The Arena (4)
What the hell?
Evan swallowed hard as he stared into the shrine maiden's eyes — eyes that had become nothing but pupils.
No spark of light. No whites visible at all. The word that rose unbidden was not person, but ghost.
No wonder the word witch had crossed his mind.
Why had she suddenly turned like this?
Don't tell me she's that furious…?
People said anger could make your eyes roll back. Maybe the shrine maiden's had rolled a little too far.
It wasn't hard to understand. She had always loved animals. There were times, when reading fate, that she simply refused to speak if it meant some innocent creature would die. And among animals, she was especially helpless before anything cute. Even the alias she'd given Number Five — Teddy Bear — had been her suggestion.
Whether through some glitch or a simple mix-up, it had ended up as Dead Bear instead of Teddy Bear… but still.
For someone who adored animals that much, every single monster before her was locked in a cage. Every one of them looked hideous. Whether that was the result of experiments or how they had always been, he couldn't say…
This is bad. Really bad.
Just as Evan gulped again—
…slip.
The shrine maiden's eyes returned to normal. As if nothing had ever been wrong. She blinked several times, then groped at the corners of her own eyes.
"…Are you all right?"
"Hm? Yes… I'm fine."
You do not look fine.
She seemed thoroughly confused herself, muttering over and over, Huh? Why…? It wasn't like this before…
Evan decided to leave her be for a moment. Once she settled down, she'd be fine. He started to gently free his hand—
Squeeze.
"?"
"…Ah."
The shrine maiden clamped down on his hand. Her grip was so strong it actually hurt. His Living Armor quietly expanded around the pressure.
Whew. Almost yelled.
The shock had frozen his face into a rictus, which at least meant his panic didn't show. The shrine maiden was even more flustered than he was — fumbling, apologizing, yet never once letting go of his hand.
"I'm sorry. Just for a moment…"
"Ah — yes."
"Just a moment. I'll only hold on for a moment."
"It's fine."
Lending a hand for a second was no big deal.
Ugh.
Evan dragged his free hand down his face. The sensation of a facial cramp was deeply unpleasant. When your face locked up and refused to move, unpleasant was the least of it.
But something even more uncomfortable was waiting.
"Heh heh. To your liking, I hope?"
The man responsible for guiding them — Don Quixote — was rubbing his hands together with a sycophantic grin.
"Excellent monsters for experimental use! Every last one of them is either defective or far too vicious."
"…Why would you use defective ones?"
"Because they're not simply defective! Here — look!"
Whoosh!
Don Quixote yanked the cloth off a nearby iron cage. Inside was a small giant whose one eye had swollen to grotesque proportions. A mutant cyclops — enormous eye, tiny body. Barely large enough to deserve the name giant.
"This one's eye is massive, but its body is small! Pluck that eye out and you'll have a superb reagent!"
"…"
The shrine maiden's hand trembled. Not from fear — from rage. She tightened her grip on Evan's hand and fixed Don Quixote with a stare.
Don Quixote, misreading it completely, only grinned wider.
Keep that up and you're dead.
"Hoho! Your lady seems quite taken with it! If you wish, I'll give it to you free of charge! Sell it in the Empire and you'll fetch an even higher price!"
Then a woman's voice cut through the air.
"…Disgusting."
Aegis. Every trace of her usual bright energy was gone. Her expression and presence had gone ice-cold as she stared Don Quixote down. Looking at that frozen face, Evan felt an involuntary chill crawl up his spine.
However cheerful she might seem, she was an Elder of the Alchemist Tower — a genius among geniuses who had polished herself to brilliance among already glittering prodigies. Someone like that was never going to be soft.
"Fitting for a den of trash. Your attitude toward life…"
Aegis looked down on Don Quixote with glacial contempt.
"You're a rebel, aren't you?"
Spoken like a true princess… that word choice…
Even he found her a little terrifying.
Don Quixote's face twisted.
"…And who the hell are you? Can't you see I'm talking to the young master?"
Aegis gave no answer. She simply stared.
Rumble. Rumble-rumble-rumble.
The ground beneath their feet began to shake, as if an earthquake had struck. Pebbles on the floor danced and jittered.
"…Wh-what is this?"
Sensing danger on pure instinct, Don Quixote stumbled backward.
Evan knew exactly what Aegis was doing. The process of alchemy was [Understand], [Decompose], [Reconstruct]. And if you stopped at Decompose?
You could break down everything. She could collapse this entire underground in an instant.
That was why the Alchemist Tower had been able to maintain its closed-door policy for so long — because of the power a single strong alchemist could unleash.
"Y-Young Master Evan!"
Don Quixote cried out in desperation, clinging to the only lifeline he could see.
You're trying to latch onto me?
No matter how cowardly Evan was, this was not happening. He cut him off cold.
"I have no interest in this either."
"…"
Don Quixote's eyes wavered.
"D-do you have any idea what each of these monsters is worth? In this arena — no, even on the black market — you'd make a fortune…"
"I'm already rich."
Did you not see the bid I placed?
"…Heh. Heh heh."
Don Quixote laughed like a man whose soul had left his body. He slowly raised both hands in surrender.
But Aegis still didn't react. She kept staring — because Don Quixote was grinning.
"…Haa. If you won't come around, that puts me in a difficult position."
"…?"
"I've confirmed the young master is an alchemist. But if you bring this whole place down, you'll die with it."
Snap!
Don Quixote flicked his fingers. As if answering the sound, every monster's head whipped around toward them.
Grrrrrr—
The agony they had shown moments before might as well have been a lie. They bared their teeth, hostility rolling off them in waves.
"Ah — and I might not die at all. Only you will."
"…"
"If you use your power, every one of these monsters dies. If you want to watch these poor things perish, by all means — go ahead."
"You really are trash."
"Keh heh. If the young master won't cooperate, what choice do I have?"
Creeeak. Boom!
The door they had entered through slammed shut, sealing their escape. Decomposition would still handle it easily enough — but Don Quixote looked triumphant all the same.
"Well then, young master. Choose. Will you deal with me, or will you fight every monster in this place?"
He spread his arms wide.
"Six hundred sixty-six monsters! Every last one of them obeys my will!"
"Drugs."
Aegis spoke. Her eyes glowed — proof she had activated her skill.
Analysis Eye
"You used drugs on them."
"Oh. You figured it out. Cost me a fortune, too!"
Don Quixote laughed, clearly eager to brag.
"A specialty drug they call the Grace of the Gods! Only works on monsters. With this, I can lead an entire legion!"
"…Hah."
Aegis exhaled as if her anger had finally hit its limit, and stepped forward.
"Evan. Let me show you the power of the Alchemist Tow—"
"Wait."
Evan stopped her. Was he worried she might get hurt? Well, yes. But more than that—
This is something I can handle easily.
A monster-control drug. It had felt vaguely familiar, and once he heard the description, he was certain.
That drug. He had made it.
It had changed a little from what he remembered — but fundamentally, it was his creation.
No need for a separate [Understand].
[Decompose].
Decompose
The moment he drew up his mana, every trace of the drug dispersed through the air was broken down and vanished.
Fssssssss—!
Dust swirled suddenly through empty space. Before Don Quixote's eyes could even widen, Evan pressed a hand to the ground and flooded the area with mana, leaving not a single particle behind.
Slightly mutated? Didn't matter. What mattered was the component that held the monsters' leashes. Decompose that, and it was over.
Done.
Evan nodded.
"It's finished."
"What nonsense are you— Specimen Eleven! Rise!"
Don Quixote's booming command. The monster beside him twitched.
And that was all.
"…?"
The creature looked down at its own limbs in confusion. It shook its head left and right. Sensing that every last scrap of the drug's influence had left its body, it bared its teeth at Don Quixote.
Grrrrrr!
"Wh-what?! Obey me! I said obey!"
"The drugs won't work anymore."
Don Quixote's face contorted.
Oh, that felt good.
Whip!
Don Quixote's bloodshot eyes locked onto Evan, panic flooding them as realization finally hit.
"D-don't tell me. That rumor was true?"
"?"
"Th-the drugmak—"
"Lapis."
Evan cut him off in a rush.
"Shut his mouth."
"Okay!"
Whirrrrr!
Threads lashed out like whips and coiled around Don Quixote's entire body, binding him tight.
"Mmph! Mmmph!"
"Eheheh."
Lapis giggled.
"Evan gave me permission for the first time in ages. He must be really mad."
One corner of her mouth curled up. The Sin of Wrath — Ira. Her eyes began to burn red, as if warming up.
"I'm pretty mad too, you know?"
"…!"
"You're not getting a clean death."
Lapis delivered the words with chilling calm. Evan quietly averted his gaze.
I saw nothing. I only asked her to shut him up.
Whew. Almost had my dark history exposed.
How did this guy even know about what he'd done in the underworld?
"Wh-what? How did you do that?"
"…I got lucky."
He wasn't about to confess his black history out loud. Evan mumbled something vague instead.
"I'd seen it before."
"A drug like that? I've never seen one…"
"…I saw it in my family."
"Ahh!"
Whew. Dodged that one.
Relieved, Evan turned his head. The shrine maiden was still clutching his hand tightly. He was worried she might have been frightened.
"Shrine maiden. Are you all right?"
"…"
He flinched despite himself. She was staring straight at him.
"…Yes. I'm fine."
That was good, but—
Why is she looking at me like that? It's terrifying.
Then—
Whine…!
A tiny whimper. The cry of a newborn pup.
Evan turned his head. The monsters, freed from the drug, were milling about in confusion. They didn't seem to regard the group as enemies — a few were even looking at them with something like goodwill.
Is that a bicorn?
Its horn had been cut short, but still.
All kinds of rare creatures in here. I had no idea a place like this existed.
A complete gold mine. If he'd still been a player, releasing them would probably have earned him experience points. Swallowing a twinge of regret, he spoke to the shrine maiden.
"Wouldn't it be better to help the monsters first?"
"…Ah. Yes. You're right."
She came back to herself and finally released his hand. Evan turned toward the source of the sound.
A puppy?
Oddly, it had two heads. Not a Cerberus — no severed cross-section. Half its fur was dark blue, the other half dark crimson. Even accounting for that, it was surprisingly cute.
Except for one thing.
"…This wolf. Its legs?"
Aside from the legs that looked as if someone had simply sliced them off with a blade—
Hmm. I've never seen this kind of monster before.
It was whimpering as if burning with fever, and it hurt to watch. Maybe he should take a closer look. You never knew — he might end up raising a pet.
A missing leg… I think I could fix that.
Not regeneration — an artificial limb, if he built one from scratch.
That was the thought running through his mind when—
Click!
Every light in the underground cavern went out at once. The space plunged into sudden darkness. Aegis frowned and snapped her fingers. A flame bloomed through alchemy, casting a faint glow nearby — and in that light, a silhouette came walking toward them from the far side.
"What's this?"
A man emerged, relying on nothing but the ember of the cigarette between his lips. He tilted his head.
"Customers?"
What.
Evan's eyes widened slightly as he saw the man's face.
So this is where you were.