Retribution
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The boy, considering his upbringing, was truly a miraculous human being.
After all, it was clear that there was no place for a normal life for a human being.
Being an orphan without any guardians, it was a place where all kinds of threats lurked in the slums every day. A place that was like a hell on earth.
There were cases where someone who volunteered to be a guardian turned out to be a terrible s*xual offender, and there were also times when the boy, while running away from the orphanage, almost got involved in human trafficking with unsavory people.
If he had grown up in such an environment, it was only natural that he would be lacking in many aspects to fulfill the role of a rich girl’s bodyguard.
He had learned how to deceive people before learning how to read, how to run away from fights, and how to put anything in his mouth to keep from dying…
Those were the only skills the boy possessed. Knowledge that allowed him to survive today, sacrificing his future and even himself.
“I’m someone who can survive no matter where I end up, miss.”
His “educator” leaving behind such words was understandable.
A street urchin. A being who lived at the bottom of life, unable to learn any education, emotions or warmth.
If there was no room for leisure, a person would slowly wither away, and if one withered away slowly, they would lose their leisure; when there was no leisure left, a person would become increasingly like a beast.
Theft. Drug dealing. Forced labor.
The boy had done everything imaginable to survive.
“…So, he’s someone who will survive no matter where he ends up. It’s true that he learns anything quickly. He has a quick mind, he’s cold, but…”
Survival was an important issue for anyone.
If he wanted to survive, he had to do whatever it took. That was the reality.
“I don’t know if he’s suitable for ‘protecting’ someone. This guy.”
However.
“-That’s not true.”
He remembered one day when he heard those words.
He remembered that the girl had said those words to him.
“It’s only because you haven’t learned. So, I should teach you.”
Now, in the present, it was a memory that the boy couldn’t recall clearly, as it was from a distant past.
The girl taught the boy about “human life.”
His first warm meal, a place to sleep, interacting with people, handling emotions, blending into society.
The girl.
She taught the boy what ordinary happiness was.
As fleeting memories accumulated and formed layers, the life of the slums beyond those memories became a distant past.
Beneath the girl’s protection, the boy gradually became more like a “human.”
“-Why do you do all this for someone like me?”
“What do you mean?”
“Why did you go so far for someone like me?”
(Author’s Note: Due to technical limitations, I had to cut off the remaining text. Apologies for any inconvenience caused.)
One day, the boy asked the girl such a question.
He had asked several times, but it was a question he had never received a clear answer to.
It had been almost five years since he met the girl.
They were both at the age just before adulthood.
On that day, the girl’s gentle response was probably influenced by that period of time.
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“I grew up being forbidden to do many things.”
The girl was always frail.
Thinking back, she was mostly seen sitting or lying in bed.
They said it was a rare disease. They said the blood vessels leading to her heart were narrowing every day.
Simple actions that were easy for others were like arduous tasks for the girl, as they required the influence of various assistive devices.
If the daughter of a wealthy family was born with such a rare disease, she would naturally receive the highest level of medical support. However, in that case, the list of ‘things that cannot be done’ would inevitably become ridiculously long.
“This is not allowed for this reason, that is not allowed for that reason… It’s annoying to always be interfered with. That’s why I wanted to act on my own will at least once. Bringing you as my bodyguard was just a pure whim.”
“…Wasn’t there any special reason?”
The boy muttered that sentence with a disappointed expression.
Seeing that, the girl received it with a cute expression and chuckled.
“No. There was a reason why it had to be you.”
“What is it?”
“It felt like a rained-on cat trying to appear threatening no matter what.”
“…”
“Even after bringing you, you were really cute for a while. It felt like raising a mischievous pet.”
“…”
“Believe me. You always act like you’re very cold, clever, and smart, but in the end, you’re trapped by the girl sitting on top of your head.”
“…That’s enough.”
The boy, with a frowning face, interrupted her bluntly.
While getting annoyed, the fact that he continued to peel an apple for the girl without stopping his hand shows his true nature.
“Stop it and come here.”
The girl said so and tapped the space next to her bed.
It meant to come and sit next to her. Of course, the boy, who had just heard all sorts of offensive words, refused.
“Why.”
“Just come here, hey you. Do you want me to beg?”
“…”
Though she was a daughter of a wealthy house, her speech occasionally devolved into that of a drunken sailor.
Knowing from experience that it could lead to trouble if he didn’t go along with her during these moments, the boy dutifully settled next to her. In response, she flopped down onto his lap.
“…Of course, back then, it was just a whim.”
“Hm?”
“Turns out, I’m more sentimental than I thought. Enough to accumulate all sorts of memories even with someone I brought along on a whim.”
Saying so, she wrapped her arms around the boy.
Their warmth communicated to each other. With her face buried into his midriff and giggling, she continued whispering.
“Right now, it has to be you.”
“…Alright.”
The boy, answering unemotionally, went back to peeling an apple.
Inside the hospital room where only the occasional sound of the knife scraping against the fruit could be heard, her faint murmuring spread like a delicate thread.
“I told you before, I brought you along because I wanted to act out once.”
“Yeah.”
“There’s one more thing I want to do on my own. If my parents knew, they’d be furious.”
“What is it?”
Instead of answering his query right away, she smirked.
“Secret-“
-Definitely.
He remembers hearing those words.
It was a week before the kidnapping incident took place.
●
“You’re doing better than expected.”
Professor Mobius muttered, observing Daud Campbell who stood on the stage.
He never considered him an opponent that would drop easily, but it was definitely amazing that he hadn’t lost momentum, even while battling an automaton, harboring a ‘magic’ that he tried to imitate as closely as possible.
“The third… It’s clear that he has not been broken yet.”
Staring at the automaton that was scattering red flames everywhere, Mobius muttered that.
The blue demon with the power of destruction and the white demon with the power of seduction. The Automaton imitating them was already defeated.
In an attempt to discourage the opponent’s will to fight, it even resorted to impersonating nearby figures. However, Daud Campbell is-
But.
The more battles he continued to face, the more his inner ‘rage’ grew, which was becoming increasingly noticeable to Mobius. Sometimes, in the midst of battle, the intensity of the enemy’s burning gaze directed at him was growing stronger. And… “That’s enough.” Mobius smiled with satisfaction. It was his intention to evoke such emotions. Anger dulled judgment, fueled impulses, and greatly diminished the ability to respond in sudden situations. And finally, the very last step, he still had a long way to go to reach his hidden ‘ultimate move’. If he were to confront Dowd Campbell with it, the rage that man carried would ultimately consume himself. “I may not be the one who tried to incite an imperial civil war~” With Mobius being aware of such facts, Lord Vogert, who was kneeling with a sword at his side, suddenly spoke out. The atmosphere of his voice, as usual, was light-hearted, but there was a clear hint of “disgust” mixed in, which was rare. “You truly are garbage, Professor Mobius.” When Professor Mobius turned his gaze to Lord Vogert at his words, Lord Vogert continued, chewing and spitting out his words. “Even if you’re like that, anyone with a sense of decency wouldn’t stoop so low as to commit such despicable acts just to provoke someone else’s temper. Where did you sell your dignity and honor while calling yourself a master of strategy?” “… ” It was a cheap provocation. “No. That’s not it.” Thinking so, Mobius smirked and crossed his legs. “Because you’re entangled in such trivial matters, isn’t it likely that you and that man will suffer in a place like this, Lord Vogert?” “…Excuse me?” “Astrid Professor was your first love, right? Isn’t it that in order to save her from me, who has little time left to live, you went to great lengths and suffered so much?” “…” In his view… “I don’t understand. Why are you holding on to such pathetic things?” “…”
“A truly wise person doesn’t think about controlling others through such means, don’t you agree?” Mobius’ gaze, which had always analyzed the world solely through clear data since birth.
Family, friendship, and love.
Emotions are truly insignificant and worthless. They are nothing more than the chemical reactions of hormones secreted by the brain that can change at any moment.
To Mobius, who had already categorized such things as variables that could be controlled, both Vert, who had become such a pitiful figure, striving to find his first love, and Dowd Campbell, contorting his body to save his mother from the other side, appeared equally pathetic.
“…”
Viscount Vert let out a deep sigh.
Yes, perhaps it may seem that way.
Understanding the thoughts of a mad author is not the goal here.
However.
‘…It seems like it will destroy him.’
That’s what he thought as he kept his gaze fixed on Dowd Campbell, who was battling on the stage.
Of course, he was angry.
It was clear that the idea of killing Mobius, who was insulting himself and those around him, was becoming stronger.
But.
There was more to it than that.
Beneath the surface of the emotions he displayed. If you dug deeper, down into the more essential depths.
There lies his ‘intentions’.
‘…Again.’
However, his intuition, honed by observing that man up until now, clearly told him.
‘You’re planning something, aren’t you?’
That man, undoubtedly.
He had the intention of exacting ‘retribution’ from Mobius in this very moment.
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