425 - Leonardo's Perspective: A Promise from Someday
I finally confirmed Tina's face, and breathed a sigh of relief. It was a face I wanted to look at forever, but I could not let her body get cold, so I rewrapped her in the blanket. As I lifted her body, lighter than when she was kidnapped, blanket and all, and stood up, a sound like thunder struck nearby.
"...!!"
A strong impact hit my right shoulder, and I nearly dropped Tina. I stepped forward to steady myself and quickly repositioned her in my arms. The sudden impact aside, there was no sign of Tina waking inside the blanket.
...What was that? What was that sound?
What on earth happened, I thought, lowering my gaze to my shoulder where I had felt the impact. On my shoulder, there should have been the black wolf fur and beneath it a simple pauldron, but something had pierced through the pauldron and embedded itself in my shoulder. Blood gushed out before my eyes, and when I tensed my bicep to check the wound, I felt a rolling, gritty sensation from the foreign object. There was also a faint smell of burning flesh.
...So it was not just a relic from two hundred years ago, after all.
I had heard stories of tubes that made thunder-like sounds and spat fire. A weapon that was always mentioned when learning about the reincarnator Camilo from two hundred years ago. The reincarnator Camilo brought this weapon to the then-Emperor of the Zugall Empire, and it enabled a kingdom that was only a small nation to grow large enough to call itself an empire.
...So that is it.
When I turned my face toward the direction of the sound, Edgar appeared from among the men on the far side of the suspension bridge. Thin smoke rose from the tip of the tube gripped in his hand.
"I do not know who you are, but leave what is in that blanket behind."
I had confirmed his appearance through far-seeing glasses before, but this was the first time I had seen Edgar at a distance where his voice could reach me, an out-of-place thought crossed my mind. More than the fire-spitting tube in his hand, I was bothered by his Adam's apple moving up and down every time Edgar spoke.
...Should I bite his throat out.
The thunder released from the tube struck me, but Tina was in my arms. Edgar used the tube knowing there was a risk the thunder might hit Tina. This, after kidnapping my little sister, cutting her hair, hurting her, and making her lose her heart. This was absolutely unforgivable.
"Are you a bandit or something? If you bring that here, I will give you money."
Calling Tina "that" like an object infuriated me. More than that, the very fact that he spoke about my little sister as if she belonged to him grated on my nerves.
...What to do? Go back across the suspension bridge and rejoin my subordinates, or cross the bridge and bite through Edgar's throat.
Personally, I wanted to choose the latter. He was the man who took Tina from me, hurt her, and nearly killed her. I did not want to let him get away with it quietly.
...But right now, taking Tina to a warm place as quickly as possible takes priority.
I wanted to exact proper revenge on Edgar, but I wanted to avoid delaying Tina's treatment for that. Tina's hair, showing she was at her absolute limit, was wet. According to Jean-Jacques's report, her clothes should still be wet too. Even if it was summer, I could not drag Tina around in damp clothes under the cold sky where snow still remained. What I needed to do was not bite through Edgar's throat to satisfy my own grudge, but shake off the pursuers and rush to Carlotta's mansion. At Carlotta's mansion, Tina would receive thorough care.
...With that many people, I could handle them alone.
But right now I was holding Tina, and I did not want to let her go, even for a moment. And one hand was injured by the fire-spitting tube, making it hard to move freely. Rather than venting my frustrations, I should escape with Tina for certain.
-- They are coming.
I sensed quiet breathing from behind and lowered my stance. My ears picked up sounds I should not have been able to hear. The footsteps powerfully kicking off the ground belonged to a beast.
"What? Are you going to put that down and go home? That is fine with me."
Saying he would let me go if I just left quickly, Edgar stepped onto the suspension bridge. My lowering my stance must have looked like I was about to put Tina, blanket and all, onto the bridge planks. Of course, I had no intention of letting Tina go, so I repositioned the blanket-wrapped bundle in my arms. Edgar looked puzzled at me showing no sign of listening, but his attention was only on me for that long.
"Whoa!?"
"What!?"
The men's screams from behind drew Edgar's attention that way. Wondering who had come, it turned out to be the men who had been surrounding Tina at Edgar's mansion. From their movements, they seemed to be ordinary street thugs who had not even received training as soldiers, let alone knights. Attacking those thugs from behind were Jean-Jacques and his men, whom I had left at the Koyornaharu shrine. Just as I had intended, Jean-Jacques seemed to have noticed the Black Dog's (Oscar) strange behavior and followed. I did not know why they had split up, but if the Black Dog went through an animal trail, it would not be strange for Jean-Jacques to have found a different path. They had probably ended up splitting as a result.
"What?! Whose orders are you under!?"
I think he reflexively tried to put distance from the attackers. Edgar advanced on the suspension bridge and looked back over his shoulder. What was happening beyond the bridge was an attack by Jean-Jacques, but since they were wearing rough but sturdy clothes and simple armor to look like bandits, he probably thought they were being attacked by mountain bandits. That assumption was not wrong, but turning his back to the enemy (me) was a mistake. My hands were full with Tina, but that did not mean I had no means of attack or no trump card.
-- It is here.
At the footsteps approaching from behind, I lowered my head to cover Tina so she would not be stepped on. The suspension bridge swaying from movements other than my own drew Edgar's attention back this way. Edgar's arm holding the fire-spitting tube was aimed at Jean-Jacques, but his face turned back. At his throat, the Black Dog leaped, using my back as a foothold.
"Wah!? Wh-what... the...!?"
...So it really does spit fire.
A thunder-like sound rang out, and the tube in Edgar's hand spat fire. When aimed at me, something seemed to have shot out, but the Black Dog's pounce must have thrown off his aim. Jean-Jacques, who should have been the target of the tube, showed no particular change, and was taking down Edgar's men one after another.
And Edgar, with the Black Dog biting at his throat, dropped the fire-spitting tube from his hand. The tube spun and slid across the frozen bridge boards, then fell into the ravine below. It was a height from which I could not imagine hearing anything, but I heard the tube clatter as it hit the bottom.
"You! ...You damn dog!!"
Having lost the fire-spitting tube, Edgar pulled a knife from his jacket. He was probably trying to pull the Black Dog off, but there was no way to avoid the Black Dog latched onto his throat. Since I did not think the Black Dog would let go once it had bitten its prey, I joined in. I swept a kick at Edgar, who was completely focused on the Black Dog and unaware of me.
"What!?"
As Edgar's posture crumbled, the Black Dog pulled back once to reposition, then aimed. This time for sure, the Black Dog's fangs caught Edgar's throat properly.
"Ugh... ahh... aahhh!"
...Damn it!!
Edgar, with the Black Dog clamped onto his throat, swung his knife wildly. One of those strikes cut the rope supporting the bridge planks, and the footing lurched beneath me.
"Tch!"
I reflexively reached my right hand for the intact rope on the opposite side, but my thunder-struck right shoulder throbbed with pain. My left hand was holding Tina, so I could not use it. My reaction was delayed by the pain, but I managed to move my right arm, only for it to barely fail to reach the rope.
...We are falling!!
For a moment, my body was enveloped in a floating sensation. The next instant, my body began to fall toward the ravine floor, but my thoughts were oddly clear.
...Ah, serves him right.
I caught a glimpse of Edgar's face in that moment colored by despair. I had wanted to take revenge with my own hands if possible, but seeing that face was enough. Ahead lay unavoidable death. Falling from this height, there was no chance of survival.
...I was supposed to come rescue Tina, though.
Whether because of our positions or because the Black Dog was clinging to him, Edgar fell to the ravine floor before me. I held Tina's body close as I watched his feet.
...Did I rush too much.
If Jasper had crossed the bridge and caught up before this, I might not have fallen into the ravine with Tina. I misjudged the timing of the attack. I am the one killing Tina.
...After finally getting her back, getting Tina caught up in this...!!
Something black separated from Edgar's body as he fell first. Edgar's body shook violently, and I thought his falling speed had slowed, but then I passed him. What had pierced Edgar was an icicle that had formed beneath the suspension bridge. An icicle had stabbed through his face and emerged around his waist.
...I will not let Tina be impaled.
Even if death was certain ahead, I had no choice but to protect Tina. If we were going to be smashed against the ravine floor, I would be the one below. If icicles lay in wait to impale us, I alone would be impaled. I would protect Tina until death.
...The bottom.
The impact came. I would be crushed. Would Tina survive, using me as a cushion?
I steeled myself and waited for that moment, but instead of impact, what assailed me and Tina was darkness.
...What?
I had braced to be smashed against the ravine floor. But with a loud thud, the world was instantly dyed in darkness. As I looked around to see what had happened, I saw countless bubbles.
...I can see, meaning there is light?
I thought we had been enveloped in darkness, but since I could see my surroundings, there had to be light. The bubbles were rising, meaning there was also an up and down.
...Moonlight. Is this... inside a river in the ravine?
I followed the bubbles' path and looked "up." I had thought the surroundings were pitch black, but as my eyes adjusted to the darkness, a pale light shone from above. It seemed a river flowed beneath the suspension bridge. However, just as Edgar had been pierced by icicles, the original river in the ravine was probably covered by thick ice. Falling through the ice and into the river like this should not have been possible.
"I came to fulfill a promise from someday."
A man's hand suddenly emerged from my chest and stroked the blanket covering Tina. With that single motion, the blanket opened, revealing Tina's sleeping face from within.
"Who is there!?"
Ignoring the strange sensation of an arm sprouting from my chest, I turned around, Tina and all. The arm sprouting from my chest seemed to have been an illusion or something, as behind me stood a black-haired man.
...Blue.
He had blue eyes. The moment I thought that, a certainty raced down my spine. I had never seen him before, but I had heard stories. An absolute being that all humans and beasts, everyone born into this world, knew, loved, and could not help but adore.
...The king of the people chosen by the gods.
By the time I realized it, I was on my knees, bowing my head while still holding Tina. There was no reason for it. It was only natural to bow before the King.
"Yes, that is right. That is the normal reaction. Few can remain standing before me without kneeling, unlike your little sister."
He permitted me to raise my head, and I looked up at the Divine King again. It might even be disrespectful to think this, but he looked a little like me. Not in the way Alfred and Alf resembled each other, but about as much as Rannvald and I did. You could say our rough construction was the same, giving a feeling that we could pass for father and son or brothers.
...Huh? A promise from someday?
Only now did his earlier words seem to reach my brain. The Divine King's first words were "I came to fulfill a promise from someday." I had no memory of making a promise with the Divine King, so it must be a promise Tina made. Tina apparently had encountered the Divine King numerous times.
...I never heard she made a promise with the Divine King.
I had heard she had been asked for a favor, but not that she had made a promise. The Divine King himself answered my question about what kind of promise it was.
"Before, I made a promise with Tina. That I would save her once."
I had not said it out loud, but it seemed nothing could be hidden from the Divine King. Receiving an answer to my inner thoughts, I felt something click into place.
...Ah, so that is why.
All the strange events tonight were probably the Divine King's arrangement to save Tina. The black wolf fur lending me its power, the trees clearing their branches so they would not get in my way, all of it was the Divine King's work. If the Divine King had come, it made sense that the black wolf and trees had called him "my King." The voice I had heard from within my heart was the Divine King's, and the wolves had been obeying the Divine King within me.
...Even so, it is strange that the Divine King calls Tina by her name, 'Tina.'
Tina said she had met the Divine King several times. She could not prove it, but the Divine King himself called her familiarly by name. So it was not a lie after all. Anyone born in this world would understand at a glance that the being before me was the 'Divine King.' There was no room to doubt the Divine King.
"The name of the one you currently call your little sister is 'Tina,' is it not. There is nothing strange about calling her Tina."
"'Tina' is not wrong, but her real name is 'Christina.'"
Tina was a nickname. Her real name was Christina. Since Tina was in the transition from child to adult, the adults around Tina had begun calling her 'Christina.' It was almost time for childhood to end. Appearance aside, at fifteen years old, she was already entering adulthood.
"Your little sister's name is 'Tina.' Even if her parents named her 'Christina,' the first name she heard and recognized as her own was 'Tina.'"
Apparently, 'Christina' was just what humans called her. From the perspective of non-humans, Tina's name was recognized as 'Tina.'
Even if I went around correcting this, since Tina herself first thought of herself as 'Tina,' it apparently would not be corrected as an error. Just as I was starting to think this was strange, an even stranger statement came out.
"The same way your name 'Leonardo' is false."
The name her parents gave her, the name I first recognized as my own, was not that, the Divine King said. How did the Divine King know that my name was different? I thought so, but the other party was the Divine King. It was stranger to find such a thing strange. The Divine King was the king of the people chosen by the gods. Since he was also the king of people (me), he might know the names of his own possessions.
"...The false name 'Leonardo' serves as a blinding against spirits."
"Blinding...?"
I wanted to ask what he meant by blinding, but the Divine King smoothly extended his arm and slipped his hand into the blanket wrapped around Tina. After feeling around her neck area, when he pulled his hand back out, a small girl in a red dress was caught in it.
"A spirit...? But Tina said she was hated by spirits..."
"This is a spirit you attached to her. You gave her a flower where this one dwelled, and Tina cherished it until the flower withered. Therefore, it attached itself to Tina out of fondness."
However, the Divine King paused, and the girl in his hand looked frightened. She was making some high-pitched squeaking sounds, but I could not understand the words.
"This is too much. It would be one thing to provide a small amount of assistance to an individual, but it has started exacting revenge on others. If it becomes this attached to a single individual (Tina), it can no longer be called a spirit and is becoming something else."
It will eventually become a great disaster, he continued, and my blood ran cold. The spirit's revenge had been mentioned both in Giselle's letter and in Jean-Jacques's report. Around Tina, those who had directly harmed her had suffered similar fates, though with time lags. Jasper only had his arm cut, but the torturer who waterboarded her had died from hitting his head on a water jug. If it intended to take revenge for Tina, I wished it would take revenge on the kidnapper who put Tina through such an ordeal, but that was the spirit's work. Those who did not directly lay hands on her were not seen as targets of revenge.
From a human perspective, those who gave orders and instructions bore greater responsibility, but from the spirit's perspective, only those who directly laid hands on her bore guilt. The spirits probably could not understand the social hierarchy of human society. When the Divine King said it "would eventually become a disaster," it was not a joke or an overreaction. The time between revenge acts was shortening, and as a result, people had died. If Tina remained accompanied by a spirit that had begun to run rampant, she would not be able to live among people. If she got into a minor argument that led to a light shoving match, the other party would later be killed by the spirit. Associating with Tina means death. Such rumors could start.
"What will you do with that Enomena spirit?"
"I have been lazy for a long time, but I will do my job. I cannot leave a spirit that has begun to degenerate and run rampant unattended. I will return it to nothingness."
"That is..."
Whatever form it took, it had been protecting Tina. It may have been starting to run amok, but everything it did was out of goodwill toward Tina, and to protect her. Having it punished by the Divine King for that reason felt unsettling.
"Spirits have a completely different nature from humans. Even when I say 'return it to nothingness,' it merely disperses its individual consciousness. Its existence itself is not lost."
Apparently, it would simply have its attachment to Tina dispersed and return to its original state. I had worried that the spirit would be killed for protecting Tina, but it seemed the meaning was slightly different.
"Thank you for protecting Tina. I am sorry that because of that, you ended up being glared at by the Divine King."
If you are born again, please get along with Tina. When I spoke these words to the girl in the Divine King's hand, the girl who had been squeaking with a high-pitched voice calmed down. When the Divine King loosened his grip on the now-calm girl, she slipped out of his hand, moved to Tina's shoulder, and kissed her forehead. After that, it happened in a flash. The girl leaped into the Divine King's chest, then disappeared as particles of light. As I watched the particles of light slowly fall, I heard a 'warning' from the Divine King.
"Never speak your true name. If the blinding is undone, I do not know what might happen."
As for what the blinding was against, it would be against spirits. I had just been told that the spirit had recognized Tina's name as 'Tina.'
...My name should not be one that would invite attacks from spirits.
"I do not know what might happen" meant he was thinking of the worst case scenario caused by spirits, which would be an 'attack.' The Enomena flower spirit that had been with Tina had killed a person. If I became a target of a spirit's attack, that meant my life would be in danger too.
"Things are different now. I can wait out a human lifespan these days, but some spirits are short-tempered."
...What? What is he talking about?
What was he talking about? Ignoring me, who could not keep up, the Divine King kissed Tina's forehead. His lips moved faintly, but I could not hear any sound. However, I could read his lips, so I understood the words the Divine King whispered to Tina.
The Divine King declared the completion of the promise to Tina, then added one last thing. He whispered that he had gained one more wish.
That you would grant it.
Leonardo-san, the man before your eyes is the record holder for most Tina kidnappings in the story.
As for the musket and various other things that Tina would probably point out, I will touch on them another day.
With that, Chapter 11 comes to a close. Next is Chapter 12. To adjust various things that have shifted between Chapters 10 and 11, the next update is scheduled for the 12th.
Will fix typos and errors at a later date.