Posts from Sakuramoria
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"I wonder if it will happen? Unfortunately, I know for sure what would happen. The king doesn't care about any of them, and they don't care about each other. It's so naive that it's just..."
Varya sighed, trying to formulate an argument for the simple-minded. Remembering their April situation with Elliott, Varya easily found her words.
-- Okay, look. Thirty friends are walking through the forest. One of them sees some raspberries on the side and goes off to eat them while the others don't see. There was an evil bandit hiding in the forest, he saw this friend and attacked him to rob him and take his life. Fortunately, the friend knows martial arts, and with great difficulty, he managed to fight off the bandit, and the bandit died.
-- The noise attracted the other twenty-nine friends, and they ask, "What happened? How are you, friend?" And the friend, unfortunately, was afflicted with Sakimaru's curse, the curse of balance. And without a word, he beheads his closest friend to maintain balance. What will the remaining twenty-eight friends do to him?
She pulled out the Nameless Blade:
- I took it to the blacksmith. I hope that's not disrespectful to the master?... I just thought that it wouldn't hurt to have some kind of... let's say... adjustments made to fit my individual parameters? - she shrugged. - I mean, my physique probably isn't the most suitable for a weapon of this size. And it's a northern weapon, too... That's why... In the second round, there was a spearwoman with a shield. She also stabbed me, but that was my fault, I hesitated. I thought I wouldn't be able to get around the shield, the katana is quite bulky, but no, it worked. She seemed to instinctively try to jump away from the blade rather than take the hit, and that's what did her in. I guess it looks scarier from that side than from this side. And the third round... that was a woman, another foreigner, just like Aoki. She had this huge two-handed sword, bigger than me, if not more. I wouldn't even be able to lift it, but this woman... well, she wielded it like a toothpick. Again, she grazed me once, before we even started fighting. I thought that was it, I was going to end up... - she pointed with her finger towards the painting of Mana. - But I managed to pull through. Do you think this is a big sword? She kept getting hit and just kept standing there. I've never seen anything like it before. Except for that one old military dreadnought... And then I got killed, haha. A classmate shot me. It turns out that going up against modern firearms with a katana, even at close range, isn't a very wise idea. But I'm not upset, he killed everyone else and won. Besides, he's our class president, a good guy. It was a very useful event for maintaining his authority. Well, that's pretty much it.
The President absentmindedly lowered her fingers to the remaining hilt.
- Oh. And I also got this blade... "just in time"... - she pulls out Hinana and places it on the counter. - It looks menacing, but it seems... flimsy? The workmanship is beautiful, of course, but it definitely wouldn't split a log or pierce a shield in one swing. It doesn't compare to the Nameless Blade. ...Yes, I know that people name their weapons, and this one has a name too, but honestly... - Futaba scratched the back of her head, embarrassed. - I think it's... a little strange. A weapon is a weapon. - she shrugged philosophically. - People don't name their teapots or umbrellas or anything like that.
— But why is this bandit evil? Who decided that? You? The court? The gods? Maybe he has children who are starving, or maybe he's just gone mad from the absurd rules of society and unfair laws, so that now his life is worth nothing. We need to solve the problem at its root, so that people don't turn to crime in the first place, and the Law of Balance would be very helpful in this – because if the bandit in your own example was also bound by its rules, he would think twice about whether it's worth depriving his victim of life, and whether to attack at all.
— So, will you answer my question now? What will the other twenty-eight do?
— Well, you've already outlined everything that needs to be said. My nephew was recently born, and when we open the family registry, we see a new name next to his father – "Futaba Starlight." Well, I don't care, but my relatives are uneasy about this news. Basically, they're saying the same thing as in your rumors, that she seduced the old man and wants to seize the whole country for herself. Is she pretty? Probably has bigger breasts than my bald head, long legs, seductive hips, and a wasp waist? Ha-ha-ha.
— Well, she's... — the guy waved his hand vaguely — Not exactly my type, I guess. I don't think she's basking in the attention of admirers; I've only seen one such person.
-- It doesn't matter if he's good or evil. Let's say a bandit is also bound by the law of balance. He has a bunch of bandit friends at his home village, and he's the leader among them. After each crime, he goes and kills one of them because who's going to do anything to him? Or maybe there isn't such a situation. You can't force everyone to accept such a law, can you? You can dream as much as you want, but it's impossible, which means we need to look at it from the perspective of someone who accepts it and someone who doesn't.
-- So, will you answer my question now? What will the other twenty-eight do?
— What good is your gun? — commented Neomarika, who was leaving the library with Ixora. — The cartridges will run out, and that's it; you might as well throw it away. But a sword always has a sharp blade. — She strokes her sword and walks away.
— What's up with her?
— What’s wrong with her?
— No, I think you don’t understand. The law of balance states that “good and evil do not exist.” A bandit, killing a traveler, will not consider him either good or evil: the traveler is simply his opponent, that’s all. And at home, his friends are waiting for him, also neither good nor evil, they just have a good relationship with each other and sometimes play cards. And how can the traveler possibly feel any understanding towards the bandit if he is attacked with a knife? The only other option is to surrender and allow the bandit to kill him.
"Things are really messed up in this family..."
— Well, that's just how it is... — the guy waved his hand vaguely — Not really my type, I guess. I don't think she's exactly swimming in admirers; I've only seen one guy like that around her.
— Wow, what a beautiful sword! — Yumiko took Futaba's new sword in her hands. — And where did you get it? It probably costs tens of thousands, if not more...
-- I don't know... Maybe she was a little upset that Gideon defeated her rival in the tournament, and she couldn't.
-- No, I think you misunderstood. The law of balance states that "good and evil do not exist." A bandit, killing a traveler, will not consider him either good or evil: the traveler is simply his opponent, that's all. And at home, his friends are waiting for him, also neither good nor evil, they just have a good relationship with each other and sometimes play cards. And what understanding can the traveler have for the bandit if he is attacked with a knife? The only other option is to surrender and let the bandit kill him.
Added 7 minutes later
- "Continuation of the soul" - yes, that's a strong statement. Such a sword probably needs to be forged by oneself, reforging the blade ten thousand times, and not bought ready-made, even if it is fitted. - Well, that's unlikely. It was just a gift. Yes, it looks impressive, it's a pity to use it. I don't know why I carry it with me; the scabbard on my back is already too much. Maybe I should hang it on the wall.
— Sounds reasonable, let's go.
Iori and Leila have an intense workout in the aerobics room and emerge as changed people (+3 to accuracy).
— You're talking nonsense, Varvara. The whole point of this treatise is that one: killing is bad, and if you kill, you will fully experience the consequences of what you have done to those for whom the victim of your blade or gun was dear, and two: a self-satisfied division of people into good and evil leads to disaster. In this case, I can only advise the traveler to develop as a person and fight against corruption and injustice in society; maybe then no one will attack him.
— It says there that killing is bad, and that the curse was supposed to teach people not to do it. That's true. But it also says that some don't learn from it, because... What was it? If a sword falls into the hands of an immoral warrior, he will calmly kill, and then end his life with suicide. That's it. No miracle happened. As for those who are moral, they don't need any excuses not to kill without good reason. This is clear to any reasonable person. That is, this law teaches morality, and it punishes good people, who have nothing to learn, by taking away their own lives, while bad people continue to live, killing their friends, whom they don't feel sorry for. If they felt sorry, they would kill themselves, not their friends. Well, I won't say "good" and "bad," in your understanding, it's "those who value other people's lives" and "those who don't value other people's lives." The essence doesn't change; those who truly value other people's lives will either not take them at all, which means they will have to give up the military profession. Or, first of all, they will kill themselves as soon as they realize that because of the curse, they have to kill twice as many people without any reason.
— You don't want to answer the question about the traveler, well, let's assume... Fighting corruption and injustice is, of course, right, but he may also have insurmountable circumstances that prevented him from doing so, or even that he tried but failed... If you can't blame the robber, then you can't blame the traveler even more. And you shouldn't have avoided my question; it would have been interesting to hear what came next.
— Okay... — Varya rubbed her head. — But let's say... Two friends are riding horses through the city, and suddenly a drunk man runs out from an alleyway and gets hit by a horse. They don't make it to the hospital, and he dies. So, what should the friend who hit him do if he obeys the law of Sakimaru? It seems that the drunk man wasn't his opponent, but how can he maintain balance?
Finally, the president, reluctantly, inspected the store to see if any merchandise with her image was still available for sale or had been released, and then added:
- Well, that's all I wanted to tell you. Come to our school, there are even stranger things that happen there, ha-ha... or maybe it's better not to. Otherwise, you might go down the wrong path. Not everyone can say that they have and enjoy a family business. So, I'm also glad that I have some kind of outlet that helps me to detach myself from school life. I might have continued to work, but now I have a lot of responsibilities after the elections... I have to sort things out, so please excuse me.