Thirty Days of Classes, part 21 (before battle)
<Well... I'm supposed to teach this class, but...>
<... honestly, I'm not entirely sure what to do here.>
<It's not like I can suddenly teach you guys to hear the fathoms of other people's hearts...>
Yeah... it's not like we can suddenly have a heart-to-heart out of nowhere, right?
And that is precisely why I have installed this box called "Messages from the Hearts" by the door here when the lessons first began.
<Messages from the Hearts?>
The greatest strength of "Messages from the Hearts" is its anonymity. Here, people can anonymously share the concerns that have been eating away at them without the fear of judgment.
Hm... Yeah, this seems like a great idea. I can see how everyone can be more honest about their feelings behind the masks of anonymity.
The box is quite heavy. It seems that everyone's been making quite the liberal use of this.
Let's see. The one on the bottom has to be the first message; let's see what it says.
Oi, I've got to ask. Do those "consultations" even do anything?
<... Does this "mask of anonymity" even do anything?>
Also, what's the point of these messages anyway? If you've got to whinge, whinge at their face.
Well... I ain't got much else to say, so... uh... Ah, I've got one. My neighbor next door keeps makin' weird noises at night, so do somethin' about that, yeah?
Somethin' about a "smoking head"... over and over again.
The point is, it's been gettin' on my nerves. If that doesn't get taken care of in a week, I'll deal with it in my own way.
<Deal with it how...?>
... It's all just personal grievances.
Um... let's see what the next one says.
Who dares harrow the Executive Manager with such useless, weak-minded complaints?!
If you're going to continue wasting the Executive Manager's precious time and cause them trouble, I will personally hold you responsible for that blunder. You best prepare yourself for consequences.
Wow, it's like she's right here, speaking right into my ear.
... Never thought written words could cause hearing damage.
<... Moving on...>
I don't know if it's just me, but...
... someone's probably been spying on these papers, huh.
I've got proof, too. I folded this piece of paper up into a Padlock Knot shape, but whoever spied on it did a pretty bad job of replicating it.
Oh, and another thing. My compass disappeared.
It's the compass I got for surviving the hellish depths of the Belle Morte Trenches...
We're going to have to re-establish some house rules soon.
A theft report? Did... one of you steal her compass or something?
Nah, no way... We'd never steal from each other, no matter how hard things get.
Something... troubles me.
Ooh, finally. Someone finally submitted a real concern here.
Was it the Type-A wire that caused the explosion, or was it caused by replacing the clamp part from the shattering gear?
…….
Ah, the likely answer has been found. Do not concern yourselves with this message.
<…….>
<Well, that's that, I guess....>
... Look, I felt like I should really share this with everyone...
Hmm, this one might be something serious for once.
I can't just let this slip away like nothing happened... ya know?
Yeah, I'm talking about... the incident that happened aboard Mephi sometime ago...
Remember how someone smashed an alarm clock against Dante's head while they were sleeping? No one ended up figuring out what happened there, right?
<Ahh...>
... You're going to have to bring me up to speed on this.
Yeah... I don't know exactly when this was, but there was a loud shattering noise outside at night, so we all ran out to see what happened...
<But no one managed to find any credible clue, so... I guess we just let it slide?>
Anyhoo, Dante said they were a-ok, so we just moved on from it, but...
I'm telling ya, I saw what I saw. I saw Greg's... bug arm.
So here's my guess. What if he happened to lose his balance... while carrying that alarm clock with one hand?
Ya know what I mean? I'm trusting the anonymity thingy on this~!
<…!>
<Gregor... He wouldn't...>
Mm.
The alarm clock, broken due to shock at the time of the incident, was pointing precisely at 22:32.
And...
... at that hour, only two individuals were awake for the night watch duty.
<…!>
Guys, this is turning into like... a whole investigation...
<Around 22:00, one of the two individuals who were on the night watch duty was... >
Yep, Miss Faust was one of them...
Huh, hey... Dante...
Didn't you have a brief conversation with Faust that morning?
<Hmm, now that I think back on it...>
<I did have a talk with Faust that day. Briefly.>
<Faust made a few criticisms on my command style, and she was right, but... I pretended to not hear her because I didn't have anything to retort with...>
…….
<Don't tell me Faust actually held a grudge against me for that...!>
So, fellas, uh... I don't think anyone's noticed this, but...
I noticed a dusting of cigarette ash near the shattered alarm clock.
As you know, Manager Bud, there's only two among us who smoke.
But one of them stayed put in his own room, know what I mean? There's a witness, too.
Unless that witness is a cowardly liar... I'm sure she will come forward and tell everyone exactly what happened that night...
Hnnnnngh... I shall prove unto thee, that I am no cowardly weaver of lies!
In truth, among numerous cosplays I had wished to accomplish... was the duo of Cap'n Skorps and the One-eyed Navigator...
Aha! To explain the lore of Cap'n Skorps - this tale begineth... verily... in year 757...
After a very long read...
Alas, the possibility of procuring a scorpion arm proved more dubious than one could have expected. Thus did I convince young Gregor to join forces with me - to cosplay together and capture our glorious forms in photographs! Though 'twas a pity he had no pipe, only a cigarette between his teeth.
And young Ishmael's compass... was to be the Cap'n's trinket, and for that purpose I had briefly borrowed it from her room...
O, woe is me! For I, regrettably, spilled an entire can of tuna, another prop - and the compass was swallowed by its greasy juices...
Despite my best efforts to restore it, the tunny-aroma lingereth still...
I beg thy forgiveness, Manager Esquire... sob...
…….
<Well, at least we now know who took Ishmael's compass.>
Frustrating.
T.C.
G.W.N.N & M.T.L.
Is this like... a code?
<Sinclair? Translation, please...>
Uh...
Yeah, trying to parse that from written text is usually way harder...
I normally try to read the speaker's tone and the general context of her words, so...
Unfortunately, the plot thickens...
Guys, are we... are we actually going to try to find the culprit?
... Nausea bubbled inside me like I'd just been reminded of a persistent itch I'd managed to forget. Nngh, it's like someone shoved a tuning fork in my head...
Guys...
Alright, that's it. Clockhead, read up.
I'm goin' to confront the sod and tell 'em to tell it like it is if there's somethin' buggin' 'em, instead of whinging in his sleep.
Now where is he?!
<Hey, nice. Heath - I mean, looks like this Anonymous person's trying to get to the bottom of this.>
Dante...
Fare you well...? It is I... the Sinner first in the order...
Apologies are in order - ever since the incident, I could hardly lull myself to a restful sleep...
In truth, it was none other than myself who pummeled your head with... a clock...
To explain this, one must first explore the - (The sentence cuts off, as this part of the paper has been torn off.)
Mm... worry not about what exists no longer. I will not embark on a multiloquent ascribing of excuses.
I write before you in shame, and express my willingness to accept any punishment you see fit to dole out.
I seek nothing but your forgiveness...
<I can't believe the culprit was Yi S - I mean, that Sinner...>
Good thing he fessed up, but doesn't something feel off about the whole thing?
... What if he's just trying to take the heat?
But it seems to me that the #1 Sinner doesn't want to share the story any further.
Maybe it's best we not dig into it unnecessarily.
Oh? Hello, Dante.
I was taking a walk near here when I found a piece of paper somebody tore off. So I'm returning it here.
Hope it finds its way to the original writer~
<... Thus returns the #1 Sinner's paper...>
<This has to be the key to resolving this case...!>
I hurriedly unfurled the paper.
- the truth of what transpired.
You ever find yourself wondering?
Wondering if that crackling fire-like thing on top of the manager's head...
... is hot like real fire... or if it would not give off any heat. Curious, right?
Ah... don't worry about it, Yi Sang.
It's not like we have any other way to tell other than touching it ourselves, ha ha.
Hm... indeed... Unproven phenomena cannot be confirmed without direct means of observation...
Ah, they're asleep. Must've been pretty tired...
Mm, indeed. The ticking noise has shrunk in volume.
…….
…….
It seems that we have just shared a thought.
What if we were to just... quickly check...
... while the manager's asleep?
Gulp...
Perhaps the sound of phlegm sinking past my gullet... makes far too much noise for this task...
Yeah, well... I'm just finding out how loud my heartbeat can get...
…!
Uh... Yi Sang...!
The alarm next to the manager...
It's about to go off...! You have a minute, at most...!
Ah... Ahh...!
I shall - I shall interface with the timepiece...
Hmph...
Look at you rats, playing a played-out prank.
…!
<AAAAAAARGH!>
<And that is indeed the full tale of what has transpired... hm. Under the lens of hindsight's illumination, it would almost appear that I am making a secret accusation to a fellow of mine... It would be easier on my heart to simply assume the entire weight of culpability myself...>
<... and that's where it ends.>
The culprit was right under our noses the entire time.
…….
Sorry, Dante...
I... should've been upfront about it, but...
... Outis was so adamant about utterly punishing the culprit that I couldn't bring myself to... you know...
<Hm... can't deny that...>
... tell you the truth in time.
…….
To tell you another truth...
... I think I might have an idea as to why I've been made a student alongside Miss Xichun.
There must've been something that the company was expecting from me, but it's just not showing up, so... they must be making me take these classes to compensate for it.
Everyone else is boldly facing their own issues and slowly overcoming them...
... while I'm still here, feeling like I'm stagnating in place.
They've been telling me that my time's yet to come, but...
I don't know. I just get the feeling that that ship might've sailed for me already.
It was clear to me that Sinclair wasn't just talking about physical training or his combat prowess.
It's about something that more than half the Sinners had faced and were facing at this point. About his past and the path that lies ahead. The guilt and the pressure of having failed to confront it...
... was never going to be easy for him to let go.
<I don't think anyone's got the perfect idea of how the whole trajectory of their lives is going to be.>
<That's why we're all on the bus, isn't it?>
... You know, you can just shout at me to get my act together, like Heathcliff does.
<Oh I will. If I have to.>
Whatever that was... you guys managed to talk it out, huh.
All I heard was that ticking noise.
Ah... sorry about that. What Dante said was -
Hey, don't bother. I just needed a quick glance at that look on your face to feel that tick-tock with my heart.
Thus the curious case of the alarm clock came to an end.
<So... what do you guys think Ryōshū was trying to say?>
... Two culprits.
Guy with nightly nightmares and... my translator.
<... I see. >
Sinclair and I sat there for a moment, absorbing the awkward silence.