There Is No Way You Love Me

꒷꒦︶꒷꒦︶ ๋ ࣭ ⭑꒷꒦THERE IS NO WAY YOU LOVE ME ꒷꒦︶꒷꒦︶ ๋ ࣭ ⭑꒷꒦

 

 

After several rounds of questioning and answers, Alma clapped his hands together like an enthusiastic teacher and asked,“Well then, do you have any further questions?”

 

Alyssa slowly shook her head.

In her mind, she was methodically organizing the information she had just learned.

 

The Pendulum Kingdom, Alma’s homeland, was located about a month’s journey from north of here.

 

It was the only nation on a small continent surrounded by sea on three sides, and they had been conducting monster-related research for generations.

 

Unlike the Benoit Duchy of the Empire, the scholarly Pendulum Kingdom had no military forces.

Even so, they had managed to survive monster invasions without falling to ruin, thanks entirely to that research.

 

Artifacts.

These objects, crafted from monster carcasses, inherited the properties of their source.

 

For instance, the translation artifact Alma used had been made from the carcass of a monster known for disrupting language.

An artifact essentially contained the supernatural abilities of the monster it was made from.

 

After organizing everything she had heard, Alyssa let out a faint sigh.

 

“Is this all?”

 

In truth, most of Alma’s explanations beyond the initial one had been supplementary details.

Yet Alyssa felt as though she had been overburdened with a vast amount of information.

 

“Since you don’t have any more questions, may I ask one instead?”

 

Alma asked, his tone polite. Then, without waiting for an answer, he pointed to Alyssa’s mask.

 

“Is this mask made of leather? Or is it a specially treated fabric? It looks like it’s made of sansa leather, but the stitching is peculiar. Could you tell me how it’s done?”

 

There it was again.

 

Alyssa, her face pale, stared at Alma, who barraged her with a flood of questions.

Whenever Alyssa asked something, Alma would answer tenfold and then ask twenty more questions in return.

 

Even when discussing a specific topic, Alma would dive into excessive detail or veer off into another subject entirely—only to do the same thing again.

 

“This Empire is such a fascinating place! It feels similar to our kingdom, yet so different!”

 

Why is he like this?

 

Alyssa genuinely wondered, a creeping sense of dread rising within her.

She had never met anyone as relentlessly curious as Alma.

His constant stream of questions made her feel as though he were some kind of monster that could only communicate by crying “Why?”

 

“Are all Pendulum people like this?”

 

“What are you saying! I’m exceptional. One of the top ten talents in the kingdom!”

 

Alma shot back immediately, startling Alyssa.

Only then did she realize that she had spoken her thoughts out loud, a consequence of being so utterly worn down.

 

“…Kanut. Did you only conduct an investigation on this one?”

 

Kanut shook his head at Alyssa’s low-toned question.

 

“No, not exactly. But he was the only one worth bringing to the commander.”

 

“And the others? Why not them?”

 

Alyssa’s voice sounded utterly drained.

Her mind, usually quiet and orderly, now felt like it had been forcibly scrambled.

When she was with Kieran, her thoughts would ripple softly, like gentle waves on a serene lake.

 

But now, she felt as though she had been snatched by a flying monster and flown around the world twice.
It was an unfamiliar sensation, but she could tell one thing for sure:

 

‘I don’t like it.’

 

Her world, which had always been split into just two categories—things she liked and things she disliked—had fractured slightly further.

 

It wasn’t fear or hatred, like she would feel toward violence or shouting.

But it wasn’t warmth or comfort, like a kind gesture or a morning greeting, either.

 

She didn’t dislike it, but… she didn’t like it, either.

 

Having learned all she could from Alma, Alyssa intended to ask the others for further information.

 

However, both Kanut and Alma made the same awkward expression when she brought up the idea.

 

“Well, you see…”

 

“Um…”

 

Alyssa tilted her head at their mutual discomfort, despite how different they looked—Kanut like winter, and Alma like summer.

 

“Is there some kind of problem?”

 

“Haha, well… you could call it a problem.” Alma gave a somewhat less cheerful laugh, scratching his forehead as he stood up.

 

“It would be faster if you saw for yourself.”

 

Shortly afterward, Alyssa found herself at the Pendulum members’ lodgings. She quickly understood what Alma had meant.

 

The servants had informed them of the lord’s visit, and the scholars had gathered in the spacious lounge from their individual rooms.

But that was all they managed to do.

 

One had fallen asleep with a dirt-smudged face, snoring loudly.

Another was furiously scribbling on parchment while coughing up blood.

Most were clutching broken gemstones or shattered staffs, weeping uncontrollably.

 

“H-honey… Elizabeth, please, open your eyes! Mommy’s here. How could you end up in such a wretched state…”

 

“This must be a dream. There’s no way I broke the staff that’s been in my family for generations. Someone, slap me! This is a nightmare!”

 

Is this still a battlefield?

 

Alyssa looked around with trembling eyes. The Pendulum people, all with bronze skin and blue eyes like Alma, seemed utterly distraught.

 

“They’re… not weird people, I promise. Every one of them was called a genius back in the kingdom.”

 

“AAAAHH! Grandfather! I’m sorry! Please return to the afterlife!”

 

Alma’s attempt to salvage the situation was drowned out by a man’s sudden, piercing wail.

Alyssa turned slowly to Alma.

 

“Why are they like this?”

 

Could these people even be considered human? Alyssa began to doubt as Alma explained.

 

“I did mention earlier that they’ve broken all the artifacts they brought with them, didn’t I?”

 

When Alyssa nodded, Alma continued.

 

“Artifacts made from strong monster carcasses become even stronger. Those crafted from rare and powerful monsters are so precious that they’re often passed down as heirlooms.”

 

“…”

 

“For scholars like us, rare monster carcasses are more precious than life itself…”

 

Alma’s gaze turned wistful as he looked at his colleagues, who were clutching shattered, lifeless gemstones to their chests.

 

“This is the result. Haha.”

 

For the first time, Alma’s usually bright eyes lost their sparkle, becoming dark and hollow.

 

“You seem… relatively fine. Did you not break anything?” Kanut asked cautiously.

 

Alma’s eyes brightened again as he cheerfully replied, “Oh, I broke mine, of course! But I didn’t bring any heirlooms with me. My father wouldn’t let me take anything so precious. He said, ‘If you’re going to die, do it alone!’ Hahaha!”

 

With a bitter laugh, Alma carefully held up a yellow gemstone he had been cradling.

 

“At least I still have this one. And besides…”

 

Alma’s voice trailed off as he suddenly moved. In the blink of an eye, he stood before Alyssa.

 

“If you’ve lost something, you can just replace it, right? I already have a plan.”

 

Startled, Alyssa instinctively reached for her waist, but her hand met empty space where her sword should have been.

 

“I saw everything because I fainted a little later than the others. Those monster carcasses—stacked like a mountain! And not a single one of them was an old or weak specimen. Truly incredible! You killed them so cleanly, without a single scratch!”

 

Alma’s sharp eyes gleamed as he unleashed a torrent of words. Each syllable was carefully enunciated, making him all the more unsettling.

 

“Of course, I know we’ve caused you trouble. But we were helpful in the fight, weren’t we? And it seems like you’re only using the hides and bones.…”

 

Kanut was horrified. Alma and the others had fainted almost immediately after the battle. How much could Alma possibly have seen in such a short time?

 

“You don’t need to share with the others. Just give one to me. I’ve explained so much to you, haven’t I? Surely, as a reward…”

 

The overly cooperative attitude suddenly made perfect, shameless sense.

 

“Just one. That’s all I need. With it, I could replace Daisy, Ashua, and Maxy’s absence…! Sob…!”

 

Tears streamed down Alma’s face, yet he forced a smile, trying to appear endearing to Alyssa. The result was deeply unsettling.

 

“…Perhaps we should give him one. There’s plenty, after all,” Kanut murmured, unable to bear the pitiful sight.

 

The moment Alma turned his gleaming eyes on him, Kanut realized his mistake.

 

“Plenty?!”

 

“No, I mean…”

 

“They’re piled up? Here? Not just the ones I saw earlier?!”

 

Alma bombarded him with questions, his head creaking as he turned toward Alyssa. Then, he suddenly dropped to his knees.

 

“Please let me stay here!”

 

His loud plea caught the attention of the others, who had been limp and despondent. They began to look toward Alyssa, their eyes glimmering with newfound hope.

 

“Please! You can work us without pay. I’ll even share all my family’s artifact secrets with you! Or just think of me as a tool for artifact production! Please!”

 

As if inspired by Alma’s outburst, the others’ eyes also lit up with a strange intensity.

 

Dozens of manic gazes locked onto her. Alyssa felt a chill run down her spine.

 

“…I’ll have to ask his grace,” she said faintly.

 

It was all she could manage in the face of their overwhelming desperation.