novelraw Chapter 34 : Chapter 34
Chapter 34 : Chapter 34
Chapter 34: Do Not Draw
Lensis must have reached a similar conclusion.
I, Ered, felt my hair stand on end.
It was a gruesome feeling.
As if I had opened a box that should never have been opened.
‘...There’s no way.’
Perhaps it was a hasty deduction.
There must be something I overlooked.
“Shall we get started then?”
The voices of the men echoed from behind.
I snapped back to my senses.
I had delayed too long, paralyzed by shock.
We hid ourselves in the shadows and moved back up the stairs.
It was confusing.
Alter’s corpse was still vivid in my mind's eye.
His hollowed-out chest and those red fragments.
“What on earth did those things signify?”
Lensis muttered as if talking to himself.
In truth, he probably already knew the answer.
He was brilliant, after all.
He simply wanted to deny it.
Prominences are superior beings.
An elite military group representing the Empire.
That was a well-known fact.
‘...But at the same time, they are beings that can be disposed of at any moment.’
Through Alter’s corpse, a horrifying new fact had been added to the list.
The dead Alter likely didn't even know what kind of death he faced.
He would have been caught in the explosion in an instant.
“We don’t know when we might end up like that too.”
Once the thought escaped my lips, a chill ran down my spine.
Cold sweat began to bead on my forehead.
My stomach churned.
A wave of nausea surged.
Especially now, while I was digging into the identity of the mastermind behind Unnormal—someone with power exceeding even Marcus’s.
‘What if he is the one who holds the authority to detonate the Red Magic Stones?’
...Horrifying.
That wasn't just a simple guess.
The assassin who killed Marcus and the mastermind behind Unnormal are the same person.
They killed Marcus to hide the secrets of Unnormal.
‘I must not dig into the mastermind's identity any further. Not if I want to live.’
I left the refinery with a heavy heart.
“…….”
Lensis, who was walking beside me, suddenly froze in place as if turned to stone.
Immediately after, I realized it too.
‘Someone is here. Right behind our backs.’
It was a distance where one could reach out and touch them.
I didn't even need to turn around to know.
It certainly wasn't the men from the basement furnace.
There was no way we would allow our backs to be exposed to small fries like that.
‘The mysterious footprints discovered at the National Cemetery totaled three people.’
I recalled that fact.
On the other hand, there were only two men found in the basement.
‘One is missing.’
The person behind us was highly likely to be that one missing person.
...My feet wouldn't move.
I couldn't move carelessly.
It was the feeling of a mouse in front of a snake.
My whole body felt paralyzed.
I had experienced something similar before.
It felt just like this when I mistook Jinfre for a traitor and confronted him.
An overwhelming sense of helplessness.
Even if I mobilized every card I had, I could never win.
I knew it without having to fight.
It meant there was such a vast gap between me and the opponent.
A mouse does not leap at a cat.
Because it knows there is no chance of winning.
“…….”
Lensis’s entire body remained frozen like a statue.
I could see the cold sweat trickling down his temple.
‘The opponent is at least on the same level as Jinfre. Perhaps even higher.’
I, Ered, couldn't even dare to measure the gap.
Since I hadn't even noticed his presence until he approached right behind our backs.
‘It’s him.’
The mysterious assassin who killed Marcus.
‘The presence behind us is undoubtedly him.’
Even if he blew up Alter with the Red Magic Stone, he would have had to deal with Marcus personally.
Only Prominences carry the Red Magic Stone in their chests.
‘...Is this the end.’
My eyelids quivered.
‘We are people who shared the same intent as the late Marcus.’
The man behind us would naturally know that fact.
‘We tracked the site where Alter’s body was being secretly disposed of. And we were caught red-handed.’
There was nothing left but to be disposed of.
‘Damn it.’
Even if I joined forces with Lensis, the result wouldn't change.
The man behind us was an out-of-spec existence.
‘...Do not give up.’
I painfully pulled up my fighting spirit.
The reason I rolled around like a dog at Redstone wasn't to succumb to death.
‘I will survive no matter what. Even if the survival rate converges to zero.’
I balled my fists tight.
It was to control my trembling hands.
Resisting the ruthless pressure, I placed my hand on the hilt of the Arcane Sword.
“Do not draw.”
A low-pitched voice echoed from behind.
‘Voice modulation?’
It was a mechanical voice.
What result would wait if I drew the sword? I knew without having to ask.
The pressure the man radiated bore down on my shoulders even more fiercely.
‘Wait. Maybe....’
A single thought suddenly occurred to me.
I decided to gamble.
The stake was my life.
I became a Prominence because I wanted to live a successful life and didn't want to die of hunger pathetically in the slums.
Somehow, it seems that putting my life on the line has become a frequent occurrence since becoming a Prominence.
I took a long breath.
I screamed internally, resisting the massive pressure.
Clang!
I drew the Arcane Sword with all my might.
Fierce sparks flew as the blade and scabbard rubbed together.
Whoosh!
The red mana supplied to the blade flared up like an inferno.
Maximum output.
In an instant, I pivoted on my foot, twisted my upper body, and slashed the sword down diagonally.
Toward the rear where the man should be standing.
***
“You went and did it after all.”
The man stared down at the two Prominence cadets collapsed on the ground.
Among them, he took note of the red-haired cadet, Ered.
The man replayed the situation from a moment ago.
Ered had been deep in thought right until he initiated the sudden action.
One could guess that fact just by looking at his back.
Since his life was on the line, he must have been thinking desperately.
And after finishing his thoughts, he drew his sword.
As if testing his own life.
“Heh. Certainly, in that regard....”
A satisfied chuckle leaked from behind the mask the man wore.
He moved away from the two of them.
Thinking it was now time to deal with the remaining problems, he raised his head.
The black smoke rising from the chimney was billowing much more thickly than before.
The man left the two collapsed cadets alone and entered the closed refinery.
“Ah! You've arrived?”
The hirelings who discovered him brightened up and bowed obsequiously.
Cleaners.
Disposal experts.
Kidnapping, intimidation, cleaning up crime scenes—they are beings who won't refuse any job as long as they are paid.
“The body?”
“We handled it well, just as you said.”
The Cleaners pointed to the furnace as if to show off.
Inside the furnace that had swallowed the sacrifice, red flames were flickering ominously like the tongues of snakes.
“Good work.”
“Hehe. Think nothing of it.”
The Cleaners rubbed their palms together with groveling smiles.
The man saw right through the greed dwelling in their eyes.
He let out a smirk and handed a pouch of money to the Cleaners.
“Thank you!”
The Cleaners beamed and stroked it as if it were their own child.
Right after checking the contents of the pouch, the corners of their mouths curled up even further.
“You may go now. I will finish up the rest myself.”
“Would that be alright? We were going to stay until the end and watch over the place for you.”
The Cleaners said that, but seeing them sneakily packing up their gear, it seemed they had a great desire to leave the spot.
“Well then, we shall be off....”
“Please look us up again whenever you need help!”
The man silently watched the backs of the Cleaners as they packed their bags with flushed faces.
Click.
Without a word, he pulled out a pistol equipped with a silencer and aimed.
Thud.
Thud.
Two faint gunshots.
A deep silence returned to Sector 28.
***
“...Heugh!”
I, Ered, snapped my eyes open.
It was because someone was shaking my shoulders violently.
At the same time as I regained consciousness, I reflexively felt my neck.
‘...It’s still attached.’
However, a throbbing pain remained.
The reason I fainted must have been because I was struck in that area.
It hurt like hell.
“How long are you going to stay sprawled out?”
It was Lensis’s voice.
The one who shook my shoulder to wake me was him.
“Did we survive....”
I muttered blankly.
The assassin did not take the lives of the two of us.
He merely stopped at knocking us unconscious.
“Why did you do that?”
Lensis narrowed his eyes and rebuked me.
He wanted to blame my actions for attacking after ignoring the assassin’s warning.
“The man warned us not to draw our swords. Quite kindly, too. Even though he could have cleanly buried the truth by just killing us without a word.”
I, Ered, felt doubt in the assassin’s words and actions.
That’s why I took the gamble with my life.
There was no choice anyway.
Since running away from him was impossible.
‘Why didn't he kill us?’
I simply couldn't understand the assassin's heart.
“You caused a scene over just that? You're as reckless as ever.”
Lensis let out a light sigh.
“It's all well and good, but don't drag me into it. My body is precious.”
“My body is precious too, you know?”
I groaned and stood up from the ground.
Even during that time, smoke was still rising from the chimney of the closed refinery.
“Is it just my imagination? The smoke seems to have gotten worse....”
“It seems so.”
Lensis agreed with those words.
How much time had passed while I was unconscious?
We quietly entered the refinery.
As expected, the body bag was not to be seen.
It must have already gone into the pit of fire.
‘Was Alter’s body that big?’
The inside of the furnace was full.
I tilted my head while looking at it.
There was no way to resolve that question.
Because the contents of the furnace had already been reduced to a blackened mass.
‘What do we do now?’
I had already almost lost my life once.
‘If I ignore the assassin's warning and dig deeper into the truth....’
There was no guarantee the assassin would spare my life a second time.
My head was complicated.
No doubt Lensis felt similarly.
“…….”
The two of us stared silently at the flames of the furnace.
With unresolved questions held in our hearts.
***
If you think about it, it's an obvious story.
Prominences are beings with immense power.
‘What if such a being harbors treasonous intent?’
From the perspective of the ruling class, there would be no situation more troublesome than that.
There is no being in the Empire that can match the combat power of a Prominence.
Therefore, a means to control Prominences would have been inevitable.
I never dreamed that means would be embedded in the Red Magic Stone.
‘The investigation can go no further.’
I, Ered, let out a sigh of resignation.
The mastermind already knows everything.
No matter how much we run wild, it's only within the palm of his hand.
‘Life is more important than the truth.’
For some reason, the mastermind spared the lives of me and Lensis.
‘I can interpret it as meaning that Lensis and I are not worthless beings to him.’
Yes.
Just as I did since Redstone, I will live as a loyal Prominence.
That way, at least a hole won't be punched through my chest.
‘...Is that really so?’
On the other hand, a lingering, unpleasant feeling stuck to one corner of my mind like gum and wouldn't come off.
‘There is no law saying I will remain a useful existence to them forever.’
Because nothing in the world is permanent.
‘I am a dog of the Empire. A hunting dog that has lost its use will be disposed of.’
In the end, there is no choice but to constantly prove my own value.
‘However, I should at least prepare some insurance.’
I must uncover the secret hidden in the Red Magic Stone.
If the situation becomes unavoidable, I must be prepared so that I can remove it at any time.
‘...It won't be easy, though.’
I looked down at the Red Magic Stone embedded in my chest with bitter eyes.
To think the day would come when the Red Magic Stone, which I was proud of, would feel so distasteful.
It wasn't something that could be done by forcibly tearing it out with strength.
‘If I did that, I’d become a half-cripple at the very least.’
The combined Red Magic Stone is closely connected to the magic circuits engraved throughout the body.
It plays the role of maintaining structural integrity while simultaneously supplying mana to the magic circuits.
‘If I recklessly tear out the Red Magic Stone, the disconnected magic circuits will lose control and collapse.’
I would have to go through a procedure following the correct steps to prevent the collapse.
‘A removal procedure is not a job that can be entrusted to just anyone.’
Professional magic engineers at a level capable of Red Magic Stone procedures and removal are high-end personnel.
It means they are beings who have formed close relationships with the Empire.
‘There's no way they would obediently follow my request. Since it's like participating in a capital crime. Even if I bribe them with a large sum, maintaining secrecy would become another headache.’
The problem didn't end there.
‘The moment the Red Magic Stone is removed, it becomes impossible to live the life of a Prominence.’
The fact that it was removed is not something that can be hidden just because one wants to hide it.
Because without the Red Magic Stone, it's impossible to activate the magic circuits.
One becomes a body that can no longer be called a Prominence.
‘It would be discovered immediately.’
It was obvious what kind of result that would bring.
In the end, only a sigh escaped.
It was certain that this wasn't an issue that would be resolved by agonizing over it for a day or two.
Suddenly, my communicator rang.
‘Is it Lensis?’
Last night, the cooperation with Lensis had ended inconclusively without being properly finished.
It's me.
It wasn't Lensis.
It was Jinfre’s voice.
Ered.
You're more photogenic than you look.
A sudden remark from Jinfre.
“Pardon? I don't know what you mean.”
Don't tell me you still don't know? I suggest you develop a habit of reading the newspaper when you wake up in the morning.
Newspaper?
I, Ered, picked up the morning newspaper delivered in front of the lodging’s main door.
The more I read the newspaper, the harder it became to control my expression.
‘...What is this again?’
I froze where I stood.
‘Why is my photo on the front page of the newspaper?’
Things beyond the scope of expectation were happening one after another.