Chapter 127

#127 Episode: The Scarecrow and the Sky Country

While I was secretly conversing with my comrades, someone suddenly fell from the sky.

When what I thought was a suicide victim started twitching and calmly got up as if nothing had happened.

When a broken head and twisted limbs seemed to restore themselves, and that person greeted me with a smile.

Could there really be people willing to open their hearts to such a suspicious, ominous, and bizarre existence?

“Sophia, would you prefer tea, coffee, or some other drink?”

“I’ll take the coffee, please. I don’t need sugar or milk.”

“Understood.”

It was here, indeed.

Of course, they hadn’t always been this way.

Surely, at the beginning, they were still in the realm of reasonable responses like:

“Don’t come any closer!”

“What on earth are you?!”

They had made the mistake of being reassured by Sophia’s lack of hostility, allowing her to speak freely.

Within ten minutes of the conversation, fear and vigilance had eased, and within thirty minutes, they felt sympathy for Sophia’s unfortunate circumstances (truth content: 0.315%). By the hour mark, everyone was eager to help her, united in their intention.

To an objective third party, it would be suspicious enough to question whether they were being enchanted, yet astonishingly, all Sophia did was chatter away. Truly, one could call it the charm of her tongue.

In a mansion on the floating island of Laputa.

Thanks to a reconnaissance team dispatched to gather information from the ground, Sophia, who had been rescued from the so-called ‘barbaric, inconsiderate, and selfish’ surface to rise above, took a sip of coffee.

While the awakening effect of coffee meant little on her nearly immune body, its distinctive fragrant flavor brought back memories of her human days.

Looking at the map obtained from convincing the people of Laputa, Sophia thought.

‘It’ll be difficult to regroup everyone.’

The workshop of the West Witch was much larger than she had imagined.

Surrounding the island ruled by the West Witch, there were more than twenty islands scattered about.

The vast area of the witch’s domain meant that it would be hard for her party to be found, but it also meant that it would be difficult for the party to reunite.

Most importantly, unlike the West Witch, who treated this entire world as her home ground, her companions had to source everything necessary for their journey themselves in an unfamiliar environment.

To move from island to island, they needed a boat, navigational skills, maps, and stamina.

They even had to secure all of this and set off before the pursuers sent by the West Witch arrived.

Sophia had long suspected the purpose of the gold thread bracelet around her wrist, but even considering that, the difficulty was far from trivial.

If it were just one or two people, they might manage somehow, but thinking that the whole group could meet this challenge was overly optimistic.

Thus, Sophia quickly prioritized her options.

“I think it might be better if I don’t regroup with the others.”

The potential losses from wasting time trying to recover her would outweigh any benefits she might gain by joining them.

Since she wouldn’t play much of a role in combat, her absence wouldn’t be a significant loss, and even if captured and taken hostage by the enemy, she wouldn’t cause trouble for her allies.

What’s the use of a hostage who can’t die no matter what?

Having made up her mind, Sophia promptly yanked off the gold thread bracelet wrapped around her wrist.

At first, the bracelet flailed, but once it broke into two or three pieces, it turned black and crumbled away.

By excluding herself from the options, she increased the chance for the other allies to regroup and approached the people of Laputa.

After a few intermediary introductions from A to B, and from B to C, she was able to converse with someone of a higher rank.

“So, this is Elphaba… Ah, I’m sorry. I should have said Lady Elphaba.”

“No need to worry. It’s fine. Young ones might feel that way, but I, being an old man, do not have unconditional zeal for her.”

The old scholar, a minister and renowned scholar of Laputa, said this while chuckling warmly.

His gaze upon Sophia was gentle, akin to that of a proud grandfather watching his bright granddaughter.

It was a relief that he didn’t know Sophia’s actual age.

If Adel had been here, she would have felt guilty, but Sophia accepted this kindness without any concern and continued speaking.

“Thank you. So, do you handle the calculations for the various formulas that Lady Elphaba demands?”

“Indeed. We study things like the conversion efficiency when creating materials with magical power and the most efficient forms or ratios when making artifacts.”

“Are you compensated with money?”

“There is no compensation.”

The old scholar said this with a somewhat bitter smile.

“If we must put a name to it, being granted the right to survive here could be considered compensation. You could also call it tax.”

“Could you share more details with me?”

“Our Laputa holds more knowledge than any of the other islands controlled by Elphaba. Actually, it would be more accurate to say that we’re allowed to possess such knowledge. To meet the level of calculations Elphaba demands, we must not only equip ourselves with our own learning and knowledge but also continue to develop it.”

The old scholar’s wrinkled hand fiddled with a large map hanging on the wall.

“Miss, there are two neighboring countries. One has developed only strength-enhancing technologies and cultures, while the other has developed only precision magic techniques and cultures. Do you think this is possible?”

“It could be that certain trends align with local characteristics, but I find it hard to believe that there could be a complete absence of culture or technology beyond that. They would influence each other, after all.”

“Exactly. But in an isolated space like an island, it might be possible. Elphaba has used this to cultivate various civilizations on different islands.”

The old scholar’s finger pointed to an island on the left side of the map.

“In some places, she granted knowledge and technology to beings other than humans, making them rulers. And she gathered humans she didn’t approve of on one island, ensuring that their descendants would be tormented by the ruling species of the island. Moreover, if a talent emerges who might dare to rebel, she would kill them or transfer them elsewhere to become slaves.”

His finger then pointed to an island on the right side of the map.

“In others, she has encouraged small races to establish thriving nations. The resources they gather by burrowing through the land, and the crafts or precise instruments they meticulously create, have only served to enrich Elphaba’s repositories. She divides these small races into two countries to prevent them from uniting, pitting them against each other and rewarding the more efficient side with greater gifts to foster competition.”

His finger moved to an island at the top of the map.

“In some places, giant races are building civilizations. They labor for Elphaba and, in case of emergency, are summoned as soldiers for her. Giants require a massive amount of food, yet the other creatures on their islands, both animal and plant, are of ordinary size, making self-sustainability impossible. Elphaba controls the population of these giants by supplying them with food, ensuring they can’t resist her.”

The old scholar let out a sigh heavy with melancholy.

“Other islands have also developed their own civilizations, but they are exploited for Elphaba’s benefits or pleasures in one way or another. Most tragically, they don’t even realize they’re being exploited.”

“If they could trade with other islands via boats, wouldn’t some come to understand their plight? After all, curiosity and a desire for exploration are instincts of life.”

“That is impossible.”

The old scholar asserted firmly.

“The distance between the islands isn’t so far that it couldn’t be traversed physically. However, there are golden monkeys flitting through the skies with two wings and the immortal Captain Bill. They suitably make anyone who escapes the islands ‘disappear’ and block the civilizations of each island from making it to the sea. While some may successfully navigate from island to island, most end up merely as playthings for Elphaba.”

Sophia recalled a certain pirate ship she had glimpsed before entering the witch’s workshop.

Franka had said he was an entity that shouldn’t belong outside, and it seemed that she was indeed speaking of this.

“Listening to you, it sounds like you have rather negative views of Elphaba. Have you ever considered a counterattack?”

At Sophia’s question, the old scholar fell silent for a moment.

Sophia waited quietly, not urging him, until he finally spoke again.

A bitter smile crept onto the old scholar’s face.

“…What a strange thing. It’s not usual to share such stories with someone you’ve only just met, yet when I’m with you, I can’t help but feel my mouth is itching to speak freely. Did you perhaps use some kind of magic on me?”

“Of course not. But it’s often easier to share stories with strangers than to open up about things you’ve always wanted to say but couldn’t, especially those lingering in your heart.”

The old scholar seemed pleased with Sophia’s response and let out another hearty laugh, one that felt more relaxed than the previous grim chuckles.

“Counterattacking. Why would I not have thought of that? You know, the ancestors of Laputa were once Elphaba’s old apprentices. They were given the pretext of teaching magic and ended up taking on all sorts of odd jobs and thinkers’ work—that’s where it all began. I wonder if you understand the terms of teaching assistants or undergraduates…”

The old scholar supplemented his explanation concisely, and Sophia nodded.

“In other words, they were apprentices who could never graduate, like servants?”

“Exactly. They went beyond that, endlessly repeating this for generations, and there’s even the added burden of their children being similarly employed under the same professor, or rather, the same master, without pay.”

“Hm, I guess you’d want to hang your master by a pole then.”

“That’s an understatement. It can’t be expressed by just that.”

“Would you want to drag a corpse out of the grave and whip it?”

“That still lacks in some areas.”

“Would you want to chop off their limbs while still alive and toss them into a pigsty, naming them ‘human pig’ and making them a spectacle?”

“That’s a bit…”

The old scholar seemed somewhat aghast.

“Ahem. Anyway, grievances had piled up through generations and ultimately exploded. The most recent explosion occurred thirty years ago, when I, this old man, was still energetically active.”

“It seems it didn’t go well, considering you’re still here.”

“Indeed. On the very day we planned our operation, hundreds of golden monkeys surrounded the floating island, spears in hand. We were paralyzed, unable to move, as they flew around for an entire day before leaving.”

A deep sigh escaped the old scholar’s lips.

“There was a watcher among us for Elphaba. When she learned we sought to counterattack, she sent her most loyal attendants as a warning. Shortly after that, cities situated along Laputa’s trajectory acquired powerful weapons enough to attack Laputa. We found ourselves in a position where we had to comply with their demands just to avoid falling.”

“Couldn’t you have fled to entirely different lands?”

“Though this island appears to float freely, it cannot maintain that state without ground support below it. While it could meander briefly along the coastline, the moment it crosses into the sea, it would soon crash down.”

“…Ah, I see. Even the witch couldn’t perfectly recreate the original, could she.”

“Original?”

“Ah, it’s nothing. So, what happened to that watcher?”

“I do not know.”

The old scholar looked up at the ceiling, lamenting.

“Even after the event ended, the watcher never revealed their existence. Because of that, we haven’t been able to dream of planning a counterattack since that day. No, it went beyond that; we also became hesitant to even speak critically about Elphaba. Thus, the younger folks under thirty years old are largely unaware of Elphaba’s true nature. Some even revere her.”