Chapter 67 – Rina Spiegel

“Oh my, it seems you knew who I was?”

“Of course. No matter how much you try to hide it, that stinking smell comes off you. The smell of a player.”

Her actions, her tone of voice, and her attitude toward him, an inquisitor.

It was an appearance that would be impossible unless she were a player who judged the world as she pleased.

“Even if I were to slaughter you here, you would have nothing to say, would you? Because you are definitely a player.”

Despite the threatening remark, she did not yield at all.

“I am a person Her Highness Yennifer cherishes greatly. You would slaughter someone like me? Then it would mean an all-out war with the Imperial Family, are you okay with that?”

“Who are you for the Imperial Family to step in?”

Covering her mouth with her hand, she laughed.

“Give it a try. I am also curious if Her Highness Yennifer will stay still.”

That confidence.

It did not seem to be a lie.

Indeed, if she were a trivial person, she would not have held the status of an envoy or gone around with Imperial Guard knights.

“Did you come all the way here believing in that?”

“Yes. Otherwise, with what nerve would I have come all the way here? You are an inquisitor, after all.”

“The reason for your visit?”

“It is simple. Kill Kaiser.”

At this moment, her expression was vicious and chilling enough to resemble a witch.

“Surely you don’t not know what happens to Kaiser later on, do you?”

“And do you know what happens later to that Her Highness Yennifer you speak of?”

“Ah, you know as well. Indeed, since you know the future events, you must have survived until now. Yes, I know. The Imperial Family will establish its authority again, and in that process, countless people will die.”

“You say such nonsense even while knowing that?”

“But what about Kaiser? How is Kaiser?”

She listed the facts that she knew all too well.

“The incitement against vampires is merely the beginning. Kaiser will exterminate all races other than humans. It is a massacre. Moreover, he will purge all those who harbor animosity toward him. It is a great purge. The main culprit of both incidents is Kaiser. Although I might not know the exact number, I bet Kaiser killed far more people, didn’t he?”

As the Crimson Guard was in place, this was the truth.

Because that was definitely what the Lazarus version of Kaiser would have done.

“That is the villain Kaiser, not the player Kaiser.”

“His actions are exactly like Kaiser’s, so on what basis are you defending him? Perhaps, you plan to cling to Kaiser when he becomes a dictator later on to enjoy wealth and power?”

“I have no intention of doing that. I am simply leaving him alone out of necessity. And who knows? Maybe we will prevent the demise of the world together.”

“No way. Kaiser preventing the demise? May I laugh?”

Rashid suddenly felt like asking her something.

“Do you not know about the demise?”

“I know. There are several villains who pose a threat to this world.”

“Not even one of them must be left behind. If even one remains, it is fatal. Do you know that?”

She pondered for a moment and then pretended to know.

“Yes, I know.”

“You really know? Then, have you seen the ending?”

“Is something like the ending important? It is just important to enjoy the game. In any case, isn’t the demise unavoidable?”

“Then are you saying you sided with that woman without even seeing the ending?”

Her face turned serious.

“What are you trying to say?”

“I would rather ask you. On what basis did you side with the Blood Empress when you haven’t even seen the ending?”

“That is… because it is natural.”

Rashid could not understand her with his way of thinking.

“Have you never thought that choosing her was a mistake?”

“No. Not even once until now. Her Highness is my friend and lover, and she always remained with me until the very end.”

“Until right before the demise?”

“Yes, and that will be the case this time as well.”

“You have no intention of continuing to live.”

“Continuing to live? Surely you aren’t talking about something like preventing the demise?”

“Then what do you think I am talking about? Naturally, it is about preventing the demise.”

Rashid spoke with a hardened expression.

“You are making a wrong choice right now. To stop the Lazarus villains and protect this world, the Blood Empress is not an option.”

“No.”

She was filled with conviction.

“Only Her Highness Yennifer will delay the approaching demise as much as possible.”

“It is not blocking it, but delaying it as much as possible. That woman cannot prevent the demise. In the first place, as long as she belongs to Lazarus, it is impossible.”

“Then what about Kaiser? If you choose Kaiser, can you even prevent the demise? As far as I know, Kaiser ruins the world even earlier.”

“First of all, Kaiser is not the Kaiser we know. He is a player. Besides, even if he were the real Kaiser, he wants eternal dictatorship and thus does not want the world to end.”

“If so, why does he destroy the world earlier than Her Highness? It’s not just me, but all users probably have the same thought.”

“No, it’s because you guys did nothing that the world destroyed earlier. In the first place, the Blood Empress and Kaiser have entirely different attitudes toward the world. At least Kaiser tries to prevent the demise, even if he were the real one.”

“Then, are you saying Her Highness is not?”

“That woman is different. She is a person who would be satisfied as long as she can protect the Imperial Family, even if the world collapses. She lacks the will to prevent it, and the only thing important to her is the survival of the Imperial Family.”

“Then since we need to be there for the Imperial Family to survive, I can just persuade Her Highness to prevent the demise, can’t I?”

‘What a frustrating woman.’

Rashid shook his head as if to show her.

“Let me tell you just one thing. I have seen the ending.”

“You?”

“Yes, I am someone who has seen all the way to the ending. That is why I can tell you for sure. With that woman you chose, you cannot see the ending that I saw.”

“If you are a capable person like yourself, then it’s actually for the better. I will speak well of you to Her Highness, so why don’t you side with Her Highness this time? It will be better than Kaiser, won’t it?”

“Why should I look for my ending in an option I haven’t even seen, when I already have the ending I saw?”

Rashid felt like asking her instead.

“As you said, it is a game where seeing the ending is difficult. I also only saw it once. Does this explain it?”

She stopped speaking and seemed to fall into thought.

But she did not seem to have much intention of changing her choice.

“How do I believe what you said?”

“Whether to believe it or not is for you to decide. But only one thing is certain. If the path you walk is different from mine, you have no choice but to be my enemy.”

“The same goes for me.”

“Even though I told you I have seen the ending, do you still intend to argue with my choices or decisions? If you were normal, wouldn’t it be better to cooperate with me to prevent the demise?”

She shook her head.

“The claim that you saw the ending is hard to believe, and furthermore, I do not believe Her Highness would connive at the demise either. This was the first time. Getting this close to Her Highness this quickly. Luck probably played a part, but there must have been a certain desperation of its own as well, right? Since it is reality now.”

Her words continued.

A determined resolution.

“I believe this time will be really different. I intend to see the ending at the place I chose. Although it might be a bit different from the ending you saw.”

It was exactly the same thought that 99.999999% of users who hadn’t seen the ending would have.

‘It will be different this time.’

‘Since I couldn’t do it last time, it will surely be different this time.’

It was as clear as day.

‘Yes, that would be so. In the first place, choosing the Blood Empress over Kaiser is the general choice.’

Just as she said.

The game progression did indeed become longer when choosing the Blood Empress over Kaiser.

Therefore, what most players chose was the Blood Empress, not Kaiser.

“To think you still won’t break your stubbornness even after I said all this.”

Rashid gave up on persuading her.

Instead, he had other thoughts.

‘I have to take her out. Because she won’t just be a simple flap of a butterfly’s wings; she will cause a storm and twist the entire future. If that happens, it’s all over.’

“This is the last time. Will you really adhere to that choice?”

She was unwavering.

“Isn’t it funny to betray Her Highness at this point? I have faith in my decision, and I will be with Her Highness until the end.”

“I am truly sorry.”

“I am sorry as well.”

She let out a light snort and stood up from her seat.

Just as much as Rashid, she also perceived Rashid’s very existence as quite threatening.

‘I must kill that man, no matter what.’

The reason was the same as Rashid’s.

He would be the greatest obstacle ruining the path she walked.

‘I can just use that woman. Since she is a woman who killed even her own brother without hesitation, she will kill someone like her superior without a second thought.’

“If I happen to change my mind, I will contact you again. Let’s meet again then.”

Unlike the thoughts she harbored, her face wore an infinitely good-natured expression.

The smile that followed was undoubtedly the smile of a victor.

On the other hand, Rashid responded by smiling lightly.

‘I can see right through what she is thinking.’

Rashid thought about the various possibilities she might take.

The most likely among them was just one.

‘Is she planning to use that woman?’

He thought of his subordinate inquisitor, who slaughtered anyone without hesitation like an emotionless machine.

She was certainly a useful blade, but could he alone be the exception from her target?

‘I should prepare. At the very least, I won’t be caught off guard.’

* * *

Late at night.

Inside an abandoned building on Pisaro Street, where even people were scarce.

Aria was able to face the person who had called her out.

It was Rina.

“You came right on time. I was waiting.”

Rina asked for understanding from the two knights who had followed her and had a meeting alone with Aria.

She had secretly handed a note to her, who was positioned in the outer room, when she visited Rashid’s office.

The content of the note was very simple.

-I know the secret your superior holds. See you at 11:00 PM tonight, at 116 Pisaro.

Recalling the content of the note, Aria asked indifferently.

“What is the reason you gave me that? Furthermore, asking to meet in such a gloomy place.”

“There is no harm in being careful with each other, is there?”

Rina was smiling.

“Has there been a place in the Imperial Capital as quiet as this? No matter how noisy it is during the day with duels and such, once evening comes, it becomes dead quiet. On top of that, minor murder cases happen frequently, making it a place everyone avoids.”

In particular, this was also a place she frequently favored using when disposing of someone.

“You were curious about the contents of the note, weren’t you?”

“Yes, I was curious. It would be a lie to say I wasn’t.”

Unlike Rina, who was grinning, Aria still had an expression devoid of any emotion.

Because of that, Rina could be even more certain.

That she would have no hesitation in killing him.

“You probably do not know me well, but I know you very well.”

Weiman Direct Domain.

She also had the experience of clearing it.

“Me?”

“Yes. The reason is a secret. A person like you is quite dull when it comes to feelings for others. Even if it is your own older brother.”

Her indifferent gaze continued.

“And I also know that. That you enjoy legal murder. Isn’t that why you became an inquisitor?”

“So?”

“I am going to give you a very good excuse.”

As Aria’s gaze grew freezing cold, Rina flinched slightly.

“Don’t stare at me so frighteningly like that, though. I came to throw you something you might like.”

“What is that?”

“It will be an excellent pretext to hunt your superior. Extremely legal.”

Rina’s smile turned cruel.

“He is a player. Your superior is.”

Contrary to Rina’s expectations, her expression did not change much, and rather it was Rina herself who was flustered.

“Isn’t it surprising? To think your superior was a player.”

“Is that so? But what is the evidence? If you suddenly call my superior a player, am I supposed to just believe it?”

“The evidence… there is a way to screen for players, isn’t there? Try it. Then it will be one hundred percent.”

“I know that it is not a method that distinguishes them one hundred percent.”

Rina wore a bitter expression.

“That is true. Then how about this? What if I am a player?”

Only then did a subtle change appear in Aria’s expression.

“Players can recognize each other. My visiting him was also one of the reasons. Is this certain enough? If you keep watching your superior with at least this hint, a gap will eventually show. Then you seize the pretext.”

She was certainly shaken.

Rina smiled.

“How is it? The secret your superior holds?”

“It is… slightly shocking. That… it was something possible because he was a player.”

That was as far as her sentiments went.

Aria penetrated the surroundings with Deep Sight.

She saw Rina and the two Imperial Guard knights who had followed her.

“But who else knows that fact besides you?”

“Who else would there be? You and me, it is still just the two of us for now. Ah, there is also the person named Kaiser, so I ask you to take care of him as well. Since he must not remain alive.”

In the darkness of the abandoned building where moonlight barely seeped in.

At the same time the look in her eyes under the spectacle frames changed completely, the surrounding air twisted minutely.

A sinister murderous intent began to well up from the depths of her eyes.

“W-what are you doing right now? I gave you precious information.”

“You said earlier that you know me well, didn’t you? But from what I see, you still do not seem to know me very well.”

“I am an Imperial envoy!”

“I do not care. You must have come out in secret anyway.”

“G-guards!”

At Rina’s urgent cry, the two Crimson Guards who had been guarding outside the building rushed in, but they soon turned into cold corpses.

Along with the three corpses lying on the floor, the abandoned building was engulfed in flames.

Having destroyed all evidence, she leisurely left the scene of the incident and thought of him.

‘You have clumsily let vermin gather around you.’

The one who had to be perfect for her.

Was not just herself.