"... A perfect plan, you say. And yet..."

Having poured a cup of liquor, the Earth Sage spoke to me again.

"You look rather wistful."

"Pardon?"

"Why do you look so regretful when you were the one who cast them aside? Do you still have lingering attachments?"

Did I let a little of it show?

Tch, Earth Sage. Don't read a mind reader's expression. Reading thoughts is my specialty.

"Well, a little."

People pretend to scorn those who indulge in extravagant excess, but deep down, they envy them. They take pleasure in projecting themselves onto people who casually do what they themselves never could.

And that extravagance isn't limited to money. The more precious something is to me, the more valuable the extravagance of squandering it becomes.

Especially when it's something as precious as life... Envy can give way to fascination.

"But it can't be helped. Unlike them, I really can die very easily. I have to be more careful."

"You say you value your life, but that only makes you harder to understand. Master Hughes. Allow me to ask you something."

After bowing twice before the Grand Master, the Earth Sage suddenly raised her head and looked at me. Intent and emotion raged within her otherwise tranquil eyes.

"The Grand Master did not choose me, but you forced her to make a choice. As a result, I lost not only an arm, but even my justification. All my labors have come to naught."

She lifted her eyes sharply.

"Why, then, should I let you live?"

The question came with enough killing intent to send a chill down my spine. I gave her a noncommittal smile.

If she'd wanted to kill me, she'd have done it already.

Besides, there was no reason to kill me for nothing.

Hadn't her original goal been to eliminate the bottomless pit?

I was the one who'd soothed the Grand Master's soul.

Plenty of reasons came to mind, but I chose the one she would like best.

"If you let me live, one day I'll expose the Holy See for you."

"... Ha."

Perhaps her control briefly slipped, because a little blood seeped from her severed shoulder. The offer had been that unexpected.

The Earth Sage covered her shoulder with her remaining arm, lowered her head, and chuckled.

"... Truly?"

"I can't guarantee it'll happen. Neither of us is a prophet; we can only see what's right in front of us. But if I ever discover the Holy See's dirty secrets, I'll use this mouth of doom to make their lives difficult."

"Tempting. If it actually comes to pass, that is."

"Want to pinky swear? Oh, is that a little awkward for someone missing an arm?"

A commotion arose above the pit. The subdued soldiers were regrouping and beginning to move again. The Earth Sage glanced toward the noise.

"Rather than merely turn a blind eye, I suppose I ought to help you."

"I'll find my own way out. Just don't turn me in."

Moments later, the soldiers who had recovered their senses rushed to the edge of the bottomless pit. I slipped among the corpses, out of their sight.

With their searchlights gone, they had only faint lights to rely on. They cast their light into the pit and recoiled in horror at the corpses it had concealed.

"Aaaagh! Corpses!"

"I know what this is. This is the Overlord's burial ground! Their corpses must have remained here...! I remember learning about it in school!"

The commander shouted,

"Lower the ladders!"

"D-down in there?"

"Yes! Without searchlights, we have to go down and check for ourselves! And who just talked back to me? Since when do you question a lawful order?"

The soldiers hastily lowered the ladders. Shouting at the dumbfounded soldier, the commander climbed down.

"Search thoroughly! Don't be afraid to step on corpses! If you're afraid even to step on them, you'll never manage to make any...! Though I suppose that's why you were beaten so helplessly earlier!"

'You were beaten just as helplessly yourself...'

A nearby soldier thought this while glancing at the commander. Fortunately, the thought remained unspoken.

Continuing their search by lantern light, they eventually reached the summit of the corpse mountain. Recognizing the Earth Sage, the commander rushed straight toward her.

"Loyalty! Major Keioshin of the Wasteland Reconnaissance Unit! An honor to meet you, Brigadier General—! Good heavens! My God! General, your arm...!"

As the soldiers arrived, the Earth Sage, who had been kneeling reverently before the Grand Master, staggered to her feet.

"Pay it no mind. It is a minor injury."

"It can't possibly be...! First, we need to get you first aid!"

Good. Now was my chance.

While everyone's attention was fixed on her, I climbed the ladder they had lowered.

Someone who had stayed behind shone a dim light at me and asked,

"Hey, what's going on?"

Feigning urgency, I shouted,

"The brigadier general is gravely wounded! Medics! Get the medics, now!"

"Medics? They're tending to the wounded right now."

"You idiot! The brigadier general has lost her right arm! At this rate, the Earth Sage who built this country will bleed to death! Are you going to bring that disgrace on us? Hurry up and summon every last medic tending the wounded!"

Overwhelmed by my forcefulness, the officer backed off, grumbling, and called for the medics. Then he returned, nodding to himself, and demanded,

"Hey, who are you to talk to me like that, anyway? I'm the deputy commander..."

But I was already gone. The adjutant tilted his head in puzzlement.

Empty automobiles stood all around me. They were vehicles for patrolling the wasteland, distinguished by their thick tires. Humming, I walked along puncturing the tires one by one.

Their outer sides were tough, but the inner sides were relatively soft. Each automobile sagged to one side as I passed.

I climbed into the automobile I'd picked out, tossed my backpack inside, and started the engine.

RATTLE

I heard the wheels and steering mechanism engage. The vehicle vibrated roughly. Whistling, I pressed the pedal.

I'd punctured all the other tires along the way, so even if they noticed something amiss, they couldn't pursue me. A quick glance suggested they were too preoccupied to notice, anyway.

"All right. That's one thing done."

It was a fine vehicle that could travel without roads, but its military design was a drawback. Taking it onto a road would arouse all sorts of suspicion. A pity I'd have to abandon it after a while.

Just then, Tantalus came into view, now aboveground. I drove around it to put it between me and the soldiers, savoring the speed.

"Now, then. What shall I do next...?"

In truth, I already knew what I had to do.

In this heartless world, you couldn't even obtain a legal identity without money. Whether you went to another country or laundered your identity and went into hiding, the process demanded money.

Money really was the oxygen of the modern world.

First, I'd head to the back alleys of Amitengrad, the Military State's capital, and collect my hidden wealth. I needed to liquidate my assets, too.

Then I'd take revenge on the people who'd locked me up. I couldn't spend my whole life taking whatever they dished out, could I?

Good. That settled it. With my destination decided, I could simply enjoy the scenery for now.

A structure large enough to rival a natural landform filled the view to my left. Its concrete foundation, about a story thick, and the wrecked prison building atop it made a desolate sight.

I gazed up at the nearby building, lost in reminiscence.

So much had happened there. Eating, sleeping, playing with Azi, occasionally fighting, then going back to sleeping as long as I liked.

Hmm. Put that way, nothing much had happened.

But wasn't a collection of uneventful moments what living was? Did life need to have such special meaning? Wasn't being happy with that alone what it truly meant to live?

The ruined prison seemed intent on holding my heart captive now, rather than my body. I would never go back inside, but it would forever imprison a piece of my memories.

Goodbye, Tantalus. The place that held my extraordinary experiences...

CRASH

Then I hit something. The automobile jolted violently up and down, and the engine stalled. Having smacked my head against the steering wheel, I opened the driver's door and immediately shouted,

"Ah, shit! Watch where you're driving!"

I'd shouted reflexively, but no answer came. In fact, there wasn't much of anything around here that I could have hit.

What the hell had I run into? Had I driven over something strange?

Going around behind the vehicle, I discovered an odd object.

"What's this sign doing here?"

A sign protruding from the ground had been bent limply in half.

Where had I seen it before? It felt familiar, but I couldn't quite place it. After racking my brains for a while, I remembered and snapped my fingers.

Oh, right. The police officers escorting me. Hadn't they stopped when they saw this sign? It was the sign marking the end of the road.

A communications officer's voice had definitely come from here, and the guards had thrown me down on those orders.

"Hmm. Come to think of it, wasn't it Inspector Evian of Edelfight? I'd completely forgotten."

How dare he swing a steel baton at me? Just remembering it made my bones ache. The resentment I'd suppressed slowly crawled back out.

Good. I had somewhere to visit before returning to Amitengrad. I'd stop by Edelfight first and fuck that inspector up.

I was about to get back into the car when I noticed the ground near the sign had split into a grid. The pattern was oddly artificial for cracks caused by Tantalus overturning.

Could it be?

I approached, grabbed the grid-patterned ground, and peeled it away. It lifted easily, like a layer of skin.

Just as I'd thought: fake ground. Had the impact of Tantalus collapsing exposed it?

Beneath the layer I'd peeled off lay a hideously dented, rectangular metal structure.

Its design was closer to a box than a building. It looked as though the impact of the tilted Tantalus striking the ground had forced this buried box out of hiding.

"What's this? Did someone hide treasure here?"

Judging by its size, it looked like a large room, but surely no one lived here. Who would live in a metal box buried underground? Someone must have hidden something inside.

My hunting-and-gathering instincts stirred for the first time in a while. I drew my metal pick and climbed onto the box.

CLANG

The metal rang hollow.

"It's always fun to see what's in a gift box."

What might be inside? Whistling, I inserted my pick into a dented gap and got to work.

But no amount of probing would open the box. The lock wouldn't respond however much I fiddled with it, and pushing the pick into the dented gap caught on nothing. Clicking my tongue, I tossed the pick aside.

"Tch. What's the point of reading people's minds if I can't read a lock's mind?"

Come to think of it, I'd never picked a lock from scratch. I'd always stolen the key or found out the combination.

Damn. Leaving empty-handed would be such a waste... What should I do?

The steel had been dented by a tremendous impact. I could see inside through the warped seams.

Hmm. If I were just a little stronger, or a little heavier, I felt like I could get this open.

"Shall I give it a try?"

I placed both hands on the steel box.

The earth arts of Mother Earth's faith had originally required one's mental image to reach Mother Earth. That was why only her followers could use them.

But now that the Grand Master's secret had been revealed to the world, perhaps even I could use them. Like standard-issue magic or basic energy arts.

I concentrated and brought the Earth Sage and the Grand Master to mind.

To them, the earth flowed. From the life dwelling within it onward, it was an ever-changing entity moved by the great currents of nature. Earth arts were techniques that brought about changes in the earth that should ordinarily take decades or millennia.

Steel it might be, but it had come from the earth. Grasping the faint sensation I could feel, I used earth arts on the steel door.

"Hngh!"

CRASH

The door collapsed. Obeying the law of gravity, my body plummeted. Caught unawares, I tumbled across the hard floor.

"Ow, ow, ow."

I rose with a groan to find myself looking at a distinctly lived-in space.

No, should I call this lived-in, or not?

"It really was a room."

Someone had clearly been living inside this box. Every piece of furniture packed into the cramped space was worn from long use.

But what sort of person could possibly live shut away in such a tiny space? In that sense, the abundance of signs of daily life instead made it feel like a theater-of-the-absurd play.

"Set, Lux."

In any case, there might still be something here worth taking. Illuminating the dark interior with standard-issue magic, I ventured farther in.

"Huh?"

As I continued searching, something caught my eye.