"No, Charon! If you go that way..."
"My heart told me to go this way."
"Still, we haven't completely gone off course yet. Over there..."
Mm, what a peaceful bus.
It would be nice if things could stay like this, with nothing but ordinary daily life and no battles.
It's better than fighting every single day because the bus driver can't read a map.
...Or is it?
Well, at least we're still steadily heading toward our destination, so maybe that's enough.
"Gregor, what time did our personal work hours end again?"
"That? Let me see..."
Our work hours were supposed to be twelve hours, so maybe there was still a little time left?
Screeeech!
Suddenly, Charon slammed on the brakes.
"?! Wh-what?!"
Thud!
And Heathcliff, who had been asleep, slammed his nose into the seat in front of him.
"We're stopping here for today."
"Charon, still, isn't it a bit much to stop all of a sudden?"
"The radio said I have to get off the wheel as soon as I start getting sleepy."
What an inflexible thing to say.
Heathcliff frowned and glared at Charon, but he clearly couldn't bring himself to say anything in front of Vergilius, so he just grabbed his forehead and tried to smooth out his expression.
Clack, clack.
Vergilius stood before the huge door at the back of the bus.
Then the door slowly began to open.
"Faust, I'll leave the rest to you."
"Understood."
Faust heard that, then looked at Dante and said, "Dante, approval."
Once the bus stopped, our work naturally came to an end as well.
""
""
""
"Thank you. From this moment on, we will begin up to twelve hours of sleep and rest, with possible variation. Have a good night."
"Where am I supposed to sleep?"
Right, where would Yuri sleep?
Would she share one of the prisoners' rooms?
"There are cabins in the back. You may sleep there."
"Then we... should sleep as usual, right?"
"Yes."
After hearing that, Gregor was the first to head to his room.
Then Yuri followed Faust's guidance and went into the cabin.
Soon, all the prisoners had gone into the cabins, and only Dante and I remained inside the bus.
Otis looked a little dissatisfied with Dante standing watch through the night, but it was meaningless.
I...
"Saramago isn't going in? It seems like it's been a while."
"I just... want to sit here a little longer."
To be honest, my head keeps throbbing whenever I'm in my room, so I try to avoid it.
It's fine when I close my eyes to sleep, but when I'm awake... ugh, I don't even want to imagine it.
"<...>"
Well, I'm used to being alone with Dante like this.
Ah, come to think of it.
"Dante, you really don't remember anything at all, right?"
""
""
"...Ah, I was wondering if the values of someone who's lost all common sense are traces of their memories."
Dante seemed to fall into thought after hearing my answer, without saying anything else.
...Did I say something unnecessary?
Still, once something's out of my mouth, I can't take it back.
"Mm..."
I decided to think as positively as possible.
It's quiet now, so it should be good for resting, right?
Then maybe I should rest a little...
*
A day passed.
Today as well, the bus continued forward with its familiar engine noise in the background.
Outside the bus, as usual... insects?
"Ugh... Greg, do you happen to know those people?"
Outside the window, people with parts of their bodies turned insect-like were wandering around, even though they'd never been visible before.
"Huh? What... There's no way I'd know anyone in this back alley..."
Gregor's expression stiffened in an instant as he checked outside the window.
""
"Uwaa... Dante, I'm glad your head's a clock. If it were like that, I'd probably gag every time I looked at you."
Rodion made that remark with a disgusted expression, as if she hated insects.
"Isn't that... the same enhancement procedure as Gregor's?"
At Ishmael's words, something seemed to stir in my memory.
There was definitely some kind of enhancement procedure that attached part of an insect to the body...
"You mean they deliberately stick on a disgusting bug head like that?"
"Don't get too close. You'll catch the vermin disease too."
"Gasp, really?!"
Sinclair... do you really think that's true?
"I'm kidding... Is my sense of humor that weird?"
If they were participants in the Smoke War, the most recent war, then that much was certain.
"Gregor, were you originally from G Corp?"
At my words, Gregor's smile cracked slightly.
"Gregor, you used to be from G Corp? If it was G Corp back then..."
Ishmael frowned as if something had come to mind, but soon swallowed her words.
Probably because she saw the hardened look in Gregor's eyes.
"Where do people like that usually sleep?"
Hong Lu asked with a pure expression.
"There are many people in this world who live with the sky as their ceiling and the stars as their lights."
According to Vergilius, that meant homeless people.
What a graceful way to put it.
"Ah, so they're people of refined taste!"
""
"It seems they, too, intend to obstruct our journey."
"Shouldn't we get off, Gregor?"
At Vergilius's words, Gregor frowned.
"Why are you singling me out?"
"Well, I have no desire to speak of another man's memories with my own mouth."
"Lead the way, Gregor. You know the reason well enough."
"...You're a nasty man."
"(Boo, the nasty guide Vergilius should resign.)"
"Pfft."
"Saramago, stop saying useless things and get off."
Cheh. So he heard me.
I didn't have the confidence to stay in front of Vergilius after saying something like that, so unlike usual, I hurried off the bus.
*
Near the bus, soldiers with insect heads were gathered in a cluster.
"Ha... I don't really like being the one to lead the way."
"That's just how Number 1s are. Everyone was like that back in school, right?"
Gregor sighed, apparently dissatisfied at being the first to do this, but he didn't refuse to take the lead.
"What are you? Why do you have the same arm as us?"
"Wait... that face looks familiar."
"...I used to mostly live on posters and magazines."
"Gregor, do you know them?"
"...I don't think that's the important part here, Manager. This isn't the time for old stories."
Ishmael said that, reading the mood.
"It's annoying, but... whatever. In any case, we can't pass through here."
"I see. It doesn't look like they're in the mood for conversation..."
Only then did Dante seem to understand the other side's attitude and decide to postpone his questions.
"But why are they walking around so openly looking like insects?"
"Kids would burst into tears the moment they saw them. Isn't it better if they at least stand out less, like Gregor?"
"I'm an unusual case. Most of them end up with insect parts stuck to their heads no matter what."
"I don't know whether to call that lucky or not."
"I don't know why, but those people seem to be trying to stop us from heading to the Lobotomy Corporation branch."
Yuri explained that to the two who didn't seem to have heard the other side.
"Are they after the Golden Bough too?"
"Maybe."
Whoa, when did he come out?
At some point, Vergilius had gotten off the bus and answered Rodion's question.
"There are plenty of people who want that essence."
"...And each of them probably wants something different. Isn't that right?"
Vergilius said that while looking at Gregor.
"Why are you looking at me? How would I know?"
By then, the other side's patience had clearly run out, and they started charging at us.
Hah, with Vergilius watching, I couldn't even slack off. This is bad.
...He wouldn't be so petty as to come out here and watch me just because I said something, would he?
*
Stab, smash, dodge, stab, smash, dodge.
Please, I really wish this boring battle would just end...
Whoosh!
"Waaah!"
...I take it back. I'll gladly enjoy the battle, so could you at least not let me die?
A bug arm had just swept past my face, but the fight itself wasn't all that dangerous.
Thwack!
"Ghk! Clock-head, can't you give proper orders?"
The one who usually got hit the most was Heathcliff, who tended to be the loudest.
The one who got hit the least was...
Swish
"Absolute silence."
Ishmael, taking the role of an assassin.
I wonder if they'll extract one of those good possibilities for me too.
It seemed Dante had decided to save up the pulls after trying a few times the other day and getting nothing but duds.
In the end, my longing was just an impossible dream for now.
"Ugh... is the battle over? No matter how many times I do this identity thing, I still can't get used to it."
"It's because you're calling in another world's version of yourself. If you got used to it, wouldn't that be creepy in its own way?"
While we were taking a brief rest, the battle seemed to have ended, and Ishmael had returned to her original identity.
Haa... and because of Vergilius's supervision, I'd moved around more than usual, so I'm tired.
I should hurry back and rest.
If you asked me when I'm not tired, I wouldn't have anything to say, though.
"The battle's over. Let's return to the bus."
The moment I heard Dante's words, I went back into the bus and took my seat.
And since I'd used up quite a bit of energy today...
I should... get some sleep...