"Yes. It's a device prepared to use once that damn Eve is captured."
After news spread that I had caught Eve, the guild master brought out something from the mansion that I couldn't quite describe accurately with my imagination alone. It was a large glass tank with numerous long tubes attached, and outside the tank, there was a pump connected to those tubes.
I couldn't understand how this device was supposed to be used. When I asked, the guild master replied with a proud expression:
"Could you explain it a bit more clearly?"
"Of course. This is both a warning to prevent such a heinous pirate like Eve from ever appearing again and a tool to exact our revenge. It's called a preservation device."
"Preservation device?"
"Yes. We sedate the target and trap them inside this glass tank. Then, we use this special syringe to completely stiffen their muscles. We harden them to the point of limestone, so they can't move at all. Once used, there's no going back, and they can't die either."
"So, it's just killing them."
"No. Even with this injection, Eve will never die. That's why we have that pump over there."
The merchant pointed to the pump outside. I was curious about its purpose too. When the merchant pressed a button attached to the bottom of the tank, the pump started operating on its own. After briefly demonstrating its rapid pumping action, the merchant stopped it and explained:
"That pump will act as a heart, circulating blood through Eve's body. We'll inject nutrients directly into her veins, and since we won't inject anything into her brain, she'll still be able to think. She'll literally become a living statue. As long as we're alive, Eve will remain here as a statue, reflecting on her heinous life."
Isn't this the kind of idea only demons could come up with? I was slightly shocked by the cruelty of this execution method. If these people could think of something like this, it seemed like Eve should have just killed them all.
"But will this method last long?"
"We tested it on a mermaid before, so it's fine."
These weren't ordinary people. I shook my head and looked at the mermaid I had brought. Her face was deathly pale as she alternated her gaze between me and the guild master. As the leader of the Mermaid Island, hearing that she'd be executed like this, there was no way she could keep her sanity.
"No, right? This isn't right, is it?"
The mermaid whispered to me in a trembling voice. If they had just said they'd kill her, she might have accepted death calmly. But even for a mermaid of her age, this situation seemed terrifying. She could barely contain herself. When I brought the tightly bound mermaid instead of Eve, the guild master asked with a curious expression:
"But you brought a mermaid instead of Eve. What's this mermaid's…?"
The mermaid looked at me with a desperate expression. I hesitated for a moment. After all, I needed to get along with Eve in the future. If I handed over her mother, there was no way Eve would communicate with me. No matter how justified it was, Eve wouldn't think logically. When it came to family, emotions always trumped reason.
And to preserve her like this and use her as a landmark—if Eve found out, she might try to kill me at any moment. After considering everything, I concluded that taking both Eve and this mermaid was the right choice.
"Ah, she's a mermaid I brought for witness testimony."
Yes, both Eve and this mermaid had committed great sins, enough to be turned into human body exhibits. But preserving someone alive like this felt like crossing a serious line. If Eve found out her mother had been treated this way, even if I tied her up, she might come after me with a knife later. The guild master rubbed his hands together and asked me:
"I see. But what do you plan to do with Eve…?"
Eve was currently locked up in the guard's underground dungeon, bound with multiple layers of chains. Since I had captured her, her fate was mine to decide. The guild master looked desperate to use this preservation device and turn Eve into a landmark for the trading city.
I cleared my throat and spoke in a deliberately religious tone:
"Repentance is crucial for every criminal. From what I've heard, Eve is a half-human, half-mermaid, and her origins trace back to the slave market, where she was abused by humans. Our society shares the blame for Eve's murders and assaults on women."
"A-Are you saying…?"
I roughly explained Eve's backstory from her character setting. The guild master seemed to understand what I was getting at. He looked sorrowful, then his face twisted as he said to me:
"But what about my innocent wife? She was kidnapped and raped by pirates for no reason! What about the souls of the mermaid hunters? The adventurers who sought rewards for defeating pirates? How do we comfort the broken hearts of those women?"
Frankly, it wasn't my problem. From what I'd heard, if they were willing to capture mermaids for biological experiments, they were clearly partly responsible for Eve's actions.
I shook my head with a sorrowful expression.
"There's nothing I can say, Guild Master. But Pirate Eve has lived a life of murder, persecution, and discrimination without ever being given a chance for rehabilitation. Isn't it the path of religion to help such a person reintegrate into society?
Everyone deserves love. Religious figures exist to give them that chance."
"My Lord!"
The guild master looked even more desperate as he shouted at me. But there was nothing he could do. Whether I handed the criminal over to the city or took her for myself, it was my right. Even this mermaid I brought—technically, she was my property, as I had hunted and captured her.
"Guild Master, we must love one another. Everyone deserves a chance to reenter society and start anew. As the High Priest of the Southern Branch of the Great God Church and the highest recipient of this Eve capture operation, I will take custody of Eve."
I drew the line there. With that said, no matter how much the guild master protested, there would be no issue. The mermaid, still tightly bound, looked at me and spoke:
"Heh."
Was she hiccupping?
Hero A.A. was preparing to leave the city with a few female sailors. When she saw me, she smiled brightly and waved. I waved back and asked her:
"Hero, where are you headed? Isn't it about time you visited the Elf Kingdom…?"
"Oh, I definitely need to see Erina, but this matter is more urgent right now."
"This matter…?"
I glanced at the women. The sailors still hadn't fully realized they were free from Eve. The hero seemed intent on personally taking these women back to their homeland.
They trembled as they looked at the hero, me, and the mermaid I had bound. One of the sailors pointed at the mermaid and said:
"T-That mermaid needs to die! She's insane! She just laughed as she watched my husband die… and swam after the sailors trying to escape to kill them…"
The mermaid tilted her head slightly and stared at the sailor. The sailor screamed and hid behind the hero. The hero shielded the sailor and asked the mermaid:
"Are you repenting for your sins?"
"Heh… Are you repenting?"
The mermaid stuck out her tongue and asked the hero. Both the hero and the sailors looked confused. The hero asked again:
"What are you repenting for?"
"Heh… Mermaid hunters killed my children. They were sold into slavery, used as bait, all dead. Sometimes mermaid skeletons washed up on my island. We're just as intelligent as you, so why treat us like this? How was I supposed to survive? Do you think I could stay sane? If I had come to the harbor begging, 'Please don't kill us,' would you have spared me? You would have beheaded me as the leader of Mermaid Island."
"B-But what does that have to do with anything? I didn't sell mermaids… I was just traveling! Until your crazy daughter captured me and forced me into this hellish situation, I was just traveling!"
"Is that so unfair?"
The mermaid asked again. The sailor nodded and shouted:
"Yes! It's unfair, you bitch!"
"Heh… But what does that have to do with me? As you said, we didn't attack humans first. We were just peaceful mermaids, and you didn't care. You should just accept your husband's death. Misfortune strikes without warning. You just met a storm."
"What…?"
"A storm. Right? An inevitable storm. Everyone faces storms when they sail dangerous seas. Do you think humans can dominate this land forever? How far can you go treating other races as slaves? Do you think only elves, humans, and dwarves can live happily forever? Evangeline was right. We should have done as she said."
"What?"
A strange name had just slipped from the mermaid's mouth. The mermaid looked at me and asked:
"Why? What's so curious?"
"Evangeline? Did you just say Evangeline?"
"Yes, Evangeline. A wizard who came to Mermaid Island. She called herself Evangeline. She moved us mermaids to another settlement. She said she'd give us power to destroy this city, but we refused. It would never end. Frankly, this was more fun."
As the conversation turned serious, the hero looked puzzled. She seemed to have forgotten the name Evangeline while hovering between life and death. Thanks to that, I didn't need to explain.
"Well, let's meet again next time, Priest."
"Goodbye, Hero."
I waved at the hero. The mermaid lay down in the cart, asking for water.
Watching her, I fell into thought. I had another reason to take this mermaid with me. The name Evangeline had come up again.