Chapter 96: Everything and Nothing to Regret.

“Shall we go check? Whose words are correct.”

It might be cold-hearted, but I hoped Philius wouldn’t feel indebted to his death. Everything was Linton’s choice. Refusing Philius’s offer, saying he would take revenge for Alea, and finally surrendering.

“I think it’s better to verify properly than to leave regrets.”

I wanted to give Philius a chance to erase regrets. I didn’t worry about how to meet Linton locked up in the police station’s detention center. There would be a way somehow.

Philius, who had been looking at me quietly, suddenly smiled with his eyes.

“Do you know? This is the first time you’ve suggested going out since you suddenly came into this mansion after manifesting.”

“Because I couldn’t make the necklace before.”

“Even after the necklace was completed.”

“There was no occasion I had to go out.”

“If it weren’t for this matter, you wouldn’t have asked me to go out, right?”

“Probably.”

“So I’m happy.”

Philius’s smile deepened. The expression of being happy seemed to contain not a bit of falsehood. Entrusting his hand to me, he spoke again.

“Sorry to Linton, but I’m just happy that you worry about me. Also the words that unless it’s out of worry for me, you don’t feel the need to go out of this mansion where we are together.”

His words that he sometimes feels greedy to lock me up seemed sincere too. The hand that had been resting quietly suddenly grabbed my hand conversely. But that strong force relaxed soon. As if suppressing his greed.

“I need some preparations. Please wait a moment.”

He soon got up from his seat.

It didn’t take long for him to come out again after entering the dressing room. Although his face had changed completely.

Not a man beautiful like a picture but a man with a blurry impression stood before me frowning as if dissatisfied with something.

“Here, your gloves.”

What he chose to hide the ring that became incredibly famous was gloves. I accepted the gloves and put them on, and also activated the cognitive interference magic circle of my necklace.

We, with faces devoid of memorable features, might even look similar like brothers. Philius looked down at my face with cognitive interference magic applied with a subtle expression. Seeing the frown on his brow smooth out before I knew it, I laughed a little.

Even with a face like someone else, Philius was Philius.

He soon began to draw a magic circle on the floor. Using a large amount of diamonds, it seemed he was preparing quite a big magic.

Although diamonds of various colors seemed to be placed dizzyingly, there was clearly a certain pattern. It was a pattern I saw for the first time, but somehow it felt like I had seen it once.

“Jay.”

Before I could recall the memory, he reached out his hand to me. Holding his hand and stepping into the magic circle, an incantation flowed out immediately.

The moment the unfamiliar flow of magical power wrapped around my body, I stopped breathing briefly.

If magic wasn’t being manifested, I would undoubtedly have turned my body towards Philius. But not knowing what would happen if I interfered with this flow of magical power, I had to hold my body forcibly.

Mana seemed to cling to my body like when doing mana breathing. I thought I might have become part of the mana. I even thought my body was blurring.

And the next moment, I was standing in the basement workshop of Palmer Jewelry with Philius. What he unfolded was spatial movement magic.

“Was spatial movement possible for people too?”

As soon as the floating sensation disappeared and I confirmed my feet touching the ground, I opened my mouth. It was an expression of surprise rather than a question.

My voice echoed loudly in the empty workshop. Reflexively looking at the entrance door, every single locking device I made was locked. Even the magical devices.

I already knew, but the fact that the person who decorated the new workshop himself was Philius felt real anew.

As I blinked looking around here and there, low laughter was heard.

“Unlike moving objects, it requires an auxiliary magic circle, but it became possible.”

Still holding my hand, Philius said as if it were trivial. Moving my gaze from scanning everywhere, I looked up at him quietly. Philius’s eyes curved gently.

“Shall we go now.”

Almost simultaneously with my nodding, he led me. To the stairs beyond the temporary wall.

It was me who created this space, but I had never used it myself. Somehow it reminded me of a secret space made with cardboard boxes in childhood.

Going up the stairs and opening the door to go out, the unique smell of filth from the back alley was felt. Even if it’s a high-end jewelry street where nobles are main customers, there couldn’t be no trash. Rather, because nobles were the target, more trash came out. Just hiding it behind like this.

“It feels like we’re going to do something bad.”

“Actually, we are. Since we are going to sneak into the police station, no less.”

At Philius’s answer, laughter flowed from me too.

Passing the back street of the shopping district dark after business hours, we stepped out into the square. Clack, clack. The sound of shoes stepping on pavement stones was heard distinctly. For someone trying to sneak into the police station, the steps were unhesitating.

It was the same when we entered the police station. For an organization hearing criticism about what on earth they do, the inside looked very busy. Some were pulling their hair sitting at desks writing some documents, and some were moving somewhere busily. The common point of not a few people doing something respectively was that they looked at us, who had no special features, indifferently. It seemed to be because they couldn’t feel pheromones from us at all rather than appearance.

“What brings you here?”

To the person asking abruptly in informal language, I handed a gold coin saying “We’d like to visit someone.” The diligent ones interrogating those wandering inside the police station soon pointed in one direction with their fingers.

“Go over there.”

Following those fingers popping up like signposts, we stood before a thick iron door before we knew it.

“What is your business?”

A young man looking still young, perhaps a couple of years older than Nathan, asked us in a pretended strict tone.

“We would like to visit someone.”

Unlike until now, I took out two gold coins and showed them. Color returned to the young man’s face.

“Write your names here and go inside. Do you know how to write names?”

If we said we didn’t know, he looked like he would even write for us. Before I answered, Philius picked up the pen with his left hand. The handwriting scribbled intentionally more was hard to recognize. Although the young man sighed deeply, receiving two gold coins, he opened the iron door immediately.

“They say the Commissioner of Police is the Prime Minister’s close associate.”

After the door closed, Philius scoffed.

The lights embedded in the ceiling cast dim light. It seemed they didn’t feel the need to spend money replacing gems in a detention center temporarily holding Beta criminals. Whatever happens inside here seemed likely to disappear quickly like this faint light.

A smell worse than the stench from the back alley of the shopping district pierced the nose. We walked toward the innermost part.

“Who is it again?”

Until a heavily exhausted voice was heard.

Philius created fire immediately. Although it was dim light like the detention center entrance, Linton frowned heavily as if seeing even that after a long time. Yet he raised his body with difficulty. He seemed very curious about the identity of the person who could use non-chant magic.

“Long time no see.”

“Excellency…!”

When Philius showed him the scarred hand, Linton covered his mouth and looked around. His only hand couldn’t hide trembling even under the dim light.

“Why did you come here?”

The voice lowered cautiously reproached Philius. Although using the title Excellency, the tone suggested a relationship without reserve.

“Because I have something to ask.”

“I will answer anything.”

“Do you have anything you regret?”

Linton, who was looking around sharply, stopped moving. He blinked his eyes as if hearing incomprehensible words. The eyes looking at Philius standing tall tried to examine his intention.

But Linton’s intention to read thoughts from Philius, who wore no expression on a face completely different from usual, failed. He eventually chuckled and opened his mouth.

“Did you come just to ask that? You are still an incomprehensible person.”

As Philius just looked down at him without saying anything, Linton smiled broadly. Enough for wrinkles to form all over his face.

“Of course I regret everything. Running away from home sick of tearing poverty, becoming a mercenary fearlessly thinking it would be cool. …Jumping into war to earn some money. Everything.”

“Is that all?”

“Saying this means I regret my whole life, isn’t asking if there’s more too much?”

Although Linton shook his head, he didn’t say he regretted surrendering.

“I say I regret, but even if time turns back, I will probably live as a petty mercenary just the same. If I earn even a penny, I’ll spend it all on drinking, and bluster loudly without substance.”

The exhausted voice heard at the very beginning was nowhere to be found. Linton rather looked energetic. Grinning once again, he said firmly to Philius.

“If the same thing happens, I will blow up Viscount Pera’s mansion again. Then I will come to the police station to surrender without a moment’s hesitation.”

There were neither winners nor losers in the bet we made. There seemed to be no lie in Linton’s face saying he regrets neither using the bomb nor surrendering.

“Don’t worry about me anymore.”

“Is that all you want to say to me?”

“……”

“As you said, we won’t meet again. Still nothing more to say?”

Linton just kept laughing. But the mask pretending to be cheerful gradually faded. Saying he regrets everything but regrets nothing wasn’t a lie, but there seemed to be a last burden remaining in his heart.

With a face completely devoid of laughter, he closed his eyes tight as if trying to escape Philius’s gaze.

There was no difficulty in leaving the police station just like entering. Instead of going to the back alley of the shopping district again, we crossed the square and headed to the Tranche Bridge. The words Linton said after hesitating for a long time were to check the banks of the Gratia River under the Tranche Bridge once.

『I know it’s a shameless request. You don’t need to do anything. Just please take a look once.』

Only when saying those words did Linton look heavily exhausted. As if having no energy to hide his expression anymore. And went straight inside. Avoiding the light Philius created.

The Gratia River is a waterway supporting the lives of Noberten citizens. The upper stream provides water to this city, and the middle stream was a space for nobles’ leisurely hobbies like boating. The lower stream is the laundry place for Betas.

Approaching the Tranche Bridge, I frowned. Because I saw fires lit here and there on the riverbank.

“What’s happening?”

Our steps quickened.

Standing on the bridge, we looked down. Shacks clumsily woven with planks were visible between flickering lights.

Not just one or two.

Shacks that seemed built overnight were showing a scenery never seen before.

People were sitting around bonfires. Their shabby clothes and tired expressions couldn’t be hidden even by the flickering firelight.

“Mercenaries.”

Philius’s low voice informed of their identity.

“Those who participated in the war in the New Continent.”

Someone started singing. Among those sharing the same background, the singing voice spread quickly.

Promising to lead tomorrow’s battle to victory and wishing peace for those remaining in their hometown, the song for martial luck soon became a chorus.