Chapter 190
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 190
Akies Victima is a notoriously difficult combat style to learn and master.
Ordinary people can't even dream of acquiring it. One must enhance their brain's nervous system in some way—whether through surgery or drugs—just to make the attempt.
Those who master Akies Victima maximize their powers of observation and insight through an unnatural expansion of their brain's functions. By employing multifaceted reasoning based on high-speed thought, they can predict the future and deduce the past.
Simply put, we predict and control the realm ordinary people attribute to luck. Thanks to this, we can often pull a single thread of possibility into reality.
Hearing only this, it sounds like an incredible ability. One might wonder why others aren't scrambling to learn it. But in this world, there’s a reason for everything.
‘An outstanding Akies Victima user might be able to take on a combat vehicle with just a single pistol. But if they had invested those massive cognitive resources into cybernetic equipment and prosthetic bodies instead of Akies Victima, they could suppress dozens of combat vehicles, not just one.’
From a purely tactical perspective, Akies Victima is an inefficient combat style for regular military forces. It is barely useful in special operations and, in reality, is primarily used by rebels.
...And it has several major drawbacks. Most notably, it overworks the brain—an irreplaceable biological organ. Due to the excessive expansion of intuition, the user's mind remains in a constant, heightened state of tension. This damage is irreversible.
"Akies Victima is impressive, but it is not the ultimate combat style," Ragnata began, looking at me with a cautious expression.
"I know it's not the ultimate style. My question is more fundamental."
"You're a master of Akies Victima yourself, yet you ask about its weakness... Hmm, interesting." Ragnata wore a meaningful smile. "You have a great deal of experience. You must have fought various types of enemies, not just other Akies Victima users. Let's assume you encountered an opponent of equal or greater skill than yourself. How would you counter them?"
"I lost to you. If I had a trick for that, I wouldn't have been captured."
"That's because you've aged. It has nothing to do with your experience or skill. In your prime, you carried yourself as if you could never lose. And frankly, you had the strength to back it up."
"Thank you for the high praise."
I shot back before she could get too smug.
"It's not praise; it's a fact. Don't mistake it for kindness. If you don't answer my question properly, I'm leaving."
Annoyed, I placed my hands on my knees and started to rise from my chair.
"...Akies Victima shines in chaos and excels at creating opportunities. Its value extends far beyond a mere combat style. Just as its name suggests."
I settled back into my seat.
"Just as its name suggests?"
"The Akresians likely wanted to mimic the ancient empires of Earth, as they borrowed many words from Latin. They use it when they want to sound noble and obscure the meaning from the lower classes. The words for various social classes and titles came from there as well. Akies Victima is no different. Though usage and grammar have eroded over time, the original intent can be inferred from the root words."
"I know that Akies means insight."
"And Victima?"
I thought for a moment before answering.
"...The weak."
I had a feeling I was right. Akies Victima was optimized for 'those without power' to catch 'those with power' off guard.
"A clever student. Your master must have enjoyed teaching you. Victima refers to a living sacrifice used in rituals—a victim. It describes a state where one's very life can be snuffed out by a single gesture from the strong, where the weak are forced to sacrifice themselves at the whims of others. Those who cannot resist—that is Victima."
The memory of Noel Mulrizka surfaced, a name I had long pushed to the corners of my mind.
"Whoever named it Akies Victima must have hoped that the weak who learned it would always keep a dagger hidden, even while living under the tyranny of the strong. Even the weak get a chance, at least once. But most don't even realize when that moment arrives and let the golden opportunity slip away. Possibility isn't so kind. It won't even show its face to those who fail to grasp it."
I understood all too well.
The very principle of Akies Victima was a scream, urging the weak not to miss their chance—whether it was to change their life, vent their hatred, or exact revenge. If an opportunity existed to achieve the user's goal, this art helped them seize it.
The strong have no reason to learn it. It is a technique for the weak who have nothing left to lose.
Countless Akies Victima users had injected drugs into their brains, burning away their own futures. For the weak to defeat the strong, they had to brave every risk imaginable. They had to possess the patience to wait for an opportunity that might never come in their lifetime.
After enduring all that, how unfair would it be if the 'moment' finally arrived and they failed to recognize it? Akies Victima was a method of thought and combat designed for precisely such people.
"Slaves grow anxious when their collars and chains are broken, but free men will grasp a blade. If they have no blade, they will clench their fists. 'The weak' is not a synonym for 'slave.' Yet the majority live their lives without ever knowing their chains have been broken. They don't even notice. Oppression blurs perception and judgment, eventually altering the very structure of the mind."
A thrill ran down my spine.
"Then what does Akies Domini mean?"
"Hmm, well, I'm no expert, so I might not be entirely accurate... but Domini, or rather its root Dominus, refers to a master, one in a position of dominance. If Akies Victima is insight for resistance, then Akies Domini would be insight for control."
I swallowed, hiding my complex emotions. Ragnata likely knew nothing of the Empire's intricate surveillance system.
"I see," I said, keeping my response brief. I felt that if I said more, she would read my emotions.
"And as history proves, it is not the master who watches the slaves. It has always been the slaves who receive slightly better treatment who watch the others."
A dull ache throbbed in my chest.
"That was an informative lesson, Teacher Ragnata. But you seem to be beating around the bush. I asked what you consider the weakness of Akies Victima."
"Aging makes the mind and heart grow brittle. Just think of it as keeping a pitiful old woman company. Now, about your question—how to counter Akies Victima. What a vague question. Did you really come here expecting an answer from me?"
"I'm asking for your thoughts, not a definitive answer. I never expected someone like you to have the answer anyway," I said harshly.
Ragnata closed her eyes and chuckled.
"Even if I don't know the weakness of Akies Victima, I believe how to deal with it is 'common sense.' An Akies Victima user wraps themself in chaos, but they are not chaos itself. On the inside, they might be quite ordinary—just like you."
I stood up without confirming or denying her words. Then, just before leaving, I spoke.
"What if you peel back that chaos, layer after layer... and find only an impenetrable chaos on the inside?"
At first, Ragnata only laughed. After a long moment, her laughter stopped abruptly, and she pointed an index finger at me.
"If such a being exists, they would be a monster consumed by chaos, one where the roles of master and servant have been reversed. A monster that doesn't use chaos as a means, but for whom chaos itself has become the goal. Against someone like that, my 'common sense' answer would be useless."
I nodded and retraced my steps.
...It wasn't a wasted trip. It seemed to have helped.
* * *
Japa was an incredibly busy man. Having watched him for three days, I could see his workload was murderous. He barely seemed to sleep.
"I don't usually work this hard," Japa said, sensing my gaze. "My work just piled up after the attack."
"I didn't say anything. Don't jump to conclusions," I said, sitting on the sofa across from him.
Of course, Japa hadn't jumped to any conclusions; he had read my thoughts exactly. He was highly skilled at discerning the emotions and intentions of others—a common trait among the Tajiruns.
"If you say so. I only answered because I thought you might be curious, hoyoo. Let's rest for a moment and have some tea."
"I'm resting plenty as it is."
Most of my bodyguard duties consisted of little more than waiting around. The Equesians handled all the detailed scheduling, and since I was only temporary, no one assigned me complex tasks that required training.
Clatter.
Japa pulled out a mysterious tea bag and steeped it in hot water. The box had some text about snakes on it—a long-winded explanation I couldn't be bothered to read. In short, the tea was made from snake-derived ingredients. I wasn't sure it could even be called tea.
Flick, flick.
Japa flicked his tongue across the surface of the tea. He then sat back, waiting for it to reach the right temperature.
"The Menoa family won't launch any further attacks. They must have suffered heavy losses after losing their Elite Guard. Besides, Tajiruns dislike using violence to get their way. We only possess military force because it is a necessity."
"Deals and negotiations are ultimately enforced by power. You just buy that power with money. Money only has value because you can use it to hold a blade to someone's throat."
"An excellent point... but a bit off-topic. My point is that there won't be any attacks or assassination attempts for the time being."
"Then is there any need to keep me around as a bodyguard? My rehabilitation is almost finished. I was thinking of starting my search for Kinuan in earnest."
"But this world is full of 'what-ifs' and has no 'absolutes.' Finding Kinuan is important, but if I die, it's all over. Above all, negotiations with the Menoa family are coming up. It would be reassuring to have you by my side. The abilities of Akies Victima are useful in many ways."
An Akies Victima master is skilled at observing people, making the art naturally useful in negotiations.
"I suppose Kinuan helped you with negotiations before," I pressed, my tone sharp as an interrogator's.
"Hoyot, I won't deny it. The sharp edge of Akies Victima will be helpful, just like your probing just now. I may be from the Menoa family myself... but it has been a long time since I've seen my kin."
"Speaking of which, why did the peace agreement with your family break down? If it was an agreement with a set expiration date, you would have prepared more thoroughly than this."
Japa had expected an attack eventually, but he hadn't known the exact date.
"The other party to the treaty, the head of the Menoa family—my father—has died. Much sooner than expected. And for your information, the average lifespan of a Tajirun is not short. It is longer than a human's."
"Are you saying it might have been murder?"
"Officially, it was an accidental death. But like other Tajirun families, the Menoa family is highly secretive. No one outside his close aides and direct lineage will ever know the exact cause of death."
I furrowed my brow.
"Skip the facts. I'm asking for your gut feeling. Do you think it was murder?"
Japa brought the moderately cooled tea to his lips. He took a deep sip and exhaled softly.
"Yes, it was murder. That's why I plan to visit the Menoa family with you. You understand what I want, don't you?"
I let out a hollow laugh.
...Detective Luka is on the case once again. If I solve this one too, I might finally earn the title of 'Great' Detective.