Vol 4 Chapter 4 – An Incredibly Inhumane Plan(【Revolver Maid】 Arc)

In a hotel room, two shadows were present.

“Sooo… what brings you all the way to my lodging?”
“Question. I want to clarify the mystery.”

Satsuki Tsutsuka and Kuroda Shiromi—two women belonging to opposing organizations—were having a meeting. Satsuki crossed her legs, wearing a bored expression as she looked at Kuroda. In contrast, Kuroda fixed Satsuki with a determined, almost glaring stare.

“Answer me: Is this person the Empress Boss?”

Kuroda handed Satsuki a photo featuring Sakata Yuuto. Upon seeing it, Satsuki neither looked surprised nor did she raise any doubts.

“———Ah, ‘Saito-san’, huh. After all, he isn’t one of our organization’s people.”
“Is that so? He was the one who led you all back then.”

Kuroda’s expression showed her disbelief as she pressed further. As if to dismiss Kuroda’s concerns, Satsuki continued coolly:

“That was nothing more than our operation using a volunteer organization. They were fooled easily.”
“…Then what is he doing now?”

In response to Kuroda’s question, Satsuki answered flatly:

“Who knows? Wasn’t he killed during that riot?”
“——————!!”

The word “riot” that Satsuki mentioned referred to that demonic, disastrous incident that occurred in that town.

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It was while I was eavesdropping on a conversation between Satsuki and Tachikawa Shirou that I caught this exchange:

“So, what are you going to do? Aren’t the other executives here too?”

The discussion between Satsuki and Tachikawa centered on the idea of forcing the Empress to retreat. Although the Guardians could start a fight in town right away, we couldn’t risk it since we hadn’t determined the number of Empress executives. Satsuki, who had sided with us, believed it would be wiser to pull back for now and then devise a foolproof plan to crush their organization.

“Yeah… We just need to create a situation where their organization can’t continue the operation.”
“Do you have any good ideas?”
“Well, I do have one.”

I felt a twinge of unease at the ambiguous tone in Satsuki’s words—and Tachikawa felt the same.

“Is there a problem?”
“No. It’s simple.”

Satsuki, almost nonchalantly, voiced her devilish idea:

“Why not incite a riot so intense that people can no longer live in this town?”

Her plan was straightforward. First, set fire to the town hall. In the ensuing chaos, have her henchmen run rampant. They’d assault anyone they encountered while committing arson and vandalism. With the town thrown into such disarray, even the Empress would have no choice but to cancel their operation and leave.

…

I was speechless. That was all—an unbearably inhumane plan. Yet, the Empress probably carries out such acts on a daily basis. Satsuki even seemed unsatisfied by it.

“Fear. Are you still thinking of something?”
“Yeah. I feel like the organization won’t budge over something this trivial. …I mean, are the Guardians so out of touch that they get scared over this?”
“That’s not it. Second is still just a kid.”
“Oh, I see.”
“Not a kid—you’d be an adult by now.”

My words drew a slightly surprised expression.

“Surprised, are you? Did your growth spurt end in an instant?”
“He just hasn’t arrived yet.”
“Hehe, I’ll let it be.”

Satsuki and Tachikawa bickered like children, laughing. Watching them, I couldn’t help but feel a bit irritated.

“Enough idle chatter. Are you going to execute the plan we discussed earlier?”
“I think so, unless something truly significant happens.”
“I see…”

From now on, the people of this town are destined to endure a time of calamity. I sank onto the sofa, feeling pity for the townspeople.

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“Back then…”
“Well, it can’t be helped. He wasn’t one of our own anyway; there was no point in covering for him.”

Satsuki lifted the wine glass from the table and brought it to her lips, savoring the wine before her.

“This wine is delicious. I might even present it to the Boss when I get back.”
“…Easygoing.”
“Oh? Being easygoing is a good thing. These days, people seem to be tormented daily by unpleasant thoughts.”

I felt a twinge of irritation at the needless jab, “just like you.”

“May I say something as well?”
“What?”

Satsuki spoke calmly:

“———————In the end, what exactly is your objective?”

That question from Satsuki was the one I least wanted to hear.

“…To maintain world peace.”
“That’s a lie. You must have some other objective.”

A smile played on Satsuki’s lips as she stated that, as if she were a renowned detective pinning down a culprit.

“Purging us is just a pretext—you’re planning to pull off something big.”
“And what’s your evidence?”
“Evidence? I suppose it’s because there isn’t a single person here with any sense of morality.”

Morality. I never imagined that a bona fide villain would question my morality—I was so stunned I could barely speak.

“Well, at least Kuroda-chan still has some moral sense, but Tachikawa and that woman in a lab coat— for an organization of justice, they can hardly distinguish right from wrong.”

Satsuki continued her rapid-fire tirade:

“Those two are more on our side—just downright evil.”
“…I can’t deny that.”

Indeed, those two would commit crimes without a second thought if it furthered their goals. There was a reason they remained in the Guardians.

“But the Princess’s guidance is absolute. With her, world peace isn’t just a dream.”

That was the power of the Princess. We, the so-called Guardians, were a group chosen by her. No matter who else existed within the organization, it was unthinkable for us to question that.

“The Princess, huh… It’s almost like she’s one of us.”
“Don’t lump me in with her. You big villain.”
“Oh dear, did I make you angry? I’m sorry.”

After apologizing profusely, she brought the wine to her lips once more. I let out a small sigh.

“I’ve heard what I needed to hear. I’m leaving.”
“Oh? You’re leaving already? What a shame.”

Wearing a disappointed expression, Satsuki offered me some unopened wine.

“Any more questions would be pointless. It’d lead us down a different path.”

I brushed aside the wine she offered and left the room.

“Oh, and be careful on your way home at night.”

The way Satsuki said that was eerily reminiscent of a mother fretting over her daughter’s commute.

“No need to worry. I’m not a child.”
“Is that so? What a pity.”

This time, I truly left the room. Before the door closed completely, she called after me:

“Be careful not to get killed by the ‘menhera murder maid.'”

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