Conversing with Gwangrang
Talking is easy, but this would be anything but simple. Gwangrang had gained a reputation among some citizens as a hero who punished evildoers, yet officially she was nothing more than a murderer. I had seen her tear a thief apart while he was still alive. She was ferocious and cruel. Holding a conversation with someone like that was never going to be easy.
“Th-this is insane!”
As expected, Naikle immediately voiced her opposition.
“Just because she can speak doesn’t mean you can actually communicate with her. A parrot can talk, but that doesn’t mean you can have a real conversation with it.”
“Gwangrang isn’t a parrot. We won’t know until we try. I’m only saying we should make an attempt.”
“She’ll tear you apart before you even get the chance to speak.”
“I have a plan.”
I led Naikle to a small room at the back of the counseling office. At first glance it looked like a storage space. In the center stood a large restraint chair, designed to bind not only the limbs but the torso and neck as well. This was what I intended to use for my conversation with Gwangrang.
“Why on earth would a counseling office have something like this…?”
Naikle stared at the chair in horror. The look in her eyes held a strange mix of suspicion, disgust, and wariness. If she had been holding handcuffs, I suspected she would have slapped them on me without hesitation.
I drew in a deep breath, tasting the mana drifting through the air. I could feel her emotions directed at me. She despised me right now. Some kind of misunderstanding had clearly taken root.
“…I don’t know exactly what you’re thinking, but this isn’t the strange device you seem to imagine. One of our regular clients suffers from intermittent explosive disorder.”
“Pardon? Oh… yes.”
“It’s a condition that makes it difficult to control anger.”
I was thinking of Draksan. Certain words or actions could strip him of reason and send him into a blind rage.
“When someone has this disorder, they can lose control even during counseling or treatment and attempt to attack me. The chair was built specifically to restrain such outbursts.”
“Ah, so that’s why…”
The contempt in Naikle’s eyes finally faded. But a new worry quickly took its place.
“Still, I don’t think even that chair could hold Gwangrang…”
“Some of our clients with this condition possess strength that borders on superhuman. The chair was made to restrain people like that, so it’s extremely sturdy. Even Gwangrang’s power won’t break it easily.”
I spoke with certainty.
“If it looks like she might destroy the chair and go on a rampage, I’ll immediately administer Lullaby of the Mist, a sedative stronger than Embrace of the Night. That should solve the problem.”
Naikle fell silent, deep in thought. I understood her hesitation. Gwangrang had single-handedly wiped out several notorious gangs and criminal organizations in the back alleys. No amount of safety measures could guarantee complete control.
But I wasn’t relying solely on the chair’s durability. I had several other cards to play—cards I couldn’t explain to Naikle right now.
I waited quietly for her answer. She glanced between me and the chair, then spoke with a grim expression.
“But… what exactly do you hope to achieve by talking to her? It’s not like you can erase Gwangrang from my body just by having a conversation.”
“Naikle, Gwangrang isn’t the real problem.”
I met her eyes and continued.
“The problem is that you’re living in constant fear because of her. You said it feels like Gwangrang is trying to completely take over your body, but I don’t think that’s necessarily true.”
“Then what is she trying to—”
“That’s exactly what I want to find out by talking to her. Instead of staying anxious without knowing anything, I want to understand her purpose and intentions so we can find a solution.”
If she still refused after all that, there would be nothing more I could do. Naikle’s eyes wavered.
“…Counselor.”
“Yes?”
“Couldn’t you just prescribe the Call of the Dawn? That would be simpler for you too. Why go to all this risk…?”
Her words were jumbled, but I understood the meaning. What’s in it for you to go this far? That was the real question. Some people had called it meddling for no reason.
To an outsider, it probably looked like I was helping others without any clear motive. It might even seem suspicious.
—Counselor, let’s get out of here together.
I squeezed my eyes shut for a moment, then opened them.
“It’s simply my conviction. You could even call it greed.”
Naikle stared at me in surprise. Even to my own ears, my tone had carried a sharp edge. My expression was probably stiff as well. I forced a smile and quickly softened my voice.
“More than anything, I wouldn’t feel right just handing over medication and leaving it at that. I like to see things through to the end properly.”
She worked her lips for a long moment before finally speaking.
“…Understood. Let’s try it. The conversation.”
“Good.”
I smiled faintly.
* * *
“Are you ready?”
“Yes.”
Naikle nodded. She was now strapped into the restraint chair. A needle connected to a hose had been inserted into her left arm.
“From now on, I’ll administer Lullaby of the Mist through this needle. Take a deep breath in, then slowly exhale. Try to relax your body… There we go.”
“Yes…”
The moment the sedative entered her system, Naikle’s eyes grew hazy. Her voice quickly became slurred. Before long her eyelids fluttered shut and her breathing steadied. She had fallen asleep.
I swallowed hard and looked at Erisa. Her face remained as calm as ever as she gazed down at the sleeping Naikle.
Crack. Crack.
Then the change—transformation—began. Fur sprouted across Naikle’s skin, mostly black or gray but gleaming white wherever light touched it. Silver fur. Thick muscle swelled in her arms, legs, and chest. Deep scars appeared around eyes that had once been smooth. Her head gradually shifted into a more lupine shape.
Flash. Gwangrang’s eyes snapped open, glowing red as she glared at us.
Thud. Thud. Thud!
She thrashed violently. The restraint chair rocked dangerously, as though it might shatter at any moment. But it hadn’t been built to break so easily. Gwangrang’s struggles accomplished nothing.
Frustrated, she bared her fangs and let out a savage howl.
Awooooo… Grrr… Awooooo!
My body stiffened against my will. Her cry carried the low, threatening frequency unique to predators. A chill ran down my spine.
Suppressing my fear, I stepped closer to Gwangrang—closer than felt safe.
“Gwangrang? What should I call you? Just Gwangrang?”
“…Who are you?”
Human words finally left her mouth. Her voice was surprisingly ordinary—somewhat androgynous, yet distinctly feminine. Pleasant to listen to, actually.
“For now, I’ll just call you Gwangrang.”
“I asked who you are!”
“I’m Naikle’s counselor.”
“Counselor?”
The term itself seemed unfamiliar to her. I explained what a counselor was. Gwangrang listened with a skeptical expression.
“A strange… profession.”
“Strange, but necessary. Gwangrang, I’d like to have a conversation with you.”
Her demeanor softened noticeably. The scent of hostility and killing intent grew much fainter than before.
“…You said you’re Naikle’s counselor. So being tied up like this—was that her idea?”
“It was.”
Once I explained that the entire situation had been set up with Naikle’s permission, the hostility vanished completely.
“I see. So Naikle… wants this.”
Only then could I be certain. Gwangrang wasn’t a mindless killer. She had become remarkably docile.
Gwangrang looked back and forth between Erisa and me. Her red eyes still radiated danger, but the crushing pressure from earlier was gone.
“…If it’s what Naikle wants, then fine. Do whatever you like. Talk, or whatever else.”
“Before that, there’s something you need to hear.”
I took out a small metal rod about the length of a finger. It looked like an ordinary piece of metal with a single round button on it. While Gwangrang eyed it suspiciously, I pressed the button.
Gwangrang’s eyes widened in shock.
“Wh-what? Naikle?”
“It’s Naikle’s voice. This device, which I call a recorder, uses impact-absorption and reflection magic to store the unique vibrations of sound and play them back later. The principle is—”
“I don’t care how it works! Just keep playing it!”
“…Right. Of course.”
I restarted the recorder, feeling slightly annoyed that I hadn’t even finished explaining.
Gwangrang listened in silence. Naikle had hurled nothing but curses at her, yet Gwangrang showed no reaction to the insults. She seemed to accept that Naikle hated her as a matter of course.
At this part, however, Gwangrang visibly flinched.
“Th-that’s a misunderstanding. Why would I steal that girl’s body?”
“I heard that at first you only took control for a day or two, but recently you’ve been seizing it for a full week—sometimes even half a month.”
“That’s true! But there was a reason! I had things I needed to do…!”
“Would you tell me what those things were? The reason you needed to hold control for a week or even half a month at a time?”
Gwangrang didn’t answer right away. Her red eyes darted left and right in obvious distress. When I had first seen her, she had looked like a savage beast I wouldn’t dare meet eyes with. Now she seemed no different from any ordinary client.
She remained silent, lips pressed tightly together. I sighed.
“As you heard, Naikle is terrified because of you. You need to explain.”
“If I tell you the reason, will you pass it on to Naikle? Using that recorder thing?”
“Yes. That’s why I arranged this meeting.”
Gwangrang fell silent again. The quiet stretched on. Finally she lifted her head and looked at me. Her wolf-like eyes made it hard to read her emotions, even for someone used to analyzing expressions. Only a faint trace of sorrow showed through.
“Counselor. Between a comfortable lie and a cruel truth, which do you think is better?”
“I…”
I paused to consider.
“I believe the truth is better.”
“Even if that truth is brutal and horrifying?”
“That’s for the listener to decide. Not the speaker.”
Gwangrang stared at me for a long moment. The trembling in her eyes and the way her lips moved betrayed her inner conflict. She let out a long breath and lowered her head. The scar around her eye looked deeper in the shadow.
“There’s something I need to tell you. Don’t be too shocked.”
“Go ahead, Gwangrang.”
I had met and spoken with countless clients since becoming a counselor here. Many of their stories had been tragic, heartbreaking, or astonishing. I had thought I was prepared for almost anything.
“I killed that girl’s father.”
…Even so, hearing those words, I couldn’t help but feel shocked.