Chapter 449: Just an Idiot
"Then the people you mentioned earlier—the one who doesn't trust the Guerrilla Squad and wants to leave Reunion to seek their own path… he was the one who started that too, wasn't he?"
Putting together what Talulah had said before, Steven quickly sorted things out in his head.
Once he slapped the label of fanatical exclusionist onto this so-called Brull, everything suddenly made perfect sense.
This kind of person was a lot like those who loved shouting slogans about "X lives matter." Compared to people who simply sought equal rights, these types tended to act far more extremely—and far more exclusionarily.
Steven could understand why such people came to think this way. But that didn't mean he could empathize with them. To distrust even help from others, to label everyone outside one's own group as outsiders—wasn't that, in itself, a twisted form of discrimination?
And this Brull fellow was clearly exactly that kind of person.
Before, Steven had only thought that the guy's attitude toward him was lukewarm at best, and that he lacked backbone—though at least he knew when to bend. But now?
Now it was clear.
He was just an idiot.
Recalling that Brull had also been among those who once questioned Talulah's position as leader, Steven's impression of him worsened even further.
"So?" Steven asked, restraining the hostility in his gaze. "What are you planning to do with him?"
In the end, Steven chose not to interfere. This was a hurdle Talulah had to face as a leader. All he could do was respect her decision.
After all, the one leading the Infected toward hope was Talulah—not him.
"If I said I don't know," Talulah replied, pressing her fingers against her temples, "would that make me seem unprofessional… like I'm unfit for this position?"
She truly didn't know how to deal with the situation anymore.
"I've investigated. Brull has never done anything that could be considered betrayal of the Infected. Everyone who's spent time with him speaks highly of his character. Any negative evaluations of him mostly come from the Guerrilla Squad's soldiers."
"And honestly," she continued with another sigh, "I can understand why he exposed me. If I were in his position and discovered something like that, I would've spoken up too."
Steven let out a cold laugh.
"Then how do you explain him suddenly proposing to split the group?" he said sharply. "Do you realize that, from the Guerrilla Squad's perspective, saying something like that is no different from a blatant stab in the back?"
If Brull's earlier actions could still be chalked up to caring too much about the Infected, then this sudden proposal to leave altogether? That was just plain stupidity.
During the hardest days, when he was being encircled and suppressed, he kept his mouth shut. Now that he's finally survived that hell, he suddenly starts talking about not trusting the Guerrilla Squad—the very people who exhausted themselves protecting him—and even suggests splitting supplies and going their separate ways. If that's not being a backstabbing idiot, then what is?
The more Steven thought about it, the more irritated he became.
There were only two explanations he could come up with. One was the obvious, painfully realistic answer. The other was that Brull had completely gone off the deep end.
Of course, there was also the possibility of both being true at once—that Brull was a textbook case of a fanatical idiot, and the odds of that weren't exactly low.
"He brought it up himself, after I proved that I was still an Infected," Talulah said quietly. "He said that since he can no longer gain the trust of the rest of Reunion, he might as well take people and leave. He's always believed that someone like me can't possibly lead everyone forward. Rather than follow me toward destruction, he'd rather search for another way out."
Her gaze dimmed as she spoke. Those words had been said directly to her face. Not only that—Brull had pointed out countless flaws in her leadership since she took the position, many of which she herself couldn't deny.
Sometimes, Talulah couldn't help but wonder whether she truly was unfit to be a leader. Let alone bringing hope to other Infected—perhaps even that earlier, almost manic ideal of hers now felt like nothing more than a childish fantasy.
"Then let him leave," Steven said flatly. "If even you think that way, and he wants to go himself, you can't stop him. As for those who want to follow him—well, their hearts probably weren't here to begin with."
"You said it yourself, a long time ago," he continued calmly. "Reunion was never meant to be anything more than a flame lit in the darkness for those who come after. It's an extremely idealistic thing. If someone can't accept that, then there's no need to force them to understand."
Seeing Talulah on the verge of collapsing into complete self-doubt, Steven sighed and gently patted her head, unable to stop himself from offering comfort.
She had always been the type to spiral into her own thoughts. And whenever the Infected were involved, she was especially prone to losing her way.
"But they want to take enough food and supplies with them," Talulah said softly. "That's made the Guerrilla Squad extremely unhappy. Some of the shield guards even said they wanted to cut off the heads of those shameless traitors and cowards—it was just angry talk, but still…"
"They say that if we let these people leave so easily, our future routes and plans could be exposed. Even if we're going to let them go, it should only be after we've completely shaken off the pursuers behind us and reached a relatively safe area."
As she spoke, Talulah buried her face entirely in Steven's chest.
This was what truly left her at a loss. If she kept those Infected, conflict between them and the rest of Reunion was inevitable. But if she let them leave, there was no guarantee that the Guerrilla Squad's concerns wouldn't come true.
"So what do you think?" Steven said gently. "Don't look at me. Ask yourself—what does your heart really want?"
He didn't offer her an answer this time. Instead, he pointed lightly at her chest, guiding her back toward her own true feelings.
Steven knew this moment was necessary. Only by going through this would Talulah truly grow.
It was just that the price of that growth… might be far higher than what's originally imagined.
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Note: Character Illustration is in this Google Drive:
https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1iuyfwNVFHzIi9H4rWNT_lAm7jTSiah_M
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