Chapter 260
Chapter 260
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 260
Chapter Title: How to Survive as the Second Son of a Magical Noble Family
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“Haah….”
Unlike what I expected, the archbishop rolled his eyes as if he couldn’t stop me and let out a deep sigh.
“What made you so dissatisfied? Hmm?”
“…….”
“Were you disappointed because I met you in a different body and didn’t explain?”
‘A different body.’ Now he’s finally speaking the truth.
The bastard habitually lies. When we watched the play together, he explained his ability to me by saying he could ‘change his face.’ But at that time, based on the information I had gathered, I had already concluded that his ability was transformation.
Instead, while admitting his transformation ability, he planned to deflect when it came to the core reason for this mess.
Why? Because he didn’t know how much I knew to outright deny it, and admitting it might just be me probing.
Lou Barr’s face now fully wore the archbishop’s expression.
“Or is it because I appeared before you in this form? Since you prefer Old Humanity, that could be it.”
“No problem. The issue is your mindset.”
“Is that so? Then we understand each other. You’re no ordinary person either.”
“Why do you think that?”
“Isn’t it obvious when you consider that everything I’ve planned so far has gone awry?”
“You have great confidence in your abilities.”
“Of course. So, is it my turn to defend myself now?”
Struggling to breathe due to the pressure from my hand, he took a deep breath and spoke slowly.
“Don’t be too disappointed. To be precise, up until this moment, this person wasn’t fully me. The one you met was me in the archbishop’s body.”
“…….”
“Especially this body was even more detached from me. Because you shattered the artifact in one go, the memories came in, but originally, it had mostly a separate ego. There, does that clear it up?”
“No. So, ‘Lou Barr’ isn’t the real you either?”
“What do you think?”
Lou Barr asked with a sly smile.
I shook my head and smiled.
“Of course, just one of the bodies. Why ask?”
“You know well. Then, can you let me go now? I don’t want to stay in this body in front of you. Honestly, it’s embarrassing.”
“Then transform right in front of me now.”
He looked at me silently.
He can’t transform. If he has the same mechanism of transformation ability as Lichtofen, then definitely.
Back then, he explained his ability hypothesis like this.
The transformation ability is one where beings with the same component cores that synchronize in real-time swap places in this world.
Assume the world we’re in is called A-World, and the mana-only world we can’t perceive or access is B-World. The two coexist, but we only perceive A-World.
When transforming into a dog, the A-World Lichtofen’s flesh moves to B-World, becoming invisible to us, and the dog from B-World moves to A-World. Strictly speaking, the dog’s body doesn’t carry Max Lichtofen’s genes. It’s completely different flesh exchanging between the two worlds centered on the synchronization core.
At that time, with the stalker disposal in mind, I asked him.
‘What if you can’t use the ability, or transform but can’t return?’
To that, Lichtofen answered, ‘If mana depletes after transforming, you can’t return.’
Depletion. Fighting until depletion isn’t bad. But is it necessary? Is there a special reason it must be that way?
Wouldn’t it suffice to just block his mana operation?
I moved my left hand, brushing his face with a metallic clink.
“I told you before. I want to know every moment of you. I’d like to see your transformation at least once.”
“…You have a talent for pleasing and angering people at the same time. Of course, that’s what makes it fun….”
Fortunately, he accurately understood my words as ‘try it if you can.’
“Since it’s come to this, shall we hear the story? How did you figure out Lou Scheller’s true identity?”
Figuring out Lou Barr’s identity wasn’t hard. There were plenty of clues here too.
First, the ‘proposal.’ Second, +10 affinity. Third, the baseless name that only makes sense if he named it himself—Lou: abbreviation of Louise or Louis. In this era, among nobles, using abbreviations as real names is extremely rare. Fourth, mental strength +4 [+9] clearly reinforced by an artifact. Fifth, his desire to test love. Sixth, ‘Lou Barr’ and the archbishop never existed in the same space at the same time. Seventh, free access to the basement and master’s room. Eighth, ‘wanted,’ Low German, ‘Barr.’
When would I explain all that to him? I have time, but it’s not a topic I’m interested in, so my jaw would ache.
So my answer is this.
“You’re awfully relaxed, asking all that.”
“I need to know where I went wrong to succeed next time.”
“There won’t be a next time.”
“Yeah. Honestly, I’m at a loss now.”
I checked the hourglass slowly ticking in my status window. What I can do now is stall until reinforcements arrive. Due to the distortion, I’ll have to wait a very long time here.
I looked down at him and slowly opened my mouth.
“You said you were disappointed because I appeared in another face and still didn’t tell you the truth.”
“…….”
“I wasn’t disappointed about that at all. After all, if it’s you, you would’ve needed to appear before me as ‘Lou Scheller.’”
“Ah! You expected it to some extent? Interesting. What’s the basis?”
“You had a lot you wanted to ask me. Like, how far I’d accommodate your demands… how much I love you. But doing that in the archbishop’s face wouldn’t get honest answers from me.”
The archbishop listened silently. I continued, looking down at his face pressed to the table, only one eye visible.
“So you borrowed a third party’s mouth to get precise answers from me. Whether I could become Pleroma like you, give you blood to drink, accommodate any demand without issue….”
“…….”
“Whether I love you enough to resist the temptation of escape.”
“Ah~ spot on.”
He burst into laughter. I don’t know what’s so funny about this situation.
I continued.
“So when I said I had more to ask about my last conversation with ‘Lou Scheller,’ you had no choice but to comply. Even if—or rather, especially because—my demand came mid-love vow ritual. What you said to me in Lou’s body was a conversation testing my love.”
“Really….”
“If my lie made you resentful…. Tough luck.”
The archbishop slowly closed his eyes.
“You truly are Nikolaus.”
Kwang—!
“…!”
My head jolted from the impact. Lou Barr had kicked my leg, stood up, and now loomed over me. He habitually brushed his ear with one hand, then raised an eyebrow. Having spent so much time in front of me in the archbishop’s body, he must’ve thought his hair had fallen down. Anyway, he even laughed at that as if it amused him. With eyes crinkled in laughter, he spoke like a machine gun.
“Resentful? No way. Sorry for deceiving you. I wanted to live happily with you. You know? I gave everything for you. Not asking for repayment…. I gave everything to finally have you, and just once—just once—I wanted to hear the truth.”
“…….”
“Is that reason enough to ruin us? If so, I’m truly sorry, but you just said you weren’t disappointed by that. Glad to hear it. We do connect well.”
Hearing this from a New Humanity face and voice made my stomach churn a bit more. Yeah. I have to admit some bias based on appearance. Maybe it’s an Old Humanity preference. Closer to familiarity than taste. If I live another 20 years as New Humanity, I might think like them, but I’m an Old Humanity who’s been here less than a year.
“Can’t we continue? I won’t do things you hate anymore….”
Lou Barr’s left hand covered my cheek.
“Let this go, and I’ll turn back to the form I showed you earlier. Wouldn’t that be better?”
“This never made sense to me. Why do you love me? Why?”
“Hm? Because I love you. Love doesn’t need a reason.”
“I think it does. At least there’s a cause.”
“That’s subtle.”
There’s a cause for falling in love. Can one fall in love without a cause? I don’t think it’s possible. Maybe that’s why Elias calls me a machine. Even so, we need to examine the primary cause of such phenomena.
“Think carefully. Why are you acting like a madman toward me? Sure, you are mad, but why direct those feelings at me?”
“Does it matter? Isn’t the important thing that we love each other right now?”
“Knowing that answers why you held 600,000 lives hostage for a terror game with me.”
“…….”
Lou Barr tilted his head with a smile.
“You seem overly sensitive right now.”
“…….”
Since I didn’t back down and brought it up again, he clearly thought he couldn’t retreat further. Unlike earlier when he dodged, he’d now chosen a stance.
“It’s true I can move between several bodies. Not infinitely, but the servant Lou you saw was me. But… holding 600,000 lives hostage for a terror game with you?”
His expression turned troubled now. His face drew closer to mine.
“Even for a country, this is too much. I saved you and lost a lot in the process. Not threatening for compensation as I said, but I didn’t want to hear this.”
“…….”
“Got it?”
“Hoo….”
Instead of answering, I stared straight into those brown eyes.
He took my shackled hand and plucked a rose from my boutonniere, holding it out.
“Let’s go kill Ainsidel.”
“…….”
“Ainsidel will try to take you, but oh well. If you won’t trust me that much, it’s easier to go together.”
“Impressive in many ways. Enough now.”
“Enough…? I don’t know what you’re thinking this time, but knowing Ainsidel’s location isn’t a lie.”
“It probably isn’t.”
At my cold reply, he stopped moving and looked down at me.
“Ainsidel is in the Pleroma leadership right now. Am I wrong?”
“…….”
“You must be pretty flustered. Earlier, and before, you mistook how much I know… Now you’ve decided to call the Osnabrück diocesan bishop ‘Ainsidel’?”
Lou Barr raised an eyebrow. The corner of his mouth slowly curled up.
“…Ah, hahaha…!”
“You said when talking about ‘Heike Ainsidel’ and the ‘Osnabrück diocesan bishop’ that ‘at least the surname and unique ability prove they’re relatives.’ How would I know the Osnabrück bishop’s surname if you hadn’t introduced it first? The day before yesterday, you naturally referred to the Osnabrück diocesan bishop as ‘Ainsidel.’ Same now. Why? Because I know the Osnabrück diocesan bishop’s surname. Because you know I know. You said we met after Eschet, interestingly.”
“…….”
“Pretending not to know what you do know isn’t easy. Once or twice is fine, but lies don’t last. You already knew I entered the catacombs as Nikolaus, infiltrated the Osnabrück diocese from there, and attacked diocesan bishop Ainsidel….”
“Haha….”
“How do you pretend not to know that? Up to here, I’ve proven you knew about my Osnabrück connection since early January.”
“Well, sure. But what does that have to do with the terror? As you know, living many faces makes acting daily life. Just a mistake in the process. At least ‘me’ as the archbishop saw you after Eschet.”
His voice was mild. He didn’t think much of this level.
Fair enough. We haven’t gotten close to the core yet.
“You’re protecting me from Ainsidel and the Pleroma leadership. Moreover, the Pleroma leadership announced using me as bait to lure Ainsidel. So you’ve been dissuading the leadership and seeking to eliminate Ainsidel yourself to block their reach.”
“Yes.”
“What a funny thing to say. The one chased by Ainsidel and the Pleroma leadership isn’t me—it’s you.”
“…Me?”
He smiled and continued.
“How long do you plan to frame me? I love you so I keep listening, but honestly, it’s unsettling.”
“You have no choice but to listen.”
I tapped the metal on my wrists against the table.
“You could baptize me right now or shatter the space magic, but why are you sitting still? Because you can’t use magic.”
“Not wrong. Fine. Let’s talk about something else. I like your voice.”
Fortunately, I’ve built some tolerance to such mad talk after hearing it a couple times. His words were relaxed, but unlike usual, instead of fiddling with my face, he looked down at me with a slightly stiff smile.
I opened my mouth, meeting his chilling gaze.
“You really are clever. I don’t particularly want to praise you, but I have to admit this. Among people I’ve seen in this world, you’re the greatest strategist.”
“…….”
“Before Pentaron, you had two goals. First, win my heart. Second, eliminate Ainsidel.”
“Why would I… Ainsidel.”
“Good question. Why did you need to eliminate Ainsidel? Just diocesan rivalry? Insufficient.”
I cupped his cheek with my hand and continued.
“Because Ainsidel tried to kill you, you had no choice but to stop him.”
“…….”
“The Freiburg Archdiocese is the culprit that contaminated the Empire’s land, rivers, and air with rampage drugs. The diocese that brought the nation to the brink of emergency and Pleroma’s unparalleled hero. Right? The rampage drugs used in all Pleroma dioceses now are your invention.”
“You know. Glad.”
The archbishop replied calmly.
Previously, discussing this with Assemblyman Alexander Klüger, I asked if the ‘Mephen polluted mosquitoes’ were Freiburg’s doing. Why? Because it was the first attempt to rampage people using polluted mana. The polluted mosquitoes were the experiment that started the nationwide rampage incidents; same principle and purpose.
The assemblyman said, ‘The two dioceses likely closely shared technology. They’d share profits too,’ confirming ‘the two dioceses were in a collaborative relationship.’
Wrong.
“Here’s why Ainsidel tried to kill you. You stole Werner Strauch’s technology from the assemblyman to develop those rampage drugs.”
I smiled, but he couldn’t. His eyes widened slightly, then a cold smile spread across his face.
I took his silence as willingness to hear more and continued.
“How could the southernmost diocese steal tech from the northernmost diocese’s vice-bishop? The ‘wanted’ Lou Barr you mentioned—what’s he wanted for? The surname ‘Barr’ you hid from me is an Osnabrück noble family, and your habitual Low German is Osnabrück German too.”
“‘Barr’? I never said that… Your ability is astounding.”
Ignoring the archbishop’s meaningful smile, I continued.
“Lou Barr is currently wanted in the Osnabrück diocese. Long ago, you used the body of Osnabrück noble ‘Lou Barr’ to infiltrate Osnabrück Pleroma, became ordained without suspicion, and rose quickly with your talents. Now you know what I’ll say next.”
While working as a priest there, ‘Lou Barr’ leaked Osnabrück’s internal tech to Freiburg.
That’s the answer.
Previously at Pentaron stadium, I thought this.
[You’ll clearly see several blind spots in the logic so far. Digging deep flips this issue 180 degrees due to those blind spots. Like starting academia by assuming the impossible as possible for simple models to build basics without overwhelming beginners, here too I must think simply first to grasp strategy layers clearly later.]
Now, the most decisive of those ‘several blind spots’ is resolved.
I erased Ainsidel’s memories and Osnabrück’s dual space magic data—how were dual space magic and its application, reverse dual space magic, used in the terror?
Did Ainsidel have a miracle memory method?
No.
Looking at the archbishop who let out a hollow laugh, I said.
“Before I erased Osnabrück’s data, ‘Lou Barr’ had already backed up all the spy-gathered materials to your diocese. The Osnabrück bishop forgot forever, but you could continue using dual space magic tech.”
“…….”
“And as archbishop, you used the leaked ‘polluted mosquito’ research from Osnabrück to complete the rampage drugs, first deploying them in Baden-Baden’s hot springs under Freiburg. The experiment succeeded, rocketing you to Pleroma’s top after that. Recently, at least.”
“Heh… haha….”
“Everyone applauded your achievement, but the original creator couldn’t. Knowing your achievement was his idea. Osnabrück’s Ainsidel realized your rampage drugs were based on Mephen research, Werner Strauch’s idea, and pursued you right after.”
The archbishop’s breathing quickened oddly. His mouth corner slowly curled up.
“Unfortunately, Ainsidel doesn’t care about means for diocesan gains and obsesses over friend Werner Strauch. You, like me… didn’t know that far. Luckily used an Osnabrück noble body for spying, but got bloody info.”
“…….”
“Must’ve been a headache.”
He didn’t refute. Just kept chuckling like a madman.
“Then why the terror? Here, I was genuinely impressed. Truly, if not for the 600,000 lives, I could’ve enjoyed our strategy game sincerely.”
“…….”
“You must’ve been disappointed I wasn’t grateful after you saved me. Per your plan, I should’ve been moved to tears by your sacrificial devotion protecting me from the enemy…. Isn’t falling for the white-horsed prince the trope?”
I snatched the rose from his hand and set it down.
He didn’t resist. His focus was on my next words anyway.
“Your initial scenario: make ‘Lucas Ascanien’ mistake Ainsidel for the Pentaron terror mastermind, then rescue him from death risk. Two effects: first, win Lucas Ascanien’s favor. Second, Lucas Ascanien will seek to eliminate terror culprit and Strauch’s avenger enemy Ainsidel. In other words, gain Lucas Ascanien as an ally.”
“Hahaha….”
“Of course, my ‘public’ answer ruined the second effect. That white phosphorus match wasn’t from you.”
At that, the archbishop’s eyes flashed.
He met me the day polluted rats were found near Brandenburg Tees Hotel basement. Asked if I’d seen strange codes. Meaning, besides the anagram he sent.
“‘Tell it to everyone’—that white phosphorus code was from Ainsidel, who saw through your scheme, sent to me. You sensed something off from Ainsidel and came to me. Right?”
“…….”
“Actually, the disbandment spell [Osnabrück Diocese Seeks You] didn’t need to reach everyone. It wasn’t really a disbandment spell. Just a warp spell to capture me. Ainsidel added the disbandment. The 600,000 curses lifting wasn’t your plan.”
“You know well…. Impressively so.”
The archbishop burst out laughing.
Why not planned?
The 600,000 had to die intact for me to pretend good citizen and go with the archbishop to kill Ainsidel.
“Ainsidel used me too. Sent ‘Tell it to everyone’ to make all Pleroma dioceses focus on you. You wouldn’t advertise disobeying that order to leadership—minimum expulsion, maximum power revocation.”
“…….”
“One plan achieves two goals. A strategist like you should’ve been an ally. Pity.”
He was now almost panting. Seemed near panic. Thinking slowly, it looked like he couldn’t control emotions at all, consumed by them.
“Coming here knowing everything, if you feel betrayed… sorry?”
“Ah…. Yeah. Hahaha!”
He threw his head back laughing, then dropped it. Lou Barr’s black hair veiled his vision.
“As expected. You have to be…. Does betrayal hurt? No. This is it….”
He grabbed my shoulder with one hand. The pain made me grimace.
He kept chuckling, swaying. Then slowly lifted his head.
I saw his chillingly gleaming eyes.
Surprisingly, the emotion I read from him was ecstasy.
“…Perfect. The you I know has to be like this.”