The Devil Of Probability-Chapter 53: What It Means To Be Human

(Simon, may I ask you a question? It’s quite unusual, however.)

(I don’t see why not, go ahead.)

Simon had awakened earlier than usual, a grey, cloudy sky sending waves of light into his eyes. His stone eyes, when met with this light, created an illusion of a lone rock next to a frozen river.

The Saber inside his core was no more than a white silhouette; both of her feet were placed on a raven.

(What does it mean to be human?)

(I don’t know. The beauty of being human is never fully being able to understand humanity — because the only person you’ll ever fully be able to understand is yourself.)

(I see. Humans are so full of contradictions.)

Simon didn’t reply; after all, he didn’t have much more to say. The day ahead of him was going to be long and stressful. After all, this was one of the most eventful months out of the six. 𝒇𝓻𝓮𝓮𝙬𝙚𝒃𝒏𝓸𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝓬𝓸𝒎

From here on, things would only grow harsher with each passing day. Not just to keep up with the story that he had fabricated, but also the actual events. So far, what he had told the bureau only consisted of paperwork and official Hollow World expeditions.

This meant that all he had to add to his story was where he was during certain nights, and the fight of Nabû-Zēr. There wasn’t much to work with, and it wasn’t very convincing.

Like usual, the more Simon thought, the more sleep escaped him. He tossed and turned, rolled his eyes, but nothing seemed to work. Even if he had a book, something to calm his mind would do wonders for him right now.

He looked down at Saber in his core, who shared his frustration. He had almost forgotten his emotions would be inflicted on her, even if subtly.

(Human, do you know what I find so fascinating about your species?)

(What is it?)

(While most entities would respond with their physical traits, I don’t see much interest in it. The things that interest me are the desire to be someone else, or something you’re not.)

Simon was, of course, confused by this; he had never met an entity like this. On top of this, it felt strangely out of character for Saber to say such a thing, but Simon didn’t respond, which made Saber continue.

(Most people would say it comes from jealousy, but I think it’s something else entirely. The desire to be someone else or something else does not stem from the idea of jealousy — but rather to better yourself. Think of yourself, for example, imagine the wonders you could do as an S-rank.)

(You talk a lot for something that’s supposed to be a warrior.)

(Not every warrior is a braindead fossil. I take that as disrespect, human.)

(You must be forgetting our contract.)

Saber looked up into the starless sky of absence. In it, she saw what resembled Simon’s eyes and floated up to them. Her movements were graceful, and she stopped just a few meters away from them.

(You must have forgotten who sold you that contract.)

Simon didn’t respond; both of them were right. Saber was the first to turn away, landing on her left foot on his core with a soft thud. Simon shifted his torso, turning back to the window.

He knew at this point, there was no way he was going back to sleep. Sitting up with a grunt, Simon decided to finally have some time to himself. However, personal time and planning were the same to him.

He pushed aside the blankets and sheets and carefully walked towards the desk. Simon clutched his journal for a while before grabbing a pen. He wasn’t sure where the cameras in this room were, or if they were even added.

However, it was better to be safe than sorry. He flipped through the pages for a while, letting them fan themselves before settling. Then, he went through the dates.

Simon eventually found the date he was looking for, December thirty-first, and carefully ripped the page out. Then, he simply put the journal away.

(Oh?)

Saber looked in mock curiosity. She had already sensed his plan, and it was to her liking. On the off chance that the investigator Simon had to meet every day was following bureau protocol, it was likely he would have to ask about the journal.

After all, he knew that they were in this room yesterday to the scent of flowers. He was bothered by the fact that there could be cameras; however, the scent bothered him even more.

After all... It was Alina’s perfume. This meant that she was in the room, so it made him wonder.

(Was she really working with me — or is she warning me?)

Simon rubbed his temples in contemplation before writing out the events of November. Of course, these were only what happened officially. This task was hard as the events from the month were all over the place.

There were a lot of things he had to mention, but he had to stay away from the fact that this was the month when he first interacted with Saber.

He only got about halfway before a knock on the door interrupted his train of thought.

Knock. Knock. Knock.

"Coming."

Of course, this time it was not Alina who picked him up, but a security guard. Simon didn’t dare to try anything; he still wanted to be in the bureau after this.

After all, he would need their protection against Bedeviled and an excuse to enter the Hollow World. As usual, the interrogation room awaited him with impeccable silence.

"Legacy of Crest, I hate to say this, but you won’t be free from tomorrow either, even if it is a holiday. We are still human, I’m sure we can both negotiate something for your free time, however."

"...I don’t mind either one."

"Really? You are quite a curious one. I think I’d like to work with you. If you are found innocent, of course."

Simon shook his head at this before responding:

"You’d be wasting the bureau’s time. I’m competent enough, no need to have two in the same group."

"Yes, that is correct. Now, Kiyoharu Sato, this is the point where he joins our story, yes?"

"Yes."