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She sinks to her knees before the statue of Arselia.
- Rector... Good morning... - she says, without taking her eyes off the statue. Then she finally looks up and meets his gaze. - Or as they would say in who-knows-where and who-knows-when... Bruno-shinpu. Ohayou, - letting this greeting sink in for a couple of seconds, she continues. - I have thought about your words. Jumping from a hot air balloon after slitting one's veins... It might not be so bad. You may think you offended me, or perhaps you simply gave advice devoid of any emotion. But in my culture, warriors who have lost their honor disembowel themselves with a ceremonial sword for far less. He who does not do this is a coward and deserves a condemnation that will make him regret being alive. What do you think of that?.. I am not a warrior, but I have the tool for it. And yet... - her gaze fell again toward her own feet. - As you can see, today I am without a "bodyguard." And I refuse to believe that mutual understanding between people is impossible in this world. Right now, you see before you everything that I am. This is my national dress. This is my gohei. If I made notches on it for every evil it exiled... perhaps it would have already crumbled to dust. These are my talismans. I use them to bind evil hand and foot. These are my masks. I agree, they don't look great; even for our population, their form is hard to accept. But they have their own function, and they have saved more lives than I can count. This is... a bell. You will probably find it strange, but its chime soothes the human soul in its hardest moments. I have nothing more to show you, but my path requires nothing more.
After a silence, she continues:
- I came to you for another reason. You said that the natural course of things, the divine design of Anuzish, and harmony in its diversity are important to you. I believe these are not just words, but I still need to hear it from you. Please, tell me... Is there not hidden behind them an intolerance toward something... or someone, different from the usual image of your parishioner? And I do not mean "abominations" - neither aconic nor celestial.
- You will find no personal tragedy that forged my character in its current incarnation; you will find no disagreements in me with foreigners or even people of sinful professions, though the latter will find no personal approval from me. Understand once and for all that your homeland is not here. Neither is your people, your culture, and even less so the gods you might have once served. All your sins and good deeds are like a dream or a hallucination. No one knows for sure the mechanism of the one they call Miss Cosmos. Perhaps your memories of a past life are false; have you never thought of that? Or perhaps you are merely someone's copy. Therefore, grasp one indisputable fact - your existence began on the day you were summoned to this world, and you will be judged by the deeds committed only during this period of time. - Catching himself trying to humanize one abomination from another through "deeds," Bruno gave a bitter smile to himself, thinking it would be easier to interact with her if she lunged at passersby with a knife in her hand. - How did your bodyguard put it? No matter who you ask - everyone who knows you will have a good opinion of you, but so far, the only such person I know is he himself. Tell me truthfully - how did you make him fall in love with you? Are the supernatural abilities you surely possess responsible for this? To find out for myself, I alas lack the appropriate tools.
Added 8 minutes later
Confused himself with jokes about Draco Mellis...
After reflecting for a while, the Tanarsian quickly realized that the perception and, likely, the reaction to the pricing policy of the updated "Ideal" had played a cruel trick on her.
— Now, reviewing my memories, I realize that my perception probably played a cruel trick on me and my words were a strong exaggeration. Please forgive me for misleading you, — Alaria bowed her head guiltily, — separating the new establishments from the old, I realize I noticed such things only in "The Leaf," "The Drowned Woman" and, comparing prices for the same assortment with the closed "Phantom," "The Palace of Amamius." Whether this is somehow related to bureaucracy, I dare not judge. Forgive me if I gave you false hope. Sometimes I don't fully think about what I'm saying. And now I've blurted out a foolishness.
Added 3 minutes later
Now Garrett just hops back there, leaving Sarana to pine with curiosity on the threshold."Them again... Will these cadres who harass random passersby ever transfer? Unlikely."
Garrett glanced at his knapsack and, shrugging his shoulders, began to untie the laces.
— Well, go ahead and inspect it if it's so necessary. Though, wait a second, won't you present your service badge? Just in case.
- Cute figurine, - she allowed herself to comment to herself, finishing the inspection, - you may go, my apologies for taking your time.