Torture Princess: Fremd Torturchen, Vol. 3

by Keishi Ayasato

  The further she got in her sentence, the softer and more disorganized her words became.

  She closed her eyes, as though in prayer. When she continued, it was in a small voice.

  “… ’Tis too heavy a burden for you to bear.”

  Her hair gently rustled as she turned her head up. Her eyes still closed, she gazed up at the sky.

  “The stars are bright. Yet, down here the screams well up.”

  “What do you mean by that?”

  “’Tis simply the way of things. The pleasant time we spent together just now does naught to change what has come before or the things that shall come after.”

  “Why does it have to—?”

  “I drew enjoyment from people’s pain, pleasure from their screams. Such was the life I chose. One must square their accounts for the tab they’ve driven up. Should the deeds I’ve done be forgiven, it would warp the world of mankind. I myself cannot allow that.”

  Abruptly, Elisabeth opened her eyes. Kaito found himself speechless.

  Her perfect, jewel-like crimson eyes held no fear or hesitation. They were so tranquil it bordered on madness.

  “The demise of torturers should be garnished with their own screams as they sink to Hell with no chance for salvation. Only at such a time is a torturer’s life truly complete. And in this capital, a fitting stage has been set for that finale.”

  “A fitting…stage?”

  Swallowed up by the beauty of her eyes, Kaito parroted her words back to her.

  Elisabeth nodded deeply. Turning back toward the mass of flesh, she resumed speaking.

  “The Royal Knights belong to the king and the paladins to the Church. The Church may specialize in fighting demons, but they’re also permitted quite powerful arms. That comes as a result of the fact that in this world, the Church’s status is higher than that of the king’s.”

  “…I…see.”

  “Whenever a king wishes to assume the throne, permission from the Church is needed. But the Church isn’t a fully autonomous organization. While the Church has historically held a strong say in the way the kings have ruled, their decisions are also influenced by the times the country is facing. Given the unstable state the country is in, it will take countless years for people to return to the capital and for trade and commerce to recover, even once the demons are eradicated.”

  Kaito nodded. He now understood a part of this world’s power structure, as well as the trials awaiting its people.

  Elisabeth went on, even more dispassionately.

  “Moreover, at this rate, the curtain will be drawn on the war against the demons far from the eyes of the people. They will find themselves unable to shake their fears, unable to purge their unease. Society requires a rite of passage.”

  A moment later, Kaito’s eyes went wide.

  Thus far, he hadn’t been able to figure out the point of her story, but it had finally clicked. He’d realized what she’d meant by a “fitting stage.”

  “You don’t mean…”

  “The most effective method by which to unite people is to give them a common enemy. The Torture Princess has slain far too many. Burning her at the stake should prove a fitting symbol.”

  Elisabeth looked at the mass of flesh, as though gazing toward her own demise.

  A self-deriding smile spread across her lovely lips.

  “Despots are killed, tyrants are hung, and slaughterers are slaughtered. All for the sake of the people.”

  Elisabeth’s whisper was gentle, as though saying that that was simply how things were.

  That that was how things ought to be.

  Kaito clenched his fists. He tried to shout at her, but the words wouldn’t come out.

  As he closed his eyes tight, a thought he’d once had crossed back through his mind.

  Something’s wrong.

  He didn’t know what it was, but he knew that there was some detail that was off about the whole situation. He bit down on his lip. The words he’d once spat at Godot Deus went off in his ears like firecrackers.

  “If you guys had just been stronger, the Torture Princess wouldn’t have even been born, would she?

  “If someone were to ask if the Torture Princess was good or evil, then obviously the answer would be evil. It was crazy to ask the allies of her victims to come and save her. If I were on the side of her victims, then I’d be cheering from the rooftops to work her to the bone then put her to the stake. Which means that this doesn’t have anything to do with you guys. I’m the one she summoned, and this is really all just me being selfish, so it’s really my problem.

  “What I’m trying to say is that person who saved me wasn’t God or a hero. It wasn’t faith, and it wasn’t you guys.”

  “It was the Torture Princess—the most evil woman in all the world.”

  Why, why, why, why, why? Why?

  Why?

  Then Kaito realized something.

  Deep in his heart, a young version of himself was crying out. The young boy hadn’t shed a single tear, even when he was kicked, and burned, and beaten, and had his teeth ripped out. Yet he was crying at the top of his lungs.

  As though to say that this, if nothing else, was unforgivable.

  “I finally found a hero,” he cried out.

  “Why are you taking her away from me?” he cried out.

  “She saved me,” he cried out.

  “From a life that was fated to end in despair.”

  “She lifted me out of that hell!” he cried.

  Kaito opened his mouth, then closed it. He tried to say something.

  He tried to make his younger self see reason, to respect Elisabeth’s wishes. Yet, he didn’t give voice to a single one of the objections and logical arguments that sprang to his mind.

  Eventually, he just gently grasped his crying self by the hand.

  Yeah, I know. I know.

  In this world, Kaito Sena had found someone to believe in for the first time. He’d found a family for the first time.

  He’d finally been able to take his life in his own hands.

  Who had been the one who’d given him all that? Out of the two worlds he’d lived in, who’d been the sole person to save him?

  Trust me, I feel the same way.

  At that moment, a quiet, firm resolution welled up within him.

  A resolution for his hero’s sake.

  Kaito gently withdrew his teeth from his now-bloody lip.

  The confusion and anger he’d felt earlier had been completely wiped from his face.

  Elisabeth hadn’t noticed anything. Turning toward her, he began speaking, his words as much for himself as they were for her.

  “You know, you’re the only one who ever saved me.”

  “…What are you talking about?”

  “The person who saved me after I was tortured and killed like a worm wasn’t God or some noble hero. Those guys can all eat shit.”

  Belief in God ran deep in this world, and Kaito’s words were incredibly blasphemous.

  Without hesitating, he went on.

  “The only one who saved from that hell was the Torture Princess. Just you, Elisabeth Le Fanu.”

  Elisabeth’s eyes widened. That probably wasn’t anything close to what she’d been expecting to hear. It was rare to see her so genuinely astonished. She blinked a few times. However, she eventually shook her head, a thin smile creeping its way across her face.

  “…And here I was, wondering what you’d have to say. Are you an idiot? Don’t go getting all grandiose on me. ’Twas on a whim, nothing but coincidence. Feeling indebted for such a thing would be creepy.”

  “Coincidence, a whim, it’s all fine by me. Hey, Elisabeth. I told you, right? That until you start walking the road to Hell, I’ll try and stick by your side for as long as I can, even if I’m the only one.”

  “Mm, so you did. And what of it? That time is upon us, that’s all.”

  “It’s not here yet.”

  Kaito spoke definitively. Elisabeth frowned at hi
s strangely forceful statement. Looking into her crimson eyes, Kaito spoke with the sincerity of a man giving his wedding vows.

  “I’m not going to let you die.”

  Elisabeth’s face froze. She looked like she was about to say something, but Kaito ignored her and stood up. He forced the bag carrying Hina’s souvenirs onto Elisabeth.

  Then he ran down the hill at full speed.

  “Hey, Kaito, wait! Just what do you intend to do?!”

  Elisabeth shouted after him. But he paid no heed to her words and kept running.

  He had a single destination in mind.

  The square where the Monarch was imprisoned.

  When Kaito reached the square, he found himself once more enduring the glares of the paladins manning the perimeter.

  He began carefully observing the priests’ barrier. Staring at it, he gauged its strength. Then, once he was satisfied, he asked to be let in. He received a dirty look but was able to enter successfully.

  Once he was in, he headed for the section of the plaza that had been curtained off to conceal it from people’s eyes.

  The Monarch was sitting inside a thorny cage that Kaito had crafted with magic. A group of paladins was standing guard over it and directing uneasy, hateful glances at the Monarch’s melted body.

  Before they could call out to stop him, Kaito snapped his fingers.

  When he did, a swirl of darkness appeared above the cage, and supple muscles and sleek fur began knitting together. The horrific black dog Kaito had secretly tasked with watching over the Monarch made its appearance.

  Lying sluggishly on its belly, the Kaiser swung its tail back and forth.

  “You’re late, O unworthy master of mine.”

  “Yeah, I just got back.”

  Shocked by the Kaiser’s sudden appearance, the paladins all let out distressed shouts.

  Ignoring them, Kaito called out to his beast.

  “Looks like I’m gonna have to do it after all, Kaiser. Let’s go.”

  “What a self-centered man you are, and what a colossal fool. But you amuse me. I have no objections. But get permission from the mice first. I don’t care for their shrill squeaking. The fuss they make is disagreeable.”

  With that, the Kaiser snorted. Kaito nodded, then turned around. As he’d expected, Izabella had been informed of the Kaiser’s manifestation and made her way inside the curtain.

  “Kaito Sena! Even if you’re just using it as a guard, you need permission before you—”

  “Izabella, there’s something I need!”

  Beating her to the punch, Kaito nimbly intercepted her reprimand. Faced with a request, Izabella politely stopped speaking. Not missing his opportunity, Kaito spoke quickly.

  “Seal the curtain and cast a silencing spell on it. And I need you to make sure Elisabeth doesn’t get anywhere near the spot.”

  “What’s this all of a sudden? What in the world are you intending to do?”

  “At the end of the day, my power’s just a stopgap. So before we fight the King and the Grand Monarch, I want to build up as much mana as possible. But because of how much pain’s involved, there’s a good chance Elisabeth will try to stop me. Please.”

  “I can’t in good faith give you permission to do something your master would prohibit.”

  “That’s just a pretense, though, right? What reason do you have to doubt me? You got a report from the familiars they had observing my fight against the Grand King, didn’t you? If I was planning on making a run for it and abandoning mankind, I’d have done it back then. You should already know that I wounded my own body in order to use the magic I saved Elisabeth with.”

  “That’s—”

  “Dark magic requires pain. This is necessary for me. If you don’t trust me, you can put as many guards on me as you want. And if I do anything suspicious, feel free to stop me.”

  “Kaito, still—”

  “La Mules is dead. If the Torture Princess screws up, who do you think’s next in line to fight?”

  For the people affiliated with the Church, the wound from having their ultimate weapon, the Shepherd, commit suicide was still fresh and raw. Kaito didn’t hesitate in stabbing at it. He also purposely gouged at Izabella’s conscience.

  “Who the hell do you think is gonna end up getting sacrificed for the sake of all the heretics and people who call him a monster?”

  “…And you’re saying that this is truly necessary for you to fight against the demons?”

  “Yes. I promise I’m telling the truth.”

  “I understand… While I will personally be one of your watchkeepers, you have my permission. However, Godot Deus has the final say in—”

  “Permission granted. Do as you wish.”

  Suddenly, a calm, deep voice rang out. Izabella spun around.

  Kaito confidently locked eyes with the voice’s owner.

  A priest whose face was concealed by a deep crimson robe was reverently carrying a jewel. A phantasm of Godot Deus floated above it. Narrowing his eyes as though trying to gauge something, he spoke.

  “Servant, I can more or less guess what your objective is. However, there are bound to be benefits as far as our current battle against the demon goes. You have my permission.”

  “Thanks a bunch. This is gonna be good for you guys, too.”

  “I wonder about that… However…ah, yes. There is one thing I’d best tell you.”

  “What’s that?”

  “Under normal circumstances, the Church does not permit replicating souls.”

  Kaito frowned, confused by the expected statement. Unable to make out the true meaning of Godot Deus’s words, he urged Godot Deus on.

  “…So?”

  “Once this matter is resolved, all the reproductions of Godot Deus’s soul, myself included, are slated to be destroyed.”

  Kaito was shocked. The stone in his pocket holding Vlad’s soul rattled around, as though Vlad found this topic to be of great interest. Kaito sorted through the pieces of information that he knew.

  Reproduced souls are nothing more than degraded versions of the person from when they were alive. Still, though, they have wills of their own.

  Destroying a stone with a copy of someone’s soul inside was practically the same as executing a person.

  The way Godot Deus had died—committing suicide so he wouldn’t be of use to the demon—was enough to let Kaito understand the resolve that members of the Church held. Once again, Godot Deus was marching toward his own death.

  At the same time, Kaito thought about why Godot Deus had told him that.

  Godot Deus worries for the people and trusts in God from the bottom of his heart. But he has a self-serving side, too.

  That helped Kaito realize that the resolve the Church possessed and the sacrifices they were making couldn’t possibly have been his sole objective.

  Wait, could you be…?

  Kaito stared at Godot Deus, trying to figure out what he was thinking. However, it was clear to see that he didn’t intend to say anything more. Eventually, Kaito stifled his conjecture and spoke.

  “Sorry. I know that we’re not the only ones being sacrificed.”

  “You have nothing to apologize for, servant. However, I wish to witness it. Though it may be for the sake of fighting demons, I wish to witness what it is that you intend to hide yourself from Elisabeth’s gaze in order to do.”

  “Yeah, go for it. Watch to your heart’s content.”

  With that, Kaito nodded. After checking to make sure that the paladins keeping watch over him were in place, he turned back toward the Monarch’s cage. The drooping man was hanging his head from atop the cage’s metal floor.

  Snapping his fingers, Kaito whispered.

  “—La (rend).”

  The next moment, blood spouted from Kaito’s own arm. He started carving at his body with azure flower petals.

  Seeing his sudden, brazen self-mutilation, some of the paladins let out cries.

  Ignoring them, Kaito’s fingers danc
ed as he manipulated his blood. He used the spilled streaks of crimson to paint a magical formula at his feet and on the floor of the Monarch’s cage.

  Interpreting its meaning, Izabella called out in a strained voice.

  “Are you mad?!”

  It was Kaito’s second time drawing it, but anyone knowledgeable about magic would be able to easily tell how repulsive it was.

  This was a procedure that converted another’s pain over to himself.

  His eyes filled with compassion and dry composure, Kaito whispered.

  “I’m going to torture you now. It won’t be much help, but here’s something to set your mind at ease.”

  He raised his arm overhead.

  The corners of his mouth curling up unpleasantly, the Kaiser smiled. The Monarch slowly turned his dissolved head to the side.

  Swinging his arm down like a conductor, Kaito made his declaration.

  “This is gonna hurt me just as bad.”

  The Monarch’s torso tore open.

  And at the same time, Kaito’s chest ripped apart.

  AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARGH!

  The Monarch let out a scream of pain.

  Blocked by the silencing magic, his bloodcurdling voice vanished before it could make it through the curtain. However, it forcibly burrowed its way into the ears of the paladins within. Their faces contorted in unison.

  Kaito delicately carved into the Monarch’s body. He lopped off his arms, gouged out his eyes, and pulled out his innards. But because he was fused with a demon, the transformed Monarch didn’t die.

  In addition, the magical formula was regenerating his body.

  AHHHHHHHHHHHH! AHHHHHHHH! AHHHHHHHHHHHH!

  As he screamed, the Monarch rocked his cage like a madman.

  Kaito ignored his wordless pleas. He waved his arm without pause.

  The Monarch’s organs danced through the air, his cheeks were gouged out, and his legs snapped into fourths.

  As the Monarch’s torture continued, just as Kaito had promised, he himself experienced the same pain. Occasionally, the pain would cause Kaito to die of shock. When it did, he would revive himself, satisfied with his results.