Unrequited Love, Lost for the Better - Chapter 31

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※ This work contains depictions of coercive relationships, explicit language, and other graphic content. Reader discretion is advised.

[What?]

[Human, don’t you understand the situation?]

[We won’t let this slide!]

With angry voices, the vines coiled tighter around Collette’s body. She couldn’t breathe, but she didn’t back down.

“If you—cough—if by ‘Slaughterer’ you mean Valen, then you’ve done something stupid.”

Rumble…

As soon as she finished speaking, a vibration like an avalanche shook the ground. It was Valen. As Collette expected, the voices screamed and chattered. A force of that magnitude was like an unavoidable disaster.

“You want to stop him? Then tell him where I am.”

Collette said that sometimes visible fear was more effective than invisible threats. Sure enough, she could feel the voices hesitating.

[…Really?]

[Will it work…?]

[But…]

The small murmurs in her head gathered and scattered repeatedly. After waiting a little longer, the voices spoke as if they’d made a decision.

[…No.]

[If we tell the Slaughterer where this is, won’t he come running right away?]

[We want to hurt the Slaughterer, not get hurt ourselves!]

That didn’t work. Clicking her tongue inwardly, Collette lowered her eyelids.

Still, it’s not a complete loss.

If the Labyrinth’s goal was to cause Valerian pain, she could use that psychology to steer the situation in her favor.

“Why do you want to hurt him?”

[…The human doesn’t need to know.]

[Because the Slaughterer hurt us!]

[Hey!]

Collette pressed her lips together. She couldn’t laugh. What mattered now was seriousness. She needed to convince the Labyrinth that she was on their side.

“If you want to hurt him, this won’t work.”

[It won’t…?]

[Why?]

[Why not?]

“A hostage situation only works if the other side is certain whether the hostage is alive or dead. But you want him to suffer without even telling him if the hostage is alive or dead.”

Collette pointed out that an invisible threat couldn’t be perceived as a threat. The voices fell silent. They hadn’t thought that far.

“You said it hurts when he keeps rampaging. If you do as I say, you won’t hurt anymore, and you’ll get what you want more efficiently.”

Collette drew on her confident gaze, tone, and gestures—honed from research presentations—even as she flopped around like a fish bound in vines, and whispered what the Labyrinth might want.

Finding her words quite sweet, the Labyrinth was silent for a while. Finally, the voices spoke again.

[If we get what we want, human, what about you?]

“…Huh?”

[Why do you want to hurt the Slaughterer?]

[Humans usually try to protect each other.]

“……”

It was an unexpected question.

Why did she want to hurt him? Of course it was a lie. Since the Labyrinth seemed unfamiliar with human psychology, she had planned to pretend to cooperate and trick her way out.

But on the other hand, the Labyrinth’s doubt was valid. The Labyrinth had a reason to torment and hurt the “Slaughterer” Valerian—but Collette didn’t.

The Labyrinth found it strange that Collette, a fellow human and the bait to torment the “Slaughterer,” would have no reason to want to hurt him.

To deceive someone, truth mixed with lies feels more real.

So to deceive the Labyrinth into believing she would hurt their “Slaughterer,” Collette needed to show some of her own wounds as well.

“He also… gave me pain.”

Collette’s voice trembled weakly, as if merely recalling it hurt.

The voices were startled.

[The human hurt you?]

[The same living being?]

[Strange. He seemed to grovel before you.]

At their bewildered reaction, Collette felt bitterness in her mouth. She didn’t explain that the same person could act differently depending on their stance.

“He’s been ignoring what’s precious to me for years. So it hurts.”

[Hmm…?]

[What’s precious?]

[So you want revenge on the Slaughterer too, human?]

The Labyrinth didn’t seem to fully understand her words. But it did understand that Collette was in pain because of the Slaughterer Valerian.

Nodding, Collette looked up at the Galaxy Stones and spoke.

“So let’s make a deal. I’ll help you with your revenge.”

* * *

Crash!

With a loud explosion, a large hole burst open in one wall of the Labyrinth. Valerian swatted away falling Galaxy Stones with his gloved hand and pressed forward.

“…Collette!”