Tatakau Shisho Volume 6, 5: The Gloomy Lizard and the Cornered Mice – Part

Volu 6, Chapter 5: The Gloomy Lizard and the Cornered Mice – Part?1

One night has passed since the activation of the barrier.

Tanks were running on the roads. Even the spacious main street of the town was too narrow for the groups of tanks lined up. They kept passing through, crushing the surrounding fences and outdoor lights and destroying all building standing in their way.

None in town made a single click of their tongues or voiced a single complaint. If the Ard Librarians were to die – those hateful, hateful Ard Librarians – they were fine with them breaking whatever they wanted.

Airplanes were dancing in the skies.

There were so many airplanes that even the wide sky seed cramped. Even though they already blew the entire island to smithereens, they still had enough bombs to load onto them.

Ships were clustered in the waters surrounding the island. Looking at them from the sky, it would appear as if a black belt enclosed the island with twice its area. There was not even one fifth of the total forces among the soldiers on the island. No matter how one cramd them, no more would be able to fit. The remaining soldiers held their guns with sweaty hands and awaited orders.

Looking from atop rooftops or from the shadows of alleyways, the inhabitants were sending them gazes as hot as lava. It was as if they were watching their heroes.

Destroy the Ard Librarians as soon as possible. Burn that awful building which sullies us just by existing, that building that prides itself in a history of 2000 years, burn Bantorra Library to ashes. They were watching the invaders with eyes that seed to say just that.

“…Uoooohhhhhhh…!”

The people on the island raised an especially loud cheer. The Magic Combat Unit was getting ahead of the tanks and heading for the Library. The Ard Librarians and the Indulging God Cult weren’t the only ones to train warriors who used Magic.

Coming from behind the mixed forces of the three countries, the Magicians of the Magic Agency also ford a line and advanced.

The only thing that stood in their way was the barrier covering Bantorra Library. When that barrier is destroyed… it was clear to everyone there that when that happens, the end of Bantorra Library will co.

The Magicians started reciting the chants needed to break barriers. The warriors started attacking it. They were trying to destroy the barrier with overwhelming numbers.

The inside of Bantorra Library was in panic. They treated the injured Ard Librarians and gathered all those who could still fight. Mirepoc’s decision to hole up inside was perhaps too late. More than half of the survivors were wounded, and a quarter of them lost their ability to fight.

“…Sorry.”

rciful gunshots reverberated to those they decided would not be able to survive.

All Ard Librarians received an imasurable shock due to the death of Ireia who had protected the Library for forty years. It was perhaps even larger of a shock than if Hamyuts were to die. Ireia was undoubtedly a symbol of “the strongest” in Bantorra Library.

However, morale was high. The Ard Librarians were getting worked up because they had lost those they could rely upon. It was the sa as a cornered mouse who found the courage to bite the cat chasing it.

The door to the Acting Director’s Office opened. Supported by Mirepoc, Minth ca inside. He had regained his consciousness a little while ago after receiving extensive treatnt.

“I can walk, it’s fine.”

Minth tried entering the room, and as he stumbled Mattalast lent him his shoulder.

“Don’t push yourself. You’ve hurt your arteries.”

A cloth ant to stop Minth’s bleeding was wrapped around his thigh. The entire area under his right knee was stained with blood. If it were not bound with cloth, his blood would probably still be spewing out.

However, the Ard Librarians couldn’t spare the ti to worry about such an injury.

“Minth, yesterday you’ve told us you understood the truth about this incident.”

Hamyuts gazed at him and said.

“Yeah. That’s why I ca back.”

“Um, Minth-san. Does that an you betrayed us?”

“Idiot, what are you saying? Listen to what Minth’s telling us.”

Hamyuts rebuked Mirepoc. Minth sat down on the floor as if he lost all power.

“There’s no need to explain about my ability now, right?”

There was no way the Ard Librarians wouldn’t know about it.

His eyes were nad Sacred Eyes. What kind of a person was the one in front of him? Was he good or bad, who did he love or hate? Minth could tell all this with a glance. By reading into subtle changes in emotions, he could also tell whether soone was lying or disturbed.

“While heading here, I saw so people getting attacked. All of their souls were full with unbelievable hatred. It was violent and simplistic. They were thinking that as long as the Ard Librarians were to die they didn’t care what happened next.”

They already knew that. But Minth’s eyes should have been able to read through them even further.

“It’s hard to explain, but the shape of hatred is sa in every person. Sorrow at their loved ones being taken away, hatred close to being suicidal… that kind of shape.

It’s impossible. Hatred also has many other forms. n have one, won have one, old people, young people, they all have their own forms. But all those who are attacking us have the exact sa shape to their hatred.”

“And?”

“From now on is only my guess. Do you rember Renas Fleur?”

They all nodded, wondering if she even had any relevance to all of this.

“They produced the fake Renas using a technique that transplants the mories from a Book into a person and so “revives” a dead person. But I’ve wondered whether that technique had any utility value.

Even if human souls are transplanted, one cannot transplant Magic Rights. Even if you’d transplant the Director’s personality you’d only be a crazy woman. It can’t be used to produce warriors.

Or so I’ve thought.”

“And?”

“Should it be the opposite? This is not a technique to make a re human into a warrior. Isn’t it actually a technique able to make warriors into the enemies of the Ard Librarians?

They transplanted the soul of soone who hates the Ard Librarians to all the people in the world and made them attack us.”

That logic seed sound. However, it was only the first step in their reasoning. The question was how the Indulging God Cult had managed to accomplish that.

Hamyuts was gazing outside the window. On the other side of the whales Bonbo set afloat, the enemies have filled up the island.

“It doesn’t seem like soone caught them one by one and perford so trick on them.”

Minth nodded.

“It’s probably sothing that activates automatically. A technique where by seeing sothing, or perhaps hearing sothing, that personality would be transplanted to them on the spot…”

“There’s also another problem. Why does it not work on us Ard Librarians? If a personality of soone who hates Ard Librarians would be transplanted into us we would all commit suicide.”

Mattalast said.

“Now that you ntion it, Ismo’s President was also normal.”

Mirepoc held her head.

“The normal librarians also don’t seem to beco our enemies. There’s probably so condition. Sothing that makes it so one would not be affected.”

Hamyuts said

“It’s probably not so small trigger like seeing sothing or hearing sothing. There’s so power able to affect souls at work…”

With this, all clues were present. A power that affected souls and spread explosively. It did not affect Ard Librarians and even with normal people there were so who received it and so who didn’t. The four people started thinking. However, ti passed with no answer coming to mind.

“I have no idea. We have too few hints.”

When Hamyuts said this, Mattalast suddenly had a flash of inspiration.

“I rember now. There’s another clue. It’s beyond our understanding, but… it seems like Noloty is related to that plan.”

This was the first ti Hamyuts and Minth heard of this. Mirepoc did hear about it before. However, distracted by the fighting, she had forgotten all about it.

“What do you an, Mattalast?”

“Even I don’t get it at all. It’s just that one of our enemies said her na.”

At that mont, Mirepoc raised her voice.

“I know!”

The gazes of the other three focused at her.

“Affecting the soul, spreading explosively, and not affecting Ard Librarians… I’m not sure how Noloty’s related to this, but all the conditions match!”

“What?”

“It’s the Deep Blue Curse. The Indulging God Cult used the Deep Blue Curse to plant the seeds of hatred in the entire world!”

Radio broadcasting was ceased. With that, Kachua lost all ans with which he could find out the situation at Bantorra Library. But he wasn’t worried. The fact that the Library’s destruction was already decided hasn’t changed.

Was there anyone who’d be able to realize even one part of his plan? They would most likely be able to think of the idea of transplanting souls, but probably not relate it to the Deep Blue Curse. Thinking that far would be an accomplishnt.

The Gloomy Lizard was pacing aimlessly inside the cabin. Wetting the floor with its black bodily fluids, it raised a depressed groaning. These fluids contained the pathogens of the Deep Blue Curse.

“Do you hate them?”

Kachua called to the Gloomy Lizard. It breathed out a black fog from its mouth.

Originally, those infected with the Deep Blue Curse would fall into lancholy and die. However, the improved Deep Blue Curse produced from this lizard was different.

Even if contracted there will be no lancholy. They will be captured by hatred instead. They would hate and hate the Ard Librarians until they couldn’t stand it.

The entirety of Kachua’s plan was made in order to create this Magic Beast. All of the plans he made to raise Arkit, send him into battle, and rescue him from Noloty, were all in order to perfect it.

No, that was not all. Even the entire battle made by the Indulging God Cult was for this Magic Beast’s sake.

‘…I hate…’

The Gloomy Lizard exhaled. These words could be faintly heard through the air.

“You hate them, right? Then keep on hating. More Ard Librarians would die the more you hate them.”

Saying this, a gentle smile rose to Kachua’s lips.

It all began when he had t a single Magic scholar. Kachua was looking for able scientists and Magicians from all around the world. Starting with Charlot, researchers who deviated from the proper world gathered at Kachua’s side. The ats originally served as guinea pigs to them. Using them as materials for the Monster or turning them into Human Bombs was nothing more than a secondary use.

Among all the geniuses he had gathered Kachua focused on one Magic scholar. He was a heretic scholar who tried combining Magic with science. Furthermore, after knowing the man’s personality, it was obvious why he couldn’t work in the center stage of science.

“Kahahahaha, you make do so good research hahahahahahahaha.”

This Magic scholar, nad Bada, did not stop laughing even for a mont when he spoke.

It was not that he made his inquiring mind work until exhaustion and thus fell into darkness; ever since he had t Kachua he was wholly broken. He was a man who seed to obtain an abnormal brain in exchange for his failed humanity.

His research, which was about the revival of people, didn’t seem like it would beco useful for battle. However, Kachua always felt that he was about to grasp sothing important.

Coming up with the way of using it happened a long ti after he t him.

“Using Deep Blue Curse to transplant hatred! Kahahaha, you’ve thought of a wonderful thing hahahaha!”

Even knowing that it would be impossible, Bada approved his proposal. His research from then on was remarkable.

He easily succeeded in reviving humans, and furthermore was able to realize transplanting of a human soul into an animal.

Transplanting a human’s hatred into a Gloomy Lizard, it would also be transplanted into the infected persons through the pathogens for the Deep Blue Curse. Even Kachua, the person to hit upon this idea, couldn’t believe it actually ca true.

A certain day after completing the proper technique, which was a month after Mokkania’s rebellion, Bada suddenly committed suicide. It didn’t seem like he was at a loss, nor did he want to ascend to Heaven, and Kachua couldn’t understand the reason for his suicide even after reading his Book.

After this ca Kachua’s work. He began looking for hatred that would destroy the Ard Librarians. He first tried using suggestion on ats so they would hate them. However, even transplanting those Books’ souls into people, no favorable outco was reached. Small amount of hatred would just get negated by their original personality.

Kachua tried transplanting the pure, strong soul of a warrior who knew of his intentions. That also did not work. He had neither the sense of duty nor the proper objective.

What he needed was hatred. It had to be strong, pure, and morbid. It had to be not an artificial product, but true hatred.

Then, Kachua found – Arkit Chroma.

anwhile at Bantorra Library…

“There’s no cure for the Deep Blue Curse.”

Hamyuts said while staring out of the window.

“Even if there was, it doesn’t seem like it would have been useful. It would be impossible for us to inject it one by one with these numbers.”

Together with Mattalast, they both sighed. They understood their enemy’s plan, but could not find any asure against it. They only made a slight advance inside the total darkness.

“More importantly, what are you planning to do now, Director?”

“The Ard Librarians outside of Bantorra are investigating a facility of the Indulging God Cult again. Until they are able to do sothing we will defend this place.”

“But how long can we do so, I wonder?”

Hamyuts leapt out of the window. Mattalast also followed her. Before leaving, she was ordered by Mirepoc to assist Minth’s’ treatnt.

She could see the entirety of Past God Bantorra’s Island from the roof. Seeing the gathering of the three countries’ armies was also a spectacle.

“About how long will the barrier hold?”

“Probably about three days. But we have to beat the Magician Unit who’s trying to break it.”

“Once we finish our talk we have to go. Attack with all those who can still work.”

Mattalast nodded.

“After defeating the Magician Unit, what’s next?”

“There will be plenty of other people. Even if we defeat the Magicians, they would be able to break the barrier using brute force.”

The tanks and bombers kept their attacks without stopping. The ti when the barrier would run out was approaching.

“We can probably hold out one month. Until then, we have to do sothing.”

Was it possible? Even though they weren’t able to think of any asures, the ti remaining was far too short.

“We have no choice but to do sothing. Staying inside for a whole month…”

Just as he said this, Mattalast paled.

“What’s wrong?”

He leapt off the roof and ran to the annex. Hamyuts released her Sensory Threads and tied them to him.

“Director, we might have been had.”

Mattalast spoke to her through the Sensory Threads. He rushed inside a warehouse at the annex. Hamyuts could also feel what was inside there.

“…We were idiots. We forgot what we absolutely need for a siege battle.”

Hamyuts couldn’t deny his words. Even though it was their first ti to face a siege, just how clumsy were they?

They forgot the thing most essential for a siege. Even though all castles throughout history would collapse without it, how could they have forgotten? They needed food.

Everything in their warehouse had been burned. In the confusion soone who beca their enemy probably burned it all.

“Really stupid of us… what will we do?”

Hamyuts started smiling. She was smiling at both her approaching death as well as her foolishness.

“Can’t we just steal sothing?”

They returned to the office and explained the situation. After they did, Minth spoke readily.

“Can we? We are surrounded.”

“Using your Sensory Threads you should at least know if there’s food around, Director. Stealing it would be troubleso, but we have to do it so we wouldn’t lose.”

“That’s true, but…”

Mirepoc tilted her head. Hamyuts then flapped her hand and spoke.

“I hate that.”

“What do you an by that?”

“Do you think we can do such an ugly thing? We are the proud Ard Librarians who have protected the world for 2000 years. Will we just turn into bandits and look around for food at the end? That’s no joke.”

“I should be the one to say it’s no joke. If you don’t want to do it, I will. I don’t mind resigning from this place and go back to be a robber.”

“You’re also stubborn. I’m telling you that I don’t like it so listen to .”

Mirepoc shook her head to the side.

“I also agree with Minth. Director, I’m slightly disappointed.”

“…Oh my.”

Hamyuts was surprised the two people objected. Mattalast also nodded and seemingly agreed with them.

“We will do all we can do. For now, we have to defeat our current enemies. Mirepoc will stay in the rear. All other people who can move will go. We will attack with all of them.”

Bonbo created a formation of whales in the sky. The ones to hold their weapons and gather on the ground were not only the Ard Librarians and trainees; there were also so normal librarians who weren’t able to beco Ard Librarians. There were also those who intended on fighting despite not having any fighting capabilities.

They did not need Hamyuts’s orders. Not only did they not need poor orders against the army corps that were prepared to fight to the death, it would probably be harmful. Hamyuts watched them all in silence.

The subordinates continued their preparations for combat with grim expressions. They handed out small arms, loaded ammunition and ford lines. While sitting on the roof and watching this, Hamyuts let out a chuckle.

She already knew – they would not win.

“Are you happy, Hammy?”

It was then that Mattalast spoke to her.

“Oh, is that how it seems?”

“Anyone looking at you would think so. You look really happy.”

“Perhaps. This is quite the complicated feeling.”

Hamyuts had been waiting for soone who could kill her. Since now it was about to happen, there was no way she wouldn’t be happy.

Ever since she had defeated Mokkania and the Indulging God Cult was heading to destruction she gave up, thinking her defeat was impossible. However, it seed like there was still hope.

“I never thought it would co to this. I thought the Overseer of Paradise was an idiot, but I’ll revise my evaluation. That old geezer is quite sothing.”

Mattalast made a complicated expression. He was the closest man to Hamyuts, but it was different for her.

“Say, what was the cause of my defeat?”

“I can’t really say. Even if soone other than you was the Acting Director they would have probably been unable to evade this loss.

But if I have to say, there was one thing.”

Mattalast gently touched Hamyuts’s head.

“The Overseer of Paradise is a man who looks forward. But you’re one who waits for things to co to you. You were always waiting for soone to co and kill you.”

He tousled her hair.

“Hammy, you’re a girl waiting for her prince charming. A girl who dreams and believes soone will bring happiness to her. If I have to state anything as your cause of defeat, it would probably be that.”

“I see. That’s certainly true.”

Hamyuts held her knees and looked at Mattalast.

“I think I understand why I wasn’t feeling up to it.”

“What is it?”

“It seems that a bride always feels so depression before her wedding. She’s hesitating like, should I really marry this person? She thinks of all the n she knows and starts feelings bad.

I think it’s like that.”

“The depression of the waiting room, huh? Well, that’s natural. Marriage ans to stop being a dreaming girl and turn into an adult, after all.”

“Yeah, but I definitely have a person in mind.”

“Did you recall soone?”

Hamyuts nodded sweetly.

“If I am going to be killed by soone, I want them to be like Colio.”

Mattalast released his hand and then slowly left.