Volume 4 Chapter 10 (1/2)
I felt like I was half-dead as I returned to j.a.pan. I didn't want to go on another overseas trip for a long while. I just wanted to stay home.
”Oh, Satori-kun? But Transylvania is a wonderful place. I'd love to show you around.”
”Not a chance. I'd definitely end up seeing the resurrection of something-or-other that had been sleeping for a millennium!!”
By the way, my suitcase and personal items were left in the ruins of the hotel. They would have been destroyed after the windows shattered and the double-punch of a sandstorm and hurricane hit them, though. It probably meant a lot that the gels ate biological matter and that Las Vegas had been destroyed before anyone could think of using the chaos to steal things.
Nonexistent Archenemies.
Immortal weapons modified by human hands.
That was a horrific invention since they had destroyed a world-famous city containing more than 2 million Archenemies in a single night.
”We'll need to keep an eye on the online movements for a while. But just leave that to your hacker of justice.”
That was what Anastasia had told me at the airport.
”It looks like we'll have to abandon Vegas. After this much attention, we can't continue our financial strategy using Mephistopheles. Well, there are plenty of other world-famous casino cities. I wonder where the gamblers will go now that Vegas is gone. It can be Macau or Monaco or wherever else, but we aren't going to give up.”
She had received a pretty bad injury, but she was an Archenemy maid. There didn't seem to be any lasting effects, which was a relief.
And now.
However the time difference worked out, it was late at night when we got home. And in a way, that was where I encountered the biggest barrier of all.
”Mom.”
”Oh, Satori, why not get some rest? You have to be feeling jetlagged.”
Amatsu Yurina.
Archenemy Lilith.
She was an important figure on the Absolute Noah side and she was most likely the one who had manipulated Area 51 and the US Congress to do such devastating damage to Las Vegas with the gels and bombers.
She was filling up the dishwasher like normal, but I could not allow this to remain normal.
”We need to talk.”
”Can't it wait until tomorrow? You seem tired and, once I finish with the dishes, I need to take a bath and then work on the household finances.”
With a high-pitched noise, a plate shattered inside the IoT dishwasher my stepmom was using.
I remained expressionless (meaning I was working hard to not allow any emotion to the surface) as I softly repeated myself.
”We need to talk. Now.”
”Sigh... I only let you have that toy because I wanted to respect my son's freedom and intellectual curiosity.”
On her suggestion, we moved to the dining room table.
I did not make any attempt to sit down and she sat directly on the table while elegantly giving off a lovely charm.
”So what do we need to talk about? If you're feeling homesick, I suppose we could spend the night together.”
”This isn't over yet.”
”What isn't?”
”The collapse of Area 51 and the US Senate! Turn on the TV and it's all news about them resigning due to their health!! But there's no way that's all it is. Mom, did you really think you could hide it like this!?”
”Hey, Satori.”
My stepmom chuckled and licked her lips a bit. Almost like a snake.
”It is true I acted on Absolute Noah's behalf and worked to destroy Las Vegas to our own ends. But who was it that did the actual damage?”
”Only the rotten VIPs who fled to Absolute Noah 04, right? The people of Las Vegas were temporarily eaten by the gels, but they were all spat out again and the gels themselves have apparently been safely 'secured'.”
The words flowed smoothly from her lips.
Almost like it was a prepared script.
”Hey, Satori. This incident was not actually limited to Absolute Noah 04.”
”What?”
”Absolute Noahs 01 through 14 are spread out across the 5 continents and self-proclaimed VIPs rushed to them all. This incident was in Las Vegas, but it happened in Asia and Australia as well. ...That's how ugly they are. Yet we can't ignore their power. If they weren't rooted out here, they would have survived to the next age. And that would be devastating.”
I had met them at the Hoover Dam. They were undoubtedly nothing but trash. Any group would be rotten to the core with them in the lead.
”This was no more than infighting. No, it was a filter.” Amatsu Yurina laughed. ”So we aren't going to take any more lives. Take Herbal Science for example. They tried to harm my precious daughters, but all I did was destroy their main building and drive them to bankruptcy; I didn't kill them. How can you complain about that?”
”But, mom, you were never planning to save the people of Las Vegas after the gels got them, were you?”
”I left that with you. Even if you hadn't suggested it, Maxwell is a disaster environment simulator, right? The idea would have reached you one way or another. There was no need for me to do anything.”
”I don't like people saying I'm giving you all an unfair advantage. You, Erika, and Ayumi proved here that you can help Absolute Noah. You proved your worth, so no one can oppose your priority seating. This will shut up the people insisting you do even more for us.”
She was in control of everything. Even my way of getting back at her had been planned. There was no way to escape that beautiful demon. If I just gave up and let it play out, I would likely survive the Calamity and live happily ever after.
But.
However.
”You went too far, mom.”
Silence followed.
Amatsu Yurina clearly stopped moving as she sat on the table with her slender legs hanging down.
I was scared.
I felt like I had touched something I shouldn't have. I knew family bonds were not guaranteed to remain intact no matter what. I knew they were maintained by small bits of effort that we weren't even aware of. But I gathered my courage and continued.