Chapter 102: The Script Part 5

Prince Loki’s plan had already begun by the time the girl arrived in Creta. And the plan he devised was meticulous and carried out in stages.

Sending the girl to Theseus was preparation for the moment when Theseus would eventually learn her true identity.

The more devoted someone is, the greater the sense of betrayal when the truth comes out.

“For most people, that’s the point where they lose control.”

Second Prince Loki claimed the girl was the daughter of his Mother’s killer. Whether that was true or not didn’t matter.

Someone blinded by vengeance cannot make sound judgments.

But Theseus calmly saw through Loki’s lies.

And upon forgiving the girl, he sought to protect her.

A noble mindset.

Truly, he was nothing short of a hero.

“But do you think Loki didn’t anticipate that? If Theseus’s sense of justice was that easily broken, none of this elaborate setup would have been necessary.”

There would have been no need for such a troublesome scheme. There were plenty of easier, more straightforward ways.

Theseus forgave the girl. And at that moment, Loki activated the poison he had planted in the girl’s body.

“But even that wasn’t enough. Loki didn’t intend to kill the girl. If she died, Theseus would certainly feel a deep sense of loss. But if he were the type to break from that, he would’ve already fallen when his mother died.”

“Then what’s the plan? Can’t you stop talking in circles and just explain it clearly?”

Jeff asked irritably, trying to pin down exactly what Loki’s plan was.

He really should stop being so impatient. We’re going through this step by step.

Who does he think he is, acting so high and mighty, even after becoming a paladin of Eden…?

“What do you think Theseus would do if the girl’s life was on a time limit?”

“…Is there anything he can do?”

Jeff tilted his head in confusion.

“Well, I mean, technically there are plenty of things he could try, but there’s no real way to solve the problem. Except one.”

The poison Loki typically used had no antidote.

Its symptoms were varied, and no traces of the poison were detectable in corpses.

By that point, there wasn’t a soul unaware that all these phenomena were the result of Loki’s awakened ability.

The story itself was simple.

A deadly poison eating away at the girl’s body.

The only way to eliminate the effects of that poison was to defeat the very person who had unleashed it and was now wielding its power.

Loki, in case Theseus might not pick up on that fact, deliberately used his ability right in front of him.

The moment Loki gave the signal, the girl coughed up blood. Only a fool wouldn’t suspect the connection.

“If Theseus wants to save the girl, he has no choice but to kill Loki.”

But Theseus who adheres to a no-kill principle would never do such a thing. And knowing that, Loki would never stop the poison’s advance just to spare Theseus pain.

In the end, the only option left for Theseus is to try to threaten Loki with words.

So, is that the end of it? Was all this just to make Theseus feel helpless for failing to save the girl? Did Loki go to all this trouble just for that?

“The girl is just a trigger. From the beginning, there was another purpose beyond simply getting Theseus emotionally attached to her.”

Loki wasn’t going to kill the girl right away.

The poison spreading inside her body would slowly take her life.

Through that ticking clock, Loki would fill Theseus with anxiety and despair.

But that was just a side effect.

From the start, the girl wasn’t the important part. What truly mattered was how Theseus responded to her.

“After rescuing the girl who was being chased by unknown attackers, Theseus didn’t see the matter as resolved. He didn’t know why she was being chased or what her pursuers were after.”

And so, Theseus became entangled.

He stayed near the girl, watching the suspicious people around her.

If those thugs really were after the girl, that would be a reasonable response.

However…

“Loki is a vile and ruthless man. And people like that…”

I arrived at the destination with Jeff. The situation hadn’t erupted yet.

We still had to verify the shape of the script written by the scriptwriter.

“Open it.”

“Alright.”

Jeff and I had come to inspect the well in Creta.

This is what Loki would do, acting in secret, out of Theseus’s sight.

“Let’s have a look.”

I tasted the water.

It was no different from ordinary water.

“Tasteless and odorless.”

This time, I tested the water with a detector I prepared.

“Poisonous.”

I immediately rinsed my mouth with the antidote.

The well had been poisoned.

“Alright, Jeff. Now let’s assume the entire town has been poisoned.”

“…What?”

“What do you think Loki is going to do?”

As I’ve said before—

Loki will stop at nothing to achieve his goals.

He already made an example out of the girl by triggering her symptoms.

So what’s next?

“If it were me, I’d say something like this. ‘Unless you kill the girl, I’ll kill the townspeople one by one’.”

Loki intends to force Theseus to kill someone with his own hands.

Whether it’s the girl or Loki himself remains to be seen.

But no matter which choice he makes, Theseus’s sense of justice will be shattered.

“He could end up getting himself killed too, couldn’t he?”

“If it’s that despicable bastard, he’s probably already prepared a way to survive.”

It doesn’t matter if Theseus refuses to kill the girl.

It doesn’t matter if he stabs Loki instead.

It doesn’t even matter if he freezes, unable to make any decision at all.

Today, here, in this place—

“Someone will die.”

And it will all come from Theseus’s decision.

Whether the girl dies.

Whether Loki dies.

Whether the entire city dies.

No matter what the outcome was, Theseus’s justice would collapse.

You think it’s the typical villain’s approach?

Well, the thing about “typical” is… it means it follows a proven formula.

***

When the scriptwriter handed me the script for this plan,

I immediately realized that the antidote itself was meaningless.

What the scriptwriter wanted wasn’t just some antidote.

It was how the antidote would be used to solve the problem.

By this point, Second Prince Loki’s plan was already in motion, and the entire city was in a state of poisoning.

Just by activating his special ability, Loki had made it possible to massacre the thousands who moved through this city.

Poisoning thousands was simple, but preparing enough antidote to save that many was difficult.

However, the important thing wasn’t curing the symptoms of the poisoning.

“Oh my, excuse me for a moment.”

What mattered was simply the fact that I had the antidote.

“Sorry to interrupt while you two are having such a serious moment, but I’ve got something to say.”

The antidote I had was only enough to save one person at best.

Doesn’t seem like it means much, right?

But surprisingly, that wasn’t the case.

“I happen to have the antidote that can cure those poisoning symptoms.”

For Theseus and me, it was the life of one person. I didn’t know how much that weight meant to either of us.

But to Loki, this antidote didn’t represent just one life.

To him, human life was no different from that of an insect.

What mattered was simply the fact that a means had appeared to neutralize his deadly poison.

“So, what do you say? Would you two spare a moment to talk with me?”

For Loki, the issue wasn’t whether someone would live or die.

The problem was that something existed that could become his weakness.

It wasn’t just the failure of this moment. It was the possibility that every plan he made from here on could be affected by this new variable.

Clang!

At that moment, I heard the sound of something shattering near my ear.

The radiant barrier in front of me was crumbling to pieces.

I didn’t even realize when the attack had happened… but I survived thanks to what Jeff had prepared in advance.

“Eden?”

Loki, the one who had attacked, tilted his head and muttered to himself.

More than that…. what had he used to attack? Had he thrown something invisible?

To be honest, either way didn’t really matter…

“Eden, you say? Puhahahahaha!”

I deliberately clutched my stomach and laughed with exaggerated gestures.

After laughing uproariously for quite a while, I suddenly stopped and let my body droop as I spoke.

“Well, I suppose that’s one way to look at it.”

At that very moment, Melana emerged from the shadows of the building debris.

A gloomy and sinister energy quickly spread through the surroundings.

“So, are you going to mumble something about ‘Under Chain’ now?”

Our Misfits group.

This was exactly why I had gathered them.

To show that we didn’t belong to any one faction.

And when the powers of two incompatible groups gathered in one place, someone as sharp as Loki couldn’t help but think.

“You… what are you?”

The question itself was simple, but there must have been a whirlwind of thoughts behind it.

Eden and Under Chain.

Clowns holding the powers of two mutually opposing groups.

That alone made Loki think and realize that our ragtag bunch could have infiltrated any organization.

We swelled our presence with something massive and invisible.

We misled the enemy through a grand show of bluff and bravado.

I intentionally displayed Emily’s mechanical devices and opened my hand.

Then, with a clicking sound, the device connected to my wrist produced a small vial.

With that, Ex Machina was now in the mix as well.

And the suspicion that I might be a member of Ex Machina only added to the confusion about the antidote’s authenticity.

“Curious about who we are? Has our leader’s reputation really fallen that low?”

And finally, our Misfits group’s leader Yuna popped into view.

That clown costume I had seen when we first met.

Her build was different and her movements were completely unlike before. Even though I knew it was Yuna, I still couldn’t get used to it.

An incredible performance. And the way she made her entrance was unique too.

“……”

Yuna’s presence was undeniable.

As someone known as the King of Assassins, Yuna clearly stood apart from the other misfits gathered here.

Maybe Theseus could afford to take her lightly, but not Loki.

“We’re just a bunch of nobodies. And our leader? She’s the world’s most ‘harmless’ clown.”

At my introduction, Yuna let out a giggle and began twisting her body.

Her limbs bent in unnatural directions.

She definitely made an impression.

“Well then, that wraps up introductions, doesn’t it? Can we get to the real talk now?”

Stepping forward again, I held up the antidote for all to see.

“What do you think I should do with this?”

The existence of the antidote—

It was especially dangerous for Loki.

Even if I handed it over to Theseus, it would only save one person.

But still…

“I’d like to hear both of your opinions. What do you think I should do?”

Loki’s smile faltered.

That twisted mouth of his showed just how furious he was.

But he quickly recovered, grinning as he spoke.

“I can guarantee you this. I’m the only one who can pay a proper price for that little toy.”

“And what does His Highness the First Prince think about that?”

“I may not have wealth… but if you give that to me, I’ll make sure to repay the favor one day.”

Theseus was as upright as ever.

And absolutely hopeless at negotiation.

There’s just something about him that makes you hesitate to give him anything for free.

“What do you think, Boss?”

I turned to Yuna for her take.

Yuna who was still contorted in that bizarre posture held everyone’s attention. She leaned in and whispered to me.

“What?”

Ah, this girl didn’t hear a single word I said. She was too busy playing around.

Well, fine. You’re just here for show anyway. Keep doing what you’re doing.

“It seems our leader values the First Prince’s trust more than any material gain.”

The antidote’s purpose had already been decided from the start.

“That said, I do find the Second Prince’s offer a little tempting. So, how about this? We don’t give the antidote to anyone.”

“……”

Loki was smart enough to understand.

The difference between using the antidote and keeping it in uncertainty—

Which option held more value?

“However, we’re not confident we could withstand an attack from Sir Theseus. If you try to take it by force, we’re a bit worried about what we could even do…”

And Theseus wasn’t foolish either. He should understand as well.

“So, how about this? Everyone takes a step back for now.”

Loki stops the spread of the poison himself. If so, there would be no reason for Theseus to demand the antidote any further.

“Sir Loki can remove the need to test the antidote’s authenticity.”

I said while gesturing toward Loki.

“Sir Theseus gains peace of mind without needing to use it.”

I continued while gesturing toward Theseus.

“And we? We get to prevent this whole situation before it escalates.”

I finished by spreading both hands wide.

“So then…. who here is the most selfless, and who is the most selfish?”

The choice is theirs. Will everyone survive, or will we all go down together?

But still…

“And who was it that wrote this wonderful script?”

It was us who set the stage.