Chapter 347: The Desired Puppet Show

I had sudden nausea. My gastric juices were coming up from my throat and I was struggling to expel them. I swallowed them by force and held my lips with my fingers.

Before I knew it, I could feel my sweat licking my forehead. Doha Surah smiled at me, widening its evil eyes right in front of mine.

A question naturally occurred to me, as if I were waiting for the answer to be spat out. I pointed my finger at Doha Surah and said the following.

「…This is the last question. Just one. Just tell me one more thing. 」

“If I can answer”, said Doha Surah. What was reflected in that expression was sin itself. My eyebrows creased and my eyes rose.

「There should be a herd of magical beasts in the northwest area of the Gharast Kingdom. That’s why Valerie left…Is that something that Altius planned to do? Or did it just happen that the magical beasts wanted to dance with their feet aligned?」

I already knew the answer. I half understood what Doha Surah’s expression meant to say.

But I still had to ask. It was impossible to turn my back without asking that question and move my legs without knowing anything.

I didn’t know why, but I had to do this. I felt as if I had an obligation to listen to this.

Doha Surah spoke with rippled lips. The reason why there was no emotion in its voice was probably because it was originally a magical beast.

「It’s unfortunate, but I cannot answer. 」

I knew it. Ah, even though Doha Surah was a magical beast, it was still terribly sincere. I even wanted to express my thanks. Rather than dodging the question, it asserted that it couldn’t answer.

There was only one condition that didn’t allow Doha Surah to answer, whether its words were a betrayal to Altius or not. In other words, it would be a betrayal if it answered my question.

It was like saying that Altius was the one who created the catastrophe.

My pulse increased and my heartbeats became louder. They gradually gained momentum, accelerating the blood flow throughout my body. The back teeth that were naturally meshed let out a painful groan.

I see, I understood why it couldn’t answer. I knew it now. I shall give it my blessing.

…Ah, how revolting.

My teeth didn’t mesh well. My fingertips were trembling convulsively, and my guts were on fire.

Something was clogged in my chest. That damned catastrophe was worse than the bottom of the earth. It was the opening act for the ideal world that Altius talked about. Did she know that almost everyone died for the sake of her unfathomable dream?

Children died in front of their parents, and parents died in front of their children. Babies’ skulls were trampled by magical beasts. Women were not only trampled but used violently by vicious monsters.

Like that, both my adoptive mother and my teacher died cruelly. Everything was lost. In the past, the only person who remained connected to me was Ariene.

The catastrophe was so devastating. It was the worst possible scenario.

That devil. So, the catastrophe was caused by that divine spirit.

For the first time in a long time, my voice became rough. Even a dry laugh seemed to leak from my lips.

「In order to move the world as she wants, she is going to wreck everything and everyone in it. How splendid, huh. If I were a guest at a theater, I’d throw a bottle of ale at the stage while yelling it sucks.」

My cheeks were twitching. My head was heavily clouded. I felt like my thoughts had been turned over from the bottom.

At first, I thought that the best way to contain the damage of the catastrophe was to unite the hands of the Kings of the nations.

After all, it was done in the past. In that case, if I moved the field a little, if I cooperated in advance, and if I could do it with careful, it wouldn’t lead to bad results.

I had such an image in my head.

However, if someone who arrogantly talked about a divine spirit who was conceitedly pulling its hands behind the scenes, it would be a completely different story.

No matter how hard I tried, those bad things would happen until the end. Everything would be done for Altius’ purpose.

Things wouldn’t be over until all of mankind joined together to beg for salvation, just as it once was. In order to achieve that purpose, Altius caused a great disaster.

I felt excrement in my nostrils. There was a feeling of disgust, as if my guts had been twisted inside my body. It seemed that I couldn’t escape from this.

Ah, even so, when I thought carefully about it, everything had become much easier to understand than before.

Whether I got stuck, whether I got Ariene’s soul back, or whether I stopped the roots of the catastrophe.

…Altius. What I had to do was crush the heart of the great hero Altia.

Wonderful. Nothing was clearer than this. This was what I hoped for. I lifted my cheeks forcibly.

「…I don’t care what you think. But Altia’s ideals are surprisingly good. Rather than watching tens of thousands of sorrows born from humans strives, this path is much better.」

Doha Surah spoke as if responding to my words. I vaguely understood what those words were trying to convey.

Certainly, almost everyone died in the catastrophe. Many died and just a few survived. Even if someone survived, that someone would be deprived of his thoughts, would lose his wisdom, and his books would burn.

But what stood ahead was undeniable happiness. Days when people didn’t have to think about anything, and just make a wish. A supreme daily life ruled by God. A life with peace under a unified will.

It must be wonderful. In the old days, I would have been so happy that I would have fallen and wished for it.

Conversely, if humans were to remain as they were now, tragedy would continue to ravage the earth. The salvation campaign would be repeated at every opportunity, and everyone would fight and hate each other whenever they liked.

I couldn’t avoid it no matter how hard I tried. Humans were just like that.

Compared to that chaos, Altius provided a better path. Instead of mass-producing tragedies for all eternity, closing our eyes to the small amount of damage would bring prosperity and peace.

I let out a sigh. I took out a chewing tobacco from my pocket chest and put it in my mouth.

I wanted to calm my heart, which was filled with fever. It was about to burst, even if just a little. I wanted to calmly utter the following words even if it was only for a short time.

I spoke through a familiar smell in my nostrils.

「Alright. Just one more thing, let me tell you my thoughts. Doha Surah. 」

Doha Surah waved its lips for a moment, then closed its mouth and listened to my words.

「Altius is certainly great. A true hero. 」

Altia once raised her flag to save her people, fought with all her might, and built a powerful nation. She was undoubtedly the one who built the foundation of the human nation.

There was no word other than hero to refer to such a person. There were not enough words to describe the greatness of that hero. She deserved respect.

Changing history and creating a new era were tasks done by heroes, worthy of bearing that title.

Nonetheless.

A hero who changed history was a hero who built, carried on that will, and found meaning in those changes.

A hero was not mediocre. A hero had merit for being a witness of history. For being the one who meshed with history.

A true hero knew where and how to stop its will, even if changing history wouldn’t mark its name forever.

A true hero had the eyes to see the boundary and the real worth of its accomplishments. A hero was not arrogant, but humble. Because a true hero couldn’t change the whole world.

But what Altius was trying to accomplish was no longer revolution. It was domination.

The Great Hero Altia said that this time she would unify all the people and rule them all. She didn’t need wisdom or humility. She was telling everyone how to eradicate history.

「But she’s ridiculous. That’s not history. Just call it theater. And I won’t allow myself to be a character in her puppet show.」

I could see Doha Surah narrowing its eyes naturally. Those eyes seemed as if it were looking at something nostalgic. No words were exchanged after that.

I stood up and swung the treasure sword at my waist. My purpose was clear. I knew what I had to do. If so, there was no point in resting.

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Lugis is becoming quite fierce. I like it!

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