Knocker took another puff of his pipe.
“I was discarded by [Cartesius] in Balldlum.”
Sullen smoke puffed out. There was no emotion in his words.
Just stating the facts tersely, as if his heart had already been rubbed raw.
If Norman didn’t recognize his face, it meant he had been discarded over a year and a half ago.
“They tried to kill me, but I survived. That’s why I’m carrying out these activities.”
“For what?”
“Unlaws human rights movement.”
“Pardon?”
“To publicize the existence of Unlaws and gain assured human rights. That’s my aim.”
“…………”
Unlaws—human rights movement?
Norman’s mouth fell open in shock, and even Cklares’s smile had frozen.
“I heard you two would be on this train.”
“From who?”
“The train hijacking and recovering the cargo were just a side benefit. You know, fairy, you’re one of the most useful and dangerous monsters within [Cartesius].”
“Sensei? You’re being ignored.”
“Unlaws human rights liberation, I’m sure it sounds ridiculous. But the treatment of Unlaws is abysmal. Airystep, you attend a girls’ academy in Balldlum, don’t you? Or your colleagues can even go out freely as long as they file a report afterward…”
“Well, that’s thanks to sensei’s affection…”
“That’s just for you. Our residences were assigned, we barely had any freedom to go out.”
“…”
Cklares wavered slightly.
She must have had something come to mind.
In fact, until recently, that was how it was for her too.
“I know you played a role in easing those restrictions, Hamish. Splendid.”
“…Thanks, I guess?”
He couldn’t quite find the words when suddenly praised like that.
“But it’s not enough. The [Twins] in the capital are developing anti-Unlaws weapons. At this rate, we’ll lose even our utility value.”
Hence, the small man quietly imbues his words with fervor.
“We Unlaws need liberation. We have the power to fight. All we need is funding, time and manpower.”
“You don’t think it’s impossible?”
“Of course not. If you join, Hamish, the four from Balldlum will likely follow. That would make it more realistic.”
“…I see, you’re taking this very seriously.”
Norman had thought it ridiculous.
An Unlaws human rights movement?
If the world became aware of Unlaws’s existence, it could revive something like the medieval witch hunts at worst.
“…Hmm.”
While the content was outrageously absurd, there was no playfulness in Knocker’s tone or demeanor.
This little man was utterly serious, fully intending to go through with it.
Dreadfully single-mindedly aiming for a potential vein and continuing to swing his pickaxe,
like a miner who doesn’t know if it even exists until he finds it.
“I see.”
And Norman had realized something.
A spirit that seeks to change—to warp—its surroundings.
“So you’re a [Distortion]?”
“That’s right.”
[Distortions] have a distinct characteristic differentiating them from other Unlaws.
Their abnormalities and mental states target others and their surroundings. Their abilities clearly aim to warp something other than themselves—both the physical material their power affects, and the people their existence impacts.
Things that warp everyone, their surroundings, common sense itself.
Incidents caused by [Distortions] tend to be large-scale, even among Unlaws.
Cklares was the same.
“You’re jumping ahead, Hamish. Then let me ask you directly—I aim to warp the world for Unlaws’s future. Won’t you lend a hand? —I’m sure even you wish for the same.”
“Hmm.”
Appreciating his terseness in saying only what was necessary, without wasting words.
But Norman wasn’t so easygoing as to decide based on that alone.
“I have something I want to ask.”
“What is it? I’ll answer as best I can.”
“Was there a reason for killing the passengers?”
Many killed indiscriminately. Whether or not they were guilty, Norman didn’t know.
But surely there was no reason for them to be swept up and killed like that.
“No.”
Knocker answered shortly,
striking like a sledgehammer on steel.
“They were in the way, so I killed them. Processing this many civilians is too much trouble, so I killed them.”
“I see.”
Norman nodded.
“Cklares, I’ll take the loss on our bet.”
“Oh, are you sure?”
“Yeah, it’s fine.”
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It’s unlike him, his words are so cold and empty it’s horrifying.
“Rather than killing, just neutralize them, and let [Cartesius] handle the speech—that would make things easier down the line.”
But more than that…
“Let’s kill this guy here.”
It had been a gamble on the culprit’s motive, but after hearing Knocker’s story, there was no reason left to spare his life. A monster who kills people simply because they’re a nuisance cannot be allowed to live.
“I didn’t expect him to be such a pathetic bastard.”
“Well, it’s nice to see this rare side of Sensei Norman, but…”
The fairy steps forward.
Her movements are light and graceful, belying the severe vibrations of this place.
Maintaining an otherworldly aura, she taps the floor with her staff.
A tapping sound resonates.
“—Spriggan Hand.”
“Dull Miner’s Hammer.”
And then—nothing happened.
“—Cklares?”
“Hmm, I guess it didn’t work. Same category III, huh.”
“I told you I knew you were coming.”
Knocker stands up.
He is indeed short, even shorter than Cklares.
“I assumed there would be a falling out. If you became an obstacle, I’d have to eliminate you. And Airystep – your ability can be killed by mine. That’s why I was waiting for you.”
“That seems to be the case. I tried using my powers before joining the agency, but it was meaningless.”
“So that’s why you were surprised earlier, a rare occurrence…”
The [Distortion] has the ability to distort and interfere with the properties of matter.
So
if Cklares distorts something with her ability, and Knocker can further distort it…
The fairy’s magic would be…erased.
“My powers will be unusable too, but if we cancel each other out, the fairies are just regular humans.”
What he took out was a rugged knife.
“If you don’t cooperate, I’ll kill you like the other passengers—because you’re a nuisance.”
Knocker Cromwell’s movements were simple.
Close the distance of a few meters, and swing the weapon.
His movements were refined to just that.
Judging by his physicality, he didn’t solely rely on his ability – he had trained to use it as a weapon and enable its application.
One wonders what circumstances led to this Unlaws being cast aside,
despite being useful and supposedly valued.
He was discarded like a worthless rock. What story lies behind that?
But more importantly than that right now…
“Cklares, should I do it?”
“Just watch, Sensei.”
“Nn.”
Norman stood still without moving, his hands in his pockets.
Reality would soon unfold before them.
“Die, fairy.”
A curse-like statement.
It was the first time emotion had been glimpsed from him.
“—Heh.”
A shrill sound rang out.
“———”
Knocker’s eyes widened.
Needless to say, it was not the sound of a blade tearing flesh.
It was the thick sound of the sturdy knife being driven into the wall.
“If you can’t use your ability, you’re no different from a regular human, huh?”
She hadn’t used her powers to defend herself.
What the fairy wielded was an emerald green staff.
She had hooked the L-shaped handle onto Knocker’s knife-wielding hand, deflecting the blade.
Due to the fastest, most efficient movement, the little man’s blade ended up stuck in the wall.
“My, my, you’ve underestimated me. I’m the Sensei’s bodyguard, you know. —There’s no way I can’t protect him just because I can’t use abilities.”
The fairy chuckled lightly as her staff flickered.
Her fingers gripping the center of the shaft flicked, causing it to spin. The rising staff tip accurately struck Knocker’s elbow.
“Guh…!?”
Staggered by the joint strike, the little man recoiled in confusion and pain, dropping his knife.
“Now, now, you were trying to kill me, weren’t you?”
“—”
His movements stopped with a clunk.
Cklares had spun around, hooking the staff’s handle around Knocker’s neck.
“Of course I won’t let you.”
A vertical punch struck the immobilized little man’s solar plexus —
She dropped her hips for a magnificent thrust.
“Guh!? –Gah!?”
Not stopping there. She released the grip on the handle, and struck with it directly.
Smashing his temple, his body slammed against the wall.
“Ugh–dammit…!”
Staggered by the barrage unleashed in an instant, Knocker finally retreated a few steps back.
But the space was cramped from the start. She quickly closed the distance on him. Withdrawing a new knife from her pocket,
“Where did you learn such martial arts…our dossier had no such information…”
“Which period are you even referring to? One grows day by day, be it human or fairy.”
“–Insolent brat.”
“Earning scowls is my specialty, as a fairy.”
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