LIGHTNOVELONLINE Chapter 172: I am Ankh
That charitable bloodline had appeared in lagoo.
“Oh by the way I saw that magical communication had published something on the charitable bloodline before. Something about them being a charity organization?”
Francesca answered Sufilia’s question.
“Yeah the charitable bloodline. But we really aren’t that sure if they’re a charity or not. There are plenty of mysteries involving this group. There are a lot of supporters of this group but there are also constant rumors about kidnapping and human trafficking.”
“I see, welp they say that where there is smoke there is usually fire.”
Masamune’s answer seemed to be uninterested.
“The problem is that I can’t find the fire. That’s why that they are able to claim that all the rumors are just a hoax.”
Francesca’s eyes were no longer shining like that of an excited reporter but were instead filled with disgust. When Ankh raised his right hand the crowd suddenly went silence and he addressed the woman who was trembling on top of the clock tower.
“Are you hesitant?”
The voice made it sound as though he wasn’t very old at all. The woman replied to him.
“I! I don’t want to live anymore!”
It was a cry of sorrow to which Ankh spread his arms and spoke.
“That’s fine! Inequality, injustice and unreasonableness! These are the principles that govern this world! As someone who lives in this world that is something that you just have to accept!”
Everyone was quiet and listening to what he said.
“You are water! Sometime the water in a river will flow gently and sometimes it is violent. So what are you afraid of? Why are you hesitating?”
Toa’s expression began to distort as he spoke.
“What is that person saying?”
Toa seemed to be so disgusted that she was growing nauseous. The man seemed to be justifying her suicide.
“I know that it is bad. That life is supposed to be precious.”
“True! Life certainly is precious. But life is something that has a beginning and an end. That is what life is! So why do you separate them? Death is just as precious as life. So why are you so unwilling to accept death now!? If you don’t then you are betraying what you just called precious, you are also betraying yourself. Blasphemy against death is also blasphemy against life! “
The woman was so scared that her legs were shaking.
“Are you trying to mock life!?”
Ankh continued to grow more intense but no one around him said anything.
“I’m scared.”
Nem didn’t understand what was going on and seemed a little frightened although she was aware that nothing good was going on.
“What is this?”
I’m not really able to understand what is going on here. It is an organization that claims to be a charity but also a religious organization.
“This is the Charitable Bloodline.”
Francesca looked like she had just bitten into something quite bitter. While the expression on Masamune’s face seemed cold.
“Now accept death! Beyond that is happiness! Now choose!”
Ankh stretched out his arm and seemed to grab something. At the end of his left arm that he had extended was the woman who was trembling in fear.
“””Hurry up and jump!”””
The crowd started to make noise again. The shouts began to echo out gathering even more people.
“””Accept! Accept! Accept! Accept!”””
Everyone who was gathered there began to scream in a rythme as the urged the woman to commit suicide. The negative power of humans could be felt clearly around the clock tower. Initially she had climbed the tower and there was a chance that she wouldn’t commit suicide. But Ankh had caused the crowd to all start encouraging her to commit suicide, forcing her hand in a way. When she stepped forward there was a great cheer.
“””Yeeeeaaaaahhh!”””
As the woman fell she could no longer be saved. Everyone was there smiling no one had tried to stop it. And now that the woman had jumped could anyone do anything anymore? But right before the woman could touch the ground her body stopped in the air and the crowd was silenced.
“Huh?”
Toa was confused at the situation as Ankh was holding out his hand to the woman that had stopped just above the ground.
“Good job! Her life is precious!”
The woman was slowly drawn towards Ankh. It seemed as though she had fainted and beside Ankh people wearing similar white robes to his own appeared.
“We shall take care of her lord Ankh.”
“If you please. Treat her politely and perform the reincarnation ceremony.”
“Understood.”
The believers disappeared along with the woman.
“Good people. If you do not wish to die then die once. If you do this then you will no longer be able to die! You will no longer have to fear death! I am Ankh, the god of life! In this way the world shall be saved!”
Ankh then leaves without saying anything else.
“Wow, did you see that!?”
Toa’s expression distorted again. It seems that Ankh had seen Toa and the people around her. Although there was no way to tell exactly where the eyes behind the mask were looking.
“I saw it, but what does it mean? It just seemed creepy.”
Francesca seemed to agree with the sentiment. Dolly pointed his camera at the ‘god of life’s’ back and snapped a picture.
“Should we write another article about this?”
Dolly was excited.
“I don’t want to. You do it.”
Francesca had no interest in such a thing. For right now Francesca wasn’t here as a reporter.
“I feel a chill.”
Nem’s tail was standing straight up.
“I guess we should go back to the carriage then. Schneiser will be waiting for us as well.”
Masamune said without any real emotion behind the words.
“I’m hungry so why don’t we go ahead and go rest.”
Masamune didn’t really look tired or anything but he suggested this anyway.
“I’m not interested in festivals…..”
Masamune turned his back on the clock tower and left. Nem sprinted to Masamune’s side and was looking up at him.
“Hey, if I say ahh what do you think?”
Toa suddenly appeared on the other side of him and asked.
“Hmm?”
Masamune didn’t seem to understand the question.
“What do you think?”
“What do I think?”
What in the world is she asking? What is saying ahh supposed to mean?
“You don’t think it’s creepy?”
“About what?”
What is any of this supposed to mean? Toa stopped asking questions, it seemed she was actually a little reluctant to do so.
“Are you angry?”
Nem followed behind Toa with a question of her own.
“Mad? Me?”
Nem nodded twice as if to double confirm.
“No?”
Nem just watched Masamune’s face as he answered while for her part Sufilia was silent. Masamune found himself thinking that it was more comfortable to wear a mask after all. When he was wearing his mask his expression didn’t matter, its possible that wearing a mask for a long time could have harmful effects.
“We should go ahead and get out of here now that we know that the charitable bloodline is here. Although it’s not like this town was all that great to begin with.”
The three girls were silent for some reason when Masamune said this. Masamune patted Nem’s head but it seemed like none of them really knew what to say.
“I think Nito’s judgement is correct. It’s not really a good idea to get involved in these kinds of things. I think we should hurry and leave.”
Francesca said from the back of the group. But it wasn’t as if Masamune wanted to stick around anyway, he just wanted to get to Dams Arden and get this errand taken care of.
.※
“That was fast.”
Once I returned to the carriage I found Schneiser relaxing in the living room.
“Are we still waiting on the horses?”
“No, we’re all ready but…”
So in other words it was possible to leave now but Schnieser had planned to leave a little later.
“We should hurry up and get out of here.”
Masamune took a seat on the sofa as he said this.
“Are you already tired of this place?”
Schnieser was holding a cup of tea in one of his hands as he asked this.
“There’s not all that many places to see here.”
Toa and the others sat on the couch as well. If you looked you would see that Francesca’s expression was just as dark as theirs were.
“Hmm? You guys look a little more worse for wear since we’ve arrived here.”
Everyone’s expression seemed to say don’t ask but Francesca answered the question that Schnieser hadn’t yet asked.
“The Charitable Bloodline is here.”
“…….I see.”
There was a long silence. It seemed the Schnieser was aware of this particular organization.
“Isn’t that the religious group that has been getting rather large recently?”
“That’s correct. Nobody died but we all saw something that left us feeling rather sick.”
Francesca didn’t elaborate after that.
“The alcohol and the meat was good wasn’t it?”
Toa suddenly brought up the meal that they had at the bar.
“Wasn’t it though? That alcohol was the best!”
“Well if it’s just for the food I wouldn’t mind stopping by again.”
“….Yeah.”
Did Toa like the alcohol as well or was it just he food? Masamune didn’t move from where he was sitting as he pondered this while the scenery outside the window began to change.
After a while Schneiser got up from his spot in the living room and went to a separate room. Meanwhile Sufilia was drinking wine and munching on what looked like beef jerky.
“Francesca, Are Pascantin and Utopiya far from here?”
Masamune asked casually.
“Not really. Why?”
“No reason. Don’t worry about it.”
Masamune took out a bottle of old gert. Even though it was worth quite a lot Masamune didn’t sell it as he thought that liquor should be drunk and besides it wasn’t like he was having any money issues.
“Sufilia, why don’t you drink this? You like it don’t you?”
Sufilia’s eyes were shining as she looked at the bottle of wine. But Masamune found himself wondering why they needed to stop at the town in the first place if they already had this much food and drink to begin with.
“Francesca? How far are we from Dams Arden?”
“We should probably arrive after about three days or so.”
Three days, of eating and drinking alcohol.
“Well, I guess I’ll just drink for now.”
Masamune poured some whiskey into a glass and had another bite to eat.
“A great mage huh…..”
“Did you say something?”
Toa asked with a beer in her hand.
“Nothing.”
Masamune looked out the window with a tired expression on his face. He was soon going to ‘become a country’. With the journey that he was planning in the future that title might actually be of some use to him. He figured that countries with closed borders might let him in with that status but if worse came to worse he could always just force his way in.