“Have you considered employing a skilled Terolish speaker and having them act as your stand-in?”
A substitute wouldn’t have any connection to me, so eventually, only people with relevant questions would show up.
“I couldn’t cause someone so much trouble,” Ms. Ether said.
“I’m sure they won’t mind if they’re being paid for it. Most members of witch families lost their jobs, so you’d be helping them out.”
“That does make sense. Yes, you might be right.”
I was relieved that she’d accepted the suggestion.
“The school can pay for it,” I said. “Why not ask all of your promising students to work as teachers? That way, any Cultural Academy student with enough time on their hands can start learning Terolish.”
If the school was closed, then teaching the students skills needed for a new career wasn’t a bad idea. At the very least, Terolish lessons would be a better use of time than loitering around outside Ms. Ether’s office.
“Oh? B-But...”
“It won’t cause trouble. It’s what people need.”
We could never have too many Terolish speakers. The more we had, the smoother our relations with the Kulati might become.
“Then it’s decided. The course text can be your holy book.”
It would teach them foreign culture while providing the necessary understanding of Yeesusism—two birds with one stone.
“Hm... Are you sure?”
“Yes. It’s not like Ancient Shanish is going to be of any use now.”
“Oh. You’re right, I’m sorry.” For some reason, Ms. Ether lowered her head. It was as if she’d thought I was making a jab at her. “The coming crusade and your parents...when it comes down to it, it’s all because of my people.”
“Please don’t say things like that. You had nothing to do with it.”
“But...”
That was when it hit me that the people around her must’ve been putting weird notions into her head. Since she was a Kulati, it was only natural that Shanti would blame her for the situation we’d found ourselves in.
Unfortunately, I couldn’t do anything to fight those attitudes, and I hated myself for considering such hatred toward her natural. If I were to declare that the Kulati were just like us during a time when war was on the horizon, there would be a significant decrease in morale.
“I’m sure you’ll hear people say that sort of thing given your background, but you should just ignore them. When the war starts, you’ll be no better off than the rest of us,” I told her.
“But one of my people betrayed you. I heard about Luke Moretto.”
“Oh, him.”
He’d been useful to us.
“Sorry,” Ms. Ether said. “He accepted the kingdom’s offer of shelter, yet...”
I’d recently learned that he’d signed a contract that said he’d be given refuge in our kingdom. In exchange, he was to never act against the interests of Shanti nations. He’d violated that contract. He would’ve been sentenced to death for abetting foreign enemies even if he hadn’t signed anything, but Ms. Ether probably saw the violation as a betrayal of trust.
“You’re not Luke Moretto. You don’t have to feel bad for what he did.”
“He was from the Papal State too. Unlike me, he struggled to fit in here. He said he wanted to return to his hometown of Aholnakat. He wasn’t a bad person at heart.”
“Is that right? Well, it’s too late for him now.”
“What happened to him?”
“To put it simply, you’re better off not knowing.”
“Please tell me. I’ve seen enough terrible, horrific things to last a lifetime. I can handle it.”
“Let’s just say that his body’s in such a state that it’ll be impossible for him to find any more enjoyment in life.”
Even I was surprised by the horrible nature of the royal swords’ torture methods. A good understanding of the human body was required to make someone suffer in the way he had. Though his life had been spared so far, killing him would’ve actually been an act of mercy.
Ms. Ether sighed at the misfortune that filled our world. “Oh...”
“He didn’t know much. He was just a go-between, though he knew a lot about the state of the royal capital as well as the names of many important figures.”
Naturally, he would’ve known that Ms. Ether was an exile here, working as a teacher.
“I know his crimes can’t be excused, but it makes me so sad. He had no hate for anyone. He was just an ordinary man,” Ms. Ether said.
“I’ve killed many people, but I think an incredibly small number of them were truly evil to their core. Luke Moretto may be a good man, but I’ll be killing him all the same. In exchange, I’m giving up my own right to complain when I’m killed. I’m no different from him.”
When one person took something from another, they didn’t do so through persuasion. It was incredibly rare that someone could be talked into giving up everything they owned. Killing proved easier than persuasion, so what a thief needed was the power to steal by force. And as a general rule, it was easier to rob than create. It meant those with the power to fight and kill were far better off murdering someone and taking their home than working for a decade to build a home of their own.
Within lawful nations, perpetrators of such behavior were arrested and imprisoned—perhaps even executed—to maintain a state of peace. However, while people could gather into separate nations to punish theft by individuals, they wouldn’t gather into one big supernation. There weren’t any laws to govern the interaction between one country and another. International affairs were anarchy. When one nation stole land from another and settled their people there, they did so with impunity. There was no way to punish such acts. The very nature of the world made the principle of “kill or be killed” unavoidable.
“I see... But you look so sad, Yuri. It’s proof of the toll it all takes on your human heart.”
“Maybe.”
“Even in the recent battle, you tried to keep the casualties down to a minimum, didn’t you?”
I had, but only because a crusade force was on the way. I’d been ready to slaughter everyone from a witch family, even students of the Cultural Academy. Although I’d found an alternative, I’d been entirely serious about my intentions. If the grand witches hadn’t taken my offer, I would’ve gone through with it.
“Well...war itself is barbaric. In fact, I’m sure your opinion of me would fall if I told you how I’m going to defeat the coming crusade,” I said.
I was planning on doing something so horrible that it wouldn’t even occur to someone like Ms. Ether. The enemy called me a demon, and perhaps they were right. I was willing to do things only a demon would do if that’s what it took to stop their brutal conquest.
“My opinion won’t change. There’s nothing you could do to make me think ill of you, Yuri.”
That was an unexpected thing to hear from Ms. Ether.
“Oh, I think there is.”
“Please tell me. I won’t tell another soul. I swear to God.”
“Why do you want to know? It can’t bring you anything other than pain.”
She wouldn’t be a sacrifice in the upcoming war. When all was said and done, Ms. Ether would be able to live peacefully in the safe environment I’d created, and she’d have no reason to feel guilty.
“I just want to know what you’re trying to do,” she said. “I might even be able to advise you.”
“Well, okay. You’ll find out eventually anyway.” Since she’d sworn to her god, I knew there was no way she’d go back on her word. “Let me explain.”
✧✧✧
“You can’t be serious.” As expected, Ms. Ether put her hand to her mouth, at a loss for words.
“Now you can stop worrying about your connection to the aggressors. Our side is going to be just as cruel.”
It would be tit for tat. The enemy had already given up their right to complain.
“Yuri...forget about me. My biggest worry is for your heart. It might not be able to bear such a burden.”
“Why? It won’t bother me at all.”
Just a short while ago, I’d cut open a man’s throat to end his life before calmly heading off to take care of other business. In another era, I might’ve been labeled a psychopath.
“You’re capable of imagining the pain that others feel, and you don’t turn to look away. That’s why I worry.”
“I’ll be fine. I’m not as sensitive as you think.”
“If you ever join my faith, even the heaviest of sins can be forgiven—though I doubt that will give you any solace.”
It was an unexpected suggestion. All I had to do was atone for my sins and accept God’s forgiveness, and it’d be like I’d done nothing wrong. It was an awfully convenient system—to be honest, it just sounded like a farce to me.
“Sorry to disappoint, but I’d rather not.”
“I thought so. Then can I at least...?”
Ms. Ether stood up, walked over, knelt before me, and took one of my hands in hers.
I felt the warmth of her body through her hands. It felt a little uncomfortable to look down on her like this.
Ms. Ether stared at her clasped hands while reciting some sort of chant. Before long, she stopped.
“Yuri,” she said while looking up at me. “Please don’t bear it all by yourself. There are many people around you.”
“My sins are mine to bear.”
“I’ll forgive you. My opinion of you won’t fall. To acknowledge our sins as we commit them and to endure suffering is only human. You are only human, Yuri. There is no one alive who hasn’t sinned.”
Ms. Ether was talking more like a clergy member today than ever before.
“That’s not going to bring much solace to the people I’ve killed.”
The witches I’d burned alive, scum though they might’ve been, had probably been good mothers despite running strict households. It had to be true of some of them, at least.
Ms. Ether continued to grip my hand as she spoke. “I forgive you. Not in the name of Lord Yeesus, but personally. Please, always remember that.”
It was as though her words had lifted a weight off me, but that feeling only made me hate myself. It wasn’t right.
“Okay... I understand. I’ll remember.”
With mixed feelings, I softly pulled my hand away, causing Ms. Ether to release her grip.
I stood up and said, “I’m afraid I’ll have to go now. I have other business to attend to.”
I had to head north to fight another battle.
Ms. Ether stood and bowed her head. “I pray that victory awaits you.”