Chapter 2: An Omen Carved in Blood

7

“How long are y’all planning on moping around?”

The first to stand up and speak in Cobalt’s bar was Keele. The door to the back room had been destroyed, and the storeroom beyond it was left in a disastrous state from their skirmish. Surprisingly, the establishment was otherwise untouched. Nagi and the two injured members of Cobalt were seated at the counter. Not a single one of them had said a word until Keele stood up.

No, they couldn’t say a word. Not only were they fatigued and in pain, but being so utterly defeated by a noble’s tremendous strength had shattered their hearts.

“I mean, they really got us,” Crow said to Keele. His tone was as light as usual, but there was disappointment hidden behind it.

“Why didn’t you make more bolts?” Keele asked.

“This crossbow is nothing more than a prototype. I planned on making more once we had the Halahala to spare.”

Crow looked down at the strange weapon in his hands. Keele was about to say something else, but Crow cut him off.

“You’re being a sore loser.”

“You’ve got a point there.”

“What the hell was that, anyway?! How are we supposed to defeat a monster like that?!” Senak shouted, dispelling the curse hanging over their conversation.

“That was a vampire. Besides, we killed one, didn’t we? The poison worked,” Keele said.

“We only killed a grunt!” Senak refuted.

“Eh, true. That guy really was a chump compared to that Lernaean bastard.”

“Lernaean Edel Trouta lo Granapalt. He’s a big shot of the Sovereignty Faction,” Crow added.

“What’s the Sovereignty Faction?” Nagi asked.

“You sure are ignorant of the world. Hey, Crow, fill this dumbass in,” Keele said haughtily.

“You don’t even know all that much about it yourself, do you? Politics here in the capital have been rigid for centuries. The members in charge have pretty much been all the same, after all. However, the past three hundred years are a different matter. A young—well, he’s far older than any of us—but a young noble is spearheading a faction who’s of the opinion that the Sovereign should be returned to the center of government.”

Crow’s story was rather strange to Nagi.

“Isn’t the Sovereign already the center?”

The Sovereign of the royal capital was an eminent figure. Didn’t that make the Sovereign the very center of the government?

“No. The Sovereign was only at the center of Agarthan politics in the early days of the country’s history. After that, Congress took control of all political matters. The current Sovereign is nothing more than a figurehead. However, the Sovereignty Faction wants to change that. Leading the opposition is Chairman Gratos, who seeks to protect the current order. They’re called the Traditionalists.”

The Sovereignty Faction and the Traditionalists. Apparently, there was discord among the nobles. This was the first Nagi had ever heard of such a thing.

“Lernaean, the man we met earlier, is the leader of the Sovereignty Faction,” Crow concluded.

“I heard high-ranking nobles were genuine monsters, but I didn’t think it’d be that bad,” Senak said, trembling as he recalled what happened.

“Did anyone see that guy’s attack?” Keele asked. Everyone shook their heads. “I couldn’t bump off that knight, either. Seems we’ve been fightin’ nothing but chumps until now.” Keele paused with a joyful smile. “Things are gettin’ fun.”

“Let’s stock up on Halahala-coated bolts. It’s far too dangerous to engage them in close combat. Senak, please make the arrangements.”

Senak let out a sigh. “You guys are nuts.”

“What, you wanna jump ship?”

“Don’t be stupid. Like hell I can run away. I’ve got to get revenge for everyone who’s been killed up until now.”

Senak’s voice was burning with passion. Their conversation gave Nagi a glimpse into Cobalt’s daily battle against nobility.

“Let me join Cobalt,” Nagi said after steeling himself.

Keele immediately shook his head. “No can do.”

“Why? I can fight too! I even defeated a noble!”

“Huh, he can’t? I’d be dead if Nagi hadn’t covered for me. He’s pretty good. Sure seems like a brother of yours,” Senak said.

“He certainly has a point. Commoners capable of standing off against nobles are valuable warriors. Many freeze up on instinct, after all,” Crow chimed in.

“When I say no, I mean no,” Keele declared. “I don’t wanna fight alongside this kinda naïve brat. Why do you wanna join Cobalt anyway?”

“Because I made a promise to Saya.”

“That little princess? What about?”

“I said I’d protect her.”

“So, you wanna take her back? That’s pretty selfish. You’ve got no place here. Right, Crow?”

“I’m the leader here, remember? But you’re right. The one we needed was Saya, not Nagi. Moreover, Nagi is opposed to Saya offering her blood to make Halahala. If we were to retrieve her, our interests will be misaligned. However...” Crow turned and stared intently at Nagi. “It’s true we’re wanting for trustworthy companions. We need more allies.”

“Huh? Weren’t you spouting off about how having fewer allies was better all this time?”

“That’s because the quantity of Halahala available to us was limited. But the situation has changed.”

“Yeah. It seems like we’ll be able to gather up a good amount,” Senak added.

Keele made a face. “Hey, nobody told me that.”

“The company caved. Those guys were hiding a goddamn stockpile from before Dr. Dimitri got caught. I’m talking three hundred bottles.”

“With such a quantity, we can move on to the next stage. In other words...” Crow paused as he gazed into Keele’s eyes. “We need to help our good professor escape.”

“I see. So next we need soldiers, you mean.” Senak nodded, but Keele still looked dissatisfied. “If so, then we don’t need the little princess’ blood, do we?”

“That’s a different matter. If we manage to free Dr. Dimitri, we’ll be able to manufacture more Halahala. So long as we have the ingredients, that is.”

“Yeah, yeah. I guess that ol’ egghead can see the effin’ future. But this guy’s no good. He don’t got the resolve, nor the strength.”

Nagi couldn’t say a thing in his defense. He had been incapable of doing anything when faced with Lernaean’s power—the power of a noble. That bitterness had taken away all of his will to object.

“If you wanna convince us otherwise, you’ve gotta prove your strength. If you can, I’ll accept you. Anyway, I’m outta here.”

“I told you, I’m the leader here. Where are you going?”

“I’m the same as him in that I don’t got enough strength. First, I’m gonna hone my skills by killing nobles till I can kill Jubilia. After that, I’ll move on to high-ranking nobles.”

“I’d rather you refrain from acting independently. The Halahala I gave you wasn’t meant to be squandered.”

“Oh, come on. You’re gonna get a whole lot soon, yeah? Don’t be stingy. I told you off the bat, didn’t I? Don’t get in my way.”

Keele’s eyes glimmered dangerously.

“Please keep your distance from Ronadyphe Prison so as to not get in the way of the main operation,” Crow said, giving in.

“I know, I know. Somewhere far from Ronadyphe, huh? Guess I’ll go to Leshva. When should I come back?”

“In one month.”

“That should be good for three—no, five nobles.” After saying so, Keele left the bar.

Senak let out a sigh of relief. “Man, that guy’s scary. He’s out of his mind. Oh, sorry. I guess he’s your brother.”

“It’s fine. He’s always been like that.”

“You have my sympathy. Hey, he said all that, but I’d welcome you as our ally, Nagi.”

“I feel the same. But what do you think will happen if we let Nagi into Cobalt after Keele so strongly objected?”

“Someone’s going to die. Us, Nagi, maybe both.”

“Prove my strength...” Nagi muttered to himself.

“Hm?”

“That’s what Keele told me to do. What did he mean by that, though? Do I just have to get stronger than him?”

When he heard himself say it out loud, Nagi recognized that it was impossible. Keele’s strength in combat, which allowed him to fight on par with a noble knight, was abnormal. Nagi couldn’t even imagine how much training he had endured, and how many times he had cheated death, in order to reach that level.

“There is more than one kind of strength. For example, if you were to bring us a large number of allies, that would be another form of strength,” Crow told him.

“What do you mean?”

“Our next objective is an attack on Ronadyphe Prison. Currently, we have around fifty people on our side.”

Nagi was shocked. Fifty? Cobalt apparently had a lot of members. According to the earlier conversation, they were supposed to be starving for allies. Regardless, they had a lot of people ready to throw themselves into a fight against the nobles.

“Do you think that’s a lot? That’s how many we would have if we gathered everyone who is currently in hiding all over the place. As I said before, we’ve been suppressing our head count. If we go around inviting people from areas we’ve been avoiding, I think we should be able to gather a hundred people or so. That’s our limit, however.”

Crow paused there, then put things as bluntly as he could.

“This is nowhere near enough. Ronadyphe Prison is garrisoned by ten knights and a hundred commoner soldiers. Even if we manage to match their numbers, they have the advantage of being on the defensive. And taking into account the nobles among them... I’d like double, if not triple their numbers. So, if you can bring maybe fifty—no, even thirty people who can fight, then I will recognize your strength as being sufficient.”

“You’re being unreasonable, man.” Senak complained.

“Freeing Dr. Dimitri is the very definition of unreasonable. We won’t be able to do anything if we can’t at least accomplish that much. On the contrary, if we can get over this, we should be able to gather a tremendous number of allies all at once.”

“Not that. I’m saying you’re being unreasonable for asking Nagi to do this when you just met him today. You’re also leaking way too much intel on us. It’s like you’ve already decided he’s an ally.”

“He said he wanted to join Cobalt; I don’t think he’ll oppose us. Besides, I have my reasons.”

“You’re quite the softhearted fool for a guy leading this organization, you know? Sorry to put it this way, but what if he betrays us? What if he squeals to the nobles about everything you just said?”

“We’ll abandon this base, then. Our plan to attack Ronadyphe Prison is already self-evident. Actually, we’re planning on announcing it, so there’s no problem there. I did say too much regarding our headcount, though.” Suddenly, Crow faced Nagi with a grim expression. “Nagi. What I told you earlier is a lie. Cobalt is composed of well over fifty members.”

Senak rolled his eyes. “Oh, come on.”

“Well, that’s going too far. I don’t think I said anything disastrous. The source of our Halahala is more important. Incidentally, you’re the one who mentioned that, Senak.”

“Oops.”

“I won’t tell anyone. I don’t get any of this to begin with,” Nagi told them.

Crow shook his head. “No. If you’re going to gather allies, then you need to tell them. That will serve as propaganda. I don’t mind if you talk about Cobalt’s existence, the plan to attack the prison, and the existence and effects of Halahala. You can’t mention our numbers, and you definitely can’t mention the source of our Halahala.”

“Got it.” Nagi nodded.

“Hey, are you seriously telling Nagi to go gather allies?” Senak asked.

“Can you think of any other way to convince Keele?”

Senak fell silent. Nagi couldn’t think of anything either.

“The problem is how to contact us... We’ll be abandoning this base, so please use this password at the location I’m about to tell you. Don’t write it down. Memorize it.”

“I can’t read,” Nagi said, feeling like his face would burn up from the shame.

He had heard that people in the capital could all read and write. From what Crow just said, it was normal for members of Cobalt to be literate.

He didn’t possess enough strength. Perhaps this was what Keele had meant.

“Is that so? That’s a relief.”

It felt like he was saying it out of consideration, which made Nagi feel even more pathetic. Crow told him the location of the capital’s Marinera district’s fifth block. The bar there was called the Wild Rose. The password was...

“Captured Princess.”

Nagi didn’t think he was going to forget that password anytime soon.

“Did you just decide on that?”

“Of course. I expect good things from you,” Crow answered with a pleasant smile.

8

Nagi started by heading to Strano Village. His motivation was simple: he had hardly ever left the village before, so he had no other ideas. He had been told to go search for members for Cobalt, but he didn’t actually know how to go about finding them. In any case, he had accepted the task, so all he could think to do was to return to the village and ask the chief about it.

Badrino had traveled beyond the village many a time, so Nagi thought he might know how to gather allies. This was a natural extension of how villagers always looked to their chief first whenever they had a problem. As one such villager, Nagi had no way of knowing how naïve this was.

He arrived at the capital’s north gate, asking for directions along the way. Apparently, he could reach the second ring road by heading north up the main road. Once there, he could turn west, and there would be the path to get back to Strano Village. He had the option of using the shortcut that passed by the Tainted’s—or rather, the Crestfolk’s—village, but he didn’t like the idea of being attacked again, so he stuck to the main roads. After walking for an hour, the atmosphere of the capital faded away and was replaced by rural scenery.

A communal cogwagon rode up beside him. The driver called out, “Hey, buddy, where you headed?”

“Strano Village.”

“That’ll be five bloodpence.”

“That pricey? I’ll just walk.”

Nagi didn’t have that much money on him to begin with.

“Don’t complain if you get attacked while walking on your own. The Tainted are out there, y’know. Ah, fine. I’ll give you a discount. Three bloodpence. Come on, get in.”

Nagi still found this expensive, but now that he had been given a discount, he felt like he had no choice but to accept. There were two other customers on the communal cogwagon. After lightly bowing his head and boarding the vehicle, Nagi was soon lulled to sleep by its rocking motions. Saya’s absence was palpable; it didn’t feel right without her by his side. Even though they had only spent a short time together, her existence had taken root deep within his heart.

The cogwagon only stopped at one rest area along the way. By the time evening came, they had reached the second ring road. Apparently, this was as far as it would go for today.

“You gonna go to an inn?” the driver asked after parking at another rest area.

When Nagi gave him a look of puzzlement, the driver explained that customers usually stayed in inns at these rest areas and got back on the next morning.

“Sometimes, people without any cash sleep inside the cogwagon, too.”

“I’ll do that, then.”

He only had one bloodpence left after paying the boarding fee. Nagi didn’t know whether or not he could even stay at an inn at that price.

The cogwagon departed again in the morning. Nagi spent the day in the same way, stopping at another similar rest area. Another day passed, and Nagi got down from the cogwagon the following afternoon. The driver was going to keep following the second ring road, so he let Nagi know that Strano Village was down a narrow path just a short ways off the road, and it wouldn’t be too long a journey on foot. Now that he thought of it, the scenery around him looked familiar; Nagi realized he had come this far before.

“Whoa! What the hell are you doing here?!”

As usual, Nerthe was the one to call out to him as he walked in a daze.

“Oh, hey, Nerthe.”

“Don’t ‘hey, Nerthe’ me! Just hide already!”

Nerthe pulled Nagi along and hid behind a tree. Clearly, this was no laughing matter.

“Why did you come back?” Nerthe hissed.

“Why? I mean, I want to ask the chief something.”

“You came back to consult with him? You dumbass! You’ll get arrested if you set one foot inside the village!”

“Huh?”

“Another knight came by. Said you’re wanted for treason. You come back, and you’ll get handed to them on a silver platter.”

Nagi was initially taken aback, but it made sense the more he thought about it. He felt himself quite the dunce for not realizing it earlier.

“What the hell did you do?”

“I killed a noble.”

“Hwuh?” Nerthe’s jaw dropped.

Now that he was here, Nagi figured he could find his first comrade in Nerthe. “There’s a poison that can kill nobles. Want to fight them as part of Cobalt?”

“I don’t understand a thing you’re saying.”

Somehow, Nagi managed to walk him through the situation. He told Nerthe all about the poison, about Cobalt, and about how they were looking for new recruits.

Nerthe looked back at him with a bitter expression. “In short, you want me to join this Cobalt group?”

“Yeah.”

“You lose a screw?”

“I haven’t. Everything I said is true.”

“I don’t believe you. There’s no way you can win against a noble!”

Nerthe had a point. That much was common sense, even to Nagi.

“Do you think you can win?” Nerthe asked hesitantly.

Nagi was at a loss for words. If there were multiple high-ranking nobles like Lernaean, then no matter how much Halahala they had, wouldn’t it still be impossible? Regardless, Nagi had to fight. He had promised to protect Saya.

Nerthe interpreted Nagi’s silence as an answer. “Even you don’t think it’s possible. But still, you’ve got nowhere else to go other than Cobalt. That’s why you’re trying to get others caught up in this crap.”

“You’re wrong! I’m—”

“How am I wrong?! I can keep on living so long as I stay out of this... Unlike you,” Nerthe said with a sour expression.

Nagi finally understood what he was getting at; his life was now decisively different from Nerthe’s.

“Please. Just... get lost. I can’t be seen with you. If you get going right now, I won’t tell anyone I met you here. If you don’t, I’ll have to report that I found you.” His voice was equal parts desperate and sincere.

“Nerthe, I—”

“Don’t say anything else! Please, just get going... I’m begging you.” Nerthe lowered his head.

Nagi, at a loss for words, turned and fled. He ran in the opposite direction of the village, down the path he had just come from.

9

It was almost mysterious how the scenery never seemed to change. The same fields Nagi had seen since birth spread out before his eyes. Nagi knew now that similar sights went on and on along the roads all the way up to the capital.

But Nagi’s world had changed. He now knew of things that were far and away from such scenery. Cobalt, Keele, Lernaean... and Saya. Despite all that he had gained, Nagi had lost a place to return to.

Feeling defeated, he walked down the main road toward the capital without any particular destination in mind. There was no point in going back there, but he didn’t know of anywhere else. If nothing else, he was going somewhere with a lot of people. He should never have returned to Strano Village.

Another communal cogwagon passed him by. “Hey, kid! Need a ride?”

Evidently, people walking down the main road by themselves looked like easy customers. Unfortunately, Nagi only had one bloodpence left. He couldn’t afford it, so he shook his head in silence.

“Where ya headed?” the driver asked.

That’s what I want to know, Nagi thought to himself.

The driver continued to call out to him as Nagi walked on. “It’s dangerous out there. They say the Tainted have been comin’ out all the way to the main roads lately.”

When he heard the word “Tainted,” Nagi was reminded of the girl he had met. With that came the realization that he did know of one other place to go: Garuga Village.

“Hey, is there a shortcut to the capital around here? Something like a mountain path?” Nagi asked all of a sudden.

The driver looked quite surprised. “There is, but...”

“I want to go there.”

“Don’t be stupid! It’s way too dangerous. They say nobody gets through there ’cause the Tainted always get to ’em first.”

That was exactly what Nagi was looking for; there was no mistaking it. He knew the way there from the capital, but it would be roundabout using that path from where he was now. He had to get directions from the driver.

“How do I get there?”

“No way, bud. Too dangerous.”

“Just tell me where it is. I’ll walk.” Nagi pulled out his last bloodpence and showed it to the driver.

“Are you nuts?” Still, the driver couldn’t defy the allure of incidental income. “Go that way for a bit, and you’ll see the northwest road. It gets cut off by the first ring road, but if you go northeast from there, you’ll find a mountain path. Goin’ through there is a pretty quick shortcut to the capital. That’s probably what you’re thinkin’ of.”

Apparently, it would take half a day to reach the entrance to the mountain path by cogwagon. That coincided with Nagi’s memories. After catching the bloodpence Nagi had tossed his way, the driver got his cogwagon moving in a fluster. It seemed he didn’t want to get involved with this foolhardy boy any further.

Nagi continued walking without even taking a meal. Hunger clawed at his stomach, but he didn’t let it bother him. He had spent many hunts walking around without a meal, so he was accustomed to having to endure. At present, he was entirely preoccupied with other thoughts.

When he considered Nerthe’s reaction, Nagi found it to be quite reasonable. Every single commoner had animosity toward nobles—against vampires—but that didn’t mean they hated them enough to throw away their lives to join Cobalt.

Nagi and the other villagers had been taught by Badrino since their infancy that the commoners allowed to live under the nobles’ patronage were blessed. If the nobles weren’t there, public order in Agartha would plummet, and they would no longer be able to live in peace. Badrino had often said that living a short yet happy life was the way of the commoner.

While Nagi had always opposed this idea, Nerthe didn’t necessarily feel the same. Why had Nagi stopped believing what the chief and the others told him and wished for a longer life? It was vexing, but Keele had in fact been a major factor.

“Life is too short to do what I want.”

Keele had always loved to say that. When Nagi had heard that Keele was dead, it occurred to him that his older brother had possessed such a burning desire for life, yet it had been taken away from him so easily. Therefore, Nagi had ended up wanting to live a long life for himself. To that end, he had wanted to acquire more money. In truth, Keele had still been alive the entire time.

Commoners were the type to wait and see how the wind blew. They tended to fear change, so it would be difficult to get them involved with Cobalt. But what about the Crestfolk? They weren’t supposed to exist in the first place. Nagi recalled what little knowledge he had about them. It was all fragmented, but this much he knew.

They were people who had been infected by an illness called “bloodmark disease.” It started with a sudden high fever, which lasted several days. Then, a dark-red, spotted pattern appeared on the body. The severity of this marking differed on a case-by-case basis. In some cases, it extended throughout the entire body; in others, it only covered a small portion. For many people, it materialized on their faces. Regardless of how the disease manifested, none of the afflicted could escape the spotted markings, and these never vanished after the fever was gone.

The visible signs of bloodmark disease easily identified those who had it. Its cause was unknown. There was evidence that it was contagious, but it could only be transmitted through blood. In other words, contagion only occurred because of blood offerings or intercourse.

On the other hand, there were those who considered it more of a curse than a disease. There were many interpretations of why this would have come about, ranging from incest among ancestors to having killed a sacred beast. The reason everything was so unclear was because it was rare for people to openly talk about the disease. Nevertheless, it was well known that the disease itself existed, and that those who were infected possessed a bloodmark.

There was one other thing everyone knew about the disease: almost universally, it was not tolerated. Those with bloodmarks weren’t permitted to live in villages, and this law was strictly enforced.

Originally, this law meant that anyone who showed symptoms would be killed and disposed of. However, it was far too harsh to sentence one’s own family, lovers, and friends to their deaths. There were many whose bloodmarks could be hidden beneath their clothes, so their families would try to shelter them. Therefore, the government had taken a different approach to the problem: exile.

All those who showed symptoms were to be exiled from their villages. So, what happened to them after that? They became the Crestfolk. The exiles were said to hide in the mountains and live as bandits.

Nagi’s destination was one such hidden village. With no current place in society, there was a high probability they would lend him their cooperation. In fact, they had already shown interest in Halahala and a desire to rebel against the nobles. Their interests aligned with Cobalt’s.

He hadn’t noticed it while riding the cogwagon last time, but it was quite the treacherous path. The road was so thin it felt like he could be swallowed by the mountain at any moment. There were myriad places for bandits to hide themselves.

Just as expected, a shadow suddenly jumped out from cover. Nagi threw up both his hands to show he had no intentions of resisting as a spear quickly flew at his throat. Before it could pierce him, however, the spear came to a halt.

“It’s you!”

Fortunately, this was someone who recognized Nagi.

“Please take me with you. I want to speak with Zamin.”

The one who had sprung at him looked familiar; she had chestnut hair and a bloodmark running up her throat and jaw. Her large, black eyes were far more memorable, however. When he had last seen them he had thought she was like a ferocious beast, but now they were colored with bewilderment. Looking at her expression, Nagi could tell this innocent-looking girl was indeed around the same age as him.

“Why did you come back?”

“Didn’t I just tell you? I want to speak with Zamin.” Nagi kept his hands up as he spoke to show he meant her no harm.

The Crestfolk girl, Tess, nodded. “Fine.”

Tess escorted Nagi all the way to Zamin’s house.

“I can’t let you speak with him for too long. The chief’s body is in poor condition,” Tess said, and Nagi gave her a nod. “Hey, Chief, I’m coming in.”

She then opened the door, revealing Zamin sitting in bed. Nagi was once again astonished upon seeing this man’s skinny body. The deep wrinkles running along his dried skin made him look like a dead tree. They were so deep, Nagi couldn’t tell them apart from his eyes.

“You’re... Nagi, was it?” Zamin asked with a hoarse voice.

“Yes, sir. I came to ask something of you.”

He went on to explain everything to Zamin. He talked about Cobalt, revealing that they had been the source of the Halahala to begin with, and explained that the organization needed more members in order to launch an attack on the prison.

“Are you saying you want to involve the citizens of Garuga Village in that fight?”

“Not just Garuga Village. There are other T—Crestfolk, right? I’d like as many of them to participate as possible.”

“We cannot fight alongside those without crests.”

The reply he had gotten felt far too cold, especially after Cobalt had requested he find help.

“Why? I thought you hated nobles?”

“Indeed we do.”

“So what’s the problem?!”

“Nobles are strong. We are weak.”

“Didn’t I tell you already? We have Halahala. With that, we can beat them!”

Zamin shook his head. “It cannot be. We only stand next to the bearer of the True Crest. We shall continue to wait for that day.”

Nagi didn’t understand what he was saying, and his expression was unreadable beneath the creases and folds of his skin.

“By ‘crest,’ do you mean the bloodmark?”

“Indeed.”

“So you’re saying that I’m no good because I don’t have bloodmark disease—I mean, because I’m not one of the Crestfolk?”

“That is not so. Our crests are not the True Crest.”

“I don’t get what you’re saying at all.”

“I cannot reveal more than that to one who does not bear a crest.”

Nagi wasn’t getting anywhere. He had no idea what to say to this.

“Nagi... We should get going,” Tess gently interjected.

He quietly did as she said.

Once the two of them had left Zamin’s house, Tess asked, “Are you going to fight the nobles?”

“Yeah. That’s why I need allies.”

“Even if they’re ‘Tainted’?” Tess’ large, black eyes peered right into Nagi’s. He could make out the details of the pattern spread across her cheek.

“Well...”

Nagi was at a loss for words. He did, in fact, think the Crestfolk were a dangerous and savage bunch. His opinion of them still hadn’t changed. However, Nagi had no one else he could rely on.

“Look.”

Tess untied her hair, letting it spill out. As she did so, Nagi caught a slight whiff of her sweet scent. He was all too conscious of the fact that Tess, whose speech was often sharp and boyish, was a girl around his age.

She turned around and lifted up her hair, showing him the nape of her neck. Nagi gulped—not because he found the gesture enticing, but because her bloodmark extended even this far.

“I was exiled from my hometown because of this. Everyone here is like that.”

“Me too. I’m not allowed in my village anymore.”

“Because you killed a noble?”

“Yeah.”

“You killed a noble of your own accord, so you were driven out of your village. You didn’t have to make that choice, but you did it anyway.”

“That’s not true! I was tricked by Keele! I didn’t think I would end up having to kill a noble.”

“It’s your fault for getting tricked,” Tess coldly declared. “You’re different from us. I can’t fight alongside you.”

“Is this because of what Zamin said?”

“I don’t understand what he’s thinking. I have my own reason, and I believe everyone in the village thinks the same way. Nobody here will help a crestless like you. We hate nobles, but we hate you commoners just the same.”

Nagi was taken aback. To the Crestfolk, commoners were the ones who had driven them out of their homes.

Regardless, Nagi asked, “What can I do for us to fight side by side?”

“You’re asking me? Someone you looked down on as Tainted?”

“Sorry.”

“It isn’t something you can just apologize for.”

“Right.”

“The only reason you came here is because you can’t go back to your village. Because you can’t gather allies there.”

“Yeah.”

“You thought the Tainted would help you because we hold a grudge against nobles.”

“Yes.”

For some reason, Tess was enraged by Nagi’s answer. “Why have you just been admitting all this?!”

“I believe what you’re saying is right.”

“Then kneel down before me and beg. Beg me to be your ally.”

Nagi slowly began lowering himself to the ground. He detested the humiliating feeling, but he had long since lost the will to overcome it.

Tess suddenly grabbed him by the collar. “Do you not have any pride?!”

“None. I have nothing now. No pride. No village. No strength.” Yes, he had lost everything in such a short amount of time. “All I have left is a promise.”

“A promise?”

“I promised to protect Saya, but I couldn’t. She was the one to protect me.”

“Is that little princess so important to you? Did you throw away everything for a woman?” Tess gave him an interrogating glare, then asked him with a terribly serious expression, “Do you want to make children with that woman?”

It was a very abrupt question.

“Huh? What?”

“Do you love her? That’s how commoners are, right? They fall in love and want to make children, right?”

Nagi could only speak his honest feelings in the face of Tess’ threatening aura. “I don’t know.”

“What do you mean you don’t know? It’s not that hard.”

“I won’t know for sure until I meet her again.”

The time Nagi had spent with Saya, from their meeting to their parting, had been far too short. It had taken everything he had just to deal with the barrage of circumstances pushed on him during that period. He believed he was attracted to Saya, but there was far too little time to truly ascertain what he was feeling, let alone whether he wanted to have children with her.

“That’s why you want to save her?” Tess asked, then grew quiet.

Nagi had no idea what to say to that.

She stared at him a little longer before continuing. “The chief is stubborn; there’s no way he’ll change his mind. But there’s one person who can convince him otherwise. You just need to persuade that guy first.”

“Who’s that?”

“Probably someone you know.”

Nagi doubted this. He didn’t have a single clue.

“Keele Strano. You came from Strano Village, right? You also mentioned his name earlier.”

It was far too unexpected. Did this mean Tess and Zamin knew Keele?

“Keele is... my older brother.”

Tess’ eyes widened in shock. “Is that so? Then just have him ask for you.”

“Seriously?”

That was the very definition of putting the cart before the horse. Nagi was trying to find allies for Cobalt so that he could convince Keele. Asking Keele to convince them for him would be far too convoluted.

“Well, first off, I don’t know where you can find him.”

“I do. A town called Leshva. He said he was going there.”

“Aah, then you’ll be fine. I know where that is. There’s a hidden village around there, so that’s probably where he went. Let’s go!”

Tess was acting like it had already been decided. Nagi couldn’t keep up with her sudden motivation and instead stood there staring at her.

She seemed to interpret this another way. “Oh, do you want a meal before we go?”

“Why did you know Keele would go to such a place? How do you know him?”

With a confused expression, as though it were Nagi who wasn’t making sense, she answered, “I mean, he’s one of the Crestfolk, right?”

10

Even though Saya’s bedroom was heated and illuminated by warm light fixtures, it felt chilly. She was lying in a soft, comfortable canopy bed with lush curtains and an excess of ornaments. Nevertheless, the room gave her a terribly cold impression.

This was a prison, something she was well accustomed to. It had simply changed from the Garden to the royal palace. The enormous structure she was in now had many more people moving around inside, however. It was a far cry from the Garden, hidden away in a forest no one would traverse

Still, this place was nothing more than a lonely prison to her. Like always, Saya had a guard watching over her.

“Lady Saya, I’ve brought you your meal,” Jubilia said as she entered the room.

Jubilia had once failed to apprehend Saya. Being defeated by a commoner was a great disgrace to a knight, so in the best case, her title as a knight would have been stripped. In the worst, she could have been executed. However, thanks to Lernaean’s mediation and Saya’s successful retrieval, she had managed to escape with her status intact. In fact, Jubilia had received a promotion. She was now Saya’s personal guard.

The selection of such personnel came from a dearth of female knights to begin with, but it was more correct to say that Lernaean had wanted someone under his influence to take up the position. Having been given an opportunity to redeem herself, Jubilia’s attitude toward him was nothing short of reverent.

Even as Jubilia set down the meal, Saya had no intention of touching it. “I don’t want it.”

“It shall affect your body if you do not eat,” Jubilia told her with a troubled expression.

Saya wanted to trouble her more. The knight was one of the people responsible for shutting her in here, after all.

“I don’t want it!”

She violently pushed back the bowl, and some of the soup spilled out from it. Jubilia wiped off the stains in a panic.

“At least have some bread... Please.”

Jubilia held out some white bread wrapped up in a napkin. It pained Saya’s heart to look into the woman’s worried eyes. Jubilia really did seem to be worried about her, as complicated as that made Saya feel. This woman was sincere and persistent. She believed she was doing the right thing—in her mind, Saya belonged in the royal palace under protection. As a noble, she likely couldn’t even imagine that Saya saw this place as nothing more than a prison.

Saya timidly took the bread and tore off a piece with her fingers. It was surprisingly soft. The scent of wheat tickled her nose as she carried it over to her mouth.

“It’s bad.”

“Does it not suit your tastes?”

“Something harder is better. Hard enough so that the outside can’t be broken by hand.”

“Understood. I shall arrange for that next time.”

“It doesn’t really matter.”

Even if she said that, Saya knew that they would never bring out such hard bread. What she desired did not exist here—the hard bread, the boy who had split it for her, the wheat field she had seen while eating. Saya let out a sigh as something suddenly came flying into view.

“We have come to make your acquaintance!” a boy yelled as he opened the door.

The boy had well-tailored, gold-and-violet clothes with gaudy decorations, showing he was quite the high-ranking noble. He was just about the same height as Saya. His blond hair was evenly cut above his ears, and the hair at his back swayed about in a braid. A lively light glimmered in his large, golden eyes. The lines drawn by his body were slender and feminine, but he gave off the impression of a cheerful boy.

“What in the name of—?!” Jubilia was shocked by his abrupt entrance.

Saya secretly felt queasy upon witnessing this woman’s usually wise expression break. “Who are you?” she asked the boy, who quite literally leaped through the door and ran all the way up to Saya as she sat in bed.

“Please call Us Kyou, dearest sister!”

“Sister?”

“We are your little twin brother!”

Saya’s mind was reeling. She vaguely remembered having a younger brother, but that brother had died before she had become aware of the world. He pretty much didn’t exist within her memories. Apparently, he was actually this boy before her very eyes.

Kyou then went on to say something even more outrageous. “You are to be married to Us.”

Saya was having an increasingly difficult time keeping up with his words. The room grew even noisier as two more people came in. One was Lernaean, which made Saya feel unpleasant. He was the most detestable person there was to Saya. He was the one responsible for hurting Nagi and using his life as collateral to imprison Saya here.

The man who came in with him said, “My liege, it’s troubling for you to suddenly disappear on us.”

Saya knew this man, too. He was a little shorter than Lernaean, with a firm body; he looked to be in the prime of his life. His abundant beard and carefully combed hair exemplified his dignity.

He was Chairman Gratos, the largest influential power within the royal palace. When Saya had been brought here, he’d been the very first to greet her. Saya had ignored him at the time because of her heartache, however.

Gratos was referring to Kyou as “my liege,” which could only mean one thing.

He was the Sovereign.

Saya hadn’t had the slightest idea that the Sovereign was this sort of person. She was pretty unclear on everything to begin with, seeing as she had spent her whole life in the Garden. All she had known was that the Sovereign was an absolute being even above nobles.

The Sovereign is... my little brother?

Seeing her reaction, Kyou turned to Lernaean. “Lord Granapalt, does Our sister still not know anything?”

“We believed it was necessary to explain everything in due time. Lady Saya is still bedridden from the distress of her kidnapping.”

“Hmph. A youngster filled with excuses,” Gratos spat at Lernaean before turning to face Saya. “Lady Saya, you are the elder sister of Lord Kyou here. You are kin to the one and only Sovereign.”

Jubilia let out a gasp. Saya was reminded once more that there was so much she didn’t know. She had never given it much thought. Who was she, exactly? She didn’t even know herself. The shock of this deeply shook Saya’s heart.

“Is there anything here you find inconvenient?” Gratos asked in a firm yet gentle voice.

Feeling very far away from this scene, this conversation, she could only murmur in response.

Gratos interpreted this as bewilderment. “I suppose it is difficult to be asked that all of a sudden. Lord Granapalt, do be sure to answer all of her demands. Understood?”

“As you will,” Lernaean said with a bow.

Gratos then urged Kyou on. “Come, my liege. Let us be off. Your next appointment awaits. Please excuse us, Lady Saya.”

“Hmph! Until we meet again, sister! We shall grant you whatever you wish for, so please feel free to ask anything of Us!”

Pressed by Gratos, Kyou left the room. A certain emotion welled up within Saya as she watched him walk off. She desperately wanted to know who she was.

“Wait! I’d like to ask you something.”

“I do apologize, but we must get going,” Gratos replied, his back still turned to her. “Aah, you, the guard. Inform Lady Saya of anything she wishes to know. Understood?”

“Yes, sir.”

To Gratos, Jubilia’s name wasn’t even worth remembering. He treated her like a simple object.

After they left the room, she asked Lernaean in a trembling voice, “W-Will this do? I am nothing more than a mere knight!”

Lernaean’s tone, on the other hand, was icy. “It was His Excellency’s command. Fulfill your duty.”

“I, Jubilia, shall take responsibility and answer any questions Lady Saya has! Erm, is Lady Saya truly Lord Kyou’s sister? I was completely under the impression she was the daughter of high-ranking nobility.”

“Indeed she is. It was kept from you because there was no need for you to know. You will not say a word to anyone, of course.”

“Understood!”

“I must get going. I’ll leave things here to you.”

With Lernaean gone, Saya finally felt at ease.

“So, will you answer my questions?” she asked Jubilia.

The knight seemed to have calmed down. “Yes. As you will. I cannot defy His Excellency’s command, after all.”

“Is there anything I shouldn’t inquire about?”

“His Excellency said to tell you anything you want to know. I do not possess boundless knowledge, but I will answer what I can.”

“Is that so? Still, there’s just so much I don’t know...” Where would she even begin? “What are nobles?”.

“That is a difficult question... Nobles are the exalted, who lead long lives. Superior beings... That is what they say.”

“Superior to commoners, you mean?”

“Yes. We possess more strength than commoners. More valor. More knowledge... So they say.” Jubilia made a strange expression. It was as if she didn’t have much confidence in her words. “This may sound strange coming from me, considering I couldn’t beat a commoner,” she added. It seemed her loss against Keele still weighed heavily on her mind.

“How are nobles different from commoners?” Saya asked, recalling the similar conversation she had had with Crow.

“First, our lifespans are different. Unlike commoners, who live short lives, nobles receive eternal life from Amrita. While receiving doses of Amrita, our bodies, um... retain a certain age, so they say.”

“And what age is that?”

Jubilia seemed hesitant for some reason. She understood Saya was looking for clarification. So, she answered, even though she found it difficult to say aloud. “The outward age of a noble’s body is said to reflect the maturity of the mind.”

“In other words, the reason I look younger than you is because my mind is still young?”

“Yes.”

Saya now understood why Jubilia found it awkward to touch on this subject; it was close to calling Saya immature right to her face.

“You don’t need to fuss over that. I know better than anyone how ignorant I am. That’s why I need to learn these things.”

Jubilia’s eyes widened a bit in surprise. “I believe that is a splendid attitude to have.”

“I don’t want you to praise me. So, Amrita. It’s a drug made from commoner blood, right? That’s why commoners participate in blood offerings.”

“Precisely. You’re aware of this, I see.”

Saya didn’t mention that she had learned of it while speaking with Nagi and the others. She simply nodded. “So, what happens if a commoner drinks Amrita?”

“That’s...” Jubilia trailed off, her brow furrowed.

“You said you would answer anything you can.”

“I have not seen it for myself. Before I was born, during the chaotic dawning of Agartha, there were apparently such cases. It is likely that a commoner who drinks Amrita could obtain a longer lifespan and power, much like a noble. However, I do not believe the effects would be nearly as potent.”

“Why?”

“There is a difference in the effects of Amrita even among nobles. Such affinity is hereditary. The effect of Amrita is much stronger on the high-ranking nobles... or perhaps it’s the other way around.”

“The other way around?”

“Put simply, the families chosen by Amrita became high-ranking nobles.”

“Then commoners are people who weren’t chosen by Amrita.”

“Just as I said before, it occurred during a time of chaos in history. There are no official records to draw from. By the time history was being documented, society had already begun to split into nobles and commoners.”

“It hadn’t split completely?”

“Indeed. It is said that, though small in number, there were commoners who obtained Amrita and became nobles, and that there were also nobles who could no longer obtain Amrita and thus degenerated into commoners.”

“Hang on... Nobles become commoners if they don’t drink Amrita?”

“Yes. Without Amrita, a noble will age the same way a commoner does and revert to a human without any special powers.”

“That means nobles and commoners are the same, right? It’s just a matter of whether or not they have Amrita.”

Jubilia was momentarily stunned. Even though she had explained it herself, she had apparently never thought of it that way. “That is in fact what this implies.”

“So, why do commoners not drink Amrita?”

“Amrita is far too expensive for commoners to acquire. Moreover, it requires a periodic intake; there’s no point in procuring any without a stable supply. This is impossible for a commoner.”

“But isn’t Amrita made from commoner blood? Can’t they make it for themselves?”

“The formula to synthesize Amrita is a secret known only to a select few nobles. Only the five supreme leaders of Congress are privy to it, including the chairman. Moreover, there’s nowhere near enough of it. It takes the blood offerings of around a hundred commoners to keep a single noble alive. That’s why the nobles levy the commoners with the duty of blood offering.”

“Nagi said nobles steal the lifespans of commoners.”

“The commoners believe so. Blood offerings reduce their lifespans, after all. The reason for this is unknown, but it is believed that some sort of life force is taken along with their blood in the process.”

This meant that nobles didn’t actually possess eternal life—they simply extended the time they had by sucking away the lives of a hundred commoners. When those hundred people were sucked dry, they moved on to stealing from the next generation. That was how they continued to live on.

“Vampires”—that was what Nagi had called them.

“What if... What if Amrita no longer existed? What if the blood offerings stopped?”

“It’s difficult to imagine. I suppose the difference between nobles and commoners would vanish, and everyone would possess the same lifespan. It should be somewhat longer than the lifespans commoners currently possess. Having said that, it wouldn’t be all that much longer. Perhaps... fifty or sixty years? There are theories that this was the case in the unrecorded eras. But never mind that; it’s a heretical theory. Please forget about it.”

“Heretical?”

“I mean, um... I rather fancy such history, so I read many books about it.”

It was an unusual expression coming from Jubilia. Now that it had come to this, Saya’s hunger for knowledge had increased tenfold. But where would she go from here?

“Who first created Amrita?”

“The Intelligence.”

“‘Born of man yet wiser than man. Many, yet one. Recursive, yet multifaceted. That which is known only by name and existence.’”

Even Saya knew this prayer.

Jubilia continued for her, “‘In the beginning, there was man. Man gave birth to words. Words gave birth to the Intelligence. The Intelligence brought man to the birdcage and poured Amrita upon them.’ Such is how the land of Agartha was created. It is believed this legend took shape during the dawn of Agartha when all records of what came before were lost. For example, analysis of these legends reveals that the ratio of blood offerings needed and the system of bloodpence was born in this period.”

It felt like Jubilia would go on forever if left uninterrupted, so Saya decided to change the topic. There was a mountain of things she wanted to know that had to do with the now.

“Why don’t commoners stop the blood offerings? All it does is shorten their lives.”

“If the blood offerings stop, the very foundation of Agartha will collapse. Nobles do not simply steal from commoners; we protect them. If not for the peace brought about by nobles, the age of endless strife that is said to have existed before Agartha’s creation would return.”

“Jubilia, why are you looking away?”

“I’m not confident. About the assumption that nobles are superior to commoners, that is.”

“Because you lost to Nagi and Keele.”

“Yes.”

There was no point in teasing her about it, so Saya moved on. “So, what’s the Sovereign? Is he different from a noble?”

“The Sovereign is the one who inherits the Sovereign’s Blood.”

“What is that?”

“Special blood that only the Sovereign possesses. He is the only one who doesn’t require Amrita to live an eternal life. Actually, it’s the opposite; Amrita requires the Sovereign.” The seriousness in her tone gave Saya a glimpse into her devotion to the Sovereign. “I said earlier that the formula to synthesize Amrita is only known to a select few, but there is one truth about it which is widely known among nobles. Amrita is made through the refinement of commoner blood and the Sovereign’s Blood... In other words, the Sovereign is the one who possesses a necessary ingredient to create Amrita. The Sovereign shares his blood for this purpose. It isn’t just the commoners who take part in the Blood Offering Festival—he bestows his blood upon us as well. His pain and love allow all in Agartha to live.”

“And he was the one we met earlier.”

“Lord Kyou.”

“He called me his sister. Is he really my younger brother?”

“I haven’t been informed of your personal history... I was surprised to hear it for myself. I never imagined the Sovereign would have any relatives. There was once royalty—those who shared the blood of the Sovereign—but that was a long, long time ago.”

“Don’t nobles live forever?”

“The world at the time was in a state of chaos, so there are almost none who survived that era. If anyone experienced it firsthand, it is likely Chairman Gratos. I personally had no idea that royalty such as yourself even existed.”

Jubilia looked apologetic. She didn’t seem to be lying; she truly hadn’t been informed. Nevertheless, she definitely knew far more than Saya did.

Saya felt dizzy. Even though she had lived for so long already, she had truly been living in the dark. She didn’t even know anything about herself.

“Jubilia, I have one more question.”

“Yes?”

“What about those who are neither nobles nor commoners? What are the Crestfolk?”

11

“We are the abandoned ones. We’re even lowlier than commoners. In the past, we weren’t allowed to exist,” Tess said as she walked alongside Nagi.

The two of them were headed to Leshva. More specifically, they were going to the hidden Crestfolk village where Keele was supposedly staying.

As it turned out, Keele was a Crestfolk. Now that Nagi thought about it, this made plenty of sense. After contracting bloodmark disease, Keele had been taken away. Rather than explain it to the young Nagi, the villagers had simply told him that his brother had died.

“So, when people say they’ve seen the ghost of someone who’s supposed to be dead, that’s what’s going on?”

“Huh? What do you mean?”

“Never mind. At any rate, I want to know more about the Crestfolk.”

“I see. How much do you know about bloodmark disease?”

“Well, when someone contracts it, a bloodmark suddenly shows up on their body. Then, they have a fever for several days, but even when it breaks, the bloodmark never goes away. Those who catch it are exiled from their villages and become Crestfolk.”

“You’re unexpectedly well informed. I’d have punched you if you said it was sexually transmitted or something.”

Nagi felt extremely awkward speaking about sex with a girl his age. With her weapon and bloodmark concealed, she didn’t look like anything more than a sweet girl.

“So it really doesn’t?”

“Bloodmark disease isn’t contagious. Not through touching, and not through sex.” Tess was being even franker about it, causing Nagi to squirm. “For example, nothing will happen to you if you touch me,” Tess added as she held her hand out.

Nagi gripped her hand, and Tess shook him off in a fluster.

“Hey! Why are you touching me?!”

“I mean, you said it’d be okay.”

“That’s not the point!” Tess’ cheeks flushed crimson, and she resumed speaking to gloss over the moment. “However, there are many cases where a blood offering is the trigger for catching the disease. That’s probably why people got the idea that it can be transferred through blood.”

It occurred to Nagi that Keele might have vanished around the time of the Blood Offering Festival. He wasn’t entirely sure, though; it had been many years since then.

“What happens when a bloodmark appears?” he asked.

“You get driven out of your home. Doesn’t matter if it’s a village like the one you came from, the royal capital, or wherever else. After that, you get arrested right away.”

“Huh?”

“When a bloodmark appears, the one responsible for blood offerings in the area makes a report. Once they do, the officials decide on a date for the exile. Once someone gets exiled, they’re always arrested immediately afterward.”

“Why do such a thing?”

“You’d think it’d be way faster just to come arrest us directly, right? They probably don’t want people to go into hiding out of fear. In the past, they used to mercilessly hang anyone who caught the disease, so a ton of people apparently hid the fact they had it. Even if they executed the whole family upon finding out, it’s perfectly natural for relatives to be unwilling to send their own family members to death just because of a disease.”

“That must be why the nobles compromised with an exile so that people don’t go into hiding.”

“Exactly. It’s easier for people to accept an exile. That’s just how much they hate the idea of Crestfolk hiding among them. They go that far because they want to kill us all.”

“What do you mean? The Crestfolk don’t get killed, right? I mean, you’re still here.”

“I’m alive, but I’m as good as dead. After we’re caught,” Tess said, her voice icy, “we get neutered.”

“Neutered? Like, what they do to animals?”

“That’s right. They call it ‘sterilization’ or something.” As she spoke, Tess sounded terribly detached. “If you don’t believe me, then I can show you my scar tonight. It’s not something I can show you out here.”

“Uh, you don’t mean...”

“I’m all skin and bones, so don’t get your hopes up. I was sterilized before my butt and breasts started to grow, so my body looks more like a man’s. The all-important part is marred with a hideous scar. A commoner like you would surely puke if you saw it.”

Tess’ lips curved into a self-deprecating smile, but her eyes were as cold and dark as a winter night. Nagi could feel the tip of her deep despair. He was suddenly reminded that there had been no children in the hidden village.

“After mutilating both the men and women, the nobles release their captives in a state where they can no longer have children. That’s when our fellow Crestfolk seek them out and bring them to one of the hidden villages. There are villages all over the place. One in every hundred people has bloodmark disease, after all.”

“How do you all survive in the hidden villages?”

“Banditry, of course,” Tess replied with a laugh. “I’m kidding. Banditry is way too dangerous. The knights would come kill us right away if we resorted to that. In just a few cases, there are those who do that kind of thing as a last resort, but there’s no way we could survive off of it. We secretly sow fields in the mountains, we hunt... Well, we pretty much do the same things as you commoners. The only real difference is that we don’t do blood offerings.”

“You don’t?”

“Seems they can’t use our blood. That’s why they call us ‘Tainted.’ It’s also the reason the nobles hate us.”

“Without blood offerings, do you have longer lifespans?”

“Yup. The Crestfolk live for a long time. Our lifestyles are pretty harsh, so a lot of people die from sickness or injuries. Those who die of old age live far longer than any commoner, though. You remember the chief?”

Zamin certainly did look older than anyone Nagi had seen before.

“He hasn’t told me his actual age, but he’s apparently over fifty. Just so you know, he’s not a former noble.”

Nagi was shocked by this. It was impossible for a commoner to live that long.

“Still, it doesn’t do us any good. We can’t leave behind children,” Tess added sadly.

“Isn’t it better to have a long life?”

“Our dreams can’t be fulfilled. A short life where you can fulfill your dreams, or a long one where you can’t... Which do you think is better?”

An image of a girl in white suddenly came to Nagi’s mind. He grasped at his chest over his clothes. After confirming the feel of the necklace within, the phantom of the girl who had given it to him posed a question.

“‘Being granted a long life without purpose only brings suffering. Only when one acquires hope does their life become their own. Even if one lives a long life, if there is no hope there, it doesn’t belong to oneself. Is that truly living?’”

“Hm?”

“That’s what Saya said when I first met her.”

“How did you answer her?”

“I said I could kind of understand how pointless such a life could be if it just went on and on.”

Tess stared at Nagi seriously. Her pretty black eyes seemed so full of depth. The chestnut locks swaying about pulled him in even deeper.

Strangely flustered by this, Nagi continued, “Saya was imprisoned there. I didn’t know it back then, but since she’s a noble, she was there for an unimaginable amount of time. I didn’t think that was all there was to Saya’s life, so I wanted to set her free.”

Tess held her steady gaze. Then, as though snapping out of a trance, she blinked and slapped him on the shoulder.

“You’re not a bad guy. I’m jealous of her.”

“Huh?”

“I would’ve loved to make kids with a guy like you.”

Tess was being far too candid. It was bad for his heart. Nagi couldn’t look her in the eyes anymore.

“She sounds like a real good girl. Mm, I’m starting to feel like I want to save her too,” she declared in strangely high spirits. “Okay. After saving Saya, you two make a kid. Then, give that kid to me.”

“Uhh...”

Nagi didn’t know what to say. Were all Crestfolk girls this way?

“You can make a whole bunch if you want. Well, we can worry about that later. Give it some thought.”

“How the hell did you find me?! Oh, that you, Tess?”

“Long time no see, Keele.”

“How’d you guys end up together?”

After walking for an entire day, Nagi and Tess had arrived at the Crestfolk village near Leshva and found Keele.

“I have a request,” Nagi said.

“No,” Keele answered immediately.

“At least hear me out?”

“Why’re you with this punk, Tess?”

“Nagi promised to give me kids.”

“The fuck?” Keele’s jaw dropped.

“People will get the wrong idea, so stop putting it that way. Also, I didn’t promise anything,” Nagi cut in.

“Wait, kids? But...” Keele, regaining his composure, gave Tess a sympathetic look.

She nodded as if to assuage his concerns. “It’s okay. I told him about the sterilization.”

At that moment, Nagi made an unpleasant connection. “Did it happen to you too, Keele?”

A dark light shone deep within Keele’s eyes.

“That’s right. They fucked with all our bodies. Did you notice the guys back in the village? Almost none of them have beards. Everyone’s also pretty short. I look like this ’cause I didn’t catch it until my body was fully grown. Anyway, that’s how things turn out when they take it away.”

Nagi instinctively lowered his gaze, then looked back up in a panic.

Keele laughed. “Wanna see?” His teasing tone was the same as always, but there was a gloominess in his expression that Nagi had never seen before.

“Why are you so eager to show it off? Both you and Tess.”

Keele’s eyes lit up with surprise, or perhaps exasperation. “You wanted to show him too, Tess?”

“Mhm. I told Nagi I’d be fine with showing him. He probably doesn’t want to see it, though.”

“N-No, I, umm...”

“You always been such a playboy? Tired of the little princess already?”

“Like hell I am. I’m here so I can save Saya.”

The air about Keele changed. “Hmm, that so? But I said no, pipsqueak.”

“I need the strength to convince you. According to Crow, I just have to gather a bunch of comrades for the fight.”

“Sounds like Crow, all right. Well, yeah, I’d be fine with you joinin’ if you can do that much. We are plannin’ a big ol’ attack and all. Go on, then.”

“That’s why I went to Zamin and the Crestfolk.”

“No way that’d work. The stubborn ol’ rock gave you some bullshit reason, yeah? Went on about the crest or whatever, I bet.”

“You asked him too?”

“That old fart was all up my ass about joinin’ Cobalt. Well, I somehow got him to accept that.”

“That’s what I’m here for. How did you do that?”

“You came all the way here just to ask me?”

Nagi nodded.

“Oh come on,” Keele said with a serious expression. “You needed to convince that stubborn old rock to convince me, so you came here to ask me how to do it? Aren’t you a little too stupid?”

“Even I think it’s kind of silly,” Nagi replied. “Regardless, I can only do what I’m capable of.”

He was going to save Saya. He had promised to protect her, after all. To that end, he didn’t care if he had to kneel before Tess or endure Keele’s mockery.

Keele took his little brother’s glare head-on, then gave a vicious, serpentine smile. “In that case, you could’ve just convinced me in the first place, yeah?”

“No way you were going to give in to anything I had to say.”

Nagi’s instincts, built up from years of hunting, were sending off alarm bells in his head.

“Yeah, you’re right. So try and do it with somethin’ other than your mouth!” Keele yelled as he drew the sword at his waist.

His slash was serious. Nagi managed to dodge it because he was already on guard, but he had to jump with all his might to get out of the way. He briefly wondered where Keele had gotten the sword.

“So it really did come to this,” Tess muttered.

She had mentioned beforehand that a fight was likely, considering this was Keele they were dealing with. Now wasn’t really the time to be thinking about that, however. Nagi drew his favored knife from its sheath.

“Hey, I like the face you’re makin’? Even though you’re still a brat who cries and pisses his pants.”

“That was years ago!”

Even though Nagi knew this was bait, he still charged at his brother. Keele easily dodged the swift strike.

“You get a little better than before?”

Nagi had, in fact, improved his combat skills. It was all thanks to Tess. Nagi’s usual battle tactics were meant for hunting, so Tess had taught him how to deal with a human opponent—and Keele in particular. It had made things easier for him, but his brother was no normal human; after all, this was a man who nearly equaled a knight.

“That ain’t gonna be enough to do me in, though. Your aim’s not bad, but you’re way too predictable. Your blows ain’t that sharp, either. But you know what you lack the most?” Keele continued to evaluate Nagi while casually dodging his attacks. The gap in experience between them was far too large. “It’s resolve.”

Keele’s strikes grew more and more forceful.

“What you need to fight against nobles is resolve. It doesn’t matter what for. You just need serious willpower. They’re monsters. Simply lookin’ at one is enough to make you tremble. That’s why you need to be able to handle that fear before you can really fight.”

“And you have that?” Nagi asked, barely dodging Keele’s attacks.

“I’ll never forgive those fuckin’ nobles for laughin’ at me while they screwed with my body. I’m definitely gonna butcher the lot of ’em.”

The darkness in Keele’s eyes was endlessly deep. Did Nagi have such resolve himself? Of course he did.

“I’m going to keep my promise with Saya!”

“Now’s not the time for such naïve bullshit.”

Keele’s swinging longsword was like a violent gale. It would surely take Nagi’s life if it struck him. However, compared to Lernaean’s sudden and overwhelming attack, this was far easier. Nagi fearlessly stepped in and slashed at his brother.

“Atta boy! That one wasn’t bad,” Keele said with a slight trace of admiration.

In the next instant, a chill ran down Nagi’s spine.

“But lettin’ your guard down makes it all worth shit!”

Nagi reflexively leaped to the right just as Keele’s sword swung down on the spot.

“Haha! You dodged?!”

Keele laughed heartily. He only looked this way when he fought against strong opponents, like Jubilia. This battle maniac was beginning to enjoy his skirmish with his little brother.

“I see. Seems like you found some kinda grit, huh?”

“Admit that I’m strong.”

“You fend off this next one, and I will.”

With that, Keele took a stance. He bent his forward leg and extended his back leg while holding his sword over his right shoulder, pointing its tip at Nagi. The pose was familiar—indeed, it was the same move which had delivered a wound to Jubilia.

“Get some!”

The contour of Keele’s sword seemed to blur. It was a dreadfully sharp thrust. If that was all there was to it, Nagi could manage, but he knew there was more to come. It would be impossible to dodge without seeing through the mix of truth and deception behind the strike.

Nagi didn’t move from where he was standing. He simply tilted his neck ever so slightly. In the next instant, he heard a click of the tongue as Keele’s sword sliced off a small piece of his ear. Pain seared through his head. It was fortunate he had seen this move beforehand being used against Jubilia; if not, he definitely would’ve taken a direct hit. Even though he’d known the nature of the attack, dodging it like this was pretty much a one-in-ten gamble.

A split second later, Nagi was sent flying by Keele’s powerful kick.

“Too bad. You didn’t block it.”

“Hey! That’s unfair!” Tess yelled.

“‘Unfair’ my ass. I said I’d acknowledge him if he fended it off. He’s the dumbass for letting his guard down ’cause he thought it was over.”

Despite the painful churning of his stomach, Nagi managed to get back to his feet, once more holding his knife at the ready.

“No. You couldn’t block it. We’re done.”

“Please...”

“Puppy eyes ain’t gonna change my mind.”

Tess ran over to Nagi. “Hey, Keele, isn’t this going too far? You were completely intent on killing him just now! Nagi’s your brother!”

“Dammit, y’all are such whiners. Fine, I’ll at least tell you how to convince that stubborn old rock.”

“Really?!” Tess exclaimed.

“It’s simple. You just smash shit in his house until he accepts.”

“Wow.”

“When I did, he told me to get out, so I got out and joined Cobalt.”

“Hang on, that doesn’t sound like you convinced him at all.”

“Like I care. I haven’t seen the old fart ever since.”

“Weren’t you just kicked out?”

“Maybe.”

Tess, exasperated by Keele’s answer, then turned to Nagi. “Sorry... Looks like I misunderstood.”

“It’s fine.”

Tess looked apologetic, whereas Keele began haughtily lecturing Nagi.

“If you’re serious, then think of more ways to take on vampires. Their physical abilities are fundamentally different from us commoners. Not only that, but they’ve also got those damned blood calibers. Well, at least you’ve got luck on your side. I mean, you’re still alive after seeing a vampire get serious and show off his true abilities.” Then, Keele laughed, clearly in good humor. “Those assholes rarely ever use their blood calibers. It’s supposed to be their ace in the hole in a fight between nobles, so they like to keep those things a big secret from each other.”

12

“I want you to show me your blood caliber again.”

After Kyou and the others left, Saya continued to assail Jubilia with questions and demands as they occurred to her. She wanted to know what she was, which naturally led to inquiries concerning nobles and their blood calibers. Crow had mentioned that they were powers unique to nobles, but she knew nothing beyond that. Jubilia’s slender, red sword and Lernaean’s mysterious power that had injured Nagi were both blood calibers.

“That’s... I can’t possibly bring it out here,” Jubilia muttered as she took a look around.

“Then you can show me somewhere else.”

“I suppose the palace guards’ training ground should be vacant at this time.”

“Okay, so let’s go.”

“Erm, you aren’t supposed to leave this room.”

“Didn’t you agree to answer all of my questions?”

“That’s certainly true, but—”

“Did your commands include keeping me from leaving this room?”

“It is forbidden to bring you out of the royal palace, Lady Saya. It’s too dangerous.”

“Isn’t this training ground within the bounds of the palace?”

“It is.”

“Then it should be fine, right? You can just say you were acting in accordance with the chairman’s command.”

Saya realized she was special to the other nobles, probably because she was the older sister to the Sovereign. Apparently, they weren’t capable of forcibly restraining her. That was why Lernaean had used Nagi’s life as collateral to get her to obey. Even though they were imprisoning her here, they were doing so under the guise of protecting her. It seemed that it wasn’t possible for Lernaean to order her to be confined to this one room. Using the chairman’s command as a shield to force the issue was likely to succeed.

Just as Saya had planned, Jubilia caved and brought her out of the room. They didn’t meet a single person on the way there. Both the room Saya was being held in and the training ground were apparently quite deep within the palace. She was on the lookout for any windows she could use to escape along the way but, unfortunately, found none.

Indeed, Saya had been thinking of how to escape from this place the entire time. However, something within her had begun to change.

There was her little brother, Kyou. Then, there were nobles, whom she knew nothing about and had never even attempted to learn about until now.

Saya was far too ignorant of both herself and the world. She felt that this needed to change, and what better place to acquire such knowledge than this very palace? All things considered, maybe it wasn’t such a bad thing that she was here right now. Having said that, her feelings of revulsion from being held prisoner hadn’t faded.

Above all else, she wanted to see Nagi. Her heart continued to waver between wanting to know more and yearning for him.

The training ground for the palace guards was a large, open space. In this area of the palace, the ceiling was about three times higher than those of the other rooms, which were already higher than those in the Garden to begin with. Regardless, there were still a few rooms in the royal palace that were even bigger.

There would be no problem swinging around a sword or spear in such a large room. The walls were soiled and scuffed—likely a result of countless sparring matches.

“Oh, the stains...”

“My apologies for not cleaning this room thoroughly enough. I really shouldn’t have brought you to such a place.”

“That’s not my point. I was just wondering what kind of training would leave marks all the way up there.”

Dark, messy stains went up the walls to a ridiculous height.

“A noble is able to jump to such heights with ease.”

“I don’t feel like I would be capable of the same, though.”

Saya didn’t possess any transcendent physical abilities like Jubilia did. Her strength was actually lacking compared to Nagi.

“That is simply because your powers have yet to awaken. Young nobles gain the qualifications of an adult upon obtaining their blood caliber. During this time, they also draw even more strength from the Amrita in their bodies.”

“In other words, I’m not an adult yet?”

“You’re not recognized as one in noble society, but...” Jubilia hesitated to speak any further.

“But?”

“This applies to the common noble. I don’t know how it works in the case of royalty. Most nobles aren’t even capable of conceptualizing royalty, aside from Lord Kyou. I am the same in this regard.”

“Does Kyou possess a blood caliber?”

Jubilia was shocked at how Saya showed no hesitation in referring to the Sovereign so casually, but she immediately regained her composure. Saya was the Sovereign’s elder sister, and Jubilia knew he would want Saya to address him accordingly.

“I don’t know. I forgot to mention something important. Blood calibers are not meant to be shown off to others. Nobles avoid letting others know too much about their blood calibers. Doing so might endanger their lives; after all, there was a time when nobles constantly fought among one another.”

“Blood calibers are the only weapons capable of wounding a noble, so it’s better to keep them a secret from the others in case they become your enemies?”

“Precisely,” Jubilia affirmed with a nod.

Suddenly, something dawned on Saya. “Oh, was it rude of me to ask you to show me your blood caliber?”

“No, that’s not the case. You have already witnessed my blood caliber, and I serve as your guard. It is not something for me to hide from you. However, it would help if you refrain from asking other nobles the same thing. It’s just, how to put it... It’s terribly rude.”

“Got it.”

“In any case, I know nothing about Lord Kyou’s blood caliber. Will seeing mine be enough to satisfy you?”

Saya nodded.

“Please take a look at the ring on my thumb,” Jubilia said, holding out her right hand.

The ring was a heavy-looking thing that extended from her first knuckle to the second. Judging by its dull luster, it clearly wasn’t meant to be ornamental. Saya could tell at a glance that it served a far more practical purpose.

As Jubilia bent her thumb, a blade snapped out of the ring. It was slightly longer than her thumb, the tip of it peeking just past her nail. Saya gulped as Jubilia pushed the tip of the blade into her own index finger. Blood began to flow.

“At this rate, the wound will seal itself. Therefore, you need to excite the blood before that happens. Excitation: Blood Blade!”

The flow of blood coming out of Jubilia’s finger grew more vigorous and took on the shape of a sword.

“This is my blood caliber.”

Her slender sword solidified and sparkled with a crimson light. Its blade even felt elegant. Jubilia herself gave off an imposing air as she wielded it, making the scene all the more impressive.

“So pretty!” Saya blurted.

“I... Um, thank you,” Jubilia said, blushing.

“You’re quite shy about it, huh?”

“It is said that a blood caliber reflects a noble’s wisdom and everything within them. A blood caliber is the very embodiment of a noble’s pride.”

“So this sword can hurt a noble?”

“Yes. That’s not all, either; this is the embodiment of my heart. So long as my spirit is not broken, it shall never shatter or crumble away.”

Jubilia drew the sword at her waist with her left hand, then threw it into the air. A single slash followed.

Her movements were so smooth, Saya forgot to breathe. How much devotion to training did it take to reach this level? A high-pitched, clear tone rang in the air as the sword Jubilia had thrown was split clean in two.

“It cannot be compared to a normal weapon made of steel.”

“Amazing. You must’ve practiced a great deal.” Saya felt both admiration and envy toward Jubilia. She possessed no such strength herself.

“No... I lost to that man despite my being a noble. My skills are still sorely lacking.”

“Oh, right,” Saya said. She then recalled the one other blood caliber she had witnessed before. “What is Lernaean’s blood caliber? Oh, I guess I’m not supposed to ask.”

“I do not know for myself, but Lord Lernaean’s blood caliber is said to be a whip. It moves at such a speed that it cannot be captured by the eye. Lord Lernaean does not hide it and has freely spoken about it before. I’m sure it’s an indication of how confident he is.”

“A whip, huh?”

At that time, Lernaean had suddenly launched an attack from a distance. If it truly had been an invisible whip, it must have been moving at an unbelievable speed and with devastating destructive force.

“I want to be stronger too. Hey, could you teach me how to use a sword?”

“Of course,” Jubilia replied, but quickly changed her mind. “Forgive me, but with all due respect, allow me to state my opinion. Everyone has their own role to play. I was born as a knight; therefore, I lived to push my sword to its very limits. Lady Saya, you should have a role of your own. There is more than one kind of strength.”

“A role for me? Do you know what that might be?”

“I do not, unfortunately. The only ones who would are those of a higher rank than me. I believe they are the ones who brought you here.”

“Meaning?”

“I’ve been wondering if your escape from the Garden and eventual arrival at the palace was all plotted by someone beforehand.”

“How so?”

It was Nagi who had taken Saya from the Garden. He had done so of his own will.

“I think it was unexpected for you to escape the Garden on your own. However, I feel like... his intrusion was well within somebody’s plans.”

“Why’s that?”

“Do you remember when we first met?”

“You came looking for me at Nagi’s village.”

“That’s right. And that was within a day of your escape. Do you not find that strange? The Garden was hidden. Who informed the capital that an incident had occurred there? The one and only guard was killed.”

“Keele was the one who told Nagi about the Garden. Does that mean Keele instigated Nagi into doing it for some noble’s sake?”

“It probably wasn’t his doing. His resentment toward nobles is very real. However, there was likely someone who fed him the information.”

“Cobalt.”

Saya recalled Crow’s face. That man was terribly well informed about all kinds of things. How had he come across such knowledge? Had it perhaps come from the nobles he claimed to oppose?

“Where in Agartha did they manage to obtain that liquid? ‘Halahala,’ they called it. They say some heretical scholar made it, and a noble’s blood is the core component.”

“Meaning it couldn’t possibly come from anyone but a noble?”

“Yes. Noble society is always in conflict—a den of vipers waiting to pull the rug out from beneath their rivals. It wouldn’t be strange for someone out there to try to make use of you as royalty.”

“You’re saying someone like that brought me all the way here?”

Jubilia nodded. “The original plan was likely to have the guard in the Garden defeat the intruder. After that, a rescue squad would arrive and bring you back to the royal palace because of the attack. Even with Halahala, I believe it was unexpected for a noble to be defeated by a commoner. I still can’t believe it, even now. The one who was stationed there was sluggish, and that commoner boy had rather deft movements. Regardless, it’s hard to believe he defeated a noble.”

“I might’ve done something,” Saya said quietly. She remembered that feeling of exaltation, of omnipotence, of something being born.

Saya looked at the crystallized sword in Jubilia’s hand. The color was vibrant, yet somehow ominous. Its light was dull, yet it shone beautifully.

“Why are you telling me about all this? Your loyalties lie with Lernaean, don’t they?”

Without hesitation, Jubilia replied, “Yes. I owe Lord Lernaean a great deal for saving me.”

That was precisely why Saya found it strange.

“You’re trying to avoid mentioning it, but I believe Lernaean was the mastermind behind all of this. He was suspiciously well prepared. Don’t you think it would be to his detriment for you to tell me all about his plans?”

“I do, but I couldn’t just stand by and watch.” Jubilia averted her gaze. “Lady Saya, it was... it was as if you had lost the will to live. You weren’t even taking a single meal. But ever since Lord Kyou came by, you have been an entirely different person.”

“I wanted to know what I am.”

“And I would like to answer you as best I can. That is why I’ve told you all this.”

“Thank you.”

Jubilia was kind, though it was hard for Saya to consider her an ally. The knight had pledged her allegiance to Lernaean, after all. If Lernaean was the one who had plotted to bring Saya here, then everything had played out in the palm of his hand. Additionally, there could be others who were scheming along with him.

But who? It would be someone overjoyed by her coming here. One such person came to mind.

“Hey, Jubilia. There’s someone I’d like to talk to.”

“And who is that?”

Saya apologized to Jubilia in her heart. She was planning to take advantage of her kindness.

“Kyou. I’d like to meet with my little brother.”

13

“You came back?” Zamin asked as he lay in bed, watching Tess and Nagi enter his house.

After meeting with Keele, the two of them had returned to Garuga Village once more. Zamin’s expression was as unreadable as ever, but his voice contained an air of exasperation.

“I’ve come to ask you one more time. I want you to fight by my side.”

“It cannot be. Not with you.”

“It’s true that I don’t possess a crest. I’m no Crestfolk. I’m just one of the commoners who forced you to live in this place.”

Zamin stared at Nagi from deep beneath his wrinkles.

“I thought the Crestfolk were frightening,” Nagi continued. “The adults of the village told me they were a bunch of mountain bandits with a weird disease, calling them ‘the Tainted.’ I believed them.”

Tess looked at him. Her eyes were criticizing him, demanding to know why he was saying such a thing.

“But now, I don’t really know. Tess taught me that was wrong. Bloodmark disease isn’t contagious, and you aren’t mountain bandits.”

The village elder nodded gently.

“From your point of view, I may be an enemy. However, I’d still like all of you to fight by my side. It seems we’ll be able to obtain a large quantity of Halahala, so we’ll use it to give the nobles a big scare. By doing so, we can get them to rethink their ways. We might be able to get them to stop the blood offerings—and I’d like to get them to stop the sterilizations too.”

Tess suddenly held her breath.

Zamin turned toward her. “You informed a crestless of this?”

“He’s Keele’s little brother. It concerns his family. Isn’t it fine to tell him?”

“The crestless are not our family.”

Furious, Tess shot back, “This is what I hate about our village! Yeah, we were cast away. But the family I had back then is still my family!”

“They do not think so.”

“There are those who do. Just like Nagi here. Right?”

“Yeah. I still consider Keele to be my older brother.”

He still hated him, too, but he kept that part to himself.

“I figured it out after talking with Nagi. It’s obvious that the commoners would fear us because they know nothing about us. I mean, we don’t tell them anything about ourselves.”

“Staying hidden is the only way we will be allowed to exist.”

“‘Allowed?’” Nagi repeated, feeling the weight of the word. “The nobles were the ones who decided that, right?”

Zamin kept silent.

“Listen, Zamin, I know you’re thinking of what’s best for the Crestfolk. You’re doing what you can to keep them from being murdered by the nobles, which is why you’re keeping your word. So long as you stay hidden, they won’t kill you. But is that really for the best? Tess said you had all been killed because being sterilized is the same as being dead. Not that I’m of the same opinion.”

Zamin shut his eyes. It wasn’t clear whether he was even awake when he did so. However, he was surely listening to Nagi, so the boy continued.

“To Tess, it’s as painful as dying. I’m sure more of your people feel the same way. We need to get them to stop the sterilizations.”

“So, you’re saying that is why we should join the fight. Your brother said the same. Still, it cannot be. The only one we stand by is the bearer of the True Crest. It has been decided.”

“Fine, then.”

In the face of Zamin’s stubborn attitude, Nagi resolved to handle this another way.

“Wait, you’re giving up?” Tess asked.

“I’m not. I’m going to convince the people here one by one.”

“Huh?” She gave him a look of bewilderment.

“First is you, Tess. Please fight by my side. Let’s stop the nobles from performing sterilizations. Let’s get them to acknowledge the existence of the Crestfolk. Last time, you said you couldn’t join my fight. You said I was different from you. That’s true. All of you were driven out because of this disease, made so you can’t have children, and forced to live in these hidden villages. Your lives were stolen from you. You’re different from an idiot like me who’s just acting on impulse. But I know of one other girl who had her life stolen from her.”

The image of a girl with silver hair and vivid crimson eyes flickered in Nagi’s mind.

“I want the Crestfolk to fight alongside Saya. I want to retake her life from the nobles.”

“That girl is Lady Saya?” Zamin uttered, his sunken eyes flying open. When Nagi nodded, he murmured, “Then she really is the one...”.

Seeing him like this, Tess cocked her head. “Chief? What’s wrong?”

Zamin faced Nagi, paying no attention to her. “Do you seek our strength for Lady Saya’s sake?”

“That’s right. I can’t leave her all locked up.”

Zamin trembled. He was hesitating tremendously. His mouth opened, then closed again. Nagi and Tess exchanged glances; both of them were befuddled by Zamin’s current state.

After some time, the wrinkled man finally spoke. “Tess, what do you wish to do?”

“I think... it’s fine for us to fight alongside Nagi. I hate commoners, but he’s all right. He’s different from other commoners. I feel like it’s okay to trust him.”

Zamin nodded slowly and deeply.

“Very well. Nagi, you may gather whoever wishes to fight with you. A fair number are sure to join. However, you must absolutely not pressure them into it.”

“Really?!” Tess yelled in shock. “No way! You really convinced the chief.”

“What are you saying? I’m not that obstinate.”

“That’s not true. Everyone says your head is harder than stone.”

Nagi stood there in a daze, unable to believe his ears. Why had Zamin suddenly changed his mind? It was immediately after Saya’s name had come up.

“You did it, Nagi!”

Nagi’s thoughts came to a complete stop when Tess hugged him. Her body was far softer than he imagined, which made him feel like he was going numb.

After leaving Garuga village, Nagi and Tess quickly made their way to the capital. He asked a passerby about the bar Crow had told him to look for, which was in the fifth block of the Marinera district.

“Marinera?” the stranger asked, giving Nagi a dubious stare before looking awkwardly at Tess.

“The red-light district?” Tess mumbled.

Marinera was the pleasure district of the capital. It wasn’t a place to openly ask others about, especially not with a female companion in tow.

“Cobalt’s in a place like that?”

“A convenient spot to hide, don’t you think?” Nagi replied.

The Wild Rose was a bar on one of the seedier streets in Marinera. Cobalt seemed to prefer having bases in these sorts of areas. After passing through the front door, Nagi was greeted by Keele and Crow.

“Hey, ya made it.”

“Hello there, Nagi. What’s the password?” Crow asked.

“Is there a point to that?”

“I suppose not,” Crow responded with a grin.

“That’s the kinda guy he is. You’re better off not talkin’ with him too much. It’ll just piss you off,” Keele added with a bitter expression as he knocked back a shot of liquor. “So, how’d it go?”

“I convinced Zamin. Fifty Crestfolk warriors will take part in the attack.”

Keele’s eyes bulged wide as he lowered his glass back to the table. “You shittin’ me?”

“It’s true,” Tess replied.

After speaking with Zamin, Nagi and Tess had gone around speaking to the Crestfolk. Once they knew Zamin had given permission, the villagers’ reactions had been dramatically different from before. Many of them wished to take part in the fight. The excitement written on their faces had shown Nagi just how much the Crestfolk were being oppressed.

“You’ve got some real cozy vibes goin’ on with Tess now, huh? You done with that princess? There’s plenty of places you can shack up around here. How ’bout you go teach him your lady bits still work?”

Tess angrily glared back at Keele. “Quit joking about that stuff.”

“All it’s good for is jokin’ now,” Keele muttered bitterly.

“At any rate, the Crestfolk, huh?” Crow interjected.

“You have a problem with that?” Tess asked in a sharp voice.

“None. Keele’s the same, right?” he answered, lightly sidestepping the issue. “Cobalt doesn’t worry about that sort of thing. We don’t have the leisure to.”

“There’re guys who hate the Crestfolk, though. Like Senak.”

“Isn’t he fine with it now? You hold too much of a grudge, Keele.”

“I wonder ’bout that.”

“I’m actually quite impressed, Nagi. I did think of looking to the Crestfolk for help, and I even asked Keele to convince them, but we haven’t had any luck until now.”

“The old rock hardly budges. I never thought you’d actually win him over.”

“Splendidly done. Even if Keele objects, I would like you to join Cobalt.”

“I ain’t opposed no more. A deal’s a deal,” Keele cut in with a click of the tongue.

Crow ignored him. “Nagi, it seems you don’t understand how big a deal this is. There are many Crestfolk in exile. If they were all to join us, we would far outnumber the nobles.”

Nagi was shocked. He hadn’t realized that there were so many Crestfolk. He had heard there were many hidden villages aside from the one Tess came from, but it was far beyond what he had imagined.

“We’ve also secured more Halahala. Everything is ready for the attack on Ronadyphe Prison.”

“I didn’t ask you since you said I wasn’t coming last time, but what’s Ronadyphe Prison?”

“Oh, I didn’t tell you about it? Ronadyphe Prison is where they keep the most deadly criminals in the capital. At the moment, there is a scholar named Dimitri imprisoned there. He’s a noble, but he was arrested because of his research. We want to release him and make him our ally.”

“What kind of research?”

“He was studying Amrita. In doing so, he created an unbelievable byproduct,” Crow said with theatrical gestures as he peered into Nagi’s eyes. “Halahala.”

“So you’ll be able make more Halahala if he’s with you? I won’t let you use Saya’s blood, you know.”

“It’s okay. We haven’t been sitting here twiddling our thumbs since the last time we spoke. We have a different prospect regarding that matter. Oh, but don’t worry; that doesn’t mean we won’t save Saya. The royal palace is still our final target.” Crow paused, holding out his hand. “Welcome to Cobalt, Nagi.”

After that, they quickly discussed the details of the attack.

“The operation will take place in a week. There’s a relay station about a kilometer west of Ronadyphe Prison—the Silver Doe, another one of our bases. Please meet us there at sunset. Tess, I’ll send you over to your village with a cogwagon tonight, so please inform anyone who’ll be participating. Feel free to relax here until then. We’ve taken down the signboard, so nobody should come in.”

With that, Crow and Keele left the bar. Nagi and Tess were now alone.

“Thanks,” Nagi said.

Looking depressed, Tess murmured, “I’m sure many people will die. I mean, we’re storming into a prison full of nobles.”

“Do you think we’ll lose?”

“I don’t know. Crow seems awfully confident, but that actually makes me more anxious. Even if we win, there’s no way everybody will live through it.”

Nagi was in complete agreement. He had gotten the Crestfolk involved just because he wanted to see Saya again; he had never thought of the sacrifices that would be made as a result.

Tess watched him for a moment. “Don’t make that face. We’re the ones who chose to do this.”

She faced him directly and leaned in. A smell like summer grass hung in the air. It seemed terribly out of place considering the seedy bar and their somber conversation.

“I might die, too.”

With a strange look in her eyes, Tess hopped off the barstool and came right up beside Nagi. She was so close that he felt like he could almost hear the swishing of her hair, and the scent coming off of her grew even stronger.

He couldn’t look away from her eyes. They were like polished black stones. At that moment, Tess pressed her lips against Nagi’s. The feeling of her warm, moist lips paralyzed him. He couldn’t even close his eyes. With Tess’ gaze locked on him so closely, he could see his own reflection.

Tess’ lips separated from his. They had only touched for a short moment, but the soft sensation lingered.

She might die, Nagi thought to himself. This girl might die because of me.

“Tess...” Muttering her name was the best he could muster.

“Did you hate it?” she asked.

“I didn’t.”

“Then it’s fine.” Tess smiled. She was like a single flower blooming in a wasteland.

“You can’t die,” he said.

“I don’t plan on dying so easily, but I don’t want to be afraid of death, either. I’ve decided what I want to do with my life.”

After that, the only sound audible in the bar was the wind howling against the walls.

The Silver Doe was a cheap, inconspicuous inn a short distance from one of the main roads connected to the capital. Its primary patrons were travelers without much coin to spare.

As evening approached, more and more people congregated at the inn. The only other time this place was so lively was during the Blood Offering Festival, when deliveries had to be made to the capital. Were any outsiders to witness the crowd, they would surely be shocked.

However, no such spectators existed. Everyone gathering at the inn tonight was doing so with utmost discretion.

“Fifty warriors from Garuga Village under Bandore are here to join the fight.”

“Thank you for coming. We welcome you wholeheartedly.”

Bandore was the man who had killed the cogwagon driver. He was also the strongest warrior in the village. Nagi could spot Tess hidden in his large shadow.

A mix of men and women had come from Garuga. The men lacked beards and were rather feeble-looking overall. Some of the warriors could not be determined as male or female at a glance. Compared to them, Bandore was gargantuan. Nevertheless, even if their bodies were small, the Crestfolk warriors were like honed blades.

Crow looked upon them with satisfaction. “I’m grateful to have you all as our allies. Now then, that makes everyone. Let’s begin the strategy meeting. It’s pretty simple, though.”

“Man, it’s cramped as hell in here,” Keele complained.

“Please put up with it. I’m still uneasy about capturing Ronadyphe Prison, even considering our numbers now. The prison is garrisoned by ten knights and ninety commoner soldiers. On the other hand, we have our original fifty members of Cobalt and the fifty Crestfolk warriors who just arrived. We’re even in terms of numbers, but so long as they have nobles on their side, we’re at a disadvantage. What’s more, they hold the prison as a base. Anyway, here’s our plan.”

Crow’s voice was very matter-of-fact, but it resonated in the hearts of those who heard it.

“Our primary objective is to break Professor Dimitri out of prison. He’s being held in the underground dungeons. Our secondary objective is to release the other political prisoners being held down there. The ideal outcome would be full occupation of the prison. First, the majority of our forces will attack straight from the front. We’ll allocate eighty people to this force. I would like the Crestfolk warriors to make up the bulk of this assault. While the defenses are drawn to the front, the remaining fifteen members will infiltrate using the back door.”

“In other words, we’re a decoy?” Bandore asked, knitting his brow.

“Frankly, yes. The infiltration squad is composed of people who’ve received specialized training in fighting against nobles. We unfortunately don’t have the time to give all of you such training.”

“What about the poison? With that, even we should be able to kill nobles.”

“Even with Halahala, there’s no winning against a noble in a proper fight. We’ve worked out weapons and tactics to overcome this. We’ll teach you once the operation is over. Our current strategy is limited on this one occasion.”

“Hmph. Fine,” Bandore said with a nod, more or less convinced.

“Here’s the layout of Ronadyphe Prison.”

“Where’d you get this?” the warrior asked.

Bandore had a point. They had surely gotten it from the same source who had provided the rough sketch of the Forbidden Garden. Crow continued to keep this source a secret, along with his source of Halahala.

“That can be discussed another day. Let me reiterate: we simply don’t have the time. With all these people in one place, there’s a risk everything has already come to light.”

“You’ll tell us after this fight, you got that? As for now...” Bandore flashed a ferocious smile. “We just gotta slaughter some fucking vampires using this Halahala of yours.”

Crow then hammered out the finer details of the operation, which mostly concerned the elite forces he had mentioned. About the only detail left for the Crestfolk was the signal for retreat.

“Nagi, you come over here,” Keele said suddenly.

“Keele, please.” Crow seemed troubled, but he didn’t try to stop him.

“How many guys here have actually killed a noble?”

The members of the elite force remained silent. Only three of them raised their hands.

“Thought so. Nagi here offed a noble without much of a weapon. Not only that, he staved off a blow with a knife and a crazy attack after that. I’m sure he’ll be useful in the rear squad.”

“But he hasn’t been properly trained to—”

“In a fight against a noble, all logic goes out the window. Only the guys who’ve faced ’em head-on know it. You just don’t get it, Crow. Fighting is my territory. You’ll do as I say.”

“Very well.”

Crow reluctantly accepted Keele’s opinion while pushing up his glasses. Nagi felt strangely removed from the situation. He couldn’t believe Keele was vouching for him.

“Use that,” Crow said, pointing to a longsword. “And bring a bundle of arrows with you.”

The surface of the sword had a dull shine to it and a minute groove carved into its surface.

“Supposedly, this thing was made so Halahala trickles down it. Crow came up with it,” Keele explained.

“What about the arrows?” Nagi asked.

“They’re the same arrowheads I used the other day. There’s Halahala inside them. You’ve seen how effective it is already,” Crow answered.

“I’m fine with the arrows, but I’ve never used a sword. Don’t you have a knife?”

“Aah, we do have a prototype.”

Crow handed a knife over to Nagi, who gripped it tightly. It had the same groove as the sword, but this one felt better in Nagi’s hand.

“I’ll use this.”

“Whatever. It’s your archery we’re puttin’ our hopes in,” Keele said.

This made sense to Nagi. He didn’t have Keele or Bandore’s strength to swing around a large weapon. Instead, he had great confidence in his skill with a bow.

“All right, then. Let’s go butcher us some vampires!” Keele’s grin was like a crescent moon hanging in the sky.

14

Bellows and screams erupted from the front gate of Ronadyphe Prison. They reverberated within Tess’ body, lighting a fire inside her, and her heretofore-suppressed resentment kindled the blaze. After licking her lips to taste the heat, she unleashed her emotions with a roar.

The front gate was made of a stone arch tall enough for a wagon to pass through with ease. Beneath the arch were dozens of tightly packed commoner soldiers and the knights commanding them.

Cobalt’s attack on the prison started with thrown rocks and flaming arrows. These projectiles did little to damage the prison’s stone walls; rather, they had been intended as provocation. The assailants could have kept it up all night without putting more than a few chips and cracks in the building. Seeing that they didn’t possess any siege weapons, it would be pretty much impossible to capture the prison, which was essentially a small fortress.

But the situation changed as soon as the defensive force opened the gate and sallied out. In doing so, the prison guards threw away their advantage of holding a defensive position, but that was simply a matter of the pride and standards characteristic of nobles.

Honor was extremely important in noble society. It would be unforgivable for them to hole up in a fortress just to deal with commoners and Crestfolk. They would be branded as cowards and lose their standing.

The force that had marched out was composed of five knights and around thirty commoners. So long as the knights were with them, defeat was impossible.

One of the knights stepped forth and shouted, “You Tainted filth! What manner of jest is this?! You dare attack this prison?! Face your judgment!”

The prison guards were under the assumption that this attack was the work of the Crestfolk. This was surely because a large number of attackers bore bloodmarks. The moment she laid eyes on the knight, Tess’ body shook with fear. It was the fear prey tasted when faced with a predator, the absolute sense of terror when victory was impossible. That was what it meant to face a noble. But there was one among the attackers who overcame such fear ahead of everyone else through unbridled rage.

“You conceited piece of shit! You’ll be nothing more than rust on my axe!”

Bandore charged at the knight who had spoken. The knight swung his sword in a large arc, and it collided with Bandore’s axe.

“It’s time to put an end to that conceit.”

“Shut your filthy mouth.”

The knight was wearing heavy armor. His sword, although not as large as Bandore’s axe, was enormous. It looked to be tremendously heavy, yet the knight’s movements were swift. This was the technique born of a noble’s strength.

Bandore showed no hesitation and began pushing forward. But upon blocking a blow from the sword head-on, his posture crumbled completely.

“Not bad for scum with tainted blood... But this is all you amount to!”

Tess could feel her blood boiling from the noble’s insults, giving her the power to conquer her fear.

Even nobles are human. I mean, Nagi said he killed a knight. I have the same weapon in my hands. Did I come here just to put my tail between my legs? Have I really been alive up until now? No!

Just as the knight was about to bring the finishing blow down on Bandore, Tess jumped into the fray. After blocking her attack, the knight made a vulgar smile.

“Well, look at that—a woman! Hey, can I take this one?”

“Give it up. She’s Tainted; your dick will rot,” another knight said with a sneer.

“But the tighter the better, don’t you think? They don’t get stretched out by having children. I’ve always wanted to try one.”

The knights cackled in a carefree manner like a bunch of vulgar drunks. Tess was seething. Her anger turned into a violent charge. The knight casually raised his arm to catch her spear, assuming it would be fine if he took the hit. Normally, a spear couldn’t do a thing to a noble’s body. There would be a slight amount of pain, but the wound itself would heal immediately. Knights trained themselves to endure such pain. They relied on their strength and regeneration to dominate and suppress the commoners.

Naturally, this knight was doing the same. He grinned as the spear stabbed his arm—no doubt because he planned on seizing Tess and tearing off her clothes. Basically, he thought it would be a waste to counterattack and potentially damage the pretty thing he was after.

Contrary to his expectations, however, Tess’ spear pierced through his arm and caused him to let out a shriek. Her spear was coated in Halahala, after all. This pain was beyond what he had endured in his training. He screamed in true agony.

“You rotten bitch! What the hell did you do?!”

The impossible sound sent waves of agitation through the defenders while inspiring the attackers. As the knight twisted in anguish, Bandore saw an opportunity to go in for the kill.

He regained his footing and took a big swing with his Halahala-laced axe, then chopped off the knight’s head with a single blow. The knight’s headless body collapsed to the ground with a thud. Bandore grabbed it and held it aloft.

“Behold! We can kill these knights! We can kill these fucking vampires!”

A battle cry erupted from the attackers. It was then that the defensive troops realized these weren’t common enemies they were dealing with.

“What’s going on? Are they using blood calibers?”

“Impossible!”

“But they just killed a knight!”

“Gather our forces! Soldiers! Close the gates!”

Fear rippled through their ranks, and the warning bell echoed throughout the prison. This was the emergency signal for all forces to focus on the front.

“Don’t let them close the gate!” someone from Cobalt shouted.

Thus, the battle over the main gate of the prison began.

The sounds of destruction and the tolling of the bell from afar indicated that the plan was progressing smoothly. Nagi and the elite Cobalt forces had been lying in wait in the woods behind the prison, waiting for the plan to reach the next stage.

Ronadyphe Prison’s back door was much smaller than the main gate. There was a single guard standing by a wooden palisade. He was, of course, aware of the attack on the main gate and was clearly restless. The guardroom was right next to him, but pretty much all the soldiers there had gone to the main gate.

“Let’s get going,” Keele said, licking his lips.

“Okay. Our objective is the underground dungeon. We’ll take the shortest path there. As I said earlier, I’d like you to cover us from the rear, Nagi,” Senak explained. He was also part of the squad. “Everyone ready?”

The other members of Cobalt raised their voices in acknowledgment, and Nagi gave him a nod.

“Then let’s get going. This is the starting signal for our counteroffensive!”

“Yeah!”

Keele dashed forward on his own while laughing like he was having a ball. Everyone else ran after him.

The guard noticed them, and opened his mouth to yell, “Who the—”

Keele slit the guard’s throat, then let the body drop to the ground.

“Somebody come get this open.”

Senak reached for the door while Keele held his sword at the ready.

“It’s locked,” Senak reported.

“Gautsch!”

When his name was called, the largest man among them stepped forward. Gautsch was even bigger than the Crestfolk Bandore. He wielded an enormous hammer, which was longer than he was tall. He silently lifted his weapon, then brought it down upon the door.

The wooden door endured three heavy swings—as if protesting such unreasonable violence—before it cracked and the metal fittings snapped off.

“Kick it,” Keele ordered.

Gautsch sent an enormous boot flying into the broken door. It was forcibly pushed inward, eliciting a yelp from the other side, where a guard had been holding it shut. Keele sprang into action, causing the guard to scream his last.

“Get in.”

Everyone followed Keele’s command. The back door was only big enough for two people to pass through at a time, so it took a bit for all of them to enter.

“This is way too easy,” Keele muttered, sounding bored. “Let’s move.”

As it turned out, the guardroom was pretty much empty. There was only one soldier left.

“Isn’t that a good thing?” Senak asked.

“The knights haven’t come out yet. This is lame as hell. They didn’t all go the other way, did they?”

The melee going on at the main gate was about even. One could even say Cobalt was putting up a good fight. There were eighty people on Cobalt’s side and about the same number of prison guards. Pretty much all of the prison’s forces had been thrown at the gates.

Despite the even numbers, the defenders had a clear advantage. The gates themselves had been forced open, but the very structure of the prison worked in favor of its defenders. To top it off, there were four knights among them. Even if they could be wounded by Halahala, they still had supernatural abilities. What allowed Cobalt to put up such a good fight despite this fact was that the knights’ movements had lost their luster.

The knights were afraid of the Halahala. They balked in the face of these enemies who, against all odds, were capable of killing them. However, their initial astonishment was beginning to fade.

“Calm down! They’re still nothing more than a mob! Rally together!”

If the knights fought with composure, nobody stood a chance against them. Little by little, they were slaughtering the invaders.

Tess was fighting by Bandore’s side.

“Eat this!”

“Too slow.”

A knight casually evaded Bandore’s hefty swing. Tess kept the knight in check to prevent a counterattack. The two Crestfolk were gradually coordinating their movements, and thus just barely managing to fight on even ground.

“You impertinent savages! You leave me no choice...”

Suddenly, the look in the eyes of the knight Tess was fighting changed completely. An ominous chill ran down her spine.

Just then, another knight yelled at his comrade. “You mustn’t! Just try and use it against some filthy Tainted! I’ll have you executed!”

“But at this rate, they—”

“Unacceptable! That’s an order!”

Relief washed over Tess. As she had expected, the knight had likely been on the brink of bringing out his blood caliber. If he had done so, they would’ve been annihilated in no time. However, Crow had told them it wouldn’t happen.

“Making use of a blood caliber against anything other than a noble is a disgrace the nobles fear more than death,” he had claimed.

“Don’t take on the knights one-on-one! Surround them in groups!” one of the Cobalt members yelled.

This was also something Crow had told them beforehand, but it wasn’t easy to accomplish when the knights moved in a way to avoid getting surrounded. Coordinating movements to prevent them from getting away wasn’t something Cobalt and the Crestfolk could learn in the span of a single day. The knights also refrained from fighting in their usual reckless manner. The situation wasn’t falling apart all at once, but the scales were gradually tipping in the defenders’ favor.

The infiltration squad made it all the way to the entrance of the underground dungeon. They had a rough map of the place already, so they had made their way straight there. The operation looked to be a success. They hadn’t bumped into anyone on the way, but the entrance to the jail cells was a different matter, as they had expected. There were two knights standing on guard. One appeared quite young, while the other looked to be in the prime of his life. Both were wearing heavy armor and looked well trained.

“The bandits have made it this far in?”

“Was the commotion at the front just a diversion?”

Keele charged in, causing the two knights to whip out their swords.

“Bingo!”

The other squadmates rushed in after Keele. Nagi held up his bow so that he could loose an arrow at a moment’s notice.

“This one’s mine! Don’t get in my way!” Keele roared as he swung his sword.

The older knight easily blocked the blow.

“You filthy Tainted... Don’t underestimate me!”

Keele didn’t falter from having his strike blocked; instead, he chained into his next attack. It was his ever-changing, unpredictable fighting style.

“Not bad. But it won’t be enough!”

The knight counterattacked. His intense slash gave rise to a whirlwind, yet Keele dodged it by simply shifting his body.

“Now that’s what I’m talkin’ about! Your sword reminds me of that other lady’s.”

“Cut the nonsense!”

Keele was getting excited. The man fighting against him was using the orthodox sword technique of a knight, which was all too familiar.

Keele thought of Jubilia, whom he had fought twice now but hadn’t managed to strike down. He had developed a fervent obsession with her sword that was comparable to passionate love. As he had been polishing his skills in preparation for their next encounter, this man would be a perfect practice opponent.

“Use your blood caliber, coward!”

“Never! That is only for nobles!”

While the fierce battle between Keele and the older knight unfolded, the elite members of Cobalt swooped down on the younger one. Rather than attempt a one-on-one duel, as Keele had, three of them charged in at once. Senak was among them. Nagi observed their battle with his bow at the ready.

Nagi realized that these three Cobalt members were the ones who had killed nobles before. All the others were too frightened to act, overwhelmed by the knights’ palpable bloodlust. Senak’s group was weaker than the knight, but their coordinated movements made sport of the young noble.

“Tch! Quit scurrying around!” the knight yelled in frustration.

“We got this, men!” Senak shouted to encourage his comrades.

However, his voice was lacking in vigor. Even Senak, who had fought nobles before, suffered a major mental burden when facing one directly. That was just how deeply ingrained a noble’s superiority was in his mind.

For some time, neither side was capable of dealing a decisive blow. The younger knight far surpassed the commoners in strength, but the members of Cobalt compensated for that weakness with their teamwork. Was this the tactic they had learned for dealing with nobles? Nagi hadn’t gone through any training himself, so he couldn’t join the fray.

Then, the decisive moment finally came. Nagi spotted an opening to attack the younger knight and immediately loosed an arrow. The arrowhead plunged into the knight’s eye and straight into his brain, and his scream resounded in the air. Senak held his sword ready for a thrust and lunged forth, piercing the knight’s neck and putting an end to his screaming as blood gushed out into the open air.

The older knight was shaken by this. “Impossible! Why did those attacks get through?!”

“Unfortunately for you, that’s just how it is.”

The knight’s agitation was reflected in his blade, heavily tilting the fight in Keele’s favor. Although the noble just barely managed to block Keele’s next attack, he was unable to dodge the follow-up strike as it landed squarely in his chest. He was unable to scream as blood overflowed from his lungs and poured through his lips.

“That’s why I told you to use your fuckin’ blood caliber. Ugh, how boring. That dame was way stronger,” Keele spat. He had already lost interest.

Nagi ran over to the corpse of the knight Senak had been fighting and pulled out his arrow. He thought it could be reused if it wasn’t broken, but the arrowhead came off and remained inside the knight’s cranium. All that remained on the shaft was an eyeball. Nagi tossed it aside, eyeball and all.

“You’re an amazing shot!” Senak shouted as he slapped Nagi’s shoulder.

From Nagi’s perspective, it had gone so well thanks to the Crestfolk warriors. From them, he had learned of both the weaknesses of a knight’s equipment and the idiosyncrasies of humans locked in combat. The outstanding hunter was slowly becoming an outstanding warrior.

“Let’s get moving,” Keele said, pulling his sword out of the knight’s body. He then headed down a nearby staircase into the underground dungeon.

The others followed him in a hurry. After their descent, they ended up in a dimly lit corridor lined with jail cells on both sides. Their footsteps echoed through the damp, gloomy chamber.

There were prisoners within the jail cells. A sour stench filled the air. There was also some other stench which had Nagi’s heart strangely disturbed. He took a look into one of the jail cells, and upon realizing what was within, he nearly vomited.

There was a naked woman inside tied up with chains. She had swollen wounds like earthworms all over her body. Some were festering, while others were half rotten. The wounds around her groin were particularly deep.

Once his eyes had gotten accustomed to the darkness, he could see that the cells around the entrance to the underground dungeon were all occupied by women like this. The first woman he saw was actually on the better side of things. There were those with their breasts cut off, those without limbs, and those with patterns drawn on them with puncture wounds, probably words of some kind. Nagi couldn’t read, but there was no way anything good was written on them.

It was so ghastly that it was questionable whether many of them were still alive. Those who looked like they were conscious all observed their visitors with glazed and emotionless eyes. Nagi couldn’t even avert his gaze. If he did, he would simply be met with the sight of another pitiful woman.

“They’re probably women arrested from villages who didn’t fulfill their taxes of blood offerings and bloodpence...” Senak said in a cold voice. “They get used as playthings for the knights.”

“Aren’t we saving them?” Nagi asked.

“After.”

That was all Senak had to say as he marched on. Nagi followed him. He wanted to get away from here as quickly as possible.

“Are you Dimitri?” Keele asked, peeking into one of the cells.

“Hmm, how unusual for me to have guests. May I ask who you are?”

The man answering Keele spoke in such a calm voice, it was disquieting. He peered at the group from behind his mop of gray, straggly hair as if appraising them.

“We’re Cobalt. We’re here to save you.”

“Save me? That sounds lovely, but unfortunately, I don’t know you.”

“Well, we need you. We’ve got Halahala, and you’re the only one who knows how to make it.”

“Halahala, eh? That stuff is nothing but a failed product.” Dimitri seemed offended by what Keele had said. He looked rather uninterested.

“We can chat later. For now, we’ve gotta get out of here. Open the lock, Senak.”

Senak had pilfered a key from the young knight they’d defeated above, which he used to unlock the cell door.

“How dull. I have no interest in that lousy poison. It was a mistake to sell that crap. I got thrown in here for it and had my research stolen from me.” Even though the door was open, Dimitri showed no intentions of leaving his cell.

“Our leader has a message for you,” Senak said. “We’ll cooperate with your Amrita research. When the fighting is over, we can supply you with Sovereign’s Blood.”

“What?!” Dimitri’s eyes flew open, suddenly filled with a light that hadn’t been there before. He closed in on Senak. “Sovereign’s Blood?! Really?!”

“I’m not lying. We managed to ally with a blood relative of the Sovereign. The nobles took her back, though.”

Nagi immediately understood that he was talking about Saya. Saya’s a blood relative to the Sovereign? He didn’t know much about the Sovereign, but he at least knew they were a great figure who ruled over Agartha. Evidently, Saya was related to them. Strangely enough, Nagi could understand this. Lernaean and Jubilia’s attitude toward her suddenly made sense. He finally understood why a high-ranking noble like Lernaean had acted so reverently toward Saya.

“A blood relative to the Sovereign... So royalty really exists?! If what you say is true, then I’ll do more than cooperate. I’ll make as much of that useless Halahala as you want! Let’s get going already! What are you dawdling for?!”

After hearing what Senak had to say, Dimitri was in a rush to get out of the prison, urging the others to get going.

“What’s with this guy?” Keele murmured as he witnessed Dimitri’s sudden change of heart.

“Wait a bit,” Senak told him. He then addressed everyone in the prison. “We’re going to open all the cells. We are Cobalt! We fight to defeat the nobles! All of you who have the courage to fight by our side, come along!”

Noise filled the underground dungeon. Once the cells were unlocked, there were some who came out and others who stayed put. Many of the women continued to cower expressionlessly as if they hadn’t heard Senak. Watching this unfold, Keele turned to the rest of the squad.

“All of you, go on ahead. You too, Nagi.”

It wasn’t up for debate. Seeing this, Senak looked extremely uneasy. “But Keele...”

Keele’s next words had enormous weight. “I’m Tainted. It’s better for me to do it. Same as always.”

Senak hesitated, but made his decision. “No, I’ll do it too. You’re not Tainted. The Crestfolk are our allies now, remember? I can’t just push everything on you.”

Keele’s eyes widened in surprise. “I see. Do as you like. Everyone else, get the hell out of here.”

Nagi and the others waited outside the dungeon. There was a strange tension among the others waiting with him. He wanted to ask what was going on, but the atmosphere didn’t really allow for that. A few minutes later, Keele and Senak emerged.

“Let’s go.”

They smelled horrible, like a boiled-down concentration of the rot that had been down there. Senak was pale, whereas Keele looked composed.

“What did you do?” Nagi asked as he walked up to his brother.

Keele answered with a question of his own. “You think a woman with no legs can survive after getting out of here?”

Coming to an understanding as to what these two had done, Nagi couldn’t say a single word.

With the inclusion of the prisoners who were capable of fighting, an attack from within the prison threw the defensive forces at the main gate into disarray. Even the knights were surrounded and brought down one by one by the elite squad. The boost in morale from their successful operation had largely eradicated their fear of nobles.

Nagi searched for Tess in the middle of the chaos, but was unable to find her. He did, however, find the large man, Bandore, surrounded by a knight and two soldiers. Nagi immediately loosed an arrow. He aimed for the knight’s head, but missed, instead hitting him in the shoulder. Bandore took advantage of the shaken knight and drove in his axe. The knight blocked the axe with one hand, but the blow brought him to a stop. Nagi fired another arrow, which pierced the crown of the knight’s head.

“Hey, if it isn’t Keele’s little brother! You have my thanks!”

“The name’s Nagi!” he shouted back.

That knight had apparently been the commander. The defensive force routed immediately upon seeing their officer fall, and thus the battle ended in Cobalt’s victory. Even though Keele had contributed greatly by personally defeating three knights, he seemed displeased.

“None of them used their fuckin’ blood calibers... Talk about lame.”

“Tess! Thank goodness you’re okay!”

Nagi ran over upon seeing Tess safe and sound within the occupied prison. Her chestnut hair was disheveled, and her black eyes were unfocused. Mud dirtied her face all the way up to the bloodmark on her cheek and neck. Nevertheless, Nagi felt like Tess’ figure was brighter than everything around her.

“Nagi!”

Apparently, Tess had also been looking for Nagi. She ran over to him without slowing down and embraced him. The warmth he felt finally reassured him that both of them were alive.

Tess was trembling. Sobs escaped her lips as she burst into tears. “Lots of people died.”

“Yeah.”

Nagi noticed that the other members of Cobalt were high on victory, whereas a heavy air hung over the Crestfolk. It was natural. Even though they’d won, Cobalt’s side had suffered major casualties. The deaths at the main gate had been particularly numerous. In other words, many of the dead were Crestfolk. In fact, of the ones who came from Garuga Village, over half of them had lost their lives. Nagi was the one who had gotten the Crestfolk involved in this fight, as was Tess. He felt they were both complicit.

“Tess, let’s go,” Bandore said in a deep voice.

“Nagi too,” Tess said.

Bandore thought it over for a bit. “Okay, you can come along as well.”

He began walking off. His attitude gave no room for debate. Nagi looked at Tess’ face as she silently nodded back to him. The two of them followed Bandore through the prison. Their destination was the back door Nagi’s group had come through. After exiting the prison and walking into the woods, they were greeted by an assembly of the Crestfolk. Judging by the atmosphere and the large hole dug in the ground, he realized it was a burial rite for the Crestfolk. The dead warriors were being laid to rest within the hole.

“Let’s begin,” Bandore declared in a solemn voice.

“He’s joining, too?” one of the Crestfolk men asked. “He’s not our comrade. He’s a commoner.”

“He’s—”

Bandore started to say something, but Nagi held out his hand to stop him.

“Please allow me to pray for them as well. If you’d rather I not participate in the funeral service, then I’ll do as you say. But these people died because of me, so I at least want to pray for them.”

“It’s not just your fault. I’m the one who gathered everyone.”

“You’re their comrade, right, Tess? I’m different. I came from the outside and dragged everyone into this fight.”

“Yeah, it’s your fault!” the same man yelled, his eyes dark. “My brother died because of you commoners. You left the dangerous parts to us Crestfolk. Barely any of you died.”

“Sorry. I know every one of you had your own lives. Your own joys and sorrows.”

Nagi looked down at the corpses in the hole. Was this man’s brother among them?

“These people also had those dear to them, but now they can’t see them anymore. Because of me.”

“Do you truly believe that?”

“Yeah.”

“You commoners look down on us.”

“That’s right.”

“That includes you.”

“Nagi’s not like them!” Tess yelled, but Nagi shook his head.

“That included me. I didn’t know anything about you people and simply believed what I was told... But I’m different now.”

“Do you regret it? Calling us into this fight, I mean,” Bandore cut in.

Nagi thought it over for a moment. Did he regret it?

“No,” he said, shaking his head. “We won thanks to all of you. Yes, there were sacrifices. I feel sorry, but I don’t regret it.”

“You said we had our own joys,” Bandore said in a deep and trembling voice, “but you’re wrong about that. We have no happiness. We don’t have anything of the sort so long as nobody out there approves of us. We came here of our own will to break those chains. We don’t regret anything, either. Neither do the guys who died.”

Several voices murmured in agreement.

“I want to see my comrades off together with this guy. He’s not a Crestfolk, but his anger is the same as ours. His eyes are the same as ours, the eyes of someone who was stolen from and is standing up to take it all back!”

Bandore’s speech rendered the other Crestfolk silent.

“Can you swear to the dead here? That you’ll fight alongside us?”

“I swear,” Nagi answered immediately.

All was quiet.

The first one to break the silence was the man who had been opposed to Nagi’s presence. “You’re saying we should accept this guy?”

“This guy saved me. If you’ve got a problem with him, you can say it to my face.”

Bandore would accept no argument. The man fell silent.

“I acknowledge this man, Nagi, as a guest of Garuga Village! Any objections?”

“None,” several voices said in unison. They were the voices of those who had been saved by Nagi’s arrows during the fighting.

The service was a simple ritual.

“Born by man, yet wiser than man. Many, yet one. Recursive, yet multilayered. That which is only known by name and existence. That which granted us this miniature garden from the depths of ruin. Oh, Intelligence, we pray that our brethren parting with us in this moment are reunited by your side. Grant those who have been given short lives and fulfilled their hopeless time here peace at last.”

After reciting the standard prayer, they began burying the corpses. As Nagi listened to those familiar verses, he thought of their meaning in a daze. If the Intelligence was the one who had granted them this world, then why was it so unfair?