I Became a Leader in a Wretched Prison - Chapter 103

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 103

No intention of forgiving, he said.

“….”

“Does saying that make what you did disappear?”

This statement was quite unexpected.

“But rather than spending time finding new colleagues, it would certainly be faster to accept you back and climb the Tower.”

A suggestion that he would use him for faster climbing. Brett stared downward.

As if such treatment was acceptable.

“You must know too. That we were able to climb smoothly thanks to my Master being with us.”

“….”

He’s attributing this to my achievement. Mint thought expressionlessly.

To truly call it her achievement, if there was anything she had done, it was handling things that became too difficult for them to deal with at their level.

“Don’t think it’ll be easy. Don’t think things will be the same as before when you return. You’d better think carefully.”

Watching Helios crouch down to meet Brett’s gaze.

‘He’ll make a good Boss.’

Mint pictured Helios reaching the Summit and becoming the King of Prisoners.

Since she would definitely make it so, it wasn’t bad to think about.

It suited him.

Upright, listening to others’ stories. But someone who doesn’t judge based on compassion alone.

‘Ideal.’

Unless they were completely insane, anyone would be better than Mint herself.

“If you become a source of discord within the team, I’ll kick you out without delay and cut ties.”

Indifference. Mint recalled Deril’s words once again.

“…Yeah. Whatever’s fine.”

Brett smiled faintly.

Watching this, Haira thought she was seeing Brett’s first proper smile.

* * *

One way or another, on the way back after reluctantly accepting Brett.

Though Helios didn’t say anything, he could feel Ged’s Group’s delight.

Helios himself had felt the absence of combat power quite keenly without Brett, so he thought it was necessary.

It was more satisfactory than expected.

Perhaps this was because while climbing the Tower, he had witnessed various types of people.

And generally vicious scenes that showed him all sorts of rock-bottom behavior firsthand.

As it turned out, Brett had been conquering the Lower Floors. He had climbed the Tower even after the floor where they parted ways.

Two whole floors at that.

Considering he had no teammates, it was quite an accomplishment.

Helios glanced at Mint walking beside him. His mouth opened involuntarily.

“Master helped, didn’t she?”

“Hm?”

Mint stopped walking and slowly tilted her head.

“Brett breaking through the floor, I mean.”

At those words, a memory suddenly flowed through Mint’s mind.

* * *

A day and a half after Brett had broken free from the brainwashing on his own and disappeared.

Mint opened her eyes. It was dawn, just before morning.

Mint looked down at the sleeping Helios, then at the door. It would be daylight in about an hour.

Even if he woke up, this much sleep should be fine to lose.

Having made that judgment, Mint went outside.

She simply chose not to. Mint could easily leave the Male Prison Dormitory whenever she wanted.

Being separated from Helios brought a strange sense of emptiness and a strong urge to return, which she found curious.

“Haha, you really came.”

And Mint met Brett again in a secluded corner of the garden, with no one else around.

“You called me here.”

Brett’s shadow had guided her all the way here.

If he could secretly send shadows into the prison block.

Brett must have been hiding his skills, or was a more useful ability user than she had thought.

Honestly, she wasn’t interested, so after judging that he would be helpful to Helios, she hadn’t looked into it closely.

On the other hand, she had judged him as someone who would betray them eventually, so she never let her guard down.

So that she could eliminate and resolve the situation if necessary.

Rather than the vague factor of having a treacherous face, it was the clues Brett gave off that suggested this.

“…Thank you.”

Brett bowed his head politely. His proper and perfect greeting proved he had once been a noble.

It wasn’t an important fact to Mint.

“Thanks to you, I’ve completely escaped. And… I won’t be going back to that person.”

That was unexpected.

‘He’s completely escaped from Hades’ brainwashing?’

What Hades called ‘favor’ was quite addictive.

Most of his fanatics were his victims.

At first, as victims, they resented and hated Hades.

But eventually they would go through a process of acknowledging that the brainwashing he showed them was more peaceful and ecstatic than reality, becoming fanatics.

His ability, like a bad drug, was not easy to escape from even when you knew about it.

But Brett had completely broken free. There must have been consequences.

His injured body was proof of that.

Considering that Brett was particularly vulnerable to brainwashing among Kia ability users, it was even more unexpected.

“There’s something I absolutely cannot tolerate. Even if I stake my life on it. That person, no. That person deceived me about it.”

Even Mint would get angry if someone touched memories related to Mama.

I understood it roughly like that. Yeah, I thought that was the end of it.

“Garret, it would have been good if I had recognized you sooner.”

This was truly unexpected. Brett was a person related to ‘Garret’.

And quite closely at that.

Mint recalled ‘Garret’s’ personal records that the Warden had given her.

‘Garret’s’ older brother’s friend, whom she hadn’t particularly paid attention to. That was Brett.

“I’ve decided. I’ll somehow get out of this prison and dedicate my entire life to catching the serial killer who murdered you and my family.”

Moreover, another unexpected point was that Brett, like ‘Garret’, was also a victim and bereaved family member of the serial killer.

And that serial killer was the one who had pinned all the crimes on the girl that Mint had possessed.

Even after framing the body she had possessed, that guy continued killing. He gained notoriety.

No one would know this. Mint only knew this fact because she knew the original story.

That guy was also one of the main characters in the original work.

It was amusing how the pieces fit together. On the other hand, she wondered what it had to do with her.

“Brett and Garret, their names are similar, right? You probably know our parents were close friends. That’s why it was like that, they said.”

Brett said that since he had entered under false pretenses on Hades’ orders, his sentence wouldn’t be long.

“Whether you seek revenge, go out and die a dog’s death, or betray again. It’s none of my business.”

“….”

“But if you’re going to come back to Helios, I have no intention of just watching.”

Unlike Helios, Mint was neither upright nor kind. She was someone who only cared about her own goals.

If he was coming back, there should be no more betrayals.

She wouldn’t stand by and watch twice when it came to things that would endanger Helios’ life.

“I’m going to plant a restriction in your head.”

“….”

Brett quietly watched the light rising from beneath his feet.

Blue glowing threads spread around Mint once again.

This was Brett’s memory or mental world.

“I’ll set it to disappear when you save Helios’ life. Oh, and when all your colleagues are in danger. If you abandon Helios to save other colleagues, you’ll die too.”

“….”

“Whether you betray again is up to you.”

Brett slowly nodded his head.

“Anyway, Boss will be by the Boss’s side the whole time, so you’re really looking out for him. Someone like me who no longer serves that person wouldn’t be very threatening.”

“….”

“No, it’s almost like you’re preparing for after you leave, ugh.”

As soon as Mint finished placing the restriction in Brett’s head so he couldn’t betray again—where betrayal or targeting someone’s life would make him bear all the consequences—she turned away without hesitation.

The fortunate thing was that Brett and the real ‘Garret’ had hardly ever met.

Preparing for after leaving, huh.

It wasn’t wrong. It wouldn’t matter since they’d be together until the summit anyway.

But she wouldn’t be able to see him after he became the Boss.

* * *

“Wow, how did you figure it out.”

Mint, awakening from her recollection, muttered slowly.

Though her tone was just a mutter, Helios heard it clearly.

“More importantly, there’s something else. Disciple.”

“…Something more important than Brett returning?”

“Whether he comes back or not, what does it matter. I’m not interested.”

“…”

Satisfaction bloomed across Helios’s expression. He held back his laughter and asked what was important.

Mint found it fascinating that she was gradually starting to see these things.

“Next time, we’re going straight to the 70th Floor. How about it?”

And the next moment, Helios’s face hardened completely.

“…What nonsense are you talking?”

“Ah, sorry. You won’t have a choice in the matter.”

Helios made an incredulous face for the first time in a while.

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