Chapter 219

Victoria approached the dormitory under preparation with a restless expression on her face.

Her previous living quarters weren’t that far from the entrance, but now she’d been moved to a pretty secluded spot.

There, students like Victoria, who’d been pushed aside due to their commoner origins, lived.

No matter how accomplished or well-connected their parents were, the wall between nobles and commoners stood tall.

Once enough nobles arrived and formed their own cliques, the commoners naturally got pushed out.

I walked down the corridor.

When Victoria passed by, there used to be people asserting their territory, but not anymore—at least not right now. Probably because everyone’s too busy dealing with Sorindiges.

I cut through that area and went further inside, near the stairs heading up, where voices buzzed chaotically. That’s where Victoria and other displaced students had set up camp.

I stopped in front of Victoria’s door.

Inside, Victoria was packing her bag to head off to Mechanical Knight School. Her room was still messy despite some cleaning efforts—it wasn’t exactly pristine.

Beatrice would definitely lose it if she saw this place… though whether Beatrice even lives properly herself is anyone’s guess.

Not long after, Victoria opened her door and stepped out.

“Huh? Bell?”

“You leaving?”

“Yeah. I have class at the Mechanical Knight School today. But what about you, Bell? Still can’t get back home?”

I shrugged.

Still no idea. At least when I left the classroom earlier to come here, there was a steel barricade blocking the main gate.

“I don’t know when it’ll end.”

“Then do you want to rest in my room?”

She pointed to her room as she said this. And then, gesturing toward her pigsty of a room, I replied:

“It’s basically a pigsty in there.”

“Hey! I’m trying to keep it clean, okay!”

Despite yelling, Victoria didn’t seem all that upset. In fact, while she yelled, water-drenched objects floated mid-air before neatly returning to their places.

This…

High probability she doesn’t need line-of-sight to see things. Unfortunately, I can’t perceive those kinds of senses myself.

Whatever “harvesting systems” or “psychic abilities” are, they remain mysteries to me. If they’re outside the shared sensations we experience, I can only vaguely deduce that they aren’t physical functions.

If something’s within the body, I can sense more than just sight and hearing—I can feel internal tactile sensations too.

Anyway, I told Victoria:

“Let’s go together.”

“Huh? But it’ll be boring, won’t it?”

Normally, following her would mean standing idly outside the school gates.

“Come with me.”

I spoke without giving her a chance to question why. Victoria hesitated for a moment, then seemed to make up her mind and nodded.

After fully stepping out, Victoria closed the door behind her. Even though she didn’t have keys, there was a click sound, followed by white steam puffing out from the keyhole.

Yeah, keys are unnecessary when you’ve got psychic powers acting like hands.

We left the dormitory together.

While walking through the empty corridor, Victoria looked around curiously and whispered to me once we realized no one else was nearby:

“Is something wrong?”

“Can you easily leave?”

“Well, not many people can hurt me unless they’re super strong, but…”

“Not what I meant. Just look at the main gate when we get there.”

We exited the dormitory and turned right, following the stark white wall until we reached the main gate.

Even before arriving, cries for food and jobs could already be heard—people shouting desperately.

“Still going on, huh.”

“It has to continue. It’s survival.”

It’s survival. Protests are desperate cries for life.

As we approached the main gate, the noise grew louder.

Turning the corner, we saw soldiers and barricades made of steel frames guarding the gate. Farther away, a crowd holding placards and tools shouted angrily.

“The gate’s closed.”

“This is the only way out. Come on, Victoria.”

I led her forward.

As soon as we approached, a soldier rushed over.

“Excuse me, student ma’am. Please refrain from going outside.”

They politely asked us to turn back.

But I said:

“My name is Bell. I’m going out.”

Hearing my name, the soldier looked puzzled. Huh? Did someone mention me? The soldier mumbled something, apparently having no memory of hearing that name before.

“Just wait a moment.”

With that, the soldier scurried off to consult someone higher up.

Students generally hold fairly high ranks compared to regular soldiers. Plus, judging by how they glanced at my hair and skin earlier, good news might be coming.

“Will it be okay?”

She eyed me distrustfully. But even if she asks, all I can say is yes.

“If it really doesn’t work, just tell them the protests blocked the entrance so you couldn’t leave. Your teacher will understand.”

I asked this knowing full well what’s happening at the Mechanical Knight School.

Victoria frowned at my words. Clearly, she didn’t want to do that. Though she may not appear so, Victoria is diligent.

Unless something extraordinary happened, she always attended extra lessons held late in the afternoon.

That shows how much becoming a Mechanical Knight means to her. Given that, her teacher must be privately tutoring her despite her de facto expulsion.

Moreover, Victoria must attend the Royal Academy.

You might think if she dislikes it, she could drop out and return to the Mechanical Knight School—but the Royal Academy also serves as a kind of protective monitoring facility.

Talented individuals are brought into the Royal Academy.

What happens if someone can’t handle it and leaves?

Yep.

They’re buried.

Talented people are dangerous. Regardless of the type, if they harbor ill intentions, they could misuse their abilities. The three major corporations provided plenty of examples.

If someone refuses integration into mainstream society, they’ll be excluded—for safety reasons.

Of course, no one explicitly explained this to me.

However, Beatrice clearly understood this early on, as she tried hard to persuade Victoria. I learned this from Beatrice’s memories when I created Kanna’s harvesting system.

Still, Victoria’s patience is nearing its limit.

So much has happened—it’s too harsh for any girl to bear. And no one ever told Victoria…

Victoria has already killed countless innocent people.

Her power is immense. Like how supersonic jets crack the ground with shockwaves when flying low, she drowned innocents without even realizing it.

Or maybe… she does know. No one mentioned it, and she never showed any signs, but watching how she manipulates water makes me wonder.

But hey, I felt plenty of warmth, so I was happy!

If things keep going this way, maybe more warmth will come.

We’ve known each other for so long, haven’t we? And…

And…

And there’s my promise with Soo-oh. Yep.

At least, being there for her is something I can do. I’m an extension of her humanity.

I know how humans act. I understand how to behave—and how to feel.

But even considering all that, I hate the cold more. That’s why I take warmth.

No matter how loudly my heart screams, the cold hurts worse. To alleviate even a little of that pain, I’d do anything.

Even if it’s someone I consider family, if they give me warmth, I’d throw them into hell and force them to produce more warmth—it’s less painful this way.

Anyone who says I’m not human should try standing in my shoes.

Ke he he.

They’d surely scream like me, break apart, and crave warmth.

The problem is, no one in this world can endure what I’ve endured.

Jealous? They can die.

They can choose to vanish forever without enduring such torment.

To ease Victoria’s inevitable suffering, I’ll stay quiet and let her face reality.

Not long after, the officer who stopped us earlier returned with another person who looked like a commander.

“Are you Bell?”

“Yes. Will you let me pass?”

At my question, the commander stared at me, then slightly opened the gate with his hand. When a soldier behind him protested, the commander silenced him with a sharp command.

After stepping through the open gate, I called out to Victoria, who stood frozen in surprise.

“C’mon, let’s go.”

“Wow, this actually works.”

The moment we stepped out, the gate slammed shut again.

Beyond the barricades, among the protesters, I spotted my lodging reinforced with metal plates covering the entrances and windows—just like during the Thornbush incident.

Probably for this exact purpose.

Ignoring the stares, I headed straight toward the protesting crowd. As soon as I crossed the barricade, the commander shouted from behind:

“That direction is dangerous!”

“It’s fine.”

As I emerged, the protesters slowly quieted down, staring at me with confused expressions.

I kept walking straight ahead, ignoring their gazes. After all, they aren’t enemies.

Behind me, Victoria hesitated briefly before rushing to catch up. A few soldiers looked uncertainly at the commander, unsure whether they should protect us.

I raised my hand to stop them and continued walking toward the front of the protest. There stood a large, intimidating beast-human hybrid male with thick fur.

He stood out immediately, so I targeted him.

“Are you noble?”

“No. My name is Bell.”

He extended a wooden stick toward me—originally attached to something, but now broken, resembling a spear. Water droplets froze mid-air.

No need for Victoria’s help here. Sure, she could harvest warmth, but I have other plans.

“To put it simply: Humanity. Go home today.”

As I spoke, I summoned a lump of warmth, lifting my decaying humanity alongside it.

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