Chapter Chapter 13: RATH 13 TL: Eevee (1/2)
RATH 13
TL: Eevee
TN: The NU bot is working properly for releases now! Hurrah!
2. What is this. Scary. (6)
#9 Their story: the future hero’s story.
“There is no such thing as evil in this world. Only people living with their own ideals.”
The reason this stuck in my head was because the beating was lighter at the time.
Ahh, just how foolish was I.
Even when I’d been hit that much by that senior before, and even when she warned me! To think I let my guard down just because it was a wooden stick!
Moreover just what in the world is that weapon? Even if I block it with my sword the pain just crawls up my wrist and into the rest of my body.
Evasion is the only way out, but the instructor’s swordsmanship is incredible. Dodging was impossible when blocking was hard enough.
In the end all I could do was get hit.
“There is no one in this world without a story. People are merely doing what they think is right, to those on the other end they have had to suffer an injustice.”
I think the unjust thing here is that I’m still being beaten but if I open my mouth I feel I’ll get the crap beaten out of me even more so I’ll keep shut.
“Imagine someone killed a woman right in front of your eyes. What would you do then?”
“Kuk!”
How would I know. I need to survive first.
“What do you think, No.17.”
Since I wasn’t saying anything, he asked No.17 instead. Now that I think about it she’s here as well.
Mmm. Then stop him!
“I believe I need to listen to their story.”
“No.1000?”
“Hmmm… I’m not the hero or anything, ignore it and done?”
…And look at No.1000’s personality. As I thought I can’t rely on her.
“The most logical thing is to listen to them like No.17 said. However humans naturally remember things to their own convenience. They could frame the woman as an enemy spy, or an evil demon in disguise. What is certain, is that it will be very difficult for you lot to identify the truth.”
No, what’s certain is that I’m still whimpering getting beaten.
That weapon is still hitting me even now!
Now I’m almost crawling on the ground and no one’s looking my way. Ahh, damn it!
“Unless you are gods, you cannot always choose the correct path. In that case, it’s best to not get involved to begin with. If someone tries to start a great revolution, just watch. A revolution is also someone else’s rebellion. Even this empire that’s the greatest in the continent, began with a revolution caused by an ordinary civilian, who went on to become the first emperor. But when he founded the empire there were a series of three different plots.”
Well, so what?
Stop hitting me!
“All three of those plots were planned by the empire’s founding families. Although they were recorded as rebels later, at the beginning they were heroes fighting for the same cause as the emperor. But in the power struggles that followed they lost to the emperor and became rebels. Power is always the victor’s version of history. In that case, the method to live long and prosper is to be neither a winner or a loser.”
“The method to live long and prosper?”
“Indeed. Most of the reasons people come to this organization are all pretty similar. Especially since the great war.”
Uh nope? My brothers sent me because I was in the way of their squabbles?
And because of my damn father who sees this as perfectly normal so I can’t even go home?!
So stop hitting me!
Ah, wait, why am I not fainting? Is my body this sturdy?
No, is it just my imagination that just the pain is intensifying?
“You can’t live doing only what you want. But, that’s no reason to live only doing things you don’t. just pray to the gods. For the resilience to be able to accept the things you can’t change. The courage to change the things you can. The patience to wait to see the results of that change. And the strength to wake up in the morning to live the day.”
Ahh. Great goddess of light Sermir. Please so that I don’t get beaten up. Please that damn instructor doesn’t hit me. Please that I can go home and beat the crap out of my asshat brothers. And if possible, please let me eat breakfast tomorrow!
“Iii, Inst….ructor. S,stop….”
But She did not listen to my pleas. Indeed, the old philosopher’s words that said you determine your own fate is truly correct!
At this moment I wanted to cry ~God is dead~ at the top of my voice, but more importantly I needed to stop that hand moving on autopilot.
“Save me…”
Uh… I’m sleepy. Mm. I think I can see my departed mother waving her hands over there?
Maybe it’s because because she died giving birth to me but I don’t think voice chat is supported.
But it’s probably her. It’s almost identical to the portrait at home.
But I can’t hear her that well. Mother what are you saying?
I shouldn’t cross over?
***
“Oh, he’s dead.”
At No.1000’s words, the hand that had been clutching my ankle quivered and dropped.
Since I was talking with the others I forgot about No.1. Sorry.
But look at these automatic hand movements. Practically macro level.
Is this what they call the stance of an experienced instructor?
“Take No.1 with you. Today’s lesson is over.”
“Isn’t he dead?”
His eyes have completely turned so you can only see his whites, and his mouth is foaming with his tongue hanging limp, but he’s not dead. Because this weapon is special.
“This is not slack enough to kill him with just that.”
Out of the weapons that Black Anvil, one of the greatest dwarven clans, had ever produced, one of the weapons they would all universally rate in their top ten would be this bat.
When the Black Anvil clan were wallowing in their guilt that their weapons were being used to take lives, how happy they were when they heard of this bizarre proposition!
After it was completed and tested, for some reason or other I had to cancel the mass production plans, but considering how they gave it a seat on their list of ten greatest weapons, its completion level is no less than perfection.
Let’s deduce the reason why this couldn’t go into mass production being due to the necessity of the cooperation of the elves, whom they were normally at odds with.
“He’ll probably be better after a night’s sleep.”
No.1000 nodded and dragged off No.1’s body.
She’s grabbing his legs and dragging them at waist height, and his head keeps bumping into things.
Well, he should be alright. It’s accepted fact that the dumb kids are the one with sturdy skulls.
To be honest I really don’t agree with giving instructors paperwork as well. Especially on days like this when I personally moved my own body for my disciples!
Maybe if the organization had a shortage of people that could handle paperwork, but it’s not even like they’re lacking manpower.
Doing the typical things an evil organization does, naturally there are a lot of people that get injured, and the organization uses the ones that don’t have much hope of returning to the field in the office, and those numbers are considerable.
Could you say that the social security is unexpectedly good unlike what you’d expect from an evil organization?
Normally if people become useless they’re disposed of in other evil organizations, but perhaps it’s because this one has independence fighters as its backbone, or is it to raise the loyalty of the workers?
Either way it’s irrelevant, but there are plenty of people that can handle paperwork, and I, an instructor responsible for the future of the organization has to do paperwork!
Damn office workers. You do my job then!
I was diligently stamping letters of command to do with training which didn’t really have much to do with me personally and making a tower of papers, when I felt a presence in front of my door.
“Enter.”
“Yes.”
The one who entered the room was surprisingly enough, No.1000.
What was this? Had she come charging in because of her superior survival instincts telling her of the danger of the bat already?!
If it’s this girl that might actually be possible?
Khk, I’d been wearing a metal plate on my stomach just in case but if it’s this girl’s sword ki then it’ll just make a hole.
In the past I’d made it out of expensive metal, nowadays due to a lack of funds I had to melt that down and make other things with it, and now I’m using a plain ordinary steel plate! Is my life in crisis?!
“What’s the matter?”
Pretending to casually look over my documents, I slipped my left hand under my desk.
Hmph. If the plate over my stomach is thin, then what I need to do is alpha strike before my stomach gets knifed!
This is already my space, a few buttons under my desk can activate all kinds of hidden weapons and traps!
“The one who survives the longest is the winner.”
“Do you have questions about our discussion before?”
Or, to kill me to survive the longest?
“I want to be a winner.”
Pit pat.
Small footsteps that fit that small body gradually get closer to me.
What was in No.1000’s face that faced me was an unexpected fervor.
To think this kid could make this kind of face for something other than eating.
I had been looking over her often enough, and it truly was out of the ordinary for her to make this sort of expression.
“Do you know what you need to survive the longest.”
“Food.”
“Correct.”
If you can’t eat you die.
“Strength.”
“Correct.”
Whether it’s in fighting, knowledge, factions, if you’re not strong then you can be dominated and stolen from by the strong whenever they feel like it.