Abigail stared at me with a shocked expression.
This was her room—or rather, her confinement room.
She lay on her bed in comfortable clothes, her hair tied in a ponytail, reading a book.
With a potato chip in her mouth.
Potato chips…!
Lydia was beside me.
Here's the situation:
If Lydia has the control device, I can move freely.
The Butchers operate on a loan system. If their schedule is free, Lydia or Ferris can take me wherever they want. Realizing this, I decided to ask Lydia, who I'd gotten somewhat friendly with, for a favor.
She agreed immediately. That's how we ended up here, visiting Abigail's room to see how things went.
As expected, Lydia had free access. She's the daughter of a powerful figure, after all.
That's how we smoothly made our way to this room.
That's the story so far.
By the way, visiting Titania's place is off-limits. Even Butchers have restricted areas. Dangerous alien prisoners in solitary confinement, armories, administrative facilities�important areas like these are off-limits unless there's a reason. Well, I'm treated as a dangerous weapon, so it makes sense.
Lydia waved her hand cheerfully as she entered the room. Abigail waved back. I followed Lydia's lead and waved timidly behind her.
Lydia immediately sat on Abigail's bed, smiling and clasping her hands. They must be chatting. Despite barely knowing each other, they seemed close.
Now… I just mentioned a friend's name without thinking, but this is complicated.
Abigail and I aren't meeting for the first time, but we've never spoken before. We have to act naturally so no one suspects anything. Lydia will hear everything we say. There's no time for rehearsal.
Abigail secretly caught my eye. I locked my red gaze on her, trying to make eye contact. Our unspoken understanding is being tested.
"Jevaudan."
Lydia gestured for me to come over. Let's do this.
I took the lead in acting.
"I'm Jevaudan."
"…I'm Abigail."
We pretended to meet for the first time.
She's an elite, after all. She caught on instantly.
Abigail looked briefly confused at my first words but quickly clenched her mouth, her eyes sharpening with a mix of caution and accusation.
Well done. From her perspective, a violator who doesn't understand her dignity is standing in front of her, so it's natural.
—But it stung a little.
"And I'm Lydia. I've talked to Abigail once before. Remember when Jevaudan was… you know… and I kissed you? Anyway, Jevaudan wanted to talk to you, so we came to visit today."
"Talk to me?"
Abigail gave me a suspicious look. Was her acting a bit over the top?
"You're one of my masterpieces, so I wanted to talk to you."
"…So, if we talk, will you stop hurting me?"
…What was that?
I know it's acting, but being cold-shouldered by Abigail hurts.
To hide my shock, I looked down and stayed silent. Suddenly, there was a loud bang.
I looked up to see Lydia forcefully pressing Abigail's face against the wall.
"Jevaudan is showing you mercy. Understand? You have no right to talk like that. You should be grateful to talk to Jevaudan. Got it?"
She's so intimidating. I'm shocked.
Right. I forgot because of her good-girl gal vibe, but Lydia's an alien.
She sees humans as little more than wild animals. To her, Abigail, locked up now, is just a pest species in a cage.
I quickly intervened.
"Lydia, she's mine. Don't treat her too roughly."
Lydia let go of Abigail's head and smiled, "If Jevaudan says so." Then she continued:
"But don't forget, Abigail. Jevaudan is a terrifying Butcher, and a special one. He's highly regarded by the military now. You're just a sacrifice, an inferior being. You're not someone he should normally talk to�right?"
Lydia smiled at the end.
Her praise made me happy, but Abigail's eyes, with a small trickle of blood at her temple, were a bit scary.
The way she looked at me in the dark…
Ouch…
It's okay, I'm more on Abigail's side. I tried to convey that with my gaze, but it probably didn't get through. I hate not being able to change my expression.
Then we started talking.
It was a relief. Communication in the prison's membrane is slow. Trying to convey details is exhausting.
I introduced myself, though there's not much to say, so I started with stories of expeditions with Abigail.
Lydia showed interest. She doesn't know much about the outside world. My stories of rampaging outside seemed fascinating to her.
I also demonstrated my Skin Disguise ability. It's common knowledge among aliens, so no need to hide it.
Both Abigail and Lydia were surprised, though Lydia seemed less familiar with military matters.
I also mentioned participating in a human execution recently. I wanted Abigail's opinion later. I reported my recent activities to Abigail in this self-narrative way.
"Wait… Jevaudan, you fought with Ashera again?"
"She suddenly came at me."
"Did you win?"
"Yeah. Her knife broke, so I beat her into submission."
"Whoa… amazing…"
Lydia stared at me, mouth agape and slightly intimidated. Abigail interrupted.
"Ashera?"
"She's a friend of Lydia's. A bit rough."
I asked something that had been on my mind.
"That day, Ashera was so angry. Do you know why, Lydia?"
"Hmm… Ashera's from the Exmute dragon clan, a purebred family. Remember when Jevaudan took her down in the schoolyard? She's been furious lately, saying she'd get revenge. It's been annoying."
Lydia shrugged.
"That's it. She'll calm down now. I made the power difference clear."
This time, it was a fair one-on-one fight with weapons. If she still bothers me, she's just a thug. Plus, Ashera attacked prematurely.
"Did Ashera have the Lexel?"
"Lexel?"
I tilted my head. Lydia continued, "It's a spear. Her family's heirloom, said to pierce anything."
Probably not as strong as my Butcher Lance, though.
"She probably had it. That's why my knife broke."
"You beat Ashera with the Lexel…? Jevaudan, you're really strong…"
Lydia's respectful gaze made me uncomfortable.
She suddenly remembered something and said, "Oh, by the way, what did you mean by 'that's it'? Is there another reason Ashera was angry?"
Maybe this is risky… but it's Lydia, so it's fine.
"When I pushed her down in the schoolyard, I might have… gone in a bit. If it broke, tell her I'm sorry."
"Oh. I see. Got it. Leave it to me!"
"…"
Lydia casually replied, while Abigail was speechless.
Lydia's reaction surprised me. Do aliens not care about virginity? Or maybe it's just Lydia. Hmm…
I hope she doesn't casually tell Ashera, "Hey, I heard you broke? My bad!" and get killed…