Chapter 141
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 141
Giselle...
I dragged my staggering body up to the second floor of the mansion. Ilay and Giselle were there.
Ilay stood looking out the window, while Giselle lay fast asleep on the bed. Her body was wrapped in bandages, and her limbs showed the clear marks of reconstruction.
"Luka, I have a lot to say, but… go get something to eat first," Ilay said the moment he saw me, stepping toward me.
"Do I really look that bad?"
"Yeah. You look like you've been starving for a month. Even Giselle would be shocked."
But I wanted to act immediately, not focus on recovery.
"Ilay, I don't have time—"
"I've scattered my people across the streets. I'm gathering information, so just rest for now. Right now, the military and the Imperial Guard are… suppressing riots all across Akbaran. It's hell out there. If you wander the streets without the strength to protect yourself, you'll die."
The moment Ilay finished speaking, his arm blurred.
Swish!
Before I knew it, his dagger was aimed right at my throat. My reaction had been that of an ordinary human. My senses were so dulled I was left speechless.
"My body must really be a mess if I couldn't even react to that sluggish blade of yours."
I pushed Ilay's dagger away with a finger. He was right. My condition was abysmal. I had barely survived.
"Still got a smart mouth, I see. Go eat, sleep, and get some rest. You're not moving until tomorrow or the day after, at the earliest."
I backed away. After the regenerative treatment, my flesh had wasted away. I could feel my ribs through my skin.
Taking Ilay's advice, I headed down to the dining room.
Just then, Jin Gau entered, accompanied by a maintenance android. Fresh from a shower, he wore nothing but a loosely draped robe. He approached, inspecting me from various angles while barking out instructions.
"Eat this, drink that. Recovering your physical strength is the priority. And get a cancer screening later. Wow, it actually succeeded this time. In the past, they ended up looking like soggy, bloated dumplings. Hmm, I wonder what the difference was?"
Honestly, I was a bit curious what a person who looked like a soggy, bloated dumpling would look like—though I had absolutely no intention of becoming one.
I wolfed down the food laid out on the table. The moment I swallowed, I could feel the nutrients coursing through my body.
Whir, whir.
The maintenance android began repairing my limbs one by one. Each time the android's fingertips opened, precise maintenance tools slid out.
Click.
The repairs on my left arm were complete. The explosion had melted away the artificial skin, leaving only the bare metal of my prosthetic body exposed. I could only imagine how horrific my condition must have been.
"The compatibility standards don't quite match, but I've replaced the damaged parts so they'll at least function. I'll leave the calibration and error correction to your brain. You should be able to handle that much."
I tried to grab a cup with my newly repaired left hand, but it clawed at empty air. The synchronization was off, creating a disconnect between my perception and my actions. My limbs felt as foreign as if they belonged to someone else.
"...You're being very kind to me."
"There's no harm in being kind. If you overcome these hardships and rise to success, you won't forget today's debt. More importantly, you're an interesting fellow."
Jin Gau said, putting on the glasses he had set aside.
He doesn't lack insight or political savvy.
He was different from what I had expected. I had thought Jin Gau was just a reckless man who relied solely on his own talent.
You can't judge a person by a single facet. The surface is only a fraction of who they are. Go deeper, and even the warmth they give off can change.
Slide.
I reached out, only to find the plate empty. The food that had been piled high was gone. Unless I had lost my mind, I must have eaten it all. Yet, the memory felt unreal.
"Your metabolism has been kicked into overdrive, so your appetite will be ravenous. You'll eat far more than usual without even realizing you're full. Gluttony is a common side effect of Hydra. It'll fade over time."
"Hydra?"
"It's the name of the drug cocktail I administered. It was developed by a scientist from Bellato and is one of their super-regeneration technologies. Hydra, in particular, has many failures due to hyper-proliferation, so we need a lot of data."
Jin Gau added. Hearing this brought back an old memory.
"I was treated at the Imperial Medical Facility once. Is it similar to that?"
"The result—super-regeneration—is the same, but the principles and processes are slightly different. That's because their objectives are different. Let me make a small cut on you. Watch closely."
Jin Gau picked up a butter knife and sliced it across my shoulder.
Rip.
The wound, deep enough to expose the dermis, healed in an instant. Even to my eyes, the speed was uncanny.
"Your recovery rate will be extraordinary for a few days. In fact, you're healing at an incredible pace right now. The flesh on your cheeks is already filling out."
Hearing that, I touched my face. It was true. Just moments ago, the area beneath my cheekbones had felt hollow, but now I could feel the flesh returning.
Their objectives are different?
Jin Gau's words lingered in my mind.
The Akies Victima inside my head was also functioning normally. High-focus insight and deduction were occurring automatically on an unconscious level.
"The super-regeneration of the Imperial Medical Facility is purely for medical treatment… while your method, Director, is for combat."
"Looks like your brain is finally starting to work. Correct. By inserting Hydra as a subcutaneous implant, you can maintain a certain concentration of the drug in your bloodstream. That way, most injuries won't render you combat-ineffective. Even though it's been in development for a while, we still haven't found the optimal blend and ratio. Unlike machines, living organisms have too many variables. Even within the same species, the variance is huge."
"And if you mess up, you turn into a bloated dumpling."
"If you poke it, a lot of juice leaks out."
Jin Gau pulled a bowl of dumplings toward himself and poked one with his chopsticks. The broth trapped inside spilled out, wetting the bowl.
"But it doesn't seem like a technology that suits the Empire. We receive the Baptism of Steel, after all."
Jin Gau grinned. His exaggerated, clown-like smile was often eerie.
"…I suppose you're right."
I didn't press further and changed the subject.
"Are you staying here during the Storm Era?"
"Whenever chaos erupts, there are always plenty of people trying to kill me. In times like these, the Upper District might actually be more dangerous. I need to lay low and hide."
"It's strange that your hiding spot is a gang's mansion."
Jin Gau picked up a dumpling by its pinched top and dropped it into his mouth. His throat gulped. His full-body prosthetic perfectly replicated even the movement of his esophagus.
"La Vie en Rose is an interesting group. No one considers them important. Even in the Lower District, they aren't an exceptionally strong force. That's why the roots of La Vie en Rose run so deep and secret."
I had vaguely sensed that as well. If survival was the sole objective, La Vie en Rose could be stronger than any noble family.
Because they weren't exceptionally strong, they didn't face heavy scrutiny. They adapted flexibly to the times, clinging to the powerful. Yet, they weren't so weak as to be crushed by a whim or a careless kick from those above them.
"…Ah, you have a guest. This old man will take his leave."
Jin Gau winked and left the dining room. The person who entered in his place was Grace.
I looked at her left eye. It was covered by an eyepatch.
"I came to return what I borrowed."
Grace placed the modified Ruina on the table. It was no longer a shock pistol, but a sniper rifle.
"It's different from the Ruina I know."
"The recoil was too great for my prosthetic body to handle. I figured since I was modifying it anyway, I might as well play to my strengths. It's a modular modification, so if you take it to a workshop, they can restore it to its original state in no time."
"I didn't know sniping was your specialty."
"You have to hide your true specialty to catch the enemy off guard. You're an exceptional person, Lord Luka. I figured if a situation arose where someone like you had to ask me for help… I would have to use every last bit of my skill to be of any use."
The brilliant Grace had found the right answer. She had converted the Ruina into a sniper rifle to prepare for long-range combat.
I recalled the moment she shot Iskan. It was in the middle of a raging storm, and she had used shock rounds—ammunition completely unsuited for sniping. Even an Imperial Guardsman would have needed to be a sniping specialist to make that shot.
But Grace pulled it off beautifully.
I never thought Grace left the Imperial Guard because she was weak.
"Grace, you left the Imperial Guard of your own accord because you were far more talented than Upper Command anticipated."
"I knew you had a twisted personality, but that's a bizarre way to give a compliment."
"It's the highest praise I can offer. And you should keep the Ruina. It seems better suited for you than for me."
I wanted to add something childish here.
Rather than being neglected by me, someone who prefers close-quarters combat… Ruina would probably prefer being by your side.
But I couldn't bring myself to say those words. I wouldn't say them even with a blade at my throat.
"If it's a reward, I won't refuse. And don't you have something else to say?"
I wiped my lips with the back of my hand. Closing my eyes for a moment, I then opened them and spoke with proper courtesy.
"…Thank you for helping me. For everything."
I felt like I had been saying "thank you" too much lately. Every time I did, I felt like I was becoming a weaker human.
"Hmm, that's nice to hear. What I wanted from you wasn't a gun as a reward, but words of gratitude."
"Ah, then the Ruina…"
"That is that, and this is this," Grace replied quickly, gathering up the rifle.
You're really leaving my side, Ruina. Even though I was the one who offered it, the feeling was strange.
"So, are you tied down to La Vie en Rose even more because of me? Diva said something like that."
"Diva is mistaken. I have no intention of leaving La Vie en Rose, so you don't need to feel guilty. And this is the last time I will help you in this chaos. I can't leave Diva's side any longer."
Grace drew a line. I preferred this kind of clear-cut boundary as well.
As expected, talking to Grace was easy. There wasn't a single uncomfortable thing about it. It felt like talking to Ilay or my peers from the Imperial Guard. Sometimes, she was more comfortable to be around than Giselle. No, not sometimes. I honestly felt that way quite often.
And… after hesitating, I parted my lips.
"I don't have any siblings, but if I had an older sister, I imagine she'd be a lot like you."
Silence fell. Grace listened to my words expressionlessly, then tilted her head, a puzzled look on her face.
"Did you happen to suffer a severe head injury?"
"Damn it! I'm saying I feel close to you! Just take the hint!"
Grace burst into laughter. A wide, genuine smile spread across her face as she stood up. I thought she was going to leave, but she walked around the table and approached my side.
"I don't want to be like siblings with you."
Grace reached out and placed her hand on my cheek. For a moment, a wave of dizziness washed over me. Well, right now, Grace was making me uncomfortable.
"Grace, I…"
"I tend to fall for people quickly. And I forget them just as easily. So you don't need to worry about it."
With a lingering smile, Grace moved her palm to my head.
Pat, pat.
She patted my head lightly. My eyes widened as I looked up at her.
"It seems I really am the older one here. So, I'll act like the adult."
With those words, Grace turned and left the dining room. I stared at the door she had closed for a long time.
Creak.
Not long after Grace left, the next person walked in.
"Well now, not bad, Luka. You're becoming quite the lady-killer. I'll keep it a secret from Giselle."
"Don't jump to conclusions. Nothing happened, and it's not like that between us."
"Oh, really? Then I'll tell Giselle."
"No, don't say that either."
Ilay smirked mischievously. Thinking about my situation, I couldn't help but sigh.
Beep.
Ilay placed a terminal on the table.
A holographic screen flickered to life between us. A portion of the Upper District we knew so well was burning. Despite the wind and rain, the smoke and flames refused to die down.
"Even with the rioters running rampant, the response from the military and the Imperial Guard is strangely slow. Luka, if you need my help, just say the word. I owe you, and I think now is the time to repay that debt."
The time for a choice had come once again. To receive Ilay's help, I had to reveal the truth.
Ilay was different from Giselle. Giselle wasn't someone with the power to change the course of events, and I knew her inside and out.
But Ilay possessed a hidden strength I knew nothing about. His personal combat prowess was exceptional, and he had been quietly seizing control of the Kartika family and building his power behind my back. I had no idea how far his influence could reach in this situation.
Trusting Ilay was a dangerous gamble. He could use my information not out of friendship, but for his own ends.
Yes, I couldn't fully trust Ilay.
Noel must have felt the same way.
That was why he had deceived and misled everyone around him.
He who cannot trust others cannot earn their trust.
Kinuan would laugh if he heard my thoughts. He would say it was a problem easily solved by simply being better at deceiving others. But that was Kinuan's way, not mine.
I am Luka. I am not Noel, and I am not Kinuan.
From now on, I will judge and decide in my own way. If that choice brings betrayal, I will gladly bear the consequences.
"Ilay Kartika…"
I began to speak, finally broaching the long-held secret.