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🇯🇵 [日本語版]
“My, my… Lady Gilzenth.”
Baian, the director of the Lukavi Institute—the nation’s leading producer of Blitz units—was visibly shaken by the unannounced visitor. The sun had already dipped below the horizon, and the Sovereign of the Varney Republic was standing in his foyer. Behind her, the stoic Holy Maiden Saroza stood like a silent sentinel.
“I happened to be in the area,” Gilzense said, offering a smile as gentle as one might give a nursing babe. “I thought I’d check in on the progress of your research.”
“O-of course. Right this way.”
That very gentleness was what pressed upon Baian like a physical weight. Saroza remained at the entrance, guarding the threshold. Baian ushered Gilzenth into his private parlor, clutching his research dossiers as he sank into a chair. He stole a glance at her, his eyes darting nervously.
“So,” Gilzenth began, resting her chin on her palm as she reclined. “Have you grasped the core of it yet?”
Her Vision-Seal concealed her eyes, but Baian knew her extraordinary sensory Pulse could feel the frantic thumping of his heart.
“Yes… Regarding the method of maintaining one’s ego after fusion with a Beast-Devil…” Baian stammered. His eyes shifted restlessly toward the corners of the room.
“Speak. This is for the greater good.”
“Y-yes, Lady Gilzenth. There is… a way. If a common human merges with a Beast-Devil, their psyche is instantly consumed. However, a Holy Maiden—one who possesses a Divine Pulse—should, in theory, be able to retain her sense of self.”
Gilzenth uncrossed her legs and gave a slow, rhythmic nod. Baian felt a bead of sweat roll down his forehead, but he found himself unable to move his hand to wipe it away.
“And tell me,” she said, her voice soft and coaxing. “Is there anyone else who possesses this knowledge?”
I am the only one.
The realization struck him like cold iron. What was she planning? To merge with a monster… it was madness. She had lost her mind. Someone had to stop her—this was a catastrophic threat that could shatter the very foundation of the Republic.
Baian’s fingers crept slowly toward the pistol hidden within his coat. She was sitting right there. At this range, he couldn’t miss.
Even if Lady Gilzenth is gone, the Republic will endure under High Arbiter Dimeus, he told himself, hooking his finger around the trigger.
“Thank you, Baian.”
As Gilzenth rose to her feet, Baian’s mouth was wrenched open, his jaw stretching to a painful degree.
“Ah! Gh…!”
He fought with every fiber of his being, but no part of his body would obey him. He was already a puppet, his nervous system completely overridden by Gilzenth’s psychokinesis.
Baian’s right hand moved of its own accord, jerky and mechanical. The muzzle of his own pistol was slowly, inexorably forced into his mouth.
Then, two heavy gunshots shattered the silence of the institute.
NEXT
