Royal Capital II-3

"Who would've thought I'd run into someone like you..."

Noieman immediately replied to my muttering.

"Is that so? We are inside the palace, after all. Isn't it only natural that I should be here?"

Noieman clearly exaggerated, playing it up for effect.

Either way, I'd managed to meet the very person I most wanted to see. I'd capture him and put a stop to the development of the human body mithril stone. That was absolute.

I gathered electricity in both hands.

"Please wait. You've come to capture me, haven't you? May I truly be taken here, Taro? I have something I wish to show you. Come here."

Neumann beckons us with a hand gesture.

"What should we do?"

Alex whispers into my ear.

"It could be a trap, but we might learn something about the human body mithril stone. Let's go."

I break the handcuffs on Alex and hand him a small knife.

Now he'll be able to fight a little better.

Waiting for Alex to prepare, I follow Neumann.

The path leads past empty cages, and at the back of the room, there's a staircase leading upward.

We climb exactly one floor down, arriving at the basement level.

The room was dim, making it impossible to discern anything clearly. But as soon as Neumann turned on the lights, the entire scene instantly came into view.

This was Neumann's laboratory.

Colorful glass bottles filled with strange, incomprehensible liquids were scattered haphazardly, along with piles of disorganized documents. And countless human essence stones—more than could be counted.

The sheer number of human body parts used to create the essence stones was so overwhelming, it made one want to look away in disgust.

"This... this is... so much..."

A groan-like utterance escapes their lips.

"How do you like my research results? Truly magnificent, wouldn't you say?"

"How many people have you sacrificed to create these human essence stones like this?"

"Human essence stones? Ah, yes, that's a fine name. Intuitive and easy to understand. I don't remember how many were sacrificed—after all, they were all criminals."

"Just because someone committed a crime doesn't mean they deserve to be killed! They're still lives!"

"Don't say such strange things. This is a kingdom. There's no need for a villainous name within a kingdom."

I don't understand.

Crazy.

Is that so? I thought you and I were quite alike...

You say they're similar... What on earth are you talking about...

Is it because they're obsessed with science, or perhaps because they're utterly reckless in pursuit of research? You yourself used people as test subjects to perfect your technology, didn't you?

With that, Neumann pulled out a single document.

It had to be that paper.

"Movement of magical essence between magic stones. Using this phenomenon to remove magic stones from the patient's skin. Applying incomplete technology without proper basis or verification... No, to obtain a basis, you used that young lady..."

The paper shouldn't have included details about Linha personally... Yet, whether it's the researcher's intuition or a guess, they seem to have gathered quite a bit of information.

"I wasn't conducting research to kill someone. And that was done because I was asked for help."

"It's not essentially important how this will be used... That's irresponsible. You should bear some responsibility for the possibilities arising from your own research."

His head is spinning, yet he's a high-ranking official in the country.

I understood, just a little, just barely. And at the same time, I felt scolded.

That's exactly why I wanted to ask.

"How do you intend to take responsibility for this war?"

"As a national executive or as a researcher—either way, the answer is clear. To complete this human body gemstone and win the war. That is my duty."

Saying this, Neumann placed his hand on the large shelf and opened the door.

And I gasped in shock.

"Neumann is right. Only by winning this war can we fulfill our purpose."

A new voice came from behind, but I couldn't respond.

Only Alex turned around, his eyes widening in shock.

What filled the shelf was a humanoid gemstone capable of covering an entire human body.

A tag labeled "Simon Rolling," that familiar appearance, the family crest on his chest.

There was no doubt—he was William's father.

Alex's gaze fell upon the very person who had driven Alex's family to ruin.

He was roughly the same age as Alex and the same height. The only difference was his hair color—black.

Even more striking was that he was skilled with a battle axe, just like Alex. They had grown up like real brothers, yet the man before him had killed his family.

The tense stare-down continued.

Alex moved first.

With a dagger in hand, he lunged at the man who had appeared. The man deftly swung his battle axe, blocking Alex's attack.

"Thought I'd come check since you didn't show up at the agreed time, only to find some troublesome individual intruding. Well, well, Alex, isn't that a surprise."

"Why... why are you doing this... why war...?"

"There's no choice. Running a nation isn't something ordinary. You wouldn't understand, no matter how hard I try to explain."

The mysterious man effortlessly deflected Alex's attacks, even counterattacking in return. Alex wasn't wielding his preferred weapon, the distance was too short, and his offensive power was weak—clearly at a severe disadvantage.

Yet, their strengths were evenly matched, and a decisive outcome didn't seem imminent.

I glared at the Noiman before me.

"Oh, how scary, how scary. This man dared to complain directly to the king. He deserves punishment, doesn't he?"

What is natural. Yet, more than ever, I was certain. Simon must have appealed directly to the king.

The man wrapped in magical stones carried out his words and was captured.

He had become Noiman's experimental subject. How reckless.