Chapter 219

Prohellya Butchersky crumpled the notice delivered from the Holy See and slammed it onto the floor as soon as she finished reading it. “This can’t be good,” Leona said without a hint of tension in her voice, watching from the side. “Can’t believe they caught Terakomari. And wasn’t Spica La Gemini the boss of Inverse Moon? Why is she in the Netherworld? And this public execution… Are you telling me they decided this at the World Peace Council?” “Right! What about the lemurs we sent to the Council?!” “We got a letter from them just now. They’re having fun in the Lehysian hot springs before coming back.” “………Anything about the Council?” “Nothing. I’m not sure they even attended.” “I should’ve gone myself!!” Prohellya yelled, clutching her hair. No, wait. Powapowa isn’t the only kingdom we’ve conquered. There’s still Ukai and Mito. No, I can’t wait for their reports. Better take action now. “What a surprise… Who would’ve thought a kingdom by the name of Powapowa would be so unserious? Where’s their powapower? The officials nap and fight over fruit all the time…” “I wonder why the animals deliver bananas every day. Maybe they thought they should since you became the king, Prohellya?” “It’s animal instinct to revere the strong. But they should give the bananas to the people in hunger, not me.” “But they’re so tasty. Powapowa bananas are famous all over the Netherworld!” “Stop eating!” “Ow!” Prohellya flicked Leona’s forehead, then crossed her arms. After conquering this country, she realized how immature the Netherworld was. Their government structure was outdated, there was no magic culture, and that was only scratching the surface. The people were mentally juvenile. Being as scheming as the General Secretary couldn’t be good for your health, but being this unserious would leave the world seriously messed up. If nothing changed, these wars would go on forever. Spica La Gemini aside, killing Terakomari Gandesblood would plunge the Netherworld into even more chaos. A war between the worlds could begin. That was the problem—there were too many people who didn’t consider that possibility. Was the fool who’d come up with this public execution planning to destroy the border between worlds? “Let’s go, Leona. We’re mobilizing the Powapowa army. Get in touch with Ukai and Mito, too.” “Yeah. Wouldn’t feel good if Terakomari died.” “This isn’t about feeling good or bad. I just want to save as many people as possible.” “You’re not worried about Terakomari at all?” “Hmph.” Prohellya grabbed the gun that was leaning against her seat. She couldn’t use magic, but she had Core Implosion. And—although they weren’t too reliable—she had a bunch of animals on her side. “We don’t need to worry about Terakomari. Her heart can overcome any adversity. I only rise in arms for the people.” The Holy Lehysian Empire’s high-security prison—the place where they kept heretics and apostates who had been sentenced to death. We had fallen into the clutches of Observatory’s Fool, Liu Luxmio, and were now behind bars. “…Is it over for us?” I asked. “Waving Moment can’t help us here. We’re on the path to public execution as it stands,” said Karla. “Do you think it’ll hurt?” “I’d imagine. It would kill us, after all.” “AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHH!!” “Calm down, Lady Komari. We might be able to get away if I use Pandora’s Poison.” “Y-you’re right! We’re counting on you, Vill!” “Leave it to me. We just need to escape from here first.” “Then what’s the point?!” I struggled, but all that accomplished was rattling my chains. Yes, our hands and feet were shackled. I was thankfully freed from the duct tape (turned out it wasn’t a Divine Instrument), but Vill, Karla, Sakuna, and Spica were in different cells. Without access to anyone’s blood, my Core Implosion superpowers were sealed. “What do we do?! Anything besides escaping from reality?!” “We must keep our heads in reality to find a way forward. Yes, let’s try communicating with outer space. Bibibibi… Netherworld calling, Netherworld calling. Transmitting SOS. Requesting help, requesting help.” “Come back to reality, Karla!!” “But we’re gonna die?! What can we do besides escape from reality?!” We shrieked at each other before hearing a struggling voice, “Mmm! Mmm!” I turned in the direction of the groaning, two cells down to where the pretty Sapphire girl was trapped. Sakuna Memoir’s restraints were unique. While the rest of us just had our limbs bound, for whatever reason, she was gagged, blindfolded, and hanging from the ceiling in a tortoiseshell tie. She desperately tried to scream while wriggling like a caterpillar. “S-Sakuna?! Why are her restraints that harsh?!” “Because of the danger she presents. Lady Memoir is the strongest among us.” “Poor girl… This is heinous…” How could they do that to such a quiet, gentle, pretty girl? They had to pay for this. I needed to find a way out. I thought hard as I smoldered with rage. I wasn’t only worried about myself. There was Clenny, too. Luxmio had stabbed her in the belly, and I didn’t want to consider the worst. Hopefully, she would be all right, but there was no way to find out while we were behind bars. Then I looked at one of my fellow captives: Spica La Gemini. Her rowdy and candid spirit was gone, and she sat there limply, as though she were at a funeral. I ruminated on what had transpired at the tower. She had changed the instant Luxmio showed her those hair ornaments. There had to be a secret behind this. “Spica… What’s wrong?” “Nothing.” Her voice was cranky. Clearly, it wasn’t nothing. “Is this about the hair ornaments? The ones belonging to Lady Gemini’s friend…?” “…” Spica remained quiet for a moment. She took quick glances at Vill and me before speaking. “Yes. I hid Naturia in that tower. She couldn’t have been killed. But those were her accessories… I could even tell from the lingering mana on them.” “Just because Luxmio had them doesn’t mean Naturia is dead…” “That makes logical sense. But Observatory’s Fools would kill her without blinking. Even if she were under the protection of the Dark Core… I don’t know…” Spica was uncharacteristically ambivalent. She was deep in the dumps. She had worked hard to reunite with her friend and bring peace to the Netherworld across the inhuman span of six hundred years. And it was all going up in smoke because of that fool… A sigh escaped my lips. Spica La Gemini had eternally cloistered her heart. This vampire was a shut-in to the very core. “Spica, I said I would help you.” “…So what? You don’t need to tell me. Your whole point is to serve me.” “Yup. So don’t you think it’s high time you opened up to me? I doubt you’ve been frank even with your pals in Inverse Moon, have you? I mean…you hide your human side behind that strange behavior of yours. It’s kinda painful to see.” “Maybe! I haven’t told anyone my true feelings! But it doesn’t matter. Everyone carries some pain they can’t tell anyone else. That’s normal.” “It’s not okay that the world makes your pain feel normal.” “………” How did this mindset of hers develop? She kept her feelings to herself and only told pointless lies and jokes. She exploited people like tools and killed anyone who got in her way. Not even the Lunae, Inverse Moon’s top brass, knew her true thoughts. This girl had been fighting all alone for six hundred years. And she was so far gone, she thought that all this was normal. My eyes met Spica’s. She looked at me with surprise before diverting her gaze. “I,” she said in a thoughtful tone. “I…haven’t changed from how I was in the locked room…” “Locked room?” “Maybe you’re just like me. We’re the same but walk different paths. Naturia and I were separated, but you get to be with Villhaze.” “I will never be separated from Lady Komari,” said Villhaze. “Naturia said the same thing to me.” Spica looked at the ceiling with a self-deprecating smile. “I hate having to admit that comparing myself to you gave me clarity on my own situation. You gotta make up for this.” “??” I didn’t quite get what she meant. Couldn’t she speak in a way I could understand? I felt a bit disappointed. “Okay, then,” Spica said with a surprisingly calm expression. “I’ll tell you something I’ve never told anyone before… About my path here. It’ll be up to you to believe it or not.” “Spica…! Thank you. Of course I’ll believe you, don’t worry.” “…” Spica fidgeted. She looked away and said, “…If you tell anyone else, I’ll kill you.” “Of course. I’ll keep a secret.” “May I listen, too?” Vill asked. “You’re basically part of Terakomari.” “E-excuse me,” Karla cut in. “What about me…?” “Don’t worry! I’ll kill you later!” “Gotcha, I won’t listen to a word.” Karla tried to raise her hands to her ears but then remembered she was bound. “Wait! I can’t cover my ears!” “It all began six hundred years ago…” “Hold up! I don’t want to die!” Spica paid her no heed and began recounting her six-hundred-year-long journey.