout the Black Cat Magazine office, beastkin with bared claws and weapons filled every corner.
Beastkin senses were superior to ordinary humans. With this level of force, even if the shadow came, they should be able to fight on equal terms....
"I shouldn't have done that...."
The Black Cat Magazine's editor-in-chief, a beastkin journalist who served as the face of the operation. Neru was hiding inside a cabinet, trembling.
It was the first time in the Family's history that this much force had gathered in one place. Perhaps that was why. With false confidence, they picked a fight with an existence they should never have fought.
And the result was....
KUGWAGAGANG!
"Tell me everything you know."
"I, I don't know!"
"Is that so?"
"Wait! I don't mean I can't tell you, I mean I don't know...! I was just called here today!"
"Then there must be someone who does know. Even you should know who among you knows the most."
"Neru! A beastkin cat named Neru!"
"Find her."
Thud. The sound of a foot stepping on the ground.
With that sound as the start, a beastkin who had been devoted to the Family became an informer, immediately blazing with fury as they ran around searching for Neru.
"Neruuuu! Come out right now! Are you trying to get us all killed?!"
"Spit out everything you know about the magician!"
"We're all going to die! The Family comes first!"
'You idiots! Why are you letting yourselves get dragged around according to their intentions!'
At the pitiful calls of her comrades searching for her, Neru, hidden in the cabinet, screamed inwardly.
'Can't you tell just by looking? The magician brought this on! The very act of asking could be a test!'
She had given it a little poke, intending to keep the magician in check and save the Family from danger. No one could blame her. Thanks to her active negotiation, they had learned that the shadow was inciting beastkin haters to attack.
'But...! I never expected they would have planted poison among us too...!'
She got a little carried away. Instead of carefully storing away the information about the knight the magician wrapped around her, she had written it down in print, however briefly. That was the mistake.
She just did it half in jest.
She never expected a strange visitor to look into the magician's information and react.
'This is why you should never get involved with a magician...! The magician seasoned that information!'
Hiding in the narrow, dark cabinet, Neru recalled what had just happened.
Today, the day of preparing for the decisive battle, the magazine office was closed. However, just in case of urgent contact, the secret window in the back remained open.
A contact network for secret members. If there was someone to contact for urgent and secret matters—especially the magician—they would be contacted here.
But today, a visitor they had never seen before came. They bluntly asked if they could find someone in this vast Amitengrad.
It was easy but labor-intensive work. Normally she would have dragged out the conversation while pretending it was difficult and entered negotiations, but today was different.
They couldn't take on a request to find someone when they had to stake the Family's honor and fate on a showdown. Neru politely and firmly refused the request.
The other party was also reasonable and understood Neru's position, even showing a willingness to help the Family. But since she couldn't trust an outsider who wasn't even a beastkin, she decided to just accept the sentiment.
Just when it seemed it would end on a warm note.
"...Marriage?"
The moment the silver-haired girl who had been sitting quietly with her mouth shut muttered that, the Family's fate changed.
It was a girl with an elegance hard to describe in words, like a noble of the old kingdom. The girl strode inside the window. No one could stop her—not because of anything else, but because there was no resistance stronger than the thick concrete and steel grating barriers.
Smashing through the concrete and tearing apart the steel grating, the girl entered and slowly perused the information as if this were her own territory.
"First in the middle school, clear-headed Huey... Is his name truly Huey?"
So when the girl said that, Neru was so startled her tail almost fell off.
She hadn't even written that he was a magician on the stall, but the girl had pointed it out precisely.
An acquaintance, or a pursuer.
Either way, she couldn't easily reveal the magician's identity. It was confidential, and it would be a breach of trust toward the magician who had provided important information to the Family.
Neru kept her mouth shut. The information placed on the stall was merely a sample to whet the customer's thirst. If she didn't speak, they couldn't know the contents.
The problem was, the customer was not someone who could endure thirst.
"Hand it over. Since I know that you know about him, there is no reason to delay further. I will pay the price, so sell me the information."
She knew how powerful the other party was. She had just seen it. But Neru wasn't sure whether she should let them know that information or not.
It was information the magician had openly provided. She wasn't confident what kind of poison it might return as if she sold it at a high price. While Neru hesitated, other members of the Family rushed in after hearing the noise.
"What?! An attack?"
"How many enemies?"
"To think they'd invade this way...!"
"They walked into their own grave!"
'Wait! No! The opponent is...!'
The hyped-up members tried to surround and threaten the girl with the pure white atmosphere... At that moment, jet-black knights made of darkness crawled out from all directions.
That was the end.
"Neruuuuu!"
"Come out!"
"I knew it from the moment you started acting like you ran a magazine!"
The sounds coming from beyond the cabinet were like echoes transmitted from far away. Neru closed her eyes and leaned against the wall.
The cabinet was comfortable. The narrow, dark space put Neru at ease.
Darkness enclosed on all sides. As long as she was inside this space, Neru was safe. No one could find her, hurt her, or torment her.
It didn't matter that she couldn't see out of one eye. In this darkness, everyone became equal.
She thought she understood why cats seek out narrow spaces. It was so cozy and comfortable....
However, an egg exists in this world to be broken.
"Over here!"
KWADUDUDEUK.
The cabinet was torn open and light poured in. Neru groaned beneath the ear-splitting noise and the light that hurt her eyes.
What appeared next were the furiously angry members of the Family.
And behind them, a girl sitting like a queen.
"Neru, you bastard! Hurry up and talk!"
"We're preparing for a battle right now!"
"Do you even know how much damage you've caused?!"
Dragged out by the collar, Neru was instantly surrounded by the Family. Neru faced the hostility directed at her.
The members of the Family she had loved and who had loved her were扭曲ing their faces viciously as they blamed Neru.
"Hurry, spit out everything you know!"
"We entrusted you with this part and you just did whatever you wanted!"
"If you weren't capable, you shouldn't have taken it on in the first place!"
It took less than an hour to go from a bold journalist to a traitor. Neru had only done her best.
Tears welled up in Neru's eyes as grief overwhelmed her.
Neru sobbed as she spoke.
"S-sob...! You idiots, that's the magician...!"
"What?"
"The magician...! You vermin! This situation itself...! Sob! Is the result the magician created!"
At the word magician, all the members of the Family looked around roughly and exchanged glances.
The silver-haired girl suspected to be a vampire was strong, but she wasn't excessive in her actions. The fact that she had easily torn through rebar but left no one in a similar state proved that.
But the other party was a vampire without blood or tears. The reason she didn't kill the Family wasn't because she felt respect, but because she didn't feel it was worth it. Therefore, the beastkin of the Family had to become the girl's limbs and diligently search for Neru.
It wasn't life-threatening, but it was a disaster that felt like the world was turning upside down.
"Somehow. It does seem like something the magician would do."
"It's no use acting like you know now...!"
"Sorry. But why did you mess with the magician?"
Neru wiped her tears and sniffled.
"Sob...! I'm sorry...!"
"Well, that's new. An apology coming from Neru's mouth. Is this magic?"
An apology was something a paparazzi journalist shouldn't make and hadn't, but regarding this incident, Neru had nothing to say.
Anyway, the situation eased a bit. The other members of the Family glanced around and slowly backed away. The atmosphere of blaming Neru had subsided considerably, but now Neru was left alone with her.
The girl with shining red eyes, reigning like a queen, dressed in a somewhat old-fashioned style.
"The magician. That must be him. He also called himself a magician. He even played mischievous pranks with cards."
The girl murmured as if recalling memories. The faint longing felt from it didn't carry particularly negative emotions.
Well, that must be why she wasn't so excessive in her actions....
"I never expected to hear good news so soon after returning...."
It didn't seem like she came to congratulate a marriage. Neru trembled.
'What on earth has he been doing... This goes beyond the level of a casual acquaintance.'
Even a passing storm would be milder than her. The strength that could make even a general of the Military Nation... no, even make them seem trivial.
If the magician had this kind of backing, not just the back alleys but all of Amitengrad would have fallen into his hands.
Whatever the case, this was a disaster Neru had brought upon herself. Thanks to that, most of the weapons and traps they had prepared became useless.
Neru had to take responsibility and bear the consequences.
"...I can tell you. But in the meantime, to have a quiet conversation, we'll need to block those coming in from outside."
"Outside."
She had to protect the Family, even if it meant using the other party. Neru spoke tensely.
"Yes. We're beastkin, so as you can see, we have many enemies. We can't make noise while talking with someone as great as you, miss. So."
For Neru, it was a negotiation of a lifetime, but the other party answered as if she had expected it from the start.
"Do not worry about that. A reliable child is blocking the path to this place."
Shei had been lingering around the Black Cat Magazine office, and when the noisy sounds from inside finally stopped, he glanced in that direction once.
It seemed Tirkanjaka had finished sorting out the inside.
"Tirkanjaka didn't destroy everything, did she? Hmm, I feel somewhat sorry. I didn't intend for this."
He had tried to negotiate normally, but Tirkanjaka's actions were faster. Anyway, as long as the result was good, Shei left Tirkanjaka alone and came outside.
So that this unruly crowd wouldn't interfere while she obtained information.
Shei spoke calmly even in front of the masked assailants.
"We're using this place for a while. If you have business, come later..."
"Shut up...! A beastkin just attacked our comrade! Look at this arm!"
"That's your problem... wait."
Realizing that Nabi was nowhere to be seen, Shei glanced at the wound. Sure enough, the torn wound was similar to what Nabi would have made.
Feeling a slight sense of responsibility, Shei muttered.
"If you got that wound, why come here instead of going to the hospital."
"Because we need revenge! Move right now. If you stay there, I'll consider you a beastkin too!"
Their momentum was so fierce that it seemed Shei couldn't stop them without showing force.
So Shei decided to show force.
"Hmm. Wait a moment."
Responding casually, Shei drew Jizan and struck the ground.
A localized earthquake occurred in Amitengrad. The concrete ground that supported people, automatic carriages, and buildings cracked like thin ice with a sharp sound.
That wasn't the end. Shei flicked a concrete fragment with the tip of Jizan and struck its side.
The broken concrete poured down like a meteor shower. Though small in size, the momentum of each piece was no less than a flying arrow.
Those hit by the fragments and dust fell backward in unison.
"Keugh..."
"Uhehehe..."
The rule of this world that had been momentarily forgotten due to gathering in numbers.
There are a few strong ones in the world, individuals who can overturn the earth and shatter rocks alone. No matter how many weaklings gather, they cannot win.
"I didn't come here... for this..."
The pain as if being beaten all over cooled their heads. As the heat subsided, what remained were only self-deprecation and regret.
"I, I want to go home..."
"Mommy..."
Fear leaked out even from beneath their masks. This should be enough. Shei slung Jizan over her shoulder.
"Now. We're using this place. If you have business, come later."
"Yes."
Today, the beastkin hate groups learned the preciousness of life.
As the ordinary people retreated, Shei watched them without much interest and then suddenly made her eyes glow red. Her gaze headed toward the corner.
"Now. And you over there peeking. Come out if you have business."
The Fifth, who had been hiding around the corner watching the situation, quickly finished his calculations.
Fight? He would lose. Even with his injured body, he couldn't even buy time.
The Fifth, who had been injured by Nabi, immediately clutched his wound and fled into the darkness. Watching the retreating assailant, Shei sighed with Jizan slung over her shoulder.
"Seems like you don't have business. Anyway, were the Military Nation's back alleys like this? It's particularly noisy today..."
Of course, that wasn't for Shei to say. It had only been about half a day since she herself had wreaked havoc in District 1, which could be called the Military Nation's nerve center.
"Still, I don't think this incident happened because of us.... Oh, could this be that time? The Military Nation's 51st Unreasonable Inspection?"
Shei gave up trying to recall further. The incident where the Military Nation, on the verge of war, repeatedly conducted frequent unreasonable inspections and media suppression against its citizens, gradually exposing its weaknesses.
"Eh. Why bother counting. It's all pointless anyway."
It was a continuous event like water seeping into a thousand, so there was no clear point where one could say 'This was the trigger!'
If things continued like this and they went to war with the nations while leaving the Abyss Plains alone, the Military Nation would last longer. If someone dug into its weaknesses and caused chaos everywhere, it could collapse.
"I need to decide what to do soon.... Right. I've decided. This time, let's just gather the necessary power and quietly observe the situation."
Watching how the world would change when the Abyss disappeared smoothly would make it easier to plan for the future.
While Shei was calculating in her head what would be needed to live quietly, a shadow with faint presence passed by her side. It was a being Shei knew well.
"...? Black Knights?"
Tirkanjaka's familiars. Without consciousness but faithful to orders, echoes of the old knights.
There wasn't just one. As numerous as the darkness that had descended upon the world, Black Knights advanced throughout all of Amitengrad.
Their purpose was probably....
"No hope of living quietly."
Hearing what sounded like her plans falling apart, Shei sighed.