EP.233 The thought of destroying the militaristic nation had been all there was from the start.
They say even if you save someone from drowning, they'll ask for your bundle.
It's a saying meant to criticize the ungrateful, but when the drowning was of one's own volition, it could be seen as a just protest in some ways.
Siahti's case was exactly that. Even though Historia saved her life, Siahti poured out all her pent-up resentment onto Historia.
She cursed, she swore, she threw tantrums.
But the words that truly tore into Historia's heart were not the sharp barbs meant to wound, but a murmur filled with sincerity.
'Nikolas saw us as materials, and Lankart saw us as insects. In contrast... you, you saw us as losers. People with no talent, no effort, endlessly weak and inferior compared to you... defeated humans. Kek. The only one who ever even saw us as humans was you.'
They say those nearing death speak only the truth until their eyes close.
Siahti, who had tried to die and would have succeeded if not interrupted, spoke words that carried a deeply felt sincerity. Those sharp, piercing words, which she would never have dared to utter to her face under normal circumstances, stabbed into Historia.
'You know what? We truly despised Nikolas and Lankart. But that was it. We just had to avoid them if we ran into them, that's all. But with you, I didn't even want to be near you. Because when you were around, it felt like I had lost at life. Because with a hundred of us, we'd all still lose to you alone, and that felt so miserable.'
Historia, who had been frantically rescuing survivors, kept pulling out only corpses. Though Historia possessed power greater than all the students combined, there were so many things impossible even for her.
She couldn't stop the flowing river.
She couldn't hold onto the children who had given up on life.
In the murky river water where blurry human shadows flowed, she couldn't find that one boy.
The retrieved bodies piled up. Even some of the people helping her were sickened by the horror and could only stare. Watching a soaking wet Historia go back into the water, Siahti spat out a mouthful of water from deep inside her stomach and laughed maniacally.
'But still, compared to the others, you're an angel. At least you get hurt! At least you feel pain! I'm happier right now than at any other moment in my life to see you in agony! Because it means you're human, just like us! So more, more! I hope you hurt as much as we did, and regret it as much!'
And then she threw herself into the resistance. She sought to strike at the heart of the militaristic nation.
Even as a military officer stacking up extraordinary achievements, Historia could never capture Siahti when she appeared before her. No, she didn't capture her.
Because if she captured or killed her, one of the few survivors Historia saved that day would disappear. Because then there would be one less person to share the horror and grief of that day...
...In truth, she simply hadn't made up her mind.
And so, the issue she had delayed and delayed finally resurfaced right before Historia's eyes.
"Hyui. Amazing! Even at the resistance's greatest efforts, the best achievement was assassinating a general. But you captured a Six Star General! And alive, at that!"
The children who died in Hameln achieved their goal: to take revenge on the militaristic nation.
Nikolas died, the forbidden secrets were exposed. The daughter of the militaristic nation was consumed by remorse, and Lankart, who had been chosen as the successor to the Demon General, betrayed the nation. Siahti and a few other surviving children, burning with hatred, became the resistance.
And I...
"As expected, you're different! The Pied Piper who led us in Hameln!"
Siahti, laughing cheerfully, smiled at me familiarly and asked,
"So, have you been well?"
"Just, I've been well."
"You've been well? You've been... well?"
Normally, if you ask after a friend's well-being and they say they're fine, you'd be happy. But Siahti was abnormal in many ways. Her beaming expression suddenly twisted into something terrifying.
"How can you be well? Wasn't it you? Weren't you the one who suggested we jump into the river? Thanks to that, everyone willfully drowned themselves and died. You made people do that."
At this point, Siahti grabbed Historia's shoulder so hard with her prosthetic arm it seemed she might break it. Historia, who had deliberately not wrapped herself in any protective energy, let out a small groan as Siahti's fingers dug in.
Siahti, paying no mind to that reaction, tilted her head with a creaking sound.
"This isn't right. That the militaristic nation is twisted. That you made us sense the dissonance, wasn't it you? If you killed everyone, if you orchestrated all this, then at leeeeeast! You shouldn't be doing weeeell!"
"I never told anyone to die."
"Just because you never told them to die, does that mean their deaths never happened? Is the world a toy that bends to your will? Just because they died of their own accord even though you didn't tell them to, means you have no responsibility? Then whose responsibility is this messed-up world?"
After lashing out madly, Siahti let go of Historia and staggered toward me.
"No, Hyui. I, who had decided to die, lived. And the children who had decided to live, all died. That's how it was supposed to be, but we ended up like this. No, we were supposed to graduate, but everyone died! It's all twisted. The dying children cursed the militaristic nation, but this damn country still stands strong. Something, something is so wrong, don't you think? Then where did all those children's hearts go?"
Where did they go? Right here.
In you, in me, and in Historia.
"You, who survived because of their deaths... how can you be doing well?"
Because I... had to live an ordinary life. So I buried myself in the mundane and lived peacefully.
Those who live peacefully through today naturally wish for an unchanging tomorrow. Among the common folk content with small happiness, I lived each day faithfully, sketching out the same routine.
But.
In the tomorrow they envision, the people who died today are nowhere to be found.
This is why I wanted to live as a nobody.
"I can be well. The destruction of the militaristic nation isn't a goal I'm willing to stake my life on, unlike you."
"Hyuiiiii!!"
Just as Siahti was about to rampage, I continued softly.
"But if there's no need to stake my life... maybe I'd like to break it a little."
At that, Siahti's face lit up as if a light had been cast upon it. It was a dramatic change.
In contrast, Historia's expression grew darker by the second. In the end, she turned her head away again.
Siahti tapped my shoulders, delighted.
"Well, with an ally this powerful and having captured Historia, you've done everything you need to do! What you've accomplished is far greater than anything we've done! I trust you, Hyui!"
Then, suddenly, Siahti grabbed my ear and, at a distance where her breath touched my earlobe, whispered quietly.
"Historia is indecisive and has too many lingering attachments. Last time, even after seeing me plant bombs, she deliberately ignored me and just took the bombs, you know? I would too, but what about you? If you held her in your arms and whispered sweet words to her, she'd probably rip out her own liver and gallbladder to give to you. Kek. Try it soon! The more weapons we have to destroy the militaristic nation, the better, right?"
Chuckling, Siahti finally spotted Tir, who had been staring at her with an uncomfortable look. In that instant, Siahti's expression changed.
She swallowed the violent emotions smeared around her lips in a flash. Reason returned to her eyes, which had been gleaming with madness. Siahti's face took on a far more composed expression, and she bowed deeply and respectfully to Tir.
"I greet you for the first time, Progenitor Tircanzjaka. Though I am presumptuous, may this humble human speak a word to the great Progenitor?"
Tir gracefully accepted the greeting.
"You have my permission."
'This human knows some manners. Hmm. It's quite different from the attitude she showed Hyu just now.'
Once permission was granted, Siahti spoke, enunciating each word clearly and without emotion, as if reading a contract.
"My blood and flesh, my honor or my life. I shall offer all of it, so could you please bring about the destruction of the militaristic nation? If necessary, I will find other recompense as well."
But in truth, the only thing in her words was precisely calibrated fury.
"Siahti!"
The princess, who had only been observing from behind her guardian knight all this time, cried out in alarm. She even waved her hands, as if urging her to take it back right that instant.
Tir glanced at the princess before answering.
"I understand your intentions. I, too, have a record of intensely hating a kingdom and bringing about its destruction. However, as we have not come here alone, shouldn't you first speak with your comrades?"
Unlike with me, Siahti showed no blindly raging fury toward Tir. She accepted their reasonable opinion, bowed her head, and responded with extreme deference.
"I have been rude. I shall return shortly after conferring."
"That won't be necessary. For the moment, I'm simply following whatever Hyu wishes to do. Once the negotiations between you and that side are concluded, the path forward should become clear. Let us wait for that."
For a moment, Siahti's gaze flickered towards me. But it was only brief. Smiling as if that was sufficient, she politely bowed and withdrew.
The princess, with a feigned expression of anger, scolded Siahti.
"Siahti! How can you say such things thoughtlessly!"
"Sorry, princess. But it's the easiest way, isn't it?"
"Offering your blood, flesh, life, and honor! What use is it to destroy the militaristic nation if those who should enjoy the glory are dead? We are fighting for our comrades!"
"Enjoy the glory? That's a far too distant future. Foolish me doesn't quite get it."
"Siahti!"
The Last Princess and the First Resistance Fighter.
The two seemed quite accustomed to this kind of nagging exchange. Siahti, after handling each of the princess's complaints one by one, skillfully soothed her.
"Princess. Calm down. I won't, at the very least, let you die before me."
"Hoo. Siahti. What I mean is... No, let's talk about this later, as we are guests here."
'Why is everyone so quick to offer their lives, to dedicate their lives...! There's so much more you can do if you're alive, how irresponsible! Dummy! Idiot!'
Unable to quell her anger, the princess cursed 'severely' in her heart before resuming the greetings that had been postponed because of Siahti.
The princess took a small, deep breath.
She tidied her long, lush, light-pink hair and surveyed the room with eyes as clear and blue as a lake. The royal family's symbol was noble violet hair, but it was said that when calamity loomed, a successor with a light-pink tint would appear.
Though it may have been an ill omen for the royal family, it was a stroke of luck for the princess. Because the royal family had thoroughly hidden this fact, she had survived several life-threatening crises.
Though the kingdom had fallen, the royal bloodline seemed to remain, as she had a doll-like appearance that suited dresses perfectly. Yet she wore modest clothing—a packet shirt and a skirt—creating a sense of dissonance as if her neck and above were separate from the rest. At least the shawl draped over her shoulders lent her a minimal air of dignity.
Exuding the maximum grace she could muster amidst that dissonance, the princess smiled gently.
"Allow me to greet you again. I am Yerien. Yerien Grandiomore. The last surviving descendant of the Grandiomore Royal Family and the representative of the resistance."
A delicate, soft voice. Elegant gestures only the naturally born could possess. A shy smile.
A greeting that, for just a moment, made you forget the kingdom was gone.
Yet none of those present were surprised. Not only was there no shock, but it was rare for anyone to even show interest.
Well, I nodded after reading her thoughts.
'She was a princess. I've seen her often enough to know. She seems much gentler now than back then. Maybe because her guardian knight and friend are both alive?'
'So the kingdom fell, and the remnants of the restoration army are the last royal heir. A common tale.'
'...As expected. If I pass on this information... it means I'd be killing the remaining children with my own hands. Should I do it?'
None of them were surprised or overwhelmed by her royal status. They weren't even glad.
"Woof! Glad! Glad! Huh? You, king?"
...Not a single person was glad.
The princess, who had politely bowed to Aji in return, waited for the expected reaction... and, upon reading their indifferent gazes, realized something.
'Huh? Actually... Am I just average here?'
Disappointed by the lukewarm reception to the Last Princess, she, though she didn't show it, felt let down inwardly.
'Ah, I shouldn't be like this! I must be humble, humble! I'm just a mere resistance fighter! Let's not expect privileges just because I'm a princess!'
And then, disappointed at herself for being disappointed, she shook her head firmly and collected herself.