CHAPTER 1350: ...THE CIVILIANS CRIED...

"One at a time. One at a time. Come on, come on!"

"But it’s dark!"

"And scary!’

"It won’t be as long as you stick together. Now, come on!"

Not all the members of the rebellion consisted of fighters.

While it was true in the slavery circles that the [Mines of Malevolence] was the place to dump unruly slaves, political prisoners, and prisoners of war for a quick buck, not all slavers had access to such vicious and valuable stock.

Some simply had slaves that were too sick, too weak, or too young to be used for much else save light chores.

And at that point, most people buying slaves would go for the ones who were at least trained in such tasks it had some level of physical beauty to be worth such expenditures.

As such, the number of people in the mines that could actually fight was about thirty percent of the populace, while the remaining seventy were people unable to properly fight, but could still provide logistical support.

That is, if they hadn’t had their desire to live eaten away by the mine’s cursed influence.

Regardless, the rebels knew that these members, alongside all of the people who were unable to join the resistance for one reason or another, could easily be used as hostages or worse if the kaijin had their way with them.

As such, when the attack finally began in earnest, the rebels made sure all of the non-combatants were safely sealed away in their residential caves. At least, that’s how it appeared to the kaijin.

In reality, this was only the first phase.

"All enemy kaijin have been defeated, extracting slaves."

Away from the main battlefield, all of the sealed caverns were emptied of their occupants.

This way, none of them would end up getting caught up in a battle that was definitely going to get bigger and bigger by the minute, while at the same time, made it easier to get everyone to evacuate as a cohesive unit from the mines if it was necessary.

A good chunk of the rebel leadership thought this was an unnecessary step, but the Zhen Clan scions and their unusually powerful aides were insistent on doing it like this.

As such, while the rebel forces were fighting Dante and his monsters in the main cavern, the non-combatants were starting to gather in an abandoned cavern located further underground.

Needless to say, though, none of the people down here felt particularly safe.

Only...a little less anxious.

Mostly.

...

In a hidden cavern below the main cavern, separated by a half dozen feet of stone, most of the populace of the [Mines of Malevolence] were doing their best in trying to be as inconspicuous as possible.

They didn’t know whether or not they were truly safe, but they did find some comfort in huddling together.

Then again, it probably didn’t help that a vast majority of the people were mindless and pathetic to the point of acting like they were the living dead.

For example, in a particular corner of the massive cave, a single child was sitting in silence with their arms wrapped around their legs as they kept staring up at the ceiling.

In any place outside of this mine, people would assume they were acting maturely.

In reality...

"Hey...what’s up with that kid?"

"Huh? Oh. You mean Pebble? Yeah, kid’s one of the unlucky few who got cursed really early in their stay here. He’s basically thoughtless at this point. Save for a few basic phrases and thoughts."

"Poor kid..."

"Yeah..."

^Boulder...^

Pebble kept staring upward, ignoring all of the slaves present in the cave, even the ones that were the same age as himself.

Kids his age should be playing out in the sunlight, not wasting away in a shitty cavern like this.

But alas, life was cruel.

Through circumstances out of his control, the only person in the world with some form of connection with Pebble was currently fighting for his life for the sake of a better future for the both of them.

And the worst part of it all, Pebble couldn’t even comprehend what was going on.

^Boulder...^

The only thing his fractured mind could comprehend was that his fellow [slave] wasn’t here to tell him what to do, and that none of the overseers were around to instruct him either.

As such, Pebble could only sit around and...and...

’Something is...something...’

He couldn’t even put into words what he was feeling right now.

Thankfully, someone tasked with keeping watch over the huddling civilians would notice his muted struggle.

^Hey there little guy. Are you feeling okay?^

^Huh?^

Pebble’s limited attention barely registered that a woman with razor sharp features was talking to him until a solid thirty seconds had passed.

Once they had, Pebble found it actually surprisingly easy to focus on the woman. Especially since she was radiating more soothing version of the aura that the overseers would use to grab the attention of the slaves.

^I can’t help but notice that you’ve been staring at the ceiling while huddled all alone in the corner like this,^ the sharp woman asked in a voice that was surprisingly soft. ^Is someone you love fighting up there? Do you have anyone down here you can buddy up with?^

^Buddy...? Love...?^Pebble repeated these words, unfamiliar with their meanings. And yet, he couldn’t help but feel that they were...pleasant.

Wait...pleasant?

What did that word mean?

^I...I am waiting for Boulder,^ Pebble eventually answered after the woman waited patiently for him to get his thoughts together. ^He told me that he was going to be busy for a bit and said that I should wait for him, right here.^

^I...I see...^

The sharp featured woman turned her gaze elsewhere for a moment, her expressions scrunching into one associated with worry.

However, moments after doing so, it melted down into one of relief.

^Well, I am certain that your brother will be done with whatever he is busy with shortly, and I’m sure that he’ll be able to join you in good spirits,^the sharp woman confidently told Pebble.

However, Pebble didn’t regist the entire answer.

Instead, he only registered on a single world.

^Brother...? What’s a...brother?^

^Huh?^

Needless to say, this question caught the sharp woman completely off guard.

^You...don’t know what a brother is?^

^No, I...don’t? No, I do...?^

For reasons that Pebble was unable to understand, the words in his mind began to go beyond the usual phrases associated with subservience and obedience. Instead, it started [wanting] to know more.

Evidently, this led to an expression that the sharp featured woman couldn’t leave well enough alone.

^I see...well, if you don’t know what a brother is, allow me to answer you,^ the sharp featured woman said before giving an answer that sounded oddly sincere yet recited.

^A brother is someone you grow up with. Someone you can trust, and is usually someone you share parents with, in other words, they’re your family. In your case, I believe Boulder is your brother.^

^Boulder is...my brother,^ Pebble repeated, the light in his eyes suddenly more alert than it ever was before. ^He is my brother.^

’Huh...well, that’s new...’

Noticing the change in activity in the boy that many had deemed unable to desire anything anymore, Razorstella had wanted to converse with the boy furhter.

But alas, something else grabbed her attention.

And unfortunately, she wasn’t the only one to notice.

"What the hell am I sensing?

Is it hot in here? Why does it suddenly feel so hot?

^It feels... ominous.^

Directly above them in the cavern pass the ceiling, Razorstella could sense a surge in [Chaos].

Unfortunately, it was a surge originating from a certain knock-off.

^Pardon me, little one. But I need to go and investigate something.^

^Okay.^

Sensing the change in battle coming, Razorstella rose from her seat and began to make her way to one of the few tunnels that were connected to the main cavern.

To be more precise, it was a tunnel that was only accessible to kaijin, since the entryway was no bigger than a mouse hole.

Once she made sure no one was watching, Razorstella turned back to her kaijin form and immediately shrank down to being figure size.

As she flew up the tunnel, Razorstella immediately contacted her fellow kaijin for a situation update.

...

[Guys...why the fuck am I sensing a surge of something really really bad?] Razorstella asked as she kept crawling up the tunnel leading to the above strata.

[Well...I don’t know how to describe this...] Balzejudicator partially answered.

[Rat king of nightmares,] Springerdermain managed to describe.

[Yeah, that.]

[What the fuck do you mean by that?]

[Let’s just say, we’re probably gonna have to switch priorities in assisting the producer sooner rather than later,] Screamira answered. [Because this asshole just learned how to form a Taboo!]

[OPEN WITH THAT NEXT TIME!]Screamira roared as she picked up the pace.