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“I’m going to have to ask why you’re giving this to me.”
Marine felt ashamed of the position he found himself in, but he still stared boldly at the dog across the room.
“You can’t just accept it’s a gesture of goodwill?”
He was talking to The One, who was curled up on top of a cushion. They were in the airship’s lounge. Marine was sitting in a chair across from The One. He wasn’t being held captive, and at a glance it just looked like a man sitting in a room with a dog.
But the atmosphere was tense. Marine had been defeated, and then invited inside the ship. It was a humiliating experience, but he didn’t despair or lose hope. He seemed to be looking right through The One.
“However, we believe that to be a power which brings true liberation. It’s not something to be used carelessly.”
Marine looked at the Jeweled Branch, which was placed on The One’s cushion. At first glance, it appeared to be nothing but a stick. But Marine knew that it was something special.
“I’m aware that that’s what your legends say. But what do you believe ‘true liberation’ means?” The One asked.
“The Republic’s greatest ideal is liberation. What the Empire calls ‘black magic’ was something we established,” Marine answered, but The One continued speaking.
“And you’ve already achieved that, right? Magic is something available to all. Or are you angry about having to spend so long under the waves? Does ‘liberation’ mean the destruction of the empire?”
“We do hate the Empire, yes. But the ideals that lie at our core are a different matter. We want eternity. That is true liberation.”
“And what does that mean?”
“We believe in the existence of the soul. A soul in the true sense, not what the gods the Empire created speak of.”
“You mean life after death? Does that mean the Republic is even more religious than the Empire?” The One said with a hint of sarcasm in his voice. But Marine remained calm.
“You’re free to think of it that way if you like. In fact, there are many who do not fear death.”
“They believe death is liberation?”
“And that death should be dealt to the empire, as well. And they believe that the Faceless Power is what will do it. They believe that it allows them to bind death to their will,” Marine said, with the face of someone who’d just been asked a very difficult question. Many of his citizens hated the Empire for driving them under the ocean, enough to want to kill them.
“But you seem to feel differently,” The One said with a hint of sarcasm in his voice.
Marine nodded.
“Correct. It’s a mistake to use the Faceless Power for destruction. And an even bigger mistake to think that all mankind could become nothing but souls.”
“But, you know...” The One said, pausing for a moment.
“But?”
“But we know that’s the truth. That humans can become soul-like bodies that last for eternity.” His words seemed intended to inspire some reaction in Marine.
“You’re saying it’s true...?” Marine looked doubtful. But The One began to explain, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.
“It’s true. And we know it’s true because the Faceless Power is nothing less than the souls of another race. The people of the Empire are plotting to use that power for their own purposes.”
Marine waited a moment to answer. After thinking for a while, he shook his head softly.
“And what do you intend to do with it? Are you not a part of the Empire as well? What I need to know is what you really think.”
The One stood up from his cushion when he heard this.
“I see. You want to know what I really think. Then it seems I need to show you who I really am. I am what you would call an alien.”
Marine raised an eyebrow in surprise.
“Oh?”
But there was a note of doubt in his voice. The One ignored it, and continued.
“And the Faceless Power is the souls of my race. That’s why I want them freed. Liberation, to me, is the liberation of my race.”
“...And what happens when they’re liberated?” Marine asked, cautiously. He was trying to use that answer to see if The One was telling the truth. The One answered in a calm voice.
“A revolution. The revolution you long for in the bottom of your heart.”
“Revolution!”
In contrast to his usual self, Marine’s voice was trembling. This was what he’d truly wanted from the bottom of his heart.
“You wanted a future where both the people of the Republic and the people of the Empire were truly connected on a psychic level. And you thought that the Faceless Power could help you achieve that. Am I wrong?”
Marine said nothing. He wasn’t disagreeing, instead he felt like someone was peering into the bottom of his soul. The One’s voice grew louder.
“The Faceless Power grants wishes... That is one way to think of it. When they are liberated, the souls of my race will resonate with those of humanity, and reflect the hearts of mankind, creating a power that is magical... no, greater than magic. The greatest ideal of what the Empire calls black magic, and what the republic calls magic, is, at its core, a direct reflection of the human mind, is it not? And that’s what I’m offering you. Releasing the Faceless Power means releasing us. It is true communication between heart and heart. And it will bring you a new magic.”
“A new magic...”
Marine could feel himself wavering. The dog in front of him seemed like a demon from an old legend, tempting him with his greatest desire. But Marine was able to remain calm.
“...I still need time. Releasing such a thing should not be done lightly.”
He reflexively wiped the sweat off his brow. Living at the bottom of the sea for so long had left him with a fervent desire for people to understand one another. He’d thought it was just a fantasy, and now he was being told it could be made his. He could do nothing but shiver.
“No, I think it should be done quickly,” The One said.
A mana screen appeared. It was showing Kei Sakura, the devil, facing off with a Republic submarine unit.
“What...?!” Marine gasped.
“Will the nobles of the Republic obey your orders?” The One said, wickedly.
Marine realized that this alien could read the minds of men. He wondered to himself if it was possible to rebel against such a creature. But he decided to bluff.
“They will. And there are those in the Empire who want peace, as well. They won’t start a war that easily...”
“Correct,” The One said, cutting him off.
“Correct. It’s not easy to start a war. But I can see your uncertainty, and it tells me you don’t trust humanity as much you claim you do.”
“...Why do you want the Faceless Power so badly, that you’re willing to threaten me like this?” Marine asked in a pained voice.
“Because I want to see what it is that humanity truly wants. Wars have always had an element of coincidence or manipulation to them. But if humans can have what they truly want, what happens then? That’s what I want to know.” The One laughed.
“So it’s simple curiosity?” Marine asked.
“No. There’s a deeper meaning. But it remains beyond your comprehension. Now, place your bet. There’s very little time left. Will you do nothing, and allow your country to be destroyed by the Empire, or use the Faceless Power to grant the wishes of the Republic’s people? Just as The One said those words, however, there was movement on the mana screen. Several of the submarines had fired missiles up into the sky.
“No!” Marine gasped. He knew what those missiles were. Unlike anti-air or anti-surface missiles, these missiles left long trails of smoke as they headed high up into the sky.
“Oh? Those are the weapons that were abandoned in the distant past, aren’t they?” The One said in a mocking tone.
“Nuclear weapons...” Marine said, despairingly. They were ballistic missiles, missiles that shoot high up into the air and then plummet downwards, making them almost impossible to intercept. The missiles were equipped with nuclear warheads. A direct hit would destroy even the greatest shields mana civilization had.
“So this is what they brought to deal with the devil? Is this bad luck, or perhaps human fate?”
The One laughed. Marine silently reached out a hand.
“Yes?” the devilish dog snorted. “You know what I want. Just give it to me. I don’t want to have to say it aloud.”
Marine moved closer to him. The dog laughed, baring its gums.
“Tell me, what is it humans want? What is it that you want?”
The devil dog picked up the stick with his mouth, and then handed it over with a paw.