38. Conversation (2)
“hello?”
Oliver said as he opened the door and entered.
The paladin Joanna, imprisoned on the bed, looked at Oliver, but did not respond at all.
But it didn’t matter. I could see anger, anger, and doubt in her emotions.
Oliver took a stool chair next to her and sat down next to her. and said hello again.
“······hello?”
“Hello, how are you?”
squeak. She answered, raising one arm bound in chains.
“sorry. I think I’m exaggerating too, but other people say that this is the way to put your mind at ease… Are you very uncomfortable?”
“No, not really. You can quit whenever you want.”
“Well, if you are a knight, you can do that. However, in that case, the black magic prepared here in advance will be activated and you may get hurt. Aside from the knight, other colleagues as well.”
Joanna was also aware of this fact, so she looked at the minion and put on a bitter expression.
I want to move right away, but I can’t because I’m worried about my colleagues.
He was a very kind person, as well as several recommendations for surrender.
So I was curious. How does such a person fight, how can he be brave even in the face of death, how he radiates such a beautiful light…
I had so many questions.
“First of all, let me formally greet you. My name is Oliver. nice to see you.”
Oliver reached out, introducing himself as kindly as he could, as he had practiced. However, the only thing that came back was a cold gaze.
“What trick are you doing now?”
“Do you just want to have a conversation?”
“Conversation···? I don’t know what you’re trying to say, but it’s useless if you’re trying to get some information out of me or try to mess around with me. I will not be deceived, and I will not yield to any torture.”
stingy speech. Her words were sincere. For unknown reasons, she was very wary of Oliver.
“I’m not really trying to get any information out of it.”
“How do I believe?”
“Ummm… is it possible that I’m a warlock so you’re so wary?”
“Yes, is there any other reason?”
“I’m really curious, is there anything wrong with being a warlock?”
Joanna, who had turned away from Oliver’s gaze, frowned and met her gaze. How did it look very uncomfortable?
“Are you fooling me now? Are you making fun of me?”
“no. I’m not fooling around or ridiculing myself. I just want to talk.”
“·················ogue.”
Joanna stared at Oliver without a word. As if to understand the truth.
Then he slowly opened his mouth.
“Don’t you know that you make harmful drugs and put people in a pit of sickness?”
“ah···. Are you talking about Philgaret?”
“okay. Are you saying you have no idea how many people are harmed by the drugs you manufacture?”
“I don’t know…. It’s been a while since I entered black magic.”
“Do not lie!”
“It’s not a lie. It doesn’t matter if you believe it or not… Anyway, as far as I know, pilgarets aren’t all that harmful. Tobacco level at best…. They say it is also used as medicine.”
“Even so, drugs are drugs, and you don’t steal other people’s emotions to make them, do you?”
“It’s not extortion, it’s just buying money from people who want it.”
“Are you arguing that it is right to lure the poor with money to get their feelings out?”
At that moment, Oliver remembered. A woman who has lost all of her maternal love, including herself and her children.
“Well······. no. I don’t think so. I took out too much and it broke. It’s sad.”
“So.”
“So in the future, I try to create an appropriate line when extracting emotions. He said it was fine up to a certain amount. Like donating blood.”
Anger and disgust set in Joanna’s face.
“It doesn’t make sense.”
“is that so? sorry. Still, I’m happy to be able to talk to you… Just in case, if the warlock didn’t make drugs, wouldn’t he hate it any more?”
“Are you seriously asking?”
“Oh, yes…. I wonder why you hate warlocks.”
“The reason I hate warlocks is that they are free to harm people for their own desires and worship evil demons. Existence itself is evil.”
“Well···. Wouldn’t there be a warlock who wasn’t?”
“If there was a winged pig, maybe it would.”
“Is it a metaphor that there won’t be? Because I don’t quite understand.”
“Yes, that’s right. Never in this world. why? Are you saying no?”
Oliver thought for a moment.
“No, I don’t worship demons, but I also kill people when I need them.”
“under···!”
Joanna scoffed at that.
“But aren’t all people like that?”
“Yes?”
“Don’t you kill people when you need them?”
“What kind of nonsensical sophistry is that?”
“Oh, I’m sorry if I offended you. However, the orphanage director, mine supervisor, innkeeper, warlock, wizard, master… Everyone is trying to kill me if necessary.”
“·················ogue.”
“I thought it was fine. Even if you kill someone if necessary… So I killed the innkeeper, Tom, the gangster, the wizard, and the master. Can’t you?”
“Of course not! What do you think of life?”
“But, didn’t the knights also kill the gangs?”
At that moment, Joanna’s heart pounded briefly. Like being stabbed in a sore spot.
“that···. I couldn’t help it. A sinner who cooperated with a warlock, and did not listen to the last advice to surrender to God’s mercy. It was inevitable.”
“Five······.”
Oliver nodded. saying that it is
“I’m sorry, but who judged that it was inevitable?”
“···········?”
“Did God say that?”
“Are you blaspheming right now?!”
“No, I really don’t know… But, I don’t know, but God is an equal, even a warlock looking for a mine, and I don’t think he is.”
“How dare you say that you know what?! Are you ridiculing the will of us Parters to protect the human world from warlocks and demons? All countries agree!”
“······· In a nutshell, are you saying that God did not specifically allow it? At least you haven’t seen it?”
Joanna’s beautiful face was distorted with anger, but she didn’t say anything.
He was very agitated as if someone had heard the question he was holding on to himself.
“Are you aiming to destroy my faith with that enchanting tongue?”
“no. no···. Not at all. I like you now.”
Joanna frowned and looked back at Oliver.
Oliver couldn’t organize his words, so he gave a warm explanation.
“Oh, I don’t know how to explain this. I like the driver. Because you are beautiful.”
“How dare you say such dirty words…”
“Yes? Oh, I don’t know what’s wrong with you, I’m sorry. It’s just that the emotions are beautiful and it’s amazing…”
“…?”
“Why did the knight become a paladin?”
“…what is it you are trying to ask?”
“As you may know, I’ve been stealing from afar since Paladin-sama fought gangs. You don’t even like fighting, so why are you fighting so much?”
“·················ogue.”
“Whenever they fight, they are all swept away by the pleasure of victory, the sense of superiority in their own strength, and the desire to destroy, but the knight-sama had only a belief like a drawing paper. You were sad when you defeated the gangs.”
“·················ogue.”
“I wonder what the reason is. Why are you fighting?”
“I fight not because it is fun, but because it is a duty. Never, not because it’s fun to kill someone, but because someone has to.”
“is that so? So, were you able to be so calm when facing death?”
Then Joanna was uncommonly agitated.
When Oliver’s extracted emotions were swallowed up in darkness except for one eye and mouth.
“What the hell is that?”
“Yes?”
“The darkness that covered the sewers. Even though this is my first official mission, I have never heard of anything like that.”
“Oh, I don’t know either.”
“·················ogue.”
“It really is. It’s my first time extracting my emotions, so it’s full of things I don’t know. I’m sorry if you feel bad. Relax.”
“I don’t know why I’m talking to you like this.”
“Because I want to know about the beautiful light.”
“Is it a beautiful light?”
“Yeah, it’s a beautiful emotion to be precise, but it shines brightly before a person dies. I’ve seen it three times already, but the only one who survived is the knight… So I’m just asking, what were your thoughts at the end?”
Oliver sat down and listened. The figure was even like a child’s corner.
Joanna looked at Oliver for a while before asking the opposite question.
“Before I answer, I ask a question. Why are you curious about that?”
“uh······. Is it pretty?”
A voice that he doesn’t know.
If you think about it, it was only natural. There was no specific reason for learning black magic and finding beautiful emotions.
That in itself was the goal.
“Are you putting so much effort into it just because you’re pretty?”
“Yes···. So, why not?”
As soon as she heard the answer, Joanna softened her anger and hatred for Oliver and looked at her with a new perspective. That’s right, it was sympathy.
“You . . . are broken.”
“Is it broken?”
“okay. Answer me. How many times have you been sad or angry?”
Oliver thought about it seriously.
Have you ever been sad or angry?
When you were framed in an orphanage and hit by the director? no.
When deceived and sold to the mines? no.
When the children you work with in the mine are bullied? no.
When the supervisor spit in your face and cursed you for being a motherless child? no.
When you almost died in the inn? no.
When you get hit in the face by an intermediate student? no.
When Andrew tried to kill him? no.
When the master tried to kill him for a sacrifice? no.
“Well···. There isn’t much. ah! It was a bit sad when the beautiful light could not be extracted and disappeared as it is. It was sad to see a woman who lost her maternal love.”
“It wasn’t sad, it was sad. Like a child who doesn’t have the toys he wants.”
“ah······. is that so?”
Oliver crossed his arms at those words and thought about it. Really, is it like that?
Then, Joanna spoke again.
“You are broken. not feeling the right emotions. That’s why we pursue black magic or beautiful emotions.”
“Is that so?”
“At least in my opinion. Let me help you.”
“Five···. how.”
“Stop what you are doing, ask forgiveness, and pay for your sins.”
“What about after you play?”
“Don’t stay in this darkness, come out into the world. You meet people there and learn to live as people.”
“What is the law of living as a person?”
“Get up early, work hard, make friends and neighbors, laugh together, grieve together. Let me help you.”
Oliver could tell that Joanna’s words were sincere.
She truly felt pity for Oliver and wanted to help.
She was also a kind woman. It was like seeing someone with such a beautiful and warm feeling for the first time.
“It’s a pretty interesting story. Seriously. But it would be difficult.”
“Why?”
“If it was normal, I think I would have followed it once, but there are things I promised and things I owe. First of all, it seems like the order is to keep that first.”
“Do you think holding us back like this will solve the problem?”
“no. But I think it’s going to be all right, as negotiations are going to happen soon.”
“Are you negotiating?”
“Ah, sorry… They say you shouldn’t do this, but forget it.”
Oliver stood up. Joanna tried to get up excitedly, but a chain clasped her hands creaked in her way.
“this···!”
As he was about to leave, Oliver turned and looked at Joanna.
“Knight Joanna… Thank you so much for your words today. I think I got a little bit of what I needed. thank you so much.”
“Hey···!”
Joanna tried to say something, but Oliver didn’t listen and left.
I mean, I got almost everything I wanted.
After that, a week passed, and Joanna was released.