CH 207

Chapter 207 – The End of the Talks

We were told that the discussion between Sayuri and the other members of the Maiden’s Rebirth Order was over, so Kuzuhara and I, along with the other members of the Inochi-shirazu, returned to the room.

“Sayuri-san, may we hear your answer?” I asked, serving my role as a mediator.

“…There is one thing I would like to confirm.” (Sayuri)

“And what is that?” (Torimoto)

“Even if we were to form an alliance, is it correct to say that this is only for this one time?” (Sayuri)

I looked towards Kuzuhara to hear his answer to her question.

“It would be a temporary alliance, right? I don’t want the yakuza to wreak havoc in the city, so if we can crush them, I’d like to do so. I’m not complaining, but… in the first place, we came here to stop you all from hunting men. This is how we ended up in the current situation.” (Kuzuhara)

“I regret to inform you that we still refuse to accept the presence of men.” (Sayuri)

“Again, you’re being too extreme. Killing innocent people is just murder.” (Kuzuhara)

“It’s because men are evil.” (Sayuri)

“Then why are you letting Torimoto live?” (Kuzuhara)

“Because he is of benefit to us.” (Sayuri)

“I see. It’s certainly true that Torimoto is an outstanding man. He can also make those weird medicines, and as long as you have them, you don’t need to be afraid of injuries or illnesses.” (Kuzuhara)

‘Weird medicines’ is quite the way to put it. Looks like I’ll have to sell my medicines to Kuzuhara at a 50% increased price now.

“However, with your doctrine of eliminating all men, Torimoto should also be a target, no? Even though he is of benefit to you.” (Kuzuhara)

“……” (Sayuri)

Well then, how will Sayuri respond to Kuzuhara’s probing?

“………It’s because he is God’s Messenger.” (Sayuri)

“Uh-huh…? God’s… Messenger…? Right… What the heck is that?” (Kuzuhara)

Yup, I’d also thought the same thing when I first heard it.

“While he is a man, he is also an apostle sent by God.” (Sayuri)

The god that the women believed in was the god of their own making, the God of Heart and Mind. And yet, for them to declare that I was sent by this god… just how?

There were a lot of things to retort, but it didn’t matter. I felt like it was all too much of a stretch anyway.

Religious cults were organizations that brainwashed their followers to believe things that were entirely made up along the way. They could make their believers strongly convinced that something that was clearly there in front of them didn’t exist. They forced their followers to not think too deeply and inducted them by making use of convenient circumstances and pretty words.

Thus, from a detached third-person point of view, they were full of contradictions and seemed to be talking utter nonsense.

But to the people in question, this was their salvation and their absolute belief.

“It’s because he is a special existence. The proof of this is the miracles that he can bring about that ordinary humans cannot. Do you know? The medicine that he makes can instantly regenerate a damaged body part or even instantly get rid of a disease that is incurable even with modern medicine. What would you call this if not an act of God?” (Sayuri)

“No, well… I know that he’s a weird guy, but still…” (Kuzuhara)

Alright, make that 70% increased price now.

I clapped my hands to gather everyone’s attention.

“We’re getting a bit sidetracked here. We were speaking about the war with the yakuza and whether or not you will form an alliance and take them on. How about we leave any talk aside from that until later?” (Torimoto)

Even if they continued to collide over points on which neither side was willing to relent, they would never be able reach a compromise in a short amount of time. Rather than that, they needed to focus on the matter at present.

“Kuzuhara-san, are you willing to join forces with them to confront the Hosen Group?” (Torimoto)

Hearing my question, Kuzuhara stared at Sayuri for a moment, then let out a big sigh and spoke.

“……..Fine. We’ll join forces. But there’s a condition.” (Kuzuhara)

“Condition? What is it?” (Sayuri)

Sayuri’s brows furrowed, wary of the possibility of another unreasonable demand.

“We will have another meeting next time. I will invite the Apostles of Peace. If they also agree to join forces with you, I’ll lend my strength, and we’ll defeat the yakuza together. How does that sound?” (Kuzuhara)

“…I see. So you’re saying that the cooperation of the Apostles of Peace is necessary to win against the Hosen Group then, yes?” (Sayuri)

“Of course. Even if we Inochi-shirazu lend our aid, our forces will still be insufficient, as I’ve said before. If we aren’t lucky, the opponent could advance on us with numbers in the thousands. Even the Apostles of Peace don’t have many members, but their weapons are powerful.” (Kuzuhara)

“Right. In my investigations, I heard that there was an arms dealer behind them. We are also trying to seek out this figure, but we haven’t been able to make contact.” (Sayuri)

Well, that was because I was trying to avoid them. I didn’t want to make contact with the Maiden’s Rebirth Order. I was afraid that they would kill me without question because Enjou Yuri was also a man and since they were a dangerous group of people.

But now that I’d thought about it, I could have just made a female arms dealer. From now on, I should be more flexible with my business.

“We can ask the Apostles of Peace to procure weapons from that arms dealer. Even if we end up being outnumbered, we’ll be able to make up the difference with weapons and grit.” (Kuzuhara)

“…I understand. Then please, by all means.” (Sayuri)

“Alright. Then everything will be decided at the next meeting. For the location, will this place work? What about the date and time?” (Kuzuhara)

“It would be better for it to be as soon as possible. The war between the yakuza and the Maiden’s Rebirth Order has already started. They may attack in full force very soon.” (Torimoto)

I decided to voice my thoughts. The fight between the Maiden’s Rebirth Order and the yakuza the other day was probably just them feeling each other out. But even so, many people had been injured as a result.

But if an all-out clash took place, the scale of the conflict would be so large that there wouldn’t be time to meet and discuss face-to-face like this. I had a feeling that a large-scale conflict would begin in a few days at the very least.

“I think Torimoto is right. Chake, we’ll be going to talk to old man Otaka right away.” (Kuzuhara)

“Yes, I understand. I’ll make the arrangements immediately!” (Chake)

“Yeah. Once we get in contact with him, I’ll send a messenger. Is that fine?” (Kuzuhara)

“No problem. Then we will adjourn here for the day.” (Sayuri)

And thus, the tense meeting between the Inochi-shirazu and the Maiden’s Rebirth Order came to an end.