I'll kill you after I finish this game!

Wearing glasses, Kujiro blinked and followed Soujiro's gaze, but found nothing.

"No, it's nothing."

As if sensing a faint resonance from the extraordinary blade, Mibu Sojiro thought it was just his imagination, so he shook his head and continued to browse other exhibition halls with Kujiki Shiori.

Fujii Ren felt much better after walking to the other side of the exhibition hall. Sure enough, he was fine once he got away from that seemingly normal person. Although he was still uncomfortable in this environment full of swords, it was within a tolerable range.

"Ren? Are you alright?" Kasumi reached out and touched Fujii Ren's head to make sure he wasn't sick or had a fever.

"I'm fine," Fujii Ren said, shaking his head. "Let's walk around one last time before I leave."

I plan to take one last stroll with Xiangchun, satisfy her curiosity, and then leave, since I won't have any further interaction with those two from earlier anyway.

Once you've finished shopping and left, just bear with it a little longer.

She doesn't feel comfortable with swords, so she doesn't want to get involved with them. Just like watermelon and tempura are a kind of destructive combination, Fujii Ren feels that her relationship with swords is the same.

Therefore, the wisest choice to stay away from such things is to remain safe and sound.

For example, Silang; in that sense, that guy could be lumped together with these things.

"..."

I shouldn't think too much about it. After all, thinking about that guy will only bring bad things. Besides, I should spend time with Kaori right now and try my best to satisfy my good friend.

"【...Blood...】"

"---Um!?"

Suddenly, as if it were a hallucination, Fujii Ren heard a faint and unreal call that made her stop in her tracks and was also drawn to it.

"What's wrong now?" Seeing Lian stop, Xiangchun turned to look at her and asked curiously.

"...nothing."

Was it my imagination? It's not even the time of day I usually have nightmares, but I definitely felt like I heard something just now...

"[...blood...blood...]"

“————!”

Sure enough, I did hear it. A sound came from somewhere. Judging from Xiang Chun and the others' expressions, was I the only one who could hear it?

"...Ren?" Kasumi asked worriedly when she saw Fujii Ren frowning.

"..."

Focus your attention; this isn't a particularly noisy place. If it's not an illusion, you should be able to clearly hear the source of the sound.

"【...Blood...】"

Here it comes again. This time I heard it, and I heard it very clearly. Fujii Ren looked at the passage on the left side of the booth and walked in that direction without thinking.

"Ah, wait a minute!" Ayase Kasumi saw Fujii Ren walk towards the passage without saying a word and immediately followed him anxiously.

In a dark passageway in the main exhibition hall, two figures, one in black and one in white, dressed like ancient wizards in tattered robes and hoods, with only their chins and lips visible, were standing.

However, their gazes, hidden in the shadows, were clearly fixed on the direction in which Fujii Ren and Kasumi had disappeared.

P.S.: 9,000 words updated. I really wanted to update more quickly, but I need to ensure quality first, especially since my drafts are really limited due to the pneumonia outbreak...

Radiance~~~.jpg

Chapter Ninety-Seven: The Beheading of the Princess

Ignoring Ayase Kasumi, Fujii Ren inexplicably started running. She herself didn't know why she was so impulsive. Whether she could hear the sound or not, upon closer reflection, it shouldn't matter.

But for some reason, Fujii Ren seemed to be drawn to a certain place, or rather, guided.

It's a corner inside the museum, a blind spot that no one would notice if they followed the normal route.

"That thing" is placed in a place that is hard to believe would have an exhibit given the floor plan.

After passing through a dimly lit passageway covered with a blood-red blanket, the two arrived at a room where a historical artifact came into view.

"...guillotine?"

Yes, that's right. There was a rusty object in the room, and the light from two yellow lamps shone on the guillotine, giving it a strange and poignant beauty.

The guillotine, an instrument used to sever the heads of criminals, is a well-known execution tool. Here, only the blood-stained blade remains.

The enormous blade, distinctly different from other swords, possesses a chillingly refined design.

A block of steel, devoid of any adornment, designed and manufactured solely for decapitation, serving no other purpose... and perhaps more professional, superior, and efficient in this field than anything else.

Why would something like this be here?

Although it is also a knife, its nature is very different from the other exhibits.

At the very least, it shouldn't be a weapon or a ritual implement.

Also, why was Fujii Ren attracted to this thing?

Some of the audience members were not human, or rather, spirits, such as a Shinigami from a certain Shinigami dimension, or even a Hollow. Just seeing the guillotine sent a strange chill down their spines.

This guillotine... is very unusual, or rather, very ominous and ominous!

"Whoa, what is this? I didn't notice it at all."

Ayase Kasumi glanced around at the eerie atmosphere. Leaning against Fujii Ren, she also spotted the guillotine, and the unsettling feeling intensified. She whispered:

"Lian, that's amazing! You actually managed to find something like this. Let me see... What's it called again? Something like B, Bois...?"

“Bois de Justice—the pillar of justice.” Fujii Ren fluently uttered the official name of the guillotine in front of him, then looked at the foreign text on it and said, “The name engraved on the guillotine, and this is French, and it also says Maximilian Robespierre…you know him, right? An 18th-century politician.”

Upon hearing this, Ayase Kasumi remembered and asked uncertainly, "Which one promoted a reign of terror?"

“That’s right. According to the inscription on the guillotine, this is what he used when he was implementing his reign of terror.” Fujii Ren nodded in affirmation.

One of the key figures of the French Revolution, the man who sent his opponents to the guillotine for the terror he implemented.

Ironically, just as his political enemies had done to the people, he himself eventually met his end on the guillotine.

This is the guillotine from that period.

"Something feels a bit too suspicious," Fujii Ren muttered to himself, stroking his chin as he looked at the text above.

Kasumi Ayase nodded in agreement, saying, "Ugh—, but it just doesn't feel right to write it like this."

"Feel the same."

Fujii Ren thought so too; regardless of whether it was true or not, this thing was indeed somewhat repulsive.

Although swords themselves give people this impression.

But the guillotine in front of me, well, it was all too real.

It's an execution instrument, only used for beheading... In other words, looking at this thing is equivalent to...

"How many people has this thing killed?" Ayase Kasumi asked, looking at the guillotine with curiosity.

Looking at this guillotine, anyone would inevitably have such an image, mostly because its brutality and simplicity highlight its tragic nature as a murder weapon.

"It's best not to think about these things too much." Fujii Ren glanced at the curious Ayase Kasumi, not wanting her friend to have nightmares, and said, "This is not something that should arouse your interest."

"That's true, but didn't you discover this thing?"

Kasumi glared at Fujii Ren, looking at him with a huff, as if it were all his fault.

Fujii Ren shrugged helplessly and said, "Everyone is very sensitive to the things they hate."

The afterimage of blood, the lingering echo of a lament, the impact of death... the negative aspects of a knife—though perhaps that is its essence—are truly rare to find something that evokes such profound associations.

However, since it bears Robespierre's name, it must be something from the 18th century.

If this was something used during the French Revolution, it would have severed far more than a hundred heads.

One theory suggests that this is the most merciful blade, capable of cleanly severing a prisoner's head with a precise calculation of angle, speed, and weight, without causing even the slightest pain.

Death happens in the blink of an eye, in an instant, which is why it is said to be full of compassion.

Although the dismemberment and splattering blood create a gruesome impression, for the victim, it is far better than hanging.

Of course, this is also based on the assumption that the victim dies immediately before he has a chance to feel pain.

Cough cough... I warned Kasumi not to let her mind wander, but Fujii Ren herself still came up with a whole bunch of ideas.

"Ah, let's go. This thing really makes me feel uncomfortable."

"Ah, that's true." Ayase Kasumi then remembered Fujii Ren's 'allergy' to swords and immediately looked at his face with concern, saying, "I'm sorry, Ren, you don't look too well. Are you alright?"

"It's nothing, it's not like there's anything wrong with my body—"

The problem—just as Fujii Ren was about to say that.

【Cali...Ostro, Lotus...】

"------!"

It was that strange sound again, and this time it was very clear. I focused my attention and listened carefully, and it sounded like someone was calling her name.

[And...Troil...looks like...you...]

Why is it that only I can hear this sound and react to it?

How wonderful it would be if they hadn't heard it, how wonderful it would have been if they hadn't reacted.

If only I hadn't seen it yet.

If Fujii Ren hadn't reflexively turned around and looked in that direction—the direction of the ominous blade—

He probably wouldn't have seen the ethereal foreign girl before the guillotine utter those taboo words that Fujii Ren couldn't bear.

I could only make out fragments of what the other person was saying, mentioning that they were like something else.

Is it a ghost? A blonde girl with an ethereal figure appeared from the guillotine, and this supernatural sight once again caught the audience's attention.

Although she is ethereal and ghost-like, in the eyes of the audience, there is a certain quality about the girl that cannot be described by the concept of "beauty" alone.

Well, whether you're male or female, especially if you have experienced emotional trauma, seeing this girl evokes an unconscious feeling of goodwill and warmth.

.......

【Invincible Mr. Gojo】: Cursed spirit? Uh...that doesn't seem right, a ghost?

【Kudoshin】: Is it some strange being again? But this ghost girl... she's so beautiful, she gives me a feeling of my mother.