Arc 8: Vincent Vollachia
Arc 8, Chapter 11 "Shut Up"
"--Are you going to that person, Mr. Abel?"
Stopping at the call from the side, Vincent turned around.
The coach is connected and treated as one long dragon car, and the "Divine Protection of Wind Shielding" of multiple earth dragons is applied to it--Vincent closes one eye to see a familiar blue-haired girl standing at the connection where he crossed.
Thinking back, it has been a long time since he has exchanged words with this girl.
"Have the uninvited guests from the Kingdom served their purpose?"
"Those people are not after me, but......"
"Stop that. Don't waste my time with nonsense that even you don't fully believe. Time is precious. Especially in this situation. You know that."
"----"
At the sound of Vincent's steely voice, the girl looked down with her eyes downcast.
However, she soon looked up, taking Vincent's wishes into account that time is finite,
"Are you going to that person, Mr. Abel?"
He fired the same question over and over again.
"I am not Abel. I am Vincent Vollachia."
To this question, Vincent replies without changing his expression.
Abel is a pseudonym, and he only called himself that for convenience while on the run. He borrowed it from his family name, Abellux, before he became emperor, and is not obsessed with it.
But the discomfort of being called that was stronger now.
"--. It has been reported that it has awakened. I must confront it."
Pushing aside his discomfort, Vincent answers the girl's question.
Whatever the girl thought, it would not change Vincent's policy. Originally, he didn't even think the girl had that much intention or thought.
She was protected, swept away, suffer, and came to a natural conclusion over a long period of time.
That like many things, she is just one of those ordinary people.
Therefore, Vincent tried to end the question and answer early.
However--,
"That person is not an enemy of Mr. Abel."
"--What?"
Vincent's brow furrowed when he received a response from the girl, who he had expected to remain silent and downcast, and one that he had not expected to hear.
The girl looked at Vincent as he did so, and her pale blue eyes had a definite will.
The light that did not dwell in him when they parted, it pierced through him timidly but majestically, as if trying to cower Vincent.
"--. I am Vincent Vollachia. There will be no third time."
"I'm sorry. But I don't know much about Emperor Vincent, because I have no memory of him. So there is nothing I can say to Emperor Vincent."
"----"
"That person is not an enemy of Mr. Abel."
The girl emphasizes so over and over without once looking away.
Vincent knew her by the abilities she had in her hands. She is the reins of control over Natsuki Subaru and a valuable user of healing magic.
If she is aware of their position and is taking a strong stand against Vincent, she would have to say she has great courage, but this does not seem to be the case.
And then--,
"What did you say your name was?"
"--I'm Rem. At least now I can answer that clearly."
"The girl who has no memory of these events will state it clearly."
"It's strange, isn't it? Sometimes the environment teaches you things even if you don't remember them in your head or in your heart. Thanks to someone who kept telling me all along that I was Rem."
Whether it was gratitude or dismay, the girl--Rem herself, did not know.
Only to find that it is not leading to disgust or disgustingly negative thoughts, Vincent decides that further conversation is unnecessary.
He turned his back and got to his feet. On the way,
"Rem, don't let my time go to waste again. The next time you disrespect me, I will cut off your head."
With that, he ended his dialogue with Rem.
And then--,
"How eloquently you speak, Natsuki Subaru? --The 'Stargazer' of the Dragon Kingdom."
△▼△▼△▼△
Subaru confronts the man, keenly aware of the hostility directed at him.
Looking back, his relationship with this man was nothing short of inexplicable.
Their first encounter was with a suspicious bandaged man camped out in the woods. At the time, he was too busy looking for the straggling Rem and Louis to go deeper into it, but it was more than just a suspicious man.
The next encounter was in a cage in the Shudrak village, and he couldn't explain how he could be so high and mighty when he was a prisoner. If there had been any means of escape, it would have been a no-brainer, since he was forced to perform the "Blood Life Ritual" after that.
Then, while helping to retrieve Rem, he parted with him once, but knowing that Subaru and the others would be forced to return, he showed his viciousness in not informing them of the situation.
On the other hand, he fully cooperated with Subaru's plan to attack the fortified city of Guaral, and together with dancers Natsumi Schwarz, Bianca, and Flora, they rode into the enemy's main camp.
He was suspected of having an unusual relationship with Priscilla, was courted by Yorna, and even declared without hesitation that he could not allow Louis to live in the Demon City, and they were separated.
Yet, after escaping from the Gladiator Island, when he heard about the situation surrounding the entire empire, he had no doubt that it was his handiwork, the emperor who had been forced from his throne.
He has abandoned the Imperial Capital, Lupgana, and has taken command in a situation where many people are evacuating and withdrawing from the city, and he is once again the top emperor of the empire, and he is a renowned wise emperor--.
"I'm honored to have that Vincent Vollachia come to visit me. Just in time, can you peel me an Appa?"
"Don't play with me. I can't even peel a fruit. First of all, where is the Appa?"
"Where is it......?"
Stepping into the bedroom, Subaru's gaze turns to the side at the question of the man who walks up to him.
Perhaps it is a promise in these situations, but even in other worlds, it is standard practice for fruit to be brought to visit the injured or sick. So there is a basket of Appas next to the bunk.
Of course, the other party must be able to see it.
"Here's your fruit basket. It's so red and delicious."
"Are you plotting against me, you fool? Appas are white fruit."
"Well, the skin is white on the inside, but...... wait, I think this conversation brings back memories of a very similar exchange I had a long time ago."
It's a rather dim memory, but he thinks he had the same conversation a long time ago.
He can't recall the details of who he was talking to at the time, but he remembers thinking the same thing as he does now, that the upper class had reached such an extreme level.
In any case--,
"I guess there's something you don't know either. That's surprising."
Subaru said, feeling that this was not a bad start, although it was not a clumsy introduction to the first, mutual exchange of words.
At Subaru's words, the man--Abel, reached into the fruit basket and split the Appa in half with the knife that was left there. Naturally, the white cross section inside was exposed.
"----"
Seeing the unmovable answer, he was ready to admit the fact of the earlier exchange. Abel puts down the knife and turns to him, leaving it broken in half in the basket.
His dark eyes are still wet with a hostility that is unmistakable.
"No way, you're not mad at me for embarrassing you with the color of my Appa. ......You called me a funny name earlier, it was..."
"The 'Stargazer' of the Dragon Kingdom."
"That's it."
Subaru is again aware of the way he is called and frowns at the lack of familiarity.
The word is not unfamiliar to him. As he recalls, he had heard that it was called that by the fortune tellers who stuck by the emperor in this empire.
He said that it is an entity that shows the future, like the "Dragon Stone Tablet", the prophecy tablet of the Kingdom of Lugnica.
"No, I think it sounded worse...... like a peek into tomorrow."
"That must be the perception. That's how I see it."
"You just called me a peeping tom, are you aware of that?"
In this day and age, this would be an insult that would normally be punishable by death. In modern terms, which Subaru knows, he would be prepared to fight the libel in civil court.
However, Abel's expression does not waver in the slightest at Subaru's response. He can't go out with him for fun, he tells him with black eyes that are the same color as Subaru's, but with a different depth.
Of course, Subaru has no intention of playing along,
"How much do you know?"
"How much do I know about the situation? In that case, I know a few details. I do know that Emilia and the others are awake and concerned, and that they are...... in retreat."
"----"
"The civil war stopped once and everyone is in the middle of fleeing the Imperial City...... confusion and all that would have been bad, but it doesn't seem to be causing a fuss."
The dragon carriages kept running, and the night view out the window was moving slowly, but it was quiet, even after taking into account that the "Divine Protection of Wind Shielding" protected them from the shaking and wind noise.
This may be due in part to the quietness of the dragon carriage itself, but the fact that the dragon carriages have never stopped is also evidence that no notable problems have occurred.
This is despite the fact that a considerable number of people, probably on the order of 100,000, will be moving.
"I'm sure there is the centripetal force of the 'Nine Divine Generals' and all that, but that's not enough to make this happen. I knew you were a big deal, you know."
"----"
"I have to admit, when I heard that you were betrayed by your right-hand man and your chief of staff and kicked off the throne, I really wondered if you'd be okay with being Emperor again, but I was right."
Leadership, charisma, and the so-called qualities of those who are above others.
It may be acquired through mud and sweat, but there are also a few that are born with it.
The story is that these are the royal families of various countries and the heads of various organizations.
In this sense, Abel, who had secured his own foothold in the event of an emergency, still had the potential to be followed and looked up to by those around him.
"I hate that I was more on the side of belief than half-belief, but you're the Emperor and you're right......"
"--Is that what you want, too?"
"Huh?"
A quiet but definite emotion in his voice. It seemed so outlandish that Subaru's brain refused to comprehend it.
As a result, Subaru did not lose the hand that was reaching for him, and he fell on the bed with his forehead pressed against it. And before he could protest what was happening, he felt a sharp touch on his throat.
He quickly realizes that it is the tip of the fruit knife with which he had just carved the Appa.
He might have noticed it, but he doesn't know the intent. The meaning of Abel holding that knife, and thus turning his hostility--no, the same hatred that was in his voice toward Subaru.
"----"
Immediately up close and within breathing distance of each other, Subaru and Abel glare at each other.
Here, if Subaru unintentionally shouted loudly and called for help, Abel would not hesitate to slit Subaru's throat with a knife.
But at the same time, the reason he isn't doing that right now is because Abel has his own reasons for not doing so.
"What the hell do you think you're doing......?"
"The question should be asked of you, what are you doing? How far did you see all of this going on? Is everything up to this point exactly as you have painted it?"
"That's why......! I told you I don't know what you're talking about. What am I up to......?"
"--Why did you leave the rest of us and not Chisha?"
The sound of his voice that gouged much more sharply than the blade against his throat. It silenced Subaru and made Abel's hand tremble as he gripped the knife.
Gritting his teeth, Abel stared at Subaru from a close distance and said.
That's not something Subaru understands immediately.
"Abel......"
"Vincent Vollachia."
"----"
"I am not Abel. I am none other than Vincent Vollachia, the 77th Emperor of the Vollachia Empire. --That is the end that you wanted."
He says it as if squeezed out, and Abel--no, Vincent, says the name evasively.
Subaru frowned, not understanding the meaning of this attitude, as if he was cursing himself for calling himself that. Because, of course, it is.
"I thought you were fighting to get that name and crown back......"
"No. I have tried to fulfill my duties as emperor. The pact with the 'People of Shudrak', the fall of the fortified city, the negotiations with Yorna Mishigure, and the provocation of civil war were all for that purpose."
"Your duties......?"
"At the throne, Vincent Vollachia will die, leaving behind the means to resist the 'Great Calamity' that will destroy the empire. It is my duty to do so."
"Huh......"
When Vincent told him the details of his plan for the first time, Subaru let out a ragged breath.
The unfamiliar word "Great Calamity" was one thing, but what surprised Subaru even more was the way Vincent told the story.
He said that Vincent Vollachia had died and the "Great Calamity" was about to begin.
And he said that he would leave a way to resist that "Great Calamity".
He said to leave it, not explore it.
The way he says it, it's like--.
"You sound like you knew you were going to die......"
Subaru mutters as he feels the cold tip of death against his neck.
Vincent's black eyes shook bewitchingly in front of Subaru as he neared his "death". He intuited the true identity of the certain stupor on the other side of that jet-blackness.
That it was resignation embellished with a will to resist.
"Yes. I made my death a part of my plan. I left the plan so that the Vollachia Empire would not be destroyed by my death."
And when he is affirmed by none other than Vincent himself that his intuition was correct, Subaru's thoughts turn red in the next instant, and his emotions explode.
"You've got to be kidding me!"
Teeth bared and eyes angry, Subaru glared at Vincent--no, the cowardly bastard, in front of him and yelled at him. A sharp pain shot through his neck, but that would have to wait until later.
Now it's just much better to beat this slack-jawed coward.
"You swung me around so many people, made me cross so many dangerous bridges, and took me on so many unnecessary detours, and in the end, you thought you were going to die? That's bullshit!"
"I'm not kidding. All the paths you have taken have been taken because they were necessary. Even if the end result is my death, it is nothing compared to the fate of the empire at stake."
"That's not right! What I'm saying is, why are you the first one to give up your life? This GIANT calamity? I don't know about that! Why don't you just live to meet it!"
"Don't let those who don't understand talk nonsense. While I am alive, there will be no 'Great Calamity'. That is the premise of this policy. What that covers--"
"Who said it ain't gonna be overturned? You're a smart guy, so if you can lure me out with a 'Great Calamity' or whatever you want to call it, then you can......"
"It was you 'stargazers' who taught me that it cannot be overturned!"
Vincent was emotionally stifling his response to Subaru's emotional outburst. However, his emotions exploded in front of Subaru's eyes.
How much of this was an unexpected outburst for Vincent. It was such a rush of emotion that he did not know where the tip of the knife blade he was thrusting at Subaru would have gone had he not grabbed it himself with his other hand.
Blood dripped from Vincent's left hand, which grasped the tip of the blade, staining the white sheet in spots.
But both Subaru and Vincent's consciousness was not directed to the spilled drops of blood, but to each other's eyes, to the very being beyond them.
Once again, Vincent called Subaru a 'stargazer'.
This is precisely the reason why Vincent Vollachia hated and harbored hostility toward Natsuki Subaru, and even pointed a knife at him in this way.
Because he knows that, he can't solve the question.
"The 'Stargazers' told you......"
"--. Outside of the framework, the 'stargazers' hear the voices of spectators from the heavens. They tell of events that may occur in the future and give us the opportunity to minimize the damage. But they are talking about the size of the damage. It is not about stopping it before it happens."
Bitterly, Vincent begins to speak in a voice that is as emotionally stifled as possible.
Subaru had an idea of what he was talking about. If "Stargazers" really predict the future, he knows from actual experience that it cannot be easily changed.
The force of fate, or the natural flow of time, as it were, tries to trace as much as possible the shape of a predetermined path, and the avoidance of the impending tragedy breaks the knees of those who try to take on the challenge.
The predictions of "Stargazers" are similar to Subaru's rule of thumb.
For example, even Subaru, when he "returns by death" due to a natural cataclysm, can urge everyone to evacuate in case of a natural cataclysm, but it cannot stop the cataclysm itself.
Whether it would stop all of the destruction of houses and buildings or the taking of human lives would have to be tried, but there was no doubt that it would be difficult.
"The "Stargazers" have predicted the dangers of the empire many times before. We have dealt with these dangers as best as we can, but there will be some that cannot be saved. Therefore, we need a plan."
"A plan......."
"It's about how to minimize the damage and get to zero loss."
--The Calamity that awaits them in the future, and what more of they can do to overcome it. What they can do to make sure that more people do not get left behind.
If only Vincent Vollachia had been corrupt enough to make it happen.
"It was you who whispered of my death, 'Stargazer'. How can you say that you can overturn my death? Are you playing...... with me......!"
"W-wait, wait! I'm not a 'stargazer'......"
"--You will see what is yet to come. Stop plotting, Natsuki Subaru."
Subaru experienced the feeling of having his heart's organs stopped at that one word.
In the process of letting out his own heart, the mask of the emperor peeled away, and what he saw from the other side was not Vincent Vollachia, but the face of a flawed man who called himself Abel.
And when the man looked straight at him and told him what he said, Subaru understood.
"--ah"
He now knows why Vincent--or rather, Abel, called Subaru a "stargazer".
Abel saw through Subaru's "return by death".
To be precise, he did not see through his "return by death", but the fact that Subaru was going back in time by losing his life and bringing back information about the future--he saw that he had the means to know what was ahead.
He understood that it was the same as the predictions of the "Stargazers" that he knew.
"----"
Come to think of it, it was a natural and possible mix-up.
Because that would be so. Subaru himself had found similarities between himself and the "return by death" in the story of "stargazers" explained by Abel, and was seeking understanding and understanding.
If Subaru knew the actual example of "stargazers", and achieved more than he was capable of, it was no surprise that he would find a connection--or rather, an identification with it.
Abel's eye is sure. His insight scrutinizes things correctly.
With his eye, it was immediately clear that Subaru had not survived all the situations he had encountered in the empire through sheer inexperience and sheer luck.
So that is why.
"So you've always tried to get my opinion right."
If he interprets Subaru's opinion as a proposal that is the result of looking to the future and choosing the best course of action, he cannot dismiss it, no matter how ridiculous it may sound.
This is true in not letting the Shudrak village burn, in dressing as a woman to capture the fortified city, in getting to the Demon City Chaos Flame, and in negotiating with Yorna.
Even once Abel seriously examined Subaru's proposal and explored the possibility of its realization.
In this way, Abel tried to involve Subaru, who would be a "stargazer", in the battle for the existence of the empire and use him as a pawn. --After he himself was lost, this was one of the ways to fight back.
And yet--,
"......You left me, not Chisha."
"----"
"Natsuki Subaru, you are a mediocre human being."
It was a voice sound that had lost its emotion in a different way than it had just before.
He is not trying to stifle the emotions. If he is trying to stifle them, he can hear the living emotions moaning, trying to call outward.
But he heard nothing. It wasn't stifled, it was emotionally dead.
With that, emotionally dead tone of voice, Abel shoots off colorless words to Subaru.
"You are an skilled, inexperienced, young man with much bitterness left in him. You are neither particularly good nor particularly vicious. If nothing else, you would have done nothing and died a mere man."
Subaru's character assessment, delivered in a matter-of-fact manner, left absolutely no room for retort.
As Abel sees the target, Subaru cannot be a special person. Even though his body and mind are immersed in childhood and his spirit can return to the time when he once believed himself to be a child prodigy, he is the one who is halfway there, knowing what he will eventually become in the future to come.
But--,
"You have been given an opportunity that is too good for the common man. You have made the most of it and have lived to this day. You have not been ordinary, you have not been a simpleton, you have not been strongly inclined toward goodness or viciousness."
"Abel......"
"You are a mediocre human being. ......Then, why?"
Gulping, Abel gritted his teeth hard and looked at Subaru.
He was shaking his voice, his expression, his nobility, his grace, his composure, his confidence all gone, showing the true face on the other side of the emperor's unmasked face.
He shouted in that trembling voice, in that trembling voice.
"Why did you leave me, Natsuki Subaru!"
"----"
"You have no ties or obligations to this empire. You have no connection to this empire, you have no duty to it, and you could have been content with simply protecting the many people you have known up to this day. Why did you save me? Why did you think that you could save me from this nothingness......!"
"----"
"Why......?"
His voice, gravelly with rage, reveals the magnitude of Abel's desire to ask why.
Harder and harder, the blade of the knife in his grip bit deeper into his hand, more and more blood flowed painfully, and Subaru quickly let go of the knife and tried to stop the blood.
However--,
"Don't touch me!"
"Tsk"
He shakes his hand off roughly, and a moment later, Subaru frowns as he feels pain in his outstretched hand.
Abel's knife in his hand cut Subaru's hand, and blood dripped from his hand as well.
Two people, both facing each other, the sheets increasingly stained with blood that is left to drip.
And so, ignoring the blood that flows, the soiled sheets and floors,
"......So, you're reaching out to me now. That is your most incomprehensible and most incompatible way of being with me."
"----"
"Leave to it the momentary emotions of the moment, and kick back your faith and thoughts. You do not follow what you have decided, you easily change what you have decided should be done, you are unable to distinguish between what should be saved and what should not be saved, and you reach out your hand without thought."
"--ah"
Subaru gasped at the sight of Abel's eyes dripping with blood and glaring at him, and at his words.
Even the pain of the bleeding wound became distant and froze Subaru's thoughts, because Abel's words now meant exactly the same thing that had tormented Subaru most recently.
"----"
It was a word thrown at him before he regained consciousness, before he gave it up.
A blade of words from Todd Fang, who was forced to part ways with Natsuki Subaru, declaring that he and Natsuki Subaru would never be compatible, that he was a monster who could never understand him.
He, too, did not dismiss Subaru as "returning by death" or a "stargazer", but perhaps it was his eyesight, honed in his life as a werewolf, that saw through Subaru's idiosyncrasies and defined him as such.
"--tsk"
Todd's cold gaze and feverish tone of voice overlap with that of Abel in front of him.
In Abel's eyes, there is a heat of anger in his voice, but still the two overlap. Surely the reason for this is that they both wanted to say goodbye to Subaru.
A preamble to reject and remove from the world the incompatible Natsuki Subaru of ways of being.
`How can I have a relationship with someone who decides who lives and dies based on his preferences?'
He said such things. it was Subaru's way of thinking and attitude that drove Todd to commit the heinous act.
Of course, Subaru does not believe that it is his fault for taking it all in stride. In his own way, he did what he did because he thought it was the right thing to do. If he simply turned his back on them, he would not be able to show his face to his friends, who had believed in him and followed him until today.
But at the same time, there was certainly a truth that could not be denied.
--That Subaru is choosing who to let live and who to let die, or so he was told.
Through the power of "Return by Death", Subaru has changed the fates of those he cares about.
He has twisted and lived with the fate of those who had no choice but to lose their lives, to hurt each other, to deprive each other of something precious, and to keep away the opportunity to understand each other.
Subaru's decisions and actions, and the number of people who lose their lives and become unhappy around Subaru, must surely have decreased because of them.
However, Natsuki Subaru has not been able to save all people either.
The fact that he has decided to do so and have not gone back in time, but have moved on, lies unmovable, even if there is a difference between forward-looking or backward-looking, if he does not save or cannot save.
He has not destroyed all of his 'enemies'.
But he has never saved all of his 'enemies' either. How in the world has Subaru been able to select and choose between what to save and what not to save?
Todd feared that this might be Subaru's personal likes and dislikes.
"No, it's not that, Natsuki Subaru. It's not even a favoritism toward others."
"......Huh?"
Abel's words, shaking his head, halted Subaru's renewed awareness of the gap between him and Todd, which he could not bridge.
Abel tells Subaru, who is breathing hard and looking up.
"I could understand if you decide who to save and who not to save based on your subjective judgment of humanity's desirability. But you save even those whom you detest. Just as I do."
"That's not what I......"
Subaru was about to say, "No," but his words did not last.
Whether Subaru hates Abel enough to abandon him at the last minute is something you have to ask yourself deeply, but the fact is that he reached out to someone he abhors.
He couldn't reach him. Still, Subaru tried to reach Todd as well.
He did not have to let go. Despite the conflict, Subaru has been with Louis to this day.
He reached out to those he abhorred, if he will, and that's what he did.
"--Take your people of the kingdom and leave Vollachia."
The unexpected words struck Subaru, who was aghast and looking back at his own conduct.
He looked up slowly and saw Abel, who had put the knife back in his hand back in the fruit basket, the indignation gone from his face, and was spinning his words with the same expression he had always used.
He continues to Subaru, who is surprised at the change in attitude and the words spoken to him.
"From this point on, the empire is going to be in a battle against the 'Great Calamity'. The board is different from the one I was trying to make, but there is a way to do it. I don't need you there."
"Wha......"
"I hear nonsense. Whatever your intentions may be, we must consider what has already happened as what has happened. It is the height of futility to question the merits of the reasons."
They were not so much words to Subaru as they were to him.
Here, Abel unilaterally tries to end the emotional exchange with Subaru, the emotionless exchange, and all of it.
It was more than just an out-of-character attitude.
The name "Chisha", which has been talked about in both emotional and dead emotional places, is a name that Subaru knows by heart.
From the way he put it, Chisha is believed to have lost his life during the siege of the Imperial City, and Abel must have really asked why he did not save him.
Abel tries to put a lid on his true feelings and pretend that it never happened.
"Prepare for your return home. All the necessary arrangements for crossing the border will be made. The rest is all the Empire's--my problem."
Yes, the fact that he changed his own appellation is a sign of his determination to seal off his behavior as Abel and proceed as Emperor Vincent Vollachia.
And Subaru does not understand how much it means to him, how much weight he has been entrusted with to make this decision.
Natsuki Subaru can't understand Vincent Vollachia.
Vincent Vollachia also can't understand Natsuki Subaru.
And so, this barren moment ended with the shedding of blood from each other--.
`You are a monster. You are a monster, even more so than that zombie.'
They are told that they cannot understand, that they cannot fill the gap, that separation is inevitable, and so on, and so on, and so on, and so on, and so on, and so on, and so on.
Wasn't that how you regretted getting it over with, you big asshole?
"Hey, Abel."
With his back turned, the emperor, with a demeanor that indicated he was done talking, proceeded to the door. He stopped, taking a quiet breath as he called out to the slender back as he left.
As it was, the Emperor turned around with feverish eyes and expression,
"Understand this. I am Vincent Vollachia, and a man like Abel is--"
"--Shut up and grit your teeth."
The bouncing bunk springs are used to plunge the bouncing Subaru into the sulky face.
He was so angry at that side face, that pompous side face that just told him to finish everything and get the hell out of there, that hateful side face that held everything, including his true feelings, that he had wanted to do that to for a long, long time, Subaru's small, bloody fist was driven into the side of his face.
Arc 8, Chapter 11 "Shut Up"
You do not have permission to view link
Log in or register now.
"--Are you going to that person, Mr. Abel?"
Stopping at the call from the side, Vincent turned around.
The coach is connected and treated as one long dragon car, and the "Divine Protection of Wind Shielding" of multiple earth dragons is applied to it--Vincent closes one eye to see a familiar blue-haired girl standing at the connection where he crossed.
Thinking back, it has been a long time since he has exchanged words with this girl.
"Have the uninvited guests from the Kingdom served their purpose?"
"Those people are not after me, but......"
"Stop that. Don't waste my time with nonsense that even you don't fully believe. Time is precious. Especially in this situation. You know that."
"----"
At the sound of Vincent's steely voice, the girl looked down with her eyes downcast.
However, she soon looked up, taking Vincent's wishes into account that time is finite,
"Are you going to that person, Mr. Abel?"
He fired the same question over and over again.
"I am not Abel. I am Vincent Vollachia."
To this question, Vincent replies without changing his expression.
Abel is a pseudonym, and he only called himself that for convenience while on the run. He borrowed it from his family name, Abellux, before he became emperor, and is not obsessed with it.
But the discomfort of being called that was stronger now.
"--. It has been reported that it has awakened. I must confront it."
Pushing aside his discomfort, Vincent answers the girl's question.
Whatever the girl thought, it would not change Vincent's policy. Originally, he didn't even think the girl had that much intention or thought.
She was protected, swept away, suffer, and came to a natural conclusion over a long period of time.
That like many things, she is just one of those ordinary people.
Therefore, Vincent tried to end the question and answer early.
However--,
"That person is not an enemy of Mr. Abel."
"--What?"
Vincent's brow furrowed when he received a response from the girl, who he had expected to remain silent and downcast, and one that he had not expected to hear.
The girl looked at Vincent as he did so, and her pale blue eyes had a definite will.
The light that did not dwell in him when they parted, it pierced through him timidly but majestically, as if trying to cower Vincent.
"--. I am Vincent Vollachia. There will be no third time."
"I'm sorry. But I don't know much about Emperor Vincent, because I have no memory of him. So there is nothing I can say to Emperor Vincent."
"----"
"That person is not an enemy of Mr. Abel."
The girl emphasizes so over and over without once looking away.
Vincent knew her by the abilities she had in her hands. She is the reins of control over Natsuki Subaru and a valuable user of healing magic.
If she is aware of their position and is taking a strong stand against Vincent, she would have to say she has great courage, but this does not seem to be the case.
And then--,
"What did you say your name was?"
"--I'm Rem. At least now I can answer that clearly."
"The girl who has no memory of these events will state it clearly."
"It's strange, isn't it? Sometimes the environment teaches you things even if you don't remember them in your head or in your heart. Thanks to someone who kept telling me all along that I was Rem."
Whether it was gratitude or dismay, the girl--Rem herself, did not know.
Only to find that it is not leading to disgust or disgustingly negative thoughts, Vincent decides that further conversation is unnecessary.
He turned his back and got to his feet. On the way,
"Rem, don't let my time go to waste again. The next time you disrespect me, I will cut off your head."
With that, he ended his dialogue with Rem.
And then--,
"How eloquently you speak, Natsuki Subaru? --The 'Stargazer' of the Dragon Kingdom."
△▼△▼△▼△
Subaru confronts the man, keenly aware of the hostility directed at him.
Looking back, his relationship with this man was nothing short of inexplicable.
Their first encounter was with a suspicious bandaged man camped out in the woods. At the time, he was too busy looking for the straggling Rem and Louis to go deeper into it, but it was more than just a suspicious man.
The next encounter was in a cage in the Shudrak village, and he couldn't explain how he could be so high and mighty when he was a prisoner. If there had been any means of escape, it would have been a no-brainer, since he was forced to perform the "Blood Life Ritual" after that.
Then, while helping to retrieve Rem, he parted with him once, but knowing that Subaru and the others would be forced to return, he showed his viciousness in not informing them of the situation.
On the other hand, he fully cooperated with Subaru's plan to attack the fortified city of Guaral, and together with dancers Natsumi Schwarz, Bianca, and Flora, they rode into the enemy's main camp.
He was suspected of having an unusual relationship with Priscilla, was courted by Yorna, and even declared without hesitation that he could not allow Louis to live in the Demon City, and they were separated.
Yet, after escaping from the Gladiator Island, when he heard about the situation surrounding the entire empire, he had no doubt that it was his handiwork, the emperor who had been forced from his throne.
He has abandoned the Imperial Capital, Lupgana, and has taken command in a situation where many people are evacuating and withdrawing from the city, and he is once again the top emperor of the empire, and he is a renowned wise emperor--.
"I'm honored to have that Vincent Vollachia come to visit me. Just in time, can you peel me an Appa?"
"Don't play with me. I can't even peel a fruit. First of all, where is the Appa?"
"Where is it......?"
Stepping into the bedroom, Subaru's gaze turns to the side at the question of the man who walks up to him.
Perhaps it is a promise in these situations, but even in other worlds, it is standard practice for fruit to be brought to visit the injured or sick. So there is a basket of Appas next to the bunk.
Of course, the other party must be able to see it.
"Here's your fruit basket. It's so red and delicious."
"Are you plotting against me, you fool? Appas are white fruit."
"Well, the skin is white on the inside, but...... wait, I think this conversation brings back memories of a very similar exchange I had a long time ago."
It's a rather dim memory, but he thinks he had the same conversation a long time ago.
He can't recall the details of who he was talking to at the time, but he remembers thinking the same thing as he does now, that the upper class had reached such an extreme level.
In any case--,
"I guess there's something you don't know either. That's surprising."
Subaru said, feeling that this was not a bad start, although it was not a clumsy introduction to the first, mutual exchange of words.
At Subaru's words, the man--Abel, reached into the fruit basket and split the Appa in half with the knife that was left there. Naturally, the white cross section inside was exposed.
"----"
Seeing the unmovable answer, he was ready to admit the fact of the earlier exchange. Abel puts down the knife and turns to him, leaving it broken in half in the basket.
His dark eyes are still wet with a hostility that is unmistakable.
"No way, you're not mad at me for embarrassing you with the color of my Appa. ......You called me a funny name earlier, it was..."
"The 'Stargazer' of the Dragon Kingdom."
"That's it."
Subaru is again aware of the way he is called and frowns at the lack of familiarity.
The word is not unfamiliar to him. As he recalls, he had heard that it was called that by the fortune tellers who stuck by the emperor in this empire.
He said that it is an entity that shows the future, like the "Dragon Stone Tablet", the prophecy tablet of the Kingdom of Lugnica.
"No, I think it sounded worse...... like a peek into tomorrow."
"That must be the perception. That's how I see it."
"You just called me a peeping tom, are you aware of that?"
In this day and age, this would be an insult that would normally be punishable by death. In modern terms, which Subaru knows, he would be prepared to fight the libel in civil court.
However, Abel's expression does not waver in the slightest at Subaru's response. He can't go out with him for fun, he tells him with black eyes that are the same color as Subaru's, but with a different depth.
Of course, Subaru has no intention of playing along,
"How much do you know?"
"How much do I know about the situation? In that case, I know a few details. I do know that Emilia and the others are awake and concerned, and that they are...... in retreat."
"----"
"The civil war stopped once and everyone is in the middle of fleeing the Imperial City...... confusion and all that would have been bad, but it doesn't seem to be causing a fuss."
The dragon carriages kept running, and the night view out the window was moving slowly, but it was quiet, even after taking into account that the "Divine Protection of Wind Shielding" protected them from the shaking and wind noise.
This may be due in part to the quietness of the dragon carriage itself, but the fact that the dragon carriages have never stopped is also evidence that no notable problems have occurred.
This is despite the fact that a considerable number of people, probably on the order of 100,000, will be moving.
"I'm sure there is the centripetal force of the 'Nine Divine Generals' and all that, but that's not enough to make this happen. I knew you were a big deal, you know."
"----"
"I have to admit, when I heard that you were betrayed by your right-hand man and your chief of staff and kicked off the throne, I really wondered if you'd be okay with being Emperor again, but I was right."
Leadership, charisma, and the so-called qualities of those who are above others.
It may be acquired through mud and sweat, but there are also a few that are born with it.
The story is that these are the royal families of various countries and the heads of various organizations.
In this sense, Abel, who had secured his own foothold in the event of an emergency, still had the potential to be followed and looked up to by those around him.
"I hate that I was more on the side of belief than half-belief, but you're the Emperor and you're right......"
"--Is that what you want, too?"
"Huh?"
A quiet but definite emotion in his voice. It seemed so outlandish that Subaru's brain refused to comprehend it.
As a result, Subaru did not lose the hand that was reaching for him, and he fell on the bed with his forehead pressed against it. And before he could protest what was happening, he felt a sharp touch on his throat.
He quickly realizes that it is the tip of the fruit knife with which he had just carved the Appa.
He might have noticed it, but he doesn't know the intent. The meaning of Abel holding that knife, and thus turning his hostility--no, the same hatred that was in his voice toward Subaru.
"----"
Immediately up close and within breathing distance of each other, Subaru and Abel glare at each other.
Here, if Subaru unintentionally shouted loudly and called for help, Abel would not hesitate to slit Subaru's throat with a knife.
But at the same time, the reason he isn't doing that right now is because Abel has his own reasons for not doing so.
"What the hell do you think you're doing......?"
"The question should be asked of you, what are you doing? How far did you see all of this going on? Is everything up to this point exactly as you have painted it?"
"That's why......! I told you I don't know what you're talking about. What am I up to......?"
"--Why did you leave the rest of us and not Chisha?"
The sound of his voice that gouged much more sharply than the blade against his throat. It silenced Subaru and made Abel's hand tremble as he gripped the knife.
Gritting his teeth, Abel stared at Subaru from a close distance and said.
That's not something Subaru understands immediately.
"Abel......"
"Vincent Vollachia."
"----"
"I am not Abel. I am none other than Vincent Vollachia, the 77th Emperor of the Vollachia Empire. --That is the end that you wanted."
He says it as if squeezed out, and Abel--no, Vincent, says the name evasively.
Subaru frowned, not understanding the meaning of this attitude, as if he was cursing himself for calling himself that. Because, of course, it is.
"I thought you were fighting to get that name and crown back......"
"No. I have tried to fulfill my duties as emperor. The pact with the 'People of Shudrak', the fall of the fortified city, the negotiations with Yorna Mishigure, and the provocation of civil war were all for that purpose."
"Your duties......?"
"At the throne, Vincent Vollachia will die, leaving behind the means to resist the 'Great Calamity' that will destroy the empire. It is my duty to do so."
"Huh......"
When Vincent told him the details of his plan for the first time, Subaru let out a ragged breath.
The unfamiliar word "Great Calamity" was one thing, but what surprised Subaru even more was the way Vincent told the story.
He said that Vincent Vollachia had died and the "Great Calamity" was about to begin.
And he said that he would leave a way to resist that "Great Calamity".
He said to leave it, not explore it.
The way he says it, it's like--.
"You sound like you knew you were going to die......"
Subaru mutters as he feels the cold tip of death against his neck.
Vincent's black eyes shook bewitchingly in front of Subaru as he neared his "death". He intuited the true identity of the certain stupor on the other side of that jet-blackness.
That it was resignation embellished with a will to resist.
"Yes. I made my death a part of my plan. I left the plan so that the Vollachia Empire would not be destroyed by my death."
And when he is affirmed by none other than Vincent himself that his intuition was correct, Subaru's thoughts turn red in the next instant, and his emotions explode.
"You've got to be kidding me!"
Teeth bared and eyes angry, Subaru glared at Vincent--no, the cowardly bastard, in front of him and yelled at him. A sharp pain shot through his neck, but that would have to wait until later.
Now it's just much better to beat this slack-jawed coward.
"You swung me around so many people, made me cross so many dangerous bridges, and took me on so many unnecessary detours, and in the end, you thought you were going to die? That's bullshit!"
"I'm not kidding. All the paths you have taken have been taken because they were necessary. Even if the end result is my death, it is nothing compared to the fate of the empire at stake."
"That's not right! What I'm saying is, why are you the first one to give up your life? This GIANT calamity? I don't know about that! Why don't you just live to meet it!"
"Don't let those who don't understand talk nonsense. While I am alive, there will be no 'Great Calamity'. That is the premise of this policy. What that covers--"
"Who said it ain't gonna be overturned? You're a smart guy, so if you can lure me out with a 'Great Calamity' or whatever you want to call it, then you can......"
"It was you 'stargazers' who taught me that it cannot be overturned!"
Vincent was emotionally stifling his response to Subaru's emotional outburst. However, his emotions exploded in front of Subaru's eyes.
How much of this was an unexpected outburst for Vincent. It was such a rush of emotion that he did not know where the tip of the knife blade he was thrusting at Subaru would have gone had he not grabbed it himself with his other hand.
Blood dripped from Vincent's left hand, which grasped the tip of the blade, staining the white sheet in spots.
But both Subaru and Vincent's consciousness was not directed to the spilled drops of blood, but to each other's eyes, to the very being beyond them.
Once again, Vincent called Subaru a 'stargazer'.
This is precisely the reason why Vincent Vollachia hated and harbored hostility toward Natsuki Subaru, and even pointed a knife at him in this way.
Because he knows that, he can't solve the question.
"The 'Stargazers' told you......"
"--. Outside of the framework, the 'stargazers' hear the voices of spectators from the heavens. They tell of events that may occur in the future and give us the opportunity to minimize the damage. But they are talking about the size of the damage. It is not about stopping it before it happens."
Bitterly, Vincent begins to speak in a voice that is as emotionally stifled as possible.
Subaru had an idea of what he was talking about. If "Stargazers" really predict the future, he knows from actual experience that it cannot be easily changed.
The force of fate, or the natural flow of time, as it were, tries to trace as much as possible the shape of a predetermined path, and the avoidance of the impending tragedy breaks the knees of those who try to take on the challenge.
The predictions of "Stargazers" are similar to Subaru's rule of thumb.
For example, even Subaru, when he "returns by death" due to a natural cataclysm, can urge everyone to evacuate in case of a natural cataclysm, but it cannot stop the cataclysm itself.
Whether it would stop all of the destruction of houses and buildings or the taking of human lives would have to be tried, but there was no doubt that it would be difficult.
"The "Stargazers" have predicted the dangers of the empire many times before. We have dealt with these dangers as best as we can, but there will be some that cannot be saved. Therefore, we need a plan."
"A plan......."
"It's about how to minimize the damage and get to zero loss."
--The Calamity that awaits them in the future, and what more of they can do to overcome it. What they can do to make sure that more people do not get left behind.
If only Vincent Vollachia had been corrupt enough to make it happen.
"It was you who whispered of my death, 'Stargazer'. How can you say that you can overturn my death? Are you playing...... with me......!"
"W-wait, wait! I'm not a 'stargazer'......"
"--You will see what is yet to come. Stop plotting, Natsuki Subaru."
Subaru experienced the feeling of having his heart's organs stopped at that one word.
In the process of letting out his own heart, the mask of the emperor peeled away, and what he saw from the other side was not Vincent Vollachia, but the face of a flawed man who called himself Abel.
And when the man looked straight at him and told him what he said, Subaru understood.
"--ah"
He now knows why Vincent--or rather, Abel, called Subaru a "stargazer".
Abel saw through Subaru's "return by death".
To be precise, he did not see through his "return by death", but the fact that Subaru was going back in time by losing his life and bringing back information about the future--he saw that he had the means to know what was ahead.
He understood that it was the same as the predictions of the "Stargazers" that he knew.
"----"
Come to think of it, it was a natural and possible mix-up.
Because that would be so. Subaru himself had found similarities between himself and the "return by death" in the story of "stargazers" explained by Abel, and was seeking understanding and understanding.
If Subaru knew the actual example of "stargazers", and achieved more than he was capable of, it was no surprise that he would find a connection--or rather, an identification with it.
Abel's eye is sure. His insight scrutinizes things correctly.
With his eye, it was immediately clear that Subaru had not survived all the situations he had encountered in the empire through sheer inexperience and sheer luck.
So that is why.
"So you've always tried to get my opinion right."
If he interprets Subaru's opinion as a proposal that is the result of looking to the future and choosing the best course of action, he cannot dismiss it, no matter how ridiculous it may sound.
This is true in not letting the Shudrak village burn, in dressing as a woman to capture the fortified city, in getting to the Demon City Chaos Flame, and in negotiating with Yorna.
Even once Abel seriously examined Subaru's proposal and explored the possibility of its realization.
In this way, Abel tried to involve Subaru, who would be a "stargazer", in the battle for the existence of the empire and use him as a pawn. --After he himself was lost, this was one of the ways to fight back.
And yet--,
"......You left me, not Chisha."
"----"
"Natsuki Subaru, you are a mediocre human being."
It was a voice sound that had lost its emotion in a different way than it had just before.
He is not trying to stifle the emotions. If he is trying to stifle them, he can hear the living emotions moaning, trying to call outward.
But he heard nothing. It wasn't stifled, it was emotionally dead.
With that, emotionally dead tone of voice, Abel shoots off colorless words to Subaru.
"You are an skilled, inexperienced, young man with much bitterness left in him. You are neither particularly good nor particularly vicious. If nothing else, you would have done nothing and died a mere man."
Subaru's character assessment, delivered in a matter-of-fact manner, left absolutely no room for retort.
As Abel sees the target, Subaru cannot be a special person. Even though his body and mind are immersed in childhood and his spirit can return to the time when he once believed himself to be a child prodigy, he is the one who is halfway there, knowing what he will eventually become in the future to come.
But--,
"You have been given an opportunity that is too good for the common man. You have made the most of it and have lived to this day. You have not been ordinary, you have not been a simpleton, you have not been strongly inclined toward goodness or viciousness."
"Abel......"
"You are a mediocre human being. ......Then, why?"
Gulping, Abel gritted his teeth hard and looked at Subaru.
He was shaking his voice, his expression, his nobility, his grace, his composure, his confidence all gone, showing the true face on the other side of the emperor's unmasked face.
He shouted in that trembling voice, in that trembling voice.
"Why did you leave me, Natsuki Subaru!"
"----"
"You have no ties or obligations to this empire. You have no connection to this empire, you have no duty to it, and you could have been content with simply protecting the many people you have known up to this day. Why did you save me? Why did you think that you could save me from this nothingness......!"
"----"
"Why......?"
His voice, gravelly with rage, reveals the magnitude of Abel's desire to ask why.
Harder and harder, the blade of the knife in his grip bit deeper into his hand, more and more blood flowed painfully, and Subaru quickly let go of the knife and tried to stop the blood.
However--,
"Don't touch me!"
"Tsk"
He shakes his hand off roughly, and a moment later, Subaru frowns as he feels pain in his outstretched hand.
Abel's knife in his hand cut Subaru's hand, and blood dripped from his hand as well.
Two people, both facing each other, the sheets increasingly stained with blood that is left to drip.
And so, ignoring the blood that flows, the soiled sheets and floors,
"......So, you're reaching out to me now. That is your most incomprehensible and most incompatible way of being with me."
"----"
"Leave to it the momentary emotions of the moment, and kick back your faith and thoughts. You do not follow what you have decided, you easily change what you have decided should be done, you are unable to distinguish between what should be saved and what should not be saved, and you reach out your hand without thought."
"--ah"
Subaru gasped at the sight of Abel's eyes dripping with blood and glaring at him, and at his words.
Even the pain of the bleeding wound became distant and froze Subaru's thoughts, because Abel's words now meant exactly the same thing that had tormented Subaru most recently.
--But you're willing to choose whether or not to save Katya, aren't you?"----"
It was a word thrown at him before he regained consciousness, before he gave it up.
A blade of words from Todd Fang, who was forced to part ways with Natsuki Subaru, declaring that he and Natsuki Subaru would never be compatible, that he was a monster who could never understand him.
He, too, did not dismiss Subaru as "returning by death" or a "stargazer", but perhaps it was his eyesight, honed in his life as a werewolf, that saw through Subaru's idiosyncrasies and defined him as such.
He is not in tune with the world! You are willing to die at any moment, you are willing to put other people's lives on a selfish scale, but when it comes to this, you are desperate to resist. It's creepy!"--tsk"
Todd's cold gaze and feverish tone of voice overlap with that of Abel in front of him.
In Abel's eyes, there is a heat of anger in his voice, but still the two overlap. Surely the reason for this is that they both wanted to say goodbye to Subaru.
A preamble to reject and remove from the world the incompatible Natsuki Subaru of ways of being.
The nature of it is that you are not aware of it. You are choosing between life and death. You freely decide who to save and who to let die. I adore those who flatter me and show me their bellies, but I don't care about those who don't. I don't hesitate to flirt and show my belly to anyone, but......`How can I have a relationship with someone who decides who lives and dies based on his preferences?'
He said such things. it was Subaru's way of thinking and attitude that drove Todd to commit the heinous act.
Of course, Subaru does not believe that it is his fault for taking it all in stride. In his own way, he did what he did because he thought it was the right thing to do. If he simply turned his back on them, he would not be able to show his face to his friends, who had believed in him and followed him until today.
But at the same time, there was certainly a truth that could not be denied.
--That Subaru is choosing who to let live and who to let die, or so he was told.
Through the power of "Return by Death", Subaru has changed the fates of those he cares about.
He has twisted and lived with the fate of those who had no choice but to lose their lives, to hurt each other, to deprive each other of something precious, and to keep away the opportunity to understand each other.
Subaru's decisions and actions, and the number of people who lose their lives and become unhappy around Subaru, must surely have decreased because of them.
However, Natsuki Subaru has not been able to save all people either.
The fact that he has decided to do so and have not gone back in time, but have moved on, lies unmovable, even if there is a difference between forward-looking or backward-looking, if he does not save or cannot save.
He has not destroyed all of his 'enemies'.
But he has never saved all of his 'enemies' either. How in the world has Subaru been able to select and choose between what to save and what not to save?
Todd feared that this might be Subaru's personal likes and dislikes.
"No, it's not that, Natsuki Subaru. It's not even a favoritism toward others."
"......Huh?"
Abel's words, shaking his head, halted Subaru's renewed awareness of the gap between him and Todd, which he could not bridge.
Abel tells Subaru, who is breathing hard and looking up.
"I could understand if you decide who to save and who not to save based on your subjective judgment of humanity's desirability. But you save even those whom you detest. Just as I do."
"That's not what I......"
Subaru was about to say, "No," but his words did not last.
Whether Subaru hates Abel enough to abandon him at the last minute is something you have to ask yourself deeply, but the fact is that he reached out to someone he abhors.
He couldn't reach him. Still, Subaru tried to reach Todd as well.
He did not have to let go. Despite the conflict, Subaru has been with Louis to this day.
He reached out to those he abhorred, if he will, and that's what he did.
"--Take your people of the kingdom and leave Vollachia."
The unexpected words struck Subaru, who was aghast and looking back at his own conduct.
He looked up slowly and saw Abel, who had put the knife back in his hand back in the fruit basket, the indignation gone from his face, and was spinning his words with the same expression he had always used.
He continues to Subaru, who is surprised at the change in attitude and the words spoken to him.
"From this point on, the empire is going to be in a battle against the 'Great Calamity'. The board is different from the one I was trying to make, but there is a way to do it. I don't need you there."
"Wha......"
"I hear nonsense. Whatever your intentions may be, we must consider what has already happened as what has happened. It is the height of futility to question the merits of the reasons."
They were not so much words to Subaru as they were to him.
Here, Abel unilaterally tries to end the emotional exchange with Subaru, the emotionless exchange, and all of it.
It was more than just an out-of-character attitude.
The name "Chisha", which has been talked about in both emotional and dead emotional places, is a name that Subaru knows by heart.
From the way he put it, Chisha is believed to have lost his life during the siege of the Imperial City, and Abel must have really asked why he did not save him.
Abel tries to put a lid on his true feelings and pretend that it never happened.
"Prepare for your return home. All the necessary arrangements for crossing the border will be made. The rest is all the Empire's--my problem."
Yes, the fact that he changed his own appellation is a sign of his determination to seal off his behavior as Abel and proceed as Emperor Vincent Vollachia.
And Subaru does not understand how much it means to him, how much weight he has been entrusted with to make this decision.
Natsuki Subaru can't understand Vincent Vollachia.
Vincent Vollachia also can't understand Natsuki Subaru.
And so, this barren moment ended with the shedding of blood from each other--.
`You are a monster. You are a monster, even more so than that zombie.'
They are told that they cannot understand, that they cannot fill the gap, that separation is inevitable, and so on, and so on, and so on, and so on, and so on, and so on, and so on.
Wasn't that how you regretted getting it over with, you big asshole?
"Hey, Abel."
With his back turned, the emperor, with a demeanor that indicated he was done talking, proceeded to the door. He stopped, taking a quiet breath as he called out to the slender back as he left.
As it was, the Emperor turned around with feverish eyes and expression,
"Understand this. I am Vincent Vollachia, and a man like Abel is--"
"--Shut up and grit your teeth."
The bouncing bunk springs are used to plunge the bouncing Subaru into the sulky face.
He was so angry at that side face, that pompous side face that just told him to finish everything and get the hell out of there, that hateful side face that held everything, including his true feelings, that he had wanted to do that to for a long, long time, Subaru's small, bloody fist was driven into the side of his face.
