Chapter 22
Fake and Real
* * *
The Valorn Empire knights were more skilled than the Republic knights. No one denied Kairus’s words. It was commonly accepted knowledge.
The reason was simple. The Valorn Empire had a longer history of knight training. The quantity and quality of the experience and know-how they had accumulated were different.
On top of that…
“The Aylan Republic spends the budget for a thousand soldiers, while the Valorn Empire dumps all of it on a single knight. Of course there’s going to be a difference.”
At Daniel’s words, Kairus nodded. Not a single word was wrong. Even if you thought about it simply as feeding them, it meant that one Imperial knight ate the rations that could feed a thousand Republic soldiers.
It would be stranger if they were weak.
“I’d like to hear your opinion on how you plan to deal with the knights.”
At Kairus’s words, Spring Parsley replied.
— If there’s a woman among the knights boarding the train, he completely loses his mind, you know? So, if Sophia is there, she could seduce him and secure a seat on that train. Then…
While listening to Spring Parsley’s continued explanation of the plan, Kairus held a small doubt.
Sophia? Who was Sophia? It sounded like a woman’s name. But among those who had introduced themselves here, no one was named Sophia.
Kairus’s gaze turned to the body of the woman lying on the floor, growing cold, and then moved to Erickson.
“If I ask what the name of your lover I killed was, would that be rude?”
At Kairus’s question, Erickson spat on the floor and answered.
“Sophia.”
— …Hey, I don’t know what the two of you are talking about right now. What about Sophia?
Spring Parsley was unaware that someone had died where the others were gathered. At Spring Parsley’s words, Kairus smacked his lips and answered.
“If that knight who chases after every woman isn’t interested in a dead woman, then the situation has turned into one where we need another plan.”
Upon hearing Kairus’s explanation, Spring Parsley let out a groan.
— Hey, didn’t you think that maybe everyone there was someone we needed?
“Of course I thought about that much. But that doesn’t mean I’m going to spare someone who suddenly tries to stab me.”
They had rushed at him intending to kill, only to be weaker. Then they deserved to die in return. Kairus still felt no shame about his actions.
“But since it’s largely my fault that the plan is ruined… let’s see, I’ll take on a more difficult role.”
At Kairus’s words, Spring Parsley replied.
— If that’s the case, it’s not like there aren’t any options. Let’s see… the locomotive needs a cleaner to remove the soot and ash from the boiler.
Kairus let out a small sigh.
“Sounds like you’re telling me to infiltrate.”
Unlike the work of shoveling coal to keep the locomotive running, cleaning the inside of the boiler and combustion chamber was simple labor that didn’t require any expertise.
“Before that train reaches the section of track we’re planning to cut, it’s scheduled for maintenance.”
All he needed to do was successfully slip in, replacing the workers originally hired for the job.
“I wonder what I could accomplish alone.”
— You could probably add a special kind of seasoning to their meal, at least.
Kairus didn’t know much about drugs. Medicine was a field where you needed to study for a long time to build up specialized knowledge.
Fortunately, among these people now, there was someone who seemed to know quite a bit about it.
“The problem is she’s a patient.”
When Kairus looked at Tanya, Tanya smiled and spoke.
“All of you are patients who crave the care of the Father. Knowing your own condition is the first step toward recovery.”
Was she saying that while fully aware she was describing herself? Kairus thought about it for a moment, then tapped both his eyebrows once with his right index finger before asking.
“Tanya Lysand, among the painkillers prescribed to patients near death, which one is the strongest?”
At Kairus’s question, Tanya likewise made the sign of the cross and answered.
“Diozeril. It comes in powdered and oral tablet forms.”
Tanya went on in a tone that made it sound like it was nothing special.
“Or you can mix a vial with two units of normal saline and adjust the drip to one drop every twelve seconds. In patients with asthma or chronic pulmonary disease…”
“Hold on, I don’t need all that. What about the lethal dose?”
From Kairus’s perspective, he didn’t need such detailed information. Tanya let out a small “Ah,” and answered.
“10 milligrams.”
“How about the taste and smell?”
“It’s bitter in taste, odorless, and a colorless crystal. Outside Bennett City, you’d need a medical license to get it.”
But that was outside Bennett City. It seemed obtaining it within the city wasn’t so difficult.
“But if you have money, you can just get an injection in one of the shooting galleries in the slums.”
Daniel, who had been listening, chimed in with a word. Kairus was tired of being surprised by now.
“Of course.”
In this city that was falling apart, it probably wasn’t anything remarkable. You could get more than a lethal dose without a prescription if you just had the money.
In any case, the fact that it came in oral tablet form meant it would work well even if taken by mouth.
They said it was bitter, but even a very small amount would be more than enough to take effect, so it wasn’t much of a problem.
“I’m curious about the side effects of an overdose.”
If the side effects included vomiting and diarrhea while rolling all over the place and screaming in every direction, it wouldn’t be usable. It would be too obvious that something was wrong with the person who took it.
“Respiratory suppression and loss of consciousness are the main side effects. It also causes severe dependency, but I don’t think that’s what you’re interested in.”
If it caused respiratory suppression and loss of consciousness, it meant they would die as if falling asleep.
A later autopsy might reveal that they had been poisoned, but that wasn’t much of a concern.
Either way, plundering tax funds was punishable by death or a trip to the Carlson Labor Correctional Facility. Even if poisoning was added on top of that, the sentence wouldn’t change much.
“Doesn’t seem impossible.”
Putting drugs in food wasn’t all that difficult. Since there was a clear difference between what the Imperial soldiers and knights ate, it wouldn’t be hard to tell where to mix in the drug.
“If you leave out things like peanuts, oats, or potatoes, everything else is probably ingredients meant for the knights.”
Even at the front lines, the knights’ meals included at minimum 1.5 kilograms of salted or smoked meat, canned vegetables, coffee or tea, and sweets served with hardtack.
It was codified in military law that, at the very least, they must be fed that much, even under the worst conditions.
“They say they still file complaints about the hardtack being too tough, despite eating all that.”
At Erickson’s comment, Kairus clicked his tongue softly.
“Well, hardtack is pretty hard.”
If you struck hardtack with a brick, usually the hardtack would remain intact while the brick shattered to pieces. It was understandable they would complain.
In any case, figuring out which food the knights would eat and mixing in the drug would be no trouble at all.
“Since it’s not wartime, there should be a planned menu.”
In that case, he only needed to match the food to the menu and add the drug to what the knights would eat.
“Diozeril has a powerful sedative effect to go with its strong pain relief.”
Even if they didn’t die after ingesting the lethal dose, that was fine. Calling it a sedative was the polite way to put it in harsher terms, it made people groggy.
If it were a stimulant, it might be different, but fighting in that state after taking a lethal dose of such a strong sedative would be extremely difficult.
“That should be enough. Let’s give it a try.”
Tanya, who worked in the field, would be more than capable of obtaining the drug and adjusting the dosage.
“So, does that mean he’s going to move separately?”
At Erickson’s question, Kairus nodded.
He would have to disguise his identity and board the train. Naturally, that meant he’d have to move separately from the others.
From Kairus’s perspective, he couldn’t help but wonder why Erickson felt the need to confirm something so obvious.
‘It’s not as if we gathered here to start some independence movement.’
There was only one reason they’d come together like this.
Money.
And for now, at least during this job, there was a way to keep Erickson from trying to harm Kairus.
— All right, then let’s draw up the contract. We need the guarantee from the Rose Garden, so let’s hurry.
A guarantee from the Rose Garden through a contract.
Even if Erickson harbored a personal grudge against Kairus, once he agreed to the contract, he wouldn’t be able to pull any tricks until this job was finished.
Of course, once it was all over, there would be nothing to stop Erickson from trying to harm Kairus. But by then, Kairus also wouldn’t have any reason to keep Erickson alive.
The moment he tried anything, Erickson would meet the same end as his former lover.
— Good, then does everyone agree to the following terms?
Some time later, a contract was completed that contained conditions everyone present could agree to.
Now they only needed the guarantee from the Rose Garden.
— Someone from the Rose Garden will be coming. I already made the request in advance, so soon they’ll…
Bang! With a loud noise, the door burst open. All eyes in the room instantly swung toward the open doorway.
“Good evening, everyone!”
The man who stepped through the door wore a gaudy, dizzying suit sewn together from brightly colored fabrics.
On his broad-brimmed hat, rods and beads of many colors dangled from golden threads, swaying this way and that.
Whenever the beads and rods bumped into each other, a sound like bells rang out.
In short, he was a man dressed to cause a spectacle.
“I’ll set aside any desire to introduce myself for now and get straight to the point.”
Without warning, he slammed a knife into the center of the table.
Then, spinning a fidget spinner with his right hand, he swept his gaze over everyone gathered there.
“Would you mind introducing me to whoever here is Kairus?”
At once, everyone’s eyes turned toward Kairus. They had only gathered temporarily to rob the train there was no loyalty obliging them to hide Kairus’s identity.
“The Kairus you’re looking for is here.”
Kairus answered without resistance. With everyone already staring at him, there was no point in trying to conceal it.
“I’ve heard the Representative has taken an interest in you. Is that true?”
Kairus had no doubt who that title, “the Representative,” referred to.
His eyes fixed on the fidget spinner twirling in the ridiculous man’s right hand.
“Well, I’m not sure about th—”
With a tremendous crash, the table flipped over and a metallic clang split the air.
A dagger blade gleamed cold and blue right beneath Kairus’s chin.
“You bastard. You going to play dumb?”
The blade didn’t make contact. Kairus’s left hand was pressing down hard on the man’s hand gripping the dagger.
But the sword Kairus had drawn struck the man’s side in the same moment.
“I was wondering why you didn’t dodge. Seems you had something to rely on.”
Kairus’s sword succeeded in slicing through the gaudy suit. However, it didn’t manage to wound the man underneath.
The sensation traveling up the blade felt like striking metal. When he applied a bit more pressure, the sound of metal scraping came from the man’s side where the blade was touching.
Even now, Kairus’s gaze remained fixed on the fidget spinner spinning above the man’s right hand.
“That toy is a battle gear. Probably a relic.”
“You have quite the eye for detail. I’m almost moved to applause. Makes me want to clap for you.”
“There isn’t a single factory that makes battle gear in the shape of children’s toys.”
A battle gear shaped like a fidget spinner.
From its form alone, it was already different from modern battle gear, which was always manufactured in weapon shapes for the sake of efficiency.
The reason Kairus’s earlier strike hadn’t even managed to cut the man’s skin was due to that battle gear’s unique power. But it wasn’t some masterpiece that deserved to be called extraordinary.
Suddenly, the man flicked himself on the forehead, then started swaying his body exaggeratedly before bowing in an overdone flourish.
“Ah, I suppose an introduction is in order now. I am Gideon, Team 2 Leader of the On-site Management Department of the Rose Garden.”
At those words, the faces of everyone present turned pale as sheets. Having a title meant he was an executive. Kairus had just swung a sword at a Rose Garden executive.
“Hey, what are you going to do now, hmm? How about getting down and begging for forgiveness right here, hmm?”
Kairus stared calmly at the man who was blatantly threatening him.
“Hey, say something, will you? Are you so scared you can’t even move your tongue?”
“Honestly, listening to the bullshit of a dumb bastard is such a pain in the ass.”
Contrary to everyone’s expectations, what came out of Kairus’s mouth was a bombshell that made everyone’s guts shrivel up to the size of a fingernail.