Synopsis
The next morning, Riko is embarrassed because she wet the bed. Maruruk admits he used to do the same not so long ago, but Reg is puzzled as to why Riko was in his bed. Riko explains that when she got up last night to look for a toilet, she found a moving, headless corpse and immediately hid in Reg's bed. Maruruk and Reg both agree that is impossible, though Reg does more out of fear than anything else.
Ozen arrives, and Riko apologizes, but Ozen merely seems amused that "the brat and Habolg" didn't tell Riko anything. She invites Riko to follow her for more information, or to forget what she saw. Maruruk advises Riko not to follow, but encouraged by Reg grabbing her hand, Riko follows Ozen, accompanied by Reg and Maruruk.
Ozen tells Riko that Lyza is dead, as she found Lyza's whistle and letter at a grave in the 4th Layer. Riko tries to insist that Lyza wrote a message to her, but Ozen replies that Lyza's handwriting is completely different and she would never write such a thing. Riko still wishes to confirm Lyza's status for herself.
Ozen takes the group to her chamber, in the center of which is a large cube. Riko guesses that it is the Curse-Warding Box. Ozen explains that, contrary to common belief, the box does not protect against the Curse. In fact, anything placed in the box still gets cursed and dies. But once it does, it starts moving again. Ozen learned this from Riko: Riko was stillborn, but when Ozen put her in the box, Riko started to move again. Ozen reveals that this is where the headless corpse came from: she put some of the meat from her meal in the box the previous night. But in that case, it eventually stopped moving, and she wonders when Riko will stop as well. Feeling Ozen has gone too far, Reg steps in and demands that Ozen stop tormenting Riko.
Character Appearances
Referbacks
- Ozen states that Lyza is dead, which echoes Natt's claim of the same in Chapter 007. Ozen also claims Lyza didn't write the message in the letter at all, which Riko has been convinced since Chapter 006
that Lyza wrote to her.
- Ozen's armor, which she was always concealed beneath until Chapter 012, is hanging in her chamber.
- When Leader told Riko about her birth in Chapter 005, he said it was unthinkable that an infant could survive the 4th Layer ascension strains, and that Lyza's decimated team lacked the strength to carry
the Curse-Warding Box to the surface. Riko replied, "It sounds like I didn't survive after all," which was more true than she knew. However, Leader didn't tell Riko that she'd died. Yet his in-depth knowledge of the story, the fact that Lyza brought the infant Riko to him, and his apparent age at the time, make it very likely that he is the "brat" Ozen mentions that, along with Habolg, didn't tell Riko the truth.
- Ozen implies that if Riko had known how the Curse-Warding Box truly worked beforehand, she shouldn't have been afraid of something that came out of it, since it would be just like her: a reanimated body seeking the center of the Abyss.
- It is now clear, from Ozen's seemingly sadistic nature and the disturbing information she carried, why Habolg warned Riko about her in Chapter 010.
Trivia
Continuity:
- Ozen purposefully experiments with the Curse-Warding Box.
- Riko learns the truth about her birth from Ozen.