SSS-Class Sui**de Hunter - Chapter 90

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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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Episode 90. The Mess is the Standard (3)
5
“What kind of absurdity is this…….”
I muttered under my breath. I’m losing it.
A decrepit warehouse. With moonlight filtering through large iron bars—a place no better than a prison cell—the Heresy Inquisitor grinned from ear to ear. For someone trapped behind bars, his expression was impossibly serene.
“Ah, I’ve been forced into cross-dressing before, many times as a child. But to actually receive the role of a young noblewoman? This too is what they call life experience!”
“I really wish I could borrow some of that infinite optimism you’ve got going…….”
“The world is beautiful. Kim Gongja! Think positively!”
Does this man ever stop smiling?
Even if a meteor fell in front of him, he’d probably laugh and say, “Oh dear, what a calamity! The world is coming to an end! Well, there’s nothing to be done. We did our best!”
“What makes you so positive about everything?”
“This is exactly why!”
The Heresy Inquisitor wiggled his fingers delicately, forming a hand seal. Then he whispered softly.
“Sacred Art: Transformation.”
Light spilled between his slender fingers. It was the Heresy Inquisitor’s signature technique—the Sacred Art. Transformation suggested reshaping something, but at first glance, nothing about his appearance seemed to have changed.
But the moment the Heresy Inquisitor opened his mouth, I understood what had transformed.
“…How is it?”
For just an instant, goosebumps ran down my spine.
“Does it sound more like a proper young lady now?”
“Your voice…….”
“Yes! I adjusted the structure of the vocal cords slightly.”
The Heresy Inquisitor smiled sweetly.
“People already tell me my voice is rather neutral. With just a touch of refinement, it should work perfectly. Ah, of course, I cannot hear my own voice objectively! So what do you think?”
“It’s extraordinary……?”
I found myself genuinely impressed.
“Elegant. Like true nobility. Well, as long as you keep your mouth shut.”
“Thank you!”
“Hmm.”
I stroked my chin thoughtfully.
We’d unexpectedly found ourselves cast in the roles of [Young Noblewoman Protagonist & Butler]. But the Heresy Inquisitor and I could handle this well enough. He had his Sacred Art at his disposal…….
And I had my Regression Skill.
‘Okay.’
This could prove interesting enough.
…….
The Heresy Inquisitor peeked up, tilting his head to look at my face.
“Your complexion looks a bit lighter now.”
“Pardon?”
“Since you returned from the Cheonma Records, your expression has been dark. Kim Gongja. The stress from clearing the Apocalypse has accumulated considerably.”
I found myself at a loss for words for a moment.
“Well, it’s only natural after losing a precious master! That’s why I was worried about this next attempt too. I wondered if you might fail to show your true capabilities because of depression, but I was fretting for nothing, it seems.”
“……Still, you can read people’s faces and guess their emotions?”
“Yes! I don’t understand what sadness actually feels like, but I do comprehend it intellectually! Ah-ha. Even machines squeak if they get too much grease buildup. Stress must be the human equivalent of such grime. If it sits too long, it becomes sediment that’s hard to clean. Do manage it well!”
Curious. He’s trying to understand humans in his own way. He’s a psychopath, sure—but an oddly endearing one.
“Anyway, Kim Gongja.”
“Yes?”
“I’ve noticed something odd since a while ago.”
“What odd thing?”
“As I understand it, we are currently imprisoned by unjust authority. Our freedom of movement is being restricted.”
“I’m analyzing the situation the same way.”
“Excellent—our mutual understanding is reassuring! And normally, in such cases, those in power station guards or jailers separately to watch the prisoners. Otherwise, escape would be frighteningly easy, after all.”
The Heresy Inquisitor tilted his head quizzically.
“Yet I sense no presence beyond the door at all. Instead, I detect multiple presences near the window. Hmm. I wonder—in this world, do they position their watchers around windows rather than in front of doors?”
At that instant.
“Damn it! Cut through!”
The iron bars shattered outward as shadowed figures leaped in through the window.
“It doesn’t matter if the man dies! Don’t let the woman get hurt!”
The figures wore masks across their faces. Their ensemble was far too elaborate to pass them off as worried well-wishers coming to our aid. Any way you looked at it, this was an assault by uninvited guests.
“Sparkle!”
[Yes, Hero.]
I drew the Holy Sword. The blade rang out—Ching!—meeting the attacker’s weapon with a sharp collision.
There was no back-and-forth interrogation like you’d see in action movie ambush scenes—the kind that amounts to “Who are you?!” and “We don’t know, but we’ve got powerful backers!” Both the attacker and I were too busy swinging blades.
But I had a trump card up my sleeve.
“Now!”
Flash.
The Holy Sword blazed with light.
“Agh!”
The attacker, whose eyes had adjusted to the darkness, clenched them shut—just for an instant, but in a blade exchange, an instant decides everything.
I blinked rapidly, alternating left and right eyes to maintain my vision, then tore the attacker’s wrist clean off.
“…ugh, ……!”
A scream rippled through his voice like marbling.
“Kim Gongja! Don’t kill them all! We need to find out who sent them—keep them alive!”
I obliged.
The Heresy Inquisitor was already cutting through her own opponents, her dress skirts flaring with each movement.
“This can’t be right! She, she’s not just some ordinary girl, is she?”
The attackers recoiled in shock. They were barely competent—or was our strength just overwhelming? They had no Aura to speak of; they were nothing but small-time thugs against us.
In mere moments, all four attackers were subdued. One of them was killed by the Heresy Inquisitor during the scuffle.
“Hmm. Aha-ha.”
The Heresy Inquisitor wiped the spray of blood from her face with her dress sleeve. The remaining attackers stared up at her—their faces drained of all color.
“We were told you were a frail noblewoman… how….”
“You have three options!”
The Heresy Inquisitor, dagger in hand, smiled broadly.
“First, you can ask me to kill you here and now, and I’ll oblige. Second, you can be tortured by me while you gradually confess all your important information. Third, you can simply hand over your information freely—no death, no torture. Which will it be?”
“Heh…….”
The oldest-looking attacker among them let out a bitter laugh—the same man whose wrist I’d severed.
“Crazy bitch. Just kill me!”
“Yes! Understood!”
“What—?”
The Heresy Inquisitor’s dress became a little redder.
Thud—a dull, heavy sound echoed through the warehouse.
His head had hit the floor.
“H-hiiiiieek……!”
Two attackers remained.
“Have the rest of you made your choice?”
“P-please, spare us, my lady! We were just hired for a job!”
“It’s a harsh world. I understand.”
“Then…….”
“But just as I understand your position, you must understand mine as well!”
“…….”
“Tell me why you attacked us. In exchange, I’ll let you live and go free. I think that’s a very generous deal, wouldn’t you say?”
The attackers hesitated.
“Ah, you seem to need a little time to decide. Very well! Allow me to help you make up your minds!”
“H-help us, you say…….”
“Torture.”
The Heresy Inquisitor’s smile never wavered.
“Pain proves that one is alive. When pain reaches its peak, so does a person’s survival instinct. Now then—allow me to maximize your desire to live.”
“P-please, spare us!”
“Let us live!”
Insane.
I stepped in because I was afraid the whole scene would turn into an R-rated romance novel.
“Hold on a moment. Heresy Inquisitor.”
“Yes?”
“We don’t need to do it that way. Leave it to me.”
“Hmm……?”
The Heresy Inquisitor tilted her head, puzzled.
“You’re skilled at torture too? Unless you’re exceptionally good at it, I’d recommend letting me handle this. I’m a specialist in interrogation.”
“No need for torture, really. And wipe your face, would you?”
I handed the Heresy Inquisitor a handkerchief and stepped in front of the attackers.
The attackers let out sighs of relief, but sorry—I’m not exactly kind to people who try to ambush me first.
“Gentlemen. Let me ask you something.”
“W-what is it.”
“When you attacked earlier, you came through the window, didn’t you? The iron bars were cut so easily. Did you hear beforehand that we’d be trapped here, and cut them in advance?”
“…….”
The attackers said nothing. They merely exchanged glances with one another. But their silence didn’t mean I couldn’t extract the truth.
‘Character Window.’
Their thoughts became visible to my eyes.
「We heard a woman would be coming to the warehouse.」
「Damn it, they said she was just an ordinary young lady—what a con!」
Just as I thought.
The attackers had known all along that we’d be coming here.
“When you attacked, you shouted that it didn’t matter if you killed the man, but not to harm the woman. Were you trying to kidnap the young lady?”
“That… that is… it was…….”
The attackers blinked rapidly.
「The job was to kidnap the woman from this place.」
「The client made absolutely sure not to harm her. That’s why we brought four people to be safe.」
Mm.
Yes, I understand now.
“Sigh…….”
I let out a long breath. Glancing back, the Heresy Inquisitor was busily wiping her face with a handkerchief—exactly like a young hamster gnawing on sunflower seeds.
“I think I’ve figured out who the culprit is.”
The Heresy Inquisitor’s ears perked up.
“What? You already know?”
“Yes.”
“I’d like to hear your deduction.”
The Heresy Inquisitor’s eyes sparkled.
I nodded and leaned in to whisper.
“First, the culprit is someone with tremendous power. To employ four assassins and infiltrate them into the Academy—that’s impossible unless they know the Academy’s security system inside and out.”
“Ah, quite logical!”
However, the Heresy Inquisitor raised an objection.
“But must the culprit necessarily be all-powerful? This isn’t the palace—learning an Academy’s security measures seems relatively simple. Even someone of moderate influence could manage it.”
“Sharp observation, but——”
I shook my head.
“There’s another suspicious detail. Do you remember what the villainess young lady shouted when she drove us out?”
“Hmm.”
The Heresy Inquisitor tucked the handkerchief into her sleeve, thinking.
“Yes, I recall. She said, ‘Get out of my sight at once, lock up those servants immediately.’ Why do you ask?”
“She never said *where* to lock us up.”
“…….”
“The villainess only told them to remove us from the Ball Hall. But these attackers knew exactly where we’d be imprisoned—and had already cut the iron bars beforehand. It was the villainess’s servants who brought us here.”
“Oho…….”
The Heresy Inquisitor’s eyes narrowed like a viper’s.
“Indeed. The villainess could very well be the one who hired these attackers. She merely had to instruct her servants where to confine us in advance, and tell the attackers the location. Aha, and being a Duke House young lady, she’d have the authority too.”
“Yes, but…….”
“But it’s far too obvious.”
The Heresy Inquisitor stroked her chin.
“I am—despite appearances—the protagonist of the Apocalypse Records. I’m a noblewoman involved with the Crown Prince. If the villainess expelled me and then had me attacked in that very location? Even for a Duke House young lady, that would be an utterly catastrophic scandal! It’s a politically ruinous move.”
The Heresy Inquisitor truly was sharp.
Logic like this cuts through quickly.
“In other words, the villainess isn’t the culprit. The real culprit is someone who wants the villainess to *appear* to be the culprit.”
“I agree!”
“And this true culprit cares deeply about you—the female protagonist—to the point of warning the attackers never to harm you. As for me, a male servant, they don’t care if I live or die. Finally, they have enough power to bribe the Duke House’s servants.”
“Aha.”
The Heresy Inquisitor smiled with her eyes.
“I’m beginning to know who the true culprit is!”
“I suspect we’re thinking the same thing.”
“Hmm. I don’t understand the emotions of love. But I know the habits of those I love! If the true culprit really does value me as you’ve deduced, they would never truly entrust my safety to common attackers like these.”
“Right.”
I nodded.
“They’d be waiting nearby, ready to intervene at any moment.”
Bang!
The warehouse’s decrepit door burst open right then. Dust billowed into the air, and a squad of knights came pouring in.
At the front was a man who looked as though he’d never had dust settle on his hands in his entire life.
“Silvia! Are you all right, Silvia!”
The man rushed over and embraced the Heresy Inquisitor tightly. His blonde hair, fine as ramen noodles, shimmered in the light. He was handsome too, though not quite on the Heresy Inquisitor’s level—you might say his beauty ranked at 0.6 compared to hers.
“Good heavens. Covered in blood from head to toe! When I heard you’d been expelled from the Ball Hall, I came at once in great anxiety… How could anyone dare commit such a heinous act against you!”
And his psychopath level, too, was probably about 0.6 times that of the Heresy Inquisitor.
The man issued his command without blinking once.
“You there! Seize those suspicious scoundrels at once! I shall interrogate them myself and uncover every thread of the conspiracy! Whatever house is responsible, I care not—even if they were a founding pillar of The Empire itself, I will not forgive them!”
The knights answered in unison.
“Yes, Your Highness! We accept your command!”
That’s right.
“Lady Silvia. Have no fear. I shall protect you. No matter what cruel schemes the Duke House deploys, I—The Empire’s sole heir—shall shield you. You need only rely on me…….”
This man was the male protagonist of the Sormewin Academy story.
And the Crown Prince who loved the Heresy Inquisitor.
SSS-Rank: Die to Live Hunter (Serialized)
Author │ Shin Noa
Publisher │ Kim Ju-hyeong
Published by │ J Plus Media Co., Ltd.
Marketing │ Han Jae-hyeok
Address │ 204, 288 Digital-ro, Guro-gu, Seoul (Guro-dong, Daelungpost Tower 1st)
Email │ [email protected]
Website │ www.jayplemedia.com
ⓒ Shin Noa 2019
※ This work is published by J Plus Media Co., Ltd. in accordance with a contract with the copyright holder. No part of this work may be used in any form or by any means without permission from the company and author.
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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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