Episode 10: Calculations of Revenge / Chapter 163: Gathering and Scattering (3)
TL: emptycube / ED: Obelisk
Chiii.
It was raining on the field, and a single flame was getting soaked. While steam rose up in the air, she looked up at the sky. Though the rain was falling constantly, the moon and stars shined as there were no clouds.
"As expected, this was where you were."
The voice was as deep as a large bra.s.s instrument.
Flame-Rain, who had been crouched on the field, getting soaked, turned her head slightly, indicating she was aware of his presence. Then she absentmindedly looked back up at the sky.
He kept walking towards her while talking to her. On the surface of his body, metal moved delicately like a puma"s muscles, and he placed his long arms on the ground to a.s.sist his walking. His face resembled a Moai{1}, he was Mechas of the Armored Soul Tribe{2}.
"The environment setting… is Earth. As expected of a place where lifeforms depended heavily on the circulation of water… The environment is quite delicate. Weak, low energy level."
When Mechas acted as though he knew, Flame-Rain, who had been sitting blankly, replied as though she appreciated that he knew.
"Right? It"s strange. The planet is as weak as a gla.s.s egg, and it"s too cold for the Flame Wing Tribe. However… I like this delicate coldness."
Flame-Rain gently scooped up rainwater with her hands. Chii… Steam rose up. Flame-Rain"s eyes followed the rising steam in a trance.
"The reason why the Flame Wing Tribe is special is because they were born from and grew up in the Flames of Beginning. They will get weaker if they get accustomed to places like this."
Hearing Mechas"s whining voice, Flame-Rain"s blank eyes focused and she asked confidently,
"Will that really be the case?"
Mechas couldn"t reply for a while but acquiesced in an acknowledging tone in the end,
"Isn"t Choi Hyuk an exception…? Well, still, I"ll acknowledge it. The earthlings" growth rate is surprising for now. While I don"t know when they"ll reach their limit, even their current potential is high enough to be considered elites."
As if saying, "See?" Flame-Rain turned her shoulders and said,
"If a fate ends, then you simply need to accept another fate. It"s not the environment that decides whether one becomes stronger or weaker, but one"s own actions."
Mechas, who had been listening to Flame-Rain"s words while saying, "Yes, yes, princess," abruptly shook his head as he said,
"In fact, I still can"t believe it. For Choi Hyuk to be a highest-ranked warrior already… It seems like it was only yesterday when he was just a snotty-nosed brat in the lowest-ranked supply store."
Mechas recalled when he had guided Choi Hyuk and taught him how to use the lowest-ranked supply store.
"You"ve only met him once, yet you act like you brought him up?"
"It"s just a figure of speech. Wahaha."
Mechas"s laughter rang out from his entire body. After seeing him laugh, Flame-Rain lowered her head. She swept her hand over the gra.s.s that grew on the field, black burnt marks trailing her hand.
Mechas"s voice became deeper and it rang out for even longer.
"Choi Hyuk… is apparently in charge of a reconnaissance mission. It was announced today."
"… Really?"
Flame-Rain grabbed a handful of burnt gra.s.s and dirt before letting it wash off in the rain.
"What might be his reason?"
She mumbled to herself after a long silence. Since Mechas didn"t really have anything to say, he simply stood there silently. Did she offend him? Was it burdensome? What was he planning on doing… Revenge? While swallowing these various thoughts flowing from her mind, Flame-Rain brushed herself off and stood up.
"… Nothing we can do."
"Are you okay?"
Flame-Rain grinned at Mechas"s question.
"I have to be. I am responsible for a ton of people!"
Then she added quietly,
"… Well, we don"t know if he"ll change his mind later."
She energetically moved her arms around in a circle. Seeing her like this, Mechas"s voice became gentle,
"I"ll take the lead, princess."
"Now really, how many times do I have to tell you? There isn"t a position called "princess"! Also, you"re not from the Flame Wing Tribe anyways!"
"No, the tribe doesn"t matter. I am calling you that because you are you. It"s not because you are someone"s daughter… Or, should I call you "queen"?"
At Mechas"s joking words, Flame-Rain showed an unpleasant expression.
"On Earth, there"s the expression "as bold as bra.s.s". You have no shame… Don"t you cringe when saying stuff like that?"
"Well, as you can see, I really do have bra.s.s skin."
Mechas gestured at his Moai-like face as he took the lead.
"What is this? Are you trying to get revenge?"
Flitch shouted as soon as he saw Choi Hyuk. Choi Hyuk didn"t reply and closely examined Flitch like a predator considering whether to eat or leave a small animal alone.
"While I don"t know what you"re thinking, you can"t get revenge for a mission that was conducted justly. It is a violation of alliance laws!"
However, Choi Hyuk still didn"t say anything. He simply slowly walked around Flitch and closely observed him. Flitch gradually became more nervous. The speckled lights that made up his body trembled in panic. Flitch"s mind became unruly, divided between speckled lights that were panicking and lights that tried to hold them back and regain order.
"Just what is it that you want? What do you hope to gain from doing this?"
Choi Hyuk still didn"t reply. Flitch did his best to persuade and unite the speckled lights that had fallen into a state of panic. "Everyone! Please calm down! We need to calmly grasp this situation! The more panicked we become, the more dangerous it becomes!" It seemed that his persuasion worked, as the unruly speckled lights recovered their calm, and his chaotic thoughts were swept away.
"Haa… Just what are you playing at?"
As his mind cleared up a little, Flitch decided to behave more actively to release his anxiety and check Choi Hyuk"s reaction. He looked around the room and took out a drink "Glacier Tears" from an absolute zero s.p.a.ce.
"Since you aren"t talking after bringing in a guest… I"ll drink this first. I"m thirsty."
Just as he was about to open the cap, Choi Hyuk s.n.a.t.c.hed the bottle away. The speckled lights suddenly flew up, indicating Flitch"s surprise. Choi Hyuk poured the Glacier Tears into a gla.s.s. It was a dense liquid that pooled together like liquid mercury.
In a calm manner, Choi Hyuk said with a smile,
"Didn"t I tell you? You have been dispatched for a reconnaissance mission. Please help us."
Faced with his unexpected att.i.tude, an intense discussion broke out between the speckled lights that made up Flitch.
"No! There"s no way that"s the reason! There"s no doubt this has something to do with Earth"s recruit training!"
"Why are you always so pessimistic? Just now, we only needed to stay calm, but instead topics of "revenge" started popping up after you became uneasy. In fact, we might have made Choi Hyuk feel even more suspicious towards us!"
"That"s right. Even if Choi Hyuk came to us after knowing everything, he might not have any harsh feelings towards us. Choi Hyuk has also been in charge of recruit training before. Was it the Kundle Tribe? I heard that he killed a number comparable to us. Since Choi Hyuk is experienced enough to know what kind of alliance this is, I"m sure he understands."
"If it really is for revenge, then there isn"t any reason to act like this, right?"
Discussions like this quickly broke out amongst the speckled lights before coming to an agreement and reforming as the group intelligence "Flitch". Flitch quickly regained his composure.
"I don"t know why it has to be me. I"m a strategist. I no longer have any troops! My fighting strength isn"t amazing either."
Shiver.
That moment, Choi Hyuk didn"t reply, but Flitch felt a killing intent that sent chills down his spine. It was only for a moment.
"What was that? Did I sense wrong?"
"No, I felt it too."
Each of the speckled lights quickly reported their state. There was a single conclusion.
"While it was short… A few felt it. It was killing intent. Choi Hyuk knows. Though we don"t know what he"s going to do…."
The speckled lights began to feel agitated, but Flitch tried to his best to look dignified as he drank Glacier Tears. Due to the drink, the unruly speckled lights froze all at once before defrosting, giving them a calming sensation.
Flitch talked slowly,
"While I don"t know what you"re thinking… This mission will fail… Don"t tell me you"re planning on starting a losing war because of a reason like that? While turning your back on your limitless potential?"
When Flitch said, "because of a reason like that", he was referring to Earth"s recruit training. Amongst the speckled lights, a suspicion had been proposed that Choi Hyuk was purposely dragging him into a losing war to get revenge on him.
However, unsure whether Choi Hyuk understood his meaning, Choi Hyuk, who had been staring at Flitch with clear eyes, suddenly asked,
"A losing war?"
"Of course."
"What"s the reason?"
"… Are you asking because you really don"t know?"
"Yes."
"… There is one reason. Because you aren"t a transcendent warrior. Because you aren"t, you can"t meddle with the Net of Fate. You don"t have a method of hiding yourself when the monsters notice your invasion and begin chasing you down. Also, think about it. You are supposed to find the queen"s nest. Even if the monsters" universe"s defenses are lax because they haven"t been invaded before… There"s no way that"s the case for the queen"s nest. There will definitely be monsters close to the demise rank near the queen. Even if you want to get close, you undoubtedly need to be at the transcendent level. Also, you need powerful troops composed of highest and high-ranked warriors. Only then can you use them as bait and retreat if the monsters come at you from behind. It was the tactic used by Exalted Wing Flame-Rain during the previous reconnaissance mission. However, it is impossible for you. So this mission will have no choice but to fail."
Choi Hyuk smiled brightly at Flitch,
Ptch.
Choi Hyuk"s hand quickly pierced through Filtch"s chest. The speckled lights which made up his chest burned and turned into ash.
"Euack!"
The speckled lights scattered like sand and fled before gathering on the other side of the room. The speckled lights were in a fuss. "Euack! That b.a.s.t.a.r.d killed my friend!" "Calm down! If we fight him now, we"ll all die!" A minority of the speckled lights struggled, unable to endure their rage and sorrow, while the rest tried to hold them back.
"Just what are you…"
Taken aback, Flitch asked while trembling.
Choi Hyuk revealed his white teeth as he said in an aggressive manner,
"Ha? What do you know? I"m too p.i.s.sed off by how you act like a know-it-all, be it in the past or even now. But you, do you know what kind of ability I possess? Why do you think the Exalted Wings a.s.signed me, who isn"t even a transcendent warrior, to this reconnaissance mission?"
"That is…"
Flitch couldn"t reply because he a.s.sumed that this mission was purely a political show. However, Choi Hyuk looked serious and angry.
Choi Hyuk came closer and said,
"Get a hold of yourself. There"s no place to escape to anyways. If you want to live, work harder for the success of the mission. You need to prove your usefulness, right? Or die on the frontlines as a meat shield. Why? It"s what you like, isn"t it? Kill. Only then can you kill. Right?"
The speckled lights that made up Flitch"s entire body began to tremble. While they wanted to scatter and flee right now, it was impossible as they were suppressed by Choi Hyuk"s spirit.
While comforting those that had fallen into a state of chaos, Flitch was barely able to speak.
"Th… en will you let me live?"
"Did I say that I was going to kill you?"
Seeing Choi Hyuk reply so naturally, Flitch nodded his head with difficulty.
The tips of Choi Hyuk"s lips curled up as he tapped Flitch"s shoulder and walked past him. He saw the clearly visible blue shield symbol above Flitch"s head.
"He"s someone to keep alive? Does that mean he"ll be of use when I face the Exalted Wings later?"
Choi Hyuk grinned. The skill he had inherited from Richard had been quite useful until now…
"This time, it"s truly trash."
Choi Hyuk"s steps hurried. He wanted to go to the monsters" universe quickly.
"And there…"
Thump, thump. His heart thumped and his black karma became flames as they blazed in his eyes.
{1} The statues on Easter Island.
{2} Mechas was the Armored Soul Tribe member showed Choi Hyuk around the lowest-ranked supply store at Flame-Rain"s request.
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