186
I replenish my stamina and meditate in the safe house. When I opened my eyes, I saw Anguise Regina spoon-feeding food into the assassin’s mouth.
“She’s the woman who tried to kill you. You don’t need to take care of her so carefully. If you just put her in a bowl, she’ll eat her face off like a dog.”
I leaned against the wall and blinked my bloodshot eyes. In battle, the body part that gets tired the most after the brain is none other than the eyes. I was always pushing the limits of my biological eye function.
“Still, I feel bad for him. It’s not like I have any personal grudge against him.”
It’s an outrageous amount of sympathy.
“Would you have felt that kind of sympathy if that woman had been a young man?”
“That assumption is meaningless. What I see before my eyes is not a young man, but a dying old man.”
Anguish Regina did not respond to my provocation. The assassin laughed hoarsely, hissing.
“You have no place to set foot, so you wander, my dear.”
The assassin said, swallowing his food with difficulty. I crossed my arms and tilted my head.
“Are you trying to act wise now that you’re old? You’ve actually become stupid. Your brain function and cognitive abilities have declined.”
“That’s true too. But being smart doesn’t mean you only say the right things, and being stupid doesn’t mean you only say the wrong things. People like you who wander without a sense of direction… … want to be loved excessively, or on the contrary, want to be hated excessively. Only when they are crushed by such extreme emotional pressure can they clearly confirm their own existence.”
“And there are people who think they have to talk pedantically to seem great.”
“The old you was constantly struggling, trying to find the right path. You were moving forward with your own internalized beliefs. Even if they were just candles shaking in the wind and rain.”
I knew I shouldn’t talk back, but I continued talking to her.
“You are the one who said there is no right or wrong.”
“But you answered boldly that you had it.”
“If you want to lecture others so much, why don’t you become a teacher instead of an assassin?”
“I already do. Being an assassin is a side job.”
For the first time, the assassin’s personal information was leaked. Instead of being surprised, I listened intently, fishing for information.
“Are you using your hard-earned money to build a school and educate the children? How touching, how wonderful.”
“It’s always fun to listen to Archie’s way of speaking. As soon as he thinks that information has leaked out from me, he predicts the next piece of information and subtly hints at it while leading me on.”
“I thought Aki’s Victory was some great secret technique, but everyone I meet knows about it, so I’m really disappointed.”
“It’s not common, but it’s not rare either. The only truly rare thing in this world is a Force user.”
I agree with that too.
“So, I just have to find a school run by an old woman and destroy it horribly? It shouldn’t be that hard, since I don’t even know her face.”
The assassin just laughed at my threats.
“Not only can you not figure it out, but even if you do, you can’t do it.”
“You can do it.”
The wrinkles around the assassin’s mouth deepened.
“My name is Ragnata Anima. I was born a wandering nomad, belonging nowhere. And now I run the Anima Mobile School. It is a school that accepts any nomad who wants to learn.”
I found out some additional information, but it was hard to hide my extreme discomfort. I would rather not know this information.
“I guess you want to see all your beloved students die.”
“You just frowned after hearing what I said. Put aside your ridiculous pride, child. You are not the kind of person who would kill an innocent person simply out of anger. You need evidence and a reason why you are worthy of death.”
The assassin, Ragnata, was getting on my nerves. I soon realized her intentions.
‘That damn old lady… … .’
I feel like I’m stuck in a rut.
Let’s say I kill Ragnata because I can’t control my anger. Then I’ll worry about the mobile school that Ragnata runs. If I have some extra money, I might support it.
Anyway, Ragnata was captured by me and his future was uncertain, and his skills as an assassin were only going downhill. It would be difficult to provide more financial support to the school. He probably thought it would be better to throw away his life and instill a sense of indebtedness in me.
‘If I don’t kill Ragnata or take revenge on the school… … I’ll be proving myself to be a weakling who only threatens with his mouth.’
I know. This is a pointless battle of pride. But I’ve lost. I don’t have the guts to wipe out Anima Mobile School.
I racked my brain trying to find something to attack by changing the subject.
“I understand why you didn’t kill me back then. Even though you tried to make up excuses, I guess you still remembered me as a student you taught.”
“That’s right. There are a lot of kids like you in our school. I couldn’t bear to kill you with my own hands. That’s why I came up with a reasonable excuse that I could understand and didn’t kill you.”
He admitted it so readily that I had nothing to say. Ragnata knew how to acknowledge even his own weaknesses.
… … It seems like I didn’t age in vain. At least I was more mature than him. Well, he must be much older than me, so I guess he is mature.
My head also grew cold. I stopped feeling emotionally drained and checked the outside situation with my terminal. There was still no contact from Japha.
When I looked at the terminal, the news was broadcasting the raid situation. They even added commentary as if they were watching a sports game. Every time this happens, I feel that the culture of Border City is frivolous, if not light.
– Amazing! Sergeant Jafar! The building is still standing! The only thing that was destroyed and burned by the explosion was the exterior walls!
This building is like an iron fortress! Did they prepare for a day like this? It looks like it won’t budge unless they bomb it.
Oh, I see some unidentified raiders over there. There are Equsians and Crawlers, as well as Saura and Fredo. There really is no such thing as a dream team of combat species. Oh, of course, there are many of us humans too. We humans are also quite capable in combat.
The situation was as it was reported. Armed multi-ethnic mercenaries were attempting to enter the Jafar Corporation’s headquarters. Jafar Corporation was not quiet either. Gun barrels were sticking out of the windows of the headquarters and were shooting at the intruders.
‘They fell down after waging a siege in the middle of the city.’
This would be unthinkable in other cities. Even in cities within the same federation, this kind of situation would not occur. Even in the lower districts of Akbaran, if the situation becomes this serious, the military will show up and suppress the situation.
“It seems like this will be decided through an indoor battle. Even if it’s Border City, if the damage spreads, outside forces will intervene.”
Ragnata shrugged and laughed. This was probably a good thing for her now.
I thought for a moment, then grabbed Ragnata by the scruff of his neck and stuffed him into the duffel bag. It seemed like a few more of Ragnata’s bones were broken, but that was none of my business.
Ragnata must have realized what I was trying to do. Anguise Regina, who was next to me, looked at me with questioning eyes.
“I’ll go to the office and support Jafar. I can’t leave this woman with you, so I’ll take her with me. If necessary, I’ll act as a human shield to block bullets flying behind you.”
I said as I put my duffel bag on my back. I could hear Ragnata’s giggling laugh as he poked his head out.
“If it’s Jafar, I can somehow endure it… … .”
Anguish Regina said as if trying to stop me.
“If you watch like that and Jafar dies? Then I’ll be in trouble too. I told you before, right? I owe Jafar a debt of gratitude. And indoor close combat is advantageous to people like me.”
It was not Anguise Regina but Ragnata who answered my question.
“And his body will be aching. A young man in his prime will not be satisfied with just me.”
… … That’s true, but the way you put it is a bit like that.
* * *
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I left the safe house and walked for a long time.
“To receive sympathy from the target of assassination, if it were me, I would bite my tongue and commit suicide. Of course, biting my tongue and committing suicide is difficult.”
I spoke to Ragnata as I walked down the street. Ragnata was in his duffel bag with only his head sticking out. As expected from Border City, not many people paid attention to me or Ragnata.
“Do I look so relaxed now that I feel ashamed? Angus Regina is more sensible than I thought.”
“You’re just pretending to be sensible. She has her own monsters too.”
“A person who doesn’t have a monster of his own is more of a monster. It means that you can survive in this crazy world without creating a monster inside you.”
It seemed like it would be difficult to beat Ragnata with just words. The words and metaphors he used, as if he was reading a book, made it seem like he wasn’t lying about being a teacher.
I headed to Jafar’s office with Ragnatha on my back. Even though the sun had risen in the morning, the sky was dark with acrid smoke.
The closer I got to the building, the more onlookers there were. The area was noisy with people broadcasting, both individuals and companies. There were many people who had been shot in the fighting, and there were quite a few dead bodies.
“If you had succeeded in assassinating Francesque, there would have been a very high probability that war would have broken out. You are a terrible person, Ragnata.”
“For nomads like us, war is an opportunity. The current situation is unfavorable to us. The three countries are maintaining a subtle cooperation. Little boy, for those in power and in power, peace and war are not goals or beliefs to pursue, but merely tools to be used according to the situation. Regardless of my actions, when the time comes for war, the planet Novas will burn.”
“You’re avoiding the point. I was criticizing your actions for putting your finger on the trigger of war. Don’t make a big deal out of it.”
Ragnata was silent for a moment, then spoke with a smile.
“… … You are surprisingly kind, young warrior. You want to save people while killing them. That is a very painful path.”
“I never tried to save anyone… … .”
I reflexively responded and then closed my mouth. It’s not that there aren’t any. In fact, there are quite a few. There have been times when I’ve saved people without it benefiting me… … Quite a few.
The duffel bag is shaking. Ragnata is laughing even louder.
puck!
I hit my duffel bag with my elbow and moved forward. There were no police or military cordons, so no one stopped me from entering the danger zone.
Creak.
I took the mask out of my pocket and put it on. A lot of attention was being paid to it. I also need to start managing my personal information.
“Someone is coming in! He’s carrying a strange old man on his back. Is he a crazy man trying to commit suicide with his old mother?”
How dare you babble so well. I ignored the man who was talking loudly with the microphone in his hand and entered Japa’s office.
The intruders we saw on the news earlier had already breached the lower levels. They would be climbing up to the top where Jafar was, as if they were climbing a tower.
Cheeeee.
The entrance to the building was hot from the heat of the heavy machine gun attack. There were still skeletons and debris emitting fierce heat.
However, the interior was quite clean. The exterior walls and decorations were all that had been damaged by vibration and impact. It was impossible to estimate how sturdily the building had been built. It was more durable than any military facility.
The intruders were heading to the upper floors via several routes. Naturally, the elevator had stopped running long ago.
“Japa.”
I tried to communicate through the building line.
Crackle, crackle.
The connection wasn’t easy. There seemed to be interference throughout the building.
Well, it doesn’t matter. The time of liberation has finally come.
A strange monster that will swallow even my troubled heart is raising its head inside me.
“You’ve finally found someone you can kill as much as you want, boy.”
Ragnata added commentary.
