The Crown Prince Who Raises Alt Characters

#154 Musician Hamel (14) - For Whom Does That Performance Play At the sensation of a furry bundle tickling his face, Hamel opened his eyes. -Squeak? Squeak squeak! "...Hmm, nice to meet you?" -Squeak!? Was it startled by Hamel's voice? The mouse that had been tickling his face fled with surprisingly swift movements. Hamel, who had been staring blankly at the mouse's back as it hid among the wooden boxes piled up like a mountain, carefully raised his body. "Ssssh." Perhaps because he had been lying on the damp and cold floor for a long time, his bones and muscles all over his body throbbed as if screaming in pain. He felt like he had a severe headache as if he had caught a cold... "...No, it's not a cold problem." Hamel, who had been carefully touching the back of his head, laughed in disbelief when he felt what seemed like dark red dried blood powder on his fingertips. Usually in fiction, when making someone unconscious, there are scenes of using drugs or hitting the neck, but the people who confined Hamel here seemed to have just ruthlessly struck the back of his head. Whether it was an ignorant belief that this wouldn't kill him, or coldness that it didn't matter if he died, either way it wasn't a very positive sign for Hamel. However, there were some benefits to the enemies looking down on and disregarding Hamel. Although he was confined in what seemed like an old warehouse, he wasn't particularly restrained, and his belongings including his instruments were safe. 'Now then, how should I escape?' His contemplation wasn't very long. Having steeled his resolve, Hamel first leaned against the door, then quietly perked up his ears. When he closed his eyes and focused solely on his hearing, all sorts of sounds from outside informed him of the surrounding situation. 'There are two people guarding the door. Judging by their heartbeats, breathing, and leg shaking, they're quite anxious.' He couldn't tell the exact reason for their anxiety. They might be worried about things not going well, or they might feel they've been assigned trivial work before important matters. The important thing was that he could use those emotions. Hamel arranged all sorts of miscellaneous items from the warehouse near the door, then quietly waited for the right moment. -Hey, I'm going to the bathroom. Keep guard well. -Yes! Big brother. Please go ahead. After what felt like about 30 minutes of waiting, finally one of the two guards left his post. Hamel confirmed he had gotten far enough away, then raised his flute. Knowing how to make music that brings peace to people's hearts also meant knowing how to make music that torments people. Like scraping an iron plate with metal fragments, like scraping a plate with a fork or knife, like snoring or grinding teeth in bed. The bizarre discord that Hamel produced struck directly into the ears of the man outside the door. Along with a thud sound of knocking on the door, curses telling him to be quiet came from outside. Hamel didn't stop. Making them mildly annoyed wasn't enough. He couldn't let them maintain rational judgment like thinking they shouldn't carelessly open the locked door or that they should wait until their departed colleague returns. He had to endlessly incite and amplify anger and impulse to the point where they couldn't think about consequences, to the point where they'd feel suffocated and furious enough to die if they didn't stop this sound immediately. And finally. Bang!! "Hey, stop that stupid noise!!" The man, red-faced and huffing angrily, roughly opened the door and tried to rush at Hamel who was continuing his performance inside. But being extremely agitated, he couldn't pay attention to his feet, and lost his balance when his foot caught on the miscellaneous items placed on the floor. "Ugh!" Thwack! Toward his defenseless head, Hamel swung with all his might the bread he had left in his bag. Unlike the relatively soft and edible bread the innkeeper had kindly provided, this hard and heavy bread that could break teeth if eaten carelessly struck the man's back of the head. The man collapsed without being able to resist, and Hamel quickly escaped outside. After that, he only repeated fleeing while avoiding people. If the building where he was confined had been packed with people, it would have been difficult even with Hamel's excellent hearing, but fortunately the outer perimeter wasn't that strictly guarded. More precisely, it felt like most of the manpower had been deployed to other matters, making this place a lower priority. Having successfully escaped from the building and fled to the city, Hamel soon learned the reason. Shouting, screaming, sounds of urgently searching for something or requesting support. The witch who was the boss of the organization that ruled the city from the shadows was being hunted by that very organization. It wasn't difficult to think of the word 'rebellion.' 'So then, what should I do now?' Thinking coldly, the correct answer was 'hide and flee as things are.' Fortunately, Hamel's priority wasn't that high for the enemies. Probably they had originally prepared plans, and Hamel was like a backup for when those plans didn't go well. If the enemies' main force was distracted looking for the witch Hecate, Hamel could take advantage of this chaos and thick fog to escape. It would be difficult to establish a foothold in this city in the future, but Hamel was a wandering musician anyway. He carried all his belongings with him, and as long as he had his instruments, he could perform elsewhere. "Hecate! Come out right now! If you don't come to the fountain immediately, you'll see that musician you treasure so much in a miserable state!!" Just then, such shouting was heard from within the fog. There wasn't just one voice. Organization members roaming throughout the city were each shouting various things about killing Hamel or executing him by hanging from a pole. "Ha." Hamel let out a hollow laugh. One might think they were acting too late after already losing him, but this should be thought of in the opposite way. If the fact that Hamel had safely escaped became known, they would no longer be able to stage a hostage situation against Hecate—no, his student Hystia—so they intended to lure her out by selling Hamel's name before that happened. His hesitation wasn't very long. Hamel raised his violin. A blue light appeared in his eyes. *** "Hecate! Come out right now! If you don't come to the fountain immediately, you'll see that musician you treasure so much in a miserable state!!" At the threats heard from the surroundings, Hecate froze in a state of despair. What filled her head was solely the emotion of self-blame. 'It's because of me.' It was her fault. Because she had continued to try to keep Hamel by her side. Because she had shown special treatment to Hamel time and again, he had become a target for the enemies. If only she had revealed her identity early on. Even if it meant earning his resentment and hatred, if she had kept him by her side and protected him, it would have been fine. Her selfishness in wanting to be with him as an ordinary woman, her foolishness in being neither here nor there and continuing to be half-hearted, had finally led him to ruin. Hystia couldn't easily leave her position. It wasn't because her life was precious. No, it was precious, but if it was to save Hamel, for her precious musician, she could sacrifice it as much as needed. But she knew the workings of this dirty world all too well. Even if Hystia obediently responded to the threats as they were, the possibility that they would spare Hamel's life was far too low. "...No, no." Hystia gritted her teeth. If she died cleanly, certainly Hamel wouldn't survive either. But conversely, if she survived even if it meant being ugly. If she knelt before them begging for mercy and requested that they spare Hamel's life, they too might reconsider Hamel's value. Because then Hamel would gain value as a leash to control Hecate. Dying would have been the easier path. She might now have to actively immerse herself in all the filth she had tried to suppress to a minimum. Still, even so. The moment Hystia, having steeled her resolve, was about to step forward in front of the organization members running through the streets. - ─────────!! A majestic melody resonated throughout the entire city as its stage. The sound of a violin that was so familiar and dear to Hystia. "What is this sound?" "Where is it echoing from?" The city's citizens looked around in confusion, and some among them focused on the quietly audible sound. The atmosphere of the city, which had been filled with fear, confusion, and madness, was being transformed by a single musician's performance. Many people lost themselves intoxicated by this overwhelming performance, but the traitors could not. Instead, as if trying to stop this performance as quickly as possible, they ran competitively to find the source of the sound. Only then did Hystia come to her senses. She couldn't tell what method he had used to make music audible throughout the entire city with just one violin, but conversely, this also meant that the attention of all the enemies spread throughout the city was now entirely focused on Hamel. As if to prove this, the violin sound that had been heard clearly suddenly stopped. "No...!" Hystia let out a scream-like lament. She wanted to run immediately to where Hamel was, but her body, which had reached its limit due to severe blood loss and mana consumption, couldn't move as quickly as she wanted. Hystia gritted her teeth and headed to the highest building nearby, even forgetting to hide her body. While struggling to climb stairs and scale walls, the performance that had stopped began again. However, this time it wasn't the violin, but the sound of a flute. Having somehow reached the roof, she squeezed out her insufficient mana to enhance her vision. Within the fog that was gradually beginning to thin, numerous crowds were moving busily. The figures in black suits racing along the complexly intertwined roads looked like a swarm of mice. And in the direction that swarm of mice was heading, one musician was advancing while playing his flute. Hystia, having confirmed Hamel's figure, swallowed her breath. His condition was difficult to call good even as an empty compliment. His clothing was disheveled as if he had been in a rough scuffle somewhere, and he no longer had his violin either. The bloodstains left with each footstep he took proved that he had suffered serious injuries. Most of all, the mana carried in his performance and spreading out felt like the price of burning his own life. "──." "──." Suddenly, Hystia felt as if her gaze had met with Hamel's. In Hystia's mind, the conversations she had shared with him came to mind. He had said. That music contains the emotions of the performer. That a performance that has reached mastery is in itself like a language. He had also said that he hadn't reached that level yet, but this melody being heard now was different. 「I am fine.」 「Please don't give up.」 「Don't blame yourself. It's not your fault.」 It seemed as if his voice could be heard. To dismiss it as mere delusion or self-comfort, the sincerity contained within was too distinct. Hamel's footsteps had somehow reached beyond the city to the coastal cliffs. Numerous organization members frantically ran out chasing Hamel. Their appearance looked as if they were entranced by something. 「I cannot say that your life is righteous.」 「I cannot say that you have committed no wrongs either.」 「But no matter what kind of sinner you are, the fact that you are my precious audience will not change.」 Hystia watched with wide eyes as Hamel stopped before the precipice and played his flute. Something that could have been blood or tears flowed from her eyes, but she absolutely did not avert her gaze. 「Because of your consideration, I was able to shelter from wind and rain under a warm roof.」 「Because of your goodwill, I was able to share bread with people instead of suffering from hunger.」 「Because there were days when I played instruments together with you, I was able to reach the level I had aimed for.」 Hamel threw himself off the cliff. The numerous swarm of mice threw themselves after him. 「You seem to hate yourself, but I do not hate you.」 「So... please don't hate yourself too much either.」 「Ah, and.」 「I'm sorry for not being able to keep the promise to perform together.」 Hamel's performance ended. The sound of music was no longer heard. Instead, only the sobbing sound of one woman filled the air.