156. Immature, or Despair (3)
156. Immature, or Despair (3)
- 1 -
Arpina's experiments continued.
The psychologist and professor who had merely manipulated memories, twisting people's inner secrets for self-satisfaction and pleasure, was no more.
There was only a plunderer and murderer who stole beyond memories, into talents, and finally even parts of souls.
"Heu, ha, hahaha."
Thus, at twenty-five, Arpina already possessed countless abilities.
In the light, as a psychologist and counselor, she corrupted the most talented students or absorbed their abilities.
In the shadows, near the kingdom, numerous powerful individuals were murdered by mysterious means and buried.
They were all mercenaries or adventurers, talents who, had they lived, could have become great assets to the continent in the future.
"Such boring material!"
Her talent as a Fate (緣) Killer was outstanding.
Some of those she killed had now begun to be 'exhibited,' and beside them lay journals detailing their most secret matters.
Sometimes good deeds. Sometimes evil deeds. Sometimes unbearable truths.
And at every location, a strand of her black hair and a single green brooch were left behind.
"Please exercise caution. Do not forget that the Royal Family is watching."
"I am always grateful for your support."
The Royal Family, having confirmed this, knew from the start that she was responsible for all the murders, but they hushed it up and received a portion of the Fate (緣) Orbs from her.
"This isn't enough. I need more, much more!"
She increasingly targeted the powerful.
With her dying body, she indulged in physical pleasure, and with the abilities stolen from them, she reached spiritual climax.
"I'm becoming more and more perfect. More! Even more!"
Man or woman, it didn't matter.
Only power and pleasure.
And the perfection of her self being completed.
That was what mattered most.
The higher the intensity of the sensation of pleasure, the more she believed herself to be perfected.
"Truly magnificent, Arpina."
"Of course, Mother. And now I'll become even more perfect."
"Wait... you, right now."
One of the peaks of that climax was something Arpina could extract from her mother and family, who had succeeded in rising from ruined nobility back to aristocracy through her achievements.
"Hmm..."
Something shining through the black hair reflected in the mirror.
Arpina slowly caressed the source of that light with her finger.
The newly grown silver hair gleamed coldly like moonlight.
"Silver... is pretty, though."
Soon, a sneer formed on her lips.
"Even if it kills my appetite."
She raised her eyes, still gleaming a cunning green, and looked north.
She now prided herself on being nearly perfect.
She had devoured countless souls, stolen their abilities, advancing step by step, and had now reached a position where she could look toward the Monarch rank.
But she was still lacking.
The decisive, ultimate puzzle piece that would lead her to true perfection.
"Noble Abelos."
It was then that she heard the rumor that the hero had arrived in the north.
The 13 greatest adventurers on the continent.
Among them, one of the three heroes famed for being the most powerful and for guarding unwavering good.
He, who was originally supposed to be guarding the northern Demon Realm, had briefly come inland for a family matter.
"Ah..."
Arpina felt a tingling tightness deep in her gut.
A shiver ran through her the moment she imagined how great the pleasure from his body would be.
How great would the climax and omnipotence feel when she stole his power?
It was certain to be the ultimate ecstasy she had never experienced before.
- 2 -
- Master. We've discovered something unusual in the movements of the 'Owls' during our investigation.
Talhan's voice came through the communication orb.
A face reflected beyond the Fate (緣) communication orb after receiving the urgent signal.
Outwardly, the face maintained its usual calm, but I could read the subtle tension flowing beneath it.
This wouldn't be light news.
"Tell me in detail, Talhan."
- Well... we aren't certain either, but it seems like internal strife.
"Internal strife?"
- Yes.
I couldn't hide my bewilderment and tilted my head.
Talhan also clearly looked confused.
This was definitely strange.
While it was said that the Information Guild was formed by comrades who shared a past and united in purpose, the Information Merchants were completely different.
They were a different faction gathered under one man's charisma and the values he championed.
'If the Guild is a republic, then the Information Merchants are like an absolute monarchy.'
It was hard to imagine internal strife occurring in such an organization.
Then the remaining possibility was...
"Rebellion?"
"I believe that is not the case, my lord."
At that moment, Ran interjected.
She had come to report on Elena's situation and happened to join this conversation.
"Why is that?"
"Among the Information Merchants, there is no one capable of replacing 'Thousand Faces.'"
Ran's voice was filled with certainty. It was a decisiveness that contrasted with her faint smile.
"They lack such personnel?"
"Rather than lacking capable personnel..."
Ran tilted her head, choosing her words for a moment before continuing.
"... there is no one who can surpass him."
Only then did I understand and nod.
Indeed, 'Thousand Faces' was an existence estimated to be on the boundary between High Rank and Monarch grade.
It wasn't the subordinates' fault that their leader was a superhuman existence they couldn't emulate.
"Right... then."
"The Dream Witch has various powers. Master..."
This time it was Shue who spoke.
She, who had been lost in thought the whole time, had remembered something.
"... Among them, there's one that controls people's minds."
It was instantly understandable.
The situation pieced itself together from an unexpected angle.
"I didn't think there would be someone other than me who would use such a tactic. And against a human, among humans at that."
This was an error in my judgment.
It was because I had limited my thinking of Arpina to the category of a mere 'criminal.'
Arpina was a top-tier powerhouse of the continent. At the same time, she was an existence who had once been captured by the continent's strongest adventurer and succeeded in breaking away.
'I should have assumed and thought of her as a major player, not a simple criminal. At least as someone who cultivated an entire organization single-handedly.'
If so, she would naturally have possessed the arrogance and self-esteem befitting such a person.
It was an evaluation based greatly on Earth standards, but it probably wasn't far off.
Humans are similar wherever you go.
'In other words, it means she might have thought that even dealing with an information organization itself wounded her pride.'
Shue's subsequent words proved my hypothesis.
"Probably, it wasn't an act to seize control of the information network... but rather, it seems she just intended to use a part of it. I'm not certain, but... maybe she thought no one would know if she returned it afterward."
It was a plausible speculation.
There was no way the 'Dream Witch' would have truly tried to seize the entire 'Gray Eye' organization.
She had witnessed the power of the continent's strongest being, and she couldn't have been unaware that 'Gray Eye' was also among that echelon.
Of course, the latter part of what she said was only Shue's hypothesis, so I had to take it with a grain of salt, but...
'Borrowing someone else's organization.'
... I could see a certain 'consistency' forming here now.
If she had been a person with such common sense in the first place, she wouldn't have thought to challenge the continent's strongest, 'Noble Abelos.'
She wouldn't have needed to enter 'another body' either.
Her before and after were fundamentally the same, yet clearly different existences.
"Now that I think of it, I haven't heard about the opportunity that led her to challenge the Demon Realm."
- As far as it's known...
It was Talhan who spoke, but he was frowning hesitantly, as if unsure if he should say this.
"Just tell me."
- There are records stating she said that to challenge Abelos again, she needed to know the power of the Demon Realm Archduke, whom even Abelos dared not challenge out of fear.
"From where?"
Talhan hesitated again.
Like his expression earlier, the reliability of the information seemed to be the main reason for his dilemma.
"It's fine, tell me."
- Well... it's from a bar in the north. It's not certain, though.
"I see. But considering the current situation, it seems likely."
She plundered and accumulated the powers of nearby high-ranking ability users.
She challenged the continent's strongest during a time it was hard to digest all of it, was captured and then released.
Immediately after, she recklessly challenged the Demon Realm Archduke.
After being released from the Archduke, she headed straight south without covering her tracks.
She tried to control and use a part of the Information Merchants without dealing with them directly.
The puzzle pieces that had seemed utterly irregular connected as one.
Like a mosaic.
The intentions behind the individual incidents couldn't be fully grasped yet, but now the outline of what kind of person she was had roughly taken shape.
"A talented brat. And desperate resignation from something."
"It seems so."
"It appears..."
Seeing that Ran, Shue, and Talhan all seemed to agree with my words, my judgment didn't appear to be greatly mistaken.
It was interesting that Ran and Shue genuinely seemed not to 'know' about Arpina...
But I decided to ask about that later.
"If we are indeed her target, she'll be coming down soon."
"Why...?"
"Because she won't be able to obtain information about me from the Information Merchants."
If Arpina had heard about me from the Demon Realm Archduke, she would have heard of my location as well.
The location of my dungeon was also information that could easily be found out through investigation in the Demon Realm.
Even if Scarlet, Mari, and the Eastern Continent Sales Department of Mammon Company tried to prevent information leaks, there were limits.
Even if not the exact location, she would have roughly grasped the region.
Therefore.
"Ran, finish your work as quickly as possible and return. Call Eve as well."
"I shall also place the queens on standby nearby."
"Yes. That would be best."
One who possessed at least High Rank abilities.
It still wasn't certain if she was truly coming with aggressive intentions, but her actions had no consistent pattern.
Even if she appeared to have different intentions, an opponent against whom I must never let my guard down.
Such a person was now approaching this place.
And with my item that I had put in my shopping basket intercepted and held directly in her hand.
"Yeah..."
"Master...?"
"My lord?"
I felt the corners of my mouth freeze on their own.
I felt Ran and Shue cautiously watching my reaction, but even so, I couldn't prevent my mood from plummeting to rock bottom.
"...Soon I'll get to see the face of the one who dared lay hands first on what I was trying to obtain."
The information dominance held by the 'Owl' was so important that I was willing to invest numerous personnel, including Talhan, to obtain it.
Yet that crucial puzzle piece—insufficient even if it came into my hands intact—necessary for my and my people's absolute safety, someone had damaged it.
And it was probably by an unworthy person who couldn't judge its value, or had abandoned judging its value.
'For a very, very long time...'
I felt my frozen mouth loosen slightly, and a smile naturally formed.
'...I'll have to keep her alive.'
I wanted to trample her.
Thoroughly.
'Completely.'