Chapter 32. The Final Nightmare
At the Time of the War Council...
"...that is all."
After Reinhild pointed to Sylvie and stated the opinion that "defeating Regulus requires stopping the heartbeats of his remaining 51 wives," the room fell into silence.
"Um, could I be the one to freeze them like Mimi-san?" Emilia, who had been silent the whole time, suddenly raised her hand and spoke.
"I can just freeze them while Reinhild-san is fighting, and then unfreeze them after Reinhild-san wins, right? Don't worry, the me now can control the degree of the freezing. I demonstrated it in front of Anastasia-san and Ferris-chan before freezing Mimi-san."
Likely aware of her lack of credibility in this regard, Emilia looked at Anastasia.
"Indeed, the mercenary showed no problems after being unfrozen, and it is true that Mimi and the others, frozen by Emilia-sama, currently have no heartbeat."
Ferris added supplementary information. Just as everyone's faces brightened with joy,
"I object." Subaru suddenly spoke.
"It's not that I don't believe your words, but Regulus has already proposed to Emilia, hasn't he?"
"True, but Emilia-sama did not agree."
"Does that self-centered Regulus really need the person's consent? Sylvie, do you genuinely like that man? Do you really consider him your husband?"
Subaru asked the two wives of Regulus who had been summoned to plan the strategy for his subjugation.
"How could I? I hate him. Every moment, I wish I could kill him."
"Me too. Besides, how can anyone genuinely love the culprit who ruined their life?"
"Exactly. I estimate that Regulus's Authority doesn't require the wife's consent to the proposal, but rather that Regulus acknowledges her as his wife.
This means that Emilia-sama may have already been defined as a wife by Regulus's Authority. Given the situation where Regulus suddenly appeared and pursued them when Rein-chan took Sylvie and the others away, Emilia would be discovered instantly and become a hostage."
Subaru's words plunged everyone into deep thought.
"I object too."
Just then, Anastasia suddenly spoke.
"Even without considering the situation Subaru mentioned, with Pandora present, Geuse-san must stay by Emilia's side to guarantee absolute stability, right? I certainly don't want to add another Sin Archbishop-level enemy. Given the current situation, sending Emilia, Geuse, and Reinhild all to deal with Regulus is far too extravagant, because we simply don't have that much manpower to spare."
Everyone's faces darkened, but they couldn't refute her.
"Then let Ferris do it. After all, Ferris has no combat strength, but Ferris-chan can certainly paralyze the hearts of unresisting people for a short time."
Noticing the heavy atmosphere, seeing Subaru's questioning gaze, and noticing Crusch's self-reproachful expression, Ferris finally stepped forward voluntarily and took the mission.
.
.
.
6x Minutes After the War Council Ended, First District Control Tower
Beautiful singing emanated from the control tower's loudspeaker. A few seconds later, a violent tremor was suddenly felt inside the control tower, and then the sound of fighting outside disappeared.
—Could it be!
Ferris bit his lip and looked at the women in front of her. All of them had been magically interfered with by Ferris once. Within the range of the control tower, Ferris could control the flow of their mana and water flow even without touching them.
—Simultaneous cardiac paralysis and resuscitation for 51 people?
Sweat broke out on Ferris's forehead. Even though he had been preparing for dozens of minutes, he wasn't 100% sure. But the disappearance of the fighting sounds outside and the music coming from the broadcast made Ferris understand that the current situation was quite dire.
—What should I do?
—The life saved by Crusch-sama should, of course, fight for her wish!
Ferris recalled the things Crusch had hesitated to say when he left. Although Crusch said nothing, Ferris, who had spent over 10 years with Crusch, understood that the kind and upright Crusch expected him to save these women living in hell.
—The technique I acquired for Crusch-sama must have been gained for this very moment. I must take more precautions to ensure I don't fail Crusch-sama's expectations.
—Be rational. There's no more time.
Ferris's ears twitched. His proud hearing didn't pick up any sounds of fighting.
Of course, the turbulence of magic in the air let Ferris know that Reinhild was still alive, but the ominous feeling in his heart grew stronger. Ferris wasn't afraid of his own death, but he knew that Regulus's combat power would drastically change the war situation in the Water Gate City, and Ferris knew that Crusch-sama would never run away, no matter the circumstances.
—That's right, so he must be solved here for sure. Do it. If that woman dies, everything will be over. Fulfilling Crusch-sama's expectations is important, but saving Crusch-sama's life is paramount. When we were fighting the Great Rabbit, I respected Crusch-sama's wish to save her family. During the White Whale battle, I respected Crusch-sama's will.
Miracles have happened twice. Are you expecting a third time? Have you forgotten the despair you experienced during the White Whale battle? And you are already 90% sure with your current preparation, aren't you?
"Ferris-sama, please don't hesitate. Husband-sama could return at any moment."
"Even the worst result is just dying, right? To be honest, even I don't know if I want to be awakened."
"If I miss the opportunity to get rid of him just so I can live, then I'd rather die."
Ferris looked at the women in front of him. He knew his hesitation had been noticed, and at the same time, he once again felt the monstrous hatred emanating from these women.
"Put the fragments down.
Don't worry, Ferris-chan is the strongest healer in the Dragon Kingdom. These hands, this power to save others acquired for Crusch-sama, are destined not to fail. Lie down now. When you wake up from this painful nightmare, everything will be over."
The women exchanged glances, then once again put down the fragments in their hands and sat on the ground.
Blue light shone in the control tower. The light that was originally meant to save all living things now brought death.
Their hearts gradually lost vitality. Even though Ferris had isolated most of their bodily sensations, the women's bodies began to tremble instinctively, and pain appeared on their faces.
But amidst this agony, they revealed smiles of relief, smiles of happiness. Finally, they looked at the person who was taking their lives and said in unison, "Thank you."
In the next moment, a dazzling blue light appeared on the women's bodies.
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