Lingering Tensions and a Mercenary's Proposition

"Hoo..."

The fresh air outside cleansed his lungs, which had felt stuffy.

Though the journey had lasted only a few hours, the sun hanging in the sky no longer felt like the same one from earlier that day.

Without a word, Shirone's group and the mercenaries dispersed in opposite directions.

When Amy turned back to look, the distance between them had grown wider than before. It was unlikely they would remain a team after today.

Shirone asked, "What should we do now? We achieved more than expected. Is that it for today?"

Amy agreed. "Yeah. I'm exhausted after using so much energy. We should head back early and work on our strategy."

Rian suddenly spoke up as if he had discovered something amazing. "Before that, how about a bowl of noodles? That place back there was really good."

Tess jabbed Rian in the side. "Do you ever stop eating noodles? At the very least, let's get something better like buckwheat noodles. You're so simple."

"What? Simple? Do you even know how much thought I put into this?"

As Rian and Tess bickered over the menu, the mercenaries approached.

Shirone's group halted their conversation and turned to look.

"Huh?"

There was a warrior, a mage, and an archer, but their leader was nowhere to be seen.

The mercenaries hesitated, glancing at each other nervously, until finally, the mage stepped forward and spoke to Shirone.

"Hey… Would you consider joining our mercenary group?"

"A mercenary group?"

"Yeah. I know you're students, but being a mercenary has a lot of benefits. You gain honor, make a ton of money, and with your skills, you'd become stars in no time. As you can see, our leader just left, so… You could even take his place. We'd all follow your commands without question, and if more people join, we'd treat them well, too. What do you think?"

Shirone took a moment, making sure not to seem rude, before firmly replying, "No."

With that, he turned around, and his friends followed without hesitation.

Rian sighed. "See? We should've just gone for noodles. It was really good, wasn't it?"

"No way. You just want to fill your stomach. If you wait a little longer, we can get something even better."

The mercenaries watched them walk away, looking dejected.

The mage's face twisted into a frown, and he let out a weary sigh.

"Ugh, what a cursed life."

The Parrot's Name

Inside the tavern's brewing room, Falcoa chewed on a piece of the strongest loop root, his eyes unfocused.

"Those bastards… Do they really think this is over?"

Jis, watching from behind, felt his heart race. He had always known Falcoa was unhinged, but today was worse than usual.

'What is he planning? Why did he call me here?'

A day had passed since Shirone's group caused an uproar, yet Falcoa's rage had not subsided.

"Jis, we're going back."

"Huh? W-Where?"

"Bring them here. Not here, but to the hideout. We'll mobilize everyone and crush them."

He was serious about killing Shirone's group.

'He's lost his mind.'

Jis panicked. "B-But they know it was a trap now! They'll never believe me again."

Falcoa smirked and pulled out a small bottle filled with powdered loop root.

"That's why you'll use this."

"Wait… You're not planning to poison her, are you?"

"Poison? You idiot. That woman can't be poisoned. That's just how Karmis are."

"Then what is this for…?"

"Use your brain for once. Precisely because she can't be poisoned, this plan will work."

Falcoa opened the bottle and poured the powder into a cup of water. The colorless, odorless substance dissolved instantly.

Normally, a single root was chewed for two hours, but Falcoa had added three times that amount in liquid form, meaning its effects would hit all at once.

Jis paled. "No way…"

"Yeah. Give this to her. She'll drink it without hesitation, thinking she's immune. But with this much, she won't be able to escape death. Once her friends see her corpse, they'll go mad. And when they come to the hideout… I'll kill them all."

"W-Why are you doing this? What if they come after us later?"

"Heh. That's why I'll kill them all."

Falcoa grabbed another bottle of loop root powder and held it out to Jis.

Jis' eyes reddened as he stared at the bottle.

'He really means to kill them.'

"What's wrong? Take it. Or would you rather drink it yourself?"

Feeling Falcoa's murderous intent, Jis' heart dropped. The fear was so overwhelming that his mind nearly went blank.

Silently, he took the bottle. Falcoa turned away and resumed his brewing.

"Get it done. Give them the hideout's location. Those bastards humiliated me?"

Jis could barely hear him.

Between his frantic heartbeat, images of Amy and Shirone flashed in his mind.

'Just once…'

If he could stand up for himself, like them—

"…No."

Falcoa turned around. "Huh? What did you say?"

Jis met his gaze. His heart nearly stopped, but he had already made his decision, and his words followed through on sheer momentum.

"I said, enough, you piece of trash."

For a moment, Falcoa doubted his ears. Was the loop root making him hallucinate?

But Jis' glare and firm expression couldn't be a lie.

"What did you say? Say it again."

Falcoa's voice was eerily calm. When faced with something completely absurd, one often became strangely composed.

Maybe… Jis thought he could still back down. If he apologized and only got beaten half to death, he might at least keep his life.

'Amy…'

She had gotten into the carriage because…

'I am not a coward.'

Jis clenched his fists, his eyes burning.

"I said, stop it, you filthy bastard. You're not even human. You're so high on drugs you can't even tell right from wrong! How many people have to die because of trash like you?!"

He spat out everything he had been holding in. The shock to his own system made him dizzy, his legs shaking.

What happens now?

'Am I going to die?'

Falcoa showed no expression.

His unfocused eyes made Jis want to cry.

"Jis."

Falcoa took a step forward.

"I-I would never…"

Before he could finish, Falcoa's fist smashed into his face.

Something cracked.

Jis slammed into the wall, blood streaming from his nose. His blurred vision caught sight of Falcoa approaching.

No, not Falcoa—

A demon.