By Zephyria =======
“Um, Uncle. Have you experienced something like this before? Is this actually some kind of illusion or hypnosis cast by a mage…?”
“Interesting hypothesis. Well, I’ll just say I wish it were actually that.”
Responding ambiguously, Black Weasel grabbed Silver’s shoulders with both hands and whispered.
「Silver. Are you back with us now? Listen carefully. We might actually survive this.」
「What kind of bullshit is that? Like the Attendant said, we’re dead.」
「Good, you’re back. Listen, kid, I’m doing this because I have a plan. This dog-shit situation is fucking similar to a story I overheard from someone a long time ago.」
「What?」
Silver’s eyes widened. Wolf, who had been watching them, unconsciously leaned forward. Those two seemed to be having an important conversation.
Damn it, say it in the Atania language! Don’t keep it between yourselves again!
It seemed he had noticed Wolf’s gaze. Black Weasel leaned his head closer to Silver’s ear.
「Silver, the Attendant is staring because you’re acting so surprised. From now on, just listen quietly. Don’t make a mistake.」
Black Weasel’s tone became extremely low. Wolf was certain his suspicion was correct. They were sharing information among themselves. What is it? Damn it, what is it!
「It happened a long time ago. I had stopped by a river port dock while wandering alone. Some guy caught my eye.」
Black Weasel continued to whisper into Silver’s ear. Silver stared only at his own toes.
「At first glance, he was a genuine lunatic. He was sprawled out on the street, unable to mingle with the rabble, rambling to himself—it felt strangely familiar. After observing him for a while, I recognized him. He was from a tribe I had visited before. A small tribe tucked away in the middle of nowhere; the lunatic was the blacksmith who had sharpened my old axes. I was very surprised.」
「What’s there to be surprised about? There are plenty of guys who get kicked out of their tribes for causing trouble.」
「Because he wasn’t the type to be kicked out. He was too skilled to be stuck in a place like that, and he was treated with great respect in that tribe. Even so, he was exiled; I became curious about how big of a mess he must have made.」
Black Weasel stopped talking and let out a chuckle. Wolf gripped the hem of his robe so tightly that his fingertips turned white. If the human brain were a piece of parchment that could be spread open and read, he would have lunged forward to split Black Weasel’s head in two by now.
「I put a few coins in his palm and asked him. I asked if he’d been caught raping some young, pretty priestess. The blacksmith rambled like someone who had been trapped on a shipwreck for half a year drinking nothing but booze. Do you know the only words I managed to understand?」
Black Weasel added after a pause.
「A skeleton monster with the face of a girl.」
「…….」
「At the time, I just brushed it off, wondering what he was talking about. But now it’s clear. That blacksmith went through the same thing we are.」
「And I’m supposed to… so, you happened to meet someone in the past who was victimized by a skeleton monster?」
Silver shot a sharp glance at Black Weasel.
「Do you want to believe, like the Attendant, that we’ve all fallen into some collective hallucination cast by some mage? Shut up. You’ve just invented a fictional blacksmith. You’re going crazy because you can’t accept the reality that we’ve suddenly died. Just accept it, you brat. We’re fucked.」
「The point is this. The blacksmith was fucked just like us. But somehow, he returned to the human world. If he did it, we can too. Except we’ll live a long, healthy life. How’s my plan?」
「What fucking pla… ah, this guy is going to make me lose my mind too. Anyway, why did you call the Prince and the Attendant?」
Silver’s gaze swept over Wolf and Red Eagle. Thanks to paying close attention whenever the assassin and his assistant spoke in the Stohl language, Wolf suddenly realized. The words ‘Ebony’ and ‘Gnit’ that appeared occasionally in their conversation. The way they would habitually glance this way whenever they uttered those words.
They mean the Prince and the Attendant!
「Those guys stabbed us in the back three times. They’re clever bastards. The more disadvantageous the war, the more you need superior warriors.」
「What warriors? Are you joking? Maybe the Attendant, but the Prince…」
The names ‘Ebony’ and ‘Gnit’ came out of Silver’s mouth again.
「Let’s call them superior adjutants. Here, we’ll need cunning more than fighting skills. While the blacksmith was sharpening the axes, I didn’t have much to do, so I threw various questions at him. The blacksmith was a cautious and perceptive man. He was exactly like that Attendant.」
This time, ‘Gnit’ came from Black Weasel’s mouth.
「The reason a blacksmith who couldn’t even fight was able to escape from here. There are two reasons. Either he was incredibly lucky, or he was incredibly cunning. Well, maybe both. Regardless, there’s nothing to lose by keeping the Prince and the Attendant by our side in this situation.」
「Is it really necessary? I told you to stop the nonsense.」
「Anyway, the story about the blacksmith is a secret. Let’s keep this plan between us.」
「Ah, that… forget it. Never mind.」
At some point, Wolf’s gaze was caught by Silver’s hands. He was gripping Black Weasel’s clothes tightly with both hands. Those hands, which had heartlessly killed four people in front of Wolf, were now trembling weakly as they clung to Black Weasel’s clothes. As if the stained and worn fabric were the only rope that could pull him out of this hell. Even though the owner of those clothes was the man who had murdered Silver’s own mother.
Only then did Wolf realize the solid wall standing between those two and himself. The name of that wall was time.
‘I’ve spent eleven years with that guy, so believe me.’
He had wondered if Silver was enduring his time beside Black Weasel with the intention of one day taking revenge… but that wasn’t it.
Now he could see Silver’s heart. To Silver, Black Weasel was a companion who had walked the path of adventure with him for a long time and a guardian who had raised him. Silver lost his mother at the age of six. They say that if something is out of sight, it is forgotten. Even Wolf himself would hesitate and stammer if asked to recall any memory of the mother he lost at age nine.
Memories were like portraits. Portraits painted with cheap pigments that faded quickly. Only the sense of victimhood born from his mother’s favoritism toward Red Eagle remained vivid, like a fresh bruise; other memories grew blurrier as time passed. Even that sense of victimhood had faded while traveling with Red Eagle. Silver must be similar. While living with Black Weasel, wouldn’t his hatred have implicitly dimmed?
Strangely, Wolf fell into a sudden reminiscence. A hot summer day when he couldn’t take his eyes off the door even while suffering from a high fever. A firmly closed door. The footsteps of his mother that never eventually came.
Why am I doing this? I’m suddenly remembering things that are all in the past.
Wolf bit his lip hard. The moment a metallic scent of blood lingered on the tip of his tongue, the scene before his eyes suddenly brightened.
“Ugh…”
The light felt as if it had turned into tens of thousands of needles stabbing into his pupils. Screams erupted from all around. Wolf instinctively squeezed his eyes shut. He endured it for a few seconds and then slowly opened them.
His vision, which had been out of focus, gradually became clear. Through the scattering light, he could faintly see Silver and Black Weasel. The assassin and his assistant were looking up into the air with their mouths agape.
Following their gaze instinctively, Wolf gasped. A monster dog with three heads. ‘It’ was sitting on its back, looking down. A skeleton monster with the face of a girl, and brazenly wearing a black skirt. It rested its chin on one hand, with its legs crossed.
The monster’s mouth moved.
〔Execute.〕
* * *
What is it saying?
Wolf looked at the monster, bewildered. This was because the words that came from the monster’s mouth were in the Stohl language. A person from Atania could not understand it.
Furthermore, it was the voice of a young woman, which did not match the childlike face. It was also strange that it sounded as clear as if it were being spoken directly into his ear.
Wolf glanced at Black Weasel, Silver, and Red Eagle. The assassin and his assistant were staring at the monster with complete focus. Red Eagle was trembling violently, covering his ears with both hands.
That voice… everyone heard it.
38 – Hell Execution Order