Black Badger

Chapter 201: Thunder and Lightning (1)

Yun and Ricardo rushed to my side in an instant.

I thought they had come to help with the capture, but Ricardo pulled out his air-composition analyzer, and Yun inspected the fragments of the burst blue orb.

Ricardo was the first to snap.

“You know what that thing was and you’re just standing there all relaxed~?”

His furrowed brow looked murderous.

Still holding the restraints on the Frontier Count, I answered in a flustered voice:

“I am sorry. Judging from his expression, it did not seem to be poison....”

“Slap the shit out of him and make him talk about what this was~.”

“For now it doesn’t show any anomalies.”

Yun narrowed his eyes, muttering.

“Not everything gets picked up by scanners, so fuck, how would we know.”

“What are you doing? Gonna make him talk or not?”

“What was this?”

I looked directly into the Frontier Count’s eyes as I asked.

He clenched his jaw and, predictably, said nothing.

Ricardo stowed the analyzer away and strode toward him.

“If you can’t smack him, I’ll smack him for you~?”

I shook my head calmly.

“I will do it. Please step back. I underestimated the situation.”

“You really think you can beat a confession out of him~...?”

Ricardo gave me a doubtful look.

I let out a small laugh. I had insisted earlier that I could not kill civilians and even asked for time alone to speak with him, so his suspicion was understandable.

But if there had truly been something inside that orb, this was different.

I kept the smile on my face as I answered:

“I am quite good at interrogation.”

Ricardo raised his eyebrows.

Seeing his expression, I added evenly:

“Give me a moment.”

His eyes thinned.

But since he did not reply, it meant he intended to watch. I offered a grateful smile and turned back to the Frontier Count.

His complexion had gone pale.

A man who had lived such an exemplary life would never have undergone interrogation by people like me or Kyle. Hatred toward humans aside, he had every reason to fear what was coming.

He would not be ignorant of the rumors that had spread through the Empire.

I met his eyes and whispered slowly:

“You have already burst it, so please tell me what it was. Nothing will change immediately just because you speak.”

His mouth stayed shut.

“If you do not answer, I will have to begin formal interrogation. And I will not be asking only about this.”

Because I wanted to know how he had been living.

Honestly, I was restraining the urge to ask him how he had been these past years.

“But if you tell me the truth right now, I will not ask anything else.”

A flicker of hesitation crossed his face.

I stayed silent, watching. I would know truth from lies as soon as he spoke. I had done this from my time as Captain of the Knights up to the outbreak of the First War. Humans were far harder to read than kin.

Still, I had learned much while interrogating hard-line Elders. As Captain, I relied on instinct to read lies; interrogating humans taught me the physical tells shared by both kin and humans when lying.

I remained still and waited.

Fortunately, the Frontier Count broke sooner than expected.

“The Blue Illness.”

Ah.

I exhaled in deep relief.

Letting out a heavy sigh, I turned to the seniors.

“It does not transmit to humans.”

“What is it?”

Yun straightened his back as he asked.

Glancing at the remnants of the blue sphere, I gave a faint smile.

“It was prevalent in our original world. Strangely, it never passed to humans.”

“Symptoms?”

“Similar to influenza. High fever, coughing, sore throat, headache.”

“But you are not human, you know~?”

Ricardo said, standing at a slouched angle.

I nodded and recalled the past. It had been a common epidemic. It spread like wildfire, affecting nobles and commoners alike, though the impoverished suffered the most.

Diseases like that left devastating scars on the poor.

It had been a frenzied period.

Recovering bodies that could not even be buried, running everywhere to calm the panicked populace.

“But even during the peak, I never caught it.”

Many strong knights were bedridden. Even Kyle and Rei had eventually fallen ill.

But I had not. So I had ended up doing Kyle’s workload as well. When he returned thinner and apologetic, he bought me copious amounts of alcohol.

“Perhaps I have antibodies.”

I smiled, swallowing down the sadness that came with the memory.

“So you need not worry too much.”

“You are sure he’s telling the truth~?”

“Yes. That is certain.”

“Are you stupid? The problem is that you didn’t catch it.”

I had been about to mention that I could sense lies from Ricardo, but Yun cut in abruptly.

Frowning, he shoved his hands in his pockets.

“If you had caught it and recovered, you would have antibodies. But if you never caught it, you likely have none. That world did not have vaccines or preventative shots, right?”

“No, it did not.”

“Exactly.”

Yun replied bluntly.

Looking between their irritated expressions, I smiled awkwardly.

This was not something to take so seriously. It was not incurable.

If I got it now, it would ⊛ Nоvеlιght ⊛ (Read the full story) probably just be a rough few days.

And thank goodness it was a virus humans do have immunity to.

I shifted the topic.

“The sack contains seeds.”

I checked the contents of the burlap sack the Frontier Count held in his left hand.

“Nothing requiring special caution. Let us find the seeds we came for and leave.”

“The storage is underground.”

A hoarse voice came from near the door.

I looked up.

Carl Dow had already shed unnecessary gear and was ready to begin gathering seeds.

“Can we go now?”

“Yes. Let us go together.”

Still gripping the Frontier Count’s arm, I began to move.

“I will take charge of the prisoner.”

The Frontier Count did not resist much.

He knew resisting would do nothing in his current state.

Head bowed, he was likely searching for an opportunity to flee.

Which was convenient for me.

We headed toward the storage without incident.

The seed vault was dozens of meters underground. Normally one would wear cold-resistant suits before entering, but with the power cut, there was no need.

Carl and Yun went in first.

An empty area called the anteroom came first. It was where seeds were kept for a week before entering the main vault.

Passing it, we entered the vault.

Huge shelves lined with neatly stacked boxes.

How were we supposed to check all this?

Feeling dizzy, I stepped inside.

We could never take everything. And even if we did, most would be dead.

We only needed to bring back the viable ones. Determining that required checking for seed respiration.

Apparently you soaked them in some strange solution and watched for a reaction....

“Tetrazolium.”

“Tetra....”

“I brought it. We will test in the anteroom.”

Carl approached as I stumbled over Yun’s unfamiliar term.

“If you bring them in bulk, we will pick out the required seeds and test them. No need to waste time searching—bring the entire boxes.”

Truly reliable, this man.

Unable to hide my gratitude, I nodded.

We moved fast. After assigning Sophia Kalak to guard duty, we worked quickly—pulling boxes off the shelves and delivering them to Carl, who prepared the reagent. After laying them out in order beside him, we headed back to the vault to bring more.

Carl worked with unbelievable speed.

At one point he raised his head and declared:

“Finished. Packed everything we can take.”

Wow.

I looked at him with eyes full of admiration.

How could someone be this competent....

His speed was astonishing. I wondered if I should bring Personnel Director Ju a set of energy drinks in thanks. Carl Dow was the sort of soldier any commander would treasure.

“Thank you.”

My voice was thick with genuine emotion.

“Thanks to you—”

But I did not finish the sentence.

Because something was happening.

A shift large enough to seize all my senses.

The Creatures on the mountain were fleeing.

Down the slope, into burrows, beneath tree roots.

As if an earthquake had struck, they scattered all at once. Bolting for their hiding places.

To escape the thing that was approaching.

A chill crawled down my spine.

Ah.

The Thunder is moving.

“Run!”

I snapped my head around and shouted sharply.

“Right now!”

No one questioned it.

No one froze. Everyone moved with perfect coordination. The seniors sprinted straight for the exit. Carl, too, instantly grabbed the load and sprang up.

They charged up the stairs.

Even while climbing, Yun and Ricardo looked back at me.

“Can you carry him—?”

“Yes.”

Hoisting the Frontier Count over my left shoulder, I replied:

“If it becomes too much, I will call for help.”

Apparently satisfied, the men snapped their gazes forward again.

Their speed increased. I matched it.

Stairs, corridor, door.

We burst through another door.

And the view opened up. We emerged outside the Seed Storage.

Autumn wind brushed past my cheek.

The seniors were already descending fast, shoving aside the early fallen leaves and dirt. Dust clouds rose, swallowing their silhouettes.

I matched their pace, sharpening my senses.

A heavy presence pressing down from above.

Good thing we had not hesitated even for a second.

Sliding down the incline, I turned back toward the place where the Seed Storage had been.

The mountaintop.

A place beautifully rising under the blue sky.

Crackle, crackle.

It comes.

Crackle, crack—

Crackle—

BOOOOOOOM!!

My eardrums ruptured.

A pillar of energy made of lightning slammed into the mountaintop. It erased the summit.

A shockwave slammed into us. I forced my legs to absorb it, keeping myself from collapsing forward. It was not enough—I had to grab a thick tree trunk with one hand.

Branches crashed down with violent noise. Crack, crack, the trunks kept snapping.

White hair whipped wildly in the storm.

The Frontier Count let out a small scream.

The shockwave that had caused the chain of destruction gradually subsided.

As the final gust brushed my cheek, I lifted my head.

And looked at the sky.

Or rather, at where the mountaintop had been.

“It blew the whole thing off.”

Yun spoke irritably from below me.

“That is its basic skill?”

“Not exactly.”

I listened to the beating of the dragon’s wings.

I felt the massive wings blotting out the sky, the darkness falling with them, and the despair beating in time with each flutter.

Why do bad premonitions never fail to come true.

“A climate-shift Creature is coming.”

The same type that had blown my hut to pieces.

The butterfly, with its yellow wings fluttering, headed toward the Thunder—and toward us.

No doubt carrying out Kyle’s order.

“Looks like it will rain.”