Chapter 128

“What the heck is going on here?”

Up on the roof of the tallest bell tower nearby, Minette and Venus had just arrived.

The view of downtown that caught their eyes was unfolding in a way that defied imagination—at least for Minette.

Minette was momentarily stunned by the horrific commotion happening all over the city.

Torches blazing across the darkened downtown.

And those wielding them…

Happily hunting people.

Exerting violence to their heart’s content.

Then, once all resistance is utterly crushed…

They toy with and ravage their victims.

They were playing around.

Even a misbehaving kid wouldn’t treat their toys this roughly or cruelly.

“Here we go again.”

Venus spat.

“Didn’t you get an explanation from Baldy?”

“What kind of… question is that?”

“This country defines its citizens into three tiers.”

Mages or nobles.

And then the useless.

Next up? Tramps.

“But when it gets like this, even the few mages and nobles start irritating the useless class, right?”

So, both mages and nobles, along with the useless tier, can equally despise, look down on, ignore, and trample on these guys without any consequences. It’s tacitly allowed by the state and everyone else.

This would normally be a regrettable national disease stemming from an unhealthy nation. But here, they consider it a public evil.

“In the Empire, wasn’t charity and donations considered the basis of good deeds? You know, ‘To enter heaven, one must surely bestow kindness upon the needy and the hungry.’ That’s Irene’s Doctrine, right?”

“…That’s correct.”

“But there’s no such consideration here. If anything, it’s the opposite.”

Paupers are parasites.

They dirty and pollute the city, refuse to work, stubbornly cling on until they commit crimes, and even those who don’t commit crimes are lazy and negligent.

Trash.

Filth sacks.

“Looking for food without working? How sane is that?”

“And trying to hold onto inherited homes from their parents…”

Even when they eventually sell at rock-bottom prices, they illegally squat in alleys or abandoned houses.

It’s common for them to crawl into sewage systems or restrooms. But why do they keep crawling back out into the city?

Since when were alleys or hidden spots their living quarters? Who gave them permission?

“These people don’t count as citizens of this country.”

So killing them isn’t a crime. Neither is tormenting them for fun.

“That’s absurd…”

“Why’s it absurd? This is reality. Do you think this has been going on for just a day or two?”

It happens periodically, almost like some sort of event. Citizens have pent-up frustrations, but during this time, they can let it all out freely.

If they can’t kill someone, they torment these folks instead. They achieve vicarious satisfaction through them. After venting, they feel much better, right? That’s the logic and meaning behind it.

“It’s been about six years since it started, right?”

Initially, it began as a scheme by the nobles to disrupt the resistance movements and rebellions of the poor. But when the lower-middle class and the nobles started aligning opinions, the state leaned even more against the poor while favoring the middle class, further dismantling whatever fragile unity existed between them.

The middle class benefited, so they had no reason to complain. The poor, however, didn’t.

The betrayal by the middle class they trusted during crises only fueled their anger, leading to bloodshed.

The relationship between the middle class and the poor deteriorated irreparably.

And yet, the ones truly benefiting and feasting throughout all this were the nobles, mages, and wealthy elites who colluded with them. But unless someone reveals these intricate details, or even if they do, does anyone care?

Right now, the immediate enemies in front of them were the bigger problem.

Ultimately, whose fault is it anyway?

The power-hungry manipulators? The privileged elite?

The ordinary, well-meaning citizens who compromised for profit?

Or the weak ones who expressed nothing but rage after being abandoned and betrayed?

“Ignorance is the problem.”

“But didn’t they lack any other choices?”

“Ignorance narrows options.”

Even if they were smart and wise, answers weren’t forthcoming in this situation. So, obviously, the result was predictable.

At first, Minette thought she could help by saving Faceulan’s child and sticking around his vicinity, thinking that might protect him from collateral damage.

But no. She hadn’t anticipated this.

Why… should completely unrelated people suffer en masse like this? And for what?

Their justification was simple: Mages and their entourage were attacked and injured by rioters. One of the thirteen families even lost an arm.

…Though their guards tried their best to protect him, they failed.

They died heroically in battle.

“……”

Total baloney. Didn’t die, did they?

Carriel may have severed their limbs, but he didn’t kill them. So, this is clearly fabricated nonsense.

“The truth doesn’t matter.”

Venus chuckled dismissively, treating it as commonplace.

“When hasn’t it happened?”

“……”

Minette fell into deep thought.

Should she intervene? But if she focuses here, what about elsewhere?

In the designated slum areas, hundreds of citizens were unleashing their hatred on the poor. Such acts were occurring everywhere. And behind these people stood the pillars of this nation, granting implicit approval and tolerance.

All these terrible events happen under their encouragement and consent.

Thus, this is both an example and a venting session.

It’s your fault for causing trouble.

Your fault for resisting.

Your fault for making noise.

Your fault for opposing us.

Your fault for daring to look.

“Besides, the victims have problems too.”

“What… did you say?”

Venus sneered coldly.

“Dying without standing up to fight—that’s exactly how it looks.”

Especially when someone doesn’t resist in a crisis, their treatment will inevitably be miserable. Their fate is decided by others. There’s no choice but tragedy and malevolence in their future unless someone intervenes forcefully.

Without exception, pure tragedy awaits them.

There’s no other answer.

Perhaps, if miracles exist, they might find salvation.

They should’ve resisted long ago—against the powerful, against those slightly better off than themselves, or even risked leaving. To change their wretched situation, they should’ve fought against the unfairness.

Or at least united with others in similar situations or attempted to dominate and gather strength despite their weakness.

“……Tch.”

But it wasn’t easy, was it? Nearly impossible.

Once, there was someone trying to lead them, but when they executed him as a traitor in Faceulan, that hope vanished.

What if executing him caused greater backlash?

Anger is always suppressed by greater fear and power. The backbone of this nation knew this all too well.

Power holders, who understand the use of force and authority best, knew this too.

“After all, these are technically our fellow nationals. If we interfere, things won’t end easily. In fact, they might want that.”

Showing kindness might turn the entire area into a bloodbath, and the blame would fall squarely on those who interfered unnecessarily.

Or on the citizens for rebelling.

Your fault!

“Are they using their own citizens as hostages and sacrifices?”

“Well, they’re just like strangers sharing the same country, right? Besides, it’s an effective method, isn’t it? Piercing straight to the core. The moment you try to protect or save them, you’ve already grabbed their weakness.”

“Unbelievably immoral…”

“So, to overturn this, they’d need unimaginable power.”

Even though Venus was mocking the situation with a sneer, his gaze wasn’t pleasant either.

“Back in Berg, after the Age of Distrust ended and the Empire unified under Irene’s Doctrine, incidents like these decreased. But ever since the Demon King’s invasion, the Eastern Continent has always been like this. They’re currently reliving the old tragedies and horrors that once plagued the Empire.”

“Th-that…”

“And you, possessing strength comparable to that guy, what do you intend to do? Stand aside? Intervene? Or just let it be?”

The inheritor of the Great Demon King’s legacy. If anyone today could be called closest to a Demon King…

“You should act quickly if you’re going to. While you hesitate, someone’s dying, someone’s being raped, and someone’s becoming disabled.”

Upon hearing this, Minette tightly shut her eyes. Her mouth felt parched.

“I…”

She couldn’t just stand by and watch. It wasn’t due to personal distress or pity that made her shudder.

Fear?

She hadn’t felt fear towards enemies in years.

I’m not afraid of my enemies. What I fear is…

This was the constraint she carried.

The more selfish she was…

…the more selfless she had to be.

By suppressing selfishness, she suppressed altruism too. But witnessing such a tragic scene…

Emotions surged.

Thoughts bombarded her mind.

Everything got tangled up.

“I…”

Just as she hesitated and tried to steel herself, cries and screams erupted sporadically from various places—not simultaneously, but intermittently.

Within seconds, after another few dozen seconds passed,

the cries and screams swept through the entire area like a symphony.

Cutting through the air.

Piercing the veil of darkness.

Most of the torches flickered out or were discarded.

“What’s happening now?”

While Venus scowled and scanned the surroundings irritably,

“……”

Minette could vividly observe every scene happening near and far.

People, children, women, elders…

They lunged forward.

Burned fiercely.

Were thrown aside.

As if all the fear and terror from before were lies and deceptions. As if all that weakness and cowardice had been stripped away.

Now, filled with fury and hatred, they retaliated directly and instinctively toward those who wronged them.

No, their hostility surpassed the clumsy and laughable malice previously dumped on them. Their hatred exceeded the one-sided and petty violence.

Wildly exploding.

Even the weak ones, without exception, charged forward despite broken limbs, crawling if necessary.

Even the destitute bit with missing teeth, their necks snapped yet rising like undead corpses, relentlessly charging and attacking again.

Those still intact leapt like agile spiders.

Occasionally, spitting venom like wounded wolves or rabid dogs, they hurled themselves forward.

“Chaos.”

Venus’ rigid expression softened, and he smirked—a smile that reeked of decay.

“Yeah. This is what luck and miracles look like.”

But he wasn’t captivated by it. While this might be luck and a miracle for someone, it was far from normal.

This wasn’t.

A righteous resistance, appeal, protest, or rebellion.

Someone’s malicious… stratagem.

“But this is better than the earlier situation, at least.”

The fangs and claws of the weak tear into and rip apart their skin without hesitation.

Yeah, yeah, that way, even in death, it feels less unjust. Even when suffering, it feels less unjust.

“Magic or sorcery? A curse maybe? Black magic? Given how widespread it is, it seems to be affecting a large area.”

While Venus dispassionately analyzed the situation,

“Not sure, but…”

Minette loosened her clenched fist, extended her index finger stiffly, and pointed in a certain direction.

“There’s an unpleasant aura emanating from over there.”

“Unpleasant aura?”

Venus shrugged.

“Does ‘unpleasant’ mean threatening, troublesome, or just annoying to you?”

“That’s… hard to say.”

But…

“…It’s not threatening, at least not to me right now.”

At this, Venus extended his hand.

“……?”

“You expecting me to jump rooftops like that guy?”

“No, not that… Are you asking me to take you there?”

“If not, what?”

For a moment, Minette forgot the severity of the situation due to his audacity.

“I kinda admire that attitude.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

Minette sighed briefly and grabbed his hand.

“Hold on tight.”

As they moved, a light frost spread across the area,

“Grab on tight.”

Like gliding through empty air, Minette carried Venus and soared through the sky.

“Huh?”

More accurately, she froze the air and used it as a bridge, gliding smoothly. Though invisible and faintly frozen, it couldn’t be seen with the naked eye, making it appear as though they were gliding through the air from afar.

And thus…

They calmly observed amidst the chaos, spotting a man standing composed amidst the turmoil.

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