"Ugh... aagh...!"
"It would be better if you stayed still. If you make a mistake... huff! You'll be crippled for life."
Krrrk...!
"I'll talk, I'll talk! Just spare me..."
"That's rather short, isn't it?"
"I'll do anything you want if you just let me live! Please...!"
With a very peaceful kind of conversation, we identified the location of the LCCB operatives.
"...I didn't know you had a talent for this."
"For this sort of barely-controlled torture, a doctor is usually better than a seasoned field veteran."
"That's a terrifying thing to say. You're not going to do that to me, are you?"
"I'd save you if I could. Why would I be crazy enough to do something like that to Dante?"
"You just said crazy a moment ago."
"Hmm... fair point. Want me to?"
"No, I'll pass."
Nothing happened.
If everyone went out having been subdued with all limbs intact, then nothing happened!
Let's say the corpses strewn around the site came from the container. Anyway, it wasn't me.
So that's the exploration done, then.
According to the kind pirate friends' guidance... the team leader of the LCCB department was probably in the container ahead.
Ms. Ishmael, who had been moving restlessly since earlier, started forcing open the tightly locked container.
"It... should be this container. If we open it now... the LCCB department's team leader is in here..."
"Phew...! I really... thought I was done for. Waaaaah..."
"..."
Team... leader... was... in there...?
The one who appeared before us was a man who looked far too lacking to be called a team leader... a vacant-looking fellow.
"I'm the acting pilot for LCCB Advance Recon 3, deployed in this operation."
"You weren't the team leader? Those guys said they'd captured the LCCB team leader..."
"Ah... what's with that openly disappointed tone..."
Hmm... it felt a bit like being told there'd be sweet-and-sour pork at school lunch, only to find out it was mushroom sweet-and-sour pork.
As long as it fills your stomach, it doesn't matter much, but you can't hide the sense of betrayal when expectations are dashed.
Whether he was the team leader or an acting pilot, as long as we got the information, did it matter?
By the time I finished thinking, the man with the unusual, thick brown hair began to speak.
"Thanks for rescuing me. I've heard a lot about the LCB folks!"
"I wonder if it's the good kind..."
"It's an honor to meet you in person. I've been a fan since I joined the company!"
Fan... ah.
There had been someone who called themselves a fan on the last mission too. The parting hadn't gone well.
For some reason, my back started prickling, so I naturally averted my gaze.
...How unfair.
"...Why do all of you look like that..."
"Ahahaha... Sorry. We ran into someone on our last operation who claimed to be a fan... and, well, it ended rather badly."
"Ahem, cough..."
"Now then, let's stop with the uncomfortable topic and get to the point, shall we? Um... Pilot?"
Seeing me and Yi Sang awkwardly squirming, the pilot seemed to realize something and widened his eyes.
"Ah, right! I had something to tell you. Ahem... ahem..."
After clearing his throat for a moment, the pilot... Mr. Pilot, began acting out someone's voice, imitating a familiar face that lingered in a corner of our memory.
It was deeply... familiar.
"'You lot are probably stumbling around some part of U Corp again, making a mess of everything.'"
"...This is the moment of greatness."
It seemed the process had badly irritated someone's temper, but.
I can't stop that person either, so let's just handle it ourselves. Yeah. He won't die... right?
"N-no, that's not it. I was just trying to convey that person's message a little more vividly!"
"You have to be careful~ When you talk to us, you need to get to the subject quickly."
"A shortened version and an omitted one carry completely different nuances. You seem inexperienced, so I'll let it slide once."
"The subject, you say? Well, obviously..."
Right after that, a word passed through our ears that could not be brushed aside carelessly.
"Department Head Sword, of course!"
"...!"
"Sword...?"
"Ms. Sword is... alive?"
"D-department head...? She got promoted?"
In order, I, Ms. Ishmael, and Mr. Gregor asked back with stupid expressions.
No, let me correct that. We weren't the only ones making stupid faces.
Everyone except Ms. Ryoshu and Dante was staring at him with blank expressions.
...Let's say Dante just looked blank.
"She's still in rehabilitation, but... fortunately, LCCA arrived quickly, so she barely escaped with her life."
"So she wasn't posthumously promoted... that's a relief."
"Department Head Sword also wanted to meet all of you... but our assignments diverged, so she couldn't come here."
"Good..."
At the stream of positive news, a sigh of relief rose among the prisoners.
If the timing had lined up and she'd come to meet us on this mission... as you can infer from the fact that there was only one LCCB operative we were facing, she probably wouldn't have been safe either.
After a brief moment of solemnity, Ms. Ishmael cautiously asked after her.
"Is Ms. Sword... all right?"
"Of course. She's been through a few rough patches, but now she's eating well and talking just fine."
"No, that's good and all. That's not what I meant... she lost her partner, right? Right in front of her."
"..."
"Ah..."
After hearing that, Mr. Pilot made a pained expression, thought for a moment, then took out a crumpled piece of paper from his chest and began reading it.
"'LCCB employees, please remember once more. Our before-team is entrusted with the important task of clearing the path on behalf of everyone. Every step you take while shedding blood becomes a road for the future. Along that road, every employee of our Limbus Company can move forward...'"
Words about sacrifice... I don't personally care much for that sort of thing.
"That's the first thing in the new employee training manual you get as soon as you join. As for me, I'm proud of sacrifice. Though my fellow LCCB colleagues say I'm just the odd one out, since they only need to make quick money and leave."
"Proud of sacrifice...? Seriously?"
A bad feeling jabbed at my instincts.
The same sensation I'd felt at Molar Boat Center, at the place where we first tried to contact the LCCB department, and at the club below.
The point where Ms. Ishmael's outburst would twist the atmosphere. No one else was stepping up, so I figured it was time I did something... but.
This time, before I could move, someone else got there first.
"Now, now~ Ish~ You said you wanted sardine-whale-flavored ice cream? I was thinking the same thing, how strange~"
"No, let go of me. What... ah, what kind of strength is this..."
Ms. Rodion, casually shattering Ms. Ishmael's mood, was practically dragging her away with that monstrous strength.
Go, Ms. Rodion!
From this moment on, anyone hostile to Ms. Rodion is hostile to me.
I've been a little... no, a lot, slanderous toward her in my head before, but if I stop now, that shouldn't matter, right?
I was even more moved that help had sprung up where I hadn't asked for it.
...Ahem, let's stop the fangirling here.
From now on, let's be nicer to Ms. Rodion, yeah.
Hm...?
"If we leave her alone, they might start fighting again..."
"..."
Dante, who had been standing still, quietly started moving his feet and followed after them.
Hmm, eavesdropping?
Should I follow too... or not...?
After a brief moment of thought, I used Mr. Meursault's massive body as a screen and trotted after them.
Anyone who noticed would notice, but it probably didn't matter. It didn't seem like anyone cared that much anyway.
All right, all right... let's hear it.
"Saramago...!?"
I brazenly put a finger to my lips and signaled for silence.
What. I'm curious, so I can follow along a little. Yeah.
Oh, it's starting.
"Ish~ If you keep doing that, the mood's going to get way too heavy. We saved him, didn't we? I know he's in bad shape... but just bear with it a little~"
"That's just brainwashing. Dressing up the possibility of a meaningless death as sacrifice because nobody wants to admit it could be a useless waste..."
"I know."
Ms. Rodion answered Ms. Ishmael's words calmly.
Judging by her expression, it didn't seem like a lie... unlike her usual lighthearted manner, she had a very realistic view of the world.
Come to think of it, she was from the back alleys too.
It was only natural that she'd know the darkness at the bottom of this city and criticize it.
Rather, that was precisely why... she'd be one of the few people here who could actually persuade Ms. Ishmael.
"Then..."
"But aren't there people who can only endure by thinking of it that way? People who have to keep earning money right away just to stay alive."
"..."
"Let's get the information out of that overenthusiastic kid quickly. Okay?"
"...Don't talk to me like I'm a child. We're not close enough for that, Ms. Rodion. This is the only time I'll let myself be swayed."
"...All right, all right~"
If someone like me or Ms. Faust had said that instead of Ms. Rodion, wouldn't we have gotten an earful about what the hell we, who'd lived such a privileged life, knew?
Anyway, perhaps because she realized we'd followed them, Ms. Rodion gave us a light wink from a little distance away... and I answered with a thumbs-up.
Of course, I didn't forget to sneak back before Ms. Ishmael noticed.
If she had caught us, there would have been another, and another, and another fight.
I tapped Ms. Rodion's side as she returned to her seat with confidence and struck up a conversation.
"Wow, Ms. Rodion. I almost fell for you there. Aren't you just too cool?"
"Heh, I'm pretty awesome, huh? I'm the kind of woman who's this good~ So why don't you praise me a little more often?"
"I'll call you big sis from now on."
"All right, little brother."
While Ms. Rodion and I were carrying on our little back-and-forth skit, Mr. Gregor, wearing a serious expression, barged into the conversation.
"All right, all right. Enough banter. We're getting to the point soon."
"Aww~ don't be so stiff, Greg. Want in too?"
"Hey, what would I even do by joining some childish conversation like that..."
"You're being shy~"
"Who's shy!?"
"Both of you, enough banter and focus up. We're getting to the point soon."
"...You too want to tease me!?"
"Aww~ teasing? Why, that hurts."
"Damn it... just focus!"
Ahem, teasing Mr. Gregor... no, talking with him is fun after all. It felt like I'd finally found some peace of mind after a long time.
I wish things would stay peaceful from here on... but why does one corner of my heart feel so uneasy?
...An impossible-to-hide, very dangerous feeling drifts up from his recent past.
If nothing unexpected happens, something related will probably come out of his mouth soon.
Please let my hunch be wrong...
But that won't happen, will it. Let's hear it. If I'm lucky, I might even catch on already.
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