Chapter 67
Chapter 67
The Black Hound dogs, who had been trailing Arietta, grew restless as she collapsed, just as Isaac had anticipated. He’d instructed them to leave her be, no matter what happened.
To offer no assistance, to simply stand by and watch, regardless of her plight. Let her be, whether she lives or dies. His orders also dictated that if she found Downstream unbearable and wished to return to the glass dome, they were to provide her with the designated vehicle. Those were his complete instructions.
Truthfully, they had been perplexed from the start. Wandering the streets of Downstream without any Purifier was suicidal. Yet Arietta showed no fear; she almost seemed to welcome the encroaching corruption, as if inviting it to consume her. Those ignorant of the countless deaths Arietta had experienced would judge her solely by common sense. This was Isaac’s miscalculation.
“What do we do?” one of them asked. Should they leave her or carry her back now? They were lost. Isaac was a fearsome figure, a rigid tyrant who dealt harsh punishments to those who misinterpreted his commands. He’d ordered them to leave Arietta to her fate. That was the order… but could they truly obey?
As if to worsen the situation, rain began to fall. Downstream rain, thick with grime, was black. Arietta’s white dress gradually stained a dirty grey.
“If things get worse…” one began, about to suggest moving her, when someone approached. Isaac’s hounds instinctively hid themselves, though they couldn’t explain why.
The newcomer was a tall young man carrying an umbrella, his features somewhat delicate. He wore the attire of Sky City, not Downstream. It was Marquis Benjamin Lenota, assigned to guard their residence while the others participated in the contamination survey.
***
Being confined to the house under the watchful eyes of Isaac’s guards was incredibly tedious and stifling. Benjamin couldn’t simply leave the residence unattended while Isaac’s men remained. Thus, whenever the Sky City Survey Corps conducted their research, two members were left behind.
“On duty” was a euphemism for confinement. Accustomed to a spacious Sky City mansion, this house, crammed with over twenty people, felt impossibly small to Benjamin.
“Would it be alright if I took a short walk around the area?” Benjamin requested. Their residence was situated in a relatively safe zone where such a request wouldn’t cause any significant issues. It was a reasonable distance from the glass dome mansion.
“Sign a waiver stating you’ll take responsibility for anything that happens outside,” one of Isaac’s hounds responded with blatant disrespect. Though deeply offended, Benjamin readily signed the document, absolving Isaac Tygra of any responsibility should harm befall him.
Dark clouds blanketed the sky. A flash of lightning followed by an ominous rumble of thunder underscored the threatening weather. While the impending storm might have deterred others, a slightly reckless thought crossed Benjamin’s mind.
I’ll just go out quickly and return before the weather gets any worse. He gathered his Purifier nebulizer, raincoat, and umbrella, and stepped outside. While Isaac had demanded the waiver, Benjamin knew that as long as he wore Sky City attire, he was unlikely to encounter serious trouble in this vicinity.
Everyone knew that harming a Sky City citizen would incur the wrath of the Big Cats. The inhabitants of this district were relatively affluent by Downstream standards, unlike those further south, driven to desperate, irrational struggles for survival.
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