August Without a Galactic Emperor 18

2. Captive of Salow Castle


A naked boy is floating inside a transparent sphere filled with a pale pink liquid.

Enza-Kou-Ra thought that it was impossible to deny that the Nepe were indeed beautiful creatures. Many had been led astray by this beauty and had attempted to make the Perfect Human their plaything, only to find out that it was a far too costly endeavor.

To have been able to capture a Nepe in such a state of complete helplessness could be called lucky. Until a few days ago, the boy before him could have been called a comrade of Enza's in terms of supporting the Galactic Emperor, but the change in circumstances had made his value something entirely different.
If one could dissect a Nepe biologically, psychologically, and from every other angle, the information gained would be worth its weight in gold. However, that was only possible under the absolute condition that this specimen never escaped.
It is absolutely impossible to escape from this Salow Castle.
Furthermore, the Savo liquid filling the sphere containing the boy is also known as a "Liquid Cage," and it is originally intended for keeping dangerous creatures, not humans, confined. A creature placed in a sufficient amount of sealed Savo liquid is fixed in the center, and all conscious movements are suppressed by force of equal intensity. And since it allows creatures that require oxygen to breathe, it was possible to completely isolate them from the external environment.
Being restrained in such a way would be a significant burden for a human, but it was certainly necessary equipment to strip a Perfect Human of their freedom.
The fact that he appears to be floating in the Savo liquid means that there is no strength in his body... in other words, it indicates that he is unconscious. However, Enza-Kou-Ra saw this as the Nepe's act.

"Open the audio interface."
Enza ordered the medical officer at his side.
Now, he would be able to converse with the one inside the liquid.
"You're already awake, aren't you? Stop pretending to be asleep."
As expected, the Nepe slowly opened his eyes.
Without looking around, he turned his gaze straight toward Enza. He must have already fully grasped the situation he was in. He is truly a creature that cannot be let out of one's sight.
"I didn't think we would meet again in this form, Nepe 303. What happened on that frontier planet is highly regrettable. The one you were with was a native girl claiming to be the successor to the throne, wasn't it? You must have intended to take her to 'Blue Sand,' but why did you bother coming back here?"
"I also find this treatment of me to be truly regrettable, General Stilar Enza-Kou-Ra. In order to avoid worsening relations with 'Blue Sand,' I recommend that you release me as soon as possible."
Though muffled by the liquid, Enza was momentarily overwhelmed by those clear words. He recalled the fate of the planets and noble houses that had challenged the Nepe in the history of the Empire.
But he did not show any of that, and replied in a tone like a teacher reprimanding a student.
"I am the one asking the questions."
"Why I came here is a question I would like to know the answer to myself. Didn't the Imperial Army or the Ra family's science lab develop new technology to lure us here?"
Trying to block a question with a question, are you...
"It is useless to try to deceive me with a story that I don't believe even a hair's breadth. If there were a way to freely control ships in hyperspace, there would be no Emperor and no Nepe. It would be the same as having the entire galaxy in one's grasp."
"Even so, the 'Galacode' exists strictly."
The 'Galacode'...
As one born into the Galactic Empire, there is no one who does not feel awe toward it.
The Emperor... the noble houses... the Senate... while it binds everything with immense power, it is also the 'Galacode' that fundamentally supports that authority.
To deny the 'Galacode' is equivalent to denying oneself. The higher one is in the hierarchy of authority in the Empire, the more one should keep that fact in mind.
Enza clearly felt that the Nepe was trying to seize the initiative in this situation by bringing up the name of the 'Galacode,' and he guarded his consciousness so as not to let that happen.
"You... seem to intend to install a new Emperor in accordance with that 'Galacode,' but many of the noble houses have doubts about that process. They say that the Nepe feared the Emperor's power and tried to use the accident on the frontier planet to reform the system..."
"Can you really win over the noble houses and the Senate with a story that you don't believe even a hair's breadth?"
Enza, who managed to suppress his irritation, put a pipe in his mouth and inhaled Mesebin gas.
"You still haven't given up that bad habit... I warned you that it only clears your head temporarily, but it will shorten your life."
"Worry about yourself rather than my health. Because the successor to the throne, and the Nepe who was protecting her, will likely disappear on this planet."
"And all the citizens of the Empire will know that the Ra family challenged the Nepe and the Code, is that it?"
"It's a little different. The story is planned to be that the Ra family became the guardians of the new Code, and the Nepe fell into being rebels against the Empire."
"That is a terribly optimistic outlook."
Enza twisted his mouth and showed a smile to the Nepe.
"Is it? Anyway, we intend to squeeze information out of you thoroughly. Especially the parts that the folks at 'Blue Sand' would not want us to see..."
"Good... that means you haven't succeeded in extracting anything from me yet."
Enza was not moved by those provocative words, but he hardened his resolve to make the Nepe who said them regret it.
"For now, we are on equal footing. Although it is a situation that will not last long..."
"Oh, I have received enough information from you, Excellency, in our conversation so far. That my master has not yet fallen into your hands. That you have not yet grasped where she is or what she is doing now. That my life is safe for the time being. In other words, the preparations for me to leave here and head to 'Blue Sand' as planned are complete... I am sorry for the unequal footing, but I would like to thank you, Excellency."
Enza threw away the pipe he had been holding and searched for a reason to kill the boy in front of him right now, even if only for an instant. Even that emotion of his was seen through by the Perfect Human boy.
"Searching for a reason to kill me is fine, but first you must obtain permission, must you not? From the cousin who is waiting behind you..."
Enza turned around sharply at those words.

Sure enough, in the corner of the room shrouded in darkness, a masked noblewoman dressed in clothes deeper and blacker than the darkness stood there.
"Lady... Yurilla..."

Yurilla-Lii-Ra had a faint smile on her lips and was staring intently at the naked boy.

* * *

The dark tunnel was spiraling downward, going deeper and deeper.

Just a moment ago, he thought he had fallen to the very bottom of this city, but it seems there is still a lower place to fall... Sorato continued to walk with a feeling even darker than that tunnel.
Before long, a green light appeared ahead.
An indescribable pungent odor and grating noise drifted from there.

The three of them, Sorato, Shenga, and Tiptree, passed through the tunnel and emerged into a dimly lit hall. The green light they had seen was from holographic images floating here and there in the hall. Floating planets... scenes of cities... people talking... images that looked like scenes of battle were also floating.
"This... is this a recording? Could it be that all of these are live images?"
Kate Tiptree revealed the curiosity typical of a media person.
"They are Dromech visions. And they are images being sent from all over the Empire."
Shenga said.
"I see... these guys are 'Information Thieves'."
"Infor... what is that?"
Sorato asked.
"They are a group that releases illegal Dromechs and spy creatures all over the galaxy, smuggling all kinds of information and data."

He didn't quite understand, but they seemed like the kind of people it was better not to get involved with...
Sorato sighed for the umpteenth time since arriving on this planet.


3. The Three Edera

His eyes had adjusted.

Most of the hall, shrouded in darkness, was a floor dug one level lower than where Sorato and the others were standing. There, he could see many people moving like ghosts, operating some kind of machinery.
Following those operations, the holographic images floating in the room seemed to appear and disappear, or change angles.

At the very back of the hall, three large, human-like figures were enthroned.
Pushed from behind by "gangsters" carrying weapons, Sorato and the others walked down the passage that stretched straight toward those shadows.

As they got closer, they realized that those shadows were not human.
The giant bodies wrapped in long robes looked human, but their heads were close to those of elephants. On both sides of their long, thick trunks, instead of eyes, machines that seemed to cover them were fitted. Under their drooping ears, and in their mouths hidden by their trunks, one could see machines connected to cables.
Standing before the three elephant-men who had connected all their senses to machines, Sorato felt himself getting used to strange aliens and space creatures.

If I become the Galactic Emperor, how will I have to deal with these kinds of people...

"Edera..."
Sorato felt an ominous premonition at the tone of Shenga's voice as he muttered that. It didn't seem like a very happy encounter.
The elephant-man in the center emitted a low sound that was neither a voice nor a breath.
Then, a skinny, shaved-headed woman standing behind him spoke up.
"The 'Primary Sorter' asks. Are you the successor to the Galactic Emperor?"
Sorato didn't think he was being asked for a moment, and after looking at Shenga and Tiptree's faces, he answered in confusion.
"Yes... I am..."
The three Edera shook their trunks, making a strange, rumbling sound.
Before long, the one on the right blew out a high-pitched breathing sound.
"The 'Third Sorter's' proposal. Kill them."
Sorato shuddered at the woman's indifferent voice.
This time, the one on the left made a low, long sound with its trunk.
"The 'Second Sorter's' proposal. Use them as bargaining chips against the Ra family."
"'Sorters'... that sounds pretty arrogant, but what do you sort?"
Tiptree asked irritably.
The three 'Sorters' answered simultaneously, making the exact same sound.
"'Sorters' sort. Information. Money. Lives."
Lives! Does that mean our fate is in the hands of these elephants... Sorato realized once again just how much of a crisis he was facing.
The interpreter woman continued.
"What kind of reward will the successor bring us in exchange for their lives? If you have an idea, let's hear it."
"Reward... what..."
Sorato was bewildered. It seemed better to be honest here.
"I... haven't even become the Galactic Emperor yet, and I don't know anything about this country. I can't think of anything I can promise..."
The three Edera hung their heads and let out a dissonant growl.
"The 'Sorters' have judged. This successor is too ignorant."
Did I answer too honestly... Sorato remembered the feeling of when he couldn't answer a teacher's question well in class.
Shenga said.
"What these guys want is the stability of their business, right? If you guarantee that you'll overlook their illegal activities with the Emperor's authority..."
"Um... how should I say that?"
Sorato's deliberation was interrupted by the woman's voice.
"The 'Sorters' have sorted. The successor will be sent to 'Blue Sand' to inherit the throne after our education. The other two will be made to work here as slaves."
Sorato asked back.
"Education?"
Shenga broke it down for him.
"In short, it's brainwashing."
"No, I don't want that!"
Tiptree also agreed from a different standpoint.
"I don't want to be a slave either!"
Despite their protests, the three-in-one Edera raised their hands simultaneously, and the henchman "gangsters" tried to drag Sorato and the others away.

At that moment...

A loud sound like something bursting echoed near the entrance of the hall.
Looking, men armed with shock spears were storming into the hall and skirmishing with the "gangsters."
Some of them came down the passage toward them.
The men, wearing red outfits that covered their entire bodies and sporting spiked long hair, looked like members of a rock band or strange priests.
"They're Nasuka believers!"
Shenga's words confirmed that the latter was their true identity.
The young man in the lead glanced at Sorato and said to the Edera.
"'Information Thieves.' As the people of the 'Star Lily,' heed the wishes of us children of the Star Lily. In this auspicious time of the 'Lily Era Festival,' strife is unnecessary."
Was it his imagination... Sorato heard a scream-like voice echoing from the entrance of the hall they had come through.
The three Edera were flustered by the sudden intruders. Only the woman standing behind them remained calm and conveyed their words.
"The 'Sorters' refuse. They refuse both the strife and the demand."
When the leader of the Nasuka believers raised one hand, a cylindrical transparent case was brought from behind. Inside, something long and thin was moving.
"War-worms..."
Sorato and Tiptree remembered the tragedy on that beach.
Tiptree asked.
"That monster?"
"Its larva. I see, they released this above. That's how they were able to get in."
It made sense to Sorato too. The screams he heard from outside were not his imagination. That was the pandemonium caused by the war-worms. The reason they, the owners, were safe was likely because they had some way to control that terrifying creature.
The leader of the Nasuka believers declared in a calm but firm tone.
"We came to cleanse this filthy cellar with holy worms on this auspicious day of the 'Lily Era Festival'... but if the Edera repent and offer proof, we will grant them forgiveness."
The Edera fell silent, trembling.
Having confirmed that, the leader turned back to Sorato.
"Successor to the throne. You will be taken into the care of us children of the Star Lily."
Sorato looked at Shenga's face.
Just as the Nasuka believers surrounded the three and began to move to take them outside...

Tiptree suddenly moved.

She snatched the case containing the war-worm larva and threw it down onto the floor below the passage.
"!"
Without even checking the result of her action, Tiptree shoved the Nasuka believer beside her and snatched the shock spear he was holding. She swung it around, trying to clear a path to the entrance.
"Run!"
Sorato, who tried to follow, saw the spear of the Nasuka believer blocking Tiptree's path shatter her weapon in one blow.
Strangely, the Nasuka believer who swung the spear showed a look of surprise as if to say "Oh no!" for some reason, and when he turned around, he ran away at full speed. At that moment, everyone who had been trying to apprehend Tiptree also started running toward the entrance of the hall.
"Worm-keeper! Worm-keeper!"
Jostled by the Nasuka believers shouting one after another, the three of them also ran out of the hall. Sorato, who looked back for a moment, saw that the war-worm had already grown huge and was devouring the people around it indiscriminately.
"What happened?!"
Shenga answered while laughing.
"That woman didn't grab a shock spear, she grabbed the control rod used by the war-worm keeper. Since it broke, they're all panicking and trying to run away!"
It was no laughing matter.
The tragedy on that beach was being repeated. However, Tiptree, who was running alongside Sorato, was also laughing.
"I wonder if those arrogant elephants got eaten too? Serves them right!"
"Why did you do that!"
While being jostled, Sorato couldn't help but ask.
"Why? I don't know. I've just been pushed around by so many things, I finally snapped."

I see... the frustration of being pulled away from Earth against his will and being subjected to dangerous situations in a world he didn't understand had finally exploded...
However, Tiptree, who fought back against her unreasonable fate, might be called brave. If anything, wasn't he the strange one for just letting things happen to him... Thinking about that, Sorato kept running.

"Whoops, this is bad."
Shenga's voice brought Sorato back to the immediate reality.
When they passed through the tunnel, the hall above was a battlefield.
The henchmen of the 'Information Thieves' and the Nasuka believers were struggling with various weapons to try to do something about the multiple rampaging war-worms. Fortunately, it seemed no one had the leisure to pay attention to Sorato and the others.
However, he didn't know where to run to be safe.

"Where is the exit?"
"This way."
It wasn't Shenga or Sorato who answered Tiptree's voice.
Looking, someone was beckoning from under a hole that looked like a drain opening at the bottom of the wall. The hole was narrow, barely enough for one person to pass through, but it was certainly the closest exit from the hall.
"Hurry!"
As the three of them looked at each other at the voice from under the hole, one of the war-worms came running toward them while being shot at.
"!"
There was no choice left.
Shenga grabbed Sorato's hand and ran toward the hole, pushed her in first, and then followed.
And at the same time as Tiptree jumped in last, someone's hand closed the lid of the hole...

The surroundings were wrapped in complete darkness.


To be continued