Gun of Ashes

”So you extracted this information from Erin’s mouth? It feels like there’s nothing...”

Heracles stared blankly at the sea under the night sky, the cool sea breeze brushing his cheeks, making him feel a bit chilly.

”It feels like quite a lot already, why? Is this not enough for you?”

Lorenzo glanced at Heracles, who was sitting on a chair, then his gaze drifted back to the room behind him.

There were no extra rooms for Erin, and for the sake of convenience in watching over her, she was placed directly in the living room. Although she claimed to have sought refuge with Lorenzo, turning over a new leaf, no one would believe a woman who spoke nothing but nonsense.

”I need a lot of information, the more, the better. Only with a large amount of data can I deduce what they intend to do,” Heracles said.

”So with what we have now, what can you think of? Heracles.”

Lorenzo leaned over the railing, looking at the terrace below. It was already nighttime, yet below was still brightly lit, people holding up glasses, drinking and laughing.

”Just some... intentions, I can roughly guess what they want to do.”

Heracles closed his eyes in deep thought, the wretched sea slowing his thoughts considerably.

”All along, Gaulunaro has been controlled by the faith of the Evangelical Church, but as the most secretive agency in the entire country, the Iron Law Bureau is firmly opposed to the existence of faith,” Heracles squinted his eyes slightly, ”It seems that the Orthodoxy issue is something they’ve long planned. Gaulunaro doesn’t want to be dominated by the Evangelical Church anymore, and now is the best opportunity to counterattack.”

”And then there’s that Corey Ferre. Although I’ve been lying dead in the room, I could still hear some of your conversations. From Erin’s description, that Corey Ferre is a staunch patriot, a firm atheist who utterly hates the existence of faith.”

Heracles spoke while gently tapping the armrest with his fingers.

”The Orthodox Pope’s enthronement ceremony, and those ships setting sail...”

”Do you have a plan?” Lorenzo asked.

Heracles shook his head and said somewhat helplessly.

”No, nothing at all, Lorenzo.”

As he spoke, his gaze remained fixed on the sea before him. Heracles hated the sea.

”I hate the sea, Lorenzo. Don’t you think, when you’re on the ocean, it feels like you’re in another world?” Heracles said flatly.

”No matter which way you look, it’s an endless sea. The only thing supporting you is the deck beneath your feet. You might be able to move forward by following the stars, but often you’ll face endless rainstorms, as if you’re in an afterlife, struggling without redemption.”

He exhaled deeply, clutching the big rat in his arms.

”That’s how I felt when I encountered a shipwreck. I felt like I was dead, my soul had arrived in Hell, and this Hell was an endless sea. I would drown again and again, reviving over and over, infinitely.”

”We’re in such a sea right now, Lorenzo.”

Heracles suddenly turned his head as if he had changed, his gaze filled with chilliness and a hint of madness.

”When the tide rises and forms an unyielding wall, no one can stop it.”

Lorenzo was silent, then continued to ask.

”You did think of something, didn’t you?”

Heracles neither confirmed nor denied, simply answering mildly.

”Actually, we don’t really need a plan. We already know the enemy’s movements. Once we reach Gaulunaro, all we need to do is locate the hostages. With your absolute force, no one can prevent you from taking someone away, not even an army.”

”But some things, even monsters cannot stop, Lorenzo.”

”What is that?” Lorenzo asked.

Heracles thought for a moment, then smiled and said to him.

”Even though you, Mr. Holmes, are unmatched in strength, some things can’t be resolved by force, like love and hatred, the unpredictable human heart...”

He wobbly stood up, holding Polo in one hand and clutching his stomach with the other.

”Perhaps war is inevitable, Lorenzo.”

Heracles’s expression seemed very pessimistic.

”Even though our goal this trip, from a broad perspective, is to prevent the outbreak of war, is it possible that our actions might instead accelerate its outbreak?”

”The Iron Law Bureau and the Choir, and the establishment of the Orthodoxy, I don’t really understand these military matters, but from the existing intelligence, our enemy seems anxious. They’re frantically creating monsters, as if the war will begin tomorrow.”

”That’s precisely why I have to solve these issues,” Lorenzo said.

”But some things can’t be ended by one person’s strength,” Heracles continued.

”Even if the Choir is gone, there will be another something-something group acting as a catalyst for war... you mentioned it yourself, they united as a group named the Rhine Alliance.”

Heracles recalled the international situation, things he didn’t care much about. After all, before Lorenzo dragged him onto the ship, he just needed to focus on his own little patch of land to live well.

”Ingwig represents the pinnacle of existing industrial technology, and do you know who the second is? It’s Leiber. Between Ingwig and Leiber lies Gaulunaro. Although with railways and ships, exchanges have become more frequent only in recent years.