Kara no Teikoku : The Empty Empire
written and illustrated by Naoe Kita
translation by ryuuen yanagi

Chapter Three: The Sky Pirate Kid

--page 105

"The Sky Pirate Kid"
The Empty Empire III


--page 106

"Intruder alert."
"Intruder alert."


--page 107

Iriya: " 'Idea'-sama-----! 'Idea'-sama!!"

Rose: "What! What waits for me if you catch me?"

Iriya: " 'Idea'-sama~~~~~~!"


--page 108

Rose: "I haven't forgotten the LAST time you tried to clean up
after me, the clone! Just forget about me; a person could hide in
this place forever! Huh?"

Iriya: " 'Idea'-sama!"

Rose: "Wah! Iriya! (You scared me.)"

Iriya: "Please return now."

Rose: "I don't want to be here anymore! I'm sick of trying to become
Idea's replacement!"

Iriya: "You have visitors. Eiri-sama and Ririka-sama are here."

Rose: "!"


--page 109

Rose: "Ririka, Eiri!"

Dust: " 'Idea'! Don't run in a place like..."

Ririka: "Rose."

Eiri: "Rose-kun, have you been well? Well, then, we should get right 
to it, since we're here. We've come to give you something to do."

Rose: "Eh?"

Eiri: "We want you to... return Idea to us."


--page 110

Rose: "You still haven't recovered Idea's body?"

Eiri: "It would appear that way."

Ririka: "Geez... the royal guard isn't working very hard on it, 
are they..."

Dust: "They are very capable!"

Ririka: "Really."

Rose: "Well, can't Iriya do it?"

Iriya: "......no. That's not in my job description."

Ririka: "Hey, don't you have any cake? There's only tea?"

Rose: "Isn't it fine the way it is? I mean, he's already dead,
so what can it matter what happens to the body?"

Eiri: "Wrong. We can't just leave it this way."

Rose: "..."

Dust: "We can't make a big deal out of this, but we've found
out who it was that stole the body. It was Kid."


--page 111

"Kid?"

Dust: "A pirate. A sky pirate that even Idea had a hard time
dealing with."

A cruel and horrible man who loves blood and fighting.
A phantom who uses the sky freely and could be anywhere.

"Is it because Idea kept him under control? He really detested
it."

Ririka: "Kid is pals with some of the big names from the wrong
side of the tracks, so he's pretty popular. He's 2 meters tall
and super strong, you know."

Dust: "All the gangs love him... they it's because he's strong. 
However, even with your information network, we haven't gotten 
him yet. This time Idea can't help us."


--page 112

Rose: "What the hell is this? You're saying I should go find
Idea's body!? No way!!"

Dust: "You'll do what we tell you to do!"

Iriya: "For me, as well..."

Rose: "Not Iriya, too~~~"

Eiri: "Idea could have done it."

Rose: "! I'm different from Idea!"

Eiri: "When you say that... do you mean that you are weaker
than Idea?"

Rose: "!"

Ririka: "Eiri?"


--page 113

Eiri: "It's because Rose-kun is scared of Idea, isn't it?" *giggle*

Rose: "Why the hell would I be scared of a dead body?"

Eiri: "So you aren't scared? After all, you've never actually seen 
Idea, who is the original of you."

Rose: "I... I tried to see him once, but his... his body wasn't there!"

Eiri: "But, before that, you must have had more chances to look.
You didn't, did you."

Rose: "! But, you told me a long time ago, in the street, that it was
likely that there was no need for useless danger."

Eiri: "Useless? So... if there were another clone like you, don't you
think it would be troublesome?"


--page 114

Rose: "That... can that be done? Cloning is... that simple? I thought 
that making me was... a mistake..."

Eiri: "People's genomes can be analyzed, so copying people's bodies
can be used for medical treatments. If someone had Idea's body, they
could clone it in its entirety. It wouldn't have any memories, of
course... however, the disposition would be there. That would be very
troublesome, indeed. Fitting, isn't it... if we could recreate the 
memories, we wouldn't have this problem."

Rose: "...."

Eiri: "So, going to get Idea's body... if Idea could do it.... you,
who has the same face, the same body, and the same DNA, cannot?"

Rose: "!"


--page 115

Rose: "I get it, okay!? I'll try and get it back! Getting it is fine,
okay?!"

Eiri: "That's our clone."

Ririka: "It's really easy to get Rose worked up, isn't it... I wonder
if that's okay..."

Dust: "Oi! 'Idea'! Wait a minute! Those clothes you're wearing aren't
going to work! Change them! .... oi!!"


--page 116

Rose: "Won't I kinda... stand out in these?"

Dust: "It's so your face can't be seen. If Idea's clone is exposed, it
would be very bad! We also need this because there are people in the 
slums that looked on Idea as an enemy. Don't let your face be seen! 
Your weapon... the ESP is dangerous, so we're going to put this shield
on you you keep you from using it. The shield is in your ring, so if 
you take that off, you'll be able to use your ESP. But if that happens, 
don't lose the ring."


--page 117

Dust: "Take one servant with you. Use him if you like."

servant: "It's a pleasure to meet you."

Rose: "I really don't need him, I'll be okay by myself."

Dust: "Not acceptable! We don't have Idea's real body now, so your body
is the only body of Idea around!"

Rose: "Yea, yea..."

Ririka: "I'm going too, so it'll be okay!"

Rose: "Eh? Ririka, too? But isn't it dangerous?"

Ririka: "On the contrary! The slums listen to me when I'm there!"


--page 118

Rose: "Bye."

Eiri: "Rose-kun!"

Rose: "Eh?"

Eiri: "Don't forget: Idea was a person, too. If even one person sees
you, they'll know. Right now they're just guessing, but there's way
too much feeling involved. You have things that were not in Idea."

Things that were not in Idea?

Ririka: "We're going now~~~"


--page 119

Dust: "I wonder if we should have made him go.... I wonder if he'll
be alright... maybe I should have sent 50 servants with him..."

Eiri: "I'm sure he'll be fine. He might not find Idea right away, but
he may find what he's most wishing for."

Dust: "Eh? Wishing for?"

Eiri: "Hnn. He might meet the other eye."

Dust: "Other eye?"

Eiri: "My right eye."

streetman: "It's Ririka."


--page 120

pervert: "Hey, cute girly~ <3"

man #2: "Stupid! She'll kill you! That's the super-strong, whip-weilding
woman! Haven't you heard of her? It's 'Wild Animal Tamer' Ririka!"

pervert: "Huh?"

Ririka: "It's over that way."

man: "Um... who's that masked person?"

Ririka: "... Rose, wait for me at the entrance! You kinda stand out, so
if you go in, there'll be a fight. (I don't want any trouble.) ... No 
intelligence on Kid?"


--page 121

bartender: "Nope, none. I heard he recently stole something worth a lot, 
but..."

servant: (That's Idea-sama's body!!)

Ririka: (Shh!) "If there's anything else, tell me, hmmm?"

bartender: "Fine, but not before you give me something in return... 
you're pretty cute, you know..."

Ririka: "Don't try and take advantage of the-- .. Rose!"

bartender: (Wa~~)

Rose: "Keep your hands off Ririka."


--page 122

bartender: "What the hell is this guy!?"

Ririka: "Rose! I told you to wait, didn't I..."

guys: "Rose?! A woman?! OOOOHH?! Take off the face covering!!"

Rose: "UWAH?! EEH?!"

guys: "That cloth is in the way!! Let's see her face!!"

Ririka: "Rose!"

Rose: "Wait a second, I'm tellin' ya, I'm a guy!"

servant: "Idea-sama! No, Rose-sama!"

guys: "AH! What IS this... it's a guy..."

Rose: "Ah..."

guys: "AH!!"


--page 123

guys: "IDEA! Idea has shown up in Ollie's shop!!"

guy #2: "Ehh? Didn't he die?!"

??: "Oh, really?"

Rose: "You're WRONG!!"


--page 124

Rose: "You're wrong! You're wrong! I'm not Idea, I'm just his clone,
and mmhphpphhfffff~~~"

servant: "Ide... no, Rose-sama, that's confidential information..."

men: "It's Idea! He'll grant us any wish we want!! I want to be 
strong!! Give me money! Money!"

Rose: "A~... hey, now..."

woman: "This way. Shh... Come this way... I'm going to help you."

Rose: "But what about Ririka!"

woman: "It's okay. Once you leave, this place will quiet down again."

Ririka: "Rose!"


--page 125

Ririka: "What the hell IS that woman!!"

servant: "She's gorgeous, isn't she..."

Ririka: "Moron! That's not it! That's KID'S woman!!"

woman: "We'll be safe here..."

Rose: "Thank you for helping me."

woman: "Ppppt! How cuuuute! Ahahaha!"

Rose: "?"


--page 126

Rose: "Eh? Eh? Wait a minute..."

woman: "Goodnight, booya*."
   *booya: literally 'boy', but a little rude

Rose: "!? Eh?"

woman: "Heheheh."

???: "You seem happy, Ayako."

woman (Ayako): "Well, well. You don't seem happy, Kid."


--page 127

Kid: "Well, that's because I'm finally going to kill Idea!"

Eiri: "Rose-kun was kidnapped?" (no pun intended, there... 9_9;;)

Dust: "WHAT DID YOU SAAAYYY?!?!?! I KNEW I should have sent 50 
servants!!"

Eiri: "You're sure it was Kid?"

servant: "Yes... it was Kid's woman who took him away, you see..."

Eiri: "Well then, it's for certain, isn't it."

Dust: "Why are you so calm!? Kid now has both Idea's body AND the 
copy! What are we going to do if he kills the copy?! He resented
Idea, didn't he?!"

Eiri: "Yes... he resented him quite a bit. However..."


--page 128

Eiri: "Kid can't kill Rose-kun. YET."

Rose: "Nnn... bright light... ?! Where am I?!"

Kid: "You finally woke up?"

Rose: "!"


--page 129

Rose: "Who're you?"

Kid: "! You don't know?"

Rose: "?"

Kid: "Not even this scar?"

Rose: "A! The ring with the key to my ESP shield!"

Kid: "I have the key to your ESP shield. My name is Kid!"

Rose: "Kid!? Aren't you the one who stole Idea's body?! Give it back!"

Kid: "There's no need for that any more."


--page 130

Rose: "You're the criminal, aren't you!? Well, then, you should know
that I'm not Idea, shouldn't you?!"

Kid: "Shut the hell up!"

Rose: "Uwaa~~"

Kid: "This is the scar that you gave me long ago. I thought that it
would simply heal, but... why do you think it didn't?"

Rose: "Umm..."

Kid: "It's because I can't forget what happened. That's why it
hasn't healed."

Rose: "!"


--page 131

Kid: "Because I'm going to kill you...!"

Rose: "Uwaaa~~! Hey, just wait a minute! I don't know what Idea did
to you, but you shouldn't kill ME for something that IDEA did, right?!
I'm a clone, so I'm different that Idea--- UWAAH!!"

Kid: "What are you saying?! If you're a clone, then you're the same 
as Idea!!"

Rose: "YOU'RE WRONG!!"

Kid: "How am I wrong?! Let's look in a mirror and see!!"

Rose: "WAA??"


--page 132

Kid: "This face! This hair! This body! Is it not the same as the
late Idea?! ... !"

Rose: "... I am not... Idea...!"


--page 133

Kid: "You're Idea!"

Rose: "No!"

Kid: "You're a replacement to Idea! You're a CLONE!! DIE!!"

Rose: "UWAAAA~~~!!!"


--page 134

Rose: "!?"

Kid: "Fine, fine, call it quits. Sorry, okay."

Rose: "!? ......"

Kid: "You're really different than Idea. You are less than Idea.
I wouldn't have been able to kill Idea so easily."


--page 135

Kid: "I don't feel like killing something less than Idea. My pride
wouldn't let me. Ahhhh, anywaayy... forget about it.... .... oh, 
and Idea didn't... Idea didn't have that scar on his forehead."

Rose: "! ........"


--page 136

Rose: "Dammit!! What the hell!! I didn't want to be Idea...!!"

(You are less than Idea!)

But... more than that... to lose to Idea... to not have be able
to attain what he could have... it's mortifying.

(Anyone who has seen Idea even once will know.)

Rose: "......"


--page 137

servant: "Hey, wake up!"

Rose: "What...?"

Ayako: "Morning!"

Rose: "Ah! From yesterday!"

Ayako: "Oh, sorry~~"

Rose: "Sorry, she says..."

Ayako: "Well... here, change into these clothes. He doesn't 
want to kill you any more, so we have to decorate you so we
can sell you."

Rose: "Sell me?"

Ayako: "Idea was an arch enemy with charisma, you see. If someone
could get their hands on him, they could have their dreams... even
become dictator."

Rose: "But I'm... not Idea."

Ayako: "If the buyers think it's Idea, it's not our problem. It's
up to them to see for themselves."

Kid: "What're you tryin' to do, Ayako!?"

Ayako: "Didn't you tell me to get his clothes changed, Kid?"

Kid: "That's ALL I told you to do!"


--page 138

Ayako: "Geez, I got it..."

crewman: "Captain--"

Ayako: "Look, they're calling you."

Kid: "Shit."

Rose: "He gets around, doesn't he..."

Ayako: "Yeah, huh. But, you know... he can catch ME, so there's
no worries here." **

**That is a _very_ wrong translation. T_T;; Sorry.

Sithsa: "You really came, Kid."

Kid: "I didn't want to see you. Anyway, give me the money."

Sithsa: "Let's see Idea first."


--page 139

Kid: "The priority is the money. I have had other offers..."

Sithsa: "I understand... there."

Kid: "Ooh... ten million, isn't it. Oh, the memories... you're
an oil-exporting country, aren't you? You couldn't have packed
it better?"

Sithsa: "What?"

crewman: "Don't be so impatient. Hey!"

Rose: (A flying ship...)

Kid: "Idea! Look, it's Idea. Pretty, isn't he. (Lookit the ribbons.)"


--page 140

Sithsa: "Hmph. With this, I buy a god. Even though he looks like
a man, hmmm... Using him, I will make the entire public give me
everything. You are mine! Idea will be my slave! Whether he is dead 
or alive, as he pleases!"

Rose: "!? Get..."

Kid: "You're really the sickest fuck on the planet, aren't you."

Rose: "!? You hated Idea this much?"

Kid: "............"


--page 141

Sithsa: "Then, come on, Idea!"

Rose: "Uwaa~~"

Ayako: "Kid! This is weird, this country handing over this much
money... think about the past... they're not using the energy from
exporting oil any more, now they're running solar powered. They 
shouldn't have this much money..."

Kid: "It doesn't matter, right?! That guy isn't Idea! He can
become some perverted old man's toy; it doesn't matter!"

Sithsa: "Heeey, you're really a turn on..."

Rose: "DON'T TOUCH ME!!"


--page 142

Rose: "What kind of guy do you think I am?! Act like an adult!
If you're not the person who bought Idea's body, then there's 
no need for this!"

??: "Shit~~! The ESP shield!! Seize him!"

Rose: "! Kid! Where did you sell Idea's body?! Hey?! Answer me!
Kid~~~~~~~~ what are you smiling at~~~?"

servant: (Now I'll just take some of this money...) "UWA~"

Sithsa: "Oh, you were caught, hm..."


--page 143

Kid: "Sithsa! You never planned on handing over the money, 
did you."

Sithsa: "Hmph. Obviously. Who would pay money to a thief?! I
plan on killing everyone! FIRE!"

Kid: "The ship..."


--page 144

Kid: "What's he doing? Is he stupid?! The ship will fall!!"

Sithsa: "So! Seize Idea! Send more cannonballs at the ship... 
if I have Idea, I have no need for thievery!"

servant: "Your majesty!"


--page 145

servant: "If the ship falls in this area--"

Sithsa: "What's this, this rude thing!! Don't touch me! Kill him!"

servant: "Aa~~!"

child: "Dad!!"

Rose: "Are you alright?"

servant: "It's madness to allow that burning ship to fall here!! This
is a harvest area! There are still supplies of oil and gas here! 
If that ship falls, this place will certainly turn into a sea of 
flames!!"

Sithsa: "Ahaha! Fall! Fall!"


--page 146

crewman: "Captain~~~~!"

Kid: "What are you doing?! Abandon ship!!"

crewman: "We can't just leave our captai-- UWAA!"

Kid: "Are you okay?!"

crewman: "The helm isn't responding! She's going down...!!"


--page 147

people: "Idea-sama!"

Rose: "Eh~"

woman: "Idea-sama! Help us, please!"

child: "Oh, that's right! There's nothing Idea-sama can't do!"

Rose: "But, look, I'm not Idea, so it's useless."

Kid: "It might have been useless for Idea, too.. stopping that huge
ship, while it's on fire, too... but Idea might have been able to
break it up... save the people by smashing it into tiny pieces."

Rose: "!"

Kid: "You! You can use Idea's power, can't you?!"


--page 148

Rose: "I can only make eggs float! (and small rocks!)"

Kid: "EGGS~~~~?!"

Ayako: "Hurry, the key to the shield!"

Kid: "I'm going to go take care of the cannon! Do something!"

Rose: "Something...? ...."


--page 149

Rose: "Well, then, it's best if I break it up, then?!" The most
clever thing to do would be to break it up and send it into the 
pond... "EEIIIII!!!"

child: "Ah... it didn't do anything..."

Rose: ".... It's no use. I can't replace Idea. I'm different than
he was...." 

(Do you mean that you are inferior to Idea?)

Rose: "......."


--page 150

crewman: "WAA~~?"

Rose: "-------"

Kid: "Idea! What's wrong?!"

"You, who has the same face, the same body, the same DNA; if Idea
could do it, you cannot?"

Rose: "Don't want... "

child: "Idea-sama!"

Rose: "I don't want to lose!"


--page 151

Rose: "I don't want to lose! (Ririka!) Not any more! (Idea was a 
human being, too!) Idea was...! (Idea)"


--page 153

crewman: "WAAAA!! UWAAAA!!!"

people: "He helped! That's our Idea-sama!"

Kid: "Idea..."

child: "Idea-sama fell asleep... Idea-sama~~?"

man: "Ah! Be careful! That piece of wood is--!"


--page 154

people: "KYAAA~~!!"

Rose: "Eh...?"


--page 155

Kid: "------"

Rose: "I get it now, Kid, you..."


--page 156

Rose: "You liked Idea. That's it, isn't it. That's why you
didn't like it when I lost... because you liked the strong 
Idea."

Kid: "Wha... what're you sayin' all of a sudden? He was my
arch enemy."

Rose: "And that's why! That's why you didn't like me when I
wasn't Idea! Because you missed Idea being alive!"


--page 157

Kid: "Shut the hell up!! I--, I... I kinda.... I--... AW, 
YEAH, OKAY? I liked him. Is that bad?!"

Rose: "..."

Kid: "Hmph. It's just because he was an incredible guy. He
was really smart, and really strong at everything, he could
do anything; he was really all-powerful. He was kinda like 
a god. He was terrifying."


--page 158

He was terrifying!
 
A person who had no weak points. His origins were unknown. 
Super-human power! 

Nobody could ever equal him!

Strong power of mind... power of leadership...!


--page 159

Kid: "He negated any potential I might have had. My legs
trembled in front of him. But I didn't lose... I always
tried to defeat him."

Idea: (I look forward to it.)

Kid: "And then he was dead! Just like that! Nobody killed him...
without asking, he just went and died! The circumstances of his
death were unknown, all of a sudden, everything collapsed...! 
But I... it seemed to me that he was running away, Idea was!"


--page 160

Kid: "---I was sad. Surpassing Idea became surpassing immortality..."

Rose: (Surpassing Idea?)

Kid: "But that's Idea for you, isn't it... But it seems that 
I'm left with Idea's clone. So, well then..."


--page 161

Kid: "But I think that your face is the only thing that's the
same, isn't it."

"Surpass Idea-----"

There was a person who thought he could do that?
*stare*

Kid: "What?"

I thought it was absolutely impossible. 

Rose: "...nothing. Surpassing dead people... it's possible."


--page 162

Kid: "Eh?"

Rose: "Becoming more than a dead person... that's a good thing."

Can someone the same as Idea do that?

Rose: "They're dead, so they can't get any better, right? And
the opposite is also true."

Kid: "Eh.."

Rose: "When someone dies, they become glorified. The stories about
them... they're all creations. I was kinda... thinking that Idea
was too much..." Although, I might not have been able to admit that
I am the same as Idea. But, can I surpass him? Me, the clone? But 
if that's possible, in this sea of complexities... it might just
appear suddenly... if I could surpass Idea...


--page 163

Rose: "If I could see the real Idea, I might be able to change more."

Kid: "!"

Rose: "Kid! Where did Idea's body go?"

Kid: "......"

Rose: "---- you're not going to tell me?"

Kid: "Ordinarily it's an understood rule that you don't tell 
about the person you've sold to, but... Idea is..."


--page 164

Kid: "He was sold to a man with long black hair. His name is 
'Migime'*."
*Migime means "right eye"

Rose: "Migime? (That's a name?)"

Kid: "He's a man with only his right eye, so that's what they call him."

Rose: "!" Well, then Eiri might have become Hidarime (left eye), then, 
huh... (Speaking of Eiri, I wonder what happened to his left eye...)
"Hm?"

Kid: "You're kindof like Idea, huh? If you become greater than he
was, at that time..."


--page 165

Kid: "I'll kill you."

Surpass Idea...

And so...

Ririka: "Rose! (You're safe, aren't you!)"

Dust: "Eh! No way, it's that guy!"

Rose: "I'm home! Ririka~~"

That kind of thinking... with everything that had happened before, 
was something that I had never thought of on my own.




The Sky Pirate Kid - fin

translations copyright ryuuen 1999
reproduction in whole or in part is absolutely forbidden
furthermore, if you do, i'll send Himmel after you
and THEN you'll be sorry... ufufufu