Chapter 245 - Innocent Children

Ferda went to the excavation site after receiving a report that survivors had been found. But he would never have gone in person like this had they belonged to the imperial army or the coalition. Astonishingly, they were survivors from the Heinkel Kingdom.

Most survivors from the Heinkel Kingdom were all but soulless, muttering to themselves or half-dead from dehydration. Even those still alive were so broken that killing them would have been a mercy. But the survivors before him were children, and apart from having gone hungry for a while, they seemed to have retained their sanity.

"They say they were imprisoned in the basement and used in a Dark Elf's research. I checked a cross section of the castle. They definitely came up from the passage leading to the basement entrance."

"Why are they wrapped in blankets?"

"Their bodies were cold, so we covered them."

At that, Ferda took one girl's hand. Despite weather hot enough to cause dehydration, her body was ice-cold.

'Undead?'

No. If she were undead, she would have no pulse. The blood flowing through these children was simply several times colder than other humans'.

Ferda studied the girl in silence. She drew her head back as though frightened. Her recoil only made him glare at her more fiercely.

"Please stop," said the boy who looked oldest.

"What did you say?"

"Please stop. She says you're scaring her, looking at her like that."

Ferda stared at the boy, then turned his gaze to the other children. How peculiar. Each child he looked at felt exactly the same emotion. Not similar. Identical.

He released the girl's hand, and she hurried behind the larger boy. Gazing down at them, Ferda spoke.

"Luri."

"Yes, Master?"

"How many mana restraints did we bring with us?"

"Ten."

"Good. Put them on every one of these children. Then take them to the cage."

William looked stunned by his decision. Luri obeyed without objection, fastening mana restraints around the children's wrists. Having decided what to do with them, Ferda turned away.

"Lord Regent, they're children," William said, coming up beside him.

"It's only because they're children that I've stopped at this." Ferda's expression was fierce. "Had they been adults, I would have beheaded them here and now."

"They're innocent children. Why are you treating them this way?"

"You may not be able to see it, but I did."

When Ferda had frightened the girl, mana had flowed through her body, faint though it was: the distinctive flow found only after a Circle had been opened. Had she possessed a Blue Circle, that flow should have maintained a constant speed.

That was why he had provoked her. As her fear grew, the mana flowed faster. Just as her terror was about to peak, the boy had boldly intervened. A similar flow ran through his body, while the other children's mana flowed just as vigorously as the girl's.

Every one of those children had opened a Red Circle. But their Red Circles were not the only problem. Ferda vividly remembered the color of their eyes. It was darker than the light in Zed's eyes when he revealed his Red-Eye Clan heritage. Those were unmistakably the eyes of Demons.

* * *

Ferda immediately contacted Erica, master of the Blue Eye Tower. Upon hearing that children created by Demons exhibited some peculiar traits, she came rushing over. She cast multiple observation spells and examined the children closely.

"Remarkable."

After an hour's examination, her first utterance was an exclamation of wonder.

"These children... their minds are all connected."

"Connected, meaning...?"

"It's exactly the same kind of mental link High Elves have. They're in the same state as those people, who have no secrets because their minds are one."

The High Elves' mental link. That was hardly surprising. Ferda had already suspected some form of mental bonding. Even shattering minds through Trauma and focusing them solely on ecstasy would not have been enough to meet Legion's stringent requirements. Some aspects were bound to fall out of alignment. Mental bonding had been used to compensate for that risk.

"These children... they've all suffered terrible pain. It would have been no surprise if opening their Red Circles had broken their minds... but it didn't."

"Why do you think that is?"

"Most likely because of that child."

The boy in the middle. He had been their pillar of support through the pain, helping them open their Circles. That was why the children relied on him.

"What do you think we should do with them?" Ferda asked Erica.

She deliberated before answering.

"Do you know... why High Elves insist on remaining isolated?"

A unified mind was pure white. Beautiful and clean, yet even a single drop of water could sully it. The same held true for High Elves. If one was corrupted, that corruption would spread in an instant.

"These children are the same. Now that their minds are bonded, they'll read and share each other's thoughts. And if they suffer, that pain will eat away at them all."

"..."

"The best solution would, of course, be..."

Erica left the rest unsaid. Ferda understood and nodded quietly.

"I'll speak with the others first."

This was not a matter he could decide alone. He resolved to convene the leaders of the coalition and imperial army to discuss it.

* * *

All the senior leaders gathered once more at the site where they had first met to form the coalition. But those in attendance had changed considerably. Some had been replaced by corps commanders; one kingdom, lacking even a commander, had sent a brigade commander instead. On the coalition's side, King Heodret alone remained unchanged.

The imperial army was no different. Apart from Ferda and the Second Corps commander, everyone had been replaced by a subordinate. Olivia had taken Ureas's place as a matter of course. Composed as ever, she kept the atmosphere cordial.

"As you know, the Second Prince passed away in an unforeseen tragedy, and I have taken his place here. I shall do my utmost to conduct these discussions in accordance with the Arken Empire's wishes."

"Please do. Now, let us get to the point."

Folding his arms, Heodret addressed Ferda.

"I hear you found survivors. But I'm told they're people of the Heinkel Kingdom."

"That is correct."

"Why would you do such a thing?"

Heodret's expression was fierce. Ferda answered evenly.

"All five survivors were children."

"Children..."

"Furthermore, there were no signs of brainwashing by a Trauma. They are suffering aftereffects of extreme fear, but nothing that poses a problem."

"Then you're saying they truly are entirely blameless civilians?"

"Not quite."

Ferda had no desire to irritate him needlessly with a clumsy lie. He presented the facts as they were.

"The children share three traits. All of them had Red Circles forcibly opened, all have dark red eyes, and all share a mental connection."

"A mental connection?"

"They share not only thoughts but emotions. It works on exactly the same principle as the High Elves' mental bond."

"Demons certainly do a great many things I've never seen or heard of."

Heodret pondered something. Apparently unable to arrive at an answer on his own, he looked at Ferda and asked,

"What do you think they intended to accomplish by creating such beings?"

"Presumably, to perfect collaborative magic."

"Collaborative magic?"

"Magic circles used for sieges or siege defense are large, and their preparation is usually a joint effort. Collaboration makes it possible to finish in three days what would take a month alone."

"So I've heard."

The corps commanders nodded in understanding.

"Dividing the work allows for much faster preparation, but collaborative work has an inherent flaw."

"What is it?"

"Certain things cannot be conveyed verbally, so something is always left out. As a result, a collaboratively constructed magic circle can never exceed ninety-eight percent completeness."

In magic, two percent was a significant portion, one that determined both safety and power.

"But sharing thoughts would eliminate that problem."

"Exactly."

"Interesting. Linking minds to achieve a hundred percent completeness when drawing a large magic circle..."

Interest showed in his eyes. Judging solely from Ferda's explanation, the corps commanders looked deeply intrigued as well. As he spoke, Ferda began to worry. His first thought was what he would do if Heodret claimed ownership of the children.

"What a pity."

But Heodret was more unyielding in his principles than Ferda had expected.

"That we must kill such valuable resources."

Without hesitation, he relinquished the opportunity and opted to kill the children.

Olivia reacted with apparent shock.

"You intend to kill the children, Your Majesty?"

"Don't feign innocence and appeal to my emotions, Princess. This is a matter of principle."

Perhaps offended by his aggressive words, Olivia's voice grew a little rigid.

"Principle?"

"Many of the imperial officers here were present before, so you should know perfectly well. What did we say when we put our heads together before entering Heinkel's castle?"

King Heodret answered his own question.

"No survivors. We said we would see everyone dead before returning."

"That is correct."

"Regent Ferda, just as you said, the Heinkel Kingdom's civilians proved an exceptionally effective military asset in this war. We lost dozens of our elite soldiers because of them. Above all, we suffered the deeply regrettable loss of kings."

Heodret clenched his fist as he continued.

"Our aim was to eradicate the Demons. The proper course is to burn and destroy everything those Demons created. Are we to let personal sentiment sway us now and render those deaths meaningless? This is the coalition's will, and a duty the imperial army is equally bound to fulfill."

Olivia considered his words carefully.

"... You are right."

"Princess."

Olivia looked at Ferda regretfully.

"The imperial army has suffered heavy casualties as well. The Second Prince is dead, and Count Ruster lost his life too. If you were to take in survivors of the Demons' experiments under these circumstances..."

She left the rest unsaid. She meant that it could become a political issue. Ferda had expected her to plead for mercy, given her status as an apprentice Saintess. But she also represented the will of the Order of Altes. They offered no forgiveness to darkness; their will was to purify it with light.

Deep down, Ferda too considered this the natural course. Leaving a future threat alive was foolish. With no knowing what the Demons had done to these children, hanging and burning them was more rational than taking them in.

"You don't seem a particularly softhearted man yourself, Regent."

King Heodret's words caught Ferda off guard. When he glanced up, Heodret grinned and rose from his seat.

"Keep them in custody. Execute them tomorrow morning and leave them hanging. Then we can at least appease our fallen on the way home, can't we?"

With that, the meeting ended. The five children William had rescued would be executed the following morning.

* * *

"Lord Regent, do you truly intend to let the children be executed?"

William, who had accompanied him as a guard, asked on the way back to camp.

"Heodret's judgment is sound. I have no reason to keep those children alive."

The judgment was so clearheaded that Ferda could understand the man's smug conviction that he had the makings of a sovereign. Many had died in both the imperial army and the coalition. They could not overlook the risk that sparing people of uncertain origins might sow the seeds of another disaster.

"But they're children, aren't they? Truly... just children who know nothing."

"Accept it. We cannot save everything in the world."

"..."

"We've lost too much for that."

The far eastern troops were predominantly knights, and most of their infantry had stayed in the rear, so their losses had been light. The imperial army's main force was another matter. It would not be right for Ferda to play the benevolent ruler and grant mercy.

"I—"

"William."

"..."

"Not another word."

There was no reason to discuss it further. It would only become an emotional quarrel, and there was no question who would lose. William said nothing more. They did not exchange another word before reaching camp.

* * *

Late that night, Ferda kept reading. A tightness in his chest kept him from sleeping. Tomorrow, everything would be over. He could return to Valdrova's arms. But it did not seem to be that anticipation keeping him awake.

For some reason, he felt something was going to happen. He wanted to see what it was, and so he fought off sleep.

CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!

The alarm bell rang without pause. Ferda remained unperturbed. As though what he had expected had finally come, he quietly closed his book and set it aside.

"Master Ferda."

Luri entered and delivered her report.

"We've received word that all the children awaiting execution have escaped."

"When did they escape?"

"Judging by the circumstances, about an hour ago. One horse is missing, so they must be traveling on horseback."

"I see."

The children could not have planned and carried out an escape like that themselves. Someone had undoubtedly helped them and was accompanying them now. And it took no great thought to guess who that someone was.

"Shall I track them down and bring them back?"

Luri had spent many years as a warrior. She would be an adept tracker, and swift enough to find them within ten minutes at most. Ferda considered for a while before calling her name again.

"Luri."

"Yes?"

"You're busy tending to my condition."

"... What do you mean?"

"I imagine that would make it difficult for you to take part in a trivial search."

"... Understood. Shall I make you some coffee?"

"Yes."

It seemed he could not simply sleep through this night. Ferda decided to wait for the next report.