EP.253 The Nation of Steel and the Faceless Humans - 2
In the Military Nation, no one can commit a crime. Not ordinary citizens, nor even high-ranking officers. It is the same even for the heads of holding companies.
If someone used their power and position to fill their own pockets, if they squeezed the blood of citizens without being part of the Military Nation to quench their thirst. On a night they sit on a cushion of money raising a toast, an uninvited guest arrives.
The Public Safety Department, the executioner of the Military Nation who commands the military police by authority.
When the Ark, Sieghrund visits, that is the end. All evidence has already been secured, and his status and wealth have already been annulled. Even the jackals who usually act like they've given up their livers and gallbladders tuck their tails and shrink back after receiving a warning from Public Safety.
They say a master's swordsmanship is so profound that the opponent doesn't even realize they've been cut. Something similar happens. By the time they notice the Public Safety Department is watching them, their limbs have already been severed.
Even if they try to resist in desperation, the opponent is a Six-Star General whose power and authority have reached the pinnacle. Even officers cannot stand against his blade. The only emotion permitted to the criminal is regret for committing a crime in the Military Nation.
However, there is one fact no one knows.
Before the Public Safety Department comes, the criminal had already received a visit from Sieghrund.
Though at that time, it probably wasn't Sieghrund's appearance.
Urged by the rush to get going, 'Carapald' guided us inside the refinery.
It was an enormous factory. The building's exterior walls were made of thick concrete, and pure white smoke spewed from the large chimney like a volcano. Despite being such a massive building, not a single window could be seen from the outside. Instead, only dozens of ventilation openings and one large steel door bleakly occupied the exterior wall. When the thick door opened, a sweltering heat rushed out from inside.
And the interior of the Alchemsteel Refinery was revealed.
"The Alchemsteel Refinery is a large facility that converts combustible alchemical substances into alchemsteel. Decomposition, classification, and refining processes. It's divided into these three stages. The decomposition process breaks down combustible alchemical substances through Di-alke, that is, structural transformation. In that process..."
'Carapald' explained knowledgeably to assert his usefulness, but his intention didn't get through. Everyone was horrified by the beyond-common-sense spectacle unfolding before their eyes.
Clank, clank.
Humans threaded on chains walk along the rails. With their left arms raised weakly above their shoulders, they follow wherever the hooks lead them.
Their faces hold neither expression nor vitality. Without even the leisure to turn their gaze to the unfamiliar intruders, they head to their designated positions. They stand before the rail where red-hot molten iron flows, struggling even to breathe.
Behind them, the chain is pulled with a clank. The end of that chain is connected to a biometric terminal. Like a fishhook piercing a fish's mouth, the hook hanging inside the biometric terminal controls the human body with pain that has become chronic.
"Ugh."
With a dry scream, the laborer, unable to resist the hook's force, reaches out their hand. Before them lies half-melted alchemsteel pig iron. Toward it, still steaming with hot vapor, the hook drags the laborer's hand like a tantruming child.
Only at this moment does the laborer hesitate. Instinct as a living being warns them not to approach the red-hot piece of iron. However.
"Aaaaargh!!"
The iron chain is pulled roughly as if threatening. The end of the hook, receiving force, bulges above the skin. Red wrinkles form on the pierced skin as it gets pushed. It seems to scream that human skin is fundamentally no different from clothing.
The laborer, unable to resist the force, has no choice but to reach out. Toward the melted steel whose density is different from fire.
The skin cooks. To resist the searing heat that would turn them into a lump of meat if left alone.
They must use alchemy.
"Set! Ri, di, di-alke! Di-alkkke...!"
—Screams created through such a horrific process echo from all directions. As many screams as needed to produce alchemsteel to supply the entire Military Nation.
Somewhere, it seems alchemy has failed. Along with a terrible scream, the smell of roasting meat spreads. The pure white steam rising from burning body fluids floats up to the top of the factory, looks back once at where it came from, then disappears far away into the unseen distance carried by the wind.
The Military Nation's worst labor camp that exploits... no, squeezes these people, with survival and pain as collateral.
The Alchemsteel Refinery shattered all the common sense built up until now, and was a blasphemy that mocked morality and justice atop its wreckage.
"...Th-th-this. It, it can't be."
The princess's reaction was late because it took that much time to understand this entire system. The princess trembled with horror and shuddering.
"H-how can they do this? These, these people, how great a crime did they commit? No, even if they did! This is!"
The regressor, relatively familiar with such sights, ended at just frowning.
"This is why I didn't want to come. Tch, it just ruins the mood."
[...Even the human farm my subjects ran wasn't this bad. Humans sometimes show a worse appearance than vampires.]
Since even Tir, a vampire, evaluates it like that, it goes without saying how harsh this atrocity is.
'When facing a novel sight, humans show new reactions. Humans are essentially like square boxes. Unseen boxes that show different reactions depending on what is poured in through their two eyes and two ears. Unless one is a god, they wouldn't know what's inside that dark box. But through sufficient observation, one can imitate it.'
Amidst all this, as if testing us all, 'Carapald' is observing the gathered humans' reactions.
'Reaction confirmed. Dangerous individual X, shows a sense of familiarity. Has he been to the refinery in the past? If so, that would explain his negative feelings toward the Military Nation. Progenitor Tirkanjaka, admiration...? Contempt? One thing is clear, having experienced worse battlefields than this, the magnitude of her reaction is small. And.'
After glancing at the regressor and Tir once. 'Carapald' showed clear interest in me.
"How about it, Huey?"
'The Pied Piper of Hamelin. What is your reaction?'
'Carapald' showed a sense of superiority about himself infiltrating such a dangerous place.
But that was strictly from the position of his role, acting to justify his actions. Inside, he is coldly watching me.
Why? There are so many dangerous people here right now, so why single me out to be wary of?
'Insufficient information. The power used, unspecified. According to Carapald's explanation, he was simply a brilliant student with no outstanding talents, but his record of taking first place over a Six-Star General and surviving Tantalus... If you're going to explain that away as simple, there's no fun in digging deeper.'
I guess I'm popular with strange beings too.
All information in the Military Nation passes through the Ark once. He has the right to view the signal corps' information first, and there's even a separate communications headquarters to assist him.
Because he's someone who gathers information like that, he ended up paying attention to me, who is virtually a dark zone of information.
'He even made the General betray the Military Nation, and made the Progenitor come out of her coffin. Is that really a coincidence, or is it your ability? Come now, show me, Piper. By what means you seduced such formidable experts. Just how important a role you're playing...'
Fine. If that's your intention.
I'll show you.
A completely different me from usual, that is.
"This crazy country... What do they think humans are?! How can they treat humans like insignificant tools?!"
As if outraged by human rights trampled under the name of the Military Nation, I raised my emotions and shouted.
The princess, who was feeling similar emotions, expressed agreement with my intent, but the regressor sent me a puzzled look instead.
"Huh? What's this, unlike you. Did you suddenly develop a sense of love for humanity?"
"There's a time for jokes and a time not to, how can you say that in this situation?! Shae, do you feel nothing after seeing all of this?!"
"Oh? No. I just. You're being emotional compared to usual..."
That's to deceive the Ark! Don't ruin it by sticking your nose in, just stay quiet!
'A sense of justice? Is the reason for rebelling against the Military Nation because of a petty sense of justice. Hmm. Looking at the dangerous individual's reaction, it's still uncertain. Shall I test a little more.'
'Carapald' cluelessly added a word as if unintentionally.
"Uh, this is actually the better part..."
An exquisitely calculated word. Something a careless 'Carapald' would say, yet a trap subtly dug.
I inwardly cheered. Digging a trap means he fully recognizes me as prey.
Then I must act like prey. I eagerly stepped into the trap he dug.
"Carapald, what does that mean? If this is the better part. What's next? What's there?"
"These people in charge of the decomposition work are relatively intellectuals. They learned formal magic and can do alchemy, so they were given a relatively comfortable task."
"Then what about the next process?"
When I asked, 'Carapald' answered casually.
"People who don't know alchemy at all are working in the next process."
A contradiction. Alchemsteel is a product of alchemy. How can someone who doesn't know alchemy refine alchemsteel?
But 'Carapald' stopped his explanation there. As if telling me to figure out the rest.
'He hasn't stood out in combat so far. Is he in an advisor role? Let's test his ability.'
Sorry, but that test. I've passed it all through cheating. As long as you know the answer, there's no question I don't know.
"Using alchemy without knowing how to use alchemy? That's impossible..."
It exists. Just one way, a way to use alchemy even without knowing how to use alchemy.
That thing every Military Nation citizen over the age of majority possesses. One of the Military Nation's Seven Great Inventions that manifests alchemy tailored to one's body when a clothing packet is inserted.
I already knew because I read his thoughts. Still, as if I had barely found the answer after much thought, I said the correct answer with an expression of disbelief at the answer that came to mind.
"Biometric terminal...?"
'Correct.'
"Using the human body as a mold, and pouring molten iron into it...?"
'To reason that far by gathering fragmentary information. It's hard to see him as a simple brilliant student. It would be right to consider him the advisor of this group.'
'Carapald' nodded, upwardly adjusting his evaluation of me.
"Tch, I knew it. I guess it was an easy problem for you, the top of the entire grade..."
Alchemy is a general term for the act of processing other substances and transforming them into useful substances. Nothing particularly special about it, all living things including humans are performing alchemy every moment.
Burning the food eaten to obtain heat, refining the residue into blood and flesh. Sewing it throughout the body.
Life is an entity that performs the world's most complex alchemical activity.
"Your answer is correct, Huey. Life is the first element of alchemy... Therefore, it's also possible to use life itself to perform alchemy."
If we pass through this door, there will be humans packed tightly like chickens in a coop. They will be tied with only their left arm with the biometric terminal stuck out beyond the iron bars, and red-hot molten iron will continuously seep into it.
Unlike here, not even a speck of freedom will be given. Because, they can work without any hindrance even without freedom.
I spat out a single phrase.
"Completely insane."
This was genuine.
This refinery was not made with malicious intent. Even if it results in causing pain to the laborers, that is merely a secondary factor.
The reason the Military Nation created this refinery was simply because it was necessary.
They need enough alchemical resources to fill the Military Nation to fatten this country, and the only way to produce alchemical resources is to overwork countless humans. The Military Nation exploits prisoners to produce alchemsteel.
I observed the laborer screaming in pain. The clothes they wore were clean, and despite their skin and hair falling out from stress, they had gained some flesh. The iron chains binding them were also clean without a speck of rust. Because if the laborer who must squeeze out magical power dies quickly, it's a loss for the Military Nation too.
There is no malice, corruption, or hatred there. Only cold reason drives humans into suffering.
I also understood why Carapald was able to infiltrate such an important facility. Even officers who are high-quality personnel wouldn't work as supervisors here if they were in their right minds, so they must have had to bring in outside personnel.
Then he got caught by the Ark and became 'Carapald'.
I shouted.
"Let's smash it right now!"