"I think… you may have misunderstood something."
Revy spoke in an indifferent tone.
"Also, I bet you're wondering… why none of them have opened fire yet."
A bead of cold sweat rolled down Steiner's face.
The men he brought — each and every one of them were criminals with arrest records in nomadic cities, forced to roam the wilderness and take on dirty jobs to survive.
When Catastrophes loomed, only by working with him could they relocate in advance to safer areas. In fact, twice now, he'd even helped them sneak into nomadic cities during migrations to avoid the disasters.
Because of that, these men couldn't possibly betray him — at least, not from a self-interest standpoint.
"Didn't you hear me?! I told you to kill them!"
Steiner roared with a shaky edge to his voice, refusing to accept that the situation was spiraling out of his control.
"...Of course they can't hear you."
Revy's lazy drawl sounded again. Steiner turned around, his face twisted in fury, glaring at the Sarkaz man before him.
But Revy simply returned the look with an expression as if he were staring at a complete idiot.
"Didn't you notice?... The dead don't take orders."
As those words fell, Steiner's face instantly changed.
He didn't want to believe it — after all, Revy hadn't actually done anything yet.
Still, he couldn't help but glance around.
And the next second, his eyes flew wide open… and his pupils constricted.
Because everyone around him — all those men — were staring at him.
Staring at him.
To be precise, it was the gaze of corpses — wide-eyed, vacant, devoid of thought or intelligence.
But when you replicate that exact dead gaze across 20 or 30 men, all of whom lock onto you like that…
…It goes beyond "creepy." It's horrific.
"W-Why are you all looking at me?! Don't look! STOP LOOKING!!"
Steiner stumbled back a step. Each of those "people" turned their heads slightly as he moved, keeping their gaze locked on him.
Suddenly, his familiar underlings felt like complete strangers.
(What the hell… What is happening?! They're acting like lunatics...)
Overwhelmed with fear, Steiner Zoclay — a man who had always relied on his cunning — could not comprehend what was happening.
Of course he couldn't.
The moment they entered the detection radius of the Gyamagara Virus, their fates had already been sealed.
This was the first time Revy had used these detached cells in combat. Until now, he had only applied this power to stabilize Eyjafjalla's internal condition — a move that immediately calmed the Originum turbulence in her body and promoted a healthy fusion between her cells and the mineral. It had freed the little lamb from her Oripathy.
But now, used for destruction — the same virus that healed could shatter minds in seconds. Turning the living into mindless thralls, this odorless, tasteless pathogen had already been spread in advance.
It was, in essence, a perfect biochemical weapon.
Of course, Revy couldn't manipulate the infected like puppets — he simply didn't need to. Their madness was kept in check only because they were weak.
But now—
"Adèle… can you turn around for a bit? And maybe… cover your ears?"
Revy ignored Steiner's panicked screaming. Instead, he turned to the girl beside him. His voice was soft, gentle — like handling something incredibly fragile.
Even someone as emotionally reserved as Revy could see it:
Eyjafjalla's heart, in this moment, was as fragile as glass.
And there was only one thing he could do.
The tear streaks still fresh on her face were proof of her inner turmoil — a tangled mess of pain, betrayal, and hatred.
All her life, Uncle Steiner had been someone she deeply respected.
It was he who encouraged her to carry on her parents' legacy after their deaths. He had helped her, supported her, pulled strings so she could join the volcano research team and publish papers at Laterano's prestigious academies.
In every version of her dream, he had been there — cheering her on.
But now, that warm, smiling figure… had shattered into shards that pierced her heart.
(If this were the old me… I'd probably be begging Revy-senpai to stop.)
But not now.
(Not killing him myself is the greatest mercy I can offer. Goodbye, Uncle Steiner… Steiner Zoclay.)
Eyjafjalla gave one last look at the broken man before her, her gaze now devoid of sorrow or joy.
She nodded, turned away, covered her ears, and closed her eyes.
"Wait—! You can't kill me! That's murder!"
Realizing she no longer cared whether he lived or died, Steiner screamed hysterically.
"I'm— I'm Steiner Zoclay! If you kill me—if you kill me—!"
"...Who said I'd dirty my hands for you? You're not worth it."
Revy's voice was as indifferent as ever, his glance toward the man filled with contempt.
Gone was the elegant gentleman — what stood before him now was nothing more than a panicked rooster, a pitiful clown.
And then—
With just a wordless cue from Revy, the surrounding "crowd" stepped forward in unison.
"—AAHH!!"
Steiner's body locked up in terror. He finally realized Revy's intent.
"No! Don't! Don't kill me! What do you want?! Money?! I can pay! I'll give you anything!"
His panicked shrieking drew no sympathy from Revy — only deeper revulsion.
Without hesitation, the Sarkaz released his control over the virus-bound mercenaries.
And when madmen are freed — and there's a defenseless man in their path — the result needs no description.
Steiner tried to flee — two steps.
That was all he managed before he was tackled to the ground.
Then came the gaping maws. The jagged teeth. The ripping claws.
"Mercy! Mercy!! I'll give you anything! AAAAHHH!!"
"Don't eat me! It hurts! IT HURTS IT HURTS IT HURTS AAAAAHH!!"
"Help! Someone! Anyone! I'll pay you! I'll pay all of you— GAAHHHH!!"
What began as full-throated screams became nothing more than animalistic howls of agony. Perhaps influenced by Revy, the infected seemed to devour him strategically — starting with his limbs, then tearing into non-lethal organs…
(Good thing I told Adèle to cover her ears from the start...)
To Revy, this level of brutality was — at best — mild. But he knew Eyjafjalla wouldn't want to witness something like this.
He turned his head, glancing toward a nearby hillside.
Under the blazing sun, that part of the terrain was cloaked in a strange, unnatural shadow.
"...Still not coming out? If you wait any longer, your boss won't even leave a corpse behind."