Chapter 129
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 129
I explained Barbara's true identity to Giselle.
Barbara was a spy the Empire had spent more than a decade grooming—an asset shaped specifically to burrow into the inner workings of Nemesis. She was antisocial yet obedient to the Empire, riddled with madness yet gifted with a brilliant mind.
"...That's who Barbara is. And that's exactly why not even Nemesis would ever suspect her of being an Imperial spy. To anyone watching, she's just a mad witch—perfectly suited to be a terrorist."
I finished speaking.
Even Giselle, who had braced herself, went pale, then flushed, then pale again. Anxiety, restlessness, anger... and betrayal. Every emotion played out bare across her face.
"So Father knew about everything that happened at the Academy the whole time. He knew how much I was suffering, and still—"
"He had no choice but to watch from a distance. Barbara was a spy the Empire had built with painstaking care. If Imperial high command had circled anywhere near her, Nemesis would never have taken her in."
Giselle understood that much on an intellectual level, surely.
"So the reason Barbara could toy with Cracia Academy like a plaything was because the Empire looked the other way. It finally makes sense. Barbara was a Trojan horse."
Giselle's fingers twitched, restless with the anxiety she couldn't hide. The more she heard, the more her frustration and curiosity must have swelled.
"The deeper you dig, the further you peer into the depths, the more your doubts will multiply—and the anxiety and fear will become impossible to shake off. Even I can't give you a clear answer."
I spoke as if reading her mind. If laying everything bare could have solved it, I would have told her long ago.
"Even the reason Barbara is obsessed with me?"
"That's something you'll have to find out for yourself, Giselle. The cause might lie in something you did in the past. Or maybe Barbara is simply insane. A madman's actions don't need a rational reason."
Giselle reached for the water glass on the table. She wet her dry lips and quietly shut her eyes.
"I'm afraid of Barbara, Luka. I can't even begin to grasp what she truly wants. I don't even know whether she likes me or hates me."
Personally, I didn't think it was hatred. Being twisted myself, I could recognize it. Barbara was simply expressing her goodwill and affection in a warped, broken way. Well—no need to say any of that out loud.
Giselle opened her eyes and drew out her terminal. A prompt to enter a network ID surfaced on the holographic screen.
"Do you really think negotiating with Barbara is possible?"
Giselle asked, typing the characters in with her eyes.
"Barbara's a lunatic, but in the end, she always acts on rational judgment. That's actually the strangest thing about her. If she sees a benefit in it, she'll take my deal."
"And this deal—will it really help Father, and the family?"
Having finished entering her ID, Giselle hesitated before connecting, and asked.
"To put it simply: your father and the Custoria family are in crisis right now. Your father, Heilas, may not return to us alive."
"So it was true. He really is at odds with the Imperial Family..."
It seemed Giselle had caught wind of the rumors from somewhere too.
I nodded, my eyes on the holographic screen. Giselle gave a small nod of her own and connected to the network.
* * *
Networks and electronic warfare were neither my specialty nor my interest. But I did know how the Empire's networks were classified.
First came the lower networks, which even lower-class citizens could access. These were open networks run by private companies, mostly clogged with corrupted data and junk information.
Because the lower networks were public and used by the lower classes, they were cheap—but security was practically nonexistent. A terminal with a low security rating would be riddled with viruses the instant it connected.
The typical Imperial upper class used private networks, managed independently by institutions, corporations, or families—much like the Imperial Guard's internal network. Since they were used only by members of a given group and held carefully curated information, they were secure and highly reliable.
'But they're always under the censorship and surveillance of higher authorities.'
And finally, there was the upper network, managed by the Imperial Family. Only high-ranking officials and the topmost elite were granted viewing and access permissions. The network I entered using my Emperor's Watcher authority was one of these upper networks too.
'Lower, internal, upper.'
Ordinary people sorted them into those three broad types, but I'd heard that electronic warfare specialists—hackers and the like—divided them into far more intricate categories. Those tech-heads would route through alien servers to slip past security and reach the servers and networks of Kora and Bellato. Well, that world held no interest for me, and I didn't understand it well anyway.
"Giselle. She's probably had you under constant surveillance on the network."
I said, standing beside Giselle. She worked the holographic screen from where she sat.
"I know. That's why I've never once logged onto the network with my ID."
We both stared at the holographic screen.
The moment we connected to the public lower network, the firewall kicked in. The terminal's security firewall was purging hundreds of viruses and illegal programs. Literally burning them to ash.
Beep, beep! Beep-beep-beep-beep-beep!
An overwhelming flood of alerts erupted the instant we connected.
—If there's been a misunderstanding, I want to talk it out.
—We're friends, aren't we?
—I protected you! Why can't you understand that?
—Log on, log on, log on, log on, log on, log on...
Each message came from a different sender. Yet anyone could tell they were all Barbara.
At a glance, hundreds of overlapping messages crammed the screen. Whatever trick she'd pulled, it was impossible even to mass-delete them.
We had to click and delete each message one by one. Which meant that unless we shut our eyes, we had no choice but to read them all.
—Don't trust Lucaus Custoria.
I flinched. And the message that came after was a genuine spectacle.
—Luka is a pervert who rolls around with men in back alleys! I saw it with my own eyes. Here's the proof!
A photoshopped, fabricated image popped up. It was a horror. Someone with my face was doing things I don't even want to describe.
"...It's fake, right?"
Giselle asked, her gaze flicking between the photo and me. I hoped the faint blush on her cheeks was just my imagination.
"Of course it's fake. Are you serious right now?"
I answered, scowling.
—Heheheh, Giselle. It was so good to see your face after all this time. You're as lovely as ever.
The messages crept closer to the present.
—Ilay Kartika? Have you lost your mind? Marrying trash like him? That's a lie, isn't it?
—Giselle? Giselle? Giselle? Giselle? Giselle? Giselle? Giselle?
—Why can't I see you? What did you do!
Some messages seethed with agitation. It seemed Heilas's countermeasures had made stalking her difficult. In his own way, Heilas had been protecting Giselle all along.
—I... all of a sudden, I'm scared of myself. I even thought I might end up hating you. So contact me, Giselle. Right now!
Even if a higher authority censored this, she'd only look like a garden-variety, malicious stalker. Well—she actually was one.
—The Season of Storms is coming, so take care of yourself. I'm doing fine too, so don't worry.
After that message, there'd been no contact for a long time.
'Barbara must be quite busy inside Nemesis herself.'
If things went the way the Empire intended, Barbara would be holding an important post within Nemesis.
Beep.
And then a new message popped up.
—Giselle! Please, answer me. Things have been so hard for me lately. Talk to me like we used to. Please, please, please! Don't run away. I won't treat you badly.
It felt as though I could hear her voice through the words. I leaned forward, planting my hands on the table.
"I'll talk to her instead."
I pulled the holographic interface toward me.
—Long time no see.
Message sent. And the reply came at once.
—Who are you? Who are you to use Giselle's ID? I'll find you, and I'll kill you—count on it. You're not in the same bed as her, are you? No. Giselle. You are my goddess! A goddess must remain pure!
—No need to worry, since I'm a pervert who rolls around with men. I'll personally vouch for Giselle's chastity.
The moment she saw that message, Giselle shot me a glare and pinched my side. Ow. That's definitely going to bruise.
Beep.
There were no words in the next message. Instead, a strange code appeared. The terminal recognized it as a gateway to an external network.
We fetched an unused, older terminal and entered the code. Honestly, even this made me uneasy. Contacting Barbara over the network was an extremely dangerous move. That realm was Barbara's battlefield.
In reality, snapping Barbara's neck would take me less than a second. But on the network, it was the exact reverse. If I exposed even the slightest security gap, Barbara would seize control of our terminal in the span of a breath.
Whirrrrr!
The old terminal chewed through the code. It was an older model, but a high-end one, so its firewall was solid. Seeing that no viruses got through, I could let out a breath—for now.
"I've never seen these characters before."
I muttered, staring at the screen. A long string of unfamiliar, bizarre glyphs stretched across it. Made up of dots and lines, the script was utterly peculiar.
"It's Tajirun script. She must have slipped past security by renting a Tajirun server. Those money-grubbing bastards wouldn't have done it cheap..."
Giselle, who'd recognized the characters before I did, said.
...Tajirun. Honestly, the word was unfamiliar. I dug desperately through my old education, hunting for it. It felt like hauling a dust-caked book out of the far corner of an old warehouse.
'The Tajirun of commerce.'
Finally, I remembered.
There was a species called the Tajirun. They resembled snakes, and it was no exaggeration to say the entire race lived and breathed trade and commerce.
If the Equesians were a race of mercenaries, the Tajirun were a race of merchants. For a soldier like me, they ranked low on the list of things worth knowing. All I knew was that, true to their merchant nature, they were cunning and cowardly.
—Even emptying my personal funds, I can only hold this network for five minutes. If you've got business, speak quickly, Luka. If you've called me here over something trivial, you'll regret it.
—I want to make a deal.
—Fufu. The situation's different from last time. Back then I only cooperated because you'd caught me. Here, I'm stronger than you. I hold the upper hand. I have no reason to deal. So go on—entice me. Quickly.
I moved my fingers fast, choosing my words. There was no telling when Barbara might vanish.
—I have Noel Mulrizka's records, in the form of virtual simulation data. Convert it into a modern format, and I'll give you a copy. It will absolutely be of use to you.
At the name Noel Mulrizka, even Barbara didn't reply right away.
"Noel?"
Giselle tilted her head and asked.
The Empire had deliberately scrubbed Noel Mulrizka from its teachings. Naturally, the name meant nothing to her.
Even if you searched for Noel on your own, all you'd turn up was a scrap of information branding him a leader of rebellion.
—Now this is interesting. What exactly are you? Don't tell me—are you one of my kind?
—That's none of your concern. I'll deliver it to you in person.
—I have a condition. Bring Giselle with you.
I glanced at Giselle. She laid her palm over the back of my hand and nodded.
We settled on a time and place. Barbara would surely appear in a form we'd never expect. After all, she was a Full-Body Prosthetic now.
The communication with Barbara ended. She grumbled that she'd blown half her savings.
"Luka, will you make me one promise?"
"I can't promise something without knowing what it is."
"Once this storm passes, tell me everything you've been through. No matter what it is, I'm ready to accept it."
I couldn't. My silence was my answer.
Slide.
Giselle let go of my fingers. My hand twitched before I curled it into a fist.
"I'll play my part. But know this: I am not like my submissive mother. I can't love someone all the way to the end if they refuse to open themselves to me."
I still didn't know Noel's choices, or his anguish. But I felt I could understand Heilas's.
It's hard to play two roles at once. Family Head and father. Watcher and lover. Devote yourself to one, and you're bound to neglect the other.
I understood Heilas's feelings perfectly.
...If being hated was the price of protecting them, then it was a price I would pay.