The loud clattering sound of Charlotte jumping out of her chair filled the room. Charlotte knew that Leonardo had died by the hand of Demon Prince Emergias. There was no way her Leonardo and Vigo’s were one and the same. Realizing the name had to be a coincidence, she quickly calmed down.
“I’m sorry. Please continue.”
“Over the course of the battle, the hero managed to wound Lord Zilbagias three times. So, as a reward, three of the slaves were permitted to live. And we are those three.”
Charlotte’s anger started to boil at the thought of such a barbaric “reward,” but it warred with sudden respect for this hero that had been capable of wounding Zilbagias of all people three times.
“This hero. What happened to him?”
“I was unconscious at the time, but according to Lord Zilbagias, his final act was to unleash an incredible magical blaze, incinerating himself in the process. The resulting burn wounds he gave His Highness counted toward securing our lives...” Vigo said with a steely expression. Vigo’s hands in his lap were balled into fists, turning his knuckles white. The other two showed similar signs of grief, biting their lips and closing their eyes.
This hero had used fire magic. Just like her Leo. He had the same name, and used the same magic? And by that explanation, it was clear the hero had exhausted everything he had. Though faintly, she was starting to understand...
“Um...Miss Charlotte, was it?” Vigo asked hesitantly, reminding Charlotte she had yet to introduce herself.
“Oh, my apologies. My name is Charlotte Vidwa.”
“Charlotte...Vidwa...?” Vigo echoed, the two men behind him sharing a surprised look.
“Light blonde hair, down to her shoulders...”
“Gentle purple eyes...?”
Dirilo and Organo stared at Charlotte as though they believed their eyes were playing tricks on them. That last questioning tone was likely due to how sharp her gaze had turned after the numerous hellscapes she had waded through.
“Um...Leonardo often talked about you. About a priestess named ‘Char’—” Vigo said hesitantly.
This time, Charlotte—no, Char’s chair was sent flying as she stood.
From that point on, the three men spoke of the hero Leonardo, and the fate of the skilled slaves kept in the Rage territory. The story of how a hero brought the light of hope to those who knew nothing else but life as livestock.
“He said he was defeated in battle against Lord Emergias, then taken alive.”
“He told us all about the outside world, something we’d never experienced for ourselves.”
“About the Alliance, about humanity, and...about the power of holy magic.”
Char was barely listening, her face white as a sheet. Emergias hadn’t killed Leo. Only Leo’s arm had been on that spear Emergias had thrown back at them. She had assumed that meant he was dead, but at that point, he had actually still been alive.
He’d fought a demon prince and had been taken alive, just like Char. Then he had been taken to the Rage family territory...where he’d fought Zilbagias, and died. The object of Char’s revenge was really Zilbagias, not Emergias. He was the one who actually took him from her...!
“Leo...!”
It felt like her whole body was set ablaze. Was it sadness? Anger? She couldn’t tell. But the fact that after being captured by the demonic kingdom he’d still fought to the bitter end and had been determined to protect the others held captive made her so proud... When Vigo mentioned how Leonardo had spoken so happily about Char all the time during training, her composure crumbled entirely.
“Leonardo said...he regretted that he never got to tell you...” The sight of Char openly sobbing in front of him caused Vigo to hesitate to finish his sentence, but he nevertheless soldiered on. “He said he should have told you that he loves you.”
Char’s breath got caught in her throat.
“Leonardo said that if he ever got a chance to see you again, he would definitely tell you. He really wanted to. But to do that, we’d have to defeat the demon prince. So he told us we all had to fight our hardest... He gave us so much courage.”
Vigo’s account sounded so much like Leo that Char couldn’t tell if she was laughing or crying anymore. But it did confirm one thing for her—the vision during her near-death experience of Leo hadn’t been some convenient delusion. That had been the real Leo. When he had shouted that he loved her with all his heart and soul, that had been the real him.
“Um...I’m sorry. Because of us...” Vigo and the two behind him hung their heads as they apologized while Char continued bawling her eyes out.
“No... Don’t apologize. Thank you for telling me your story.” Now she knew how he had actually died. She was grateful to these three for that.
Once he had gauged that Char had sufficiently calmed down, Sebastian began asking the three men numerous questions. Though the people of the autonomous zone had some semblance of contact with other members of the demonic kingdom, including Zilbagias himself, they hadn’t had anything along the lines of a serious conversation with them. The true nature of the demonic kingdom was still hidden behind a veil of mystery.
Being slaves, Vigo and the other two didn’t know all that much, but they did know some—for example, about the harsh truth behind the Rage family’s “healing.” Specifically, regarding the human livestock that were raised and used as body doubles for Transposition. The whole story made both Char’s and Sebastian’s blood run cold. If the autonomous zone project was terminated, such a fate would await the people of Evaloti. If for no other reason, they needed to defend the existence of Evaloti with their lives.
And knowing all that, the demon prince had demanded that they rebel.
Zilbagias...! Char’s teeth clenched hard.
“From your experience...what is Prince Zilbagias like?” Sebastian posed the question upon hearing about the weekly conversations the three men had with him. Each of them gave Char an awkward glance before speaking.
“You may think we are crazy after he tried to kill us, but...” Vigo started with that preface, “personally, I found him to be...quite a gentle person.”
Both Char’s and Sebastian’s jaws hit the floor simultaneously. Gentle? What about him was gentle? The vivid memory of his performance back during their first meeting had been burned into their minds. How could that mad prince even have a gentle bone in his body?
“On the battlefield, he was as merciless as a devil. But afterward, when he took ownership of us...how do I put this...”
“He was quite...kind,” Organo murmured as Vigo found himself at a loss.
“Yes. Kind. Especially compared to everyone else. It was like...he was the only one that treated us like people, not as slaves.”
“Every time he visited us, he would ask if we had any complaints or requests. We thought it was a trap at first, but nothing like that happened. One time we asked if we could be allowed to take walks. Naturally, we assumed he would turn us down. But to our surprise, he immediately gave us permission to do so.”
“Every once in a while, he would request us to do some work. But thinking back on it, he probably wanted to give us something to do so we didn’t die of boredom...” Dirilo said, stroking the hammer and chisel on his belt.