Black Badger

Chapter 279: Fluorescent Marimo and Interrogation (3)

It had to be explained quickly and concisely, then moved past.

How awkward it had been when I explained it to Yehyeon. Even though Yehyeon was an extremely polite kid, it had still been difficult. It was a sense humans didn’t possess, so he had no way of knowing how sensitive the topic actually was.

As briefly and plainly as possible.

“Yes. It is used strategically, but in everyday life it’s almost never used. Revealing emotions through instinct is considered impolite.”

“Really? That’s amazing!”

“Why?”

Ami looked genuinely amazed, while Yun asked back calmly.

If I got caught up in the Choi siblings’ pace, I had no confidence I’d escape unscathed. Cold sweat slid down my spine.

Still, I tried to keep my composure.

“Because emotional transfer through instinct makes lying impossible. That’s why it’s considered extremely intimate. Once a child becomes proficient at emotional control, even parents and children stop exchanging emotions.”

“So that’s what you call emotional transfer?”

Walker asked bluntly.

I nodded.

Everyone seemed to be processing the information in their own way. They all fell silent, faces thoughtful.

Good. I’ve explained it once, so now we can return to the mage’s interrogation—

“You don’t use it?”

Damn it.

Yun wasn’t letting it go.

“You said you served an emperor, didn’t you? In a monarchy, there’s no way this wasn’t used. Isn’t it the best possible proof of loyalty?”

“Unless they were an extreme tyrant, no one would demand such a thing. It was considered a strictly private domain.”

“What about lovers?”

Surprisingly, Sophia asked.

I pressed my lips into a thin line, then answered vaguely.

“Well... there were couples who did. Since no one would talk about it, I don’t know how common emotional transfer between lovers was....”

“That serious? Interesting. I guess it could spark fights or breakups.”

“Yes. And as I’ve said repeatedly, unless it was an exceptional situation, emotional transfer was considered impolite. Nobles believed both giving and receiving it was decadent and immoral, so they never did it.”

“You haven’t tried it either~?”

Ha.

At Ricardo’s question, delivered with a crescent-eyed grin, I looked away.

“No comment.”

“What?”

Yun grinned.

“That doesn’t line up. What kind of answer is that?”

“It’s my privacy. Please let it go.”

“Your ears are red~.”

Ricardo chimed in with a grin.

“Sorry for poking something embarrassing.... Didn’t know you were in the decadent category, Captain~?”

“I’m extremely conservative.”

“Then why did you try emotional transfer?”

“I didn’t say I did.”

“So you didn’t?”

“I’m not answering.”

“Just say you tried it~. We don’t even know what it is~.”

Yun and Ricardo kept smirking and teasing me.

Now I really understood how polite Yehyeon had been. I lowered my gaze diagonally and found myself newly impressed by my adjutant’s manners.

How did he turn out so upright after growing up under Lee Seunghyun?

I should praise him when I get back.

“But if you transfer emotions, do you always feel them no matter what?”

Kal asked, rubbing his chin.

“If that’s the case, twisted people would abuse it.”

“Yes. Those cases were punished very severely. There were truly vile parents who did that to their children. And during war, hatred and killing intent were sometimes sent to the enemy. It was used as a form of strategy.”

“But sending feelings like liking or respect wouldn’t be bad, right?”

Ami leaned forward, looking up at me.

“There’s nothing wrong with spreading that.”

“That’s true, but... it’s cultural. Even verbal confessions are difficult. Conveying emotions you can’t embellish is even more intimate than that. Especially feelings like reverence or love.... Emotions aren’t simple things.”

“Have you ever received it?”

Walker cut in.

I suppressed the urge to close my eyes.

“It’s not that I haven’t. I went to the battlefield often.”

“Other than strategically spewing emotions?”

Yun asked with a grin.

I stared flatly at the shooter.

This bastard. He’s enjoying this to the fullest.

“No comment.”

“Just say you’ve received it, Hilde~. I won’t tease you~.”

“Yeah. With that face and at that age, there’s no way you haven’t. And you weren’t even a noble, you were from the temple.”

“Being from the temple means I was raised even more conservatively.”

I grumbled, staring at empty air.

“If you did this in the Empire, both of you would be arrested for harassment.”

Yun and Ricardo let out low laughs at the same time.

Suddenly, I missed Yehyeon terribly.

The fact that even Sophia and Walker were interested in this topic was despair-inducing. I wanted to end it quickly, but unlike with Yehyeon, even if I complained that it felt like sex education, they wouldn’t let it go.

Especially Yun.

More than anyone, Yun.

Sure enough, the shooter suddenly turned his head and spoke to Kairos, who had been quietly smiling.

“How accurate is his explanation?”

Kairos smiled gently under the flood of gazes.

“There’s nothing incorrect. It’s accurate.”

“So is he conservative, or is it really that rarely used?”

“Both. Clergy and nobles almost never engage in emotional transfer. They consider pouring emotions out frequently, indiscriminately, or without consent to be vulgar, decadent, and rude. Commoners living ordinary lives also rarely use it.”

“Sounds like there are exceptions.”

“There always are. Some wanted to treat it as something forbidden. Some couldn’t restrain themselves. Some used differences in status to force confessions through emotional transfer, or couldn’t control their obsessive affection and poured it out recklessly. Others coerced emotional transfer using their rank. All are punishable.”

I stared at Kairos in horror.

Don’t tell me those were all his personal experiences?

When we got back, I’d have to ask casually. If things like that had happened, he could’ve at least tipped me off. I could’ve handled it in my own way.

Kairos had been a favored attendant of the imperial family, but he’d never been granted a title. If nobles crushed him with status, he couldn’t exactly punch them for insubordination.

Given his reputation and imperial favor, most nobles probably didn’t cross the line, but still....

Just hearing the first and last examples made my stomach churn.

“So did you do it?”

“Yun!”

I panicked.

“That’s a really rude question. I mean, to others of our kind—”

“It’s fine, Captain.”

Kairos stopped me.

The man waved it off calmly, then turned his gaze back to Yun.

“I was an attendant, so I frequently transferred emotions to my familiars. Some types can receive it, some can’t, but I didn’t really discriminate. As for people, I’ve done it exactly once.”

He finished speaking and grinned.

“Of course, with the other person’s consent.”

When would this topic end?

I kept my mouth shut and looked elsewhere, fervently wishing for it to be over.

Shu asleep on the transport seat, wrapped in a blanket. Several duffel bags scattered on the floor. Sophia’s rifle, out of ammo. And the mage, unconscious and forgotten....

The merciless world once again refused to grant my wish.

Walker raised an eyebrow.

“Your ears look even redder than before.”

“You’re mistaken.”

When I answered, the seniors turned to look at me again.

“That was a really fast reply~?”

“You must all be tired. Please rest. Stop this pointless conversation. Yun. Let’s drag the unconscious mage outside.”

Without waiting for an answer, I walked toward the mage.

That seemed to be the right move. The seniors who had been gathered together laughed and slowly dispersed.

I vaguely heard Ami mutter that she was frustrated because she was curious but felt it was too sensitive to ask.

Pretending not to hear, I grabbed the mage by the clothes.

I was about to drag him like a rag—

When a hoarse voice sounded.

“Water.”

At the small murmur, everyone in the transport froze.

“Please... water.”

Crash!

People moved like maniacs.

To take care of the awakened Shu.

The small badger with half-open blue eyes—the very reason we’d stepped into S Zone in the first place—had woken up.

***

Only after drinking three cups of lukewarm water did Shu come to her senses.

Wrapped tightly in a blanket, the small badger leaned against the transport wall.

People sat beside her, across from her, or stood leaning nearby, watching her drink.

A thin silence settled over the transport. No one spoke. Everyone was waiting for Shu Diamond to break the silence in her characteristically flat voice.

Shu set the empty cup down.

“Thank you for saving me.”

Those were her first words.

“I don’t remember much, but I know this is outside the Core. You came to find me, right?”

“Yes.”

I sat across from Shu, leaning my upper body toward her as I replied.

Ami and Sophia sat on either side of her.

Their eyes never left Shu. Both looked ready to support her at the slightest sign of trouble.

Grateful for their presence, I asked,

“How are you feeling physically?”

A senior lifted her head.

Clear blue eyes met mine directly.

Eyes that, in a different way than Kal or Yun, made emotional fluctuations hard to read stared straight at me.

After looking at me with an inscrutable expression, the senior spoke.

“Hilde.”

“Yes.”

“I’ve seen someone like you.”

“Huh? Me? Ah, I did carry you briefly—maybe you opened your eyes for a moment then.”

“No. The hair was long.”

Shu said firmly.

“Layered white hair, down to the waist.”

I stared at her, eyes wide.

What was she talking about?

How and where could she have seen my past self? I had no idea what she’d gone through after being abducted. All I knew ★ 𝐍𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 ★ for certain was that she’d been submerged in the Flower Pool at the heart of the nest.

“Do you know Ashen Mantle?”

She continued while I was still reeling.

“Yes. Don’t tell me you—”

“That fog pushed me in for a moment. A humanoid Creature. I think I briefly saw that Creature’s memories.”

I stood frozen, unable to speak.

Listening as Shu calmly added more.

“That was you, right?”

She wasn’t angry or confused.

“Untangling black hair mixed with white, kneeling before a man who looked like an emperor and kissing his red ring, sitting on a tree stump sharpening a sword with a black stone—that was all you, right?”

I wanted to cry.

Because I knew who had pushed her into the fog.

And because I knew who it wasn’t. Only three people remembered that my black hair and white hair used to intertwine. Until a few decades ago.

Now, only two remained.

One of them was me.

But this wasn’t the time for sentiment.

I steadied my shaken mind and answered quietly.

“Yes. That’s correct. I’m sorry.”

“You looked cool.”

...What?

“Long hair really suits you. You’re growing it out again, right? I think it’s a good idea.”

“...Thank you.”

This person was consistently hard to follow.

Stunned by the unexpected response, I barely managed to pull my wandering focus back.

“But, senior, if you’re physically able, could you briefly tell me what you experienced? I know it may be difficult to recall.”

“I can’t move my legs.”

Shu dropped the bomb casually.

“I can’t feel them.”

My heart sank.