Chapter 35: The Daily Valemont

Today was the 10th of February.

It had already been five days since I had told my family everything about what had happened, and it had also been five days since Sera had finally come out of her room.

My parents had been happy to see me return, and Sera was happy as well.

After everything that had happened, there was naturally a sense of relief within the family.

I had returned alive, and despite everything that had occurred in the Realm of Evil, I was finally back home.

However, that happiness was accompanied by sadness that none of us could simply ignore.

Baron Eesper had been my father’s friend even before I was born, and my mother had been like a sibling to Eliza’s mother.

The relationship between our families had existed for years, long before any of us had entered the Realm of Evil, and perhaps that was what made Eliza’s absence feel even more painful.

It wasn’t as though we had lost a stranger. We had lost someone who had been part of our lives.

I had also been unable to do much during those four days.

Apart from attending Eliza’s funeral on the 6th of February, I hadn’t gone anywhere else.

I had remained at home, spending most of my time doing nothing in particular, simply thinking about what could have happened if Eliza had returned with us.

I would imagine the five of us coming back together, talking about everything that had happened inside the Realm of Evil, laughing about the things that had gone wrong and perhaps arguing about who had contributed the most.

I imagined how we could have become the best team ever, how we would have continued growing stronger together, and how, after some time had passed, we would probably look back at our first expedition and laugh about how inexperienced we had been.

Sometimes I would even imagine us celebrating our success together, as though the entire thing had ended exactly the way it was supposed to.

But not long after those thoughts came, I realized that they were nothing more than fantasies.

There was no Eliza returning with us.

There was no celebration.

There was no future where the five of us continued together as a team.

It had all ended inside that place.

At 2:00 PM, I was sitting on the balcony, holding a newspaper in my hand.

There wasn’t anything else for me to do, and after sitting there for some time without accomplishing anything, I finally decided to read it.

The afternoon was relatively quiet, and I found myself staring at the newspaper for a few moments before unfolding it properly and looking at the front page.

In large letters across the upper middle of the newspaper was written:

The Daily Valemont.

I started reading beneath it.

NAVAJA STRIKES IPNIS AGAIN: CROWN THREATENED BY GROWING TERRORIST CAMPAIGN

Ipnis has suffered yet another attack at the hands of the organization calling itself Navaja. The latest incident took place at a textile mill near a government office, further demonstrating the organization’s increasingly direct challenge to the authority of the Crown.

The police have pledged to take immediate action against the perpetrators. The House of Commons has also taken an interest in the matter, and it is believed that a team of Awakened operating under its authority may soon be deployed to Ipnis in an effort to stabilize the situation and eradicate the organization known as Navaja.

I stared at the name for a moment.

’Navaja... Why does it sound so familiar?’

I couldn’t immediately remember where I had heard it before, but something about the name continued to bother me. Perhaps I had encountered it somewhere before, or perhaps it was simply one of those strange moments where a familiar-sounding word appeared despite having no actual importance.

I continued reading the article.

’And are these people lunatics? Unless they have a demi-god sitting on the top, I don’t think that it has any chance of doing what they want to, hmm... wait, why am I even thinking about them like this?’

I paused for a moment.

They were terrorists who took the lives of innocent people.

There was no reason for me to be thinking about how strong they were or whether they could actually accomplish whatever their goal was.

’They are terrorists who take the lives of innocents. Humph!’

I shook my head slightly and continued reading.

’And anyways, the House of Lords would most likely deploy their own awakened, considering there are properties and factories of Lords in the middle and lower class areas...’

That seemed obvious enough.

If the attacks continued spreading throughout Ipnis, sooner or later the nobles would inevitably become involved, especially considering the amount of property and businesses they possessed throughout the middle and lower class regions.

I started reading ahead.

NEW RAILWAY ANNOUNCED: HOPE FOR THE LOWER CLASS

The House of Commons has announced plans for a new railway line connecting Binjin, Shanshin and Dinjin with the middle-class lands: Oakland and Turo.

Construction is expected to begin this year, with the railway scheduled for completion in December.

’Finally some good news!’

I couldn’t help but feel somewhat relieved upon reading that.

As much as I remembered, Shanshin had been an area with fog so dense that people had been unable to see each other outside for an entire month, until our protagonists stepped in, of course.

I continued looking at the article.

’Wait... There wasn’t a railway in the novel that connected Shanshin with Oakland or Turo.’

I stared at the words for a few seconds.

’Does this mean the events are changing because I am influencing the plot!?’

The thought immediately entered my mind.

If the future was already changing because of my existence, then this could potentially be another indication of it. After all, I knew what had happened in the original novel, and the railway mentioned here had never existed in the story.

’That can be the case...’

I thought about it for a while before another possibility came to mind.

’But considering the people that sit in the House of Commons, the most likely scenario is that they are just showing people dreams in order to let their positions remain secured...’

That was also possible.

Politicians had their own interests, after all.

I moved my eyes further down the newspaper.

HOUSE OF COMMONS CALLS FOR AIR POLLUTION CAMPAIGN

The House of Commons has formally requested the introduction of campaigns aimed at reducing air pollution throughout Valemont. The proposal has yet to receive approval from the House of Lords.

’I don’t think it would be a yes, because if they give a yes, their money would stop flowing like it does right now.’

The nobles had plenty of interests in factories and businesses, and reducing air pollution would inevitably mean placing restrictions on some of those industries. That would affect their profits, and I couldn’t imagine the House of Lords willingly accepting something that would cause their money to stop flowing as freely as it did now.

I turned the page and continued reading.

For a few moments, my attention was completely occupied by the newspaper. The various articles, announcements, and political disputes gave me something else to think about, and for a short while, I managed to distract myself from reality.

But that distraction didn’t last long.

Just as I had been distracted from reality for some moments, my eyes suddenly stopped on a familiar photograph.

It was a blonde girl.

She was smiling with her eyes closed, wearing a beautiful silk dress, and waving toward me.

I froze.

The newspaper remained in my hands, but I could no longer bring myself to continue reading.

Beneath the photograph were several words.

ELIZA EESPER DIES IN THE REALM OF EVIL

Five days ago, Eliza Eesper, daughter of Baron Eesper, a member of House of Lords, died in Realm of The Evil.

May her soul rest in peace.