Having Perfect was a godsend when dealing with mind-controlling special abilities. It could instantly eliminate any after-effects, which could be quite dangerous. I hadn't even considered scenarios like this when I created Perfect .
To be honest, I always assud I would be dead by now.
But this was an unexpected bonus, as the ability wasn't intentionally created for this purpose and didn't co with any drawbacks.
As I contemplated the situation, the waves crashed against the shore. I knew Avalon Island interfered with ti, although I didn't fully understand the reasons behind it. It seed connected to the barrier surrounding the known world.
Despite the weird tizones, individuals still arrived on their own tilines, not from the future or the past. There were also rules governing interactions between people from different tis, but I would worry about that later.
The imdiate problem was that two people had co from the future. While people couldn't travel from the future, corpses were different as they were technically 'objects'.
Did an undead also count as 'things' too and co out at different tilines? That sounds dangerous.
In the present, the fishern were alive. Even if I wanted to alter their fate, they would inevitably end up where they were now, trapped in the ti loop. Our re existence was proof that the loop would continue.
Normally, ddling with ti was beyond my power and incredibly foolish. But Avalon Island was a ticking ti bomb, and it also presented opportunities.
My heart raced as the salty wind whipped against my face, and countless thoughts raced through my mind. Despite how far I had co, deep down, I was still the guy who entered this new and amazing world.
While I could plan calmly, the thought of willingly entering a place where ti was distorted and a single mistake could have disastrous consequences sent a chill down my spine. Yet, I couldn't afford to stop moving.
One day, I hoped to rest and enjoy a carefree life, owning a private beach while worrying about trivial matters like whether to have sushi with or without caviar. But that ti had not arrived, so I had to work hard to achieve that dream.
Interrupting my walk on the beach, the Kuro Clan Head asked, "Are you coming with us to investigate the fishern?"
His face bore an indifferent expression, devoid of the emotions he had displayed in the boat.
Since when did I start associating with throat-cutters, thieves, and killers? And now, I was willingly walking alongside soone I would consider an enemy. I was heading straight into the lion's den and expecting him to follow for our mutual benefit.
The changes had happened so subtly that I hadn't noticed them unfolding. Yet, it wasn't necessarily a bad thing, as it was my adaptability that saved my life.
"Sure," I warned him, "just make sure you don't do sothing stupid like incinerate the present living fishern, as that could lead to us becoming specks in existence."
"Of course," he nodded.
Normally, the Kuro Clan Head would never bring along for sothing like this. However, he saw that I knew so of the rules involved, ones that no one else did.
It felt like we were playing chess against each other, and the loser would likely end up dead. Well, he would die if he lost. I wasn't 100% sure what plans the Kuro Clan Head had planned for .
We gathered with a couple of other exorcists and traveled to a small nearby town to locate where the two fishern lived. Surprisingly, it took little ti to find soone, especially since this world didn't have computers yet.
It was just that special abilities made many technologies so obsolete that they never got a chance to develop.
We stood atop the roofs of so houses in the slums, and even while hiding up there, I could sll the mud. The Kuro Clan Head stood beside , while an Elite Exorcist knocked on the door of a wooden hut the size of a bedroom. The place looked ready to cave in.
The door creaked open, and a woman ca out. Her hair was disheveled, and looked like she could barely afford the brown dress she had on. She had callused hands and dry red skin, showing she had no easy life. "Hello, how can I help you?"
As she asked that, a couple of kids ran behind her, playing tag. A young boy and girl. They couldn't have been older than six years old. Their cheeks were plump and pudgy as they laughed.
Any emotion that ca up, I crushed down. There was no way I would intervene in this. Even if the decision was a cruel one, everything was already set in stone.
Hello, ma'am, my na is Zots, and I am an elite exorcist in charge of a local case. We are here to check the blood of every fisherman, and I heard your husband was one." The elite exorcist smiled and seed very natural. He looked to be in his mid-thirties, so he likely had a lot of experience dealing with things like this.
Without much trouble, the woman explained that her husband was by the docks during this ti, washing his boat and planning the fishing trip next week, where they would be sleeping on the sea.
That was probably when they would die, and the Kuro Clan Head looked at when that was ntioned. But when he saw I had no reaction, he nodded, and we moved on.
We still sneaked by the rooftops while the Elite Exorcist moved about and found the fishern. It was surprising how much people trusted exorcists in this world. Although I guess anyone would trust soone who would fight demons and defend them.
The fishern were on their boats, at the slum's docks. Their fishing vessel didn't have the moss the other had from the future. The two n smiled, with bottles of cheap beer in hand while making crude jokes.
They were simply living their lives, and the elite exorcist didn't even need to ask twice. They willingly offered their blood, which the exorcist collected in a syringe, happy to do so after the exorcist showed them a silver coin.
When we were out of town, we regrouped and t up with another exorcist. He perford about thirty hand signs and then slamd his hand on the ground. Ord flowed out of him, and a laboratory materialized.
"The blood of the two versions of the people, past and present, will be compared," said the man who summoned the lab. He seed to be seeking my permission, and I nodded in response. He breathed a brief sigh of relief and continued.
After a few uncomfortable minutes of silence, he returned with a frown on his face. "There hasn't been any change in their DNA; they're exactly the sa people. There's a possibility that they're clones, and soone went through a lot of trouble to deceive us, even preparing a fake boat."
"Or it could be ti travel," added the exorcist who had collected the blood from the fishern. He smoked a cigarette and glanced around, making eye contact with each of us. "How many people should we inform about this?"
As he asked that, his lips quivered while taking a puff, and his fingers shook slightly.
Judging by his age, he had lived the life of an exorcist for over a decade and knew the consequences that awaited soone like him.
A secret between four people can only be kept if three of them are dead, The Kuro Clan Head said.
I interjected. "Nobody is going to die. We need to inform so people about what happened here regardless. Sothing like this can't and shouldn't be kept a secret. What if whatever caused this is dangerous?"
The Kuro Clan Head narrowed his eyes when I ntioned that. His suspicious expression disappeared as quickly as it appeared, and he nodded. "Kon is right. If we started killing others here, it would only lead to more trouble for us. First, we need to determine if whatever is causing this isn't sothing that could wipe out humanity with a single blow."
Little did he know how accurate his statent was. While the events on Avalon Island were partly influenced by the creatures outside, the temporal anomaly was caused by the Dragon King.
From what I know, the Dragon King should be on par with Yamata No Orochi. However, when it ca to the potential to eradicate humanity, the Dragon King surpassed any creature I was familiar with.
After all, with a re thought, he could dismantle the barrier protecting the known world, allowing whatever horrors lay beyond to break through.
"After you finish drawing so blood from the bodies, package them up in coffins and send them to their families within a month," I said, shifting my gaze towards the man who was smoking. It was clear he wanted a way out from this mission, so I gave him one. "I will also arrange a monthly paynt of one gold to each family. Take the ti you need to set everything up. Can I trust you to handle it?"
"Yeah, absolutely, I'll take care of it," the man replied with a smile and a slight nod.
As we walked back to where we had left the boat, the Kuro Clan head pulled aside and asked, "Kon, can I talk to you for a minute?"
I must admit, it made a bit nervous. However, with the sea behind and Carpy nearby, there was no reason to worry. Besides, the Kuro Clan Head didn't seem to have any hostile intentions, so I followed him. Once we were out of earshot, he looked at and narrowed his eyes.
"Let's get straight to the point," he said, his face serious. "Are you from the future?"
Reviews
All reviews (0)