Chapter 18: A Capital in Turmoil

Chapter 18:
A Capital in Turmoil

 

AS SOON AS THEY ARRIVED at the capital, Gadhio bid farewell to the rest of the party and returned to his home in the East District, right around nightfall.

He made it through the gate, walked along the stone path cutting through the yard, and looked up to the front door. Kleyna was sitting there waiting for him.

She looked up at the sound of his footsteps and smiled, though the edges of her lips began to quiver, and her eyes filled with tears. After all that time she spent preparing what she wanted to say to him, no words came.

She gave up and settled on their well-practiced greeting:

“Welcome home.”

It stung Gadhio far worse than any angry rant ever could. He left her and Hallom behind, only to end up killing Tia and reaffirming his love for her. What right did he even have to speak to Kleyna anymore?

The look of concern on Kleyna’s face deepened as Gadhio stood there in uncomfortable silence. If it was all going to end soon anyway, then he should just cut his losses and run. But he couldn’t bring himself to do that.

He offered her a warm smile. “I’m back, Kleyna.”

Kleyna stood up and approached Gadhio on unsteady legs. She leaned in and pressed her face tightly against his chest. “Welcome…welcome home, Gadhio.”

He gently stroked her head as she rubbed her tear-stricken face into his chest. His expression was one of pure anguish.

 

***

 

“We’re baaaaaack!” Flum sprang through the front door and threw her arms into the air.

Milkit giggled, enjoying the sight of Flum so excited.

“Just being here has a nice relaxing effect, doesn’t it?” She, too, let out a sigh as the tension eased from her body.

“This place really has started to feel like our home now.”

“Yup, definitely!”

Everyone looked relaxed as they settled in and came to terms with the fact that the battle was finally over. After throwing together a quick dinner, they all took a bath and retired to their own rooms to rest.

 

***

 

As soon as Ink returned to her room, she felt Eterna scoot behind her and hug her close. A moment later, she heard the familiar sound of Eterna sniffing her hair.

“Whaddya think you’re doing?”

“Smelling you.”

“Pervert!”

“You know, it’s rude to call people that.”

“I feel like we had this same conversation pretty recently.”

“Welp, I guess we’re just stuck with it. This is a habit for me now.”

“Well, you better get on fixing it!” Despite her protests, Ink made no effort to get away—she knew it’d be of no use, with how tightly Eterna was holding onto her.

Though Eterna swore there was practically no difference between Flum and Ink, as Ink saw it, the two were polar opposites. She was little more than a normal weak little girl.

“The moment I let my guard down, it seems like you and I got pretty close, huh? But if I’m not careful, I dunno if I’ll ever be able to get away from you, Eterna.”

“I see no problems with that. Then I can smell you to my heart’s content.”

“Get off that smelling thing!”

“Sniff sniff!”

“Ewww! Cut it out! You’re like a sixty-year-old kid, you old spinster pervert!”

“Hmph, you’re pretty good at stringing together harsh words, kid.”

“You reap what you sow!”

“You know how we deal with ill-behaved children?”

“Huh? Hyaaagh!”

A vine made of water wrapped around Ink and turned her in Eterna’s grasp until the two were face to face.

“Th-this is pretty e-e-embarrassing…!”

“I agree.”

“Then why are you doing it?!”

Eterna offered no explanation. She simply hugged Ink even closer to her body.

“Shh…it’s okay.” She started running a hand through Ink’s hair.

“That’s right…it must’ve been hard for you,” Ink mumbled. “No matter what the circumstances were, you still had to kill your own parents.”

“I tried to keep my feelings out of it. I felt nothing in the moment I killed them, and even all through the battle.”

“But now the feelings are back?”

“I have a lot of memories here.”

The image of their dying faces, mixed with all of her fond memories of this house, came together to tug painfully at Eterna’s heart strings. She felt like her heart was being crushed.

“I want to overwrite them.”

“With memories of our own? But aren’t all your memories of this house really special to you?”

“Exactly, which is why I want to overwrite my memories of Sheol.”

“Can I be here with you, then? I know I’m weak, blind, and can’t really do anything useful…”

“Don’t think that way. I love being around you, Ink.” Eterna’s usual cool, even voice made it hard to convey the enjoyment she derived from Ink’s company, but the message got through to the younger girl loud and clear.

“All right then, I’ll do my best to baby and pamper you until all your wounds are healed!”

This was Ink’s way of paying Eterna back for all she’d done.

“Thanks, Ink. I guess the first step, then, is to get back to smelling your delightful hair.”

“Whoa, hey…! Why’d you have to take it in that direction all of a sudden?!” Ink squirmed in her grasp, but Eterna only pulled the young girl closer. It seemed like the next few days would be full of similar antics.

 

***

 

Fwumpf.

The bandages dropped to the bed, and Milkit’s cheeks went pink at the feel of Flum’s hands on her skin.

She put her own hand atop Flum’s as they sat down on the bed and gazed into each other’s eyes.

“You know, I was really amazed by what you said while we were fighting Satils.”

“Amazed?” Milkit looked confused.

“I…I mean…the whole…love thing and all that.”

Flum’s cheeks burned red at the mere mention, though Milkit seemed confused as to why that would be.

“Oh, that? I tried to figure out how best to refer to our relationship for a long time, Master.”

“Not partners?”

“I was happy with that too, but I feel like there’s a more specific term.”

Now that Milkit brought it to her attention, it felt a bit off to Flum as well. The term “partner” felt too abstract.

“But while everything was happening in Sheol, I finally found the answer I was looking for. I said it during the middle of the fight, but…do you mind if I say it again?”

“Huh? I, uh…well…”

“I guess that’s…a no?” The look of disappointment was clear on Milkit’s face.

After one look at that face, Flum could hardly say no.

“I mean, of course! I’d love to hear it.”

“Oh, good. Well then…”

She brought Flum’s hand down from her cheek to her heart. She could feel Milkit’s heart beating underneath the slight swell of her chest.

Milkit looked straight into Flum’s eyes. They were just as beautiful as the they were the first time Flum gazed into them, but now the luster had returned to Milkit’s silver hair, and her skin carried with it a nice, pink hue. She even began to fill out a little more and gain some feminine curves.

Flum felt her heart skip a beat at just how beautiful the girl sitting in front of her was.

Slowly, Milkit’s peach-colored lips began to move as she spoke. “I love you, Master.”

Flum’s brain ground to a complete halt as she focused on the warm smile facing her.

Love…like…romance.

Love…meant a partner. And not just any type of partner, but like a husband-and-wife kind of partner.

“W…wa…wa…w-w-w-w-w…wa!” Flum’s face was bright red at this point.

“Wa?”

“W-wait, Milkit! It’s all so soon, I just don’t even know how to respond to this, and my brain’s all turned to mush, and…!” She clapped her hands to her cheeks in a desperate attempt to cool her face down, though this only got her palms hot.

In a last-ditch attempt, Flum threw her face into the pillow.

But not her own.

A wonderfully sweet scent filled her nostrils.

This pillow smells amazing… I feel a lot more relaxed now, but my heart’s still racing. Hey, wait, is this Milkit’s pillow?!

Her body temperature rose even further, and her heart beat like the wings of a hummingbird. Warm blood pulsed through her entire body.

“Eeek!” Flum let out a shrill cry and ducked her head under the comforter.

“Was…was what I said that strange?”

“It wasn’t…it wasn’t strange, really. It was just…really sudden. I mean, love is…ya know… I was surprised.”

“Surprised? But love is really the best word I can find to describe how I feel about my master.”

Flum kept her face firmly pressed into the comforter, only glancing out to look at Milkit. She knew she probably looked like a complete idiot being all flustered like this, especially considering how unabashed Milkit was about the whole thing.

“Huh?”

Something stood out to Flum. Perhaps this “love” Milkit was speaking of wasn’t in a romantic sense at all.

“Hey, Milkit, ya know…”

“Yes?”

“When you say love, do you mean like…that you want to be lovers? Or something else?”

“L-l-l-lovers??” It was Milkit’s turn to blush. The blush went all the way up to her ears and down her collarbone, making her look like a giant strawberry. “How did you come to that conclusion?!”

“I mean, that’s what love usually means…”

“Really?? No, I…well…you know…”

Her voice grew quieter and quieter until Flum could no longer hear her. Milkit curled up on her side till she was laying on the bed, her hands fixed firmly over her face.

“It’s not like…well, of course I like you, Master, but it’s just that…well… I don’t know how to put this into words, and…”

“W-well, I guess there are a lot of different types of love, ya know. Like between family or even friends! In that respect, I think I…”

Flum couldn’t let Milkit be the only one to say it. She sat up straight, put her hands firmly on her thighs, and clenched her jaw to keep a straight face.

“…love you, too.”

If asked if this was a familial love, Flum could definitively say no. It also went beyond love between friends. What kind of love it was, however, she couldn’t say.

“I’m happy to hear it. But…well…it’s really embarrassing.”

“Hey, saying it is even more embarrassing.”

“I’m really sorry for forcing you into such a situation, Master. But…I really was at a loss as for how to express my feelings to you.”

And yet now that she found an answer, this opened the door to even more questions. Milkit still didn’t know any other descriptors for this beyond love.

Flum crawled over to her and put her hands on Milkit’s cheeks.

“Master?” Milkit risked a peek between her fingers.

Flum’s face was still red as a tomato, but she looked much more composed than before. She was smiling, too.

“I really like you, Milkit.” Flum’s heart pounded in her chest and felt like something was squeezing it at the same time. She enjoyed the sensation. “Let’s go with ‘like’ then, huh? Love might come on a bit strong.”

It was still a bit embarrassing, but she felt like it was something she could say a lot more easily.

Milkit’s cheeks still burned a bright pink, and she still looked a long way from regaining her composure, but she finally locked eyes with Flum. “Then…then I like you, too.”

Flum nodded and let out a bashful laugh.

She felt a sense of elation wash over her at being able to express their feelings to each other.

Milkit smiled. “I like you a lot, Master.”

Flum pulled Milkit into a tight embrace.

This mere conversation, an exchange of words, brought her more happiness than she ever thought possible. This feeling was not what she felt for her family or friends. It was a warm sensation that seeped down to the very depths of her heart—a sensation she’d never experienced before.

When Milkit came into her life, she’d gained an irreplaceable treasure. With each and every interaction they shared, something beautiful, like a flower, grew a little more within her heart.

Flum didn’t know what to call this sensation yet, but she figured that was fine for the time being.

 

***

 

Nekt returned to the underground laboratory in the capital before the others even had a chance to leave Sheol.

“I’m hoooome.”

Though she’d been gone longer than normal, she was all but certain Mother wouldn’t care, having lost all interest in the second generation. What did surprise her though, was that none of the other Spiral Children—Mute, Luke, and Fwiss—were there to greet her. In fact, the entire facility was dead silent.

“Hey, where is everyone? If you’re playing hide and seek or somethin’, I’m not it.”

She continued into another room, full of books unrelated to research and toys to play with. Fwiss and Mute had spent a lot of their time playing in there.

“What the…”

The room was in complete disarray. The bookshelves were knocked over, toys were smashed, and there was thick, red liquid staining the floor.

Nekt hurried to Mother’s lab.

There, too, she was met with more destruction. Broken lab equipment littered the room, and writing scrawled in blood marred the walls. Unlike the previous room, however, the walls, floors, and ceiling were deformed into a single uneven surface.

“Was there a fight here? It’s hard to imagine some creature strong enough to take them on could make it here. Flum and the others must’ve just gotten back, so that could only mean…”

A shadow in the corner of the room moved. Nekt tensed up and prepared to fight.

As soon as she saw the werewolf step forward, she knew it was no normal monster.

“Chimera, huh? So, the church’s turned its back on us, too. If only you gave us just a little more time…!!”

 

***

 

Welcy’s article on everything she’d witnessed was published and distributed throughout the capital the following morning. The story sounded like it came out of a third-rate gossip tabloid, but fortunately she was able to back it up with all the materials she managed to recover from Satils’ manor and the research facility, along with firsthand accounts of survivors from Sheol.

Of course, the church was expected to immediately deny the story, but the city took the news far more negatively than anyone could have expected. Anti-church groups that had been lying low were quick to arrange demonstrations outside the main cathedral. The same was true for the churches in the other districts as well, which attracted large crowds and speakers denouncing the church.

It was a matter of timing—recent price hikes for healing had already harmed the church’s image. With nuns, pastors, and members of the clergy pressured to take responsibility, the Pope called his cardinals together for a meeting at the cathedral.

Pope Fedro Maximus sat at the head of the table dressed in white garb with gold embroidery. Atop his head sat a polished gold crown.

He was the first to speak. “It seems Necromancy has fallen.”

His hair was long and white, matching his pale skin. There was something ephemeral about his appearance. His soft voice and the kind smile affixed to his face felt wholly uncanny.

“How unfortunate. I had high expectations of Dafydd.”

There was no change in his expression. He looked pleased with his death.

Toitso spoke next. “We are born to give our lives to the cause.”

Talchi continued on, maintaining the same tone as the other speakers. “He fulfilled his role as a true believer in his death.”

Slowanach continued the trend. “Dafydd was a martyr. Perhaps he couldn’t truly understand the words of Origin, but death has made him complete.”

It was like a one-way conversation broken up among several people.

“However, I believe that he was able to complete his research. What say you, Satuhkie Ranagalki?”

Cardinal Farmo smiled and turned to Satuhkie, who stared down intently at the table.

Satuhkie raised his head and turned to address Fedro. He let his boisterous personality shine through, making no attempt to remain quiet and reserved like the speakers before him.

“I’d say that the answer is apparent without my opinion.” He cast a glance toward a lone woman standing in a corner of the room. Echidna Ipeila brought a hand in front of her mouth to cover her laugh.

“What a bully, Satuhkie. You know I don’t know anything.” From the way she moved, it was clear she already knew the whole story.

“I summoned her here for one reason. We’ve been working hard to find the best way to make use of the great powers Origin has bestowed upon us, and it is finally time for us to decide on our path.”

Echidna let out an excited gasp, as if she had been waiting for this moment for a long time.

“I believe that the Chimera project is perfectly suited to serve as the spear tip in the church’s holy war.”

A round of applause erupted from the cardinals.

Echidna let out another exhilarated sigh.

“Tell Mich that the Children project is to be terminated with immediate effect.”

Farmo, the cardinal charged with overseeing the Children project, agreed swiftly. “Understood.”

Satuhkie, however, raised an objection. “Your Holiness, I don’t think he’ll be so quick to agree to his research being terminated…”

Echidna responded, “In that case, why don’t you let me take care of the Children? It will serve as a good proving ground for our abilities. Two birds with one stone, and all that.”

“You want to unleash those weapons in the capital?”

“We have complete control over the chimera. In a place the size of the capital, we can control them down to their individual movements. Without us, they are living statues, all thanks to the Chimera project’s perfected approach.”

“And yet I hear that your informant has been captured and that you were unable to get your hands on the fundamental technology behind the focal core.”

Echidna’s face tensed up for the briefest of moments before shooting back to put an end to Satuhkie and his arguments. “I’ve no idea what you’re getting at, Satuhkie, but even without those things you speak of, my Chimera is still far superior to both the Necromancy and Children projects in terms of production volume and functionality. I’d say it was a foregone conclusion that we would win this contest, no?”

She conveniently made no mention of the fact that the focal core was still incomplete.

“That’s enough, Satuhkie. Stand down.”

The Pope had clearly decided they would use the Chimera project, leaving him little interest in the specifics. All Satuhkie could do was click his tongue in annoyance and surrender.

“Well then, Echidna, we will leave it to you if we are unable to convince Mich to terminate.”

“It’s a great honor, your Holiness. I’ll begin making my preparations now.”

As far as she was concerned, the conversation with Mich Smithee—Mother—was as good as doomed. The Children project’s destruction at the hand of Chimera was a near certainty.

That wasn’t what Satuhkie was so concerned about. When an animal is cornered, it is at its most dangerous—and the Children were not weak. Once they no longer had anything left to lose, he feared that they could wreak untold havoc on the capital.

The Pope and cardinals had to know that. And yet, they accepted this as the cost of doing business.

They’re barbarians…

Satuhkie kept his annoyance to himself. The church, after all, was filled to the brim with people like them. Echidna was a prime example. She would kill without a second thought if it meant getting closer to her goals. Satuhkie could tell that nothing but trouble awaited them, due to her complete lack of patience.

Before the day’s meeting was even held, the chimerae were already sent out to destroy the Children project.

It was nothing short of a miracle that Satuhkie had been allowed to become a cardinal himself, in light of all the chaos that thrived in the church. There were already some who were expressing concerns about the current state of the church among his supporters. It was thanks to them he’d made it this far.

“I noticed some kind of ruckus going on outside the cathedral.” Finally, Pope Fedro addressed the protest going on outside.

“Some cheap tabloid leaked the details of the Sheol incident to the public.”

“Well, that’s certainly unfortunate. Do we have a way to shut them up?”

Talchi responded. “I have an excellent idea, your Holiness. Now that our duties are complete, why don’t you sentence Farmo and myself to death?”

Talchi and Farmo had been in charge of overseeing the Necromancy and Children projects. Now that they’d formally decided to adopt the Chimera project, their jobs were finished.

“What a wonderful idea. More humans will need to die to create the perfect world as envisioned by Origin, anyway, so this will help make way for his plans.” There was no hint of dishonesty in Farmo’s response. He seemed truly pleased.

“All right then; I leave the rest to you, Huyghe.”

“Absolutely. I will take their heads at once.”

The execution of cardinals, an event that should have been a massive change within the church of Origin, had been discussed and settled in only a brief exchange.

All Satuhkie could do was clench his fist beneath the table and sit there quietly as he watched the insanity play out unquestioned around him. As a cardinal and loyal follower of Origin, he had no choice but to keep up appearances for those around him.

“Justice Arts, Scotch Maiden Cleansing Blade!” Rays of light reflected off Huyghe’s steel blade as he swung it through the air. Despite the distance and lack of any physical contact, Talchi and Farmo’s heads dropped to the floor. Their bodies collapsed in their chairs, pouring bright red blood out onto to ground.

“Impressive as always, Huyghe.”

“I am honored by your kind words.” Huyghe remained as calm as ever.

“Actually, now’s a good time to discuss that issue I brought up before, Huyghe. I just received authorization from Dian.”

This Dian the Pope so casually referred to was none other than King Dian himself. It was clear the Pope considered him to be in a subservient role.

Huyghe’s eyes lit up. “So that means…!”

Fedro’s expression softened. “Correct. From today, the royal army now belongs to the church knights.”

 

***

 

“We’ve got a problem!” Ottilie barged into Henriette’s office without even knocking. Her face was pale, and she was clearly in a panic. “Cardinal Talchi and Cardinal Farmo’s heads were hung in front of the cathedral!”

“Did this satisfy the protesters?” Henriette gazed out the window at the protest in the plaza in front of the castle.

“Yes. It seems the church was hoping to put an end to the unrest with this.”

The idea that two cardinals would be killed likely hadn’t crossed anyone’s minds. It was probably fear at such extreme measures, not satisfaction, that had made the crowds go quiet.

“The royal army can’t just stand by and let that happen. Henriette, we can’t stay silent any longer, and…”

“We have no other choice. We’ve no power to do anything else.” Henriette wasn’t her usual energetic self. Her voice was quiet and distant.

“W-what’s wrong?”

Ottilie hesitated for a moment, and Henriette turned and approached her. She pulled Ottilie into a tight embrace.

“Huh? H…H-Henriette? You, I mean…this is all so sudden! We shouldn’t…!”

“Calm down and listen.”

“No! I mean, we can’t! Of course you smell so lovely and your sweet, gentle touch is nothing short of divine…and your chest… I mean, your chest…no! I can’t think such awful things!”

“I want…I want you to resign from the army.”

“Resign? What? But why??” Ottilie’s exuberant mood came crashing down almost immediately. “Why? Why would I do that?? I joined so I could be with you! I’ll be by your side always and forever, in life and death, whether in this life or the next!”

“You never change, do you? I’m honestly impressed that you joined the army just for me and managed to rise to the rank of lieutenant general. But that’s exactly why I’m asking this of you.”

“If you’re going to ask something of me, then ask me to be by your side forever! I don’t care if it’s as a slave or even a chamber pot, whatever I need to do!”

“No, you and I are kindred spirits, Ottilie. We’ve stood side by side in our fight to defend the kingdom. But that was only because the King himself was of the same mind.”

“No…it can’t be. The King agreed to merge the royal army with the church knights??”

“It’s not a merger. We’re being assimilated. I’m no longer a general, and I don’t know what will become of me within the church knights.”

The army existed to enforce the status quo across the kingdom. With the army gone, overzealous nobles would be free to seize land as they pleased. In short, by assimilating the royal army into the church knights, the Pope had acquired unfettered control over the entire kingdom.

“I can only let go of one person prior to the assimilation. Werner and Herrmann will probably hate me for it, but I want that person to be you, Ottilie.”

“B-but…I…I don’t want that.”

“I’m sorry, but I’m confident that you and the heroes can come together to continue to fight for the kingdom.”

“This is an awful position to put me in! You know I would never turn down a request from you, don’t you??”

Henriette only offered up a sad smile in response.

“Well, then,” said Ottilie, “there’s one thing I want to ask of you.”

“And that is?”

“If we manage to bring the church back in line and I…I can return back to your side, I…I want you to h-ho-ho…no, that’s too much. I…I want you to hug me!”

It was a relatively humble request. Henriette could have easily shaken her head no, but her reply went a completely unexpected direction. “If you come back to me alive, I’ll even give you a kiss. In fact, I’ll do whatever you ask of me.”

“You…you have my word!”

The two intertwined their pinkies and swore on it.

 

***

 

With the dissolution of the royal army, the church knights first needed to conduct a selection process in order to carry out their assimilation. Those former members of the army who had no place in the church knights were brutally murdered in front of their former comrades. The numbers were said to be in the hundreds. This was done to break the spirits of those men and women who had been singularly faithful to their country and bring them in line with the Origin faith.

Any soldiers who showed resistance underwent a “baptism” involving brainwashing through torture and drugs.

All of these events were held in secrecy within church-run facilities and only made it out to the people in the form of rumors. What was known was that no one ever saw the army’s former leaders after the assimilation.

 

***

 

The day after the execution of the cardinals and the announcement of the army’s merger, a lone green-haired man visited the West District guild. Y’lla, who had shown up abnormally early for once—even before Flum and Gadhio—perked up slightly from where she was daydreaming at the counter when the man walked in.

He was tall, handsome, and quite famous.

“Linus Radiants??” Y’lla smiled brightly at his arrival. She felt suddenly light-headed as she brought her hands to her chest, but unfortunately, he was here for business.

“I heard Gadhio can be found here?”

“Unfortunately, the guild master hasn’t arrived yet.” Everything about him was her type, so Y’lla played up the sweetness.

“Huh, I guess I’m a little early. Why did he suddenly decide to start being a guild master, anyway? He always said that it was all just kind of foisted on him, and he’d ignored it until now.”

After returning from the land of demons the night before, Linus had a lot to take in from what had happened over the past few days. His head was spinning just trying to process it all.

In fact, he came out to ask Gadhio directly in order to find out the truth of what had really gone down. Something told him his ex-teammate was somehow involved.

“I figured it had something to do with Flum Apricot being here, honestly.”

“Huh? Why would Flum be here?”

“I don’t know anything about that. She has a slave mark on her cheek for some reason or another, so I figure something big must’ve happened.”

“A slave mark…?” Linus’s face suddenly went serious.

This made Y’lla’s heart skip a beat, but Linus wasn’t interested in that at the moment. He’d always thought it odd that Flum would suddenly decide to return to her hometown, but now things were coming together.

He turned to the exit without a word.

“What about the guild master?”

“Tell him I came looking for him. Another thing just came up.”

With that, Linus stepped back outside.

“That stupid son of a…” He ran so fast that he looked like a blur to everyone he passed.

His destination was a foregone conclusion: he was heading to Jean Inteige’s room back at the castle where he was casually conducting research.