The Outer God Needs Warmth-Chapter 194: Beauty and the Beast (4)

The southern part of Vern City. A neighborhood with detached houses stretching long.

Here, there was the house where Victoria lived.

The last time I saw it, the area was full of vibrant colors, but now, it has a gloomy, desolate feel.

There are traces of fire in some places, and houses with doors and windows boarded up catch the eye.

Houses that don’t have these signs of damage have broken doors blocking the entrance, adding to the eerie atmosphere.

Passing through such dark houses, we finally reached our destination.

"Is this it?"

"Yes."

The door at the entrance is split in half and pushed inward, and a nearby window is shattered. Since it's night, it's hard to see inside, but it doesn’t look like anyone lives there.

Still, I decided to go inside just in case.

"It's a mess."

The interior is visible in the wavering moonlight, but it looks like it’s been ransacked by a violent person.

The kitchen, in particular, is in bad shape.

When a city’s logistics are blocked, I remember the memories flashing by—how quickly food disappears. When a city is besieged, it doesn’t take long for everything inside to crumble, and the average amount of food flowing in and out of the city. These memories shed light on the situation.

In short, it was plundered.

Is this a city from an apocalyptic setting?

If that's the case, they’d just consume everything, and survivors would inevitably have to fight each other.

In such a serious situation, ◈ Nоvеlіgһт ◈ (Continue reading) the defeated side may still remain alive.

So, I searched through the house here and there.

Fortunately...

"There’s no one dead."

"Ah, so that’s why you checked inside?"

"Yes."

While I was exploring the rooms of the house, Polaris seemed to have cleaned the living room, where there used to be a spot where we once sat and watched TV. The area was tidied up enough to sit.

The TV was covered in dust, but since it was clean, it seems the house had been ransacked for food supplies. From what I remember, it was a rather expensive item.

In other words, it would be hard to find food in this house or in nearby homes.

I looked at Polaris, who was sitting on the sofa, breathing heavily.

From her perspective, it wasn’t especially cold or difficult, so it was probably due to mental exhaustion.

I approached Polaris and took her hand.

"Why?"

"Follow me."

I held her hand firmly and dragged her to the room where I had stayed. It was originally for guests, so there wasn’t much stuff, and the bedding was stored inside.

In other words, it was an environment suitable for sleeping.

I pushed her onto the bed and brought the blankets.

"What? You want me to sleep now?"

"Yes, Polaris. I may not need to, but you do."

It was still early autumn, so luckily, it wasn’t too chilly at night.

"You’re still okay."

"But I’m tired, you know. Not physically, but mentally."

As I pointed to her chest to explain, Polaris tried to say something but couldn’t find the words.

Simply finding someone she knew had turned into an ordeal of passing through a place where terrible things had happened.

It was like an accident.

It was a harsh experience for a young girl.

Soon, warmth seemed to flow in, and I also felt a bit more relaxed, as the cold that had been lingering for so long faded away.

Not wanting to bother Polaris any further, I just hugged her and lay down. I closed my eyes.

Polaris let out a small sigh and closed her eyes too. Shortly after, she fell into a deep sleep.

See? She’s exhausted.

When someone’s tired, you can easily get rid of them, but when they relax, it’s obvious.

I decided to sleep my body too and focused more on Victoria’s point of view.

Follow current novℯls on ƒгeewёbnovel.com.

Right now, in the center of Vern City, the Purple Twilight Association. Among them, two factions are fighting over which of them should bring Victoria under their wing.

For reference, both factions want to engulf the Purple Twilight Association and become independent. One side seems to want to create a new country, while the other is thinking of pursuing it through religion.

Now, those surrounding Victoria in central Vern City no longer want to investigate the truth of the situation.

After fighting against Gaston Marquis' army in Vern City, Victoria realized how powerful she was.

Because she has strength, she wants to use it to change the world.

That’s what she thinks, at least.

If I didn’t know better, I might have thought the man who frequently appeared in the harvest season’s perspective was stirring up desires.

With an ordinary appearance, not particularly notable in any way, but he slyly moves around, shouting that those with power can do even more with that power.

Sometimes he joins radical groups, and other times he inserts himself into groups that have no intention of fighting.

Then, he immediately starts to incite people.

It’s not like he uses anything particularly special.

During the day, bombings occasionally rain down, so most hide between buildings. But when night falls, they come out, light fires, and do what they can to survive.

They make shelters, reinforce fortifications, or look for food.

And once that’s done, they gather in groups, talking about how difficult the day was and forming internal bonds, then complain about the current situation, and that’s it.

It ignites naturally from there.

Just like how politics is fueled in any world when someone complains about politicians at a bar, people can easily be incited.

Especially when they’re physically and mentally struggling, it’s easy to blame others.

That’s what builds up and results in this.

After escaping Vern City from all directions, spreading the events of what happened in the city across the country would be enough, but they’ve chosen isolation and the path of fighting.

Hmm.

The corporations are definitely a few steps ahead.

What happens when someone appears in a place where the corporations have manipulated nobles and destroyed the military command?

A dangerous individual.

Through the harvest season’s perspective, Victoria, whispering in a small voice only those close to her could hear, asked if she wasn’t suspicious, if she wasn’t a royal agent.

And that doubt spread surprisingly easily.

Even if she only spoke to a couple of people, those who heard it immediately whispered to their friends about the potential danger.

Of course, given the situation, it wasn’t strange to warn those you knew.

But what if this is intentionally and simultaneously spread?

No one knows where it started, and it morphs into the people’s opinion.

Normally, this wouldn’t work, but after being exposed to extreme circumstances for days, reason slowly erodes.

Had they lived like this from the start, maybe it wouldn’t have been so bad. But most of the people here were originally ordinary citizens of Vern City.

They were from the most sophisticated city in this world.

What happens if Victoria refuses to join either of the two strongest factions?

She becomes the enemy of both groups.

Not one, but two.

Moreover, the person furthest removed from her is Victoria. Even though she frequently appeared on the news and helped people during major incidents in Vern City, she’s still distant to them.

In fact, that only raises the question—why is she, not me, living well in the capital?

The things I did were great, but what others did seems trivial.

Many people think this way. So, objectively, even if the other person didn’t do well, they still think they did.

Self-objectivity is a very difficult skill. Most people don’t know how to use it, and even if they’ve heard of it, they mistakenly believe they’re using it.

And there’s envy. When others do well, they get upset, and the desire to bring them down is so natural that it doesn’t need much explanation.

So, Victoria says to those hostile to her, "I’m not interested in you. I’m just looking for my family."

But those who hear that think of it as an excuse. Because she hasn’t joined their side.

In other words, the enemy’s words are always bad.

They shout that it’s a lie, denying it, and trying to suppress it. "I’m right, you’re wrong."

Where have we seen this before?

When the loudest person curses, others follow suit and start cursing Victoria.

Do you know what’s the scariest part?

Victoria, even in a situation where an adult would crumble, remains unfazed. Normally, when you’re tense, your breath quickens and you sweat, but she doesn’t show any of that.

At that moment.

Someone attacked. At least it wasn’t a psychic power. It was a stone thrown by someone. Unfortunately, even after going over the memories, I couldn’t figure out who threw it through the harvest season’s perspective.

Swoosh!

A column of water fell vertically from the sky.

Not just a stone, but the area around it was completely sucked into the water column. Dozens of people standing where the stone had landed were literally crushed in the water.

Victoria. Is it that easy for you to kill now?

Hehe.

The water, darker due to the night, sways ominously.

"Are you going to keep interfering when I can’t control my power?"

Victoria stood still by the road and asked.

Everyone shut their mouths.

They had seen what happened when they resisted just now.

Those who gained power in Vern City have learned how to stop machines powered by magic in this world and can use psychic powers unrelated to magic.

That’s why they’re strong.

Even warriors who still have technology from the pre-tech era use magic to enhance their bodies. What happens if you add contaminated magic to that?

At first, they use the magic stored inside, but once that runs out, they draw more magic from outside. But what happens if you put cooking oil in a car that requires gasoline?

It’s even deadlier the more they’re from a warrior class.

Initially, they may charge forward boldly with their sword, but soon enough, it breaks down.

And then, they die in a more miserable way.

The harvest season members in Vern City are confident in their abilities. Those who were once stronger but weakened have

been killed by them, and that’s all they’ve done.

But now, an overwhelmingly superior opponent has appeared.

Most of them were terrified when they saw Victoria.

Hmm.

What a shame.

If she showed more violence, I feel like more warmth would come... But if this continues, Victoria will persuade those around her to achieve what she wants.