Translator: HH
Crunch.
The first sound to break the silence was someone clacking their teeth together.
“You foolish…!”
The Guild Master of the Black Dragon, and Rank 2. It was the Witch.
“I said not to pick the Devil King’s reward! But you still…stupid!”
A murderous aura swirled around the Witch. Her face wasn’t emotionless like it always was. Hate. Fury. She looked around, face crumpled in anger.
“Well. I guess words wouldn’t work on a stupid fool. Fine! I’ll make a proclamation as the master of Black Dragon here. I don’t know who dared to betray us, but I’ll present to them the most painful death.”
“Hm. Surprising.”
Heretic Questioner stroked his chin.
“This is a game that’s way disadvantageous to the betrayer. But you still chose it…as the Black Dragon Master said, it’s a foolish choice! Haha. Well, it’s definitely human-like to make such a foolish decision”
“Ah…fuck.”
The Venomous Snake scratched the back of his head.
“Ah, I know. I know. This atmosphere. It’s like when we first challenged the tower…my back and my neck feel fucking cold. Some people are gonna die today.”
“I know, right? It’s like when the Five Large Clans were the Ten Large Clans.”
The Count opened her fan. She had a lazy tone. But her eyes behind her fan were as sharp as a beast’s.
“A lot of people died then. And killed a lot too. Isn’t that right?”
“Shut up! Everyone be quiet. It’s not the time to think about the old times right now.”
The Witch’s face was twisted.
“Crusader!”
“Mm.”
“Question everyone here with Lie Detection. Don’t leave anyone out! If someone doesn’t answer you or lies, I’ll kill them right on the spot!”
Everyone knew she wasn’t just saying that. She emanated a murderous aura, and it rode her on coattails like Aura. It was a black color. It was the color that cursed everything in the world.
“I was planning on doing that even if you didn’t say it.”
Crusader quietly nodded her chin.
“First, I’ll reveal that I’m not the betrayer before I question everyone.”
And she turned her feet.
The first person she stood in front of was…none other than me.
“Hunter Kim Gong-ja.”
“Yes.”
“You’re not on the suspects because you gave up the reward. You probably don’t even need to be tested. But I’ll still ask. Did you choose the reward of the Devil King?”
“No.”
The reception room was dead silent.
Every hunter was watching us.
After a few seconds of silence, the Crusader nodded her head.
“It’s the truth.”
Sighs of relief could be heard from everywhere.
The Crusader didn’t stop and headed straight for the next person.
Click clack.
Because the ground of the reception room was made of marble, every footstep rang out.
We followed her feet with our eyes.
“Sword Saint.”
“Speak.”
“Did you choose the reward of the Devil King.”
Sword Saint crossed his arms.
“I swear on my honor. It’s definitely not me.”
“It’s the truth.”
Click clack.
“Heretic Questioner.”
“Yes! Please ask whatever you need to!”
“Are you the person who chose the Devil King’s reward?”
“Sorry.”
In the midst of all the silence, Heretic Questioner laughed. The sound of laughter echoed on the marble and slid over the armor of the knights and the generals.
“But it’s not me! I don’t want to die by the Black Dragon Master yet!”
“It’s the truth.”
Click clack.
“Venomous Snake. Did you choose the reward of the Devil King.”
“Fuck. It’s not me!”
“…it’s the truth.”
Click clack.
“Count. Did you choose the Devil King’s reward?”
“…it’s not me either.”
“It’s the truth.”
Click clack.
The atmosphere of the room turned downhill. When I was revealed not to be the betrayer, there were sighs of relief. But one by one, as everyone’s truth was declared, the reception room was filled with silence and not relief.
Like how sleep crept up.
The silence crept up to our chins.
“······.”
“······.”
The Crusader and the Witch looked at each other.
Every other hunter except for the Witch had been questioned. This was the last. In front of the leader of the most powerful guild in the tower, and the hunter second only to Sword Saint, the Crusader took a deep breath.
“Black Dragon.”
“…yes.”
“Did you choose the reward of the Devil King.”
There was silence.
“No…it’s not me.”
The silence was continued.
The Crusader slowly opened her mouth.
“…it’s the truth.”
And for the last time, silence descended on us.
No.
We descended on the silence.
“Wait…what?”
The Venomous Snake looked around.
“Who is it then?”
Sword Saint looked at the Witch. The Witch looked at the Heretic Questioner. The Heretic Questioner looked at the Count, and the Count looked at Venomous Snake. The Venomous Snake looked at the Crusader like he was hanging onto her, and the Crusader silently looked at me.
Everyone looked at each other.
“Why is everyone saying they’re not it…?”
But no one answered.
“Fuck! Who betrayed us?”
No one.
No one answered.
Amidst the silence, a voice that wasn’t ours rang out.
[The Goddess of Protection sighs at the foolishness of the warriors.]
[The Devil King of Fall Rain laughs amusedly.]
It probably wasn’t a voice that only I heard. Everyone’s face darkened.
And the Crusader spoke with much difficulty in that silence.
“…Calm down.”
No one opened their mouths even though she said to calm down. How were they supposed to speak? They looked like they were all seriously in thought.
“Don’t be taken aback. Yes. Maybe the betrayer has the skill to hide their lies. And there might be someone with a split personality. Everyone has their secret weapon, right? So it’s not impossible…”
“Or.”
Sword Saint spoke up.
He was looking at the Crusader coldly.
“Or, you might be the dirty betrayer.”
“······.”
The reception room became silent.
Gazes sharper than knives were exchanged. Just now, the Sword Saint and Guild Masters had been about to fight. The heat and sweat of that hadn’t cooled down, but it was beginning to waver again.
The Witch narrowed her eyes.
“Are you doubting us right now?”
“Yes.”
Sword Saint admitted it directly.
“Even if Ms.Crusader isn’t the betrayer, she could’ve lied to us. You all. You were all close as the controllers of the Five Large Guilds since a long time ago. A crow hides with other crows. Aren’t you protecting each other?”
“Sigh, you’re really…”
“Of course!’
The Crusader shouted out frantically. Sword Saint and the Witch stopped arguing to look at her. She tried to speak calmly.
“Of course, logically speaking, it could be me. Yes. I could be the betrayer.”
“······.”
“But we all have to keep our cool. It’s alright. We’ve faced many dangers before. Isn’t that right! So if we just trust ourselves we can…”
“Hahaha.”
Someone laughed.
“You’re quite innocent. No, naive.”
It was the Heretic Questioner.
“Trust. Mm. Trust. It’s beautiful! But we need time to trust each other. Us Five Large Guilds have spent 10 years working together. But that also means…”
Heretic Questioner took adjusted his cap.
And he shook off his clothes.
“It’s hard to trust those other than us Five Guilds.”
“…..”
“And it would be inefficient to take 10 years to stack up trust with everyone. Yes, it’s a waste of time!”
“…wait.”
The Crusader’s face was frantic as well. I couldn’t feel her relaxedness back when she asked me if a girl who graduated with a music degree was charming.
“This isn’t the time to talk about efficiency. Heretic Questioner. Please…”
“Holy Technique.”
The Heretic Questioner gathered his hands.
“Divine Body.”
White light surrounded his hands.
“Venomous Snake. You take care of the 10th.”
The light spread around.
“I’ll kill the 8th and 9th.”
“Heretic Questioner! You can’t!”
“Holy Technique, Divine Transmission.”
The Heretic Questioner and Venomous Snake disappeared. In the blink of an eye, the Heretic Questioner was holding someone’s back. It was the hunter who finished as 8th. The hunter instinctively looked back.
“-Huh?”
It was an extra who had quietly been standing to the back, surrounded by the Guild Masters. No, saying he was an extra seemed too mean. Since he was standing here with his contribution in the last stage. He was a much more powerful hunter than the old me.
But his future didn’t last for too long.
“Sorry!”
Heretic Questioner smiled brightly. In his weaponless bare hand, there was pure white Aura.
Swoosh!
“Huh, ah…?”
Blood soared up.
The hunter’s body tilted.
The hunter that wasn’t bound to any guild, had the immense power of Sword Saint, or had an alliance with the guilds like me, the hunter that had climbed to where he was with his own power, died just like that.
Simply.
[A warrior has died.]
[He is not the servant of the Devil King.]
Voices rang in my head again.
[The Goddess of Protection thinks it’s a shame.]
[The Devil King of Fall Rain laughs snidely.]
It was a murder that had happened in the blink of an eye.
“E, eek!?”
A hunter that had finished 10th screamed. But the hunter’s scream didn’t last for too long.
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