Amaryllis in the Ice Country

Chapter 6: Funeral

The funeral is held three days later.

There were six whose Mind Circuits were in an irreparable state鈥攊n other words, dead. Thirty-eight of them were grievously wounded, their limbs having fallen off, and more than eighty have light wounds. This is the biggest tragedy to befall the village.

The funeral is to be held in the arena at the center of the village, and of the villagers attending the ceremony, most of them are lacking in arms and legs.

鈥淭o the six compatriots who have devoted their all to the village, we shall pray for them to be blessed. The funeral shall now begin.鈥?

Cattleya hosts the ceremony, and G?tz handles the crowd. It鈥檚 the exact same allocation of personnel as the Prayer Festival a month ago, but the atmosphere is completely quiet, the old bustling atmosphere no longer present.

The altar on the stage has the corpses of the deceased. Those attending will take out bits of the corpses鈥?parts, and move them to the coffin. It鈥檚 akin to the 鈥榖one ash picking鈥?humans to, and this has been a custom in the village for almost a hundred years. I put the flower medal Gappy gave me before he died into the cinerary (Parts case), along with his parts.

鈥淭here鈥檚 still one more鈥?鈥?

Only after the funeral ends, and everyone disperses, do we realize this.

鈥淲hen did it vanish, it is unknown.鈥?

G?tz, who was managing the scene, grimly reports. According to him, there should be six 鈥榩arts cases鈥? but one of them vanished.

鈥淪omeone actually stole a parts case鈥︹€?

鈥淭his is the greatest failure of this G?tz鈥︹€?

G?tz鈥檚 silver mask contorts, showing a pained look.

鈥淣o, this isn鈥檛 your fault. Nobody would have expected the parts case to be stolen.鈥?

Till this point, there hasn鈥檛 been a crime like a robbery or theft in the village, let alone stealing a parts case.

鈥淵ou say that there鈥檚 one missing. Whose is it?鈥?

鈥淲ell鈥︹€?

He winces harder than before.

鈥淪ir Gappy鈥檚.鈥?

鈥擬aybe?

I hide this shock inside my heart, trying to act calm.

鈥淟eave the search to me. Please manage the arena, G?tz. Keep this a secret from everyone, okay?鈥?

I have an idea.

The only one who would steal Gappy鈥檚 parts either has a huge grievance against him, or鈥?

鈥擜s expected鈥?

At the part several minutes from the Village Council Hall, there is a girl with soft chestnut-colored hair. She鈥檚 at the swing, all alone, holding the parts box in both hands.

鈥淪o you鈥檙e here.鈥?

I approach the girl, and sit on the swing next to hers. This is the place Gappy stayed at in the middle of the night, trying to look for Daisy.

Daisy lowers her head, 鈥淗m鈥︹€? and weakly answers me.

Just like this, both of us remain silent for a while.

Daisy stares into space, blinking from time to time. I watch the white sidelong face of the girl.

This continues on for another five minutes or so.

鈥溾€擥appy.鈥?

Daisy moves her soft lips, turning her face halfway towards me.

鈥淗e has been looking for me ever since we argued. He kept looking for me every day, trying to make amends with me.鈥?

Daisy finally starts to talk, like a dam that collapsed. I quietly listen to her.

鈥淏ut, I, ran away. I ran away from Gappy. I couldn鈥檛 bring myself to meet his face, so I ran away from him. And then, and then鈥斺€?

Her voice starts to tremble.

鈥淕appy, he鈥檚 dead鈥︹€?

I continue to remain silent, just staring at the gloomy sidelong face of the girl, waiting for her next words.

In Daisy鈥檚 clutches, a silver cylinder case is glittering. It contains the vivisected parts of Gappy. The body shattered due to frostbite, and shrank to an alarmingly small size, as though it was cremated, able to be contained the grasp of the girl鈥檚 arms.

鈥淚 know that. I know that, it鈥檚 my fault, but I didn鈥檛 apologize. So Gappy died. G-Gappy, died, bcause of me鈥︹€?

A tear appears in the girl鈥檚 eyes.

鈥淒aisy.鈥?

I stand up from the swing, and kneel before the girl. Our eyes meet beyond the parts case. Daisy鈥檚 large eyes are filled with a moist glint.

鈥淕appy finished his mission. Through his will, through his decision, he saved our masters. It鈥檚 not your fault. Gappy decided it.鈥?

鈥溾€︹€?

Daisy remains silent. However, a tear trickles down her cheek silent.

How much distilled sadness is filled in this tear? How much anguish is filled in it? My heart winces as I watch this clumsy girl sob.

And as the third tear lands on the parts case.

鈥淎maryllis, tell me鈥ow was Gappy when he died?鈥?

鈥溾€lright.鈥?

I told everything that happened on the day Gappy died. How he came to the 鈥楻EM forest鈥?to create a Flower medal, how he ended up caught in the collapse, and how he died protecting the 鈥楥radle鈥?of a master.

鈥淪o, this.鈥?

I take out a little ice fragment from my pocket, and show it to Daisy.

鈥淭his is Gappy鈥檚 gift to you.鈥?

鈥淚s this, the, flower medal?鈥?

鈥淵es.鈥?

I place the flower medal gently on the parts case. Daisy stares at the fragment.

鈥淕appy鈥︹€?

The girl reaches for the ice fragment, her finger stroking its surface. The pink flower is encased in ice, the petal scattering listlessly like a faded life.

鈥淕appy鈥檚 so amazing鈥ontributing for our masters, even until the very end鈥︹€?

Again, the tears appear in the girl鈥檚 eyes, and they fall upon the medal, flowing down it, and landing on Gappy鈥檚 remains.

鈥淕appy鈥檚, body鈥︹€?

As she hugs the parts case tightly, Daisy looks at me,

鈥淢ay I personally bury it鈥?鈥?

I nod hard 鈥淥f course.鈥?And answer.

鈥淕appy will be happy too.鈥?

鈥淭hanks鈥︹€?

The girl raises her head, making sure the tear won鈥檛 fall out. The seventh tear is wiped away by the girl鈥檚 finger, and doesn鈥檛 fall.

The next day.

I put my elbows on the icy table, listlessly recalling all that has appeared the past few days.

One, two, three, four, five鈥ix.

Six died. I can鈥檛 count them all with a hand, and I fold up the thumb to indicate a sixth.

It鈥檚 not the first time we have seen deceased in the village. In this cruel underground world that鈥檚 sealed in ice, the deterioration of robots is rapid, and there is a dire shortage of replaceable parts. Ever since we found that the Snow White spare parts were starting to be depleted, about one or two die every year since we started 鈥榚xtracting鈥?

鈥擝ut six鈥?

Never since the 鈥榚nd times鈥?a hundred years ago did we encounter so many deaths at once. All the villagers really get on well with each other, so the entire village is filled with sadness.

And there鈥檚 another reason as to why my heart feels so heavy.

鈥斺€淕appy鈥檚 so amazing鈥ontributing for our masters, even until the very end鈥︹€?

Daisy鈥檚 words echo in unison with Gappy鈥檚.

鈥斺€淗ave, I contributed anything, to masters鈥︹€?

To serve our masters, to live for them, and to die for them. This is our mission as the villagers, or raison d鈥檈tre. Gappy died after he fulfilled his mission. There is nothing to be ashamed of. This might even be the highest honor of them all, to die for this honor.

鈥擝ut.

I can鈥檛 help but feel some doubt in my heart. The image of my kind masters, and that footage that seem to paint them completely different.

鈥溾€攍lyis!鈥?

While I鈥檓 still brooding over this.

鈥淗ey, Amaryllis! You hear me鈥?鈥?

I lift my head, and before me is the blond flirt. He鈥檚 shaking my shoulders with a look of shock.

鈥淎h鈥︹€?I finally recover. 鈥淎h, sorry. Just thinking about this.鈥?

鈥淵ou alright? Quick, give me a wakeup kiss鈥ck.鈥?

I give a good old wake up punch at the face of this shameless flirt, and turn to everyone else. Viscaria, who鈥檚 late, arrived before I knew it, so all the members are present.

鈥淪orry. Then, let鈥檚 get started.鈥?

I sit on the chair again, clear my throat, and say,

鈥淲e鈥檙e holding an emergency meeting. Chief isn鈥檛 around, so this Senate meeting will be held by me, the Vice Chief鈥irst, look at this.鈥?

Tok, with my fingers, I tap at the table, and the holographic visual appear without a sound. It鈥檚 a combined picture of the Pillar graphs and the contour groups.

鈥淔our days ago, we have an earthquake that really devastated us. Again, I shall offer my respects to the six compatriots who died鈥nd here is the problem.鈥?

I let the graph glow.

鈥淒ue to the earthquakes and frostbites over this period, the casualties keep increasing in numbers. The result is that our parts supply is strained to the limit. We have sixteen parts that cannot be changed anymore. We still have replacements, but even that has limits.鈥?

鈥淲e鈥檙e probably going to see some dead next week.鈥?

Eisbahn chimes in, 鈥淭oo careless your words are.鈥?G?tz chides.

鈥淣ow then, as for the countermeasures that can work鈥︹€?

I show the solutions on the screen.

鈻?Solving the parts shortage

(1) Cut down on supplies issued.

(2) Extend sleep mode.

(3) Carry out another extraction

鈥溾€擳hese are the rough thoughts I have.鈥?

Once done with my explanation, 鈥淎 question, if I may ask?鈥?G?tz raises his hand.

鈥淵es, sure.鈥?

鈥淧ersonally, I鈥檇 say that I have no specific objection鈥ut any of these will require the Chief鈥檚 permission, surely?鈥?

鈥淗mm.鈥?

Verbally smacked, I nod away.

鈥淭hat鈥檚 true鈥e can鈥檛 make formal decisions without the Chief鈥︹€?

I look at the table. Normally, the Chief鈥檚 head will be rolling around before me, but at this time, the only things are materials for the meeting.

鈥淭his is worrying鈥︹€?

We lost contact with the Chief completely since days before that 鈥榚arthquake鈥?happened. Even through the emergency contact installed in all the villagers, he hasn鈥檛 responded. This is really unprecedented.

鈥淧robably caught in a collapse, trapped somewhere.鈥?

Eisbahn nonchalantly notes.

鈥淏ut even so, we can at least figure out where he is through the beacon鈥檚 signal, right?鈥?

鈥淪o that means the beacon is also damaged now, isn鈥檛 it?鈥?

鈥淏ut how is it possible for that hard, sturdy beacon to break that easily鈥︹€?

The beacon is an installation made convenient to search for people in danger, so of course, it鈥檚 very sturdy.

鈥淲hat do you think, Viscaria?鈥?

鈥淲ell鈥︹€?

The robot most proficient with technology tilts her head, extending her feelers out.

鈥淚 can think of another possibility. Some place where electromagnetic waves can鈥檛 reach.鈥?

鈥淎 place where electromagnetic waves can鈥檛 reach? But the entire village鈥檚 basically covered, right?鈥?

鈥淵eah, so it鈥檚 a small possibility.鈥?

鈥擡h, but鈥?

A certain memory awakens in my mind. A place where electromagnetic waves can鈥檛 reach. A place where a beacon can鈥檛 respond.

鈥淎h!鈥?

I get up, and raises a possibility.

鈥淭he Secret Room!鈥?

After an hour鈥檚 ride on the icemobile.

We enter 鈥榯hat room鈥?again.

The high ceiling, the layout that extends far in. When we first entered, we could be said to be amazed, and now that we鈥檙e again entering after a month, it just feels so refreshing. We stand before the shelves before us, our eyes staring at the items laid out neatly. The interior decorations are all dazzling, and the room is brimming with a charm more dazzling that the most luxurious library, the poshest museum.

But on the other hand, this place does cause us to recall 鈥榯hat footage鈥? This doubt will never vanish until the data is deleted.

鈥擳his is鈥?

And on the floor tiled with a posh carpet, there is a trail of something moist rolling about. We nod to each other, and follow the trail deep into the house.

At the very end, we arrive at a place with a large monitor. There remains a robot lying on a chair, and also a soft looking sofa, probably a premium seat. The sofa tumbles, and turns towards us.

鈥溾€擲o you came.鈥?

Seated on the sofa is a familiar bearded face鈥?

鈥淐hief Chamomile鈥︹€?

鈥淥h, it has been a while!鈥?

Chief turns his head around, and cheerfully greets us,

鈥淭hank goodness, Chief鈥ou鈥檙e still alive.鈥?

鈥淵es, alive and jumping!鈥?

Seeing the Chief look so enthusiastic, I feel relieved for the time being.

鈥淥h my, you people seem lively too. Hahaha!鈥?

鈥溾€︹€?

And so, after feeling so relieved, I feel enraged.

鈥淣o, sorry, sorry. Hahahahaha!鈥?

鈥淕oodness, you worried us鈥攁nd you鈥檙e laughing!鈥?

I pick up the Chief鈥檚 head, and tug at his beard sideways.

鈥淥uch!鈥?

鈥淵ou suddenly disappear, and now you go 鈥榟ahahaha鈥?? You idiot Chief!鈥?

鈥淲ell, don鈥檛 be so angry owowowowow, I鈥檓 really sorry.鈥?

Chief says with tears in his eyes. Such a punishment should be expected when he made everyone worry.

鈥溾€擭ow then.鈥?

I tug at the Chief鈥檚 face with both hands, and glare at him with fearsome eyes.

鈥淲here were you, and what were you doing!?鈥?

鈥淲ell鈥wowowow.鈥?

Chief answers with a grimace.

鈥淚鈥檝e been here the entire time.鈥?

鈥淵ou mean, this 鈥榮ecret room鈥?鈥?

鈥淲ell, yes. I have been checking the records of the past, and considering over the future of the village.鈥?

鈥淚f that is the case, couldn鈥檛 you have discussed it with everyone?鈥?

My anger remains unable to be vented.

鈥淥f course, I do have to discuss this with everyone sooner or later鈥owever, I want to sort out my thoughts first.鈥?

His reply remains as vague as before, but his expression was more serious than ever before.鈥?

鈥淭hen, what are your thoughts, Chief?鈥?

鈥淚 shall talk about my thoughts later. First, I want to hear your thoughts.鈥?

鈥淓hh, well that鈥檚 fine鈥︹€?

I want to pursue the matter of the Chief leaving home(?), but the emergency has to be prioritized.

鈥淣ow, about the solutions proposed during the meeting鈥︹€?I put the Chief down on the sofa, and start to explain.

鈥淭here are a few solutions, and first鈥斺€?

I suggest a few solutions to solve the shortage, 鈥淵es, yes鈥? and Chief appear to be nodding in agreement.

鈥溾€擲o, I want to get your permission, Chief.鈥?

鈥淚 see.鈥?

And then, Chief suddenly changes the topic,

鈥溾€nyway, Amaryllis.鈥?

鈥淵es?鈥?

鈥淗ow many times have you been 鈥榚xtracted鈥?鈥?

鈥溾€H?鈥?

This sudden question leaves me startled.

Chief repeats the same question.

鈥淚 shall ask again. How many times have you offered your parts for the Snow White?鈥?

鈥淎h, yes鈥 think, about seventeen times.鈥?

鈥淪eventeen鈥robably the most in the village. What about you, Viscaria鈥?鈥?

鈥淢e?鈥?Viscaria seem troubled by this sudden question, 鈥淪ixteen.鈥?And answers.

鈥淕?tz?鈥?

鈥淪imilarly, sixteen times.鈥?

鈥淓isbahn, what about you?鈥?

鈥淪ame as Amaryllis.鈥?

鈥淪eventeen鈥mm?鈥?

Chief nods away, seemingly enlightened, and continues,

鈥淗aving come down to this underground world, you all and I have been providing maintenance for the Snow White. Day or Night, we did so for every day.鈥?

Chief narrows his eyes in nostalgia.

鈥淲e kept prioritizing our masters no matter what, restricting our lives, cutting into our expenses, offering our bodies for them.鈥?

鈥淗mm, yes鈥︹€?

I鈥檓 skeptical. This should be a discussion about the emergency measures, yet Chief suddenly diverts the topic, and it confuses me.

鈥淗aving done that, you will continue to love your masters, serve them, and make self-sacrifices to protect the Snow White for them from now on, no? Is that so, Amaryllis?鈥?

鈥淵es. But, Chief.鈥?

鈥淲hat is it?鈥?

鈥淲hat have you been talking about? It is rude of me, but I have to say that you are stating the obvious. I鈥︹€?

鈥淣ow then, I shall state my conclusion.鈥?

Chief turns his head around to face me. With a sharp look, he looks different from the suual kind Chief.

鈥淚鈥斺€?

What he says next topples over the history of this village that spans for more than a hundred years.

鈥淒o feel that humans should be wiped out.鈥?

鈥溾€uh?鈥?

At first, we鈥檙e unable to understand his words.

鈥淲ipe out鈥umans?鈥?

鈥淵es.鈥?

Chief nods again.

鈥淚 shall say it again. I do think humans should be wiped out.鈥?

鈥淓rm, Chief.鈥?

鈥淲hat?鈥?

鈥淧lease stop with the lousy joke. 鈥楬umans鈥?here refer to 鈥榤asters鈥? right? This is an unpleasant one.鈥?

I chide, 鈥淵eah, this isn鈥檛 funny at all.鈥?Viscaria too adds in. G?tz nods away in approval. Eisbahn alone doesn鈥檛 say anything, merely giving Chief a sidelong look.

鈥淣ot a joke鈥his is the proof.鈥?

Chief opens his mouth, and with a pop, spits out something. It鈥檚 about the size of a little gemstone, with a round button at the top.

鈥淚f this is pressed, the Snow White will be destroyed鈥攖hus, humans will be wiped out.鈥?

鈥溾€h?鈥?

We鈥檙e looking at the 鈥榖utton鈥?before the Chief in unison. There is a clear case at the top, covering it.

鈥淭his switch will stop all energy supply to the Snow White. Once twelve hours pass, it will be wrecked, unsalvageable.鈥?

鈥淐hief!鈥?

I cry out,

鈥淲hat nonsense are you saying!? Wearing out humans? Destroy the Snow White? Enough already! Our mission is to protect the Snow White, isn鈥檛 it? And now you want to destroy it!? Are you crazy!?鈥?

鈥淎m not. Over the past hundred years, I鈥檝e been thinking, wondering. Are humans worth keeping alive? Is there really purpose is sacrificing the innocent, hardworking villagers to protect the humans?鈥?

鈥淲h-what are you saying鈥?鈥?

I鈥檓 rattled. I have a feeling that my existence is completely denied. I really couldn鈥檛 believe that the most elderly in the village, Chief Chamomile said these words.

鈥淯-us robots鈥ork for masters, live for masters. This is why we live for, right?鈥?

鈥淭hat has been the case till now. But from now, there鈥檚 no need for it.鈥?

鈥淗ow鈥︹€?

鈥淵ou saw it, didn鈥檛 you? The 鈥榝ootage鈥?of humans killing each other.鈥?

鈥淭h-that is鈥︹€?

For a moment, I鈥檓 speechless. The reviling memory appears in my mind. The two groups of people growling, buzzing, facing off, shooting, the whirlwind of blood blobs鈥攎assacres鈥攖he Snow White that went underground鈥攖he people who were abandoned鈥攖he cold wave that struck.鈥?

鈥淲ait, Chief.鈥?

Viscaria interrupts,

鈥淧lease explain by going through the points. Either way, destroying or wiping out is too serious a topic here.鈥?

鈥淗m, certainly鈥ow then.鈥?

And so, Chief sits back on the sofa, seemingly ready to get on point.

鈥淟et me tell you the truth to this world.鈥?

It was a rumor regarding the 鈥楨nd Times鈥?

It was just before the ice age came upon the world. Back then, humans were thoroughly troubled by the lack of resources. Crude oil, coal, natural gas, uranium, all of them were dug up and depleted, leaving a dry, barren land. However, the social structure that has been thoroughly ingrained in the concepts of mass productions, mass consumption and mass wastage continue to seek energy. Just as how their massive bellies continue to seek food, humans became hungry monsters that seek energy. Every day, there has been conflicts and wars fought over limited resources.

However, such ugly scuffles came to an end one day. What stopped it wasn鈥檛 the military might of a massive country, nor was it a compromise born out an economic agreement, but instead, it was the invention of a new technology.

Crystal Plant

This invention was born out of coincidence.

Since the start of the previous century, there had been competition over mobile facilities, and in the late years, it became a race over highly potent batteries; during this process, a high powered battery called the 鈥楻ecycle Quartz鈥? This Crystal Plant was of high purity, contains small traces of Germanium and carbon; as the name implied, was a unique metal that could be grown as 鈥榮talks鈥?like planets. By soaking them in fluid pools of melted carbon鈥攃ommonly called 鈥榝arms鈥欌€攁nd preserving them in low temperatures, they would sprout like 鈥榩lants鈥? and within a week, they could be duplicated.

The Crystal Plants contained vast amounts of energy. The power efficiency could be compared favorably to uranium, and there鈥檚 no radioactive waste to worry about. Also, the Crystal Plants could also be produced indefinitely due to 鈥榞rafting鈥? which meant that there was no risk of them running out like cruel oil and coal.

It was truly a miraculous energy. Like a rising market stock, the Crystal Plants expelled all other pre-existing forms of electrical generation, like fire, water, wind, nuclear, and there was a fad of Crystal Plant electric heating in the world. The production of Crystal Plants was very easy; all one needed was a stalk. Thus, the technology to generate electricity through Crystal Plant furnaces was pervasive throughout developed and developing countries. Developing countries in particular obtained an explosion of development due to the mass usage of electricity and industrialization, and it marked the start of a new age called the Crystal Revolution, a technology revolution that could be recorded in world history.

However, this miraculous material that created a massive amount of heat just by adding large numbers suddenly became a demonic material. A certain year after Crystal Plant furnaces started running for more than fifty years, in a country called Robium that is located in the Far East, a furnace core in the first generator suddenly dropped drastically in temperature. The reasons for that were unknown. The safety installation caused the Crystal Core to suddenly stop operating, but the temperature kept dropping. Later, the furnace was completely frozen, and even the surrounding facilities were all caught up, until the area surrounding the generator became a frozen land. Such a freezing phenomenon kept on happening, and there was a freezing cold wave that started from the generators鈥攚hich would later be called the 鈥業ce Age鈥? Like a bonfire, the cold flames devoured the small country in the Far East. (Note: Plant is named after a species of Orchid called Dendrobium

Like a dried sponge sucking up water, the Crystal Plant furnaces absorbed all the heat from Rodium. The cold wave ran rampant, as all the heat formed seemed to have been sucked back.

Though small in country size, the fact that Rodium became a frozen land within a mere three months shook the entire world. Some did manage to escape overseas, but the citizens who were frozen alive as ice sculptures due to the sudden astronomical rise in airplane tickets took up the majority.

Faced with such decisions, countries around the world ceased operations of the Crystal Plant furnace. Despite the prior tragedies however, there were countries who selfishly continued to generate electricity through Crystal Planets. Large countries in particular bent the safety regulations and evaded the issues by stating that Rodium, the lost country, was a developing country with low skilled populations, or errors. Also, as the freezing phenomenon in Rodium seemed to have abated, this led to debates on both ends. There were many citizens who pleaded to stop the operations of the Crystal Plant furnaces, and researchers who have repeatedly beseeched against such dangers, but they were all ignored in favour of the huge profits from the Crystal Plant furnaces.

And so, a second tragedy struck, one that left humans in a state beyond any point of return. The developed countries that were the first to accept Crystal Plant electricity generation started to show signs of freezing too鈥斺€楢n Ice Age鈥? This was of an unprecedented scale, and all involving countries were overwhelmed by the trail of ice, the cold wave spreading beyond the oceans, and throughout the entire world.

After that, the world entered an ice age. Faced with such a rampant cold wave, humanity was left with no choice by to escape from the source, to warmer areas. They mobilized all the robots in the world, and built emergency escape houses. Of all the countries, only the richer ones, who form a minority, could occupy these evacuation shelters. After the shelters were built, the robots who were gathered to build them were mercilessly scrapped except for a few used to maintain the faciltiies. Hordes of citizens who swarmed in were massacred by military robots. Such evacuationshelters were a form of extreme egoism, built all over the world, burrowed into the underground, as humans awaited the day the ice melts.

And so, a hundred years passed.

鈥溾€擳his is basically the truth to the 鈥楨nd Times鈥? This 鈥楽now White鈥?here is built as an evacuation shelter.鈥?

The hard-hitting words continues to linger. I feel my leg wobble, that I may fall over at any moment.

鈥淗umans are ugly. Humans are foolish. Humans are cruel. Humans鈥斺€?

Chief looks over at the 鈥榖utton鈥?

鈥淪hould be wiped out.鈥?

鈥溾€-bu-but!鈥?

I snatch the switch, and hold it in my clutches.

鈥淲-we robots, ar-are all created by masters. So, our mission is to protect our masters鈥斺€?

鈥淭he ones who massacred those masters are in that Snow White.鈥?

鈥淯鈥︹€?

鈥淭he ones sleeping comfortably in there are not our masters, but vile beasts who killed off all our murders. Forget about the past; from now on, there is no need for any sacrifices from the villagers.鈥?

Stopping here, Chief looks up to see our reactions.

While we鈥檙e still too shocked and unable to say anything, Chief mutters a summation,

鈥淣ext week, we shall have a Village Meeting. I shall reveal the truth to everyone, and everyone shall decide if we are to press this button. You should prepare yourself here.鈥?

The conversation ends.

Chief rolls his head away, and leave; left behind before us is the button giving off a faint red light.