Subtitle: Save Me
All I could remember was four people sitting around a round table. It felt as if I were watching everything from the outside. A beam of light coming from above illuminated only the surface of the table. It looked like an interrogation room.
Zero: Why does everyone look so grim? I told you I would help.
Odasaku lowered his head angrily.
Zero: Are you angry with me? Come on, no one died. The Second Rule saved everyone, didn't it?
Naiadler, his hands trembling, took my weapon and walked toward Zero.
Naiadler: Who are you?
Zero laughed and stood up from his chair.
Naiadler: You're not Apollon, are you?
As Naiadler said this, his voice shook. Odasaku looked this way with fury. Just as Odasaku was about to rise from his chair, Zero spoke.
Zero: I forgot my name a long time ago. Isn't that right, Odasaku?
Odasaku: SHUT UP!
Zero: I see your tongue has grown sharper. You weren't like this when you were little.
Odasaku removed the gloves from his hands and angrily approached Zero. Atheron tried to stop him.
Zero: Just so you know, I was the one who told him where Diablo was.
Naiadler couldn't understand any of this. He lowered his head. Clearly, this was weighing heavily on him. Even though he carried the knowledge of the Third Wall, he was still just a child.
Zero: You all know about the monster roaming the mountain… and that you don't have the power to defeat it. You're all in bad shape. Odasaku is on the verge of losing his mind, Atheron can barely walk, Naiadler cannot fully use his power, and Li hasn't even regained consciousness yet.
Atheron spat on the ground.
Zero: Because of the Second Rule, you cannot leave the loop without defeating that monster. Tell me, do you remember how many times you've died? He's only playing with you so he doesn't lose his sanity. Isn't it obvious who built the barrier? That's why you need my help.
Everyone knew they needed Zero to get out of here, but they didn't want to admit it. Their faces remained lowered. In the end, they would have no choice but to accept it.
Odasaku: You wouldn't help without gaining something in return.
Zero gave a knight's salute and, bowing mockingly, showed the object in his hand to the other three.
Zero: I want that ancient artifact.
That artifact was mine. "As long as I live, he cannot use it." Even if he killed me, there was no guarantee the artifact would choose him. Yet despite that, he wanted it.
Odasaku: That belongs to the kid. If you intend to kill him—
Odasaku's voice was filled with fury.
Zero: Unless he passes the artifact's trial, he cannot officially become its owner. I thought that if I killed Pandora, I could take it.
Zero turned his back. With only a slight movement of his head, he looked at those behind him. His mouth was pitch black, neither teeth nor tongue visible. Yet he was smiling.
Zero: So, how about we talk?
Everyone sat back down at the table instinctively. The only person who looked happy was Zero. He placed his hands on the table and looked at Naiadler, gesturing with his head as if telling him to speak.
Naiadler: Then I'll start from the beginning.
Naiadler's eyes darkened. Clearly, he didn't even want to recount these events. He clenched his teeth and began speaking while staring at the ground.
Naiadler: The monster on the mountain is my brother. I can't remember clearly, but I have memories of living with him when we were younger. Most likely… no, it's nothing.
Odasaku: You can't remember clearly?
Odasaku rocked back and forth on his chair. His anxiety was obvious, though he tried to hide it.
Naiadler: My memory isn't very good. That's why I can't remember exactly.
Atheron: If he sees you, do you think he might show mercy so we can defeat him?
Naiadler: I don't think so. I don't even think he remembers his own memories.
Atheron: What do you mean?
Naiadler: He… he was dead. I mean, he should have been dead. They killed him. I saw it. I even remember burying him.
He shouldn't be here right now.
Naiadler covered his face with his hands and leaned closer and closer to the table. He kept sighing, hiding his face as if that weren't enough. Odasaku stood up, draped his jacket over Naiadler's shoulders.
Odasaku: There's a bed over there. Go rest. We'll handle the rest.
Naiadler lowered his head, thanked him, and left the room.
Atheron: HOW WONDERFUL! Right now we have a revenant, the head of a demonic cult, AND AS IF THAT WASN'T ENOUGH, A BUNCH OF MADMEN!
Odasaku: Apollon isn't Zero or anything like that. It's just that Zero can enter his body more easily. "If this continues any longer, Apollon will become corrupted…"
Zero: Partially correct. He mistakes some of my memories for his own, but don't worry. Since it's a form of inference, I prevented it.
Odasaku: DON'T YOU DARE TELL ME YOU WANT TO USE APOLLON!
Atheron: ODASAKU!
Zero: If this is how it's going to be every time, we'll never be able to talk. Think about my offer.
Odasaku and Atheron: We agree.
Their voices already revealed their regret. It was written all over their faces.
Zero: Poison !
The room instantly filled with smoke. While Zero sat calmly in his chair, the others began coughing as if they were having seizures. A voice echoed from within the smoke.
Poison: Yes, sir .
The speaker was clearly a high school–aged boy. His hair was brown, so dark it could easily be mistaken for black. It was short. He wore no shoes; instead, his feet were wrapped in bandages. He wore loose but expensive-looking pants. Bandages covered his neck and hands. Over his body, he wore something with extremely wide sleeves, embroidered with a dragon.
Zero: Here is someone who knows this place well. I'm sure he can explain the events to us far better.
The smoke finally dispersed. Poison walked with his feet spread wide, then sat down with agile ease. The only person he spoke to was Zero.
Poison: So you called me because I know this place?
Zero: Yes.
Poison: I'm sorry, but I left this place a long time ago. I don't know what its current state is like.
Zero: Legends will be enough for me.
Poison: Then leave it to me. Which one would you like to hear first?
Zero: How about the statue standing in the square?
Poison took a deep breath.
Poison: Long ago, when clan wars were still raging in China, someone appeared. Although he did not belong to the righteous sects, he wiped out the demonic sect in a single night. From that day on, he was called "the General." Even though I say "long ago," the Second Rule is closer to this place, so time fluctuates constantly here. I won't speak with absolute certainty.
Zero: Anything else about him?
Poison : He was orphaned. Most likely, the one responsible was the leader of the demonic sect. I'm not sure, but rumors say there was always a child beside him who looked very similar to him, only younger. In fact, the small child was never seen apart from him.
Odasaku: That small child is most likely Naiadler.
Atheron: That explains why Naiadler resembles the statue so much.
Zero: Anything else you know? Even rumors.
Poison: There was actually a very unlikely theory. My father told me. The General's family was sacrificed to one of the vampires' religious cults.
Odasaku covered his mouth.
Atheron: Damn…
Zero: To summarize everything briefly: Naiadler is actually the General's younger brother, and the General died in battle. Now, someone resurrected him. To preserve balance, the world sent the Second Rule here. That's why the ordinary people around disappeared.
Poison began clapping.
Poison: How brilliant you are, sir. So all we have to do is kill the one who should be dead.
Ignoring Poison, Zero continued.
Zero: Atheron, you know who the Second Rule is, don't you?
Atheron: No.
Zero: Then why did you say you knew when he arrived?
Atheron: I had guessed about as much as you did, so I said it.
Poison: Smells like a lie.
Atheron: YOU GOT A PROBLEM WITH ME?!
Poison didn't even acknowledge Atheron. He quickly turned his curious gaze back to Zero.
Zero: And Odasaku, did you know that one of you is a Wall? Especially among your students?
End of Chapter