In the Abyss, night is heralded not by a setting sun, but by the flickering of the daytime lights. When the Military State's standard clock strikes 6 p.m., the artificial lights, meant to replace the sun, turn red as if mimicking a sunset.
An imitation is always bound by the form of the original. From top to bottom, the light of the daytime lamps slowly sinks like the sun dipping below the horizon. Then, the faint night lights scattered throughout the Abyss illuminate the building's interior.
But a copy always shows its flaws, and the night lights are lacking in many ways compared to an evening sky. Instead of the dusky, indigo sky painted by the remnants of light, a dim illumination covers the Abyss. It is an unpleasant light, starkly different from the twinkling of the moon and stars that seeps in like mist—a light that casts shadows even in the darkness.
Then again, what light wouldn't pale in comparison to the grace of the sun that shines upon the whole world?
As the daytime lights went out, the lighting in the corridor dimmed as well. The mirror shard I'd placed in the crack of my door now reflected only darkness. On top of that, the light in my room also went out, making it impossible to continue my work. I stopped what I was doing and rose from my desk.
Fifty-two cards lay on the desk. They were the product of the Alchemic Gold the Regressor had given me and the entirety of my day.
I am a magician, and an alchemist who transmutes cards and suckers into money. A deck of cards is my weapon.
I swept a hand across the desk. The fifty-two cards, which had been scattered in disarray, gathered obediently into my hand in a single motion. Rectangular, hard, and resilient. The familiar sensation welcomed me.
I split the face-down deck in half and shuffled. The flexible, springy cards weaved into each other's gaps. I mixed, flipped, twisted, and mixed again. Thump. I set the shuffled deck down on the desk.
"Ace of Diamonds."
I flipped over the top card. It was the Ace of Diamonds. Of course it was. I had shuffled them to be that way.
I hadn't held a deck for a few days, but my skills hadn't gone anywhere. They had simply been waiting for me, deep in my heart. I casually lifted the Ace of Diamonds. A single, sharp, red symbol took up the entire face of the card as if it owned it. I held the card between my index and middle fingers and flipped it with a flick. The next moment, when I spread my hands, the Ace of Diamonds was nowhere to be seen.
The quality and condition of the cards were not bad. I took a deep breath, steeling my resolve.
"Alright. Let's do this."
I'd rather it was Azzy who was stealing the food. But if it wasn't…
Even if only to escape, I'd need to have a weapon of my own.
I opened the door, careful not to make a sound.
The dark corridor seemed to have swallowed even sound itself. During the day, it was quiet but had a minimal sense of life.
But now, it was as gloomy and silent as its name, Tantalus, suggested.
I headed down the long corridor. It was so dark and still that I felt I shouldn't even make a footstep, and I found myself walking on the balls of my feet without realizing it.
It didn't take long to reach the cafeteria. I focused my mind, trying to sense if anyone's thoughts were coming from inside.
I couldn't feel the slightest noise from within. That meant, at the very least, there were no thinking humans inside.
Whether they were thoughtless or simply not human remained to be seen.
I slipped inside and sat down in a corner of the cafeteria. All I had to do was wait quietly and arrest Azzy the moment she went for the pot. And if a ghost showed up, I would flee immediately.
Hunting, by nature, is an art of patience. Behind every glorious hunt lies a period of enduring patience. I held my breath and stared intently in the direction of the pot.
Time crawled by. My concentration waned, and my head began to nod off. How many minutes had passed? I heard a presence outside.
Took the bait.
See? I knew it was an intruder. What nonsense about someone already being inside. I don't believe in unsubstantiated conspiracy theories like that.
I tensed, waiting for the perfect moment, for my prey to walk right into the trap. The moment they touched the pot, they'd be caught red-handed. I'd jump out and ambush them then…
The shadow that entered the cafeteria swept its gaze around with glowing golden eyes.
"You, what are you doing there?"
It walked straight toward me.
So much for my mind-reading abilities helping me hide. I stood up and pointed at the Regressor.
"It was you. I knew it."
"Knew what?"
"If you were that curious, you could have just asked for a bite. Did you really have to sneak in here in the middle of the night to steal it? Your little escapade has sown the seeds of mistrust between us! And mistrust is an evil that eats away at society, an obstruction that creates friction and noise like rust caught between turning gears! Do you have any idea what a terrible thing you've done?"
"What the hell are you talking about?"
The Regressor ignored me and looked away.
"If you have nothing better to do, just be quiet."
"Leave it to the culprit to get angry first. To think you'd take a dump all over Tantalus and then pretend you didn't!"
"What the hell is that vulgar nonsense?!"
The Regressor, who had retorted reflexively, looked at me with an expression of disbelief.
"Don't tell me you actually think I came here to steal food?"
"Until a moment ago, yes."
"In that case—wait, no! Until a moment ago? You thought I was on the same level as the likes of you?!"
We're exactly the same. We're both trapped in here.
In any case, I had just read her mind. Unfortunately, the Regressor hadn't come to steal food. The presence she'd felt just before leaving the cafeteria had been bothering her, so she had come back at night to check.
I scratched my head and spoke.
"So. Are you saying there's really something hiding in here?"
"Probably. I'm not sure, but it can't hurt to look."
"Ah."
I started gathering my things. Standing up, I gave the Regressor a slight nod.
"Well, good luck with that."
"…Where are you going?"
"It's scary, so I'm running away."
The Regressor asked again, a look of sheer absurdity on her face.
"Didn't you say you were the warden responsible for managing and supervising us?"
"Ghosts aren't trainees."
"What about me? Are you just going to stand by and watch while I investigate this prison?"
"Who asked you to investigate? And would you stop if I told you not to? If you're going to do it even if I try to stop you, what's the point of me getting involved?"
"Wow."
He still has such a way with words. So infuriating. But more importantly, what's with him? Is he serious? No, surely not. He must have some kind of plan, right?
Plan? What plan? If it's a real ghost, something I can't read the mind of, there's nothing I can do. Against non-humans, I'm less than a maggot.
I turned toward the cafeteria door without a backward glance.
"Well then, I'll be on my way. Don't forget to file an after-action report. If possible, please submit it with a sample."
"If you're that interested, why don't you just watch?"
"Sorry. It's lights-out, so I have to sleep."
"Cut the crap and watch from over there."
"Huh? Why?"
A strong fighter, one capable of deflecting my sword, is showing signs of caution… Could there really be something powerful hiding here? Or is he trying to distract me? Whatever his intention, I'll interfere for now. It's not that I'm scared… but it wouldn't hurt to have him stay in the rear, just in case.
Fear is contagious. When I made it obvious that I was completely terrified, the Regressor's guard went up accordingly, to the point where she was provisionally thinking of leaving me in the rear.
Finishing her thought, the Regressor made an excuse.
"The thing hiding in there like a parasite could be an intruder, right? If so, eliminating them is your job as the one who manages this prison. So you have to watch."
"That's a fair point. Check it out, and if it's an intruder, act first and report later. I'll be in my room until then."
Good luck. I'm out. I was just about to step through the door.
Hey! I told you not to go! Tsk, I'll just have to throw Chun-aeng!
You can't do that. I'll die.
I spun around and came back inside. Then I moved to stand close behind the Regressor.
Startled by my sudden change in attitude, the Regressor said with disgust.
"What do you think you're doing?"
I couldn't very well tell her I came back because I was afraid she'd actually use force.
And to be honest, if there really was an intruder like she said, maybe it was safer to be with her than on my own.
Azzy was mad at me right now, and the vampire didn't seem to care much about this incident, perhaps because she was a ghost herself. Other than the Regressor, the only person who could protect me was myself.
And that wasn't very reassuring.
"Now, lead the way! Let's go vanquish that ghost! We can't let a mere spirit threaten us!"
"You…"
Still… it's reassuring to have someone behind me. Tsk, the problem is that it has to be him…
In any case, with me behind her, the Regressor began to scan our surroundings with her brilliantly shining golden eyes.
The third of the Seven Colored Eyes, the Golden Eyes. The Fiery Golden Eyes that allow one to see the unseen. With eyes like those, I suppose even ghosts wouldn't be scary.
What could I do? Nothing. Just stand by and eat popcorn.
Ah, maybe I should cheer her on?
"You can do it! Ghosts are nothing but residual mana left over after death! Don't be scared, let's go! With your sword, Trainee Shei, you can cut down even a ghost!"
"…Can you please be quiet? It's so loud I can't hear anything."
"You're only looking with those flashy eyes anyway. Focus on your sight."
"I'm listening, too, you know?"
The Regressor slowly circled the cafeteria, her gaze also falling on the storage closet attached to a shelf a little further in. She tilted her head with a puzzled look.
"I don't see it. Nothing at all."
"Oh, come on. See? It was nothing after all."
"That can't be right. My gut tells me that when I feel like something's there, there usually is."
That gut feeling of hers wasn't very reliable. It hadn't seen through my bluff, after all.
Still, since that same gut feeling had saved my life, I couldn't really complain.
"If you can't see it even with those glowing eyes, we can assume there's nothing there."
"This is strange…"
"Just give it up. There's nowhere else to hide in this tiny cafeteria. It's just a two-table diner with a palm-sized storage closet. Where else are you going to look? Unless our opponent can pass through walls."
"Walls?"
I had obviously said it as a joke, but the Regressor fell into deep thought upon hearing my words.
"Right. The walls. There was that place. The Military State's concrete is thick. If it was hiding in there, I wouldn't have noticed."
This level of conspiracy-theorizing was a serious condition. I sighed and waved a hand in front of her face.
"Hey. So what are you going to do? Break down the walls? That's destruction of property, you know."
"I won't break them."
I'll just slice them open.
Lifting her head, the Regressor raised her fingers and poked herself in the eyes.
The fourth of the Seven Colored Eyes, the Jade Eyes.
These eyes, with their ominous green glow, could see through objects. Though they had difficulty penetrating metal, especially lead.
But 'unable to see through' also meant that it would take up a black space in her vision. Therefore, it was extremely useful for finding metal.
I used my mind-reading to steal a glimpse of the Regressor's vision.
I saw a world in black and white. The world was dark and bright, as if drawn with countless overlapping thin threads. Her piercing gaze could see inside objects; when her eyes fell on me, I could see the white bones within my body. It's embarrassing to be seen naked, but when your skin is peeled away too, all sense of shame vanishes. How strange.
The Regressor's gaze turned to the wall. The concrete wall looked like white cardboard, and the mesh-like steel frame embedded within was clearly visible. She slowly scanned the wall until she found something.
In a corner of the wall, there was a small, doll-like silhouette. Anyone else would have thought a doll had been accidentally mixed in when the concrete was poured.
But the identity of that doll was…
"Found you. You were still here?"
It was a small model of a Military State magic golem.
The Regressor reached a hand behind her head. Chun-aeng was in her grasp. The moment she touched it, her sword was as good as drawn.
In an instant, a flurry of slashes thinly sliced the wall. The concrete, split like the bark of an old tree, unrolled like a scroll before turning to dust from the edges. An empty space was revealed.
From it, the Regressor pulled out the magic golem, impaled on the tip of her thin sword. The golem's body twitched.
"I must strongly request that you cease this destructive act."
A flat voice flowed from the golem. It was the same voice I had heard when I first arrived in Tantalus.
Captain Abbey, was it? The Military State's signaller. The emotionless trumpeter of the State.
The Regressor scoffed at the request.
"That's a request you should have made before you started spying on me like a rat."
"Considering your destructive and sensitive disposition, it was determined that this unit would have been destroyed even if it had revealed itself beforehand. That judgment remains valid. Furthermore, this unit ceased operation when it determined you were nearby. This can be interpreted as not having spied on you."
"Right, right. Your judgment, your request, it's all correct. Just like the Military State. Always so rational. That's why."
The Regressor raised her sword again. A spark flew from its tip. Part of the golem's circuitry burned, and it buzzed as if screaming.
"I'm going to break you. Bye-bye. Hiding in the wall was a nice touch, though."
"Cease this destructive act immediately. The severance of communication will lead to inefficiency."
"Heeh. You sound desperate. Is this the last of these golems? I guess it wouldn't matter if there were more. From now on, I'll be searching every wall with my Jade Eyes active."
Tormenting the golem, the Regressor looked quite pleased for the first time in a while.
So I couldn't read its thoughts because it's a golem. That makes sense. Phew, what a relief. It wasn't a ghost, just a golem. In that it's unreadable, it's just as tricky as a ghost, but the Regressor will destroy it for me, so I don't care.
I decided to just stand back and watch. I was just starting to relax when…
"I repeat my request. Cease this destructive act immediately. Your actions will make the dissemination of information related to communication and distribution impossible. I repeat my request…"
Distribution. The word, heard by chance, caught my attention.
Trapped in here, our supplies would eventually run out. If Azzy kept eating food as she pleased, our rations would be gone in no time.
It might be a different story for the Regressor, who had all sorts of treasures, but I needed those rations…
Come to think of it, I can't let that golem be destroyed!
I hurried up behind the Regressor.
"'Repeat' is a word I truly dislike. But I can do it as many times as I want."
Not even noticing my approach, the Regressor was engrossed in tormenting the golem, swept up in a wave of glee.
"Destroying this golem won't do anything to your main body, but if it causes the Military State even a little trouble, that's good enough for me."
"Warning. Hostile actions will…"
"Goodbye."
Flick.
A light tap on Chun-aeng sent the small golem flying into the air. The Regressor sheathed her sword, preparing for the storm of slashes that would follow. From her deeply crouched stance, compressed power was on the verge of erupting.
Wary of being struck by that blade, I approached from her blind spot and reached out a hand toward her.
"Wait! Hold on!"
That was when my hand touched the Regressor's shoulder.
Something shot up from below my field of vision. Before I could react, I felt a lurching sensation. Something huge was coming at me.
No, it was the other way around. The world was flipping over, my vision spinning.
The thing that shot up was none other than me.
Heavenly Counter Domain. Deflection.
Sky Turner.
Huh?
A counter-attack?
A counter-attack at the level of muscle memory, not even preceded by a thought?
By the time I read that, my body was already falling toward the ground.
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