Chapter. 18. Railed (22)
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“This is…. basic compulsory education? “First of all, you are also part of the 14th Special Operations Unit.”
“If you fall into a fatal trap and can’t do anything. “What are you going to do when your last resort is completely blocked?”
“what. If you’re going to search anyway, wouldn’t you at least rush in and take a bite?”
“Haaah. “This is why kids.”
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A story I shared with a colleague who is now dead.
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“So, I’m talking about a situation where you can’t ‘even do that.’ When you face the worst of the worst of the last.”
“When you roll the dice, snake eyes sometimes pop up, right?”
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Discussion about how to act in the face of complete failure.
Why? The reason why the memory of that day comes to mind.
****
Everything feels like a dream.
The sound of gunshots outside is fading away and the sorrowful screams are boiling over.
“I’m sorry.”
Station manager Bedar’s gun is pointed at me and Katrea.
“It will be reported that no one from this station survived.”
“Because nobles’ affairs always end with silence.”
“I can be treated as dead until my fake corpse is discovered.”
And
“It was because of you that the snipers prepared by the family disappeared.”
“…You were involved?”
“If it had been the way it was, Volteus and the driver wouldn’t have had to hurt each other so painfully. We had prepared snipers in Brastol, hoping that the railship would not be damaged. “Wasn’t the lie that station workers were mobilized for construction a preparation for that?”
Katrea’s calm voice as she faced the gun barrel.
‘I was alert.’
Although he believed in her affection, he did not rule out the possibility that she was following her family’s orders.
‘I looked into it thoroughly.’
Height 155cm. skinny physique. Muscles trained through housework. Aura’s spirit No traces of magical modification.
The reason I let her take over was because I was confident that I would be able to escape in case of an emergency.
but. Katrea bent down and hugged me like she always did, and I couldn’t move.
“Half of the compensation will be paid once the work is completed. Are you okay with one payment?”
“….are you okay.”
After completing his determination, Bedar’s eyes were filled with deep sadness.
A finger full of many things was placed on the trigger.
“Because my daughter will be able to get off this damn island.”
Taaang-
tuk.
Degurr-
The muzzle spouted fire.
And the severed head rolled on the floor.
Why couldn’t I resist?
Katrea, who must have been ordinary, broke her fingers, pressed her joints and nerves, and even though I used all the methods I had planned, she didn’t even move.
Crackling.
The answer was right before my eyes.
A magic bullet left the muzzle and a cold azure battle scythe decapitated Vedar with a single blow.
Armor vivid with the light of colored fragments and crystallized wings growing through one of Katrea’s shoulders.
“Shad Knight.”
Shard Knight Katrea.
Neither Professor Park in real life nor Professor Seongja in March World knows anything.
A product outside of my knowledge that exists only in April World.
“…I was planning on telling you someday. “I hoped it wouldn’t be like this, in a place like this.”
Katrea, who had put me down, politely lifted the hem of her skirt and greeted me.
“A servant of the great noble Brastol family. “I am Katrea, who was dispatched by my family as a watcher to the debris production site of Polgrad.”
“Was it all… a lie?”
“I have never lied to you, Master.”
Even at this moment when she blocked me and revealed her identity, Katrea’s eyes were full of sadness and affection.
“9 years ago. “As a maid who had just arrived in Brastol, you were told that your job was to take care of me.”
“It’s the truth.”
“They also said that he was a watcher dispatched by the main family of Brastol to this colony.”
“Of course.”
“So, you became a Shard Knight at just ten years old and were given the role of watching Delphiad Brastol, the colony’s manager? Entrusting a ten-year-old to be the watchdog of Delphiad Brastol, who is practically the king of a territory? “Where is the truth in this nonsense?”
Slam!
Katrea was bending her knees to make eye contact with me. Katrea did nothing to stop me while I pulled out the pistol that Naelda had given me.
‘Because he is skilled enough to hit already fired bullets with such long-armed weapons.’
A pistol-type arcane shooter like this wouldn’t even be a threat.
So he turned the gun and aimed at my temple.
I could feel the sadness on Katrea’s face, as if it could be felt when I touched it.
She must be able to move faster than the finger that pulls the trigger, so why is she so agitated? In the face of this meaningless threat.
“….Move.”
“If you go now, you might get caught up in Volteus Straug’s rampage.
“Get out of the way or I’ll shoot.”
“There is no way I will lose you here.”
“What on earth is your purpose? Is it a family order? Or is it really my survival like you said? Or was this also something hidden in the damn world that I didn’t know about!”
I realized this with a feeling of complete helplessness.
‘It was an unstoppable scenario from the beginning.’
A tutorial, so to speak. My role is to watch and realize what has already progressed to the point where I cannot intervene.
What did you hope to realize?
What does the existence system that predicts how I will move through my tendencies and behavioral principles want me to realize by taking me to Polgrad at this time?
Why did machine intelligence, which neither gets tired nor bored, stop sending the message “Join my plan” at some point? My
head
hurt. A familiar tingling sensation, a feeling of helplessness that once stuck to me like skin. Memories of having to do something because I couldn’t do anything.
Memories of the helpless past that do not stop me even in front of a wall that I cannot move on.
“…There are things you must know to survive, Master.”
Katrea opened her mouth.
A story about things I didn’t know.
About everything related to today.
****
Engineer George.
The reason for his betrayal was greed.
A hunchback by nature, he had nowhere else to go like other railship drivers and so could not retire from the chase.
He longed for ‘a little home just for him’ all his life, and the Brastall family promised him citizenship.
George could not refuse the paper, which bore the seal of the head of the family and had a certain effect.
“…All contact with the outside world was on guard.”
“A warlock’s message through a familiar leaves no trace of magic. “Most black magic uses very little mana.”
Soul liquor. An area I don’t know much about.
Engineer George thus became a collaborator of the Brastall family. For what he had wanted his whole life: a small house where he could lie down.
Bedar, a retired railship engineer and station master, had a daughter. He got off the rail ship because he had a place to return to.
“…Is this a threat?”
“Train drivers care about each other to the extent that they share their lives. “If he gave up his daughter’s life, the plan would be discovered by the railship, so the family decided not to take that risk.”
So the reward offered to him was the ‘one piece’ that Katrea mentioned earlier. One sheet as a pre-emptive reward and the remaining sheet as a completion fee.
[Old intercontinental shuttle boarding certificate for Roderick]
The stiff piece of paper that Katrea took out from Bedar’s arms with his head cut off was a ticket for a ship heading out of the island.
“Bedar was a railship engineer and knew the truth about Polgrad. “He couldn’t resist the opportunity to give his daughter a real human life, not a human kennel.”
So Bedar betrayed his old comrade. He betrayed not only his colleagues, but also his clients, the Brastall family. The ticket for an intercontinental sailing ship, in which the interests of several great families were intertwined, was an item that could not be forged, and it was obvious which the noble would prefer: a ticket worth a thousand gold or the life of a traitorous engineer.
He attempted to postpone his death to avoid his pursuers. Everyone on this station will die except him. He did not touch the colored fragments of Volteus or any other goods, but only held in his arms a ticket for his daughter.
So the snipers prepared for Voltaeus killed all the station workers who worked with him at this station.
George, who delivered the catalyst to Volteus, was caught up in his rampage and died because Volteus, who should have been shot at the same time as the rampage, did not die.
After completing all preparations, Bedar attempted to kill the last two survivors and ended his life at the hands of Katrea.
Lastly, Katrea.
“In general, regardless of talent, young children are not allowed to absorb fragments. “Because the probability of losing important memories is much higher than that of adults.”
In other words, if you let a talented child absorb fragments. This meant that the child’s memory could be completely erased.
Children like pure white drawing paper who have acquired the power of the fragments, forgetting all memories of their parents, the morals and customs of the world, and the few memories of their lives.
If you fail, you can kill the child who has become an idiot and retrieve the fragments with a slightly higher purity. If you succeed, you can secure a loyal and cold-blooded human weapon that can be raised according to the family’s taste.
Created fragment article.
Still in the experimental stage, they were dispatched to the outskirts of the fragmented continent to prove their usefulness instead of the mainland, where family interests were sharply conflicting.
Some people go to rare earth mining sites in melted frozen ground.
Someone is in the marine salvage business of the Sunken Mountains Deep Blue Line.
And she, Katrea, serves as a watchdog for the lord who manages their livestock at a human farm in the far east.
“The exclusive maid of an abandoned illegitimate child. It was a position given to me so I could move without my identity being revealed. “People thought I was with you when I was gone, and you thought I was gone to do another maid’s work when I wasn’t there.”
The reason the child, who would have been left to die due to the family’s neglect, survived because the watcher, Katrea, was useful as proof of identity.
Katrea was a loyal watchdog and felt that it would be helpful for the infant, her false identity card, to be able to move freely ‘once he was alive’. The role of guard was a noble mission given to her by her family, and she thought that keeping a child who was essential to that mission alive was an extension of carrying out that noble mission, so she tried her best with her limited knowledge.
I thought the child would get hoarse if he continued to cry, so I slapped him on the cheek and advised him not to cry. The child cried loudly.
Even though the child was starving to death, he did not eat the stir-fried mushrooms she gave him, and after much deliberation, Katrea asked the woman who was raising the child and showed her the child. After being scolded so much, she was able to breastfeed the child in exchange for giving her half of her meal each time.
I swear there has never been anything so annoying or unreasonable in her life.
Although she had vowed several times that she would strangle the child as soon as the child’s interference with the mission outweighed its usefulness,
Delphiad Brastall was a diligent farmhand and
said, “Ugh. Oh my!”
“Ugh…”
The child left in her care grew day by day.
Her family taught her that she should not have any personal possessions, and Katrea believed that more firmly than anyone else.
….but.
‘I’m throwing it away anyway. If you are a worthless child who can live even if you die.’
‘If it’s the same as nothing, wouldn’t it be okay for me to have it?’
In this way, the illegitimate son Professor Brastol became young Katrea’s first possession. As a possession, as her child, as the only object of value to her personally, not to her family.
With something more precious than life.
“Well… isn’t it strange? I’ve checked several times, but you don’t have the talent of a Shard Knight. “Why did such a great talent bloom in front of people other than me at a time like this?”
The Brastoll family already had a spy named George inside the railship, and they heard all the stories going around between them.
The third master, an illegitimate son, joins forces with Rail Ship and tries to escape from the family.
Unlike his quiet life, he has a sharp mind.
And Naelda and Voltaeus say that the Shard Knight has a talent that is unprecedented in this world.
Delphiad immediately conveyed the news to the main family, and the family, who were already paying attention to this area thanks to the valuable product called Volteus, showed quite interest in the news.
‘It looks quite usable.’
‘….’
‘Katrea, bring that child back to his home.’
‘…But master, the mission here is’
‘Send your next guard. You have performed your mission well for nine years, so shouldn’t you be entrusted with another task now? ‘I’m old, I’m not pale, and my face isn’t known in the mainland… I’m sure there are many places where I can be useful in many ways.’
Return order. And an order to bring the master to his home.
Perhaps Master will be treated the same way as her. You will absorb as many fragments as you have outstanding talent, and in return, all nine years of your life will be taken away.
Her existence disappears from the master’s mind.
Katrea couldn’t bear it.
****
“That’s it.”
“This far…?”
“yes! So, I planned this moment to somehow prevent you from being dragged over there. Of course, the plan is not much different from Bedar’s plan.”
Katrea continued speaking calmly.
“I couldn’t let you be with Voltaeus. He was more unstable than you thought, and even if Brastol hadn’t done anything, it was clear that he would have gone berserk in the near future. As violently as now, on a moving train somewhere on soft ground. “I couldn’t let you be with people like that.”
“He had enough control over himself.”
“really? Sir, did you know that the tea that Voltaeus loves is water steeped in a drug that has a stimulating effect?”
….drug? that is?
“Protecting the mind from debris by widening the distance between the body and mind. This is a method commonly used by Shard Knights who have reached the end. Since I just absorbed all the appropriate fragments without the proper discernment of a soul mage or the support of an elixir made by an alchemist, it is not unreasonable for me to reach the end in an instant. Voltaeus sacrificed too much for power. “To the point where you can’t guarantee your own safety without the help of drugs.”
“But… Voltaeus didn’t seem to be hallucinating at all.”
“Any high-ranking Shard Knight can do that. “Shad knights sharpen their mental power more than wizards.”
Katrea did not want me to board a rail ship that was like a time bomb.
So, the downfall of rail ships was overlooked.
“If you were a Shard Knight with that much power, you could have joined the railship with me. Even if Voltaeus goes on a rampage, he’ll be able to escape with at least me. “Everyone gets out alive, but when that moment really comes… you can make the worst choice at that time.”
“Oh, that really is a dream-like future. I wish I could have done that. A trip with you on the magic train. “I have thought over and over again whether there is a way like that or whether this is the only way.”
Sararak-
“….My body is like this, so I had no choice but to do it this way.”
Katrea unfastened her clothes, exposing her upper chest.
A small crystal that sticks out from the pale skin and has a dangerous aura at a glance.
“It’s a Geas (Geas golden) planted by the family when they created the ‘White Flower Shard Knight.’ This is a powerful spell that will be activated once my family confirms my betrayal. “There are similar things here and there, such as the heart, the inside of the head, the spine, and other things.”
“The effect is automatically cast when the owner’s command is violated. When activated, it erases all of the target’s memories and makes them become the caster’s puppet for a week.”
She spoke in a calm tone, as if showing off an embarrassing accessory.
“I am currently holding you, Master, so I have not disobeyed the order to ‘capture Professor Brastall and send him to his home.’ As soon as I send you away, Geass will be activated and I will follow your orders and drag you back to your home.”
….crackle.
“I wanted to stop it at all costs. I don’t want to lose you and all the memories I have of the past 9 years with you. “This was the only way to get you out of their hands.”
After finishing what she had to say, Katrea stood up, removed the food bag she was sitting on, and took out a small bag hidden underneath it.
A small but sturdy bag that even a nine-year-old boy can carry.
Katrea carefully placed the ticket for the intercontinental shuttle that she had taken from Bedar’s arms inside.
“It contains ten days’ worth of water, food, and sturdy clothes. If you walk along the tracks like this, you will come across an abandoned station similar to this one. Although there are no people, preserved food is always prepared in a designated place in case of an emergency. If you replenish water and food there and walk along the track again, you will be able to reach the outpost where the dock is.”
“Katrea.”
“As long as you walk on the tracks, you don’t have to worry about burrowing bugs or other scary monsters attacking you. If you ever come across a small village, please show me the noble clothes you are wearing. “Those people are pathologically afraid of nobles, so that alone won’t do them any harm.”
“Katrea”
“Be sure to take the colored fragments with you. In ports with docks, there is always a black market involved in smuggling. “If you pretend to be a foolish noble and sell it for a low price, you will be able to receive enough money to live on your own.”
“…Katrea! “What are you doing now?”
“Sugar and origin. And goodbye?”
widely.
She put down the bag she had carefully inspected and quietly raised her hand.
The crystals that start from the shoulder blade grow through the fingertips and reveal their own color.
Cold sky blue. A large war scythe-shaped fragment over 2 meters long, which is hard to believe was used by a woman with a slender body like her.
The tip of its blue blade was caught around Katrea’s neck.
Katrea was about to die. The only way to preserve her memory and avoid becoming a puppet is for her to die while she is still carrying out her family’s orders before letting me go.
‘The last of the last. What will you do when you face the worst of the worst?’
The voice of my dead colleague came as if I was hallucinating.
I want to stop it. Katrea just wanted to save me.
But if she doesn’t die, I will die. She must follow orders, and if she refuses, she becomes a puppet and will carry out her orders.
Among those who died in front of me today, who is evil and who is good?
George, the train driver who had been treated as a useless human being for his entire life and dreamed of having his own little home?
Bedar, who betrayed everyone for the sake of the future of his only remaining daughter, even throwing away the one ticket that was supposed to be his, out of fear of the possible betrayal of an unknown nobleman?
Katrea, who ignored and took advantage of all those deaths and ultimately tried to complete my freedom with her own death?
“Every moment I spent with you was my life.”
“Please take care of yourself.”
As when introducing her, Katrea slightly bent her knees and pulled out her scythe without hesitation.
Sararak.
Katrea with a calm face.
Her long braids were loose and rippling softly.
Slowly along the border where the hair is loose. Her neck tilted.
….Tuk.
fell.
I remained frozen, unable to think of anything. While Katrea’s scythe grazed her neck. I couldn’t move in front of her.
‘There are things you must know to survive, Master.’
Katrea brought up her story with the traitors, saying it was a story I needed to survive.
Those stories tied me up and made me watch Katrea’s death at the last moment.
This is what Katrea so desperately wanted to teach.
What the child who will leave her hand and live alone must realize in order to survive in this world.
“This is… April World.”
What it means to live in this fallen world, where both good and evil people end up with the same result, is engraved in your head, in your heart, and in your soul through the choices of this moment.
Katrea achieved what she wanted.
She did not lose any of her memories of the past nine years or take me home, but
she succeeded in instilling in her child the most valuable lessons about living in this cruel world.
It wasn’t a bad result for me either.
As Katrea, who is comparable to the Master Knight, confirmed, there were no survivors among the rail ship personnel.
The station attendant died at the hands of Bedar, and the station manager Bedar died at the hands of Katrea.
With Katrea ending her life, there was no one to convey the horrors of this place, nor was there anyone to report that a nine-year-old boy had left for the port.
A
blue gem fell out from the dead Katrea’s fingertips.
A fragment that consumed her soul and escaped, along with countless masters before her. A blue sapphire-colored gem that resembles tears.
I couldn’t laugh, cry, or get angry. I sat in front of her death, conflicted between my emotions and myself.
….click.
I came out of the warehouse holding Katrea’s head in my arms.
****
