The snakeman in front of the four mercenaries stared them down with his hands folded.
Not a breath was taken during the intense battle of will, both Melody and the soldier teeming with confidence.
However, contrary to expectation, the soldier began laughing.
"Hahaha!! All the outsiders who come here sure are strange people. I love it! Ahh.... thank you for the food, Pliara."
The man patted the young girl on the head again as she gave him a delightful smile while taking away his empty bowl and spoon.
"If I were here to arrest you then I would've brought an entire squad. I'm not so overconfident in my abilities to the point where I would just jump forward without looking ahead of myself."
The man put his hands behind his head, stretching.
Melody smirked lightly, crossing her arms.
"So? I can take it that you're one of these 'dissenters' as well then? A real one, that is? From what I know, even the slightest offense can make someone labeled as a dissenter, but you two must be the real deal. It truly is strange that nobody has arrested that child yet, even if nobody comes around this area often. Wouldn't someone obsessed with control want every nook and cranny of the village under constant watch?"
The soldier scooted forward, putting his arms on the table as he began to speak.
"See now, there are a couple reasons for the way things are. First. I am a trusted member of the military police. As a member of the military police, we're allowed special privileges. See now, the provider can't do everything on his own. He keeps himself locked up in his palace most of the time. It's very rare for him to come out, and when he does the people view it as if they're being visited by a hero. Of course, I suppose that's what he is to the people of this village, right? What else could he be but a hero?"
Melody chuckled at this.
"A hero, eh? Not a Dictator? Not a ruler, but a hero?"
"It makes me laugh too, but hey, just think about it. The people who haven't seen those farms believe that he turns the sand itself into food. They believe he holds that type of power. The only ones who know the truth are the military police, who are kept low in number but high in strength."
"Why are you telling us all this?", Lance asked, somewhat suspicious. "Ok sure, you're a dissenter. But that doesn't mean you should trust us just because we're outsiders. We might be here for evil purposes, and even if we aren't, you have no real reason to tell us all this.... unless you want something in exchange."
The soldier laughed at hearing this.
"I suppose that's about right. But don't worry, I won't ask anything in particular of you all. I'm just waiting."
"Waiting? For what?", Charlotte questioned.
The soldier closed his eyes and tapped his fingers on the table as he spoke.
"For something to change."
Opening his eyes, he looked into the faces of the four.
"For someone.... anyone.... someone strong to come along and spice things up. Right now it's day in and day out. I do my duties. I follow the rules. I pretend like I am a loyal servant of the provider. And thankfully, due to my own position, I can come back here to see this unregistered child and have a nice meal. However, the only reason nobody has bothered to come here is because I have a little bit of pull to get the other inspectors to avoid this area. That's it. If it were to be found out that an unregistered person is living here, it would be all over. For her, and for me."
Pierre bit his lip, but looking up asked a question.
"What do you mean 'unregistered'? Is there something wrong with that child there?"
The soldier looked over to the girl, who was now cleaning the dishes while humming quietly.
"It's as I said. She has no label. I'm sure you all noticed that everyone in the city has a label. District and number. There are 4 districts in the city and around 500 families. The head of each family carries their label- that is, the one who works. The others carry a secondary label. For example, if A1 is a working man with a wife, his wife would be A1-1. His first child would be A1-2. Etc."
"Hmm.... I see....", Pierre said. "So then, that girl doesn't have a label at all?"
The soldier nodded.
"She is unregistered. Essentially, she's an outsider. But she isn't actually an outsider. I found her living in this hut when she was just 4 years old, but I wasn't allowed to simply take a child into my family without knowing where it came from. So I took this roundabout way of doing things."
Charlotte found herself wiping tears off her eyes.
"That's so sad.... the poor thing....."
"Don't call me a thing. I'm perfectly fine.", the girl said while she continued to wash the dishes.
The soldier laughed at this interaction, but then became serious once more.
"This brings me to my point. The way things are, I'm living a life of risk. Not a day passes that I don't worry about this girl, but I can't do anything about it. Not on my own. And I can't go to other people either. You should know this. Anyone who is heard to hold displeasure towards the status quo will be ganged up on by everyone. I am doing everything I can just to keep this girl alive."
"So basically, you're living in this town where you can't tell anyone about your situation, and doing so might cause everything to crumble.", Lance said. "But if you talk to outsiders about it, then maybe they will do something on their own, and the outsiders themselves won't rat on you as quickly as the people in this village."
The soldier nodded.
"Exactly."
"Alright. I got it. Melody, what do you think?"
Lance looked to Melody with hope, however she kept a straight face.
"What do I think? We stick to our current plan and do as we intended. We've already spread the word, and we're gonna be found out soon either way, so there's no reason not to tell this man what we have in mind."
Melody stood up from her seat, walking towards the exit.
"Thank you for the food, Pliara. It was good, but it was nowhere as good as the chef in our nation. However.... I suppose that was quite generous of you to give to us from the little you had. I assume that you don't have much, based on the situation. Therefore, you've done us a great kindness. And we cannot allow that kindness to go unrewarded."
"You're welcome, red haired lady.", the child said.
Melody waved for the other three to get up and follow her, and they did so, walking towards the doorway.
"We have big plans for this city. We'll disrupt everything, that much is certain. And in exchange for the meal you've provided for us, we will assure your protection. However, I will let you all know, we will be acting on our own, and in our own way, under the orders of those who have sent us- the antiheroes."
Melody looked back, smirking at the two.
"In the end, we will be changing everything, but the fact that this country is a dictatorship will remain the same. The only thing that will really change is the person who holds the inhabitants of this city in the palm of their hands."
And with that, Melody exited the door.
"Ah!! Melody, are you really gonna just say something like that and leave!?", Lance said while running after her.
"Er.... sorry about her!! She knows more than us, but I guess she doesn't really get how to be tactful!", Charlotte said while holding her hands together in apology before backing out the door.
Pierre stood up with a proud smirk, using a handkerchief to wipe his own mouth.
"She's not wrong though. Don't worry. We may be fighting for a group of dictators, but they aren't tyrants like this one. Just wait and see. I'm sure it will be interesting from the spectator position."
And with that, all four left the home, leaving the soldier and the little girl alone together.
"Ah.... it looks like they left this....", Pliara said while grabbing the flag which had been left on the chair, and folding it up nicely, placing it in her own pocket.
The young girl then climbed up onto the lap of the soldier after putting the last of the dishes away, and looked up to him with hopeful yet concerned eyes.
The soldier looked down at her with a smile, placing his hand on her head.
"It's fine. They were strong. I can tell. That redhead woman..... she knew what she was doing."
"Your hand is shaking, soldier."
"Is it? Haha.... it must be a bit cold in here.... no.... perhaps I'm just trembling with excitement.... finally.... something is going to change....."
"You're acting different than usual, soldier. Are you alright? Do you want me to do anything for you?"
The soldier shook his head no.
"Just.... stay here. And never leave."
----
"So uh.... what next?", Pierre asked.
"We find somewhere to sleep in the open and allow ourselves to get arrested in plain sight. If this 'provider' is really as scared of outsiders and their influence as I think he is, then he won't want to kill us off immediately. The orders will be to capture and question us, so that he can know why we came here and what our goal is."
The three nodded in agreement.
"But... sleeping on the ground? Is that.... fine?", Charlotte asked, somewhat concerned.
"It's fine. Just don't make a big deal out of it."
The four walked through the alleyways for a while before coming upon a relatively open plaza. It was one that seemed to be surrounded by many workplaces, though there were not many shops.
"This area is fine. They will find us by morning. I'll stay up. You three get to sleep."
"Oh.... are you sure you want to take the first watch, Melody? I can if you want.", Pierre offered.
"First watch? I'm taking all the watches. If they tried to kill us in our sleep that would be no joke. Even if I said that they wanted to take us in alive, they only need one person for information, right? While it would be better to take all four of us in, if one or two die it won't really be a problem for them."
"Ah.... yeah, but even so, that doesn't really have anything to do with the watch."
"Just rest before I make you unconscious."
Pierre quickly agreed, seeing the vicious glare which Melody gave him.
The three laid down on the hard ground, trying to get comfortable. Of course, it was difficult with no pillow nor blankets, but they eventually found themselves giving into their fatigue. It had been a long day after all.
When they had fallen asleep, Melody decided to give a call to her masters to update them on the progress of the village, and the status of the snakemen.
[Ah, Melody. I was expecting your report at any moment. So? How is the status of the snakemen village? What are things looking like? And do you have a plan, or should I come up with something for you?]
Trevor was the one who answered, and the two immediately began discussing matters.
Melody informed him of everything they had discovered on that day, detailing every one of their movements and every scene which they had witnessed, and the information which they deducted from all of it.
[I see.... this is indeed a very unique challenge. An actual dictatorship, eh? Well, I am running simulations as we speak, and your plan is looking to be very promising. I approve of it.], Trevor stated.
[Keh heh.... I like it. I'll be looking forward to the footage later.], Ashley sneered.
"Then, since I have obtained your approval I will do things as planned. Ah, there is one last thing. I have promised a certain young girl and her guardian protection for when things have been settled. Is that acceptable?"
[So long as you deemed them to be worthy of such an extension, I have no qualms with it.], Trevor replied. [Good work. If things go as planned, we will have no need to intervene just yet. Continue as you have said, and we will take over when the time comes. We have an appointment already for tomorrow morning, so we need to get some rest in order to attend. Don't work yourself too hard.]
"You are too kind to me, your excellency. However, until every last person in this world becomes infected with this plague which you are spreading, I cannot rest. I only hope that one day we will all be united as parasites clinging onto your abundance."
[Mhm. Well then, goodnight.]
"Goodnight, your excellency."
----
Most people within the snakemen village had the tails and lower bodies of snakes, while they had upper bodies which looked like humans with features that resembled snakes, such as split tongues, snake eyes, and fangs.
However, this was not the case for the snakeman who currently laid in a luxurious bed in a room which looked like the bedroom of an Arabic prince.
The room was lined with beautiful women, yet the one who sat in the center of the room- a king cobra with green eyes- was currently alone while the women patiently awaited his orders.
They didn't dare to so much as breathe without his permission, for this man was the provider.
Only the most beautiful of women would be selected to attend to him at night, and as such he was surrounded by the best that the village had to offer.
"Prostrate yourselves.", the man said while not so much as bothering to lift his head nor look any of the women in the eyes.
As soon as these words came from his mouth the women fell to the ground, their faces coming into contact with the floor. The slightest hesitation could cost them their lives.
"You. Your scales and your skin do not seem to be properly taken care of. Guard. Take this one away. I do not wish to be presented with someone who does not even take care of their own appearances."
The woman who the cobra addressed began to shiver with fear but she did not so much as lift her head up before the person in front of her, for fear that the consequences would become far worse than the fate which she was already deemed to suffer.
"And you. You have applied too much external product onto yourself in an attempt to make yourself more presentable. If you are not able to show me natural beauty without plastering yourself with such cosmetics, then the beauty becomes worthless the moment such things are removed. It is a falsehood. A lie. As the provider, I cannot accept something which is the opposite of true, for I am truth itself. Guard."
The guard placed blindfolds and earplugs on the women before he took them away.
The two had been reprimanded for the exact opposite things.
Despite having a clear double standard, this cobra didn't seem to hold any remorse or thought for his words.
And yet, even as they were taken away, these women did not let out a peep of disagreement. Nor did they beg for forgiveness.
Speaking in front of this man would incriminate them, and so they held their tongues.
As they were led through the pastures and thrown out into the streets after being rejected, the two cried tears of sorrow- yet these tears were not filled with a single ounce of hatred for the man who had rejected them. They were tears which were filled with a self loathing, one which dug at the very souls of these women, leaving them disappointed with their own performances.
'I should have done more.'
'I should have done less.'
While one thought the former and the other the latter, they both thought one thing.
'I wasn't good enough. I failed to impress the provider.'
Despite the fact that these girls were among the most beautiful in the city, and despite their grand efforts after receiving a single chance to visit the provider in an attempt to please him, they were met with failure.
This failure was one which they could not have planned for- one in which nobody had warned them about, and one in which was likely an arbitrary whim of the one known as the provider.
Yet these girls did not see this as such.
They saw this as a complete and utter failure, with themselves fully responsible.
For there was no way that the provider- the one who so generously produced sustenance for this town- could be wrong.
In order to be taken to the inner palace, the girls had all been blindfolded and their ears were plugged, under the presumption that the grounds upon which the provider did his work were a sacred place filled with an abundance of mana and power, to the point where a regular person would go blind and deaf upon witnessing it.
For this reason, right now, these two girls who had been thrown out into the streets by the guards, were removed their blindfolds unplugged their ears as they cried.
The guard merely walked away, shutting the gates of the inner sanctum of the city behind him.
'He's in a very picky mood today it seems. No matter. I must serve the provider to my dying breath. For it is through his existence that such order has been created within this city.'
Meanwhile, as this guard set out to return from throwing out the two women, the cobra glazed over the rest of the women in the room who were bowing before him as he lay on his bed.
"You, and you. The two of you are the only ones who have slightly acceptable looks. Though, I will say, not a single person here has impressed me. I suppose it would be too much to ask my people to provide me with sustenance of my own?"
The cobra sneered as he waved at the remaining guards to take away all but the two women he had picked out.
The women were then blindfolded and their ears were plugged just like the others, and the two who were told to stay remained bowing before him.
After the rest of the women were taken away, the cobra in the center glanced between the two.
"You have permission to kneel at my bedside and massage my tail."
The two immediately yet slowly raised themselves, crawling over to the bedside of the cobra as they placed their hands on his bed, massaging him lightly.
"Do not believe for a second that you two have done well. Your beauty is nothing more than barely tolerable for myself. It was merely that the others were so horrifying that even your low amount of effort seems to look acceptable. I wish for you to lament this and do better next time."
The two lightly nodded, their faces filled with fear and regret.
As they were massaging the cobra, he looked over to the door and called out on his own to the people who were patiently waiting near it.
"Bring forth the reports for the day, and plug the ears of these two women. I shall relay to you my judgement."