Chapter 194
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 194
The banquet ended without any blood being spilled. Seeing Japa’s firm stance, Ozmer had backed down, seemingly to avoid a massacre. There was no crimson violence, only a sticky, pitch-black tension that lingered long after the meal was over.
After the banquet, Japa and I returned to our quarters.
“Seeing their reactions, you were right. Your reinstatement must have been on the agenda at the last meeting,” I said, confirming his deduction. “Not a bad guess, Japa.”
“Actually, my father contacted me a few months ago. It was even before you woke up, Luka.”
Japa sank wearily into a chair. He looked drowsy, likely a result of eating just moments before.
“Hmm, contacting the child he exiled with his own hands? Did he suddenly grow a conscience? I suppose even Tajirun blood can run warm sometimes,” I said with a smirk, knowing full well that could never be the case.
Japa chuckled, his shoulders shaking. He waved a hand dismissively and took a sip of water.
“Hoyot, that’s a good one, Luka. You’ll make me hurt myself laughing right after a meal. Anyway, to explain, the Menoa family’s primary business is human trafficking.”
“Among the Tajirun, no one views that negatively. However, the Bellato Federation does not recognize human trafficking as a legitimate business.”
“Because of that, most of the Menoa family’s main businesses are illegal. We’re in a position where we couldn’t complain if Bellato suddenly designated us a criminal organization and exiled or purged us from their territory. The Menoa family’s standing depends entirely on the current administration, the whims of those in power, and public opinion. It’s not a very stable situation for our survival.”
“So?”
“We need to establish a legal business, one that even the Federation recognizes. Only then does the Menoa family have a future. Conveniently, I happen to run a decently sized legal business. My father judged that I could bring ‘immense profits’ to the family. That’s why he secretly brought up the idea of lifting my exile.”
“Did you accept his proposal?”
“No, I refused. I liked my current life, free from the shackles of my race and family. He contacted me a few times after that, but it was just to exchange pleasantries.”
I sorted through Japa’s words in my head.
“Even though you refused, they still brought up your reinstatement at the Round Table Conference.”
“If the exile is lifted, I’m registered as a member of the Menoa family regardless of my own wishes. Menoa would indirectly gain the backing of Japa Trading.”
“My other siblings probably hated the very possibility of my return. I’d get a portion of our father’s inheritance. Worse for them, the position of Family Head could even fall to me. In terms of running an independent business, no one else comes close, which makes me a strong candidate.”
“So it benefits the family as a whole, but not them individually. Heh.”
It was an amusing story. A web of conflicting interests that only resulted in a loss.
“That’s why one of my siblings must have killed our father. Father was naive. He might have prepared a lawyer specializing in inheritance, but that would have been for the distant future. He probably never thought one of his own children would try to kill him right now. My father was an outstanding man, which is why he always thought he could control his children. He tended to look down on them.”
“The closer you are, the harder it is to judge someone’s abilities objectively. Is the current Family Head, Ozmer, the prime suspect?”
“For now, yes. Ozmer is a stubborn traditionalist. Father’s decisions—lifting my exile, shifting the primary business—all of it would have been hard for him to accept. But there are other possibilities… Ah, my mistake. I’m stating the obvious to someone who considers every angle, hoyot, hoyot.”
I narrowed my eyes at Japa. He looked exhausted, his eyes half-closed in a sleepy haze.
“Japa, you’re going to have to tell me a lot of things when this is over.”
“…I plan to.”
I felt my head heat up as the intriguing riddles piled higher. It was like peeling back the layers of a gift box, never knowing what lay inside.
About twenty-eight hours from now, the head of the law firm and the autopsy experts will arrive.
Something was going to happen before then. That much was certain.
“In any case, it would be best to rest while you can.”
“My thoughts are racing with all the clues and evidence you’ve thrown at me. I can’t rest even if I want to. If you really want to let my brain rest, why don’t you tell me another story? Something that might pique my ‘interest’?”
I tried to coax more information out of him, my tone laced with irritation. It was true; I was on edge. I was arranging and rearranging random puzzle pieces that might not even belong to the same set. I couldn’t stop until the picture of cause and effect took shape.
I could run a thought-suppression routine, but my mind was perfectly primed right now. I didn’t want to break this flow state.
Knowing exactly what I was doing, Japa opened his mouth.
“Back when I was an exile and made peace with my father… Kinuan was by my side. His advice was a great help. Just like you are now.”
The name Kinuan came up. The focus of my thoughts shifted instantly.
“Kinuan’s help must have been significant when Japa Trading was growing, too. That’s his specialty. Propping up others to build the organizations he needs, all while staying in the shadows so he can pull out at a moment’s notice.”
“Exactly. Thinking about it now, he probably approached me under the guise of coincidence.”
For some reason, the word “approached” struck a different chord.
I remembered that Japa was a woman. A truly horrific thought crossed my mind: the possibility that Kinuan and Japa had been lovers. If it was Kinuan, he wouldn’t have hesitated just because Japa was a Tajirun. He would have calmly…
The image made me frown. It felt like bugs were crawling all over my skin. I wanted to grab something and crush it.
“…Whatever you’re thinking, Luka, just know this. Kinuan took everything from me. The Tajirun named Japa standing here is nothing but an empty shell. A ghost with only a husk left. I will do anything if it means I can get my revenge on him.”
Japa stared at me with a blank expression. His gaze wasn’t fixed on me; he was lost in the past. A light of pure emptiness flickered in his vertical pupils.
* * *
There was no way to know exactly where the former Family Head’s body was. I could only make an educated guess.
The Menoa family doesn’t trust each other. They’re the kind of people who would devour their own flesh and blood for profit and power.
I recalled Japa’s advice.
Family Head Ozmer would have moved the body to keep it away from his siblings. Whether he was the culprit or not, he was in a position where he had to hide it.
If he’s the killer, he’ll hide it until he can mutilate or burn the body. If one of his siblings is the killer, he’ll hide it to protect the evidence until the lawyers arrive.
I wandered through the mothership, following the route Japa had laid out for me. Since I was technically a guest, I could roam freely outside the restricted areas.
The Elite Guard Training Center.
I stopped in an area with a growing number of non-Tajirun aliens. Through a glass wall, I could see children undergoing training. They were currently practicing combat arts. The instructor also appeared to be a retired member of the Elite Guard.
A sense of déjà vu washed over me. It was a scene I had witnessed many times before, and it left a bitter taste in my mouth.
Slave soldiers.
Some of these children were likely kidnapped, not acquired through legitimate trade. Yet they would grow up to be soldiers so loyal they would offer their lives to their kidnappers, the Menoa family.
From an outside perspective, anyone who swore loyalty to the Menoa family would look like a complete fool.
But I didn’t think of them as fools. The names and titles were different, but the same thing happened all over the universe. The Empire’s Imperial Guard was no different. No matter how many glittering titles you attached to them, their essence was the same as these children’s.
The former Family Head’s body must be in the Elite Guard’s residential quarters or training area.
I put myself in Ozmer’s shoes. He didn’t trust his siblings. Instead, he would rely on the Elite Guard. After all, they possessed an obsessive, mechanical loyalty.
He wouldn’t have hidden the body in a restricted area; any direct descendant could access those. Besides, deploying the Elite Guard under his direct command would be slower there, making it harder to secure the body in an emergency.
If I were Ozmer…
I stared at the cafeteria and walked toward it.
– “What is it? This isn’t a place for outsiders.”
An Equesian in a black combat suit blocked my path.
The other Elite Guard Captain.
This was the second of the two captains. Knowing he was on par with the one I’d killed made my body itch for a fight. But I suppressed the urge, confident I wouldn’t pick a meaningless fight right now.
Good job, Luka. You’ve actually become a decent human being.
I praised myself internally and came up with an excuse.
“I’m hungry.”
– “Didn’t you eat at the banquet? There should have been food suitable for humans.”
“You must not have been watching closely. I didn’t touch a thing. There was nothing for a vegetarian to eat.”
The Equesian crossed his arms and tilted his head.
– “Vegetarian, not omnivorous? Since when did humans evolve into herbivores?”
“It’s a matter of belief, not biology. Those greens over there look delicious. Can I have some? Or are you going to let a guest starve?”
The Equesian stroked his chin, then gestured toward the cafeteria with a nod.
– “Fine, you can eat. But watch your mouth. Don’t have a bad influence on the trainees.”
“You mean don’t let them realize they’re slaves?”
The Equesian fell silent for a moment before letting out a short, unoffended laugh.
– “I escaped from here once, too. But I soon realized… it’s better here than having the freedom to become cannon fodder for a few pennies.”
His voice was louder now, as if he wanted the trainees to overhear.
What a blatant lie.
I smirked at his performance. This Equesian had probably never escaped. It was just a fabricated story to brainwash the trainees—to convince them that this was better than the outside world. To some extent, it was even true.
Since I had no intention of causing trouble, I gave a slight nod. The Elite Guard Captain seemed busy and disappeared after giving me a final warning.
Step, step.
I walked over to the serving counter, piled my plate high with vegetables, and sat down. A drizzle of some random sauce made it reasonably edible.
The cold storage is over there.
Moving only my eyes, I scanned the layout of the cafeteria and kitchen. Then, I mentally overlaid the path I had taken with the mothership’s structure.
I can just melt through the wall from the outer hallway using the Hwagwang Yedo.
The optimal path to the cold storage was clear. The body would be in there. If I was wrong, so be it.
But as I ate and observed, my conviction grew.
The people moving around in the kitchen are highly trained.
Their movements were far too clean for mere cooks. Occasionally, they would glance at the cupboards or open a cleaning closet, hesitating as if checking on something inside.
They’ve stashed weapons in there. Ready to respond to an emergency.
Their intentions were painfully obvious.
– “Hey, hu-human. Is it, is it tasty eating only gr-grass?”
A Crawler trainee sat down across from me, his Tajirun still clumsy. I glanced at him. He seemed even younger than Boyan. His own plate was piled high with nothing but meat.
“Of course it’s tasty. You shouldn’t just eat meat, either. Eat your vegetables. That’s how you stay healthy.”
I stood up and dumped my leftover vegetables onto the Crawler’s plate. He looked flustered, not knowing what to do.
– “I, I hate vegetables!”
“Being a picky eater is bad for you.”
I patted the Crawler trainee on the back. As I turned to leave, I froze. A familiar, prickling sensation ran up my spine—the same precognitive instinct that had saved my life countless times. I looked up at the ceiling.
Flick!
The lights went out all at once. The mechanical hum of the mothership died, plunging the entire area into silence and darkness.
…Is the battle for the body starting now?
It was earlier than I expected. I thought they would at least wait until nightfall.
I didn’t know if this was a stroke of luck or misfortune. The cold storage, where I suspected the body was hidden, was deep inside the kitchen.
Which meant I was currently standing on the front line.