Reason – Part 02
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Translator: Kell
“I didn’t want this!” he vehemently denied.
While Mercenary was down on the floor, his head hanging low, Secrecy hit him with reality. “But you made a contract with Zero, didn’t you? In exchange for guarding her, you asked her to make you human. And Zero fulfilled the contract. It’s a good thing Zero is an upright witch.”
“No! Stop! I… We…”
“It’s high time you stopped dreaming. You know how powerful a witch Zero is. You’re like the typical foolish man. Chasing a beautiful woman’s behind, believing she needs you. Utterly pathetic.”
Zero and Mercenary were merely parties bound by a contract, nothing more, nothing less. There was no bond or affection between them, much less love. It was odd to assume that there was such a thing between them at all.
When Zero left Mercenary, Secrecy couldn’t help but feel relieved, knowing he was right.
“Are you crying?” Lily gasped.
With his eyes covered by a leather patch, the priest could not see what Mercenary looked like. But by the way he breathed, he could imagine what kind of miserable face he was making.
“No! Stay away, squirt!”
Ignoring his threats, Lily rushed to Mercenary’s side. She lifted her skirt and wiped his face. He still had the sense not to drive her away.
Even though he had become human, in the eyes of a small Beastfallen like Lily, Mercenary was a big enough man; if he hit her, it would definitely hurt.
“Damn it! Where did this come from?! I’ve never shed a single tear in my entire life. How do you stop this?!”
“I don’t know,” Lily said. “I’ve never cried before, either. Oh, but Father might have.”
“Don’t look at me,” the priest said. “A grown man usually doesn’t cry.”
“R-Really?!”
He was lying, of course. Secrecy had long since forgotten what tears were. He had forgotten how to cry, so he didn’t know how to stop oneself from crying either. Watching the sobbing Mercenary, he couldn’t help but wonder how much of a monster he himself had become.
Mercenary spilled out the humanity within him. He expressed his anger and hurt. He cried.
Good. Cry it out, Secrecy thought.
If the wound in his heart had been deep enough to make him emotionless, Mercenary might have taken his own life. But Secrecy could tell he did not wish to die, despite being swept up in his raging emotions as he desperately tried to go after Zero.
What Mercenary needed right now was composure. Someone must hold this man down, even if he ended up despising him for it, lest he raced out of town, driven mad by his emotions, and losing his life in the process.
No one was a better fit for the job than Secrecy.
“The Director told me that it’s rather amazing that you can move that much so soon after becoming human.”
“Then let me out!”
“So it’s possible that you’re forcing your body. We’ll be monitoring you for three more days. We will be traveling to Wenias without Zero. We need you to be able to move, at least to the point where you can’t slow us down.”
“You don’t get to decide for me! I’m not going back to Wenias!”
“Then we’ll have to tie you up. Her Excellency wants everyone evacuated, even criminals. Lily.”
“Yes?” Lily jumped to her feet. Concerned about Mercenary, who still hadn’t figured out how to stop crying, she followed Secrecy out the room.
A couple of people were waiting outside. Gemma, Captain of the Knights Templar, and Gouda the Dragon Slayer King. It was an odd combination, but their no-nonsense personalities made them a good match.
“How’s Mercenary doing?” Gemma asked.
“He punched the door and the floor so hard that he crushed the flesh on his knuckles. It should calm him down a little.”
Gemma turned pale. “Th-That sounds serious! Did you treat it?”
“No. He’ll just start punching the door again anyway.”
“But still…”
“Wouldn’t it be better to just tie him up?” Gouda said. He meant well, but Gemma shot him a glare. “It’s the best option,” he added. “It’s not that uncommon to restrain prisoners who are out of control.”
“Mercenary is not a prisoner!”
The priest shrugged. “Please calm down. The Dragon Slayer King has a point, Captain Gemma.”
“But—”
“However, I want to get him used to moving in a human body as soon as possible. There’s no point in tying him up. I don’t think we need to worry about him committing suicide, so we’ll just have to monitor him for now.”
The priest’s explanation silenced them. They were both concerned about Mercenary’s safety.
“It would be best if we could keep an eye on him at all times, but we have to prepare for the trip to Wenias. We don’t have the manpower for a rampaging idiot.”
“Me! Me!” Lily exclaimed. “I can watch him!”
“We can’t entrust that job to you. You can’t stop him without killing him.”
Any human Lily bit would inevitably die of a disease.
“I won’t bite him,” she said, dejected.
“And if you don’t bite, you’re powerless. The cold has killed off all the rats, so you can’t count on your friends for help. Just keep quiet and act charming or something.”
Lily let out a downhearted whimper.
“Well, for the manpower issue,” Gouda cut in, his frown deepening, “you should show a little remorse. You rendered the Captain of the Noble Guards useless and turned his men into potential enemies. They’re acting obedient on the surface, but deep inside…”
“I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised that the prince of a fallen nation knows the inner workings of the minds of the defeated.”
“I’m not taking the bait, priest. If you want to vent your frustration, do it somewhere else.”
“It was a compliment. I’m actually curious about the movements of the Noble Guards. They’re like insects under a rock.” The priest turned to Gemma. “Captain.”
She nodded. “We’ve been keeping a close eye on them as well, but we’re not familiar with the area. We can’t completely exclude them from the mission either. If I’m being completely honest, I’m not sure we have complete control over them.”
“We must remain steadfast. We’ll be traveling with those troublemakers and we need to protect the powerless along the way. What’s more, we don’t have Zero to escort us. Our journey back will be much more difficult than when we came.”
The situation was unbearably harsh; death seemed to be just around the corner, waiting.
Secrecy heaved a sigh, unable to bear the weight of his words. “Nevertheless, we must return alive. The Church is an organization that was founded to counter the power of demons. Her Excellency wishes to protect the people. Surely, God will bless the journey.”
Just like Secrecy, Gouda and Gemma were followers of the Church, the latter having served the Church for even longer. That’s why Secrecy’s words brought a bitter smile to their faces.
A lone witch founded the organization they served. The God that the Church worshiped was no more than a type of demon. Knowing all that, what exactly did God’s blessing mean at this point?
“I still can’t believe that Lady Zero betrayed us,” Gemma said. “I’m not a good judge of character but I still thought she was trustworthy.”
“Witches are skilled at deceiving people. Or perhaps she was on our side until she changed her mind at some point. That kind of fickleness is very typical of a witch. I’m not surprised at her betrayal.”
“That’s an adjudicator for you. You’re dauntless.”
Gemma shook her head and straightened her posture. “The priest is right. There’s no point in thinking about what we lost. We still have to do our jobs either way.”
“Yes,” Gouda agreed with a frown. “My head hurts just thinking about what needs to be done. I’m glad Her Excellency is a wise woman. I may doubt the Church’s God, but I can fight for her.”
“Vice Captain Leyland is also a capable man. I’ve talked to the Director a bit. The journey might not be that harsh. We can avoid the demons’ powers to some extent, at least. The Knights Templar have become accustomed to the monsters prowling about. They should be able to fight them.”
“If push comes to shove, I can take Heath to lure the enemy away. The closer we get to Wenias, the more normal the animals, so we can expect some help from the rats.”
“You can count on me!” Lily, who had been left out of the conversation, jumped up and down with joy when her name was mentioned.
Nodding several times, Secrecy turned his attention to the room that Mercenary was in. The quiet breathing suggested he had gotten tired of causing a scene.
Now if he could just stay put…
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