Let the Whales Fight, This Shrimp is Leaving! - Chapter 32

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 32
I threw a blind punch straight toward his solar plexus, and Deyan, taking a direct hit, slumped right onto the spot.
“Hmph.”
That is what he gets for picking a fight until the very end.
Leaving him behind, I slipped back into the Main Building by myself.
Naturally, the small bouquet and flower ring he had given me went straight into the trash can.
‘Treating me like a child?’
Unwilling to admit it was just pointless annoyance, I huffed to myself before sitting down at my desk.
Just as I was about to start working, a knock caught my attention.
“Come in.”
“My Lady.”
The figure entering the Office with a neat demeanor was, of course, Giselle.
She held a letter in her hand that looked as though it had only just arrived.
Even without looking closer, I could guess its contents.
“I am informed that Joaquin Perez has crossed the border. It seems he will arrive within two days.”
“Is that so?”
My eyes automatically crinkled into a smile.
‘The bastard. He actually came.’
I had known he would, but that did not stop my mood from turning foul.
“Then we had better prepare to welcome our guest.”
“Yes. I shall instruct everyone to prepare thoroughly.”
“Please do.”
I sent Giselle out and reached for the stack of papers.
It seemed tomorrow evening’s dinner, which I had promised Deyan, would have to be canceled.
* * *
Deyan’s dinner was delivered to his room without fail.
On the very day Idir had promised him a meal, she turned around and canceled the plans.
He figured she must have been incredibly angry, but when the report followed that Joaquin Perez had crossed the border, Deyan understood soon enough.
Out of habit, he dined alone and stood idly by the window, only to suddenly realize he had not taken a walk that afternoon.
Perhaps it had already become a routine; skipping just a single day left his body feeling stiff.
‘Good grief.’
I am no different from a kept dog.
Bitterly lamenting his own plight, he changed his shoes.
His calculation was that since Joaquin Perez had not yet arrived, a night walk would surely be permitted.
Sure enough, no one stood in his way.
He could not even sense Giselle watching him from the corridor.
Deyan slipped out of the building where there were fewer signs of people, deadening his footsteps and choosing the darkest paths.
As he walked, he naturally arrived at the side path along the Wall where he had been yesterday.
‘Should I be walking here?’
Recalling how he had to endure Idir’s irritation, Deyan stopped in his tracks.
Yet, after a moment’s hesitation, he forced his feet forward anyway.
The faint sound of grass crushing beneath his boots echoed softly.
Along with it came a pitiful, piping cry from somewhere nearby.
‘Sounds like a cat.’
A very young, tiny kitten, at that.
Deyan shifted his steps toward the source of the sound.
Though the light from the scattered lamps grew more distant, discerning objects in the darkness was hardly a challenge for Deyan.
Walking a little further inside the Wall, he spotted a fluffy thing flailing right against the stones.
Looking closer, it seemed to have gotten hopelessly tangled in the rugged, overgrown weeds.
A mother cat was watching the situation from just outside a tiny gap hidden in the grass.
“I will free it, so take it with you.”
Deyan forcefully tore away the stalks wrapped around the kitten’s legs.
He checked briefly to see if it was injured and set it right by the opening of the gap, but the mother had already vanished in that short span.
“Tsk.”
Abandoned.
It seemed the wary mother had given up on the kitten because it had been touched by human hands.
Even so, he was in no position to take in the left-behind creature.
Deyan swallowed his dismay as he looked down at the fluffy little beast crying helplessly.
[It will die soon.]
Just then, a cold voice dropped from above his head.
Deyan, who had not sensed any presence whatsoever, instinctively took a combat stance, but the other party remained perfectly composed.
[Such is the law of nature.]
The Angel was radiating a lofty brilliance amidst the dark.
The entity, whose entirely emotionless voice felt alien, gazed quietly down at Deyan.
As the memory of having his shoulder pierced by him rushed back, Deyan straightened his posture.
A brief standoff ensued.
The one to break the silence first was the Angel, not Deyan.
[Pitiable.]
“Are you speaking to me?”
[Generally, I find all things pitiable.]
The Angel, Sariel, replied detachedly before glancing at the tiny ball of fluff on the ground.
Deyan naturally shifted his gaze to the little kitten as well.
[Whether you touched it or not, the fate of that lesser creature would have been much the same, so there is no need to feel guilt.]
“Are you not going to help it?”
[I am a watcher, not a caretaker. The only kindness I bestow is preventing a soul from walking a foolish path. That is my law and my mission.]
It meant he would not interfere.
Understanding his intent without much trouble, Deyan carefully scooped up the tiny kitten with both hands.
The small thing squirmed and cried sharply as if putting up a desperate fight.
“Does a touch change things?”
[Humans do occasionally alter fate. Give it a try.]
Words followed that might have been encouragement or a challenge.
Sensing no hostility in Sariel’s demeanor toward him, Deyan mustered his courage.
“Should you not be punishing me?”
[So you do know.]
Did I misjudge him?
At the immediate sarcasm, Deyan promptly closed his mouth again.
He regretted speaking up.
His body tensed, fearing a spike might fly at any moment to pierce his shoulder, but fortunately, nothing of the sort happened.
[Ask. I happen to feel a bit whimsical today.]
Instead, rather favorable words returned.
Noticing the Angel’s gaze brush past the tiny kitten held in his hands, Deyan reopened his mouth with difficulty.
“Can my curse be broken?”
[If you have lacked an opportunity for salvation until now.]
“Will the Lady who tried to summon a demon also pay a corresponding price?”
[That is not for me to answer.]
Sariel cut him off flatly.
Even so, he did not leave the spot, so Deyan slowly chose his words once more.
“……Why do you stay by her side?”
[To do the task assigned to me.]
“Is it to execute the demon?”
He was not referring to Beval.
It was a question about the Demon with whom Deyan had formed a contract.
[If that is my task.]
An ambiguous answer returned.
Having nothing left to ask, Deyan gently stroked the small warmth in his hands.
When he raised his head again, he found himself staring right into the piercing, icy eyes of the Angel, who had stepped right up to his nose.
[Human.]
“…….”
[Never forget the weight of the life that faded within your grasp.]
Sariel’s hand rested heavily on his shoulder.
The inorganic temperature—neither cold nor hot—sent a shiver down his spine.
[Nor where the soul you extinguished is currently suffering.]
After offering that low warning, he slowly withdrew his hand.
[That is the sin you must bear. Carry it, and you shall find salvation; lay it down, and you shall suffer. Meet the destiny that approaches you.]
Tap.
Sariel’s finger poked the tiny kitten once.
At that, the kitten that had been squirming and crying quietly curled up in his palms.
A faint, rhythmic breath tickled his fingers.
Sariel checked the creature with an indifferent glance, then turned and vanished.
Just as when he arrived, there was no trace of his presence.
‘I asked because I wanted to find out something.’
Instead, he had ended up with nothing but riddles.
Left standing there as if rooted to the spot, Deyan exhaled a deep sigh and began to walk.
How could a mere human comprehend the deep intentions of an Angel?
He figured he should just let it go.
* * *
Gazing absentmindedly out the window, my eyes locked onto something.
‘Why is he out at this hour?’
For a moment, I tracked Deyan’s movements as he appeared in the Garden.
Seeing him blend into the darkness and head toward the Wall, I was about to urgently dispatch someone when I spotted a silver light glowing in the distance.
That was definitely Sariel.
After a brief deliberation, I decided to simply observe the faintly glowing light.
I could always ask later about what exact conversation took place, anyway.
Instead, I checked the time out of the corner of my eye.
The conversation between Sariel and Deyan lasted barely ten minutes.
[You are anxious, Idir.]
Before I knew it, Sariel was behind me.
He stood straight against the wall like a noble ornament, observing me.
“You are here?”
Feigning innocence entirely, I looked at him with a bright smile.
[Are you afraid that what you desire might fall apart?]
His indifferent blue gaze felt as though it would pierce right through me.
[Pitiable thing.]
After dropping that single phrase, Sariel vanished.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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