Vol 1 Chapter 2 (1/2)

A BOMB, A PRINCESS, AND VARIOUS PEOPLE – PART 1

January 23, 2016Tgurneu

Colio and Relia returned to the inn

It seemed that no-one connected them with the explosion that happened on the outskirts of town yet

There were no visitors or people observing them there

Colio and Relia sat down on their beds quietly

“It see to do?”

Colio answered without hesitating

“We were told to kill Hamyuts Meseta here So ill kill her here”

“…Right”

Saying this, Relia slipped into his bed

“I’ll go to sleep”

Colio didn’t reply

He wondered if Relia was really sleeping or just lying on his bed Either way, it didn’t matter to him

“…Hmm?”

Sitting on his bed, Colio suddenly noticed there was so in his pants pocket

Turning around, he noticed a piece of a transparent stone was peeking froet such a thing? With a start, Colio realized

“…Oh, right”

That illegal Book seller probably put it in his pocket without permission

He was probably planning on charging hi about throwing it away

Colio didn’t know that the stored memories will flow into whoever touches a Book These stored memories would be replicated inside the recipient’s mind

That was the state known as “reading a Book”

If a Book is touched without any gloves on, it will be “read” on the spot

The scenery in front of Colio’s eyes coed

That surprising moment couldn’t be described ords

He was seeing a landscape that should not have existed and the feel of his dingy bed was replaced by the caress of the wind

Colio had lost his body inside the “Book” Only his eyes, ears and skin still remained

He could view the landscape frole, and hear every sound from up close

Colio thought this was like having a dream

It was dusk time inside the Book

Beyond the gentle hills that continued on and on, Colio could see the sinking sun with his eyes that did not exist

“Why?”

It was a man’s coarse voice

“I don’t have a reason”

It was a slender woman’s voice

“Everything has to end”

“Why?”

“You, who during fifty whole years offered yourself to fighting and continuously got stronger without a moment’s rest, will lose to me, one with arms as thin as this violet’s stem But no matter how unreasonable this is, I don’t have any reason”

“…W-why…”

“Shlaic Blade”

There was the sound of a sword thin as a wire being swung down Then the sound of air leaking resounded fros

At dusk, a lone man had fallen down, and a lone wo an iron spear

The figures of those two at dusk beca to beco ashes

The wo down at the man’s corpse

“These are all poor people”

As she said this, she swung the thin sword once The blood that stuck to the blade scattered around A little spurt hit her white gloves

Her silk gloves that extended to her elbows and the long skirt of her regal dress hite as a cloud floating in a crystal-clear sky And just like a cloud, she was dyed by the light of sunset

Even the wide brimmed hat she put on her head hite The hat was decorated with genuine white lily flowers that were encased in wax

The woman’s face was hidden by the hat and only her nose and below it could be seen

Colio remembered the Book seller said it was a Book froo

During that tiuns, and so it was an era when horses, swords, androles of the world

Rather than establishovernhts had ruled the world

During that era, ic had been developed

In modern tiic was beco noricians could only be found aineers or the Armed Librarians

But, during that era there were nuicians

Colio thought that perhaps this woician

“Here, have a look”

The wo It was the voice of soe or a little above it

The girl held up the sword in her right hand in front of her

It was a strange sword

Its handle was shaped like a spider It even had delicate eight legs resting on the girl’s hand The jointed spider legs tore into the girl’s silk gloves and dyed her fingers with blood

The blade protruded from the spider’s rear It was modeled after a spider’s thread, and was similarly as thin

The girl started talking

“This sword is the Ever-Laughing Magic Blade – Shla Me seven, it is said to be the most inconsiderate and bloodthirsty

These Me the long past Paradise Era This Shlamuffen was used as a weapon by the punishels”

There was no one to reply to the girl’s words Still, she kept speaking

“This Me the Gods’ powers I cannot break it, and neither can anyone of this world

Even if I were to throw the sword away, it would surely find a nener to replace ive my powerlessness”

The blade of the sword – Ever-Laughing Magic Blade Shlamuffen – had smoothly withdrawn into its handle

“By the ould you like to hear my story?”

As the girl said this, she took off her hat and threw it away Her hair was spread and casually fluttered down to her back like a butterfly

It was a strange hair Its color was hard to describe

The entirety of it was chestnut-colored However, so a striped pattern It was like the color of a calico cat’s fur

The girl’s hair danced in the gentle wind

She turned her vivacious and gentle face towards the red light and closed her eyes

Her expression was sad yet beautiful

“It has been 18 years since I’ve obtained this power Compared to the number of people I’ve saved, the nuer

Even though there was really no need for anyone to be hurt”

Who was this girl talking to? Colio thought

“While hurting, regretting, and bla people’s lives, I haven’t found any

I haven’t offeredpeople and suffered from my sins inside a dark room

While hurting others, I was evenmyself

Pursuing wealth, succureed

Selfishness Avarice Cowardice Sloth

Those were all my sins

I wonder if you pity me

Or are you looking down at me?

I don’t mind either way

I just want to be with you

Even if we’re far apart, as long as h for h”

The girl began walking

“When my words reach you…

Please go to the place where a precious person lost so tih on your back

For a brief moment, the ill stop

Please run without hesitating then

Yes, me too I also… yes, thank you I really do It makes me happy”

She said this with small intervals between sentences

“I have been called by many names, both now and in the future The Nation’s Saint The Ever-Laughing Witch Even so such as “Tortoiseshell” But as expected, I want to be called by my real name”

The girl appeared to be sht smile was probably out of embarrassment

Dusk was soon replaced by a curtain of indigo

A crescent o

As if the world itself had been cut off, Colio was pulled back to reality

He was inside a room, on top of a bed

He wondered how much time had passed

Colio was still in the position of having tried to take the Book fragment out of his back pocket It was already dark outside, and the ladythe laundry inside

Colio stretched the sleeve of his shi+rt and held the Book like that This ti happened

Colio was staring intently at the Book His heart was throbbing

That girl’s sad smile left a deep impression on him

Colio looked around He was restless and couldn’t calm down

He rose up pacing around the roonificant had happened and that he had to do soht away

“Why is that…?”

Colioat the Book placed on his bed

It was a strange Book He couldn’t understand what he has seen – such as whoe to be just a ue

Thinking about it, he had no idea what her name was She said she wanted to be called by her real name, but he didn’t know it However, he did mention so Witch Tortoiseshell Each of theave a different feel Tortoiseshell was especially awful

What should I call her?

Colio pondered

Tortoiseshell-colored-hair Princess It was too long, and didn’t sound good

Tortoiseshell-haired Princess Still too long

The Calico-haired Princess Calico Princess Yes, that was good

“Calico Princess”

He tried saying it out loud

Just by narew closer

Colio put the Book inside the very botto

Relia was sleeping It see

Some time had passed Relia didn’t wake up yet

Colio decided having dinner by hi rooroup was at this cheap inn

Inside a narrow room at the front of the inn, there was a wooden desk This see room Colio sat there in silence

The innkeeper was gossiping with sohbors When Colio ca

“Boy, do you know anything?”

“…About what?”

Colio asked back Looking at their faces, it was apparent so had happened Since he wasn’t sure if this was about Hyoue, he became anxious

If they were found out here, it would be hard for them to kill Hamyuts Meseta

But what the old lady talked about wasn’t related to Hyoue

“It seemed there was some commotion this afternoon An Armed Librarian was apparently killed”

“Hamyuts Meseta?”

Hearing about an Ar Hamyuts Meseta was the only Armed Librarian he knew

“Of course not It was one of her subordinates, umm, as he called… ah, Luimon It was Luimon”

Luimon He heard that name for the first tiht that itman he saw earlier

“How did it happen?”

“I don’t know, but they say it was a bomb”

Colio’s heart jumped for a moment Fortunately he didn’t show it on his face

The woossip with hi themselves

He was given a dish of grilledalone

Outside of the , people were hurriedly h the town at dusk In this dust-filled town, the dusk was just dusty

The sun, sinking behind the rey dusk with even a single drop of red

This toas dim

The s from the mines covered the entire town

Colio recalled the dusk he had seen inside the Book and felt as if he had realized how dim the toas only now

As he scooped up soup with his spoon, Colio watched the sunset dumbfounded

Colio daydrearey-colored sky He didn’t understand why he felt this way

A little while before that…

It was a bit after the death of Hyoue Janfus and the bread selling young man

The Arh the town during midday

Luihs were as thick as logs His bursting flesh rapped by a grey business suit and a well-ironed shi+rt

With just the clothes, he looked like a salary un hanging frouished hiun’s handle was carved a crest that every person in the world knew belonged to the Armed Librarians

Luiun as he walked froal Book seller to this town’s sheriff He was probably being repriht now

Lui of Books should be handled ressively Books could not be replicated after all If they weren’t placed under the Library’s care, they would just become lost

That being said, the trafficking of Books was unrelated to his current job I ht

Luimon entered the tavern that also served as a restaurant, deciding to have his lunch

He took out a silver watch from his breast pocket to check the tiood time for a meal

Luimon sat at the counter and put a ten kirue bill on top of it

“Give me a chicken steak and some corn salad”

“What should I add to that?”

“Fried… no, e amount”

Luie body moved to a small table next to the counter

“Is this enough?”

“No, even more than that”

Looking at Lui

“You sure are large, mister, but I wonder just how much”

Luimon immediately replied

“Sixteen lyra and half a laary Twenty one and a third tohora”

“Uh, can you say that in metric?”

“Umm…”

Luimon calculated inside his head One laary was about two centi that by twelve is 193 One rams, tiet a tohora…

“About 193 centirams”

“Ah, so much”

Looking at him, the man was surprised

Recently, the metric system that was devised by the scientific community became mainstream over the old traditional lyra units But it wasn’t like Lui the deci by six or seven with the lyra system

The lyra systeic, but that probably didn’t matter for normal people

“Here you go”

As he was thinking about this matter, his meal had arrived Just as he saw it, his stomach rumbled

“Thanks for the food”

Luimon thrust his fork at the pile of mashed potatoes

Suddenly, he felt some killer intent

Luimon’s body became tense, and prepared for combat

“…”

However, Luiive the enemies behind him a chance

While loading hisinside his mind

That was because the enemies had eli staleress now

“Mmm, delicious”

The enemies he could feel behind him were amateurs They were probably two or three people They were about to attack

Soon, Lui the steak

They came at him

And then…

Luimon’s hand separated itself fro creature, grabbed the gun at his waist

Luiht hand

The bayonet attached to the tip of the gun glistened with oil By that tirasp the situation

With the experience ingrained in his body, Luimon was able to accurately move the way he needed to

“Hah…”

The bayonet eht elbow made a thud A knife fell from a man’s hand, and a woman’s body collapsed

Switching the hand holding the gun by turning his wrist, he struck the solar plexus of the guy as he tried to pick up his knife with the gun’s handle

All of this was done as a single action He didn’t hesitate or stop for a second

The wole blow, and thefrom his mouth

“A-aah…”

By the ti, the as already over Lui how to explain the situation…

Luimon’s life had ended

Behind the woure broke the vacuum tube in his chest and ended his life without Lui him Without any time to even feel pain, his brain had ceased all activity

The blast coe body His dead body was further blown to s explosions of the bombs in the other two

The three boh destructive power to destroy the entire place as well as half of a nearby house Both the witnesses and Luiets inside the tavern were completely obliterated

As if lagging behind, a roar resounded outside

A BOMB, A PRINCESS, AND VARIOUS PEOPLE – PART 2

January 25, 2016Tgurneu

It was that day’s night

Relia opened his eyes and noticed that Colio wasn’t in the room

He heard so apart from that

He raised his body and rubbed his puffy eyes It seeood for them

Inside his bed, Relia recalled long past events – the things he talked about with Hyoue and the rest, as well as various other things

Relia had some of his , he was probably the exception

But even he couldn’t remember very much

He couldn’t remember his childhood

Memories of his mother and father,breastfed or walking for the first time…

He didn’t have any of those

His first memory was a stone room

He re cold when his knees and head touched the floor His firston that stone floor

There were people around – twelve or thirteen of them The next time he counted, they were twenty seven All of the down on the stone floor

Relia and the rest had been imprisoned inside this stone room

Both children and adults, ether in the room At that time Relia kne to stand up and walk, look around him, and speak

He was probably around ten years old then

Where was he before entering his room and as he here? He had no memories to answer that Were his memories lost or erased? He didn’t knohether he was always there or just brought inside froh he asked the people around, none of them knew or even tried to understand their situation

It was a strange room None of the people had any work to do, and they just lazily lay around Their only round Soed their heads against the walls whilearound with iinary money

He had no sense of the date, time of the week, or hour

They were clothed livestock

This was the only thing apparent to Relia and the rest

Relia didn’t know about Colio and Hyoue, but he i inside such a room filled with clothed livestock

A long ti

Relia was almost mentally broken countless times He also considered suicide

But, for some reason, he was able to preserve his sanity

Probably ten years have passed A lone man came for Relia and took him out of the room

And he led Relia to another room

While they were , he could see the ocean from ain the corridor

Inside the roo icians, Relia couldn’t tell the difference

“What are you?”

One of them said

“…A human”

Relia answered

“You’re wrong You aren’t a human”

“Why?”

“Do you even knohat humans are?”

Relia didn’t answer

“I’ll teach you”

The white robed man took a rope, tied it around Relia and rolled him on the floor

“…We just need to pass it to Crukessa?”

“Yes We won’t be able to use it later”

“I see What will happen if it’ll break?”

“We’ll just use it as bait”

Thedown at Relia

“Hey, who exactly are you?”

“Hehe, if you’d like to knoe’ll tell you…”

“We’re fro God Cult”

“What is that?”

Relia asked, and a man answered

“I can’t answer that simply We need to talk about it somewhere”

“…I’ve wanted to talk since the start”

“So, this is related to the story of the Gods”

Saying this, theand the End, the story of the world’s creation, the story of the world’s Overseers, and the story of Bantorra and the Armed Librarians

From there on, Relia’s memories were fuzzy

When he opened his eyes, there was a bomb inside his chest

What were they talking about?

He couldn’t recall

Thinking about it, he wondered what Colio was doing Maybe he was eating dinner? But it was late for that

“Now ht be my only opportunity”

Relia muttered aloud

After finishi+ng dinner, Colio went out for a walk

It’s not like he had so with Relia

The ones who killed Luimon Mahaton were probably Colio and the rest’s allies Colio thought of this while walking It ht have been someone he met before

Just like Colio, they were probably people told that they weren’t human

“…Human”

Inside the tohere la lit up here and there, Colio muttered

That Luimon Mahaton person was definitely not a human as well

If he was a huivable Humans lived to be happy, to love, to be loved

Therefore, a person as hurt, as unhappy, was not a human

He may have had the shape of a human, but on aexistence

Thus Colio thought

Children were running on the road

Seeing this didn’t give his It also did note fun” was like

Colio thought it was the proof he wasn’t human

Hamyuts Meseta also wasn’t a human If she were a human, she wouldn’t have to be killed

He had no idea about the children in front of hiht not be

The children were running around looking for soh the holes in walls and trees

Colio thought…

Was that Calico Princess a human?

Thinking for a moment, Colio was sure that she was

When he recalled her beautiful and noble figure, he couldn’t think of her as not being a human

As the sun already sank, laed sas la the town a bit brighter rather than dark grey

Colio alking in the opposite direction of the crowd of people returning fros led him to the alley he went to earlier that day He didn’t understand why Maybe it was because this was the only road he knew here

The town that had been sleeping in thewas noake

Fro and so could be heard