A World Where You All Are The Villains - Chapter 61

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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61.

Despite the curved grin, his eyes weren’t smiling at all.
His pupils dilated wide, gleaming like a reptile’s.
These weren’t the unfocused eyes of someone intoxicated.
Rather….
If anything, they held that crazed look of someone on the verge of a rampage.
‘This bastard’s lost his mind.’
I glanced up at the status above his head.

81%

Yet his rampage gauge remained unchanged.
So why was he laughing like a madman?
“Kyaaaaaaah!”
“Keeeeek!”
I watched the man survey the scene of carnage he’d created with evident satisfaction, my expression unfamiliar and wary.
“You there! Who are you!”
A couple of burly figures near the entrance, panicked by the sudden escape of the Erosion Infected, spotted us standing awkwardly and shouted.
“Oh, we’ve been spotted?”
Even as they charged toward us, Serge shrugged his shoulders with casual indifference.
Then he lazily swept one hand through the air.
Whoosh―!
“Arghhhh! Ugh!”
“Hack!”
The massive figures flew like paper scraps, slamming into the wall in an instant.
Another burly man following behind them went pale and skidded to an urgent halt.
“Huh! I-intruders! An A-Awakener…!”
He shrieked in panic and spun around desperately.
As the man rushed toward the wall beside the entrance and reached out toward something.
Snap!
A crisp sound echoed through the space.
Immediately, the burly man collapsed like a puppet with its strings cut.
‘Insane… did he just break his neck?’
I stood frozen with my mouth agape, stunned by the situation unfolding in an instant.
Beep beep beep beep beep―!
Suddenly a loud alarm blared, assaulting my ears.
I reflexively hunched my shoulders, and Serge twisted his lips into a sneer.
“What remarkable faith, fulfilling one’s duty even unto death itself.”
True to his words, the massive figure sprawled on the floor had its clothing snagged on some unidentifiable rod protruding from the wall.
Upon closer inspection, it resembled a lever used to trigger emergency alarms.
Fortunately, the ear-splitting warning siren ceased after only a brief moment.
Crack―!
Serge had used his telekinetic power to wrench the lever clean off.
But it had been more than enough time for everyone in the Building to become aware of the intruders’ presence.
“W-what do we do now, Your Highness?”
“What do you think? Let’s get out of here before those things come gnawing at us.”
At his glance, I turned around to see the sound-sensitive Erosion Infected had all frozen in place, black bodily fluid dripping steadily as they stared in our direction.
“Grrrrr… Kiiiieeee!”
“Ugh.”
The nearest one lunged at us without warning, and Serge bolted straight out the door without a word.
I didn’t even have time to feel bewildered.
‘You damned bastard, take me with you!’
I was too busy fleeing after him.
Screeeech, Boom―!
Just as I barely made it through the entrance, both doors slammed shut violently with a deafening crash.
Naturally, it was Serge’s doing.
I pulled away the handkerchief that had been covering my breathing passages and gasped for air.
Then I glared at him with wide eyes.
“Huff, huff… Could you at least give me a heads-up before you do something like that?!”
“Pathetic. Keep mumbling like that and you’ll get torn to shreds, Princess.”
He paid my complaint no mind whatsoever and immediately turned to climb the Staircase.
Bang, bang! Crash―!
Just as he said, the wooden door behind us shook violently as if it would splinter apart under the pounding of the Erosion Infected.
‘So if you’re going to run like this, why did you even release them in the first place, you insane bastard!’
I bit back the curses dancing on my tongue and scrambled up the Staircase after him.

84%

Just using that ability a little had already caused my stats to rise noticeably.
Before the one already spiraling could reach a complete rampage, escaping from this place was the best option.
But then.
Tap-tap-tap!
“Stop right there!”
Before I could even climb a full floor, two figures in those tiresome white robes blocked my path.
‘What is this? Some kind of ghost maiden concept?’
A woman with long burgundy hair cascading down to her waist in wild disarray, and a man with blonde hair and orange eyes.
Strangely, unlike the others, they hadn’t pulled their hoods over their heads.
The reason became clear soon enough.

67% 75%

Numbers floating distinctly above their heads.
‘They’re Awakeners.’
Judging by how high their percentages were, they were skilled practitioners who used their abilities frequently.
The man looked down at Serge and me as we hesitated, extending one hand.
“Your credentials.”
“….”
“Show us proof that you’re a follower of the Sephiroth Sect.”
“Uh… credentials, huh.”
Serge, who was two steps ahead of me, touched his chin and trailed off.
I was planning to find an opportunity to warn him about these Awakeners and tell him to be careful.
“We don’t have any credentials. But we do have something to prove our usefulness….”
“What?”
The man’s brows furrowed at the cryptic statement.
‘What nonsense is this….’
I was equally bewildered, but my thoughts were cut short.
Whoosh—!
Suddenly, an invisible force lifted my body off the ground, and I was hurled directly toward the Awakeners!
“Take them out, Princess!”
“…Your Highness! The Awakeners—aaahhhhh—!”
Against my will, my body shot forward like a bullet.
I screamed, naturally.
It wasn’t just because of that madman’s telekinetic assault.
In that instant as I was forcibly hurled toward the enemy.
Swish, swish-swish-swish…!
The wild, ghostly hair of the woman danced through the air, then suddenly rushed toward me all at once as if alive!
The moment I saw the ends of those hair strands honed sharp as awls, I reflexively squeezed my eyes shut.
“Phew, that was close.”
“…!”
Fortunately or unfortunately, I felt no pain piercing through my hair.
At the playful voice, my eyes snapped open, and I could see countless strands of hair hovering mere inches from my face.
A chill ran down my spine.
“Hgh…!”
Then I suddenly realized my feet were touching the ground.
My body, which had been forcibly swung about, was now free.
I immediately spun around and shouted.
“Your Highness, have you lost your mind?! What on earth are you doing?!”
“This is part of our deal, and you seemed to be having too much fun, so I thought I’d put it to use. Should I have mentioned the Awakeners sooner?”
“You absolute madman…!”
Serge protested as if deeply wronged.
I shuddered.
Because he was letting out small, delighted chuckles even in the midst of it all.
He had never been entirely sane to begin with, but for some reason, he seemed far more excited than usual.
Those dilated pupils—clearly intoxicated.
‘That bastard. He’s definitely high on something!’
Separate from the fact that he had blocked every single disgusting strand of hair, I felt like crying.
‘Will I… actually make it out of here alive?’
That was when it happened.
The man who had been leisurely spinning suddenly stiffened, his expression hardening.
“Duck your head, Princess!”
With a sharp cry, he suddenly wrapped his arms around me and hurled us both over the railing.
“Wh, wh…!”
The dizzying sensation of falling was brief.
And then.
Boom―!
A tremendous explosion thundered through the air, shaking the very earth.
At the same moment, a dull impact crashed over my entire body.
“Oof!”
“Aaah! Ugh! Ah…!”
Serge, who had fallen to the underground floor, tumbled several times while keeping me firmly in his embrace.
Thanks to him wrapping his body around me, I escaped injury.
But that didn’t mean there was no impact.
As we rolled, my face collided with his shoulders and chest several times, and at some point, I was seeing stars.
“Hgh….”
“Damn it. Get a grip, Princess.”
Rough hands forcibly pulled me up into a sitting position.
At least it was only a one-story fall, so that was something to be grateful for.
“Wh, what… what is this?”
I barely regained consciousness, fighting off the vertigo as I tried to make sense of the situation.
Crackle, crackle.
The acrid stench of burning filled the air, accompanied by the sound of something smoldering.
Whoooosh….
The thick dust that had obscured my vision gradually dissipated.
And the sight that emerged left me utterly aghast.
The Staircase where Serge and I had been standing moments before lay in complete ruin, collapsed into a heap of debris.
“An Awakener with an explosion ability.”
He ground his teeth as he spoke, his voice seething.
“I didn’t like that condescending look in their eyes from the start. Should’ve gouged those insolent eyes out right then and there… Ugh!”
Even as he continued spewing curses without pause, he suddenly gasped and clutched at his left side.
“Your Highness!”
Following his gaze downward, I let out a sharp cry.
His side was drenched in blood.
And embedded right in the center of the wound—a thick bundle of hair, stiff as wire.
Serge squinted one eye and grinned savagely.
“Ha! Live long enough and you’ll see everything—even your belly pierced by hair.”
“Are you… are you alright?”
But I had no time to assess the extent of his wound.
Swish, swish-swish-swish…!
That damned hair pierced through the smoke and launched another barrage of attacks.
Serge rose to his feet as if unfazed by the pain.
“Princess. I’ll go pluck out every last strand of that cursed hair, so you handle the explosion Awakener.”
“M-me?”
“They can’t use their ability consecutively, it seems.”
True enough—the explosions weren’t occurring in rapid succession.
Awakeners with lower-ranked abilities compared to those with higher grades typically experience a waiting period between uses.
A so-called ‘cooldown.’
“They seem to designate the explosion point with their eyes before detonating it, so just go up there and gouge out those eyes. Simple, right?”
It was anything but simple.
For one, how was I supposed to climb up a completely collapsed Staircase?
But he would have his hands full blocking all that hair—there was no way he could handle both of them simultaneously.
‘Alright, I’ll figure it out somehow…!’
If I could just crawl up to where they were, I could incapacitate them with perfume or purification.
With tears welling in my eyes, I staggered to my feet.
And just as I was about to dash toward the collapsed Staircase debris.
Boom―!
Another deafening roar erupted.
This time it came from behind.
Whether fortunately or unfortunately, it wasn’t an explosion.
However.
“Grraaahhh….”
“Grrrrrrgh!”
“Kyaaahhh!”
The Erosion Infected, having devoured all the prey inside, were now breaking through the door and stepping out.
‘Damn it… Can I really make it out of here alive?!’
I genuinely wanted to cry now.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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