Since Issei’s more than impressive action, the guards’ security and unease grew to unprecedented levels, as too did the other inmates’ respect for him. As the sole prisoner here who has not only picked off a guard from the echelon, but also found himself taking said guard’s weapon for himself, he now holds the most power among the prisoners. No one can approach him like they used to, and he’s basically put himself up on a pedestal atop which he is revered by many.

That being said, he doesn’t seem to care about all that all too much. He’s still just as worried about Othelia’s wellbeing, and if anything I’d say that this has only made him more scared of the other inmates, as he seems to be growing paranoid of the others ganging up on him to remove him from his high and mighty position. I don’t know in which household he was raised in, but he seems to be the modest pacifist type. He doesn’t strike me as someone who would do what he did back then, so I imagine that this was probably just him acting on impulse due to all the worrisome details the guards let slip about the state his friend is in.

“Morning.” He yawned as he got up from the stone bedding, “What’s got you staring at me so intently this early in the morning? Don’t worry, beauty isn’t contagious.”

“Hm? O-Oh, nothing. It’s just, you’re not really doing anything when it comes to the revolution. In fact, you’ve been quite the lazy leader this whole time.”

“Sigh, didn’t I tell you that I’m not interested in any of that revolutionary stuff?” He leaned up against the wall, “Besides, it’s been almost a month since I got the gun, and nothing’s changed. No one’s bugging me to make the next step, nor have any of the guards punished me even once. Honestly, this peace and quiet is just what I need if I am to look for Othelia.”

“Nothing’s changed because you haven’t done anything to move our situation along! Surely even you must realize the advantageous position you’ve placed yourself in! But you grew complacent after getting your fill of revenge, and stopped focusing on the goal immediately after killing that guard!”

“And?” He raised his tone, “So what if I did? Remember, my one and only goal is to get out of here with Othelia! I don’t care about the others, as long as I can safely leave this damned place with her!”

“But you can’t!” I shot back, “Not without the aid of us fellow inmates!”

“Oi!” The guard reprimanded us, “Shut up in there! Get dressed and head to the cafeteria! Today you’ll be working on widening the canal for the next 100 meters, so get to eating!”

“Ugh, damn everyone in here…” He silently cussed us out, “Don’t get in my way, M-kun. I said I won’t hesitate to use the AFP on anyone that opposes me, and you’re no exception.”

Seriously, what’s up with this guy? He’s being a real jerk in the worst of times! And to think, he was so hyped up about exacting revenge on the guards here, so excited about burning the entire prison down, and now what? He’s just some lazy, good for nothing buffoon with a gun. Nothing about him gives me hope for our potential freedom out of this place…

That being said, Lee was quite different in his approach to motivating Issei to take up the position of a proper leader. Usually, he’d be the one forcing the matter like I just did, but this time he chose to be calm but sharp with his words.

“Y’know kid, for a guy who wants to save his lady from the hands of these monsters, you’re really cucking out.” He casually mocked Issei as he ate his grub.

“Haah?” Issei shot him a nasty glare, “Cucking out? What are you on about?”

“Oh, you know, you’re kinda letting them do it to her at this point, aren’t ya’?”

Without hesitation, Issei, who was practically shaking from the anger, had whipped out the AFP out of his pocket and pointed it at him, tightly clenching the handle.

“Say that again, you rat bastard.”

“I don’t need to, your actions tell me just how much I hit the sweet spot. Just like those guys are doing to your girl…” He continued eating his grub, “See right there, you’ve got your safety on. I know you’re not one to just shoot people all willy-nilly.”

“…” Issei silently put the gun back in his pants, “That still doesn’t prove anything…”

“I ain’t gonna force you to take a stance.” Lee shrugged as he got up to put his tray away, “But just know that you’ve got a ton of people betting on you getting us out of here. Especially that girl of yours.”

“Shut up! What do you know!?” Issei threw his tray to the floor before storming off, “Don’t speak another word of this ever again, you ass! See you at work!”

Geez, looks like he’s completely alienated himself from the rest of us. There’s just no getting through to him. We’ll have to find a way to motivate him during work, I guess…

***

As was said previously, our job was to help dig out the Great Canal that was to span all the way across the desert of Abyssus Solis, and would eventually be used as a new trade route across the central part of the map. That way sailors wouldn’t have to go all the way around both Abyssus Solis and Sulfury. It’s an incredible idea, but the way it’s realized is damn near inhumane. I don’t care what part of the world you’re from, slavery is definitely a horrible thing to do, but it seems the Cardinians are all for it. Damn it, they really are too stuck up and snarky for their own good, but they’ll see!

All we need to do is secure ourselves a safe passage out of the prison, but no matter what, it seems that such a passage won’t show itself to us on its own. We’re put in a situation where sitting around and waiting won’t lead to anything changing, so we’ll just have to force the change ourselves. Issei proved to everyone that seizing the opportunity and changing the situation is not only doable, but leads to amazing results, but he’s since gotten cold feet and stopped the momentum entirely. Now everyone’s just left in a state of limbo, neither willing nor unwilling to rise up.

That’s why Lee and I are pestering Issei to become our leader this much, even though we know such a title isn’t befitting of his character. The thing is, though, we’d like to let him look around for Othelia’s whereabouts with this newfound freedom of his, but the fact is that it’s been a month and there haven’t been any news at all since that first time we lucked out. It seems they’ve changed where she’s being kept, as he says that he couldn’t hear anyone nor could he see anyone’s shadows back when he revisited the boiler rooms.

I actually offered to become the leader if Issei doesn’t get his act together, but Lee talked me out of it, claiming that no one will listen to a guy who didn’t prove his worth so spectacularly. It’d lead to a divide within the community – those who consider me their leader, and those who are still willing to believe in Issei. This would only lead to infighting, so there’s just no other way other than to have Issei be the leader.

“But how…?” I asked myself as I dug out the rubble, “How do I get him to step up?”

“We can’t keep annoying him with it unless we know the reason behind why he’s so against doing it in the first place.” Lee answered my question, tugging at the huge metal ball he’s chained to, “Damn, this thing’s chaffing my ankle. Don’t they know my wound still hasn’t fully recovered?”

“Are you going to be fine?”

“Yeah, don’t worry about it, kiddo.” He waved his hand at me, “In any case, it’s not like I can take a rest, even if I wanted to. The guards are staring a hole through everyone, whipping the first person they see slacking.”

Certainly. Looking around, all I could see on the cliffs above us were guards staring down at us, some even passing the time by spitting and aiming for the prisoners’ heads. Looks like all of that posh noble acting goes out the window the moment they’re outside of their own country. The imbeciles… Nothing gentlemanly about them!

“Hey, why not try and interrogate our little leader-to-be?” He asked, “I’ll sit this one out, since I did kind of go too far this morning. See if you can find out something about why he’s so adamant about not changing.”

“Will do.” I said as I turned around, only to trip up after forgetting I have this huge ball I’m chained up to, “Dammit, that was embarrassing…”

Walking up to a lonely Issei who was busying himself chipping away at the rocks, I had tried to initiate a conversation, starting with small talk. The small talk was nothing too special, just the usual “Fine weather we’re having” and “So how’s life?” but my attempts were quickly seen through.

“The weather’s hot as fuck, and my life’s currently stuck in prison with no signs of getting out with my loved one.”

“…” I thought of what to say next very carefully, “You yourself must know that there’s no other way out of this unless you do your part.”

“I…!” He raised his pick high above me, only to turn around and continue to hit the ground, “I know. I know, alright? It’s just, it’s scary. Change, I mean. I’ve seen what change does to a person. There was this one guy – real nice, a bit of a shut-in. He lived happily with his girl in the inn they rented out, and even let me crash there for a few months.”

“What does this story have to do with anything?” I interrupted, only for him to give me a nasty silent glare, “Okay, I’ll let you finish.”

“Thanks. In any case, the guy’s life was perfect, but he chose to change it all willfully. He kept wanting to amass a good enough wealth to go back home to his old family with his lover, so he did anything and everything to get to that wealth. In the end, it took a toll on both his body and his mind, and he finally snapped and began threatening the people around him for no apparent reason. That was around the time that I had run away to embark on my journey, actually.”

“Well, I’m no therapist, and I’m certainly not good at reading people’s emotions.” I replied, “But aren’t you doing all that stuff right now?”

“…Shit.” He let go of the pickaxe before leaning up against the wall, “Yeah, you’re actually right, fuck… But even still, I don’t think I’m the right guy for leading a revolution. I’ll get us all killed.”

Thinking of a proper way to reply was difficult. I now at least know why he’s like this, but it’s not like I can just say something like No, you won’t. You’re gonna be a great leader, because even I myself can’t help but agree that he’s not capable of being a leader. Even still, it’s as Lee said – we need him to lead, no matter what.

“Oi!” Lee called out to us, “If you’re done talking, come over here for a sec!”

“What’s he want now?” Issei clicked his tongue.

“Phew, finally dug it out.” Lee wiped the sweat off of his forehead before showing us, “Look here guys – a cubby hole!”

“Lee, grow up.” I rolled my eyes, “Issei’s got a ton of inner turmoil to deal with, and you really think this is gonna help him?”

“Nah, not really.” He scratched his cheek, “I just always wanted to sit inside a cubby hole and sing some songs with my friends, but the life of a bandit didn’t allow for that, so I’m fulfilling my childhood dreams now, when I’m an old adult.”

“You’re quite the odd adult, Lee-san.” Issei got inside the cubby hole, “Huh, quite well made.”

“Right?” Lee accepted the praise, “Listen kid, there comes a time in every man’s life where he just wants to spend the entire day in a cubby hole. It’s like a way to recharge mentally, y’know?”

“Yeah, I think I get it…” He smiled warmly, “Now, what songs do you guys know?”

“Songs?” I put my finger to my lip as I tilted my head, “I don’t know any songs. They’re a distraction from my studies.”

“I only know the old sea shanties like “Oh sailor of mine” and “Across Winston Shore”. Nothing else though.”

“What the hell are those songs even!?” Issei yelled out, “Oh right, those must be your world’s songs, so that’s why I’ve never heard of them. No matter, I’ll teach you guys a song I really liked to listen to back in the day.”

“Really now?” Lee seemed intrigued, “Then by all means, what’s the name?”

“It’s a rather old song, from a time before I was born. It’s in English, so I could never recall the name, but the lyrics went like this, ahem: There is a house in New Orleans…”