༺ S1.5. A 400 Kilometers Escape Journey – 4 ༻
Tower Master Yuna had rarely been so surprised in her life. Who wouldn’t be shocked if a completed Fireball suddenly said, ‘Hello, Creator. I am about to explode. It’s been a short life but a pleasant one.’?
Through the lens of her seasoned experience as an Archwizard, it seemed like the unintended synergy of self-acting artificial intelligence and the faith-based power source of the Casted had been unleashed.
He had probably not intended for this. After all, if he had, Yuna would have been informed beforehand.
“What on earth have you created……?!”
Yuna shrieked, staring towards the campfire. They were quite far apart, so the conversation between the two people was heard only as a small vibration, but both Yuna and Pero were well aware of what was being discussed.
Before anything, communication was necessary. To Yuna, it seemed that she and Pero were heading in the same direction; the Happy Ending of this story. Being able to communicate with each other would be a great help.
She had to listen to the boy’s heart; both what he wanted and how he wished to conclude this story.
===============================================================
The campfire was flickering.
After Pero walked into the darkness, Learo erased the grin from his face. The remnants of anger swirled in his eyes.
After burning everything built upon his heart, only embers remained in the ashes.
Learo confessed honestly.
“This is petty revenge.”
“…..Against whom?”
“Against Espero. In the end…… I know this entire story is meaningless. Raising my voice in condemnation will not bring back my ruined hometown. And if you ask me whether it was truly Espero’s doing, I would respond that it probably wasn’t.”
Learo’s gaze lowered. His hair tilted, casting an ash-gray curtain over his eyes. His once lively voice completely quieted down.
“Moreover…… I know this story might not mean much to you. It is merely someone else’s tragedy.”
“Then why are you telling me this story? Learo.”
“Espero seemed quite happy. I…..don’t hate him enough to stab him to death, but I am not noble enough to just watch him live out his life happily. I wanted to at least spit on his image.”
Elaine frowned at the subtle repulsion she felt. So, she asked.
“Is there a reason why I need to hear this story?”
“I knew you would ask that. However, this story concludes with ‘the reason why having Espero as a companion is dangerous’. I am sure you would now want to assess the danger that comes with the boy…… Lady.”
“⋯⋯⋯⋯.”
Elaine, bound by the value of survival, could not deny Learo’s words. Despite the slight discomfort she felt in her mind, she mechanically nodded.
This was what she had continued to do all along.
Elaine, while fondly tolerating the boy’s unavoidable moments of physical contact, had been keeping her heart distant and maintaining her suspicions. Pure innocence was rare in this world, even more so in a world on the brink of destruction.
The boy who gazed at her with pure eyes might harbor evil intentions. The short time of happy laughter might be a burden that eventually needed to be cut off.
“Espero has the power of healing. He was kind to the guests visiting our village. Thanks to him, the news of a boy with healing powers spread fast…… And it reached the ears of dangerous people as well.”
“⋯⋯⋯⋯.”
It seemed that the destruction of Pero and Learo’s hometown was due to plunderers targeting the boy’s power. Those who died in the ‘Plain of Meetings’ that Pero had mentioned were probably from their hometown.
One question had been answered. How had the little boy survived? It was because he had a power of healing that everyone desired.
“That is the first reason. Even after Espero fled beyond the wastelands, many still continued to search for him. Why he returned now, I do not know. But if you continue to travel together…… You will definitely catch their eye.”
There was yet another reason to cut the boy off.
The scale tipped.
A gem, in the hands of those without the power to protect it, brought great trouble. If they were a group that had survived even against Variants, they must have considerable combat power. If they were mediocre, Elaine could wipe them out, but one must always consider the ‘What ifs’.
What if she faced an opponent she could not handle…..
No. No.
Elaine shook her head slightly. If the boy used his healing powers for her, the group chasing him might not be as threatening as they seemed. Additionally, she could receive his help in various dangerous situations.
She picked up the reasons not to abandon Pero, the boy’s utility, and placed it on the other side of the scale.
Learo smiled inscrutably. And once again, he opened his mouth.
===============================================================
The boy’s story had to be heard.
But in this situation, effective communication was impossible. If that was the case, magic could solve it.
The Archwizard dwelling in the boy’s body stretched out her hand into the air. Just like in the session that highlighted the modern era, the only abilities she was able to use were Pero’s abilities due to the Illusion Magic’s constraints, but that was not important.
The format of the magic she drew was Telepathy. By connecting her own and Pero’s consciousness, she planned to converse without any waste in time.
Nothing had changed. If she firmly believes, she could achieve it. Yuna was a Master of Illusion Magic, as well as the Purple Magic Tower Master, and this was just Illusion Mag──
……If it could think and it could talk, then wasn’t it not Illusion Magic?
Poof.
“Kyah!”
The magic failed because of the inner demons that had suddenly found her. A purple light burst momentarily and then disappeared. Yuna internally cursed her disciple for a moment, before successfully casting the spell. The minds of the body and the Archwizards were connected.
⋯⋯⋯⋯.
“Um, H-Hi? Nice to meet you. I’m Yuna….. Eung? Who are we? Uh, about that, um… I don’t think it would be good for you to think about that right now…..”
⋯⋯⋯⋯⋯⋯!
“Eung? Ah, yeah…… Eung! That’s right, I-I’m the Variant that entered when you drank that water……. Ah, no, no! Don’t cry! You don’t have to cry…… I’m a kind Variant! Eung….. I’ll leave on my own after a bit, so… No, I’m not saying I’ll split your skull open to get out……!”
===============================================================
“How do you think I managed to encounter you in this vast ‘Plain of Meetings’? By chance?”
“⋯⋯⋯⋯.”
“I came chasing by following the trail of a Giant Variant. Usually, it would have stepped into the ‘Plain of Meetings’, after all…… I thought I had to find out the cause. If the ecology had changed, I’d have to be careful in the future.”
Learo took out a shattered sphere from his bag. It was the bait that Pero took out of his bag and that Elaine kicked to ward off the Giant Variant.
“From there…… I found this bad. It was used in our hometown. Seeing this shell, I thought Espero had returned. After all, on the day our hometown was ruined, Espero and I each took one and fled.”
“I am fairly certain we were talking about dangers, weren’t we?”
“This is not an unrelated story.”
Learo stepped on the sphere and cut it in half with a knife. Inside was something white. Something unlike any animal she had seen before. If one tried to find the closest resemblance, it would be a bug.
“It’s a Variant’s baby. If this…..enters an animal’s body, it infests the brain. And then it mutates them into a strange appearance. That is their way of reproducing…… During the early stages of infestation, one would hear hallucinations, see illusions. In the later stages, one would not even be able to control their own body.”
“⋯⋯⋯⋯.”
“Variants have another habit. They tend to protect their offspring that haven’t fully matured. As if they have some kind of maternal instinct even with that appearance….. This bait exploits that behavior of the Variants.”
Elaine flinched, before shuddering.
The Giant Variant had appeared out of nowhere, doggedly pursuing their party. If Learo’s words were true, it was highly likely that it was chasing after this Variant larva.
Then, did that mean they were pursued because of Pero’s bait?
That did not seem to be the case. Although Pero was fragile, he was not stupid. She remembered the bait being meticulously sealed in cloth. During the process of Elaine kicking it away, the cloth had ripped.
The cloth surrounding the bait acted as a barrier. That was a logical deduction.
“…..Why did you think you were pursued?”
Learo asked. It was not really a question, but a prompt for self-realization to the person listening. Elaine had an answer; it was because someone was infected by the Variant larva.
It couldn’t be Elaine. She had only been in this unfamiliar world for five days. Moreover, she had not even felt a hint of any symptoms.
That left only one possibility; Pero was infected.
Pero was someone who had fled from his assaulted hometown, before returning after a long journey by the guide of a compass. As such, it would not be strange if he got infected at some point in time. But what if…
A memory flashed in Elaine’s mind, of Pero drinking from a contaminated puddle. What if that puddle had housed a Variant larva……
If so, that would mean she had led Pero to his death.
Elaine covered her trembling hands.
“That is the second reason. It is highly probable that Espero is infected. If you travel together, all the nearby Variants will gather. The risk is too great to bear, even for the sake of his healing powers…… No matter how strong you are, you will die.”
Another reason to cut the boy off was added.
The scale tipped.
Considering the Giant Variant’s assault, Learo’s words likely held truth. If all nearby Variants pursued Elaine, she would eventually become exhausted. Then, death would follow.
While the boy’s plight was pitiable, Elaine had to survive.
The old Emperor’s expectation that practically pleaded for her to survive. Her duty to become a pillar that would support the Empire. She had lived for such things. She broke through obstacles, eliminated rivals, and wielded her fist for an imperial throne she never desired for those very things.
Initially it was out of responsibility, then fear, and now, it was the inertia that continued to drive her forward.
So, even if── the boy’s tragedy was due to her mistake, she could not waver.
No, but still.
Elaine clenched her hair. Nothing was certain. It was all circumstantial evidence, thus the Giant Variant might just have been a coincidence. She could not rule out the possibility of Learo lying for revenge.
She placed the scorching guilt that stuck onto her and the clumsy self-deception on the other side of the scale.
Learo whispered.
“Wasn’t it just a fleeting connection made not long ago, Elaine? If you felt some positive emotion, it is probably just a delusion. Even if you did, it loses its meaning in the face of survival. In the first place, perhaps even that tiny bit of affection……was just Espero wagging his tail to borrow your strength. And if you are still agonizing over your own uncertainties…”
He pointed with his bony finger beyond the campfire.
“Just look at Espero.”
===============================================================
The boy said he liked Elaine.
When the Archwizard asked why, the boy said he saw something similar in her eyes. The gaze of a runaway. Someone lost and directionless, only running for the sake of running.
The boy said he felt the same. That after losing his hometown, he ran away, wandering in unfamiliar places, just living for the sake of living. That the journey towards ‘Paradise’ with the compass from the old woman was merely a part of his wandering.
He said he didn’t have something he truly wanted to do, a dream that made his heart race.
He said Elaine seemed the same. He said though he did not know what ‘Paradise’ meant for her…… What he did know was that she was just blindly pursuing something. He said the feeling of finding someone similar, that sense of belonging, in the vast wastelands was truly a joy to him.
Then, at last…… A wish had formed.
“I wanted to…convey…….my feelings.”
The boy confessed shyly.
He said he was afraid that if Elaine knew about his healing ability, she might look at him with greedy eyes like the plunderers who attacked his hometown. So, he hid it.
He said he was afraid to confess during the journey, worrying it might burden Elaine, or she might reject him. So, he hid it.
He had not planned to delay it forever.
Once they found ‘Paradise’, ensured their survival, and had nothing more to worry about….. Wouldn’t it be okay to confess then? That was what the boy thought.
“That’s way too late!”
The boy, chided by the Archwizard, smiled awkwardly.
“I didn’t expect to be on borrowed time. I didn’t know Variant larvae could hide even in slime, but it seems I’ve learned that now…..”
“I-I told you I’m not going to crack your skull open!”
“B-But still, um…….Esteemed……Variant Larva? You can’t just stop it because you want to, can you…….?”
“I-I’m a genius larva, so it’s possible! Just release me in a roadside puddle, so don’t worry and just focus on conveying your feelings!”
“……I’m somehow a bit happy. It seems Humans are capable of being friendly with even Variants.”
Misunderstood as a Variant larva, the Archwizard ruffled the boy’s hair. It would have been nice to talk more and clear up some misunderstandings. But there was no time.
Wasn’t the malicious wizard pouring all sorts of slander into the ears of the Princess?
The Archwizard and the boy agreed they had to move. After some trial and error, such as moving the right arm and leg simultaneously or trying to move the left and right leg at the same time and ending up jumping, Pero (Yuna) walked towards the campfire.
For the sake of conveying his feelings before it was too late.
===============================================================
At the spot pointed out by Learo’s finger, there was Pero, unmistakably staggering, unable to control his own body. Pero called out with an awkward smile.
“……Elaine!”
“Pero……”
It was the undeniable traces of infection.
Elaine’s pupils trembled. Guilt surged all the way up to her throat, stifling her breath. The old Emperor’s voice echoed in her ears. One stark fact shook her mind.
Pero was infected and would soon turn into a Variant, thus attracting nearby Variants and causing a disaster.
Even if he didn’t mutate, as long as he had his healing abilities, he would be a target for plunderers.
He was danger incarnate, merely wearing the skin of a human.
……Just like how ‘he’ was in the past.
===============================================================
Using the trauma as a trigger, I immersed myself deeply. The narration dug in deep.
===============================================================
Elaine── You remembered the days at the Pagoda Palace.
The starting point of your obsession with survival.
In that place lived four Imperial Descendants.
First Princess Elaine.
Second Prince Irid.
Third Prince Sledo.
And First Prince ▒▒▒⋯⋯.
