The bell suddenly plunged into my body. When I screamed at this very bizarre and creepy scene, Dragonas smiled apologetically.
<I no longer have any use for it. So I sincerely hope that this treasure will open the way for you.>
“What are you saying! What are you doing to someone else’s body? Take it out right now!”
<It has already become yours. The ownership of the bell will remain with you until you give it up or I forcibly take it back. But don’t abandon it for an uncertain future. You never know how useful it might be.>
What the heck!
<Be happy. Do your best to be happy..>
I was already happy enough without you saying so. I felt my consciousness being forcibly expelled from the subspace. I gave up resisting and closed my eyes.
Damn dragon. You think dumping this on me solves everything?
* * *
“Gasp!”
We talked for so long, but in reality, only a second passed.
When I came to my senses, Kanut was still reaching out for me, the princess’s whip was descending, and everything felt slow as Lacius held me by my waist and pulled me close to him.
Then, in the next moment,
“How, why? How is this possible?”
Kanut’s eyes widened, and his hand trembled. At the same time, I realized something as I looked at the bell in my hand. The bell definitely felt different from a second ago, when I was just ‘holding it’.
I can use it. I didn’t understand what Dragonas meant by giving me the bell’s rights, but now it was clear. Using it was like activating a skill in a game.
‘Three bells. The middle one is for control. The right one for restraining. The left one for release.’
Just by holding it, the usage information flowed into my mind. Don’t just shake it; shake it with intention, starting from the left first.
‘Release.’
The bell rang only once with a clear sound. But at the same time, several people wearing bird masks fell to the ground, clutching their heads.
“Those people are prisoners. Rescue them!”
A hoarse voice came from my throat. I was filled with a desperate desire to end this situation now.
‘Since it’s now in my possession, I’ll use it to the fullest.’
The next thing is restraining. As soon as I shook the bell, a deafeningly loud sound rang out, unlike anything I had ever heard before. A sound so offensive to human ears. It was piercing and resonated endlessly, captivating those I wanted to restrain.
Excluding the painting wizards, I wish to have only those belonging to Fata-Morgana under my will. Surprisingly, the rattle emanating from the bell became visible to me, allowing me to determine who the power was being used on.
‘It’s really amazing.’
The restraint was like a red mist spreading out from the bell and sticking to the person. The release was a blue mist. It seemed to play a role in dissipating the red mist.
‘This is like asking if you want the red toilet paper or the blue one*.’
*(This is a ghost story that originated in Japan and spread to Korea about a person who was using a traditional toilet when he heard a strange voice from below saying, “Should I give you a red tissue? Should I give you a blue tissue?”. in Korea, it is often said that if you choose red toilet paper, you will die, and if you choose blue toilet paper, you will live, but in Japan, you will die no matter which you choose.)
Lastly, and most importantly, control. I walked up to Kanut, who was looking at me with his mouth open and eyes wide in disbelief, and shook the bell in the middle.
“Now, it’s time to put your head in the ground.”
The language was quite harsh and vulgar, but it was only a whisper, so only Kanut heard it. I smiled, and I made the people I had restrained bow their heads to the floor.
The fall of Fata-Morgana. The painting wizards, who took off the bird masks they had been forced to wear and rejoined their companions, watched the scene with bated breath. Then someone shouted harshly.
“You bastards!”
Prolonged brainwashing destroys a person’s humanity. Violence and brainwashing can enslave even those who are not slaves, and guess who was the first to break that and curse.
The brave person was, of course, Dua.
“Die, die, die!”
Dua screamed. Her whole body was shaking, and her face contorted into something that looked like she was crying and laughing at the same time. Another painting wizard stood up next to Dua.
“They need to suffer the same way we did. I can’t bear it otherwise. Make them suffer the same!”
“No, let us do it!”
“We’ll kill them!”
People with blood vessels visible in their eyes cried out in venom. Women and men, old and young. Every single painting wizard here was a victim.
I looked at the princess with an expression, asking what I should do. We could let Kanut be beaten to death here by letting him get pelted with stones or something like that. It wouldn’t even faze me to make it happen, and it would be a fitting punishment for all the pain he caused.
What’s the point of going to court? We could handle it right here.
“I understand your wishes well.”
However, the princess did not seem to have any intention of handling things that way. At least, not right now.
“But isn’t killing a very merciful punishment? Everyone, think about it. Think about the depth of the sin this person committed.”
Thud. The princess stomped on Kanut’s head with her studded boot. Even then, Kanut could not resist at all. Because I didn’t allow him to. After showing such physical punishment, the uproar from the painting wizards subsided slightly.
“Even if he committed crimes, he is the current guardian of Dragonas. Killing him would cause problems.”
The chief of Kun looked at Kanut with disdain and then gestured toward the princess. This was a rather delicate situation for the desert people. Although Kanut had entrenched himself in the desert for twenty years, the desert inhabitants had suffered minimal harm.
Painting wizards had pale skin. In other words, it indicates that they are from a foreign country, while the perpetrator held an important position in the desert. Moreover, excluding the former guardian who would soon pass away, it was safe to say that Kanut was essentially the only guardian of Dragonas. Therefore, declaring his execution wasn’t something they could easily do.
‘But for the princess, executing Kanut is essential in gaining the painting wizards’ trust and support.’
As a bystander standing one step away, I was able to feel every detail of the subtle political battle going on over one criminal. It was then,
“What, what, did our Kanut do wrong?”
Kanut’s grandmother, the former guardian, asked with a trembling voice.
Well, it must be frustrating for that person because they don’t know anything. It’s like meeting my grandchild for the first time in 20 years.
One of the Kun warriors whispered to the old woman, who was staggering around with a cane. A face with deep wrinkles stained with despair is a sight no one wants to see, but what can be done? The sin that Kanut committed cannot be covered up by hiding it.
“Oh my god. Oh my god… … .”
The old hand holding the cane tightened. Asis Dragonas slowly, slowly stepped forward, dragging her legs. Asis, who reached exactly where Kanut was kneeling, although her eyes could not see, let out a heart-wrenching cry.
“You wretched boy. Wretched boy!”
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