Chapter 236: I Have Seen
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 236: I Have Seen
In the beginning, the Resistance was a royalist revival army centered around provincial lords. In those days, they had strength, courage, and a sense of justice. They even harbored ambitions of becoming the kingdom's saviors, so much so that they didn't even need a royal heir to fight for.
But too much time had passed. The Military State solidified its power based on a systematic structure. It won victory after victory in the successive civil wars. The Resistance, whose mindset never evolved beyond that of the old kingdom, was inevitably pushed back until they were utterly defeated and forced into hiding.
It was around that time that the Resistance brought in the Princess. They were on the verge of collapsing without a central figure, so they sought to rally around her.
The Princess accepted her fate, but just as they did not respect her, she did not trust the Resistance. In any case, she could not coexist with the Military State, so following her duty was the only path available.
That's not to say the Resistance only crumbled. There were positive factors as well.
The incident at Hamelin led to a massive influx of youths abandoned by the Military State joining the Resistance. Thanks to them, a new wind was blowing through their ranks, but… it was a borrowed life, created by forcibly stitching on mismatched limbs.
There was no way that the knights, the authority figures of the old era, and the youths, who resisted unjust power, would get along.
The knights thought of the young people as their squires or private soldiers. They believed that if they overthrew this nation, they would take the youths under their command, and that alone would be a sufficient reward.
In contrast, the youths had never dreamed of restoring the monarchy. Their goal was the realization of a better ideal, or endless revenge and struggle. They aimed for one of two things: to reform the Military State, or to completely destroy it.
They could not understand each other. For now, they were united only by the goal of overthrowing the Military State. They were opposites in birth, in nature, and in what they sought.
And amidst this chaos, the Princess, the nominal leader of the Resistance… did not hate the Military State.
Shiati watched the conversation between the Princess and the Regressor with a pleased expression. She was genuinely enjoying herself. The first reason was that she was proud of the Princess, with whom she was rather close, for speaking so courageously. The second was that she had obtained crucial information because of it.
Shiati listened quietly, organizing the necessary information.
A command and control center. A corner of the headquarters. Twenty-six signallers.
‘If they’re signallers, they’ll definitely be with those damn surveillance golems. Signallers who relay orders from headquarters wouldn't be exposed to the outside often. It’s more efficient to go through golems. So, it’s reasonable to assume they’re in a less-frequented outer area rather than the central part.’
Shiati’s mind, filled with hatred, was abnormally developed in the art of hunting the Military State. Like a predator discerning the state of its prey by the scent of blood, she pinpointed their weaknesses with near-perfect accuracy from just a few pieces of information.
‘Since they use golems, they’re probably nothing special in terms of combat ability. They have many golems, but one person controls dozens. The total number of signallers must be quite small. Twenty-six is a number that can’t be ignored… If I kill them all, will it be a blow to the Military State?’
And then, she radiated a menacing killing intent.
Historia, who was closest to her and read that intent, hardened her face.
“…Shiati. Stop.”
“Stop? What?”
“Don’t increase the number of innocent victims. The signallers are pitiful, if anything. They’re not better children.”
Shiati blinked. Finding it hard to believe that such words came from one of the Six Generals, she soon clutched her stomach and burst into laughter.
“Ahah! Ahahat! Well, look at the great saint we have here! To think, to think! That you would say something like that!”
Even faced with that crazed laughter, Historia did not look away. Shiati shook her head repeatedly, still laughing.
“No, Historia. It doesn’t matter whether the signallers are pitiful or not. Not at all. Not one bit! What matters is how important they are to the Military State, how big of a blow it will be, and whether I can do it!”
“The Princess seems to want to talk to them. Are you going to ignore your master’s wishes?”
“Princess Yerien is not my master. She’s my friend. A friend with a big difference in rank, just like you and me!”
Shiati sat down next to Historia and pointed a finger at the Princess—a girl with light pink hair that was heartwarming just to look at.
But contrary to her delicate appearance, the Princess’s eyes held an unwavering resolve. Shiati looked at her with a hint of envy.
“Our princess is quite something, isn’t she? She’s grown up to be so brave. Not a flower in a greenhouse, but not a weed like me, either. Hehe. Sometimes it really hits you that some people are just a different breed!”
Historia inwardly agreed. If grace and class simply oozed out of her despite neither of them having experienced the kingdom, it meant that aura was innate.
The complete opposite of her own rough and violent nature.
Moreover, considering that she was the leader of the Resistance yet distrusted it, how starkly she contrasted with Historia, a Six General who had doubts about the Military State.
If there were true opposites in the world, it would be the Princess and Historia…
“You two are so alike. Both born into something, had a chance to cast it aside, but couldn't because you were swayed by sentiment… How ironic, isn't it?”
“What?”
Shiati didn’t explain further, only watching the Princess with slightly subdued eyes.
“But the Princess is the Princess, and I am me. We walk toward the same place, but our goals are different. Maybe we won’t get in each other’s way. I can just kill them all after she’s done talking to the signallers, right? I can wait that long!”
“Don’t repeat the tragedy. The tragedy of Hamelin was enough that one time.”
“One time? Aha, ahahahahahahaha! Historia.”
Shiati’s lips twisted into a smile. At the same time, her prosthetic arm shot out without warning, grabbing Historia’s chin and twisting it. They glared at each other, their noses almost touching.
“The tragedy isn’t over yet. So, for me, it’s still the first time. It’s currently having a very successful run.”
“…Isn’t it time you gave up? How many times have I turned a blind eye to you? After all that.”
“Why didn’t you kill me then? This is what happens when you don’t.”
Hehe. Shiati let out a dry laugh like a cough and spoke with a faint smile.
“I won’t die until I’ve broken the Military State, but I’ll be satisfied if you kill me. Leaving the biggest scar on your heart would be the same as breaking the Military State, after all.”
“You think I’ll listen to you?”
“You won’t kill me? Heh, then come to the Resistance! A Six General was actually part of the Resistance—that would be a shock many times greater to all the citizens of the Military State who admire the Daughter of the Military State! It’s the best-case scenario!”
“I have no intention of becoming a terrorist like you.”
“Who told you to follow me? Don’t follow a weed, follow the Princess, whose ideals are so lofty! Wouldn’t an idealist be best beside another idealist? It’s not like you’re loyal to the Military State either…!”
“Shut up!”
Historia shouted, but Shiati was still grinning. After glaring at her as if to burn a hole through her, Historia, still bound, shook Shiati off and shot to her feet. With blazing eyes, she strode toward me.
“Huey. Take me with you. To the place where the Princess will meet with the headquarters.”
Startled by the sudden demand, I blinked my eyes.
Historia was one of the Six Generals. One of the few valuable hostages in the Military State. My original plan was to drag her around pretending she was a hostage for a while and then toss her in a corner, but the plan had been delayed and delayed until it was on the verge of being scrapped.
This is why plans should be executed as soon as they’re made.
“I’ll follow you obediently that far. I swear I won’t resist, so you can untie me—no, it’s fine even if I’m tied up, just take me with you.”
I asked cautiously.
“Why? Are you going to face the headquarters yourself and betray us if you don’t like what you see?”
“It’s not a betrayal. I’m going to act. This time, by my own will.”
I could hear Shiati’s mocking laughter from behind. The tragic consequences of being late once were still clinging to Historia’s back.
To shake it off, Historia pleaded with me, her voice filled with firm resolve.
“I won’t have regrets like last time. I won’t be late. I will see everything with my own two eyes and judge for myself.”
[…You’re accumulating quite the following. Sigh, what is to be done?]
Tyr, who had returned to her coffin to conserve energy, muttered with a sigh. I shrugged and replied.
“I agree with you there, but the more firepower, the better. It’s not much of a problem.”
[Why is it that only the number of girls increases? The space is already cramped. I worry we might just end up living shoulder to shoulder.]
“You were worried about our morals becoming lax?!”
To be worried about morals while fighting a nation—she didn’t seem to care about that at all. Was this the mindset of a vampire who had been in conflict with the Sanctum for over a thousand years? Conflict with a nation was just daily life to her, how incredible.
Tyr showed no sign of tension about the impending battle. She seemed more concerned about other things.
[Furthermore, look at that. Is that not honey dripping from the Princess’s eyes as she looks at Shei? In contrast, Shei’s eyes are as plain as can be.]
Where Tyr pointed with a click of her tongue, the Princess was stealing glances at the Regressor, chattering away.
“It’s a strange feeling. I was educated very strictly, so I find men a little difficult. But with you, sir, I just feel at ease.”
“Ah, that’s… uh.”
‘It’s because I’m actually a woman in disguise. Right. Ugh. I don’t want to change my impression now and make her wary…’
This was a cardinal sin. From the moment you decided to go around disguised as a man, you got off on the wrong foot. Just live as a man for this timeline.
Tyr murmured wistfully.
[Huu. My heart feels heavy and a lump forms in my throat whenever I see this. Shei likes men, so why has the child known as the Princess developed an unrequited affection…?]
…Indeed. It was true she liked men, and it was true the affection was unrequited.
Whatever the misunderstanding, it was the Regressor’s fault. What a bad boy… no, a bad girl.
“Wait a minute. I feel like someone is slandering me somewhere.”
Only her useless senses were sharp.
Tyr, who had shrouded the area in darkness so our conversation wouldn’t be heard, spoke as if a thought had just occurred to her.
[By the way, this is unexpected. From what I have observed, Shei tries not to take on troublesome tasks, so I thought she would refuse the Princess’s proposal.]
“I agree, but… Shei is strangely kind to a select few people.”
The Regressor possessed the formidable social skill of taking everything crookedly and making her words spark like flint, but she had a tendency to be endlessly generous to those who had been her friends in previous timelines.
In fact, in the Abyss, she had approached the strongest vampire, Tyrkanzyaka, without any wariness from the start. When something happened to her, she was the first to step up.
The Princess would be an even more important case, not less.
[Sigh, and yet she doubted your every single action so excessively.]
“And as if to balance out her total patience, she’s even colder to certain people. I guess I was one of them. It’s so unfair. What’s wrong with me?”
[I know, right? I cannot fathom what is so suspicious about someone as trustworthy as you.]
Huh? Didn’t Tyr also call me suspicious when she first saw me?
[More fickle than a new bride. How can her attitude change so drastically?]
“If I knew, I would’ve used it myself. I have no idea.”
Actually, I did know. I just couldn’t follow it. To do so, I’d have to go back to a previous timeline and build a relationship of trust.
Well, I complained, but it was a natural course of action from the Regressor’s perspective. I couldn’t read her memories of previous timelines, but she must have gone through all sorts of experiences and events.
No matter how many new timelines began, her memories and experiences remained, so it was only natural that her level of intimacy with people would differ.
“By the way, Tyr, are you sure it’s okay for you to help us? The Military State is in conflict with the Sanctum, so aren’t you losing an ally?”
[Since when was a nation of humans an ally to vampires? In my life, I have seen nations fight the Sanctum, but I have never seen one form an alliance with us. At best, it was a non-aggression pact.]
“Still, isn’t it a bit burdensome to fight a nation on your own?”
[Shei is trying to save the world, and are you not as well? No harm will come from me lending a hand.]
Tyr spoke benevolently and opened the lid of her coffin slightly. Through the narrow gap, my eyes met with the gently smiling vampire.
[I am cheering for you. Even if the world forsakes you, I alone will help you.]
A sincere declaration from the Progenitor Tyrkanzyaka. It was reassuring. There was no need to doubt her, but to better understand her feelings, I read her thoughts with my mind-reading ability.
‘Then, if we end up on a nation’s bad side and become fugitives, we will be each other’s only refuge. From then on, we will have to stay together, whether we like it or not. Is that not romantic?’
Huh? What was that about? What’s romantic about a fugitive’s life? There’s only savagery.
Uh, wait a minute. The reason Tyr keeps cheering on my and the Regressor’s reckless actions, the reason she helps me do whatever I want, could it be…
“Tyr. In this attack on the headquarters, are you planning to completely annihilate it, or just rough them up a bit and pull out?”
Tyr answered as if it were obvious.
[What good would destruction and chaos do for the world? Let us give them a stern warning and flee. To toy with a nation and its destiny is an irresponsible act.]
“But the ones left behind will pursue me, won’t they?”
[Do not worry. I shall protect you.]
‘For a long, long time.’
A bead of sweat trickled down my back. Perhaps, without anyone realizing it, I was the one who had fallen into the trap.