Chapter 50
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 50
Long-term leave was a privilege.
Ilay was the scion of a prestigious family, an exemplary cadet throughout his time at the academy, and a top performer in training. That was why he, despite still being a cadet, had been granted long-term leave.
"Ilay? He didn't seem like that kind of guy..."
"He was just hiding his ambition behind that smile. He's no ordinary man."
I listened to my classmates' conversation. They were quick to pick up on the goings-on of noble society—different from me, a noble in name only.
Ilay must have done something.
Today, Ilay was the talk of the academy. Having just returned, he was probably undergoing all sorts of examinations right about now. Psychological tests included.
"What happened?"
I couldn't wait until I saw Ilay myself. I approached my classmates chatting in the lounge.
"Luka, you don't know either? Didn't Ilay tell you before he left?"
"I'm asking because I don't know. Am I his wife? How would I know everything?"
I snapped irritably. My classmates, used to this attitude of mine, just shrugged.
"Ilay crippled his older brother—turned him into a total invalid. Word is, Ilay's now the leading candidate to be the next head of the Kartika family."
I couldn't laugh along with the others.
What the hell did he do?
Ilay was a guy who'd never shown the slightest interest in becoming Family Head or climbing the social ladder. And from what I'd heard, he got along well enough with his brother.
Yet that same Ilay had beaten his brother half to death and was now gunning for the position of next Family Head.
I had a hunch. Lillian Ramones's death had shaken Ilay to his core. Perhaps enough to change his very purpose in life.
I waited in front of Ilay's room for him to come back. But even after more than enough time had passed for him to finish his examinations, he didn't show.
I hope nothing went wrong with his psychological evaluation.
The last time I'd seen him, Ilay's mental state had been extremely unstable.
I sat on the stair railing and stared up at the ceiling. The cold tiles gleamed without a single speck of dust.
"Luka? Or should I call you Lucaus Custoria now?"
Ilay said as he climbed the stairs.
"Just Luka. What's with 'Lucaus'..."
"Give me a second. I'll drop off my bag and come right back out. I'm touched you're waiting for me on the day I get back."
Ilay joked as he ducked into his room. I waited outside the dormitory building for him to come out.
We usually talked outside. Sometimes our conversations touched on sensitive or subversive topics. In truth, we weren't the only ones who did this.
There were tacitly agreed-upon spots all over the training center for private conversations. If someone was already there, cadet etiquette dictated you give them space.
"I heard you killed your brother?"
I said, watching Ilay approach.
"I didn't kill him. I just... taught him a lesson."
"So you could become the head of Kartika?"
"Well, I figured I'd give it a shot."
Ilay spoke lightly, as if picking up a new hobby.
"Because of that woman?"
I didn't say Lillian's name outright. Ilay closed his eyes, then opened them into a narrow squint.
"Luka, I'm not running away anymore. If there's a problem with my family, I'll become the head and fix it... and if I've got a grievance with the Empire, I'll rise high enough to change it."
Depending on who was listening, those words could sound highly problematic. But I liked Ilay's newfound drive.
My friend wasn't some idiot who did nothing but complain without lifting a finger.
Since Ilay had made up his mind, I had nothing more to say. He was more than capable. Until now, he'd simply lacked the trigger and the motivation.
"I'm surprised you beat your brother senseless and just... claimed the heir's seat like that. Was the Kartika family always this lawless?"
"It was a duel through proper procedures. My brother has always been simple-minded, so he fell for my provocation easily."
"How'd you provoke him?"
Normally, a duel between brothers wouldn't be sanctioned. Certainly not one that went to a life-or-death level.
"I slept with his lover. Maybe because I'm better looking, she fell for me pretty quick."
I was momentarily speechless.
"...You're a real piece of trash too."
I frowned at the handsome piece of trash.
"I do feel bad for him. It was basically stabbing him in the back after I told him I had no interest in the Family Head position."
Ilay's nameless brother had swallowed the bait without ever grasping his younger brother's true capabilities. He probably wasn't cut out to be a great Family Head in the first place.
The Kartika family is probably... welcoming Ilay now that he's shown his ambition. Out of all the children, he's bound to be the most outstanding.
It was easy to guess. Ilay must have known the family's mood, which was why he'd acted so boldly.
We caught up on what had happened while he was away. I only shared what I could. I couldn't tell even Ilay the truth behind the Barbara incident.
No joke—if that truth ever leaked, both Ilay and I would be disposed of, or face something just as final. It was an operation the Empire's upper echelon had spent several years preparing.
"So what kind of dangerous deal did you cut? They wouldn't adopt you into a prestigious family under ordinary circumstances."
Naturally, I couldn't tell him the details. Ilay didn't expect me to, either.
"My life's always been a tightrope walk anyway. Nothing's changed."
"Even the best tightrope walkers fall headfirst at least once."
"But that doesn't mean the performer gets to stop performing, does it?"
I had no other choice. I never had one to begin with. It wasn't a matter of making a decision, the way Ilay had.
If I don't do it, I die.
And being adopted into the Custoria family was a more than satisfactory reward.
"Anyway... welcome back, Ilay. If you want to become Family Head, you'll have to work twice as hard as before."
"I came back planning to work four times as hard, not just twice."
As if to prove those words weren't empty, Ilay volunteered for a mission the very next day and assembled a squad. The mission: exterminate native creatures on Planet Novas.
* * *
I finally visited the Imperial Workshop. The technician guided me to the weapon testing room.
The room was cluttered with dummies, protective gear, and all manner of equipment.
I picked up the high-compression heavy weapon I'd ordered. It was shaped like my preferred sword, but slightly different from what I'd used until now. Longer, with a single-edged blade.
Though I'd been warned beforehand, it still took some getting used to at first.
Scrape.
The heavy blade dragged along the floor on its own weight. I ramped up the output of my prosthetic body and lifted the sword.
Thrust.
My body moved the instant I thought it.
Swish!
The sword wasn't designed with thrusting as its primary purpose. But thrusting was still perfectly feasible—just slightly less efficient.
Whoosh!
I raised the blade and slashed downward. My movement was broader than usual, as if the sword itself dragged me along. But the power was proportionally immense.
Most protective gear wouldn't withstand the destructive force of this sword—it would be crushed outright. And since it was hard to tell it was a heavy weapon just by looking, it was perfect for catching opponents off guard.
I'll probably... have to fight opponents stronger than me.
That was the case with Rick Kaiser. He was the kind of opponent you couldn't beat with straightforward methods. In such cases, I'd have to rely on unconventional improvisation using the Akies Combat Style.
No more, no less—it just needed to work once. I didn't even dare hope for a second or third time.
"How is it?"
"I like how my prosthetic body feels tightly strained just holding it. Feels like I'd drop it the second I lowered the output."
"Her name is Crucis."
The workshop technician said, squinting one eye. As if telling me to remember it well.
I'd heard some technicians named every single weapon they made. The one who'd made mine seemed to be one of those sentimental types.
"I saw it. It was written in small letters under the blade. What does Crucis mean?"
"In the old tongue, it means calamity, ruin... something like that. The gun is Ruina. Its meaning is destruction. Since both are girls, cherish them like your lovers."
To think my first lovers would be a gun and a sword.
I chuckled and hefted the sword in one hand, the gun in the other. The sword was Crucis, the gun was Ruina. I had no idea which one would end up as the main wife.
Whirrr.
I extended the hand holding the Shock Pistol and took aim. Even though I'd just heard the name, calling it Ruina felt embarrassing. I wasn't some kid playing with toys.
The Shock Pistol used both energy cartridges and live ammunition at once. The downside was the time it took for the energy and the live round to bind. Because it was an unstable substance, binding them in advance could blow the firearm apart. Fortunately, continuous fire was possible within a single magazine.
I held my aim and waited for the energy binding to complete.
Hummm.
A faint vibration traveled clearly up my arm.
Thoom!
The moment I squeezed the trigger, the muzzle kicked upward. The recoil was far stronger than I'd anticipated. I'd clearly need to properly learn how to handle this one too.
The coolant casing ejected from the gun, fully saturated with heat. The air rippled from the sheer temperature. For the record, rounds using coolant casings were absurdly expensive. My daily wage had just vanished into thin air.
But the power was satisfying.
I whistled as I looked at the shattered dummy. The human-shaped target in its protective gear had been obliterated—and that was only a near-miss. Sparks and smoke drifted from the scorched fragments.
Wow. Not bad, Ruina.
Before I knew it, I was repeating the embarrassing name in my head. I felt like I was already falling for her.
"Killer, isn't she?"
Seeing my expression, the technician grinned ear to ear. Realizing my face had flushed, I gave an embarrassed smile.
If I'd been just a touch more shameless, I would've called the man in front of me "father-in-law."
"I'll put them to good use."
"And kill plenty. Born as weapons, those girls will surely crave blood."
I nodded at his gruesome blessing.
I left the Imperial Workshop. I wouldn't have any reason to come back here for a while.
Now, what to do?
I had two choices. One was to tag along after Kinuan again. The other was to head down to the Lower District on my own.
The answer was obvious without even thinking. For now, sticking by Kinuan's side wouldn't yield any information. Besides, since I'd obtained a pass that let me travel to the Lower District alone, I might as well use it.
I took the high-speed elevator down to the checkpoint. My pass was registered, so the checkpoint didn't stop me.
"Hmm."
I tilted my head as I breathed in the acrid air of the Lower District.
Coming down without Kinuan felt strangely unfamiliar. It seemed I'd grown quite accustomed to the Upper District. Lately I'd seen nothing but lavish architecture—the Academy, the Custoria mansion.
Now I saw crumbling, decaying concrete and rusted metal tiles. Wires tangled thick as dozens of layers of spiderweb, so knotted I couldn't tell where any of them began or ended.
The further I walked, the thicker the crowd grew. The further I got from the Upper District, the fewer clean-cut people there were—replaced by shabby vagrants.
"S-Spare some change, Young Master."
A vagrant sidled up to me. He slyly tried to slip a hand into my pocket.
Crunch!
I seized the vagrant's hand and twisted. His wrist tore apart, wires and components sparking loose.
"Argh! Aaagh!"
Screaming, the vagrant scrambled off into a dark alley.
Good. I'm getting used to it. This is exactly how this neighborhood feels.
I pulled out my terminal and called Gabriel. It had been a while since I'd last contacted him. Maybe that was why—there was no answer even after several minutes.
I headed for Gabriel's hideout, saved on my map. I didn't know if he still lived there. If he was just slacking off and ignoring my call, I planned to break his nose.
Creeeeak.
When I opened the door, Gabriel was indeed there. But it wasn't that he'd been ignoring my call while lounging at home.
He was simply in no condition to answer.
"You dead?"
I nudged Gabriel—collapsed on the floor—with my foot. The pool of blood around him was still fresh.
"Not dead... yet."
Gabriel managed to reply, coughing up blood. He'd been shot.
"You don't have any money, do you? Want me to cover your medical bills?"
At my question, Gabriel scowled, making his already ugly face even uglier.
"Fuck..."
Gabriel nodded reluctantly. I pulled out my terminal and called a private ambulance.