Sapiens Must Die (2)
Around the same time. On a distant plain in the Lower World.
"Phase one." The knights raised their issued goggles to their foreheads and furrowed their brows. The clear sky held nothing visible—no clouds, not even a single wisp. They lowered the goggles back over their eyes in unison. Through the lenses, an unmistakable foreign object was embedded in the sky. So such things really existed in this world. How to describe it? A flying dish? A steel galleon sailing on the wind? The knights postponed any judgment. There would be time later to give it a proper name. What mattered now was that it was their target. And the winged lions never missed their mark.
The first step of an operation that made no sense yet had become their immediate reality: "Seize the airship."
[A group of Sapiens is moving across the green plains.]
The captain listened to the shipboard announcement, then leaned back in the control room chair, closed his eyes, and smiled. She imagined the scene the passengers on the outer deck must be witnessing. Annai Murago, captain of the airship, was an optimistic and enterprising Eleim. That was why she had purchased several of the missing businessman Kada Sakano's belongings. She had ignored the sneers claiming the cursed items would kill another fool. Her first act was to acquire the floating arena and scrub it from ceiling to floor. Every trace of blood and flesh, every scrap of filth hurled by gamblers weeping tears of blood and curses—all of it gone. In mere days the vessel transformed into an elegant cruise ship, just as it had been before Sakano took it over, when it existed solely for traveling the world.
Instead of praising her skill, the Eleim called her a madwoman. A potential subversive who insisted on leaving paradise. Their suspicion was understandable. The venture could never turn a profit, not with the sums that had to be poured into it. Eleim marked with the Heavenly brand would be struck by divine lightning the moment they left the celestial domain. The only way to avoid the wrath of the chief god was to donate vast sums to the celestial bishops and offer sacrifices—every single time they departed. The blessing of absolution granted by the Heavenly God was, despite its lofty name, a single-use item. It was a bizarre business where only the owner was reviled like a butcher carving meat. Even then, travel was restricted to the routes pre-approved by the Conclave and limited to just a few days.
Yet Annai did not yield. Because she truly was the subversive who longed to leave paradise. She had quietly run a cleaning company all this time, honing her skills, so she could restore the cruise ship Sakano had turned into a blood-soaked battlefield to its untainted past. She could never forget the vast world she had glimpsed once, as a young Baeleim with a runny nose, when she won a ticket for a ground tour.
Days earlier, at the emotional moment of their first departure, Annai had spoken with tears in her eyes. "Life is beautiful." Thank you, Heavenly God. My dream had become reality.
And then, just minutes ago, that dream had violently shaken.
"Passengers, please remain calm. We are surrounded by hundreds of tons of steel. Where could there possibly be a safer place?"
When the ship lurched as though struck by lightning, Annai stayed calm. It could not be divine punishment. The blessing granted by the Conclave still had plenty of time left. When reports came that harpoons had embedded themselves in the hull, she remained calm. They could simply be removed. She had believed their altitude itself guaranteed safety. Only when the ground-dwellers used the steel cables attached to those harpoons to drag the ship downward, then leisurely ascended on griffins, did Annai finally scream. Mother.
Of course the Eleim had no intention of surrendering meekly just because their height advantage had vanished. Nearly a hundred guards who had once served Sakano raised their lightning-fire spears and moved to block the intruders. The clash lasted roughly four or five minutes and ended without casualties. A band of part-time security guards stood no chance against elite knights who ate battle for breakfast. Annai, dragged into the plaza that had once served as an arena and bound with rope, shrank her neck under the terrifying gazes of the already-captured passengers.
"This doesn't feel safe at all."
"Hey, you bitch!"
The Lion Wing Knights, the accompanying mages, and the dwarves who had supplied the harpoon guns could not hide their astonishment. It was the first time any of them had seen so many elves gathered in one place. The same was true for the detained Eleim squatting in the plaza. Being captured by ground-dwellers from a distant world was certainly a novel experience. But that was all. The thrill of a historic first encounter had no room to intrude upon the present situation. Even the Eleim who had thirsted for unfamiliar stimuli enough to brave their neighbors' glares and choose a ground tour could not find this absurd predicament agreeable. The Lion Wing Knights felt the same. They had their own reasons for their tempers to sour.
When the Eleim began wailing and causing a commotion in their own language, Quena glared and drew her scabbard like a club. One good swing at anyone ought to shut them up. Till hastily grabbed her wrist.
"Stop. You'll only destroy what little willingness to cooperate they still have."
"These bastards took our kids! Aren't you angry?"
"How do we know if these are the ones who took them or just their friends?"
"They're the same race! They must know something!"
Till grimaced. "Suppose I owed Captain Kan and ran away. Would you want to pay that debt in my place?"
"Absolutely not. Fine, I get it. Let go."
Quena shook off the hand gripping her sleeve and walked away, quietly swallowing her rage. When Captain Kan glanced back at his subordinates, two or three Lion Wing knights followed after her.
"Till. Read it."
Only then did Kan hand Till the notebook. Till, who had won first place in the celestial-elf language reading contest hosted by Orcus, accepted it with a solemn expression. He read the greeting Orcus had written, doing his best to sound benevolent, hoping it might help calm these unfamiliar people.
"Rond guen die nak sapiens."
"Produce a human who can translate. If none appears, you all die."
The clumsy yet terrifying threat only intensified the Eleim nobles' wailing. Some even began to wet themselves.
"Mother. Mother. I want to go home."
"Elder, Elder—! You mustn't regress now—!"
"Enough!"
Captain Annai forced her trembling body upright. "I am the one in charge, Sapiens! Speak with me, not my innocent passengers!"
Till silently applauded the courage this unfamiliar race had shown. He could not understand what she was saying, but she appeared to have stepped forward as the prisoners' representative. Though he held no expectation that they would comprehend, Till removed his helmet and offered a formal gesture of respect.
"Ah, greetings. I am Till Hammerer, a double-wing knight of the Lion Wing Knights of the Human Union."
"Lion Wing Knights?!"
Someone among the captured Eleim screamed. In the Federation's language. Till turned toward the voice with hope, only to realize the relief on the speaker's face was nothing like his own. It was not the joy of meeting someone who could communicate. It was the wild enthusiasm of someone who had been stranded on a deserted island for decades finally encountering another human being. Till was further startled by her attire. A human woman dressed in gaudy, parrot-like clothing spoke.
"You bastards! You filthy, long-eared grasshopper spawn! I told you! I said I'd return to the ground someday—!"
The human woman wore the Heavenly brand on her neck. That was how Annai could understand her maid's Federation speech.
"Ah. Melia. Darling. You never once told me you wanted to go back."
"Of course I said it in my head, you former mistress bitch! Thank you, knights! As for me, I come from a merchant family of the Union, and for twelve long years I endured life as a slave to the Eleim race—"
"Melia?"
The sensation of cheeks and the back of her head being struck in turn. The sudden betrayal by her human lover left Annai dizzy. After everything I did for you. You said my side was where you belonged. That it wasn't because there was no way back! Amid her crushing sorrow, Annai swore to herself. If the Heavenly God gave her another chance, she would collar Melia like a dog and keep her by her side—
"You bought a human as a slave? Are you in your right mind?"
Till exclaimed in admiration as he drew a club from his cuirass sleeve. Before Kan could stop him, he struck Annai across the head. The responsible captain Annai collapsed backward with a foolish smile. The Eleim began screaming and scattering in every direction. The dwarves watching the scene looked up at the knight captain in silence. Kan, who now had to restore order to the chaos, sighed while clutching his helmet.
"I'm busy."
There was no other word for the representative of kings besides "emperor." Thus the leader of the Union was called Emperor. The man who had neither a replacement title nor replacement personnel answered curtly without even considering an alternative expression.
"Spare some time for an old friend. A little more time together won't make any noticeable difference."
The dry-voiced guest showed no sign of leaving, however. The Emperor sighed and set down his documents. He sighed again, deeply. The massive gust from his nostrils made the barracks tent flap loudly.
"Do you know what I've been worrying about lately?"
"Brittany and Cydia. I have to calm two tribes that have been fighting for fifteen hundred years already. Of course, their conflict isn't as serious as it was in ancient times. They're merely protesting to the other members of the Union that they can leave for personal reasons at any time."
"There's no record of how long the growling between them has gone on, and aside from the fact that Brittany and Cydia are proper kingdoms rather than tribal communities… yes. You seem to have kept some interest in how the world turns."
The Emperor had ultimately made an appearance in the Moripure region himself. He had inserted Union forces between Brittany and Cydia and used the authority of the Union's head to stop a fight that barely qualified as one.
"Then the offense is even worse. It means you're deliberately troubling a busy friend who already knows the circumstances. Meet me in four hours."
"Can't we talk now? I have to leave soon."
"I have time to spare for a friend, but none for a traitor, Orcus."
Traitor. Though the terrifying word had been spoken, Orcus Dispator smiled calmly. The imperial guards looked down with discomfort at the man addressing the Emperor so casually while wearing a mask.
"A traitor, you say. What a joke."
"If someone tries to use an elite force like the Lion Wing Knights for personal purposes, what else would he be but a traitor?"
"In truth, I've already used them. I used them cleanly and returned them to their proper place, so don't worry."
"Already used them. That's something an aggrieved husband might hear, yet you confess it honestly. For a man full of secrets to show even this much honesty, I suppose all of humanity should be grateful for your warmth."
"The military demonstrations by Brittany and Cydia didn't happen by chance. Andau Peres's defection shook the Union's connections considerably. You'll want to hold him responsible no matter where he disappeared to."
Orcus swallowed an uncomfortable groan and lowered his head. Then he placed a box on top of the Emperor's pile of documents.
"That's why I borrowed the Lion Wing Knights, and I've brought you a result I think you'll find useful."
The Emperor looked up at Orcus with eyes the size of a bull's. "I'm intrigued."
"As always."