Black That Flowed from the White Prison (2)
"Haa. Ha."
In the black room where the light had gone out, I exhaled a long breath steeped in ecstasy.
I savored the satisfaction of those two people being digested, vanished without a single drop of blood remaining.
"Cough. Cough."
Ugh.
A coppery rush of blood rose in my throat. Spreading it that wide was still a bit much for me, apparently.
"My daughter! My daughter! Oh, my daughter!"
Ah. You don't have to shout that loud. I can hear you, Auntie.
"Ahh. I thought you had vanished. …Just what is that power of yours?"
Come on, you're a goddess and you don't even know? It's called a superpower. The kind of thing that was all the rage in the world I used to live in.
"Ahh. That world you spoke of, then. I see. Thank goodness. Oh, thank goodness."
Auntie kept muttering under her breath, as if she were profoundly relieved. If you're that worked up, couldn't you just cut off the power you're pouring into me for a second?
But almost at once, that crackling force surged through my body again, and the Black receded. The ends of my hair, dyed pitch-dark, returned to their original platinum like ash left after a burn. A missing tooth sprouted anew between my gums, and the half-healed cut on my lip vanished completely. Even that horrible, chest-splitting agony gradually settled.
Okay, this part I can get behind. Auntie Power.
"Holy Power is meant to be that sort of force, you know."
Yes, yes. And what those priests are using is nothing but fake light that only glows. I know. I get it.
I let a little of the Black trickle from my hand. Hmm. This much, at least, I could manage now. It had been so long since I'd seen the little thing—I was almost absurdly glad. I gently stroked the thumb-sized patch of Black, and it answered by nuzzling against my finger like a cat rubbing its head.
Well. Even this much could go a long way, depending on how I used it. Time to see if I could get out of here.
I shook out my hands and feet. Drew a deep breath. Between the Holy Power thrashing through me, I gathered the quiet stream of mana still flowing inside. Black was my friend. Darkness was my shelter.
"If you're going to pray like that, pray to me. Call me Mother."
No, Auntie. My mother was some farmer whose name I can barely remember, so what's with the mother talk?
"It's all right. Call my name, won't you?"
Yes, yes. Auntie Quilsena.
"Ahh. Thank you. Now go. Defeat evil, and spread my light upon the earth."
About that—I just killed people. Is that fine? Coming from a goddess?
"Even if you slew all of humankind, I would still love you, my daughter."
Yeah. People who get too deep into religion are a little dangerous. Setting aside whether Kaln, whose profession is just kind of depressing, even counts as evil—I should clean up and get out of here.
First, erase the traces. I searched the darkness and tidied everything neatly with Black. My missing tooth had been rolling around on the floor, after all.
Barefoot, I stepped quietly across the cold floor and pressed my ear to the iron door. Outside, shouts and women's screams drifted through—someone else was receiving the same "education" I had. Now, where did it go…
From the Black in the pitch-dark, a key rose up—one of the belongings of the man I'd just swallowed. Thick and crude. Would it be easier to just pick it with Black?
I tucked the key away again and slipped Black into the keyhole. The door opened without a sound, as if oiled. Faint orange light spilled in. I smeared Black over the hinges as well to kill any creak, then eased the door open and peered out.
"What, Zek? You already done in there?"
Tch. I lunged out at once. The smirking man's face flooded with surprise. Before he could shout, I flicked my hand toward his throat. Fingers coated in Black raked across his windpipe; then I drove my thumb into his side.
Oh?
His flesh gave way like soft tofu. The sensation of my thumb sinking in was almost refreshing. A tiny death-rattle leaked out of him, like air escaping. These people really were soft. The people of this world.
I held the man upright as death filled his eyes and checked the surroundings. No one else in sight besides him. Slick blood poured out, soaking me with heat. Crimson torchlight wavered along the narrow stone corridor.
I planted Black into his shadow and swallowed him whole. Again, that pain in my chest. I swallowed hard against the metallic taste crawling up my throat. Before a single drop of blood could hit the floor, the corpse vanished into me with a wet, crunching gulp.
"Haa. Haa."
This body was nothing like my last life. My heart felt ready to split and burst. I coldly regulated my breathing and chewed the pain down until it settled.
"Are you all right?"
Don't worry, Auntie. I'm used to this.
I wiped my face on my sleeve and the white fabric stained red. The coppery scent of blood drifted faintly through the dank stone passage. Leaving the screams and weeping beyond the walls behind me, I walked on quietly, gauging the presence around the next corner.
Three?
Damn. A little far.
I peeked. Three listless men were killing time with jokes.
"Hoo."
I drew a long breath and kicked off the cold floor. Burning life and mana for fuel, I tore through a landscape that blurred past me, and the men's expressions shifted in slow motion as they saw me coming. I wrapped Black around my fingertips and thrust it like a spear.
One.
I carried the motion through and scooped out the back of the next man's skull.
Two.
I spun, flicked the Black to my other hand, and drove it into the third man's throat.
Three.
"Ghk—ghk—"
With a wet, bubbling choke of blood-foam, the third man collapsed.
"Haa. Haa."
Once I get out of here, I really need to work on my stamina. Still, recovery was fast thanks to Auntie. And these humans were disgustingly soft.
My bare soles sank into the damp blood pooling from the corpses. Slick and warm, wrapping around my feet… I sank into the sensation of it.
Creeeak.
I'd gotten carried away. That was a mistake.
"Wh… what? Shit. E-escape! Someone's escaped!"
I dropped low and sprinted at the man. I sliced through the wrist drawing a sword, punched into his throat, then raked across the eyes of the man behind him and lightly stabbed his chest.
Two.
Seeing a door start to open, I shot forward. Humans were so soft I barely needed force. Just graze the right lines and they died.
Ahh. Good. Good. Good.
Limbs flew. Blood sprayed. People died. The sheer ecstasy of how smoothly a human body could be carved open sent a tingling ache low in my belly. For that brief stretch of time, running around was harder than the killing itself.
"Haa. Haa. Haa."
When I finally got my breathing under control, it was a mountain of corpses and a sea of blood. Eighteen in all, maybe.
I wiped my mouth with a sleeve soaked in blood. The corridor filled with the thick, fresh smell of it.
"My daughter. No matter when or where, one must always mind one's bearing."
Auntie, who until moments ago had been fussing in my head, addressed me again in that gentle, maternal voice. Amid the slick mess everywhere, I used the purification she had taught me. A nauseating twist turned in my gut, and a warm golden radiance flashed. It felt as though my whole body were glowing—deeply unpleasant—but every wet stain of blood vanished, leaving only a soft, golden fragrance clinging to my skin.
Well. Setting aside how slightly gross it was, it was good. On a completely different level from cleaning magic.
All right, then. Time to fatten up the Black.
Kaln had once been a knight.
But as he sorted through his ledgers, reflecting on the past, he decided the work he did now was better. Ten years since retiring from knighthood, and this business suited him rather well. He had done decently enough in those days, but this was far more comfortable than staking his life in battle.
And there was no shortage of people who wanted Kaln's "obedient" merchandise. Even nobles. With the connections from his knightly years, he had those clients as well. Watching the numbers grow as he went over the books was one of his chief pleasures—enough that he failed to notice the unnatural silence beyond the door.
Knock. Knock.
"What? I told you not to interrupt me when I'm doing the books!"
Annoyance sharpened Kaln's voice at the intrusion on his hobby. One complaint he had about his operation was that his subordinates lacked any sense of dignity. And they were idiots besides. In this day and age, commoners from the backwater marches were simply like that.
Creeeak.
"My, Brother Kaln. For someone who looks the way you do, you're rather more cultured than I expected."
A soft voice rolled through Kaln's quiet office. A girl in white monastic robes, with black hair. Black hair? Kaln felt a dull flicker of doubt—but she was unmistakably merchandise he himself had brought in from the White Brightness Society.
Smiling demurely, the girl stepped barefoot into his office and shut the door behind her.
"You… how did you get here? Weren't you being educated? Where's the collar?"
Something wrong crawled up Kaln's rusted instincts. The girl paid him no mind at all, looking around the room with open curiosity, tilting her head this way and that. After a leisurely pause, she answered him with a bright, cheerful smile.
"Oh my, so that was education! I thought it was torture, Brother Kaln."
As if she'd just heard something truly amusing, she raised a hand to her lips and folded the corners of her eyes in an elegant little laugh. An innocent smile.
No. Something was wrong. It was far too quiet outside. The door was thick, but he couldn't hear the usual murmuring of his men at all. A cold prickle rose along Kaln's spine, and his eyes found where he had left his two-handed sword.
"The ones outside aren't the sort who'd just let someone walk in quietly."
Watching the girl's face, Kaln rose from his seat. She was unhurriedly handling his collection pieces, clearly enjoying herself.
"Ah! Everyone has gone to the Goddess's side. And the Goddess is quite pleased with them."
She twisted her head at an unnatural angle to look at him, still smiling as if it were the most natural thing in the world. Kaln, who was not from another world, did not recognize the posture. He only felt a faint chill crawl over him—and then he detonated Aura through the tip of his foot and sprang for his sword.
He seized the blade and swung it at the girl. Ten years a Sword Expert, and seasoned Aura welled blue along the massive edge. The girl swung her hand as if she meant to block it—stupidly. The speed was far greater than he'd expected; Kaln's guts went cold. But it was over now.
"Ah, the people here really are terribly soft. If I'd known, I would have done this so much sooner. Don't you think so, Brother Kaln? Heehee."
Contrary to his expectations, the girl demurely withdrew her hand and rested her cheek against it as she spoke. Then she turned slowly, met Kaln's eyes, and tilted her head. The bearing of some refined, clueless little noble.
Kaln opened his mouth to shout, to intimidate her. Strangely, no voice came out.
Ching.
The sound of a blade hitting the floor reached Kaln's ears as if from a great distance. Of the sword he had swung, only the hilt remained. It slipped from his fingers. And last of all, his head slowly, smoothly slid free and fell to the floor with a dull thud.
"You needn't bow your head quite so low… Brother Kaln. The Goddess says she is glad you have repented."
In the fountain of blood gushing and spraying, the girl wore a gentle smile.
Thud.
Sinking into the crimson pool, Kaln never heard a word she said.