Chapter 82

**Chapter 82** is the eighty-second chapter of the *Dead Mount Death Play* manga.

## Official Blurb

While both Civil and Fire-Breathing Bug have stood down, the road to peace still has plenty of obstacles for both the Corpse God and the real Polka Shinoyama…

## Summary

The morning after Civil A. Sabaramond and Corpse God's tumultuous battle greets a Shinjuku that has suffered no casualties and relatively minimal structural damage, the latter of which scientists have attributed to a tornado and its subsequent fire. No witnesses have stepped forward to corroborate this theory, for no one "stepped outside even once," states a news anchor, even though the damage was proximate to Shinjuku Station. His news channel, which is playing on a sleeping Takumi Kuruya's computer, cycles through soundbites from street interviews with locals: two clips show men claiming that premonitions kept them from going outside or near windows, a third clip shows someone gesturing to their damaged building, and a fourth clip shows a woman recalling a "roaring sound outside" akin to a yelled announcement. This dearth of witnesses is complemented by a dearth of CCTV footage, adds the news anchor, supposedly due to tornado damage.

In the building of the *Weekly Dry* newspaper-tabloid, its chief editor looks up from the news broadcast to Kochou Eightport, who, he is to believe, saw nothing of the mystery event despite being at the scene of it. With a frustrated groan, Kochou describes how she would follow sounds only to be turned about in circles, again and again, until "Polka" eventually called her and broke the news of the tornado. The Chief prefers a missed interview to a dead-by-tornado reporter, a perspective he insists on when he anticipates and rejects Kochou's 'would put her life on the line in the name of journalism' ideals. To rush into a disaster zone for the sake of interviewing—and thus endangering—others is tantamount to creating an incident, and risks falling into delusional thinking; any journalist who begins to believe there is intrinsic, automatic truth to stories for which they risk their lives is a finished journalist.

Kochou accepts this lecture somewhat meekly, though she regains her usual enthusiasm as she shows the chief photographs of what she *did* experience: broken windows of "Polka Shinoyama's building" that she says shattered next to her *before* the tornado hit. The chief advises her to wait a few days before investigating, since Himura—from their Local News section—is of the mind that the city's underworld is potentially undergoing a major shift in its power structure.

Lisa Kuraki toasts Youtoukorou's employees by the bar with a glass of wine, praising them for their help in yesterday's ruckus. One of her partners pulls her aside to ask whether letting the challengers "get away" yesterday "worked out" for the better, leading to a flashback of Corpse God calling Lisa post-battle to ask her a favor.

Flashback
Corpse God informs Lisa that their "person of interest" is fast asleep and drained of strength, glancing back at the person in question: Civil, sleeping with his head in Lulu's lap; beside him, Soara similarly sleeps with the heads of the dual-fanged tiger, Rafa & Gufa, attending her. The favor that Corpse God seeks is for Clarissa to leave the three's fates in his hands: a significant favor indeed, Clarissa points out, prompting Corpse God to explain that Civil keeps the Elemental user—rather, the user's Elementals themselves—in check; the Elemental will react to and countervail with wild prejudice any 'excessive damage' inflicted upon him, and Corpse God does not have the spare strength to neutralize them in such an event. A few feet away, Leuf Vellize affirms that she will not assist Corpse God in any injurious actions against her descendant.

As Clarissa lapses into silence, Corpse God shares some "last words" someone has for her: "Be it miser or crook, a trade must be fair." Lisa understands at once that these are Miyabi Hosorogi's words, though neither she nor Corpse God explicitly use his name, and she simultaneously acknowledges the Necromancy and reiterates what she "is sure" she told Corpse God the last time he asked: "I'm not interested in the last words...of someone who's said his goodbyes." This is contrasted with what she *did* say to Corpse God: "...If I could tell him something, there's just one thing I'd like to say. *Farewell...my beloved.*"

Lisa nonetheless acknowledges that she is "trading vengeance on one life for another," in this case, her vengeance on Habaki's life against vengeance on Civil's life, so she agrees to leave Civil and his troupe to Corpse God—whom she meanwhile expects shall pass on what information he has gleaned on Civil's organization. Corpse God agrees; the organization, by this point, is clearly no monolith.

Present
Lisa remarks to her partner that she would "take out" as many people as necessary to benefit her circle if this was a mere work situation—but this is a personal grudge situation, and with personal grudges, one must "draw the line somewhere." Typically it is the other way around, says her partner, to which Lisa replies that she is a mediator, not a lone wolf assassin, ergo she must make fair trades. As she slides an arm around her partner's waist, she adds that she has no time to eye her lingering attachments when she should be keeping an eye out for her employees—and especially not now, since "work-related matters" are about to keep her busy "like never before."

In an airport, a mother apologizes to Kuon Higuro for her young son bumping into his leg. Small talk ensues about their respective destinations: the boy and his parents are headed to Hawaii for vacation while Higuro's workplace is sending him to the Republic of Lignisasse—though any trip to the Mediterranean begs *some* sightseeing. After the family is on their way, Higuro uses the washroom and talks to his reflection in its mirrors—from which Fire-breathing Bug stares back. "We will leave Shinjuku to that visitor and the detective," intones Bug. "As long as they are not innocent civilians...there will be no problems."

Higuro slams the mirror; when he drags his palm to the side, his reflection is his own. He greets it with an enigmatic smile and the thought that "this is a fair trade. I bought my own life from you guys." He had told Bug as much back when he was still Bug's hostage, introducing himself then as a mediator. In exchange for his life, he is to see that Bug's will is delivered to the Bastards that Bug "must truly take vengeance on": the Bastards who cower in their organization's headquarters, far away in a foreign republic. With a warning look at his reflection, Higuro asks that Bug—fellow partner that they are—refrain from interfering with the actual journeying.

On the Abandoned Building's rooftop, Framrodia Byandiraz manifests next to Corpse God, who is lost in thought, to inform him that the "heir of Arius" has awoken. As a specialist in 'dirty work', Framrodia will gladly assist any interrogation efforts, though he knows full well that Corpse God shall not let him. The two tease each other about Framrodia's lack of lessons learnt in death, assassinated and assassinator smiling alike, and the latter says that he wants to tour this unknown world with Framrodia and the rest, finding peaceful places for *everyone* along the way.

A sniper bullet blasts across the rooftops and finds purchase in a shield of ribs rather than Corpse God's head. Unfazed, Corpse God affirms that he still has much work to do. Youtoukorou's surveillance personnel remotely report the murder attempt to Clarissa, who surmises that Polka Shinoyama's death-wishers have joined with mediators from either Roppongi or Ikebukuro. Both Corpse God and Polka must keep well in mind, Lisa says, the many obstacles that still stand between them and their desired peace.

## Trivia

* The fictional republic to which Higuro is travelling is initially written as "the Republic of **Lignisasse**" on page 18 of the chapter's individual release, but, two pages later, is instead spelled "the Republic of **Lignisse**."