To Be Aware

A similar-looking person was sitting in the hospital bed. But as I closely observed him, he was the commander of the native guardian villager, and the sounds of the fight against Palkeros and Onigashi still echoed in my ears, despite the fact that it had been only a few days since we had joined forces.

When I saw him, I felt a slight flutter in my chest, and I gestured to him to inquire.

"You're the leader of the native guardian village, aren't you?"

With a firm nod, he gave a signal of assurance.

"Yes, I am."

Sitting on the chair close to his bed on the right side, I asked him my question.

"How did you get here? And what do you want to tell me?"

He smiled, offered his hand, and then introduced himself.

"I'm Adipati Patimura, a former Monakian National Force's Sergeant. I'm a secret agent operating in Minerva, and one of my assignments has been to pose as the head of the guardian village. The guardian village's former leader had long since passed away, so it fell to me to defend the populace against the invaders. This is why I am amassing confidential information from the people with whom I have engaged."

"Miraculously, I survived Onigashi's slash, and Minerva's medical teams rushed me to this hospital. Thankfully, I had no trouble getting my wound treated, and the doctor assured me that I would soon be on the mend."

My voice reverberated through the room as I asked him once more.

"Wait, does that mean you are also part of Minerva?"

After a chuckle, Adipati answered.

"I'm currently working as an engineer to gather information from various sources."

He then asked the question that had been on my mind all along, although in a little teasing tone as he pointed to my eyes.

"You wanted to know more about Onigashi, right?"

"Also, I wanted to know more about the Cleanser Squadron. Got any idea of it?"

He paused, released a sigh, and then explained.

"Alright, let's start with Onigashi first. Onigashi is the leader of the notorious terrorist organization called Crescent."

"Crescent?"

Then he launched into his lengthy explanation with no indication of finishing until he said so.

"Ivanov and Nana founded the terrorist organization Crescent to support the oppressed, infected with their barbaric uprising against the oppressor. This includes acts like urban havoc, mass murders, and the dissemination of propaganda."

"But to make their jobs easier, both Ivanov and Nana required a group of reliable fighting proxies. One of their exemplars is Florent, and the most recent is Onigashi."

"Onigashi joined the Crescent and quickly rose to power for two main reasons: she wanted to improve her strength and to vent her pent-up vengeance. She goes as far as facing the deadliest foes to push herself."

After I nodded in understanding, I inquired further.

"What is Onigashi's primary goal with Crescent? Is the reason she defected to Crescent because of an individual in Minerva who mistreated her? I've heard that from General Qassem, who's bound to pass by my side."

He then nodded once as he elaborated any further.

"To unify this world with the scorching virus."

"This could indeed be the case, given that a high-ranking member of Minerva has a history of collaboration with the tyrannical Gorusian leader, Dmitri Montagne. That individual seems to look at Onigashi as a threat to his goal."

I was still troubled by a persistent sense of dissatisfaction and pressed him further.

"Isn't it obvious that the scorching virus would end up becoming a boomerang for their agendas? This virus is constantly evolving and could potentially lead to their demise."

Shaking his head and raising his hands in a confused manner, he clarified.

"We never know. But there is talk that infected people like them could be able to live longer if they continue to adapt to that adaptive virus."

"Or, in other words, turned into a sentient zombie with otherworldly power."

He then moved on to discuss the second topic.

"Speaking of the Cleanser Squadron, I remember when me and my previous companions held one a hostage. And when we interrogated him, he told us he was conducting a great purge."

"The Cleanser Squadron established the great purge as an operation to commit mass murder against any infections. Isn't that right?"

With a nod, he then confidently elaborated.

"Absolutely! It's the ancient tradition of crusading against heretical beliefs, passed down through divine intervention. Unfortunately, they are using the terminology of the Great Purge as a political weapon, which is no different than committing heretic treachery to their natural faiths."

"Such are the uses of bloodshed to rid the world of other faiths, like the bombing of other religious sites, which they deem to be heretical. And they continued to get away with claiming their crimes as the handiwork of God, which was their divine deception."

"Besides, it's usually someone with a different political opinion that they're trying to get rid of. An example of this is the Great Pope Marcus Martinez, who founded the Cleanser Squadron."

"He organized this squadron to rid Grande Maria of the hideous infected that keep ravishing the city without resorting to bloodshed, in keeping with the original objective of the Great Purge."

"Pope Enzio Busso strongly disregarded Marcus's political views. Since Marcus was Preston's closest friend, the outgoing FSU leader identified with the Nationalist Party, which prioritized maintaining the status quo. In contrast, Enzio was close with Harris, the current FSU president, who is affiliated with the Democratic-Globalist Party and whose aim is global dominance by any means necessary."

"If Marcus's goal was to protect the innocent infected, Enzio then went on to purge all the infected because he claimed that they killed his family."

As he said, Adipati cast his gaze downward and heaved a deep sigh.

"But the reality is that he sacrificed his family after selling his soul to Satan himself. No wonder they proclaimed him the second coming of Judas."

My eyebrows went up, and I gave a little nod of the head. After gathering my courage, I finally asked him.

"And what happened to Marcus after that? Did Enzio's men assassinate him?"

"No. He died because of the hereditary cancer."

His sudden revelation about Marcus's death shocked me, but I was simultaneously relieved by the fact that he didn't die from bloodshed.

With a serious expression on my face, I looked down and continued speaking.

"Oh, I see. May he rest in peace, and amen to that."

"And what happened to the abducted Cleanser Squadron member you mentioned earlier?"

"We burned him alive. I discovered that he destroyed my former village and took my brother's life there."

I nodded in agreement with his actions against that lowlife, and a surge of delight ran through me as I saw the recognition in his eyes. But then I asked him again.

"So, what's the deal with Crescent and this psychotic anti-heresy squadron?"

Adipati indicated his comprehension with a nod and went on to explain himself by waving his hands.

"Crescent planned to wipe out the Cleanser Squadron because Onigashi had sent her infected androids to commit immense unrest on Grande Maria as a sign of their uprising against that squadron's tyrannical religious mandate."

"However, Cleanser Squadron has backup plans where they might re-manipulate Crescent's infected to ravage each other during the turmoil."

"That being said, they utilized the donated money from their churches to develop advanced Authonoids. That's why they're ramping up the effectiveness of their Authonoids and other monitoring technologies to make sure there isn't another uprising."

"And it was said that their Authonoids may surpass Minerva's creation. But since they had to create it from scratch every time, it felt like they had an endless supply of trump cards, despite our best attempts to corner them."

His statements were easy to understand, yet some components he outlined still left me scratching my head. My voice resounded in the space as I questioned him once again.

"What did the Cleanser Squadron recently want under Enzio's administration?"

"Money. Without it, you'll receive less power, recognition, and respect from the public."

While I was nodding my head in agreement and about to ask another inquiry, he abruptly snatched the pencil case off the table and pressed his flash disk into my hands.

"If you want to know more about the details, use this."

"A flash disk?"

He then dove deeper into the topic.

"This flash drive contains the information I haven't revealed up to this point. You could also explore the uncomfortable realities that should be considered taboo in this false utopia."

I shook Mr. Adipati's hand in gratitude, savoring the warmth that emanated from his touch.

"Thank you so much, Sergeant Adipati! Without you, I would have lost in the middle."

Sergeant Adipati could only smile kindly and shake my hand in return.

I got out of my seat and walked up to the door, where I grabbed the cold metal lever while I called Adipati.

"I have to go right now."

"Take care and stay safe out there, Mr. Tsuyuki."

I didn't hesitate to face the truth, no matter how painful it was. This is because I have the right to be aware of all the things I have missed out on.