Chapter 109 – 10. Express Train to Partenope (9)
Do you know the universe of metaphysics?
Daily life has already been invaded. While time is distorted and space is distorted, the only thing people can perceive is themselves. It is such an indescribably wide and narrow world.
Because the universe in a broad sense that goes beyond narrow-mindedness is not something that can be understood with the mere nervous system of an immature being.
It is fear, excitement, and a shudder engraved in it. That is why it is a state of existence that must be conquered someday. Therefore, on the one hand, it is the stage of success that is still difficult to reach and the beginning of divinity.
– Oh, poor thing.
The old man in his old skin glared at his eyes. He turned his gaze with a very grotesque expression along with esoteric hand gestures. While the sparkling light enveloped the world, the sun rising in the distance continued to brighten like the dawn.
―I wanted to take some of the burden you were carrying.
It felt like my brain was jumbled up. The first half of perception, which should have come from the brain, was easily distorted to the absurd level. The emotion, which had not been shaken like a quiet sleep, fluctuated as much as a beating heart, and a strong sense of excitement came over the whole body.
―I’m sorry I couldn’t…….
It was an ecstasy as if walking through heaven. It was a pleasure that made me shake my head and shake my head without realizing it. I thought that the feeling of floating around as if I was freed from physical restraints was something that no one could help but be happy about.
― Please, won’t you be happy?
It was a quagmire-like hallucination. It was an experience that could not be tasted easily even with lethal drugs. The fact that I was able to realize that fact was only thanks to my knowledge and introspection. After all, she was Adele Schneider. Because he was that fearsome Saxon trainer.
“You started from scratch and became the ruler of the underworld in just a few years. However, Dawn asked you until the moment she died. Put down your heavy burdens and go in search of happiness.”
The synesthetic experience was also revealed in the form of a woman who resembled me magically manifesting itself. She seduced me with a clever mix of truth and lies, and whispered to me that it’s not too late, so she upheld it.
“It still lingers on the ghostly past.”
Adele sneered. The corners of her mouth didn’t rise a bit, but her sharpness was enough nonetheless. For her, who rarely expresses her feelings, it was already an expression full of energy.
“Are you denying me?”
She looked down at Adele with her arrogant eyes as a superstitious woman. From her appearance, to her personality, to her way of speaking. It’s only an illusion, but the two are very similar. It almost reminded me of that superstitious doppelganger.
“I’m not free enough to dwell on the past.”
“The past is the motivation for the future.”
“But you are not my motive. It’s just a personification that only looks like that at first glance.”
Tilt, the doppelganger woman tilted her head.
“I don’t understand. You were the kind of person who pushed yourself to the extreme. It was indeed the life of a slave. Sometimes I served reality as my master, sometimes fate as my master, and sometimes crime and punishment as my master.”
Soon she came closer to Adele.
“The fact that you are trying to turn away from me is hard to accept.”
“Everyone feels ashamed of their stupidity when they face their past.”
“I am your essence. Because of me, you are who you are now. Do you think you can deny that fact?”
Attempts to share ideas are meaningful only when there is mutual exchange. That’s why Adele quietly scolded the doppelganger who stood upright in front of her.
“I will neither confirm nor deny.”
“…… ?”
“Because you don’t know.”
Crime and Punishment is a fairy tale like a rainbow in a dream. The woman who once conquered the underworld knows how heartless this world is. Therefore, she never shows frustration. She doesn’t even show remorse.
“I am Adele Schneider. But not you. What did it matter what I was called in the past? Low hypnosis can do me no harm. A subject as extravagant as the essence is not something I will deal with.”
Even if it is in front of myself.
“It’s comforting to think you could get past me with tricks like this.”
Clink! The broken doppelganger fell like a mirror. Eventually, what was placed in the bizarre hallucination was an unexpectedly true memory.
– Morality is a shackle, ethics is a leash.
An elderly, gray-haired woman was reclining on her bed, opening her mouth.
―It’s just prejudice wrapped up for justification and legitimacy.
Even with a pale expression, he uttered it clearly without ever shrinking.
– I will not pity you.
It adorned the end with words so chauvinistic that it is hard to believe that it was a will.
– Just say, go ahead…… !
Elke Schacht, the life of an alchemist called Dawn ended like that. I did not sympathize with and feel sorry for the disciples I had gathered, but closed my eyes as if giving a final instruction.
“Ezekiel.”
In her lifetime, she had only two disciples. One of them was excommunicated and the other perished. So now, after a long time, the two men and women were facing each other with a distinctly different look.
“Accepting you was the mistake of my life.”
It was a cognition world in which each other hypnotized each other and mixed. As the tug of war continued, Adele reached out her hand. It was to get closer to him who, unlike me who showed up proudly, was hiding behind the traps piled up in layers, befitting his shady personality.
– Sister Adele.
– Yes, Giselle.
― Why did you start doing it?
The first trap, as expected, was my wrath. It was the time when I was with that pure vampire who was born as an aristocratic young lady.
Gisele Schneider.
She, who once followed me exceptionally, had retained the appearance of Gisela Obermire until then. She was the center of the collapsed aristocratic forces under Beatrix, and it wasn’t that she had no intention of restoring the monarchy, but she was a woman who dreamed of the small happiness she could enjoy with those who were with me rather than such a cause.
― It was the best job I could choose based on my knowledge.
―Are you the best, a teaching assistant?
— People keep my desires as if they were shallow, in order to save face. Even so, I can’t shake off the shame, so I look for a place to discharge it quietly. The underworld is a gray area that gains power from such antinomic hypocrisy.
Daejeo teaching assistant is a job that is closely related to sexual desire, which is the hardest thing for living things to shake off. So, Adele Schneider was willing to approach the center of power by dealing with pleasure.
― Hypocrisy is familiar. Evil is even worse. That’s why I decided to pursue a career as an assistant teacher. Because it guaranteed the most promising future among the jobs I could choose.
It was clear that it was not a bad choice regardless of good or evil. The teachings received from the famous alchemist of the generation were also used in such an evil world. Adele soon became the best teaching assistant in Saxony, and became a powerful enough to reap the nobles of the fallen kingdom era.
― But that’s a future built by destroying other people’s lives.
– Yes, definitely.
― Aren’t you afraid of the aftermath?
― A hunter is not afraid of his prey.
But why?
– Still, I’m sad.
― Why is that?
― I think my sister will suffer from guilt later on.
These days, it’s hard to get rid of the thought that it might have been a really bad choice.
― Sister Adele, I’m back.
— Hans.
―All targets have been dealt with.
The second trap was my sin. It was Hans Schneider who was sold as a rare sale as a soldier with a major. Since he was picked up by me, he has played the role of a confidant, taking on menial tasks such as violence.
― When you say you dealt with it, did you kill it?
– Some.
―I would have told you to keep it alive if possible.
―If you punish me, I will gladly accept it. However, these organizations were not known for their honor. These garbage gangs deserve to be cleaned up, not the people who need to be reaped.
It wasn’t because he was peeking at the time, looking for an opportunity, or dreaming of a comeback.
—I know better what they were like.
– Am I wrong?
― No, you just did what you had to do. But even if it’s not punishment, you have to take responsibility.
It was just a boeun.
― What responsibilities are you talking about?
―I will attach an old colleague and make a contribution. Go and make yours the place of those you killed today. It is to form a new organization with the brothers.
Hans Schneider did. He was lofty like a wolf, but he knew the fidelity as a human being.
―The big boss, Esther surrendered.
– Ollie.
―Now she and the gallery of her royalties are yours.
Where was that
― The gallery will definitely be mine. But I think Esther should be yours.
―Then I will give you eternal allegiance.
Olly Harzfeld and his family too.
– Sister Adele.
– Sister.
– Teacher.
– You are the boss.
Everything I’ve collected has been like that.
“It’s no use trying to provoke me with trivial memories like this!”
Adele stretched out her hands from side to side. As she was, she drew a large circle. In it, he completed Yeon Seong-jin by drawing patterns that ordinary people could not understand.
Clink, click!
Layer upon layer of hypnosis and brainwashing was broken. Considering the absolute nature they must have, it was impossible. Nevertheless, Adele took the upper hand in the fight against Ezekiel as if it were natural.
Go ahead, thump!
It revealed him who was hiding behind the hallucination of the image.
“…… Cool!”
Ezekiel, who was suppressed by the unexpected counterattack, vomited his blood. It was because of the pressure caused by the recoil of the spell. Because all magicians have to pay the price the moment my magic technique fails.
“Now it is your turn.”
“Uhhh, really, you are my sister.”
An alchemist and hypnotist, he was no exception. The pursuer of the Iron Cross bent down, chewing on humiliation. And as if Adele would not give him any sympathy, she immediately began to extract his memories.
– Oh, Lars!
— …….
― No, not two people!
— …….
– Please stop!
The first memory I pulled out belonged to a certain stranger. Armed with pistols, he was confronting a man he knew well. The man’s name was Rolf Renner, and he was also the leader of Bernhard’s royalists.
Then who is the monster?
The pale man didn’t say anything. He only saw through the mother and daughter hiding in the secret room behind the closet in the hallway. Even Rolfe, who was aware of the fact and was in a hurry to stop it, easily shook it off and let his muzzle hang on the floor.
Tattang!
He grinned as he fired at the rugged carpet. It was as if he had done his duty with it. And, as expected by an unknown assailant, Rolfe, startled by the gunshots that came from far away, gasped and headed for the locker room.
There, I met Linda and Tina, who had a hole between their eyes.
Rolfe sobbed. Like a mad king in a classic play, he hugged the mother and daughter and shed tears like a hero of a tragedy. And the assailant was still sneering at such a sight, and then spat out his mouth silently.
You should have cried like that for your mother.
— …… !
What followed was ruthless violence. The assailant beat him until his blood and flesh splattered into porridge, then ripped off his arms with force. Even though it belonged to an old man, it was of tremendous strength, and that made it an even more horrifying sight.
But it didn’t end there.
Having incapacitated the man who had once been his father, he left with his hair clutched. Perhaps unable to speak, even with one hand connected to the walkie-talkie and hooked it to his belt, only petty gunshots rang out periodically.
Tang, tang, tang, tang, tang.
The successive gunfire seemed at first glance like a celebration of victory. But, as the discerning eye would have noticed, it was a telegraph sign. He started reporting somewhere instead of my upbringing, and soon handed over Rolf to the bodyguards who entered the yard of the mansion.
―Chief of the Special Affairs Bureau, Mattan is reporting that the mission has been completed.
― Please tell Lars that you have worked hard.
― He said he would start sharing memories as soon as he returned.
– I will tell the general manager. All crew members, immediately move to the designated location with Matan.
– Heil Adler!
The first memory is over. Unfortunately, it wasn’t Ezekiel’s. It belonged to another Iron Cross member called Matan. And Adele realized that he was the eldest son of Rolfe, who was said to have died soon after.
“Are you thinking of escaping into someone else’s memory even in a situation like this?”
Adele put a contemptuous expression on her face and hypnotized him again. As he had done with me, he tried to bring out the vices and sins and destroy them in my image. And in the process, he bit his lip at the memory that trickled out little by little.
– Jurgen?
― Lieutenant General Otto Moritz, commander of the 9th Corps of the Wehrmacht Bernhardt.
– Are you alive?
– The Director-General has sentenced you to death.
― But how, how…… !
― It is enforced as of the current time.
There was also a memory of the general who was frustrated by the unbelievable reality. After literally killing him, he also remembered watching him cry, saying that it was not only his wife until the moment he died.
―Oooooh, Beatrix!
―Please don’t use His Excellency’s name indiscriminately.
―How, how could a person do such a cruel thing!
―It’s just iron blood suitable for those who resist.
― Frieda, not only Frieda…… !
Wow! The general who uttered the final words died just like that. The frightened wife clung to his corpse and cried, but did not think of running away. As if this were fate, he would accept it resolutely.
– Let’s go together, Mother.
– Auto! Auto!
―I know you are innocent.
-Jurgen…… !
― I will serve you wholeheartedly, so please stop thinking nonsense.
Left behind, she couldn’t help but cry and cry endlessly.
―My son, are you really the Jurgen I know?
― Even though years have passed, would you use it only if you did not recognize your child?
– How are you like that? You just killed your father! If you’re alive and well like this, why didn’t you contact us once? And why did you suddenly appear and kill Lee? How can you explain it!
The two who appeared out of nowhere just spat out with a fishy smile.
―As Dori, who became a child, he only avenged his father.
— …… !
– Respectfully escort you to the safe house! I will speak directly to the Director-General.
Incision does not necessarily refer only to fidelity. As her hero’s companion, Frida Moritz loved and supported her husband, forgiving her even though she knew he was walking down a thorny, dangerous path. She had often sworn that she would go through any ordeal.
– Don’t come closer!
That was why she resisted, taking out a handgun hidden somewhere in her house. Taking advantage of her superiors’ order to take advantage of her soldiers, who had not been able to point their guns at her, she quickly loaded the bullet and reached for the trigger, screaming as she stood by her husband’s body.
– It won’t work the way you want, dear.
Bang! As if she’d rather die than lose her husband unjustly and prolong her life in a pitiful way, she put her gun to my brain and pulled the trigger without hesitation. Thus, her blood and brain were shed and her life was short-lived.
– It’s like you, Mother.
— …….
― It’s an expected reaction, but I can’t help but feel bitter.
― What should I do, Colonel?
―Tell the Director-General that you will join us right away.
– Heil Adler!
Her second memory is also over. Unfortunately, this was not Ezekiel’s memory either. It belonged to another member of the Iron Cross called Imprint. And Adele realized that he was also the adopted son of the Moritz couple, who were said to be dead.
“Kuk-kuk…….”
Ezekiel laughed.
“Are you feeling better?”
And mocked
“It’s a purge.”
Adele immediately realized what he wanted to convey from the memories he gave away. This disgusting hypnotist was using even his own suffering as a means of scorning his opponents.
“What trick did you do?”
“Well, isn’t this also the mystery of royalties?”
“Don’t think about running away. Three of the Iron Cross. Are we to take it as a mere coincidence that three of them are made up of people close to us?”
Ezekiel grumbled and added. It was an unfavorable attitude to the extent that even his cool face and slender height were buried.
“If it’s not a coincidence, it must be a prophecy.”
Well, he was that kind of person from the beginning.
“…… Partenope.”
Adele paused and held out her hands. As if trying to extract all the facts he knew, he began flooding his memory with strange hand gestures and the gin he drew from them.
―First Director Herbert Hanke informs all members of the unit. Anton Feininger’s position has changed. Appears to be a previously unidentified route, so calculate and report the expected destination.
How did you select your target?
– It’s over, Feininger.
– Do you want to make it in Japan? The Director of the Secret Service, which is rare to see, came in person.
Who visited them
― You pretend to be so smart, but you leave your Excellency alone and stick together with a male prostitute.
―The nobility of the person I serve is not something you or the like can dare to discuss.
And what kind of conversation did you have?
―There has to be a degree of stupidity. Well, you used to be that kind of person.
– Why? Do you remember the good times?
―How to throw away lingering feelings in the past.
– Then kill me.
― Then see you in Hell, my love.
What other end did you meet?
―You’re in trouble, Robert Eidinger.
—Irma Schwarz.
– I finally found it. I thought I was new to catching it.
―I have heard of the reputation of the heroine of the fire department. He said he was from the impossible 0 Corps, so he’s really condescending.
The first was Anton Feininger.
– Quietly surrender. That way you don’t have to notice the lower ones.
– I am a soldier. You have to figure out how to escape without fighting, so even if you are executed, you have nothing to say.
– Do you mean you want to die?
―It means that I want to see the skills of the rumored 0 Corps.
– What can I do to die?
— …… Come!
Next was Robert Eidinger.
―This is Leonhard Steiner, Director of the Special Affairs Bureau. He temporarily took over command of the 2nd Bureau and killed Army Intelligence and all involved in the 9th Corps. In the case of family relatives, Ernst Heydrich, the head of the Guards Bureau, is being taken into custody. As of the present time, we report that the Yeongbu-gun factions have been wiped out.
– This is Hanke. Each person told me that he would join us right away.
―Matan is also on the way to the designated location.
In the end, it was all of them, even the forces under their command.
―All that remains is pursuit.
―What should I do, Director-General?
―I will send him the memories of Matan and Imprint. Move the entire crew immediately to 909 1st Street, Rosengart District. A woman who might be a twilight alchemist is fighting on the site, so please subdue it carefully.
It was truly a great home.
– Heil Adler!
Adele twitched her eyebrows. He quickly withdrew his hands, realizing that his memories were only from a few minutes ago. He eventually broke the hypnosis in the images he had completely controlled, and he returned from the metaphysical world to reality.
“It must have been a trap.”
Since the first painting of Yeon Seong-jin, the two have been back and forth in the world of hallucinations. The bodies were still facing each other in the living room, and Adele was suppressing Ezekiel’s mind with the initiative she had taken earlier.
The problem is the numerous presences felt outside the inside.
The position of three seats in the Iron Cross is by no means light. From the beginning, Ezekiel had no intention of defeating Adele. Unlike herself, who was excommunicated on her way, she continued to practice her master’s teachings. Because no matter how self-taught she was, she had a limit that she couldn’t keep up with.
“Dawnsmith, Partenope’s oracle, Grand Alchemist, Celestial Prophet, that Elke Schacht’s apprentice is your sister, isn’t it?”
“…….”
“At least in that field, our old teacher is comparable to you, do you think I would have looked down on you?”
At least in the fields of alchemy, hypnosis, and magic theory.
“I am seeking. What makes this Ezekiel Schneider come true is grand ambition. I don’t know how my sister has viewed my training, but I’m not small enough to be satisfied with the fields of alchemy and hypnotism.”
Because of hypnosis, his physical freedom was tightly suppressed. However, Ezekiel, who did not blink an eye at that fact, hinted at the magic of the SS sneaking up on him from outside. I declared that the situation would turn around as I had planned.
“I should have trusted Elke’s judgment. Since he recognized who you were, I had to kill him resolutely. If it had been, this would not have happened.”
“Okay, but what about this? Unfortunately, after being excommunicated, my sister took me away from wandering the streets. Not only that, but he also released the spell that Dawn had placed on me. Thanks to that, I can use alchemy and hypnosis again.”
Adele and Ezekiel pondered over the past.
“Maybe it’s too late to ask now. But unlike then, when there was no rush, I have to ask now.”
“What?”
“Why did you do that?”
It’s too disgusting to say it’s a memory. I don’t dare to call it a memory.
– Ezekiel? What are you doing?
― Ah, sister. You are here now.
— …… ?
― This outing has been quite long. I was eagerly waiting for you to come back.
It was the story of the days when Adele Schneider was firmly established as Saxony’s chieftain. At the time, she was spending a lot of time in and out, and when she had to go out to the outside of Bruelne, she had her subordinates fill in the void.
Hans was trustworthy because he knew the truth.
Giselle, who was versatile as the center of the old nobility.
And Ezekiel, who was reaped by the kite that he studied as an alumni in the past.
The well-organized underworld triumvirate was the driving force that allowed Adele to roam freely outside. As it must have been, when she returned one day, everything was different.
―Look, they were deeply hypnotized.
– What?
― Their brains have already been completely brainwashed. It’s like the spell that’s holding the sister-in-law down right now.
— …… !
A man who has betrayed grace.
– What are you doing now?
― Well, what is it?
―Did you have any dissatisfaction or resentment against me?
– It’s not really like that.
Adele knew. His motives are clear. Because it was an ambition and a desire.
– Coincidentally, this woman has it.
― Keep your hands off Giselle.
– Bare mouth?
Excommunicated but a priest, he was the next most skilled hypnotist. He was naturally good at brainwashing people with him, and it wasn’t too difficult to use it as a means of negotiation or intimidation.
– What do you want?
―Please give me the spirit of sister-in-law.
– Mental?
― It means that I ask you to fully accept the hypnosis I am giving you.
It was quite innocent to be called lust. The direction of his greed was truly different from possessiveness. I couldn’t even call it a desire to conquer. If he did, he wouldn’t have ruined that poor Giselle he was aiming for just like me.
― How about it, would you accept the deal?
― It seems that there is something I need to know first.
― Hmm, what is that?
―This kind of sorcery theory can’t tie me up for a long time.
— …… !
It was a thorough ruse. Still, the counterattack was not difficult. Ezekiel, who was proud of his skills, was suppressed by Adele’s time dragging. He was tortured on both sides of his mind and body until he was tied to a hypnosis he didn’t know when he walked and died.
― Shit, what counts…… ?
―I will ask you about the motive later.
Bullying, in which Saxony’s teaching assistant put all his efforts into expressing his personal feelings, was truly evil. I dare to say that it was not of this world. However, even in the midst of this, Ezekiel’s actions had been prepared over a long period of time, and he soon got an opportunity, and she soon encountered unexpected variables.
― Cu cu cu cu…….
– This…… !
―Did I tell you? If my mind as a sorcerer is suppressed, they made their minds collapse too? I can’t believe I did it without such a safety device!
– Ezekiel…… !
― Ah, but it’s really fucking wasteful. It hurts behind I thought I could do a little more, but damn!
―I command you as a magician! Suicide right now…… !
— …… If you do, they will die with you. That’s the last safeguard.
Rarely, Adele twisted her brow. She was subtle and subtle enough that she couldn’t even recognize that she did, but to her, she was the expression of her life’s feelings. It was such an unpleasant memory recall. Because of what happened after that, she let Ezekiel escape without killing him.
“Creating a family that didn’t exist, creating memories that didn’t exist, and settling down in their place.”
“It was fun.”
“What was the reason?”
Ezekiel sighed. Even while her body was restrained, the minimum resistance was possible, and not only the muscles of her mouth and face were twitching above her neck, but also shrugging her shoulders below it.
“Perhaps this passage is appropriate, right? If I’m giving a speech about some shit philosophy or a motive based on my actions.”
“…….”
“It was, of course, a very complex impulse. And also because of what happened personally between me and people like Giselle and Hans. It could be explained as envy and conquest for them, or lust for you, or something else.”
“…….”
“But, sister? Ultimately. I thought that would be the case. It must have been fun, and it could have been.”
After hearing that, Adele closed her eyes. It was because he thought of Jungwoo’s existence, which he already felt distant. And it was because he thought that what he said was absolutely right.
True evil does not so readily admit itself as evil!
Ezekiel Schneider was an ambitious darling. He had the will to become the master of his life, and because of that, he could not find any guilt for the sins he committed. Nor did he have a firm consciousness that such a method was right.
“How can I speak vulgarly? I thought it would kill me if I put it on the side of a bitch who pretended to be an aristocrat, and made me suck a dick from a guy who was rolling his eyes because he was a soldier. Wouldn’t it feel like you had the whole world if your sister would serve you as an added bonus?”
In the first place, I just didn’t feel the value of discussing such a topic.
“They say that in the United States is sex.”
Thanks to that, Adele Law, who had been gracious, had to subdue the rage that would never happen again in her life. He had to save them, who were on the brink of collapse at any moment, with the hypnosis he had worked hard on for a long time. He even had to make the memories with the family he made and didn’t exist real.
“Because of that lowly desire, I had to lose something precious.”
“Where can I lose it? He even took his own life and brought back what he had brainwashed.”
“…….”
“I found out after hearing about it. What a great idea. The hypnosis that I had been walking on for a long time, pretending to be my own and changing it. I’m sorry I missed it. It would have been a spectacle you couldn’t see even if you paid money.”
It was an urgent moment where life and death could be divided in seconds. It was a pretty good idea to improvise in such a situation.
If there’s a problem, it’s just that I couldn’t stop their memories from being distorted.
It’s just that he has become a body that has no choice but to leave and be chased.
“I heard you covered everything I did. I heard that even things that didn’t exist later were vividly decorated. I heard that he instilled resentment in them and led them to live with a vengeance toward him. Living as a sinner and an enemy that will never exist again in this world! Pursued relentlessly! Being harassed! Despised!”
“It certainly was.”
“Didn’t you want to get out? Didn’t you want to clarify? What about the memories you regret or want to bring back? I’m really curious about that feeling. Hurry up and appeal with those beautiful lips. The resentment, grievance, and passion!”
It was once. It wasn’t revealed on the outside, but I suffered from the things that boiled up inside me every day. Then, at some point, it became dull. I felt like I had improved, whether it was because my personality was blunt or because the flow of time had passed.
“They were mine.”
It wasn’t.
“Giselle, Hans, Olly, Lothar, Peter, Paul, Lorenz, Wilhelmina, Tobias, Dirk, Friedrich, and even Conrad.”
However, even the self who should have believed in me until the end had now turned its back on itself.
“Even the head of the underworld is an unequivocal leader. Daejeo A boss takes care of his subordinates. You keep them safe in exchange for their loyalty. But I couldn’t. Because I didn’t realize the cancerous existence that you are.”
“A cancerous being.”
“It was painful to live as a sinner and an enemy. Like you said, sometimes they were pursued relentlessly. I was harassed. I was despised again. But I didn’t want to get out. I’m just paying the price for my negligence.”
“It’s hard to believe, no matter how old you are. It means that even he accepted it as his own immorality and negligence. So, are you saying you never had the slightest desire to explain?”
“If you explain, what will be different?”
Ezekiel tilted his head. It was a very natural question.
“Wouldn’t that be better than not trying?”
“That doesn’t change anything. Even if you regret it, even if you want to turn back. If something has already happened, it is better to look to the future rather than dwell on the fact itself.”
“So, you’re not frustrated?”
“I was frustrated. I blamed myself. It was painful. However, as you said, all of that is my vice and impertinence. It was a predetermined ordeal from the time I decided to become a teaching assistant, and a scheduled test from the moment I rose to the position of a leader.”
The world is truly wide. That is why the number of the wicked is incalculable. However, oddly enough, there are also people in this land who surpass even their bad karma.
― But Adele, if you’re a bitch.
– I’m nothing but bestiality and trash.
― So it’s okay.
– Don’t beat yourself up…….
Seo Jeong-woo, the president’s male prostitute. And young man. A clumsy revolutionary and a wounded soldier.
“The male prostitute you looked down on so much taught me. Despite the sins and false accusations that are like karma. Even if he is shaken, if there is someone who believes in him and sticks with him, he can overcome anything.”
However, for me, it is just a teacher named master.
“He was indeed the owner of this Adele Schneider. It is not because I have dominated me with my vulgar, filthy, base desires like you. It’s like that because we shared joy and shared sorrow and were united by faith. It is because my willingness to atone for even this heavy sin that I am burdened with proves it.”
“What’s so great about that spearman?”
Feeling displeased with the conversation that didn’t go the way he intended, Ezekiel wrinkled his expression. Adele stared at him with a calm face, then realized that the guards who had approached to raid the safe house had arrived at a distance, and took the hypnotic effect.
“It’s better than you.”
“…… !”
For me, that fact alone was enough.
“It is a good thing to have a nemesis. Anyway, you still know many of my secrets. Twilight is the most insignificant of all, so if you want to take out the hidden tiles, I’ll be happy to accept it.”
Adele continued. Ezekiel fiddled with his body, puzzled by the oppression that was released at the most important moment. Realizing that she was free without any tricks, she tried to find out what she was up to.
“Not today, but.”
“…… Alter ego!”
Ezekiel realized belatedly and shouted.
“Could it be the homunculus?”
“I promise to remember it for the future.”
Adele’s body began to sway from the surface. Soon, her body turned to mercury and then melted away. Furthermore, in the place where only liquid remained, dozens of remains of Yeon Seongjin floated up and exploded, turning into explosives with a farewell message.
“Your second name, the name of my nemesis.”
Boom, Kwak Kwak Kwak! The overwhelming firepower completely melted the safe house. Ezekiel’s body was no exception. Like Adele’s, when she applied heat, her shimmering body turned to mercury. She just melted away. Furthermore, he recalled the remains of dozens of Yeonseongjins, and prevented the explosion from exploding outside the house while distorting the space.
“Are you done, the pursuit?”
The word death is always premature. It was the starting point of alchemy that started to go against even those laws.
“No, I ate one.”
So, in a space far away from a burned-out safe house, Ezekiel, who alternately saw the disconnected communication and the incoming communication, burst into laughter without realizing it. She was so amused that she kept making noise while she added softly.
“I didn’t know that you were an alter ego, too.”
She is an unchanging and lofty woman.
* * *
It was the fourth day of driving, around midnight.
Everyone was waiting in their respective rooms for the declaration that the case had been officially resolved. As the hour hand, minute hand, and second hand matched, the train began to shake and shake to an unprecedented extent.
Quqwagwang!
Tereza Canaris, who had no choice but to sense her vibration first due to the location of her room, immediately opened the door and stepped out into the hallway. The epicenter was none other than the cargo compartment of Car No. 8, and she must have used a more powerful bomb than before, judging from its strength.
“What, how did this happen!”
“Are you an accomplice?”
“Everyone, please stay calm and gather in one place for safety!”
“All first class passengers, please move to car number 1!”
The situation was urgent. The first-class passengers, who knew the whole story of the incident, complained that the division had happened despite Helmut’s assurances. Not to mention the second and third class passengers, who didn’t even know what had happened until now.
Abyss!
Some compartments were buzzing, others were babbling. The common aspect was that the screams of the frightened people grew louder the further back they went. And that also meant that a tangible threat in some form was visually approaching.
“Bernhard SS! Everyone, please keep your seats!”
Fortunately, the epaulettes of the exterminated nation created a forced order even in the midst of such chaos. It was so noisy that I had to shout the same words several times, but in the end I was able to pass through the more quiet hallway and reach the back of car number 7.
“…… Mr. Grass?”
Car No. 7, which was also a sleeping compartment for the crew, was a mess. Because the aftermath of the explosion was directly crazy, the tail end was completely melted, and some rooms were completely torn apart like Kai Schoen’s guest room in the black soot.
“Are you here, Mr. Canaris?”
It was a real mess. And in the heart of it, the man called the Great Detective stood tall. He folded his hands over the cane on the floor, and the collar of his suit fluttered in the night breeze. It’s like trying to reveal a certain true color.
“How did this happen?”
“I am Elfriede Eichmann.”
Judging by the condition of the scene, it seemed that none of the crew members staying in Car No. 7 survived. It was unfortunate. But Tereza, who had more important things than that, immediately questioned Helmut.
“What! How did someone sealed in an ark while frozen cause such an explosion?”
“Well, I guess it was awakened by some magic I didn’t see through. And when he realized that he was sealed, it seems that this misfortune occurred while he was being freed by the judge. We cannot ignore the possibility that it is a problem with other cargo, but for now, this is the most reasonable conclusion.”
“Nonsense, then has Car No. 8 been completely destroyed?”
“I only checked that it was derailed by an explosion and then rolled around. In any case, it seems that no more murders have occurred, so the culprit is confirmed. Now, all that remains is to reveal to everyone who Seo Jeong-woo is.”
Helmut said, looking at the moon shining brightly behind the torn liver gate. I didn’t know which point I was passing through because there was no original body situation, but one thing was certain that I had crossed the border. The flying dragon in the sky close enough to be seen with the naked eye proved that.
“If it was the Major who was really in the chest, and if he was the culprit, the first thing we should do is report the situation to Mr. Michaelis, the engineer? We need to stop the train at the nearest station and check the damage!”
“That makes sense, too. But don’t forget that accomplices still exist.”
“There is nothing more precious than life. Even if you let ten criminals escape, you won’t let one innocent person suffer.”
Teresa pleaded, pointing to the wrecked train.
“It is not too late to find the accomplice later. So go and tell Mr. Michaelis to stop the train.”
As a detective, he asked him to prioritize human life, saying that someone might have been injured in the explosion.
“All right. Then let’s move to car number 1.”
Helmut reluctantly pretended to follow him and moved on. Fortunately, the road leading to the front was relatively quiet, probably thanks to Tereza directing traffic earlier.
“We don’t have time, let’s go!”
Tereza moved ahead at a brisk pace, almost running. It was so hurried that it gradually diverged from Helmut’s normal pace. When passing cars 4 and 5, which are second and third-class sleeping cars, they fell about half a car, and when they passed cars 2 and 3, they fell about half a car.
What was it that was so hasty?
Although he was so full of gasps, he was not even aware that he was poor. There was only one reason. And only one person knew it. Only that famous detective, Helmut Grass, quietly followed her.
Drooling!
After a while, Tereza, who had been driving in a straight line from car 7, opened the gate between car 1 and car 2. She was still in her engine room, and she stepped out with the momentum to meet Michaelis. And at the same time, Helmut, who was about a block away, locked the gate between cars 2 and 3.
Click!
It was Tereza who was obviously taken aback by the sound. Even so, she couldn’t look back. It was because of the people gathered at the table in front of me. From the engineer, Theobald Michaelis, to the manager, Thomas Lam, to the chef, Hannah Orff, to Joseph Scharnhorst, the only surviving train conductor, and finally to all the first class passengers!
“…… ?”
Everyone’s eyes united and glared at her. Her eyes were very frightening as she just looked at her without a sound. But it wasn’t just those eyes that were most frightening of all. It wasn’t because of the sudden action of some detective who isolated the train here from the rear behind my back.
“Elfriede Eichmann?”
Just the words that came out when he opened his mouth.
“I arrest you.”
It was because of those words.
