WMMG Chapter 101

A few seconds later, the face of a man with a faint smile peeked out from behind the door.

“Uh… are you really sure about this?”

The man spoke obsequiously. It’s a man Noroshi had seen before: Nikolai, Goat’s older brother. Edward turned his shoulder and answered with a chilly voice.

“That’s your role. Make it happen.”

Nikolai smiled smugly and said, “Understood,” and then he disappeared from sight.

On the other side of the now-open door, there was no longer a trace of anyone. Despite being a large mansion, it felt eerily empty.

“Edward, what are you planning to do?”

A harsh voice asks the question. The words about retreating to regroup were unbelievable. The man in front of him has already decided the end of this civil unrest—and his own end as well.

In response to Yuichiro’s question, Edward blinked his eyes lightly.

“There’s nothing more I can do.”

Edward’s voice carried not a hint of emotion as he walked towards Yuichiro. The moment Edward’s palm touched Yuichiro’s lower abdomen, Yuichiro let out a strained breath.

“You’re carrying a child in your belly, aren’t you?”

This wasn’t a question but a statement, full of certainty from Edward. Yuichiro’s abdominal muscles shuddered instinctively. He quickly tried to swipe Edward’s hand away, but Edward grasped Yuichiro’s right shoulder faster, pushing him onto the bed in a single move.

“What are you—!”

The moment he shouted with a tense voice, his lower abdomen was sharply pressed in by Edward’s palm. Groaning from the pressure and pain, Yuichiro quickly grabbed Edward’s wrist with both hands. As he glared up at the man looming above him, Edward spoke with a flat tone.

“Should I abort it?”

Feeling his entire body bristle, Yuichiro could no longer conceal the fear that overwhelmed him; his body quivered uncontrollably. Suppressing his dread, he clenched his molars and asked, “Is this also part of your mission?”

“No, this is merely my own impulse,” Edward replied.

“Impulse?”

Returning the question with a puzzled tone, Edward briefly averted his gaze. He stared into the void, seemingly dazzled. “I want to defy God, just this once. I want to go against fate.”

At that, Yuichiro let out a derisive laugh as if trying to be brave. “Is that your reason for wanting to kill my child? Ridiculous.” He then continued, scoffing, “Do you really think something will change by doing that?” 

As he spat those words, Edward directed his gaze back at him, slightly furrowing his brows. The man’s eyes met his in what seemed like a state of confusion.

“I don’t want to change anything. I simply want to settle the score.”

“Settle the score?”

“It’s unfair, isn’t it?” Edward’s tone suddenly changed, his grip on Yuichiro’s lower abdomen slackened. With both arms leaning on the bed, he continued, his words almost a groan. “I lost everything, so why does Noah get everything? I didn’t want any of this, always, always loathing it. I want to quit it all, yet even that is not permitted…”

Edward’s breath grew erratic, the tremor in his breathing touching Yuichiro’s neck. “Why must my cherished things alone be taken away?”

The timbre of his voice was tinged with sorrow, the immeasurable despair of a man thrust into an unwanted role. The moment Yuichiro saw his trembling fingertips, he felt a sudden ache in his heart.

“Edward,” Yuichiro called his name.

Edward looked up, his captivating blue eyes staring intently at Yuichiro. As Yuichiro took a breath, Edward stole his lips in a biting kiss.

In a sudden movement, his tongue slid into Yuichiro’s mouth. The sensation of the lukewarm flesh wriggling inside made Yuichiro shudder. Before he could clamp his jaw down, Edward grasped his lower jaw, the force causing a grinding pain.

“Ah…ugh…”

Yuichiro let out a low groan as his upper palate was licked, Edward’s eyes remained open, observing him as if scrutinizing every reaction. In response to the persistent and almost annoying prodding of the tongue, Yuichiro clenched his right fist and swung it up, landing it on Edward’s firm cheekbone. Instantly, Edward’s lips parted, allowing Yuichiro to finally breathe.

Taking a deep breath, Yuichiro wiped his lips with the right fist he’d used to strike Edward’s left cheek. His lips were slightly damp with an indeterminate saliva.

“What the hell are you doing?”

In a fit of anger, Yuichiro spat out the words.

Edward, with his left cheek red and swollen, stared at Yuichiro. “You’re what I want.”

At the blunt words, Yuichiro felt a shiver crawl across his skin. Edward’s voice was devoid of any emotion—no lust, no affection. It sounded as inorganic as if a machine had simply announced pre-set words.

Edward slowly reached out his hand, his cold fingertips brushing against Yuichiro’s cheek.

“I want to take you with me.”

Chills ran down Yuichiro’s spine at Edward’s whispered words. But the moment he met Edward’s eyes, the fear vanished. Edward’s eyes were slightly moist, filled with confusion, defeat, and fear like a lost child. For a moment, an overwhelming sense of pity welled up within Yuichiro, making it hard to breathe.

With hesitation, Yuichiro reached out to touch Edward’s cheek. Placing his palm against Edward’s slightly red, swollen left cheek, he spoke softly.

“What you want isn’t me. From now on, you should search for what you truly desire.”

“There’s no ‘from now on’.”

Rejecting the idea, Edward shook his head from side to side. His gaze then slid off toward the window.

“This is the end.”

The blunt statement sent shivers down Yuichiro’s spine. He turned his face to meet Edward’s gaze. What he saw through the window was smoke, lit by moonlight. Black smoke billowed up into the air, enveloping the view from the window.

The sight of the smoke fueled a burning rage inside of him. His skin quivered as he unconsciously grabbed Edward’s collar with both hands.

“Did you set fire to the mansion?”

“Yes.”

“You damn fool!”

Yuichiro pushed Edward aside and got out of the bed.

Edward remained seated, staring at Yuichiro with a somewhat vacant expression.

“The lower floors have been doused in oil by Nikolai. There’s no way out.”

Yuichiro recalled Edward’s earlier words to Nikolai. So, this was the “duty” he was talking about. 

Edward’s factual tone incited more anger in Yuichiro. He ran his hands through his hair and let out a low groan of frustration.

“Finally, it’s over,” Edward muttered, as if talking to himself, staring into space.

Despite the icy words, Yuichiro could sense Edward’s relief. As if finally freed from a terrible role, it was a relief teetering on the edge of despair. Edward let out a small sigh, which was filled with both anger and a profound sense of emptiness. Yuichiro took determined steps towards Edward and grabbed his wrist.

“Let’s go.”

“Where to?”

“Find a way to escape.”

At Yuichiro’s words, Edward slightly lowered the corners of his eyebrows, even showing a semblance of a smirk.

“I told you, there’s no escape.”

“Just because you say that doesn’t mean I intend to burn to death here quietly. Come with me.”

“Why?”

Puzzled, Edward questioned. Glaring into his eyes, Yuichiro yelled in one breath.

“Such an ending is just too cruel, damn it!”

Words like those of a petulant child spilled from his lips. These were the same words Noroshi had said earlier. Yuichiro felt ashamed of his own childish tone, but there was no other way to put it. Such an ending is just too miserable, he deemed.

 

He then looked at Edward, who was still sitting on the bed. With eyes that resembled those of a child worn out from crying, he looked up at Yuichiro and blinked teary-eyed.

“Ogami Yuichiro, I’ve had enough.”

“What are you tired of?”

“Living in this world.”

His words were painfully sorrowful. Edward slightly moved his throat up and down.

“Just end it for me.”

At his plea, Yuichiro felt his breath stop. He could feel Edward’s grip around his hands loosened before the latter limply hanging his arms down.

Why did I suddenly feel like crying when I saw him hanging his head like that?

Suppressing the rising tears, Yuichiro groaned, “I can’t.”

This was the same word he remembered saying when he first met Edward.

Edward lifted his head and smiled faintly. “You still say things like a child.”

To his bitter-sweet tone, Yuichiro responded, “I won’t let you end it.”

“Why?”

“Because I know you’ve been suffering all this time.”

At Yuichiro’s words, Edward slightly lifted one corner of his mouth. However, his mocking smile quickly vanished, replaced by a disheartened expression as he looked up at Yuichiro.

Overlooking that expression, Yuichiro continued, “Live, Edward.”

“Live and do what?”

As if to say there’s no meaning to living, Edward grimaced, to which Yuichiro answered while grinding his teeth.

“I don’t know what you’ll do. But, if you’re alive, someday you’ll find a day when you’ll think it was good to have lived. Live till that day, even if you have to crawl.”

At Yuichiro’s absurd words, Edward weakly shook his head side to side. Ignoring that gesture, Yuichiro forcefully grabbed one of Edward’s arms.

“Stand up.”

“I’m already—”

“Enough, just stand up!”

He shouted, and for the first time, anger seeped into Edward’s face.

Edward opened his mouth wide and shouted in retaliation, “There’s no reason for me to live! “It’s already happening!”  

Like a scuffle between grade-schoolers, Yuichiro forcefully pulled Edward’s arm even harder. Staring into his eyes from up close, he shouted, “People are waiting for you, you know!”

The moment he yelled, Edward’s lips froze half-open. He stared at Yuichiro in bewilderment. Yuichiro yanked his arm again, and Edward clumsily rose from the bed.  

“Don’t keep Noroshi waiting. If you want to die, meet Noroshi first and hear that you’re not needed.”

Even Yuichiro himself thought it was a ridiculous thing to say. Still, to make the man before him reconsider, he’d say anything. That hearty big man would surely keep waiting until Edward arrived.  

Edward said nothing more. His shoulders slumped, and he let himself be led by Yuichiro. Gripping Edward’s arm, Yuichiro quickly headed for the door. As they stepped into the hallway, they saw smoke rising from the floors below.

Crouching, they sprinted toward the staircase. The stairs going down were filled with smoke, and orange flames flickered ominously. Escaping downward was clearly impossible.  

Making that judgment, Yuichiro began racing up the stairs.

“There’s no exit above.”  

At the voice coming from behind, Yuichiro, while covering his mouth with one hand, asked, “Is there a balcony?”  

“Yes.”  

“Run faster!”

With a shout, he heard Edward’s disgruntled voice.  

“Let go of my arm. It’s hard to run.”  

While annoyed, Yuichiro released Edward’s arm. Instead, he tightly grasped his cold palm. Like school children, they ran up the stairs hand-in-hand.

After running up several flights, they found no more stairs. Whether the smoke was rising fast or not, the top floor was already starting to fill. Each breath brought in a bitter air that made him cough involuntarily.  

“This way,” Edward pulled Yuichiro’s hand. Led by him, they entered a room on the top floor. Crossing the room, they stepped out onto a large open balcony.  

The moment they did, fresh air filled their lungs. Suppressing a cough, Yuichiro looked at Edward, who was staring at the scenery with a blank face. But even that view was gradually being obscured by the rising smoke.

“Ogami Yuichiro,”  

Edward suddenly called his name.  

“What are you fighting for?”  

It was a question Edward had asked him the first time they met. Yuichiro stared back at him, his lips half-open.  

“If you asked me before, I would have said for money. But now, it’s different. I want to see the beautiful world Noah will create, with Temeraire. I want to make those two happy. That’s why I’m fighting.”

Hearing the answer, Edward smiled softly, as if resigning himself to something.  

“Are you really a goddess?”  

It wasn’t a mocking tone, just a quiet, affirming one.

Just then, a rumbling shook the balcony.  

“Edward!”  

Yuichiro yelled and instinctively grabbed Edward’s arm. A large crack appeared in the balcony and a thunderous cracking sound echoed.  

“It’s collapsing—”

Before Yuichiro could finish his sentence, the cracked balcony tilted, and the burning mansion started to crumble at the edge of his vision.