13. Death row inmates
“The Edea New Kingdom── is what’s going to be the new name for this country.”
“I was expecting that, but… Do you actually need to change it? If I remember correctly, it was originally called the Lilden Kingdom, right?”
“It will not be long before the entire country, becomes aware of the king’s death and the new king’s ascension to the throne. The goal is to make people aware of the new structure of the country by establishing a different flag and name for the country.”
“Hmm.”
Indeed, it may be a reasonable point as a first step of awareness. The name Lilden Kingdom will bring only a bad impression to most people. Even if they may not realize it until a little later, it is not a bad idea to make them think that they are now residents of a different country with a new name and a new flag.
“I won’t tell you how to do things. But is that name really okay? It’s a little embarrassing to have my name on it.”
“No problem. In fact, we have no choice but to make Lady Edea’s name widely known here.”
He was afraid of being misunderstood as just another self-aggrandizing ruler, and that the new king would end up being no different from the previous one, so from Morow’s point of view, there was no choice but to use the name value of the Primordial Witch.
However, the name Edea and the Primordial Witch does not have a direct connection… Oh, I get it. This is a message not only for within the country but also for other countries as well.
While listening to the general history of the Kingdom of Lilden in this past month, I seem to recall hearing something about how until recently there was an active exchange between the kingdom and other countries. From the perspective of the other countries, it must be surprising if this place suddenly changed its name to Edea New Kingdom. What happened, and who is Edea? When they tried to find out about it, they immediately came across the existence and actions of the Primordial Witch.
If they come to a conclusion on their own, there’s nothing we need to do from our side.
“…I understand that my legends have taken root in this country to a considerable extent. Is the primordial witch well-known in other countries as well?”
“Yes, of course. In this eastern region, there are no other witch legends.”
Oh, that’s right, just like me, there are others who are also called legendary witches, aren’t there… So, are there competitors in this region (?) There is none. I guess my name has a high value.
“The name of the Primordial Witch is considered special throughout the continent── but that’s not the point. If Lady Edea is dissatisfied, I will immediately present an alternative proposal, so what would you like to do?”
“I have no complaints because it’s something you’ve thought about so much.” Let’s just accept that what is embarrassing is unavoidable now… But what about this flag? It looks like you could perform some kind of suspicious ritual.”
“It may seem so at first glance, but this is not a magic circle, it’s a symbol that represents circulation. I depicted it as being the foundation of magic, a fitting expression of Lady Idea’s noble and compassionate heart and profound magical abilities. So what did you think?”
A magic circle, yeah, yeah. Even I know that… I hope it’s the same as the magic circle that I know of.
Oh, regarding whether the design is good or bad? Yeah, I think it’s good. Anything is fine. Unlike the name of the country, it doesn’t seem to have much strategic significance, so you can do as you please.
“In that case, I will proceed in this manner. From tomorrow, Lady Edea will officially become known as the ruler of this country, but needless to say, we will continue to handle all government affairs. However, I’m sure that there will be times when we will have to ask for Lady Edea’s help in external affairs…”
“I have no complaints about that either. I’ve got all the time in the world anyway, so I’ll work a little.”
I feel that having other things that need to be done would also help strengthen my research efforts. Somehow. The past few days have been the first time in a long time that I’ve been able to experience a lot of things, and I’m genuinely enjoying it right now… I’m very doubtful that I can really handle the activities of being a king, but let’s try to enjoy it anyway. Life is all about taking on challenges.
Speaking of research, I just remembered something.
“How is it going with that?”
“──Is it about the death row prisoners? In that case, there are already ten people in the dungeon.”
“Ten people!”
That’s a lot. I can’t believe that so many criminals deserve capital punishment in just one month. While I’m happy, I’m also a little worried about the security situation in my own country.
“A group of vicious bandits was caught the other day… It is not the case that it was a matter of luck. Even in the royal capital, crime is rampant, but those who are not afraid to commit serious crimes such as banditry tend to appear frequently within a certain distance from the capital’s outskirts.
“They are caught by the smell of money, huh? It’s a consequence of the former king’s repressive reign.”
“Yes. The measures that have been put in place have not yet been fully implemented, so I am ashamed to say that it will take a while longer to improve public safety. However, it is expected that the number of violent criminals will decrease over time as the enthronement of the new king and the country’s revitalization plan progress. It might be inconvenient for Lady Edea, but…”
“Not really, no? No matter how peaceful things are, there will always be those who act foolishly beyond reasonable limits, and if I can get a few of those guys every now and then, that’s fine with me.”
As I have said many times, there is time. I’m not in a hurry for the results. Putting other matters aside, I intended to continue my research at the same pace as before, without disrupting it. So I don’t mind at all if it improves public safety.
“By the way, when will Celia arrive?”
“If it’s about her… if things go as usual, it’ll be in about an hour.”
“I see. In that case, I’ll go down to the underground and take it with me in the meantime.”
I wonder if Celia is getting ready for the morning at that boarding house. I suggested picking up Celia every time she went to the royal castle, but since the person didn’t like it, that idea was dropped. “I can’t possibly ask Miss Edea to do that much for me.” She was very polite in her refusal, but it was a pretty strong refusal. My eyes can’t be fooled.
But I can understand that feeling. They say that time is money, but it would be troubling if everything were just shortened. I can’t rule out the possibility that the sudden teleportation to her room might have traumatized her. For example, suddenly encountering someone in the bathroom or while using the toilet would create a serious problem.
I have taught her not to wear it all the time and to place the totem in a corner of her room to avoid such a situation, and I am sure she understands this, but once you have suffered a shock, it is hard to recover from it with logic. It can’t be helped.
“Then I will accompany you.”
“You don’t have to. The fact that you called me this early means that you want to start working on your plan as soon as possible, right? Don’t worry about me, just do your own work.”
“Is it alright? ──Understood, as you wish.”
“Yeah.”
……It’s not that I chased him away. If you had time, it would have been completely fine for you to come along with me. No matter what I do to the death row prisoners, Morow really wouldn’t care at all. That is what makes him different from Celia.
I’m sure Celia would not be happy to see a person with mutilated arms and legs being implanted… Even if she knew that the person was a bad person who deserved to be put to death, she would still feel upset. It would change how she sees me and her attitude toward me.
There’s no need to be particularly liked by her, but we have become work colleagues. I don’t want to make things awkward. The petty sense that stubbornly remains in my faded self-consciousness from my previous life tells me so. I am not trying to be a good friend, but I don’t want to take the risk of ruining the relationship either.
Celia pretends not to notice, and I try my best not to show it. Let’s make this a mutual endeavor. It seems that the opportunity to reveal the secret is still far away.
Therefore, let’s move the prisoners out before she arrives. It was a good idea to design the new house more spacious than the previous one to accommodate a larger number of people. Or rather, I should say I’m glad it didn’t become a waste of space… I have a feeling that it might become like that again in the future, but it’s better than running out of space today.
The house is still far from being completed, but the underground laboratory area is good enough, so let’s quickly move them. After parting with Morow, I walked lightly down to the underground of the royal castle. To be relocated from one underground to another really describes the fate of the prisoners who will never see the light of day again. Although it is too direct to be considered a metaphor.
And so it is in this dim and cold place that I come face to face with the object of my interest. Ooh, there are so many. A group of evil-looking men are huddled together in a prison cell… Nine people? Oops, Morow, you counted it wrong. Or could it be that I missed one? Just when I thought so, there was actually another person in the cell next to it.
A woman. So you kept the female prisoners and the male prisoners separate… Yeah, it’s neatly done. It was a little troubling and helpful to be served.
“Hey, what are you?”
So far, all those who had been used as experimental subjects had been men, since she was a rare specimen, I stared at the woman intently, because she was something unusual, until one of the male prisoners who had been completely silent called out to me. You’re acting quite high and mighty for someone who’s caught. From their perspective, the situation of a girl visiting the prison alone must seem baffling, so let’s consider it as stemming from genuine confusion.
“Ah, my name is Edea. The king of this country, so you should behave appropriately.”
“Huh?”
“What is this brat saying?”
“Pfft… Enough with the silly jokes, lass. Do us a small favor, let us out.”
“Sure. I’ll let you out.”
“Wha?”
“I said I’ll let you out. Rejoice, your destination will be a much happier place than this prison.”
“What the──”
The words stopped there. All nine of them, the negotiators and those who were just listening and smirking were sent to my home. Obviously, they are already restrained. I’ll go and take care of them later, so let’s have them behave nicely until then… So there they go.
“Hiiek, hii… Uhh.”
The female prisoner’s face changed color the moment she saw me and became even more abnormal when the noise from the cell next door stopped. It’s clearly different from the men… Hrmm.
Looks like this is going to need some interrogation.
Prev Chapter | TOC | Next Chapter
If you’re feeling generous, you can support the site by clicking on the button below, it keeps me motivated and the site alive.