Chapter 16
A man was being dragged out. He struggled violently, shouting at the top of his lungs. It sounded like he was cursing. Judging by how lethal those curses must have been, the atmosphere around us grew heavy—you could feel it just by watching.
The interrogator raised a hand high. The birds that had been holding the man scattered. The man dropped straight down. One name on the list in the interrogator’s hand dissolved into red smoke and dispersed. The people who had been protesting inside the cages all fell silent at once.
Everyone looked with frightened eyes at the birds clinging to the cages. If those birds were to scatter, the cages would plunge down whole. And that depended entirely on the interrogator’s mood.
“I can’t watch this.”
Irix said.
“Huh?”
“I said I can’t watch it.”
Irix suddenly stood up and threw open the window. The wind whipping through the canyon outside burst violently into the room.
“Hey, what are you—”
Irix grabbed the window frame and leaned forward. Startled, I hugged his waist from behind.
“It’s dangerous!”
Irix screamed in shock.
“What are you doing to me?! Let go!”
“It’s dangerous! What do you think you’re doing?”
“Let go! Now! Damn it, I said let go! Take your hands off me right now!”
I wanted to smack him on the back—and was just about to—when I heard frantic flapping sounds from below and stopped. In Irix’s hand was a paper-crane drone.
“Why did you grab that?”
“How about you let go first?”
“……”
Should I just shove him?
The mastermind would disappear, the novel would end, I’d die instantly, and everyone would be happy.
The small sign beside the window had its letters erased, replaced by new ones.
‘You must not kill him.’
“……”
The words soon vanished, and the sign returned to its original text.
『Do not open the window while the train is in operation.』
I let go of Irix. Still holding the paper-crane drone, he straightened up.
“Why did you grab it?”
“I have a use for it.”
Irix tightened his grip so the bird couldn’t move, then peered into its head. Its button-like eyes vibrated.
“Can you see me?”
The vibration of the pupils stopped.
Irix brought the bird right up to his face.
“It’s me. The Order.”
He said.
“Irix Verkardt—the absurdly huge vessel you’ve all been desperately wanting.”
What kind of self-introduction is that….
The snake seemed to feel the same way; it opened its mouth and let out a long sigh. Hisss….
“I happened to get on here, but it’s way too noisy right now. Could you quiet things down a bit?”
What is he even doing?
Irix released the bird. The snake shot forward like an arrow and swallowed it. Irix gasped in horror.
“What are you doing?! You can’t just eat someone else’s things, you venomous snake!”
“I told you not to call me a venomous snake.”
“If you adopt a kid, teach it properly! Tell it not to eat other people’s stuff! And it is a venomous snake!”
“I didn’t adopt it, I picked it up. And stop calling it a venomous snake. ‘Venomous snake’ becomes its name.”
“That’s how everyone raises them! And it is a venomous snake, so what’s your problem?”
“What, is it a stray cat? And I know it’s a venomous snake, just don’t call it that. Is that so hard?”
Devor flinched. He’d just realized it really was a venomous snake. Maimon and Anerika looked at the snake uneasily.
“What’s the difference? If it sticks to you, you raise it!”
“Then your house must be full of dogs and cats you picked up off the street. Oh, in that case, you’ll be better at disciplining adopted kids, so you teach the snake. And if you keep calling it a venomous snake, I’ll personally shut that mouth of yours.”
“How?”
“What’s so hard about it? I’ll grab that pouty mouth of yours and twist it shut.”
It was while they were bickering like that that I realized—
It was quiet.
No sound at all. The interrogator’s purge had abruptly stopped.
“What did you just do, young master?”
Devor growled.
“What kind of trouble did you cause, Irix Verkardt!”
“What do you think? I announced my existence to every Order.”
He made sure everyone knew what only a few executives thought they knew.
They’d all been forming wonderful little plans involving Irix in their heads—but that was over. Now that everyone knew, they’d have to watch their step.
The Order had a strict hierarchy. If someone low-ranking touched what a superior wanted, it would be a disaster.
“There are people here who were summoned to protect you, and you called those bastards here instead?”
“They’re just doing what they were going to do anyway—just a bit sooner.”
Devor’s face twisted even more.
That was when it happened.
Suddenly, my whole body prickled. I felt dizzy, my mind going blank for a moment.
What is this?
It felt like my veins were suddenly filled with electricity. This had never happened before—why now?
Irix hurriedly looked at me.
“Senior.”
I raised a hand.
“I’m fine.”
But maybe it showed on my face. Irix, eyes widened, came closer and grabbed my wrist. The tingling sensation subsided.
“Senior… could it be—”
Could it be what?
Judging by his expression, this didn’t seem good.
The prickling returned—this time at the nape of my neck. Irix placed his hand there.
How does he know exactly where it’s tingling?
Maimon spoke.
“Something is coming.”
He was staring at the bottom of the door. I didn’t like that feeling either.
Moments later, the area began to stain as if scorched by fire. It looked like a black evil spirit was seeping in.
Clatter, clatter—the door shook. Everyone watched tensely. Then the shaking stopped, and—
Bang.
The door was torn off.
Why not just knock and come in? It wasn’t even locked.
A black mass poured inside. Like a black bird spreading its wings, it surged upward, instantly wrapping around us and transforming into a gigantic hand.
The enormous hand filled the entire carriage, then abruptly narrowed at the wrist, trailing out through the doorway—like a black sack tied with string.
Irix stepped forward, his hand still resting on me.
There stood a man whose arm was connected to that massive hand.
“Greetings.”
The owner of the giant black hand was a crane-like, slender man. His face was completely concealed by a mask; only eyes gleaming with desire were visible.
“Who are you?”
Irix asked.
Starting with that question in this situation—wasn’t this sight shocking?
Right. This is a fantasy world. Things like this must be common.
I tried to stay calm. Don’t show I’m from another world. Calm down—
No. I can’t.
Damn it, what the hell is that?
While I screamed internally, Irix said indifferently,
“An unusual one.”
So this only counts as “unusual” here?
I did my best to remain calm, matching the local standards.
“Oh, me?”
The man threw his head back and laughed loudly.
A vein bulged at the back of Irix’s neck. He was irritated. Instead of being shocked, he was annoyed—of course. Fantasy world….
“Hah, hah! Who do you think I am?!”
And he laughed loudly again.
I was so annoyed I nearly forgot about adapting to this world. Having a giant arm is one thing—being annoying is another.
Irix frowned, closed his eyes, and when the grating laughter subsided, said,
“I didn’t ask because I already knew. I asked because I genuinely don’t.”
The snake nodded its small head. I nodded too.
“So please, just tell us.”
“Oh, my name—you should hear it slowly. I have something to show you.”
I said just tell us your name.
Irix tilted his head back and sighed.
“I’m only curious about your name, you know?”
No matter how many times he said it, the man simply wouldn’t listen.
“No. You must see it.”
Just how amazing was this thing he wanted to show us?
The giant shadow-hand squelched and swayed, bubbles rising to the surface.
What is that?
One bubble popped, revealing a red eye.
Then bubbles large and small burst one after another, red eyes spilling out—ranging from marble-sized to as big as soccer balls.
The eyes gleamed, all focused on Irix.
In that instant, the current inside my body surged violently.
“Senior.”
Irix tightened his grip. It soon subsided; my head cleared. But what good was that when there was a hand studded with eyeballs right in front of me?
The snake merely fluttered its wings at the sight of the eyes, not on guard. That was a relief. Despite appearances, maybe it wasn’t dangerous.
I should stay calm too.
Don’t show I’m from another world—
No. No. I can’t.
Damn it—that scared me. What is that thing?
If stuff like this shows up this early, what on earth is going to appear later?
