Hila couldn't help clicking her tongue in astonishment.
And you called that "not knowing much"? What would it look like if you knew a lot?
You knew all about the Meteor City Elder's background, the garbage-sorting process, the monthly quota of people sent out in exchange for weapons, and so on?
Gelman looked at her, seeming to indicate that he had said everything he knew, and it was now her turn to continue.
Hila froze for a moment, then said, "That's right... That's exactly how it happened."
At that, some memories came back to her, and her eyes dimmed. She then spent several minutes recounting what had happened before and after Sarasa's murder.
These events had been mentioned briefly earlier, so there was no need to repeat them here.
Everyone knew, however, that the important part was what Hila said next.
"Sarasa, Pakunoda, and I were the closest of friends when we were children. We really shouldn't have let Sarasa go back alone that day. We've always regretted it."
"We knew perfectly well that, ever since we could remember, countless women and children had been kidnapped near Meteor City. And yet we still let our guard down that day."
"I know that even if I'd been there, I couldn't have changed what happened. But at least I could've died with Sarasa, so she wouldn't have been so afraid and despairing in her final moments..."
As Hila spoke, her whole body began to tremble.
Shizuku comfortingly put an arm around Hila's shoulders. She really wasn't good at this sort of thing, though, and in the end, all she did was mechanically pat Hila's hair.
Hila smiled sadly and whispered, "Thank you."
"How do I put it... All these years, I've never stopped investigating Sarasa's death. Even I wanted those villains to