Chapter 364
Chapter 364
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>Translator: Ryuma
>Chapter: 364
>Chapter Title: Day by Day
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Evelyn thought to herself.
'What is life?'
The sun rises. And sets. When night falls, darkness flows into the places once filled with light, and the vibrant night sky turns black.
Filling that black sky are the stars and the moon.
And the moon hides its trace when morning comes.
The sun rises again.
Just like that, one day.
She lives through one day.
Evelyn's days were truly monotonous.
In the morning, she wakes up, starts work with a cup of coffee, and has a simple meal of bread.
Why does 'starting work' come before 'breakfast'? Because she usually handled her morning meal while flipping through documents from the day before.
Once the bread was finished, she dove into work in earnest.
'Let's see... the agenda that came in yesterday...'
The tasks she handled at the development site were wide-ranging.
Financial management, material fluctuations, personnel, and even minor requests.
So many duties piled up on her that she couldn't define them as 'doing this or that specific thing,' but by processing them one by one, the day slipped away in no time.
And then, bed.
As she lay down to sleep, Evelyn thought once more.
'What is life?'
Day by day.
A life filled with work.
Day by day.
'...Three days make a triad.'
No, that's not right.
Lying in bed, staring at the ceiling, Evelyn shook her head at the random thought that drifted in.
These idle musings were a side effect from her academy days... interactions with Damian, Chenbi, and Aster.
Anyway, that wasn't the point right now.
'What is life?'
As always, Evelyn ended her day with this contemplation.
In truth, there was no answer.
'Life' was something inscrutable, unknowable even after a lifetime of reflection.
But for some reason...
'I feel like... I get it.'
Lately, Evelyn had the sense that she could define what 'life' was.
The reason was probably...
[I'm flying! Flying without wings!]
"No, you're not? You're not gonna make it like that."
[Gyaaaah!]
In the dead of night, those noisy voices outside the window.
Flap flap flap flap!
Clumsy wingbeats.
"Eek! Gah! Hack!"
A satisfying scream.
[Uncouth human! I am dragon! You are uncouth!]
An indignant shout.
Thud, smack, boom!
Unidentifiable impact sounds.
Lying in bed, quietly listening to those noises, she felt like she could grasp what 'life' was.
So, what was life?
'...Suffering.'
An endless cycle.
Why?
"...Work."
There was just too much work.
In fact, having so much work didn't bother her at all.
It was a lot, but an amount she could handle.
Work she could manage on her own only made her stronger in the end. So, it wasn't suffering.
But what newly felt like 'suffering' was...
"Whatever, just copy this."
[New magic, I learn.]
"This one's got an incantation, okay? Let's start. 'I am'."
[I am.]
"A lizard."
[Liza...]
"A lizard."
[...?]
Yes, this.
Watching those two idle fools made her acutely aware of how much work she had.
She had lived without realizing her work was suffering, but their existence made Evelyn recognize suffering as suffering.
[Gyaaaaaaaah!]
"Eek! Gah! S-stop!"
Evelyn squeezed her eyes shut and plugged her ears at the sounds ringing in her ears.
'Life is... suffering.'
So, what was suffering?
......Those bastards.
They lounged around day and night, relentlessly reminding her that life was suffering. They were the true suffering.
Of course, Evelyn knew.
That Aster wasn't just playing around.
'Aster...'
On this trip to the Second Development Site, he had thwarted the conspiracy there and secured compensation from the Second and Third Sites alongside Viscount Karond for the nobles' abuses.
And just recently, he had personally visited two nobles in Araphurgin to extract promises of cooperation.
Now, what about that self-proclaimed dragon with the weird name 'Wyvern'?
Nothing.
But.
'...Base camp.'
In establishing it, the self-proclaimed dragon's presence was an indispensable element.
Why?
Because the black wyvern called the ridiculous 'Yongyong'—leader of all wyverns in the Araphurgin Mountains—proclaimed itself Wyvern's underling.
But.
Setting aside such usefulness.
To Evelyn, the two were suffering.
Was that why?
"Yeah, I've decided."
Evelyn shot up and looked out the window. The wee hours of dawn, with the moon nearly set. Outside, a beast and a human even worse than a beast were bickering.
Evelyn smiled at the sight of them.
"I'm going on strike."
Tower or no tower, she couldn't live like this.
......That was Evelyn's choice.
* * *
Aster heard about Evelyn's strike the next morning.
"...This is bad. Miss Evelyn has declared a strike."
Ahnar, who arrived early in the morning, delivered the news of Evelyn's strike with a grim expression.
As someone who handled a significant portion of the development site's work alongside Evelyn, he had learned of it faster than anyone.
Meanwhile, Aster tilted his head upon hearing the news.
"A strike...?"
He couldn't believe it.
Evelyn going on strike? The workaholic?
"You don't believe it, huh. Come see for yourself."
Aster followed Ahnar's lead up one floor in the same building to Evelyn's room.
And there it was.
STRIKE
The door plastered with a strike sign.
"Uh... what in the world happened?"
"...You asking because you don't know? She had way too much work. And... even I'd snap in her shoes."
"Why?"
"Why do you think?"
Ahnar fixed Aster with a cold stare.
And at that look, Aster gave an awkward smile.
"There's a reason for it..."
"Yeah, sure. There must be. But even with reasons, consider how it looks to others."
"Then somewhere out of sight..."
"You joking?"
"......"
Under Ahnar's sharp momentum, Aster clamped his mouth shut.
Anyway, that wasn't the important part.
"But if Evelyn's on strike, the development schedule..."
"I'll handle as much as I can for now. But it won't be easy. Unlike last year, we're in full development now, so there's more than one or two things to handle."
That was a relief, at least.
Not all schedules would grind to a halt.
Of course, it wasn't a situation where he could fully relax.
"I'll get going. Fortunately, she organized the tasks she was handling."
"...Ah, yes."
"And you... behave yourself."
"......"
Behave yourself.
The meaning was simple.
Don't rile Evelyn up further, and work both materially and spiritually to end the strike.
So, what to do.
"...Ugh."
Aster groaned at the unexpected problem of 'Evelyn's strike declaration.'
That's when Wyvern appeared.
Flap flap.
[Hold it out, tribute.]
It meant hand over the morning's moonstone allotment...
"Sigh, I can't live with you around, can't live."
[What's wrong? I don't know. But I know one thing. Everything, karma. Karma is yours.]
"This, I swear, just once..."
Aster nearly punched the cheeky wyvern, but realizing they were still in front of Evelyn's door, he let out a deep sigh.
"Fine. What am I even saying to you."
Aster handed over three moonstones to Wyvern and walked off casually.
For now, with Evelyn on strike, something had to be done.
'...The problem is what.'
This was when he missed Chenbi.
Chenbi would have pinpointed the issue and given apt advice.
* * *
For now, Aster decided to focus on the 'symptom.'
'Evelyn declared a strike because my lounging around made her stomach hurt.'
If so, the solution was simple.
"Viscount."
"...?"
Viscount Karond, eating breakfast in his lodgings early in the morning, furrowed his brow at Aster's sudden visit.
He knew by now.
That encountering Aster never brought good.
"What... is it?"
His voice naturally trembled, but Aster smiled at the viscount.
"Not bored?"
"I'm busy."
"What busy? Why would a viscount be busy? Got anything going on right now? Think carefully before answering. The Room of Truth is always open."
"...Ahem, ahem. No particular tasks at hand."
Lately, Viscount Karond's role at the development site was minimal. He just replied to occasional messages from the Second and Third Sites.
Even that was mostly sorted, so not much to do.
That's why he could leisurely eat like this.
Aster nodded in satisfaction at the viscount.
"Then, mobilize."
"...?"
"Oh, gonna play? While Senior Ahnar works, you play alone? With Evelyn on strike, you play?"
"......"
Viscount Karond set down the bread in his mouth onto the plate and looked across.
The knight eating opposite him rose with a shit-eating expression.
"...Let's go."
"You've got a tough master, poor guy."
"It's a natural disaster."
"Glad you see it that way."
And so, Viscount Karond departed with his escort knight in tow.
Aster watched his retreating figure contentedly, then moved on.
"Alright, reinforcements dispatched for now."
Next up?
'...Work.'
Lounging hurts her stomach? Then show her working.
The problem was what work.
In truth, there was only one thing left for Aster to do at the development site now.
'...Base camp site preparation.'
That was it.
* * *
......Meanwhile, at that time.
The eastern empire.
A group was slipping across the border adjacent to the Hoaksen Kingdom.
Their movements were so stealthy they evaded even the empire's rangers' watch—though in a way, it was only natural.
Ten robed figures.
Each one a fully molted Anti-Mage.
Once fully across the border, the leader among the Anti-Mages shed his robe and looked up at the sky.
"The empire... it's been ages."
Around the end of the old war, he had crossed to Hoaksen—easily half a century.
The imperial soil he stepped on after so long was, well...
"...Still makes me want to puke."
After his curt sentiment, the old man turned to one of the trailing Anti-Mages.
"So, where was it that Decullan's halfwit is waiting?"
"Nearby. A bit further and we'll be there."
"Then we can take it slow."
"As you wish."
The old man resumed his halted steps. Unlike when crossing the border, his pace was leisurely, like a stroll.
'Pahren, that snake actually sent his own son...'
The man who treated Salbation like vermin had extended a hand—and via his son, no less.
But more astonishing was...
'...Reverse Heaven, in Decullan of all places?'
"Interesting, very interesting."
Why had Decullan suddenly revealed Reverse Heaven's existence and reached out?
Could Reverse Heaven have emerged into the world...?
'If so...'
The Fourth Elder's eyes gleamed coldly.
It might mean witnessing the society's ancient wish fulfilled in his lifetime.
"Either way, it won't be boring."
The society, crouched for thousands of years, now raised its head above the surface.
To bite the 'Reverse Heaven' bait tossed by Decullan.