Chapter 64

“What’s happening? Why is the shore so noisy all of a sudden?”

“Ah… Saintess! It seems some people have arrived from the Spanish territories!”

“From the Spanish territories? All the way across the Atlantic?”

“Oh no, not from there. From… from Florida.”

Eleanor turned in surprise. Sure enough, amidst the boisterous crowd gathered on the beach, she could see a few small boats and a group of half-naked people. It was obvious they had traveled a long way in those little vessels. And if they had come from Florida, it must have been a truly perilous and dreadful journey.

As Eleanor approached, the crowd parted for her. The newcomers, who had been trembling, must have recognized her as one of the ‘important people’ here, because they stumbled forward and grasped her hands.

“P-p-please, help us… Our… our m-master…!”

“…Pardon?”

“That man bought us from the slave market in Florida and even arranged a boat for us to come here! He is our savior!”

The former slaves, trembling with exhaustion, pointed toward a Latin man and a tall Black man who looked to be in even worse shape than they were.

“Th-those two… whenever there was food, they would give us their share…”

“…Ah.”

Eleanor felt her eyes begin to well up. As the freed slaves already living in the settlement began to lead the newcomers away one by one, the ‘master’ and his servant, their legs giving out from under them, were left collapsed on the shore. Eleanor brought them water, food, and blankets and started a fire. Gradually, color returned to their faces.

“Ugh… ughh… Where…”

“You’re in Virginia. Are you all right?”

“…Oh, my greetings to you, milady. I-is this, is this Virginia?”

“Yes, it is.”

“…Malco, my man. Wake up. We’ve… we’ve finally made it!”

“Ugh… kugh… Master? Are you all right?”

“Ah, no, I’m fine. And you…”

The two men grimaced as they forced their screaming bodies to sit up. The onlookers, their eyes moist, broke into applause and cheers. And why wouldn’t they? This was a righteous man who had traveled hundreds of kilometers (Nemo had diligently drilled the metric system into their heads) from Florida to Virginia to rescue slaves. It was only natural that everyone rejoiced in his survival.

“Are you… all right?”

Hewitt, who had walked up beside Eleanor, asked. The two men, named Asuero and Malco, nodded and slowly began to explain their situation. They had been a slave owner and a slave in Florida. The slave owners there were a cruel and merciless lot, but Asuero had been different. He was a diligent farm owner who personally read the Bible to his slaves and even paid them a monthly wage. Malco had been one of his slaves who had stood out and acted as his manager.

Then one day, they…

“…We heard the news about Sir Nemo and Virginia.”

“…”

“…”

“We heard that in that place, there are no slaves and no masters, and that His Majesty the Emperor despises the institution of slavery and has banned it for eternity. I made my decision then. I would buy slaves and help them escape. Malco here joined me in this cause.”

And so, Asuero and Malco had spent their fortune at a Florida slave market to buy a dozen or so slaves and had embarked on a life-threatening escape by boat with them. And now, they had arrived in Virginia.

“Hoo… that’s incredible.”

“It is nothing. The Lord was nailed to the cross and died in agony for our sake. How can a man not do this much for his fellow man?” Asuero said, bowing his head as if embarrassed by Thomas Hewitt’s praise. Malco looked upon him with a proud expression.

However…

“Hm? Then were all the people we just met slaves you purchased later?”

“That is correct. Though they are, of course, free men now.”

“I heard that in Florida, all settlers are given ten slaves to start with… where did they go?”

At that question, Asuero’s face hardened for a fraction of a second, an expression so fleeting that no one could have noticed. 

“…You seem to know our colonies inside and out.”

“Ah, well, stories from the south are quite famous, you see.”

“Is that so? Haha… It is bitter to know that my homeland is famous for such injustice…”

“…”

“…”

“So, what happened that…”

“Sir Asuero freed them all—”

“They all died on the way—”

“Pardon?”

“…That is to say, after I freed them, they all died on our journey here.”

“Th-that’s right. Good heavens. I can only pray for my slave brethren.”

A subtle inconsistency. A hurried exchange of glances between the two.

“In any case, this is wonderful. We can’t just put such righteous men in the common quarters! I will lend you my own lodgings.” Thomas Hewitt, completely oblivious, let the matter slide.

“…Is that so?” Eleanor felt a slight sense of unease, but she couldn’t put it into words and simply nodded.

It was the same when they reported to Nemo.

“I believe it would be right to provide these righteous men with a new home on Croatoan Island. They may become symbolic figures for the liberation of slaves in the future!” Hewitt exclaimed excitedly in the meeting hall.

“W-wait a moment, isn’t that a bit hasty?” Eleanor Dare interjected, tilting her head.

Nemo turned to her. “Why do you think so, Eleanor?”

“Well… it’s hard to explain. But for some reason, they made me feel uneasy.”

“…Hmm.”

“No, on second thought, it’s strange to make a judgment based on intuition alone. Perhaps I was being too rude to them…”

“No. Eleanor is right.” Nemo nodded and, as if the thought had just struck him, pulled something out of a drawer. “Mr. Hewitt, when you take them to their room, please place this inside.”

“This is… a small tablet?”

“…It’s a device called a smartphone. Here, press this button and this button, then place it in a corner of the room. Bring it back to me tomorrow.”

“S-surely you’re not going to peer into their souls, or harm them…?”

“…It doesn’t have such functions, so do not worry. For now, we have no guarantee they are not spies sent from Spain, do we?”

“Well… that’s true.”

“So please, trust me and place it. If we pay close attention to their words and deeds for a few days, everything will be confirmed, will it not?”

“If that’s the case…”

And so, Hewitt guided them to his own room, then moved into Vicente’s quarters, who was away on a scouting mission. He placed the smartphone in an inconspicuous corner… and retrieved it two days later while offering morning greetings. The conversation they had had the day before was now entirely in Nemo’s hands.

+++

(3:16:17)

• Rustle. Rustle.

• Click.

• • “Ah, there you are, master.”
  • “What’s this ‘master’ nonsense in a place with no slaves? Call me by my name.”
  • “Hahaha! How could I? Are you not my savior?”
  • “Just call me Asuero. Or Mr. Javier, if you’d like.”
  • “…Mr. Javier, you’ve worked hard. I still can’t forget the screams of those moronic bastards burning in the cellar. Why did they have to make things so difficult?”
  • “Moronic bastards? They were your compatriots.”
  • “Hah, compatriots? Hardly. My family has been selling slaves for generations. If we hadn’t had the bad luck of losing a war, I never would have fallen to the same level as those things.”
  • “Is that so? In any case, a toast. To our new homeland and our new emperor.”
  • “To the new lord we shall soon meet…”

• Fast-forward. Beep.

(14:39:21)

• • “…”
  • “…”
  • “…Just, asking just in case. There’s no way we’ll get caught for what happened back there, right?”
  • “Of course not! I made sure the cellar door was blocked securely.”
  • “But you never know, right? What if they get out and make contact with other slaves…? Or even if they don’t, what if their bodies are found? There are signs of torture, aren’t there?”
  • “Well, they were probably the ones who spread the rumors about our so-called new lord ‘Nemo’ and incited the slaves in the first place, but do you really think these people have the will or the ability to conduct that kind of investigation?”
  • “I suppose you’re right. Florida is still Spanish territory, after all. No matter how much they flap and crawl…”
  • “All that’s left is to enjoy life, isn’t it? Of course, I won’t be able to enjoy things like hunting or whipping anymore, but…”
  • “Right. That’s not what’s important. Did you hear the size of the land they said they’d give us? Do you know how big 500 hectares⁴ is? Ahahaha! To think I’d get to live like a feudal lord here.”
  • “Congratulations. If you forget me…”
  • “Half of all the wealth I receive will be yours. Do not worry. I swear it on my Lord…”

• Fast-forward. Beep.

(27:52:33)

• Scrape.

• “…Why are you pulling the chair?”
• “Just, you never know who might be listening, right?”
• “I’ve already confirmed no one is around. Do not worry.”
• “Is that so? Good. Now then, let us tally it up. The sheer scale of the glory we are about to receive… By the way, it’s a shame I can’t hunt Indians around here. Maybe I should have gone to Portuguese Brazil instead…”

(29:01:17)

• End of recording.

+++

“…” 

“…” 

“…” 

“…Eleanor?” 

“Y-yes?” 

“Please, return for now. Their… disposal… is something I will consider on my own.”

Nemo spoke to Eleanor with a placid expression. But to her, his two eyes… were burning.

***

After Eleanor left, I was alone. I picked up the smartphone, shoved it into my pocket, and left the church. A short walk later, I was at my house. Inside, I checked the refrigerator. The beef… looked fine. The other seafood could be cooked fresh on the day it was delivered. Maybe I could try making a Spanish dish for the first time in a while—

…

…

…

“Urp.”

Bile rose in my throat. Just looking at the meat felt like it would trigger a hallucination. I had heard their conversation. Heard what they had done. I heard them talk of impaling people on skewers. I heard them talk of burning people alive and feeding the meat to their families. I heard them talk of stripping people naked and humiliating them before riddling them with bullets. I heard them… people… killing… and killing other people…

This… this is even more brutal than in the original history.

Humans could be insane in their cruelty to one another.

‘There’s no control. That’s what this is. The Spanish colonial authorities are so desperate to expand the colony that they aren’t controlling the settlers at all.’

When the only thing holding them back was their own conscience, and when they finally cast even that aside to unleash their vile desires, a person could become more cruel than any demon.

My, my hands were trembling. I couldn’t be this weak in front of Eleanor. I couldn’t show disgust, couldn’t show fear. I was an angel; I had to maintain my dignity.

But it’s disgusting. So disgusting I want to kill those two right this instant.

And I’m afraid. Afraid that they paraded themselves as righteous men before the people of our settlement. Afraid that I almost fell for it.

I am an angel. At least, that is what those around me believe, and it is why they follow me.

I am an angel. Therefore, I must act with justice, and through that, my community is kept in peace.

I am an angel. So I must not allow evil in my midst. And the single act of malice those things committed almost shattered the very foundation of my community.

‘…What should I do?’

In an instant, all manner of agonizing thoughts coiled and grew in my mind. How should I, how should my community, respond and deal with such malice? How can the crimes of such villains be brought to light and punished? How can my community defend itself from their insidious attacks? And the Spanish colonies are operating in a way that is far more harsh and cruel than I had imagined. I knew that countless Europeans had perpetrated atrocities in Africa and the Americas during the age of colonialism, but I never thought it would be laid bare so graphically.

What… should I do…

Slap!

…Fuck it, get a grip. I can’t let myself get scared and shaken by something like this like an idiot. I’m responsible for tens of thousands of people now. If I’m going to crumble from the malice of two people, I never should have started this in the first place.

Honestly, even now that I’ve calmed down, I have no idea how to solve these problems. The fear and anxiety haven’t faded. Of course they haven’t. If I could wipe away the darkness of colonialism and punish all the world’s villains with my power alone, I would be a real angel. I can’t do that. I can’t solve these problems right now.

But.

“Those things…”

The sons of bitches that have crossed my path—them, I will deal with. Without fail. The rest can be figured out later.

I looked up; it was midnight. The dishes cleaned themselves without being washed, and the clothes became spotless without being laundered. I stared blankly at the scene for a moment… and then I thought.

‘Appointments… are best made at night.’

I made my decision. The next morning, I summoned Eleanor immediately. “For now… let’s call only the one named Asuero to my house on Croatoan. He must come alone. The pretext can be simple—that I have taken an interest in him and wish to invite him to a meal. That should suffice.”

“What about an escort…?”

“It won’t be necessary. No, wait, we will need some soldiers to monitor my farm from a distance so he can’t escape. But they must be positioned out of sight.”

Right. Even if it wasn’t to this extent, this wasn’t the first or second time I’d had to confront human malice while running this community. In times like these, I have my ways.

“Finally… I intend to give him one chance.”

I’ll handle this myself. With my own two hands.