Turmoil (8)

[Scenario Weight 18.95%][Clear Condition Achieved!]

['Scenario Note #011' has successfully ended. There are 3 hours and 00 minutes remaining until the next scenario note assignment. Until the scenario assignment is completed, the characters will initiate 'free actions' to fill the empty spaces in the script. Please ensure they act naturally so that they do not recognize the discrepancies in the world of the story.]

As a familiar message came to mind, I felt all the strength leave my body.

What a relief!

The eternal labyrinth has finally come to an end. Honestly, it feels like I've only been experiencing bad things down there. I never want to go back again. As I staggered and finally emerged to the surface, the situation was pure chaos. Frowning in confusion, Leonardo perked up his ears and informed me about what was happening. It seemed that many citizens were startled by the earthquake.

Apparently, the tremor that hit underground wasn't just confined to the fourth underground level but spread throughout the entire city. The overall atmosphere was chaotic, and people had gathered around the church. Thanks to this, we, looking like a bedraggled and waterlogged mice, were able to return without drawing much attention. As soon as the kid with the chestnut-coloured hair spotted Vittorio, his face lit up.

"Vittorio!"

While the street kids exchanged greetings and checked on each other's safety, Leonardo sat me on a table and began covering me with a towel. I appreciated the gesture, but it was a bit excessive. Indicating that this was enough, I pulled one towel off and draped it over his head, gently rubbing it. Leonardo readily let me do it. He squinted one eye and stared intently at me. When I wrapped his face tightly with the towel, he mumbled something and grabbed my wrist.

"Let me go…"

"Huh? I can't hear you."

He smiled and feigned ignorance, but I wondered why he didn't just free himself and stayed still. In the end, I was the one who loosened it first. At that moment, the chestnut-haired little kid came over and tugged at my sleeve, sniffling. Ouch. It was my right sleeve, of all places.

"Thank you for saving Vittorio…"

"Well, since he's already stuck to us like a little kid, it's only natural."

And I really hadn't done much.

"I'm sorry for all the trouble because of me."

As I quietly added this, Vittorio's face flushed bright red. The kid hesitated for a moment before coming over, grabbing my hand, and rubbing his cheek against it.

"…It's okay. You guys came to rescue me."

Is that really enough? The scenario note had also safely concluded. With this, I should be able to rest. I desperately need a break. I just want to close my eyes for a little while. Perhaps Leonardo noticed my weariness; he picked me up again and asked if I should go wash up and rest. It's a position I can never get used to, no matter how many times it happens.

"I can go by myself."

"Stay still."

"No…"

"Just be quiet."

This guy.

Grumbling as I was forcibly moved by him, I also felt a sense of relief. It seemed that the suspicions and tension between Leonardo and me had dissipated now that the big incident had passed. I thought we just needed a little more time to be at ease. At least until then…

When we arrived at the inn, Leonardo hesitated for a moment before trying to lay me down on the bed.

"It would be better to wash up before lying down."

"I'll take care of that, so you should look after yourself first."

"Wait a minute."

He pretended not to hear me, sat me down in a chair, and then dashed into the bathroom. Watching him show some rare servant-like diligence made me chuckle. It would probably take a while since he needed to heat the water. It definitely felt uneasy to fall asleep like this. Maybe I could just close my eyes for a moment. Yes, just for a little while. The instant I gently closed my eyes, darkness began to approach.

***

['The main author's strong will calls to you.]

['The assistant writer's strong will calls to you.]

[Connection error occurred: Entering as '???'.]

[Main Author: He figured it out! After repeating the rollback too many times, it seems he caught on to our interference. We need to evacuate or come up with some sort of countermeasure—]

[Assistant Writer: He is approaching.]

[Main Author: Damn it.]

[The connection has been lost.]

***

The brief sleep, which felt like just a few minutes, didn't help alleviate my fatigue much. It didn't even seem like any time had passed at all. I groggily woke up, blinking as I felt my body swaying, and I saw Leonardo staring at me with a heavy gaze.

As my clouded vision slowly cleared, I realized that Leonardo was gripping the fabric of my shirt with his hand, and without a word, he pulled on my right arm. The sleeve slid up, revealing my wound.

<Ò.L //// F.O>

"This wound."

He slowly whispered as his eyes scanned the exposed flesh.

"It was on the body of that strange thing— the one that self-destructed. The one it was trying to imitate…"

'Ah.'

Thump, thump. My heart gradually began to race.

"So that was you."

"..."

"The informant is a prophet, and now, is it their nemesis? You always go beyond my expectations. Just how much are you hiding?"

Leonardo's fingers trailed slightly downward. He murmured as he looked at the wound on my forearm.

"I've been thinking about why a man with so many secrets took me in and wanted to live together, and why it had to be me."

He raised his gaze to meet mine. At the same time, his fingers wrapped around my wrist. His calloused fingers brushed against my skin as if to stimulate something.

"So I'll ask you this: you already know, don't you?"

"Know what?"

"That I am Leovald."

My breath caught in my throat.

Did he just reveal that himself?

'At this timing?'

I tightly sealed my lips, but Leonardo pulled me slightly closer, bringing his ear to my chest. His deep voice rumbled near my heart.

"Just as I thought."

It was a declaration born of certainty.

The steam rising from the water in the bathtub warmed the air. The sound of dripping water felt vividly close, as if it were right next to my ear. He asked quietly, still pressed against me.

"What's the reason you approached me?"

The damp texture of the clothes clung to my body, chillingly vivid, and Leonardo's ash-grey eyes, gazing up at me, gleamed with the tenacity of a predator that had found its prey. I grasped his shoulders. Even if I tried to brush it off as a joke, the current Leonardo wouldn't let me get away with lying. If he were to feel betrayed or end up doubting and not trusting me, to the point where he would leave my side…

What would I do then? Clinging closely to the protagonist, barely surviving while gradually consuming the intense spotlight shining on him…

I had no choice but to present the truth in a different form instead of a lie. My mind was racing.

"…You are a hero, and your scripture has not been completed."

"..."

"I will do whatever it takes to help you complete your story. So you can regain what you've lost."

If I help you, the protagonist, reach the end of this stage, then I believe I can live on without dying. I don't want to die without leaving anything behind. I don't want a death that scatters me like ashes. If the reward promised to me by the main scenario is a return, then I desperately wish for that.

"I came here for you…"

Suddenly, a nonsensical statement slipped out of my mouth while I was in a daze.

'Came here?' A chill washed over me, making me blink blankly. It felt as if I had stepped into the world of the story myself. What did I just say?

Leonardo flinched as if he had heard something unexpected and asked again.

"Are you saying that you are the apostle sent by God to help me?"

"Huh?"

"From ancient times, prophecies and scriptures are the paths ordained by heaven, but it is the role of the apostles to confirm them. That's how your words sound to me. You're saying that you are the apostle sent by God for me."

He fixed his gaze on me.

"Is that right?"

At that moment, I felt the touch of cool droplets on my forehead and the back of my hand. Leonardo's eyes shifted, and a strange pattern glimmered on the back of my hand.

What is this?

While I was flustered, a strange light flickered in Leonardo's eyes. He alternated his gaze between the back of my hand and my forehead.

"Then this is a stigmata."

Huh?

"You are the apostle…"

As Leonardo advanced with his thoughts, I found myself thinking that this peculiar pattern resembled the way small droplets would burst. Suddenly, a memory from the past flashed in my mind. The serene garden of the church. The kindly face of the archbishop wearing the heavy mitre atop his snowy white hair. And the feeling of holy water touching my forehead as he blessed me, then rolling down to the back of my hand.

"So that's why they couldn't imitate you and as if you could see the future…"

Leonardo seemed to be coming to some conclusion on his own. As he cautiously held up the back of my hand, I looked down at the round back of his head, my mind racing with confusion.

Orlie. Butier. Orlie. Butier…

'Could it be those people?'

Thud, thud, thud!

Suddenly, a loud noise erupted as someone knocked on the door. When the door opened, Vittorio appeared.

"What's going on?"

The child panted and said, 

"That strange feeling!"

"What do you mean?"

"It feels like that monster is following us. I can sense it nearby…!"

Unsure of what to make of this, I looked at Leonardo, seeking an answer. He turned his head to gaze out the window, narrowing his eyes. A scream echoed from a distance.

Rushing to the window, I saw the warped and melting figure of Count Bermont openly crossing the street. It was coming straight toward us, devouring people indiscriminately.

Its destination was undoubtedly the inn.