Liberi Reader

Oh, Ezell, good morning! Off to work?

Good morning. I don't... have work today. I'm taking a couple days off.

Up so early on your day off? And look at you frowning like that. Is something bothering you? Getting bullied at the Notarial Hall?

I told you, it may look like a decent place to work, but it's total misery over there!

Hahaha...

Here, Ezell, I just bought some cupcakes. Take some. Let your worries go!

It doesn't matter if work is bothering you. It's just a job. Don't think about it on your day off! Besides, aren't you still a trainee? If the ceiling caves in, it's gonna crush all your bosses up top before it ever reaches you. Don't make it so hard on yourself.

Cheer up! It's not worth getting upset over!

Not worth it, huh?

Still letting it bother you? Haha, anyway, I'mma get going.

Thanks for the cupcakes.

How about a crepe?

No thanks... I've got these cupcakes...

It's you?!

The crepe shop on the corner there only sells two hundred of their signature crepes each day. You need to get up early to have a chance at buying one.

Thankfully, their hours haven't changed.

What are you doing here?

I'm out for a walk.

In a city that has an arrest warrant out for you?

Sure.

What happened to the people at the Ecclesia Requietum?

They're all in a safe place. Once everything is over, they'll leave Laterano with me.

Where to?

Who knows.

Are you going to take Cecelia with you?

No, she left.

......?!

H-How did you...?

She has something she must do. It may seem trivial right now...

But she's found her path, and she will continue down it, overcoming obstacles we could never overcome, treading into predicaments that we wouldn't dare to face, and making it to faraway places that we could never imagine.

What are you talking about?

Relax, Brother Ezell. She's far more brilliant than you and I could ever dream to be.

But she might need you.

Why me? I'm nothing special.

This is pretty embarrassing to say, but I was playing hero in front of her the whole time. I told her my word is my bond, and I wouldn't mind losing my job...

But after I got home last night, I spent the whole night freaking out about everything that happened.

A mixed-blood Sankta, a fallen angel, a Legatus, the conference at the Basilica, the Sarkaz, and a strange heretical group...

How did I get mixed up in all this?

I thought I just wanted a decent job. A desk job would be all the better. I would go to work and leave on time, live a quiet, peaceful life... I figured that'd be pretty good for me.

Everything that happened the last couple days could be just like an interlude. I should count myself as lucky for being able to get away from it all before it's too late, and in a couple decades, I can tell stories about it to my friends...

That'd be a pretty solid life, wouldn't it?

Maybe I shouldn't even be talking to you right now... I should just turn and run.

Aren't you going to run, then?

......

There's no need to fool yourself.

How am I supposed to know... what it is that I really want?

You and Cecelia both asked the same question.

She asked you that too?

Phrased a little differently.

And how did you answer?

I told her a story.

Suddenly feeling like I shouldn't listen to you...

Why?

I just get the sense that you know how to influence people. What if you're about to sucker me into something here?

As long as you don't want to, you won't be.

That sounds awfully sketchy...

I'm here only to give you a message.

What comes next is for you to decide.

Cecelia is going to the old bell tower.

What is she doing there?

Saying her goodbyes.

......

Is something wrong?

Oh, Cecelia, aren't you scared, walking the streets all by yourself this early in the morning?

Where are those friends of yours?

Guide, it's Oren.

No matter. We'll see what he's planning first.

There is something I need to do here.

You're so little, but you have lots of big ideas going around in your head, huh?

I really don't get what that guy is thinking, but... sorry, little girl. I can't let you go.

Are you taking me to the Basilica?

The Basilica? No, no, Cecelia. I can't let you go to the Basilica.

As long as you don't go to the Basilica and the old man, you can go anywhere.

At first, I thought it wouldn't be so bad if Andoain took you away. He's had a change of heart, but it's no biggie. I'll do it myself.

It would be bad if I go to the Basilica?

It's hard to say, Cecelia. Hard to say.

You're actually really important to me, you know? Feoria and I were friends... a long time ago, but still...

Anyway, your very existence is much more useful than whatever it is you're thinking up in your little brain. If we put you to good use... you could be the greatest danger to Lateran City in a long time.

After all, you're a Sarkaz, but you also became a Sankta.

I don't really want to put Laterano in danger, but I need some leverage that can influence things... a bargaining chip that I can use in a deal.

And you could be such a precious bargaining chip. I wouldn't want to see you lose your effectiveness over a tiny, little threat.

I don't understand what you're saying.

You don't need to understand, Cecelia. I'm just trying to show you I'm sincere. I won't do anything to get you hurt. I'm never one to resort to violence, if peace is an option.

It doesn't matter what you want to do. Not now.

Could you move out of the way? I'm going to that bell tower.

Grr...

Didn't you hear? She wants you to get out of her way.

Mister Ezell! You came!

Yes, Cecelia. I promised to help you find your mama and be there when you said goodbye to her, right?

Aww. This is so touching. A mixed-blood girl between a rock and a hard place, with an executor who's true to his word... Am I watching the Lateran soap opera of the year? Makes me want to clap for you two.

But uh, if I could, I would rather not be the villain here. This is no fun.

Ngh!

Mister Ezell!

Sankta can't point our guns at our own kind, but violence comes in other forms. So that's no hill to die on, right?

Now! Cecelia, go! The bell tower is straight ahead!

But...!

I'll promise you one more thing—I'll be fine!

Alright...

I'll wait for you at the top, Mister Ezell.

Very nice. You came prepared, huh? I didn't expect you to be able to hold me here.

But still, even if I don't like screwing around with empathy, I can feel the fear in you.

Save it.

Have you ever considered that we might be walking the same road here?

We're definitely not right now, at least.

Show me what you've got, then.

Have you even realized the weight of the burden you're trying to shoulder?

Can that trainee executor really hold Oren there?

Oren's not taking this seriously, and Ezell isn't a Notarial Hall executor right now... He's not actually an obstacle to Oren.

Actually... Guide, while I would never go against your decisions, I can't say I really agree with this...

Cecelia should stay with the Pathfinders. It's not only for us, but for her sake too.

That isn't my decision. I can't decide her fate. This is a decision that only Cecelia can make for herself, Patia... Perhaps we should call it an honor to show her the choices before her.

Don't worry. What I must do remains the same.

*gasp*... *gasp*...

Kid, for an executor in training, you aren't half bad.

I... I'm still standing...

Looking to spend some time in the hospital, huh? I'm not out here to break bones, though.

You don't have to do this. You're just a normal guy living in Lateran City. Go home, lead a happy life. Munch on some cake or take a sip of tea, whatever.

I've made up my mind already.

You folks really like talking about choices and decisions, huh? Has it ever crossed your mind that there's a price to pay when you make decisions?

This was only going to be an insurance policy, but well... Sorry, fellas, I need your help.

We aren't here to help you, Oren. We're doing this because we think it's the right thing to do.

......

So what do you say? 'A wise man adapts himself to circumstances.'

Oh, that's a Yanese idiom, you see. It means...

Too bad, Ezell...

*Sigh*...

Federico!