Chapter 25: The City That Doesn't Close Its Eyes (1)
Late at night,
Abel's dormitory.
While a dim lantern illuminated the bathroom, Abel stared at his own face reflected in the mirror.
Ashen silver hair, out-of-focus blackish-blue eyes. With each reincarnation, Abel's appearance was completed in the same form. Even if he was reincarnated in another world, even if he was created by different parents, it was the law that ‘The Mother God's Left Hand’ would maintain its original appearance.
Swaaaa──.
A stream of water began to flow from the sink.
Abel washed his hands thoroughly. After shaking off the moisture from his skin, he gathered his index and middle fingers and put them into his mouth.
He threw up.
The things he had eaten during his meal with Monika.
The carefully prepared food came out, crushed. Droplets of blood mixed in with the vomit. Though his body was one that wouldn't die easily, it had become impossible to digest food.
‘I can't do this.’
Abel thought, letting out a dry cough.
The face in the mirror was that of a full-fledged young man. It must have been around that time. The time he had decided to leave for another world after subjugating the Demon King alone…….
Many things had changed since then. The outside was the same, but the inside was different. What was inside Abel was just a soul that had been tattered by countless reincarnations. The physiological phenomena that a human should naturally enjoy acted as a curse. As if he shouldn't be alive anymore.
[Professor Argento, it is Fabien.]
Knock, knock, and.
Fabien's voice, heard along with the sound of knocking on the door.
[Your cough is severe. Do you need help?]
“I'm fine.”
Abel turned off the tap of the sink.
He opened the bathroom door and faced Fabien.
[Are you really alright? It seems you have vomited…….]
“Don't mind it. I just threw up while cleaning my tongue.”
[……How strange.]
Abel walked on with his back to Fabien.
A stark living room. He stood facing the round table placed in the center.
“I will be away until Monday morning. Take care of Monika in the meantime. She is in a state of malnutrition, so you must make sure she eats her meals. Even if that child refuses, you must……”
[Are you going out now?]
It's past midnight…….
Fabien muttered, tilting his head.
“I have urgent business. I will be going to the capital.”
Abel dipped the tip of his quill pen into the ink.
It was to write a letter. He had given Iris a heads-up about his visit, and it was time to share the information with Konstanze.
‘Vincent Tremblay was the tip of the iceberg.’
There were facts he had gained insight into through the oracle about Tremblay.
The main gods were in too distant a place to perceive each creation, but once they had observed an existence, they could grasp its inner workings in detail. A creation who had been so clearly seen through was bound to go mad. The restored Vincent Tremblay had soon fainted, and only a stained Sensory Stone was left.
‘Something beyond Iris's expectations is happening.’
Half of the prediction had come true. The remnants of the 2nd Prince's faction were gathering under the surface of the capital. CIAR was also within their sphere of influence, but the problem was the existence of the apostates who were supporting the remnants of the 2nd Prince's faction.
An unidentified group composed of apostates. Vincent Tremblay had also been tainted by black magic because of them, and this suggested the emergence of a more dangerous adversary than the remnants of the 2nd Prince's faction.
‘All of this is unrelated to the original history of Epezeria.’
Abel thought, sealing the letter.
A group made up of apostates had never appeared in the history of Epezeria. Because they had been rooted out by the Papacy to prevent them from forming groups. Therefore……,
‘It occurred because of us.’
The intervention of ‘The Mother God's Left Hand’ in the Mirror War had accelerated the end of the war, and paradoxically, a new risk factor must have taken root.
“Fabien, deliver this letter to the Vice President.”
[Understood.]
The letter was placed in Fabien's hand.
A flashing magic circle. Abel's letter was teleported in an instant.
“If any danger befalls Monika while I am away……”
Abel stroked the empty air.
A round subspace opened. From within, he took out the great sword that Iris had made.
“Deliver this to Monika.”
[Will Lady Monika be able to handle it? It looks burdensome for even me, a Golem, to carry…….]
“It will be possible.”
Because the form of her Aura has become clearer.
If she uses that, she should be able to lift it at any time.
Muttering so, Abel placed the great sword on the round table.
[Professor Argento.]
Towards Abel, who was changing his formal attire, Fabien called out, albeit hesitantly.
[Are you really a human.]
“Why do you ask such a question?”
[Because I have never seen you eat, nor have I seen you sleep for a single day. A human is a being that cannot live in such a way. And yet why, Professor Argento…….]
“I am human.”
What else would I be, and.
Abel asserted, cutting off Fabien's words.
The knot of his tie tightened around Abel's neck.
“I am human, and you are a golem. I have never heard of a golem that doubts its master. If so, are you not a golem.”
[I am not doubting you, Professor. I am worried. My product name is CW-423P. Concern for the master is one of the main functions installed in a golem.]
Do you understand?
I am nothing more than a mere golem.
Fabien whispered, handing Abel his overcoat.
“……I suppose so.”
Abel let out a sigh.
I'm sorry. It seems my nerves are on edge.
Whispering so, Abel put on the overcoat.
[A golem does not need an apology. We are different from intelligent life forms classified as humans, elves, dwarves, orcs, and trolls. Professor Argento, you seem to resemble Lady Monika unexpectedly. To treat me like a person…….]
“That may be so.”
Abel headed towards the arched door of the dormitory.
The shadow of the arched door, opening with the sound of a tough hinge.
[Professor Argento, a golem trusts its master without fail. You are undoubtedly a human, Professor.]
Abel, who had been quickening his pace, stopped.
[That is why I am even more worried. If you are truly a human, Professor Argento…….]
You must be a very sick person.
Because you cannot eat. Because you cannot sleep.
The sicker you are, the more so. A life form called a human…….
Fabien muttered so.
“I'll be back.”
Abel looked back at Fabien once, then went on, leaving behind a brief greeting. Fabien, bowing mechanically. Abel's shadow was captured in his lowered golden eyes.
[……By the way, how strange.]
Fabien muttered, tilting his head.
[Not only has the operating time of the route airship passed, but the public Dimensional Door installed in the main building should also have stopped operating…….]
By what means on earth……,
are you going to the capital?
* * *
The capital, Naflansee.
The villa of the House of Orléans.
“Do you know what time it is, Abel?”
Iris asked, filling her pipe with tobacco leaves.
I don't know, and.
Abel sat down on a wooden chair with an indifferent reply. It creaked, perhaps because of its poor quality.
Iris stroked the stained window. Dust that was gathered with her touch. The night view of the capital, stretching out beyond the window, was filled with the light of electric lamps, but the clock tower built in the center of the city was announcing that it was past midnight.
“I received the letter you sent. Though I didn't know you would visit so early.”
Since it's past midnight, a day must have passed.
Even a loan shark wouldn't count the days like that.
Iris muttered, lighting her pipe with a match.
“But it's good that you came. I couldn't get to sleep.”
“Are you having trouble sleeping.”
“That's right.”
A bitter smile took root on Iris's lips.
For a duke's bedchamber, it was a strangely humble sleeping place. The walls were full of mold, and the bed looked narrow and hard. Iris's pajamas were also as simple as a commoner's.
“It's not that I can't sleep at all. I'm just suffering from insomnia. I've been making a great effort to fall asleep comfortably.”
Look, Abel.
Even this place……, and.
Iris said, looking around the bedchamber.
“It's a place that imitates the monastery where I spent most of my first life, a very long time ago. Not only the materials used for the furniture, but even the shape of the mold is similar. It's one of my few resting places. A place where I can be freed from the life of a strict duke……”
“The serene atmosphere is nice to look at.”
Abel leaned his back against the shabby wall.
“How thoughtful of you. It must just look shabby……”
By the way, Abel,
Did you come here from CIAR?
At Iris's question, Abel nodded his head.
“Surely, you……”
Iris narrowed her eyes.
“Did you jump down? From the floating island to the capital……”
“That is correct.”
Abel continued as if it were no big deal.
“When the day breaks, please pay the compensation to the museum located in the 3rd district of Naflansee. The cost can be withdrawn from my vault. The ceiling of the building collapsed because I landed there.”
“My, you've done it now.”
Iris let out a sigh.
The museums of the capital were operated by the Sharma family. The head of the Sharma family was the most difficult among the chairpersons of CIAR. He was a tiresome opponent for Iris. It would have been better if he had fallen into the armory controlled by the foolish Zylon…….
“In any case, we should exchange information, right? Let's talk about the details while we move.”
Iris said, throwing open the door of the bedchamber.
Outside the bedchamber, another bedchamber was prepared. A bedroom befitting the authority of a duke, befitting the luxurious villa owned by a young powerhouse of the capital. Abel had just visited through the window of this place. Among the elegantly decorated black furniture, pajamas woven from expensive fabric were neatly arranged on the wide bed.
Like a pure white shed skin.
“Please wait a moment. I have to change my clothes.”
Iris said, loosening her clothes.
“If the servants find out that I'm sleeping in a room like that……, in pajamas like this, they'll faint.”
Abel turned his head. He closed his eyes and waited for her to finish changing. The sound of clothes rustling. The sigh that Iris let out. Soon, Iris's index finger touched Abel's cheek.
“Shall we go now, Hero?”
Abel opened his eyes.
Between her long, flowing purple hair, he saw Iris's face with her eyes wide open. Dressed in elegant outdoor clothes, not simple pajamas. For a duke's, she had barely managed to maintain an innocent expression.
“……Don't call me Hero.”
Because I feel like I'm going to get hives.
Abel muttered, recalling the <BRAVE QUEST> Hero.
.
.
.
“I see.”
Iris said, stepping on the stone stairs.
“To think that a group of apostates had sprung up, and that they had even extended their evil hands to CIAR. Tarkan's death must also be their doing.”
It seems I was a bit careless.
Iris muttered with a bitter smile.
“Especially since CIAR was being managed by a dragon……, by Lar-Prasriti. That might be why I let my guard down……”
“You must not blindly trust a dragon.”
Abel said softly.
“A dragon was designed first among all creations, and that is why it is a being particularly close to a god. Lar-Prasriti will be aware of all the movements. He's probably just watching for his own amusement.”
“I suppose so. Since we've barely managed to put a leash on him.”
By the way, did you share the information with Stanzi too?
At Iris's sudden question, Abel tilted his head.
“Who is Stanzi.”
“Konstanze von Theresia. The Vice President of CIAR. Stanzi is a nickname I gave her. You didn't have to share the information with that child. Stanzi has dreamed of becoming a good teacher since she was young, and she's employed at CIAR even though she has obtained the qualification to be appointed as a magic tower master.”
I don't want to see that child anxious.
Because she's a precious friend.
The first one I made in Epezeria……, and.
Iris muttered, straightening a candlestick. A small, weak flame was revealing the outline of the villa's basement. The smell of dampness. The operating sounds of Magic Devices heard from various places. Abel, who had been looking around, recited a stoic impression.
“The basement seems to have been extended.”
“Because the period of my stay in the capital has increased. I moved the equipment that was in the Orléans territory here.”
High-ranking nobles usually had villas near the capital. Among them, Iris had been giving political advice to the imperial family, so after the Mirror War ended, the period of her stay at the capital's villa had increased more than at the Orléans territory.
“The capital is a really tiring place.”
Iris said with a sigh-laden voice.
“The nobles are usually lazy or nervous, and even among the commoners, there is a clear class difference. The destitute, tired of this, came to seek the cause of their difficult lives from fate. As with the big cities of all worlds……”
The largest city in Epezeria, the capital Naflansee, would function as a focal point to face the Demon King. The members of ‘The Mother God's Left Hand’, excluding Abel and Iris, were also scheduled to arrive in the capital as soon as their missions were over, and Iris was in charge of the task of building a political foundation for the future.
In the first place, it was a reincarnation for that purpose.
If it had been according to the original history, the House of Orléans was destined to turn its back on the emperor. They would have planned a rebellion in the midst of the chaotic situation. Iris had reincarnated as a young lady of the House of Orléans to prevent this, and at the same time, to seize political power. After confining or eliminating the family members who were steeped in desire, she had succeeded to the title.
And so, she came to be called the Iron-blooded Maiden.
Unlike her time as a Saintess, she had come to reign with a menacing moniker.
“By the way, is Monika Lohengrin doing well?”
Iris asked, looking back at Abel.
“She is doing well. She's probably asleep by now.”
“That's a relief. I ran into that child on the day I went to see you. It seems she didn't recognize my identity, but……”
In any case, I'm envious.
Because taking care of a disciple is a joyful thing.
I should find one soon too…….
Iris's complexion darkened as she muttered so.
“Has the Saintess of Epezeria not been found yet.”
“I'm dispatching informants to various places, but there's no result. It seems she's living a different life from the original history. It would be good if she's safe……”
The members of ‘The Mother God's Left Hand’, excluding Iris, had finished making contact with the children who would become ‘The Mother God's Right Hand’. Only Iris was having difficulty in her search.
“I'll consult with you on this matter next time. Because tonight will be very busy.”
Kki-iik──, and.
An iron door opening with a rusty sound.
Beyond it was another door, woven from a complex mechanical device. A shape that looked like the tangled vines of a remote wilderness. It was none other than a Dimensional Door. While a small object could be teleported with just a magic circle, to teleport a large structure or a living being, the only way was to use a large-scale cast, or a Dimensional Door.
“Abel, do you know the other name for Naflansee?”
“You mean the city that doesn't close its eyes.”
“That's right. What do you think is the reason for that name?”
“I heard it was because of the electric lights.”
“How naive of you. You wouldn't know since you haven't been in the capital for long, but……”
Iris brought her index finger to her lips.
A playful glint appeared in Iris's light pink eyes.
“This city, you see. Is made up of so many secrets it's sickening.”
Abel looked up at the Dimensional Door with a listless expression.
It resembles the mouth of a giant monster. Abel thought, shrugging his shoulders. Traveling through a Dimensional Door was nothing but an ordeal for Abel.
Teleportation magic was based on the principle of breaking down the medium into molecular units and then reconstructing it. The series of processes proceeded without a moment to be perceived, but for Abel, it was different. He could clearly feel the process of his body being dismantled, and the process of it being reassembled.
“We will be attending the White Night Ball from now on. To dig up the information you shared with me.”
“The White Night Ball?”
It's a name I've never heard before, and.
At the same moment Abel muttered,
──Pajit!
A start-up sound echoed in the basement.
From within the empty Dimensional Door, a five-colored radiance flowed out. The boundary of spacetime that connected all the Dimensional Doors in Epezeria had been opened.
Iris put a cigarette in her cigarette holder. Then she stood beside Abel and struck a match. The end of the cigarette, beginning to burn red. Smoke leaked out from between Iris's lips.
“You're smoking more, Iris.”
“I know, right. It's really a problem.”
Iris looked up at the smoke with a dreamy expression.
“I started smoking to act like a cool-headed duke, and before I knew it, I got addicted.”
“Let's get back to the main point. What is the White Night Ball.”
The White Night Ball is a secret community of the nobility.
It referred to a social gathering that had existed on the other side of the capital for a long time. The other name, the city that doesn't close its eyes, also originated from the slogan of the White Night Ball, and it was a secret organization whose existence even the imperial family was not aware of. A threatening gathering where even Iris could not speak the truth. Abel nodded his head after familiarizing himself with such a fact.
“You go first. I'll follow.”
“Oh my, that's right, you hate Dimensional Doors, don't you?”
“I don't hate it. I just don't prefer it.”
“Isn't that the same thing?”
How cute, and, muttering,
Iris, who had been taking light steps,
“But Abel.”
Suddenly, she looked back at Abel with a cold expression.
The face of the harmless Saintess had become that of a duke in an instant.
“If Vincent Tremblay was one of the collaborators, there must be a reactionary among the current faculty of CIAR.”
Were there any individuals you were suspicious of?
Staring at Iris's face as she asked so, Abel tilted his head with a blank expression.
A moment of thought.
It was a time not long after Abel had been appointed as a professor. To meticulously investigate CIAR, which was the size of a small city, Abel lacked the time, and his physical limits were also clear. A day was only 24 hours, and his arms and legs were just one pair each.
That was why Abel answered firmly.
“There was just one person who showed a sign.”
Dante Marchisio.
No, rather, Felix Christian.
Extending his foot towards the Dimensional Door, Abel asserted in a stoic tone.