Chapter 178
Lani found himself somewhat dumbfounded—first, that Daphne had spotted him despite how quietly he’d been suppressing his presence, and second, that the moment she’d noticed him, she’d immediately started spouting something distinctly human about a “mother.”
So Lani slowly poked his head out from beyond the wall. Hiding his surprise, he spoke as though nothing were amiss.
“First time seeing each other like this. Should I say it’s nice to meet you?”
At that, Daphne let out a scoffing laugh. Clinging to the ceiling like some kind of bat, and he had the nerve to act tough?
“Cut the nonsense and come down. I need to talk to you.”
Lani’s expression flickered with mild embarrassment, but only for a moment. He dropped down from the ceiling in one swift motion and landed directly before Daphne and Shio. A fairly impressive move, in its own way. Right up until Shio started mocking him.
“Pfft.”
Shio laughed deliberately loud enough for Lani to hear, and the moment he heard it, Lani let out a sigh, as though he’d expected exactly this, and shot him a sidelong glare.
“Someone who got beaten to a pulp by a mortal and ended up living like that has no right to laugh at me.”
“…Are you kidding me right now?”
Shio’s voice turned sharp instantly.
“Who was it that got beaten senseless by ‘that guy,’ living exactly like that? Huh? Who was it that cried their eyes out after getting hit?”
“And who was that sneaky bastard who jumped me the moment I woke up from hibernation?”
“And who was it that ran away using hibernation as an excuse, what, over ten times now?”
“And who never once managed to beat me in all ten of those times?”
“You—!”
Clearly having a long history of bad blood, the two bickered back and forth with an all-too-familiar rhythm, and Daphne, leaving them to it, clapped her hands together sharply.
“Both of you, shut it.”
Her expression and tone suggested that if they didn’t shut up right now, she’d grab them both by the collar and shake them senseless. So Lani and Shio both fell obediently silent.
“Green boy.”
Daphne asked, turning to Lani.
“Did you know I’d be coming here today?”
Lani hesitated for a moment, then nodded.
“I knew you’d be attending the ball.”
“Then did you know I’d end up in the Emperor’s lair?”
Lani shook his head.
“That, I merely hoped for. I couldn’t be certain of it.”
“Then why.”
Daphne glared at Lani, her eyes thick with suspicion.
“Why attack the Emperor today, of all days?”
Actually, thinking about it, it really was strange.
Lani’s group—the ones playing at being priests—must have already known long ago that Sellus’s body was located here.
So they could have picked a moment when fewer people were gathered, or when the Emperor happened to be away, any number of times more favorable to them. And yet, remarkably, they’d launched their attack today of all days.
What was the reason for that? Others might not have caught on, but Daphne felt she probably knew.
“Knowing full well I’d likely be here, and knowing full well the Emperor might turn to me for help—and yet you still charged in today, of all days, specifically to take Sellus’s body.”
“…”
“It’s almost as if you wanted me to come.”
The corners of Lani’s mouth curled upward. He spread both arms wide and shrugged.
“You really are sharp, aren’t you. Did you see that, Shiosen? This is exactly the kind of sharp instinct you need to survive this long, even looking like a Calamity.”
“You’d better keep that mouth shut.”
“Why, feeling like you can finally beat me now?”
“No. I just get the feeling she’s about to hit you instead.”
Lani glanced sidelong at Daphne, and found her eyes wide open, her fists clenched tight. He let out a small cough.
“Ahem. Anyway.”
He steered the conversation elsewhere.
“I was waiting.”
“For what?”
“To explain myself.”
Watching Lani answer as though he’d been expecting exactly that question, Daphne let out a hollow laugh.
An explanation, an explanation, huh. Was there really any “explanation” to be had for everything Lani had done up until now? An “explanation,” to begin with, was supposed to correct some misunderstanding born from misperception—but him slaughtering humans indiscriminately wasn’t a misunderstanding. It was simply the truth.
Daphne glared steadily into Lani’s eyes.
“You already know I’m aware you used black mages to kill innocent humans, and yet you talk of explaining yourself. Not even funny.”
“It was an unavoidable sacrifice.”
The moment the word “sacrifice” left his mouth, fury filled Daphne’s face, though Lani, oblivious, failed to notice. He continued speaking, as though rehearsed.
“For the sake of something greater, smaller sacrifices were unavoidable. For a greater future—that is, to drive out the Emperor, who occupies his position purely to satisfy his own selfish desires, and to build a peaceful world for all—there was simply no choice but to,”
“No choice?”
Unable to contain her fury any longer, Daphne cut him off, shouting.
“‘No choice doesn’t extend to taking lives. It never can!”
Daphne clenched her fist tight.
“Sacrifice for the greater good? Fine. Well said. Then tell me, what exactly is this greater good? Does ‘greater good’ mean scum like you, who treats life as worthless, ruling over the world? Be honest with me. This ‘greater good,’ this ‘greater good’ you keep chanting like a hymn—isn’t it really just your own greater good? For your own happiness, not for the happiness of anyone else?”
Lani found himself briefly at a loss for words, but soon composed himself. He couldn’t afford to falter here. He had to convince Daphne, had to bring her over to his side…! Lani shook his head and cleared his throat.
“How can you be so certain of that? I’ve told you clearly, I’m helping humans—”
“If you were helping them, you shouldn’t have killed even a single one so easily.”
Daphne’s icy voice cut through the space between them. She ground her teeth.
“Even if you needed death energy, even if you claimed you couldn’t accomplish anything without it, even so.”
“…”
“You should never have taken a life.”
Lani let out a long sigh and swept a hand through his hair.
He’d known the Calamity had always been obsessed with respecting life, but he hadn’t expected it to be this extreme. What did humans even matter, really. What did beings weaker than himself matter. He shook his head.
“Calamity. You still don’t fully understand the Emperor’s cruelty.”
“I do! In fact, I know it well. Not just the Emperor’s, either. I know the cruelty of every last dragon.”
Daphne shouted, her eyes flaring wide. Then she pointed at Lani.
“Your cruelty, summoning innocent souls against their will, forcing them into becoming garbage bins for causal fate.”
Then she looked at Shio.
“And your utterly repulsive contradiction, deliberately turning a blind eye to it, only to regret it belatedly.”
Shio’s mouth fell half open, then shut again. He seemed to want to say something, but couldn’t bring himself to, pressing his lips firmly shut instead.
“Calamity.”
“Yes! I am the Calamity. But I stand here without shame. Because I have never once done anything remotely like what you Calamities have done! The true calamities here are all of you!”
Daphne finally spoke the words she’d wanted to say for so long. Yes. You are the calamity. Not me. I am nothing but a single victim, harmed by calamities exactly like you.
Shouting this out somehow left her feeling strangely liberated. Daphne laughed and continued.
“The Emperor creating chimeras, that was truly a wicked act. He must absolutely be punished for it. But you are exactly the same. And not just you—everyone who follows you must be punished too! No one here is innocent!”
Drawing in a deep breath, Daphne gripped her sword and glared at Lani.
“Lani, if the reason you sought me out was to convince me and bring me over to your side, that was a grave miscalculation.”
Hum, sword energy gathered around the drawn blade. Its tip pointed toward Lani.
“Because you’re going to die right here, today.”
Lani’s expression flickered with a slight scowl, then he let out a low chuckle.
“Ah, I suppose it’s fortunate I listened to the priest’s advice.”
As he said this, his body gradually began to fade. Damn it. Daphne scowled and hastily reached out a hand, but it only swept through empty air. Lani’s body turned transparent.
“Good thing I left my real body behind. Fighting all the way here would have been too much of a risk.”
“You cowardly…!”
“Calamity. …No, Daphne Achion.”
Lani looked down at Daphne with an unreadable expression.
“There won’t be another offer like this next time.”
Then, gazing at the tip of Daphne’s blade, at the sword energy the hero had taught her, thick and gathered along its edge, he murmured.
“Next time, I will definitely kill you…”
“You’re the one dying! Die! Die!”
“Aaargh!”
At that moment, Daphne managed to land a final blow on Lani’s rapidly vanishing form, and Lani, his half-remaining body flickering violently, let out a shout. Daphne watched him with a triumphant smile.
“I’m not dying!”
And declared proudly.
“Not until I see my mother again!”
