Xingtie, started with a guitar, and made a living by singing

This added a hint of disappointment to Bronya's expression. She withdrew her undue mercy and instead handled the matter in a businesslike manner, ordering someone to take the two people present back.

During this process, Wendy always looked cheerful, while the dandy who thought he was saved was crying and laughing, as if he was crazy.

When being escorted back to the prison by the Iron Guards, Wendy and Bronya had a brief encounter, but at that time Bronya did not see any resentment or dissatisfaction in her.

The poet at that time was looking at her with sympathy.

It was as if their identities had been swapped. She was the prisoner who was unaware of it, while the other was the freest bird soaring in the blue sky.

What kind of state of mind would make him look like that?

Although she was reluctant to admit it, Bronya was indeed curious about him. In the subsequent investigation, she found that what he sang about was more like the world in the poet's imagination than the world outside Beloberg.

...Is he a pitiful person immersed in his own imagination?

But can such a fool really play such a clear and pure piano sound?

Instead of being answered, her questions kept increasing, until that day, when she finally made up her mind to find the other party and ask.

She walked through the cold and dark corridor and met him deep in this icy prison where there was no heat even from the earth's marrow.

He still had that cheerful look on his face, as if he didn't know what sorrow was. He just lay on the ground, crossed his legs, held a piece of hay in his mouth, and hummed a cheerful tune of unknown origin, unaffected by the prison sentence.

At that time, the moonlight shining through the window sprinkled on the other person's face, adding a touch of mystery to his delicate appearance that was difficult to distinguish between male and female. He also heard footsteps and turned around.

She still remembered what Wendy had said: "Hello, dear Bronya, are you here to be my new cellmate?"

This was clearly the most rude and insulting thing, but in his opinion, there seemed to be nothing more glorious than this...

Chapter 19: Conversation in Prison

——Bronya had heard this sentence before.

"It is not difficult to die beautifully, but it is difficult to live beautifully."

If you want to be praised after your death, the worst that can happen is to risk your life to join the army and become a Silvermane Iron Guard. In the fight against the Rift, the merits of any sacrifice will not be forgotten.

This is all they have left, and their comrades will do everything they can to keep it alive. Until they too become names engraved on the cold stone tablet—

Likewise, most defenders don't live a comfortable life. They rarely get any vacation time, and their bodies take a long time to heal from injuries sustained during intense combat. For those stationed in the restricted area on the front lines, it's unclear whether they'll even get home once a year.

Even since the current Grand Guardian took office, the Silvermane Iron Guard's casualty rate has been rising year by year and has never dropped for a moment.

This is also a very painful thing for their families.

This blood-stained glory and sacrifice may not even be considered "valuable" sometimes.

Bronya felt deep regret for the young warriors who died so young.

The first time they stepped onto the battlefield, they faced monsters that had trapped humanity in the city for seven hundred years. They had no mercy and would not stop because of pain. Even if they were killed, they would regroup and launch round after round of endless charges.

The only thing the Iron Guards could do was to build a wall of flesh with their thin bodies to ensure victory in the subsequent bloody battle.

Because of this, at the funerals of her comrades, when she met the families of the deceased, she was always heartbroken. She could only console them by saying, "This is a necessary sacrifice for the survival of mankind," to numb herself.

Although everyone knows that if the current Great Guardian had not become increasingly extreme, constantly driving the Iron Guards to counterattack the front line as if in pursuit of the fruits of victory, the losses would probably not have been so great.

The phenomenon of the rift is not so serious that humans will perish if they do not do this.

Otherwise, in the past history, people would have been destroyed countless times. The birth of population takes time, and the training of warriors requires generations of training, but the monsters in the rift do not need this. The only thing that can check them is the speed of the rift's spread.

If they had just defended steadily and waited for the right moment to act, the rift wouldn't necessarily be like it is now, as if it had been "enraged" by humanity's counterattack, and was spreading at an ever-increasing speed.

According to statistics, the number of monsters in the Rift will fluctuate according to the intensity of human activities. Once people continue to fight and kill monsters in the Rift, the crystal elements emitted by those monsters after their death will continue to serve as beacons, and even form some kind of afterimage.

The former will make the monsters coming from the other side of the rift stronger and more dangerous, while the latter are powerful enemies that have been defeated in the past and may awaken again at any time.

In fact, the results achieved by the Great Guardian today do not match his efforts.

People are still trapped in the city, resource problems are becoming more serious due to abuse, and the iron guards on the front line are almost at their limit.

There have even been quite a few deserters recently. Even with the speeches by the Grand Guardian, the strict supervision and heavy punishments by the officers, this trend cannot be stopped.

If this continues, the final strategy will probably be to blow up the transportation hubs on the front line and force the soldiers to retreat.

As the future successor to the Grand Guardian, Bronya knows too much inside information and is anxious about it. Even though she can convince herself that the Grand Guardian has other intentions in the end, she is always met with disappointment.

Gradually, Bronya came to think that it would be difficult to find anyone who truly lived a "beautiful" life in this city.

The beautiful fantasies of childhood also become fragmented and difficult to recall as we grow up.

Only when she saw that the upper district was still thriving under the rule of the Great Guardian could she breathe a sigh of relief.

But now, the person she saw, the bard who called himself Wendy, was clearly in a dark and cold prison, but he lived a "beautiful" life than many people.

With the education and life experience she received, it was difficult for her to understand such things.

Why are you so relaxed? Why aren't you feeling ashamed? Why are you still in the mood to joke with me?

These questions filled the girl's heart, but she could not utter a word. She could only wander in silence in the prison.

But this kind of silence was more consistent with her impression of it, but the poet was not like that. He sat up from the ground, brushed off the non-existent dust with ease, looked at her with a nonchalant smile, and spoke.

"Hmm? You won't answer me, even though we both have the rare fate of being cellmates."

"…What the hell are you talking about?"

Bronya finally couldn't help but question.

"Do you realize that you are tarnishing the reputation of a Grand Guardian's heir? For this alone, several years will be added to your sentence."

In this city where power is concentrated in one person, any words that slander the Grand Guardian are an unforgivable crime.

Even though she is not the Grand Guardian yet, for the people and her colleagues, it is only a matter of time.

Therefore, even if it was not for her own sake, but for her mother who seemed much more indifferent than before, she could not allow the bard to continue talking nonsense.

"Well, is that how you view my words?"

Wendy was not frightened by her, but continued to look at her with the doting look as if she were a young child.

This made Bronya feel very awkward, but surprisingly, she did not feel offended.

On the contrary, she can confirm that the other party's attitude is serious and not malicious.

If you are serious about it, why do you always come up with answers that are different from those around you? Why do you always want to highlight this uniqueness that is not allowed by the world?

Knowing clearly that doing so will only bring suffering, knowing clearly that this will only lead to discrimination by others, knowing clearly... this singing will not change anything.

Why are you able to stick to your own approach?

Bronya gripped the iron bars of the cage, unconsciously tightening her grip. The creaking sound was somewhat frightening.

Wendy also distanced herself from her a little, showing a timid expression.

"Woohoo, you're not going to lynch me, are you?"

"……How can it be."

Bronya seemed helpless about his constant incoherence and could only speak in a cold and stiff voice.

"In two days, the Silver Mane Guard will release you. After that, you are not allowed to mention this matter to anyone else, and you must not sing poems that should not be sung. This will only benefit you, not harm you."

"why?"

"Belloberg has always been like this."

"Is it right that it has always been this way?"

The atmosphere fell silent again, and Bronya pursed her lips, feeling angry for the first time.

"Are you trying to overturn everything that has been going on in Beloberg since ancient times?"

"I think this should be more rigorous, at least replace everything that is bad."

"Good or bad is not determined by you subjectively—"

"But at least the people who live here must have a say, right?"

These words made Bronya pause for a moment, but the fleeting panic on her face was accurately captured by Wendy.

Like a witch who was best at seducing princesses, he approached the cage and whispered to her.

"Do you want to go and see if the training you've received can really lead people to live the lives they want?

Let's see if the people living under our feet are really living a life of ease and comfort under the rule of the Great Guardian, as is widely publicized on the streets.

Chapter 20 Green Book

"…Who are you?"

Bronya's tone of voice changed at some point, and her anger towards Wendy turned into astonishment after that sentence.

"He's just an unknown bard."

Wendy winked playfully at her.

"You can think of me as a bird that not only sings songs, but also brings the wind of change and hope."

"Stop trying to hide your intentions!"

Bronya suddenly slapped the iron bars of the cage hard. The sudden noise seemed to be amplified several times in the dead silence of the cell, making the subsequent silence seem even longer.

It was not until she heard several voices of Silver Mane Guards confirming their safety at the end of the corridor that Bronya was able to sort out her out-of-control expression and answered them with her usual attitude.

However, the poet, who had been smiling, changed his expression and looked at her with a serious and solemn look.

This made Bronya feel a little flustered for no reason, just like when she was a child and did something wrong in front of her mother and was afraid of being scolded by her.

Why do I always get frustrated in front of this poet?

He's clearly just a "criminal" immersed in his own imaginary world...

"I never tried to hide it, did I? When you asked me, I told you the most truthful answer without reservation."

Wendy narrated softly.

"Dear Bronya, I sincerely regard you as a good friend with whom I can communicate on an equal footing and talk about anything. Perhaps there are some things in my words that you don't want to hear, but I will stick to my opinion."

"...How can I trust you?"

Bronya stared at the poet, whose expression didn't seem fake, even though his frank attitude was much better than that of many "troublesome people".

However, as the heir to the Great Guardian, she must be clear about what the enemy is willing to show her and what is objectively real.

"Haven't I already told you the method? Go down to the lower levels yourself. Only there can you truly glimpse the true face of this city hidden in the shadows."

Wendy stood in the cell and stretched out her hand to her outside.

"If you're willing, I'll take you there to see it myself."

"So, you're from the lower class, huh?"

Bronya did not rush to agree to him, but instead calmly asked a question.

"I'm not, unfortunately."

Wendy is a strange guy who suddenly appeared. He has neither a household registration nor any pre-arranged identity. He is just an "illegal resident" who suddenly sneaked into the city.

In a more stable world, they would be suspected of being investigated, but in today's Beloberg, there are too many such people.

"So where are you from? Why do you want to speak up for those in the lower classes? Do you intend to profit from this?"

"You have so many questions, but I can answer them one by one."

Wendy withdrew her hand, which had been held for a long time, with some confusion, and answered.

"First of all, I come from another planet very far away. Although I would like to tell you exactly how far away it is, I don't have enough information myself, so unfortunately I can't explain it to you completely."

Bronya, who didn't completely believe what he said, remained silent and continued to listen.

"Secondly, why do you speak up for the people in the lower classes? How can I explain this better? Is there a saying here that says you should help those in need when you see them?

If not, just think of me as someone who can't stand seeing other people suffer and who likes to meddle in other people's affairs."

Wendy scratched her cheek and smiled.

"After all, if I don't try to do something with this ability, I'll be unable to sleep at night."