Chapter 82: Sampo: If You Want Me to Betray Elation, You'll Have to Pay More
"Haha, Pitch-Black 7th."
Stelle chuckled, leaning her baseball bat against her shoulder. She eyed March 7th, who currently sported her striking new Long Night Moon form.
"Joke analysis: 'Pitch-black'and'Pitch-Black 7th' are homophones, which makes the wordplay quite amusing," a nearby mechanical drone chimed in, waving its two long, spindly metal arms in a surprisingly humorous gesture.
"So, what kind of enemy did you guys run into?" Stelle asked, tilting her head.
"The enemy was the past, but..." The corners of Long Night Moon's mouth curled upward into a confident, slightly smug smirk. "...it's not a problem."
"..."
Stelle narrowed her golden eyes, scrutinizing this darker, edgier version of her friend. After a few seconds of intense observation, she reached a solid conclusion: This was definitely still March. She possessed that exact same aura of looking incredibly wise while simultaneously radiating absolute foolishness.
On the main console table, the miniature version of Jarilo-VI continued its slow, steady rotation. Beneath the artificial atmosphere of the containment device, the planet's eternal ice and snow had visibly begun to melt. If the globe hadn't been sealed inside the spatial isolation field, the sudden thaw would have unleashed a catastrophic global flood.
"The ecological environment is recovering much faster than our initial projections," Welt noted. He stepped up to the table, adjusting his glasses as he looked down at the spinning blue-and-white marble. "At this rate, the surface should reach standard habitable metrics in another two days."
"Hmm... then the planet can be returned to its proper coordinates very soon."
Dan Heng reached out and pressed the primary observation terminal. Instantly, a dozen holographic data projections flared to life, casting a cool blue glow across his stoic features.
Meanwhile, back on the actual Jarilo-VI...
"Old wit—I mean, Sister Natasha! I want to go out and play!"
"Hook, it's better to stay in town for now."
A helpless, fond smile touched the green-haired doctor's lips. She gently patted the little girl's hat.
"Your daddy still needs your care, and your little friends in The Moles need their Boss Hook to lead them, right?"
"Ooh... okay then."
The little girl drooped. She squatted in front of the clinic, picking up a stray piece of rubble and dejectedly drawing uneven circles in the dirt.
She still didn't quite understand what had happened yesterday. The grown-ups kept saying that the Aeon of Preservation had manifested, and then, suddenly, everyone was packing up and moving from the gloomy underground straight up to the surface. The sky was so big and bright! Hook just wanted to run outside and explore all the interesting new things.
"Uncle Sampo!"
Hook's amber eyes lit up the moment she spotted a familiar blue-haired wild man slinking down the street.
Sampo Koski flinched, then breathed a massive sigh of relief when he realized it was just the kid.
"Are you being chased by Sister Seele again?" Hook asked, her innocent, loud voice echoing off the stone walls.
Sampo's face flushed with a flash of embarrassment.
"Aha, not really, little boss. After all, I haven't done anything bad lately." Sampo offered a dry, unconvincing cough.
In truth, Sampo's nerves were completely fried. He had sensed something terribly wrong all morning. A sharp, prickling sensation crawled up his spine, exactly like the feeling of someone staring daggers into his back while he worked.
Standing by the clinic entrance, Sampo maintained a casual posture, pretending to chat with Hook. But beneath his relaxed grin, his eyes darted frantically, scanning the rooftops, the alleyways, and the shadows.
The feeling of being watched remained. Heavy. Suffocating.
As a premier Masked Fool, Sampo possessed a wealth of counter-reconnaissance experience and razor-sharp perception. Yet today, despite feeling the obvious weight of an observer's gaze, he couldn't pinpoint the source.
It was downright eerie.
"Uncle Sampo? Are your eyes uncomfortable?" Hook tilted her head, watching him blink rapidly.
"Ahem, no, no, just got a little dust in them! I have some urgent business to attend to. Catch you later—"
Sampo spun on his heel and power-walked down the street, his boots clicking rapidly against the cobblestones as if an invisible predator were snapping at his heels.
Hook blinked, watching his blue hair disappear around a sharp corner, before sighing and returning to her dirt circles.
Ducking into a narrow, dimly lit alleyway, Sampo pressed his back against the damp brick wall. He looked around vigilantly, raising the back of his hand to wipe a sheen of cold sweat from his forehead.
The feeling surged back.
It wasn't just one pair of eyes anymore. It felt like countless eyes staring at him from every conceivable angle—from the cracks in the floor tiles, from the rusted exhaust pipes overhead, from the very shadows themselves. But when he whipped his head around, there was nothing. Just dusty walls, dripping condensation, and empty air. Not even a ghost.
"Who is it? Rekka? Is it you?" Sampo called out, his voice cracking slightly. "If you're there, make a sound!"
"Squeak."
"Ah—! You really are there!"
Sampo shuddered violently. The moment Rekka's voice echoed in the alley, that oppressive, omnidirectional surveillance vanished like a popped bubble.
"So it was you watching me. You scared me half to death..." Sampo let out a long, shaky breath, finally looking at the figure materializing from the shadows. He blinked, his jaw dropping slightly. "Hmm? Why is the Path energy on you such a mess? Do you just change your Path every single day?"
Sampo rubbed his chin, his sharp mind working overtime until a sudden look of realization washed over his face.
"I see what's going on. You're from the Equilibrium!"
'That explains it. That explains everything.'
The Arbitrators of Equilibrium, right? They were all Pathstriders who balanced multiple Paths. No wonder Rekka hadn't known how to properly use the power of Elation when they first met. He must have just acquired it to balance out his chaotic energy!
Rekka, currently wearing the form of Phantylia, leaned casually against the mottled brick wall of the alley. His massive, starry-colored arms were crossed over his chest, and four brilliantly colored spheres of light rotated at a leisurely, hypnotic pace around his imposing figure. He watched Sampo's elaborate self-justification act in silence. He didn't bother contradicting the mercenary, simply offering a vague nod.
"You could say that."
"Right, right!" Sampo stepped closer, aggressively rubbing his hands together. The sheer terror from moments ago was instantly replaced by the sparkling, shrewd gleam of a businessman smelling an opportunity. "But brother, following me around while invisible in broad daylight... surely you haven't taken a liking to my outfit? We're friends, aren't we? If you need anything, just say the word. As long as the price is right, there's nothing Sampo Koski can't get done!"
Rekka extended a single, elegant finger and lightly tapped the empty air.
"You are very Equilibrium."
"I'm Equilibrium? Brother, are you saying I'm fair and just? Or that I have a stable, balanced temper?" Sampo puff out his chest. "If it's the former, I'll gladly take the compliment. If it's the latter... hehe, you've definitely got the wrong guy."
Sampo struck a dramatic pose, speaking with an air of unwavering, theatrical conviction.
"I, Sampo, am a person of Elation for a day, and a person of Elation for life! How could I just switch my allegiance to Equilibrium? If you want me to betray the Elation, unless you—ooh!"
A heavy stack of physical Credits suddenly materialized in the air and dropped straight into Sampo's waiting hands.
"Money! Exactly! I knew you were someone who truly understood me, brother!"
Sampo practically inhaled the Credits, stuffing them into his deep pockets. In less than a second, his lifelong, respectful devotion to the Aeon of Elation evaporated into thin air.
He cleared his throat, adjusting his collar. "Alright, as of right now, I am a devout follower of Equilibrium. Starting this very second, I will believe in Equilibrium for exactly one day."
"One day?" Rekka asked, his voice dripping with dry amusement.
"One day." Sampo nodded righteously, placing a hand over his heart. "I am a man of absolute integrity. When I say one day, I mean one day—not a minute more, not a minute less. This time tomorrow, I'll go right back to being a Masked Fool."
"Then how do you view Aha now?"
"Aha?" Sampo spat on the ground, crossing his arms with a look of deep, unadulterated contempt. "Aha is nothing more than a wild dog barking on the side of the road."
Rekka raised an eyebrow.
"Actually, I've harbored a deep, burning dream of joining the Equilibrium since I was but a wee child," Sampo continued, spinning a vivid, tragic backstory on the spot as he expertly caught a second wave of Credits raining down from Rekka's fingertips. "It's just that, due to certain cruel and special circumstances, I was forced into the arms of Elation against my will..."
At the most emotional peaks of his improvised sob story, Sampo even managed to squeeze out a couple of genuine-looking tears, dabbing them away with the back of his hand. Of course, anyone who knew Sampo knew his stories were purely for entertainment. While he claimed to be honest with all his customers, that honesty was strictly reserved for the elderly and small children. Everyone else was fair game for a scam.
"Nice acting," Rekka praised dryly.
"Hehe, you flatter me."
After thoroughly counting every last Credit and securing the massive payout in his hidden bag, Sampo's demeanor shifted instantly. His back straightened, his goofy grin vanished, and his eyes sharpened into a look of absolute, stone-cold professionalism.
If real life had a user interface, his profile picture would have just updated to SeriousSampo.JPG.
"Boss, you just tell me whatever work you need done today," Sampo declared, his voice dropping an octave. "As long as it's something I, Sampo, can physically accomplish, I will execute it flawlessly! Though, of course, your old pal Sampo still draws the line at truly heartless atrocities."
[Inorin's Note:
Enjoying the story? Dropping a quick review, comment, or Power Stone means the world to me and keeps these daily updates flowing!
Want to read 50 chapters ahead or just want to help keep a shameless translator alive? (My livelihood actually depends on this, haha 😭). You can support me directly here:
(P.S. Just remove the brackets and replace the [.] with a regular dot . to use the links!)
✨ Patreon (50 Advanced Chapters): patreon[.]com/InorinTL
☕ Ko-fi (Support / Sponsor): ko-fi[.]com/InorinTL
Thank you so much for reading and keeping this project alive!]