**#131. Element of Destruction (4)**
—
“Return the world to its original state?”
“I don’t know the details either. Just that he’s gathering gems like yours to do something.”
Curiosa said this while glancing at Ray’s chest.
It wasn’t all that surprising.
Throughout the war, there had been a constant fluctuation in a space beside the rooftop of the ruined building.
“So you were spying, after all.”
“Spying… what?”
“Peeking without permission.”
“…….”
“You’re officially the second peeping tom.”
What kind of… Wait, who’s the first?
Curiosa flinched, about to object, but then remembered that the boy standing in front of her operated far outside conventional logic, and shut her mouth.
*Crackle— Crackle… Snap…*
The electricity crackling over Ray’s body faded away.
Then, with a shimmer of light above his palm, a gem appeared.
“Is this the Shard of the Rainbow?”
“Well, if the common tales are anything to go by, it’s a possibility. But what we call it doesn’t matter. What’s important is that it holds immense power.”
Ray stared at the yellow gem, continuing his questions.
“You said the Doctor has a gem exactly like this, right?”
“That one’s red. The shape is a little different, too. And it’s not just a fragment—it’s whole.”
“Are you sure?”
“I saw it with my own eyes.”
The Doctor’s red gem.
Ray’s yellow gem.
Blue’s blue gem.
Curiosa added that the sensation she got from all three was identical.
“Do you have any guesses about the Doctor’s goal?”
“That’s… wait a sec.”
Curiosa looked around.
—Wh-What the hell just happened…?
—Seriously, the whole building just collapsed out of nowhere!
Residents of the sector were beginning to gather around the building.
Opening a portal back to her room, Curiosa said,
“Let’s move. It’ll be better to talk somewhere quieter.”
“Alright. But hold on a sec.”
Ray reabsorbed the gem, then looked around.
He stretched out his hand, and the items scattered among the debris began flying toward him.
*Whoooosh—!*
A gust of wind blew away the dust and concrete fragments.
Shoes, clothes, hats,
Boxes of snacks, loaves of bread in plastic wrapping, and so on.
Gifts he’d received from merchants while coming here. Many were damaged beyond use, but quite a few were still in decent condition.
“Pick one.”
“What?”
“It’s customary to bring a gift when visiting someone’s house.”
Or so Philip had said.
“And that way, there’s a higher chance you’ll get invited back next time.”
Veronica had added.
Hearing Ray’s words, Curiosa momentarily short-circuited.
“Invited back…? Me…? Invite… who? You…?”
“Oh, and not that one.”
Ray pointed something out with his gaze.
It was a single flower.
Strangely untouched despite the chaos, not a single leaf missing.
*
*
*
“Stay there and don’t move until I say so.”
While Curiosa was tidying her room, Ray wandered slowly, observing his surroundings.
‘About 15 pyeong. Maybe.’
The room felt more spacious than it appeared from outside.
A large desk and bookshelf.
Bed, storage, armchair.
Still enough space left over.
The warm wooden walls gave off a cozy cabin-like atmosphere, and there were two doors, seemingly leading to other rooms.
“…….”
He turned his head toward the softly sunlit window.
A vast wasteland stretched out beyond, with towering piles of scrap metal like little mountains.
‘It looks like a real place.’
A spark of curiosity.
Where exactly was this?
How far from their original location?
Could it all be created with just magic?
If he could use such a place, it would be hugely beneficial on the road ahead.
Thoughts trailed into more thoughts.
Ray felt the back of his head stiffen slightly.
*Rustle.*
“You…!”
Curiosa turned at the sound from behind.
She was about to scold Ray for looking around her room uninvited.
“…….”
“Why? Do you want this too?”
But the words got caught in her throat.
“I’ll share. There’s plenty left in the back seat of the car.”
A half-broken chocolate bar floated gently through the air and landed before Curiosa.
“Here.”
“You’re treating me like a child…”
Curiosa started to get angry, but suddenly realized her blood sugar had plummeted from dealing with this boy.
*Sigh.*
She took a deep breath.
With a resigned expression, she reached out for the chocolate.
*Hum—*
The space before the black cloth shimmered, and a slender hand emerged.
It looked unremarkable—just an ordinary hand you’d see on the street.
But Ray saw something different.
Colorful mana, artificially shaped, cloaked Curiosa’s hand like a glove.
‘Illusion magic.’
And beneath the mana covering it,
Curiosa’s real hand—
“That hand—did your orphanage catch fire or something?”
“…!”
Startled, Curiosa yanked her hand back through the black cloth just before grabbing the chocolate.
“H-How did you…!”
“It just looked that way.”
Ray had seen her hand—covered in burn scars.
And on a black-and-white photo pinned to the wall, he’d spotted the burned remains of an orphanage building.
The conclusion was simple and obvious.
“You must not have received timely treatment. Judging by the scars, the burns were pretty severe.”
“How could you see through my magic… You better not tell anyone.”
“Tell anyone what?”
“That I—or rather, my hand—is… this hideous.”
Ray didn’t quite understand.
‘It’s just burn scars.’
Aside from the one exception of the White Sun, the boy lacked any perception of beauty or ugliness.
Whether it was skin smooth as porcelain or skin shriveled and scarred,
It was all just skin to him.
“I don’t see a reason I’d tell anyone. But what about those two markings on the back of your hand?”
Intricate, blood-red patterns.
Each no bigger than a fingernail.
One was faded and almost gone.
The other, still sharp and clear.
“You really *did* see through my magic. Even those, huh…”
Brushing away her lingering shame, Curiosa began to explain.
“Actually, I was going to tell you. Those two bindings are related to the Doctor.”
She explained further.
The Doctor had carved those markings into every officer.
One universally amplified loyalty to him.
The other amplified a specific emotion for each individual—rage, for example.
“One’s faded. Did you remove it?”
“Yeah. I’ve almost dismantled the loyalty binding. It took years of research and desperation to do it.”
Ray understood now.
Walter’s extreme loyalty to the Doctor—just where it had come from.
But Walter had no such markings on his hand, nor did Allager.
Perhaps the markings were placed in different spots depending on the person.
“Anyway, it won’t be long. That damn binding—I’ll have it completely removed soon.”
Ray glanced at the wall behind Curiosa, filled with hundreds of curses scrawled in hatred toward the Doctor.
“So how much loyalty do you have left now?”
“Next to none. That’s why I’ve been ignoring orders and doing whatever I please. I can even harbor murderous thoughts toward the Doctor now.”
A sudden thought.
“You’ll need to be careful not to get found out by the Doctor.”
“No need to worry. The last time I saw him to get updated orders, the binding was still intact. I only began dismantling it afterward. Of course, it’ll be a problem at the next update—years from now. But I don’t care.”
A fiery blaze ignited within Curiosa’s vessel.
“Before that, I’m going to find that bastard and kill him myself.”
The flame spread, engulfing the entire vessel.
“Fuck. Kill him. Tear him apart. Limb by limb. That son of a bitch. I’ll throw him into a river.”
The black cloth trembled.
The surrounding space rippled violently.
Grinding her teeth, Curiosa continued.
She said the moment she discovered how to remove all the bindings would be when she awakened Allager.
And the moment she pierced the Doctor’s heart would be when she finally reclaimed her freedom.
“…….”
Ray gazed at the vessel engulfed in flames of fury.
It was a rage so deep and vast, it was rare to see.
There must be more between the Doctor and his officers than he knew.
But for now.
Something more important came to mind.
He took a breath.
“I’ll help you.”
He said.
“With killing the Doctor.”
Curiosa’s fury paused for a beat.
“You’ll… help me?”
“You said your emotions malfunction when you face him.”
A silence followed.
The black cloth stopped trembling. The air around them settled.
“Yeah, that’s right. He doesn’t just control emotions through bindings. He can do it directly, on the spot. With some method I can’t understand. It feels a little different, but almost like how you do.”
Ray nodded.
“And that’s why you said it would be hard for *you* to kill him. Even without the loyalty binding, if you stood before him, he’d control your emotions again.”
The boy’s voice was calm, but firm.
“But I’m different. As you know, I can’t feel emotions. That gives me a complete advantage against the Doctor.”
Unwavering, steady voice.
“I want the red gem the Doctor has. You want the Doctor dead.”
And finally—
“Work with me, Curiosa. I’ll make sure you’re the one to drive the blade into his heart in the end.”
The final line fell.
“…….”
A long silence.
But truthfully, there was nothing new in what the boy had said.
“…….”
The monster of curiosity had already known.
That the white-haired boy was seeking the Rainbow.
And that—
He might be the only one capable of killing the Doctor.
“…….”
And the white-haired boy had known, too.
That the monster of curiosity harbored a deep, murderous hatred toward the Doctor.
And that—
She might be the key to meeting him.
“…….”
“…….”
From the very first encounter, the boy and the monster had known each other’s desires and goals.
But what made this moment different was clear.
“I know what you want. And you know what I want.”
After all the time they’d spent staring each other down, both were now confident in their mutual desires.
And—
“Take my hand.”
The boy had matured enough to understand how to empathize and cooperate with another’s emotions.
He held out his hand.
And deep within the monster’s vessel, a great emotional ripple stirred.
“…….”
Truthfully, the decision had almost already been made.
But the warped history between them stirred resistance and suspicion in the monster’s mind.
“How can I trust you? What if you change your mind in the middle?”
Ray closed his eyes.
He focused silently.
And then, a single word rose to the surface of his mind.
*Rainbow.*
Ray thought about it.
How desperately he longed to find the seven-colored arc in the sky.
And what he hoped to wish for when he found it.
At that moment—
[*Fwoosh*]
A flame ignited in his emotions.
[*Whoosh*]
And instantly swelled to engulf his entire vessel.
A pure and concentrated emotion, flawless and without a single blemish.
It was a fire called *desire*.
So intense, it made even Curiosa’s furious rage seem laughable.
“……!”
Overwhelmed by the sudden surge of the boy’s desire, Curiosa gasped for air.
“Stop…! Stop…!”
Only when the boy extinguished the emotion did she finally regain composure.
Another long silence passed.
Then, after a long process of thought, Curiosa finally spoke.
“What exactly do you need me to do?”
*
*
*
Pages flipped rapidly through the notebook in Ray’s hand.
*Flip— Flip— Flip—*
The notebooks containing orders from the Doctor, held by Allager and Curiosa.
Ray focused only on the instructions related to the gems.
‘Most of Allager’s gem-related tasks are already completed.’
Despite the list being relatively recent.
A testament to how diligently Allager had carried out the Doctor’s commands.
*Flip— Flip—*
Every gem-related order had an X mark over it.
Not a single one had an O.
*Flip—*
Ray’s hand stopped on a page.
**”Sector 46. Investigation of yellow gem. Underground search.”**
“…….”
Using telekinesis, Ray floated a pen from the table and drew an O over the task.
*Tap!*
*Flip— Flip—*
As the last page of Allager’s notebook closed, the first page of Curiosa’s opened.
Then, several minutes later—
*Tap!*
Curiosa’s notebook closed as well.
“…….”
This time, the one deep in thought was Ray.
How much time had passed?
Ray looked up at Curiosa and asked,
“How far can your spatial magic reach?”
