The SSR Spearman (Doesn’t) Hide His One-Shot Damage - Chapter 16

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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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Chapter 16

* * *

KWAANG—!

With a roar that seemed to tear through my ears,
a flash of light erupted.

Crackle, crackle—.

‘A barrier?’

In the swirling dust that blocked my view and slowly began to scatter,
a translucent hemisphere materialized, its center cracked halfway through.

“What—what is this! Did the defensive magic device just activate? What on earth is going on…!”
“It’s a bombing attack! Look up at the building! There’s a man in a mask standing up there!”

In an instant, the whole place erupted into chaos.

[Multiple individuals have identified you.]
[Recommendation! – If the ambush fails, withdraw from the scene immediately-.]

I drew my spear at once and aimed it downward.
Through the gap in the shattered barrier.
Perdi’s hollow eyes were staring up at the empty sky.

“….”

The dark, crimson hollows of his sunken eyes turned toward me.
For a moment he stared at me with a dazed expression, then his mouth stretched into a wide, nearly splitting grin.

‘…So he noticed we came.’

I watched him for a moment, then hurled the spear downward with all my strength.

Whoosh!

The spear I’d thrown pierced Perdi’s mouth and lodged firmly into the ground.
A brief, final spasm.
And then, his body went still for good.

[Perdi returns to the embrace of the Goddess.]

[Special achievement unlocked!]
[The will of Cu Chulainn, dwelling within your body, grows stronger!]

[Stamina 8 → 9]
[Strength 15 → 16]
[Agility 7 → 8]
[Intelligence 6 → 7]
[Wisdom 7 → 8]
[Charisma 9 → 10]

‘…It’s over.’

The System Window floating before my eyes blurred my vision.
…As the Cu Chulainn within the Unique Myth’s legend, I have slain Ferdin.
And with that, the stat gains came pouring in.
I’d farmed stats like this before, yet this time, I didn’t feel the slightest bit pleased.

[Hidden Route progress increased!]

[Hidden Route progress: 5.5%]
-“Rest for Perdi” (Complete)
-“???”
-“???”
…

Screams that sounded like war cries and jeers ring in my ears.
The stage has become a battlefield.
Enraged citizens of the Empire are surging forward, their ranks breaking apart.

“Seize that man at once! The one in the mask, on the rooftop!”

The Blue Cloaks’ knights have started moving, too.
…Surely some of the ones who brought down the Underground City are mixed in among them.

‘This is no time to be sentimental.’

I need to get out of here.
If I end up with a bounty on my head, it’ll throw off everything that comes next.
I spin around, ready to bolt, when—

Slip.

“…!”

Because my attention was still fixed on Perdi’s body, I nearly lost my footing and slid.

‘Damn it…!’

Just as my body tips sideways, threatening to pitch me over—
…Grab!
In a desperate reach, I snatch hold of the Imperial Banner that was jutting from the rooftop.

Crack!

But in the process, I went and—
The Imperial Banner snapped clean in half.

“H-he… that vicious terrorist! He dared to desecrate the great Empire’s national flag—!”
“How could he…! Is there really a man so lawless as this!”

What?
I only slipped and caught myself, that’s all.
Somehow it had turned into a show of me breaking the Imperial Banner.

‘Since I’ve already broken it, should I finish the job with some flair?’

Without a second thought, I gripped the banner with both hands.
Rrrrip—!
I tore it straight down the middle.

“Y-you lunatic…! He’s ripped the sacred national banner of the Empire!”
“Aaaaaaah…! The great Empire’s banner, nooooo!”

[Multiple characters harbor a fierce hatred toward you!]

Groans rose from all around me, right then.
…Ding!

[Achievement Unlocked! – Defiler of the Imperial Household]

[Due to the achievement, your abilities will permanently increase.]
[Charisma 10 → 11]

‘Huh?’

An achievement I’d never seen before, not even as a veteran of this game, had just been unlocked.

‘An achievement for defiling the Imperial Household?’

Ah, could this be one that only shows up on the Hidden Route?
All of a sudden, I’d hit that notoriously difficult stat roll in a row.

‘Charisma doesn’t have any direct effect on combat, but it’s still a good stat, so it’s useful in all sorts of ways…’

Anyway, a win.
I’ve reached my goal, so all that’s left is to get away safely.

The spear… what a pity. I can’t go back down to grab it again, so I’ll let it go.
That leaves me with only this longsword I received from the Hero as my weapon.

“You damned Ailand remnant! How dare you dishonor the Imperial Court!”

Just then, a knight climbed up onto the roof.
He was holding a Sturdy-Looking Spear.

“My spear will pierce your heart and restore the Empire’s honor!”
“Oh, thanks for the donation!”
“Wh-what? Huh?!”

[Acquired the Sturdy-Looking Spear.]

I closed in on the knight who had climbed onto the roof, snatched the spear from him, and shoved him hard, sending him tumbling down below.
With a single piercing scream, the knight crashed onto the ground.

‘For now, it’s best to flee toward the eastern market district. It’ll be easier to shake off pursuers there.’

I gave a small nod toward Rian and Ailin, who were watching me with dazed looks from far away.
For now, the party is disbanded.

Tada-da-dat-.

I immediately sprinted across the rooftops.
Several of them had already begun to tail me closely.
In situations like this, it’s best to avoid direct engagement as much as possible. If too much violent movement breaks the Perception-Lowering Magic on me, that would be a real problem.
I refuse to have my face sketched and circulated on a wanted poster.

‘I wonder if I’ve shaken off the pursuit well enough by now…?’

I wonder how long I kept running and running, circling the map.
Before I knew it, I had arrived at a chimney atop a green roof.

* * *

[Checklist updated.]

[Hidden Route progress: 5.7%]
-(New!) 『Escape the capital while evading the Imperial Army’s pursuit』
-『???』
-『???』
…….

I managed to sneak into the fireplace through the chimney.
Luckily, only a few embers were left inside, so I got in without much trouble.

‘No one’s around. Thankfully, the owner must be out.’

A quick look around revealed a tidy, warm interior, complete with a bathroom.
There was even a Magitech Engineering device installed that regulated the temperature of the house using Magic Stones.
Looks like this is a pretty well-off household.

‘This is nothing like the Underground City, is it?’

Seeing this, I could almost understand why we had to drive bamboo spears into the guts of these imperial invaders and seize our independence.

Anyway, enough with the idle thoughts.

I hurriedly stripped off every piece of clothing I was wearing and tossed it into the fireplace.
…Whoosh!
Before long, the embers spread and began to devour my worn-out clothes.

‘If someone recognizes me by my appearance, that’d be a problem. I’ll have to borrow some clothes from the owner later.’

For now… I should wash up first.
I headed straight for the shower and turned on the hot water, scrubbing off the soot that clung to my entire body.

Imperial citizens regard anyone who looks shabby as an Ailander.
To evade the Imperial Army’s pursuit, looking neat is far more advantageous.

[Warning! – The Perception-Lowering Magic is about to be lifted!]

‘Ah, I need to get out of here as quickly as possible.’

The warm water touching my skin after so long made me feel as if I’d returned to my original world, and for a moment my heart loosened.
But I quickly steeled myself, stepped out, and set about rummaging through the wardrobe in earnest.
It was a relief to find outdoor clothes that fit my build.

‘…Come to think of it, what was I thinking, burning all my old clothes?’

If nothing but dresses had been hanging in here, I’d have been in real trouble, wouldn’t I?
How was I supposed to wear those with this brawny, muscular body?

*Shudder.*
Tossing out that awful thought.

I hurriedly gathered the remaining clothes for my party members as well.
I had just finished this free wardrobe shopping spree and was stepping out through the front gate when—

“Oh? Mr. Oliver! What brings you out at this hour? And why are you gathering up so many clothes?”
“…!”

A woman who looked like a neighbor suddenly spoke to me.
Since the Perception-Lowering Magic was still in effect, she seemed to have taken me for Oliver, the homeowner.

‘Don’t panic. Stay calm, stay calm…’

I took a moment to steady my breathing.
I tried my best to scrub the Ailander lilt out of my voice as I answered.

“Just had somewhere to be for a bit. So, I’ll be on my way-”
“Wait! It’s dangerous over there. I heard there’s chaos right now… Some terrorist set off a bomb and went on a rampage, they say…!”
“Oh.”

That’s me.

[Warning! – The Perception-Lowering Magic is about to expire!]

Damn, I didn’t have much time left.
I was just about to offer the neighbor a perfunctory reply and make my way off when—

“Huh? Why is Mr. Oliver over there, too…?”

The woman pointed toward the middle of the crowd, her face full of surprise.
Then she glanced back and forth between the man in the crowd and my face, and slowly, the color drained from her cheeks.

“D-d-doppelgänger.”
“Hm…? Then I’ll be going now!”

Leaving the woman staring at me with a dazed look, I bolted down the alley.
Luckily, the moment I was out of her sight, the Perception-Lowering Magic wore off right on time.

‘Phew, if she’d gone and called the guards, that would’ve been bad.’

I was just letting out a sigh of relief when—

『Setanta, you thief! You swindler! Traitor who insulted the Imperial Court!』

Ding!
Charles’s shrill voice suddenly rang out inside my head.

‘What now?’

Wondering what on earth was going on, I looked down into my pocket. The hero had poked his head out and was squeaking his protest at me.

『How dare you insult the Imperial Court and break into a citizen of the Empire’s home just to steal!』
『Scum like you should be tied up in the square and whipped!』

“…So slaughtering people who were living perfectly well, then chopping off their arms and legs to put on display, that’s fine, is it?”

『That’s—!』

I gave Charles’s rump a little pinch.
Squeeeeeak!
The poor thing trembled violently and immediately crawled back down into my pocket.

Did he pour every last point into cuteness and end up in the body of a Silky Hamster, a creature famous for its low intelligence?
Charles seems to have lost a lot of his wits compared to when he was human.

Anyway…

‘Where on earth am I supposed to go to find my Triple Pull heroes again?’

Even their mental state is questionable at this point.
This game is rather realistic in that way. Whenever a hero suffers mental anguish, all sorts of Negative Traits would pile up on them like barnacles.

‘I hope there’s nothing wrong with his mind.’

Lost in worries of one kind or another, I walked on until I found myself on a street lined with open-air stalls.

‘A market street. I never thought I’d see something from the game in real life. It’s oddly moving.’

Red and green fruit, cuts of meat, and fish lay spread across the stalls.
…And then.

‘Huh?’

Wait, is that a silhouette I’ve seen somewhere before…?

“Se-Setanta?!”
“Oops.”

Rian called out to me from a distance.
Beside him stood Ailin, her eyes still vacant.

[TIP – Heroes whose bonds were formed through Hero Bond Draw are highly likely to have their fates entangled with yours.]

‘So the heroes from the early gacha are likely to cross my path by chance, too.’

I walked over to them and handed over the neat clothes I’d farmed earlier.
I also didn’t forget to offer a few sincere words of condolence about Perdi’s death.
Small as they may seem, every little choice like this has a real effect on building trust.

“Please, don’t let yourselves sink too far into grief.”
“…”
“One day, we’ll make those bastards pay, and we’ll build a new place where we can live. For now, let’s just look toward the future.”

For the sake of keeping the party’s spirits steady, I offered nothing but hopeful, encouraging words.

‘In the Original Work, how well you managed the party’s morale was what separated newbies from the experts.’

A party whose morale collapses sees its efficiency plummet like crazy.
Every now and then, there were newbies who pushed straight into a dungeon run right after a teammate had died.
Do that a few times, and the heroes’ minds would go to ruin, and the whole party would blow apart without them even realizing it.

“S-Setanta, sir…”
“Ah, don’t cling to me so much. Anyway, let’s all do our best, shall we?”

I patted the male character on the back, who had tears welling up in his eyes, and calmed him down.
As for the female character, whose glare was still fierce… I was just about to start managing her morale when—

[The target hero is under severe stress.]

Hmm.
But how should I handle this hero?
If I touch the wrong nerve, it could backfire.
I was pressing a hand to my forehead, lost in thought, when it happened.

“…Did you hear? There was a bombing attack at the Execution Grounds just up ahead.”
“What? A bombing? What on earth are you talking about?”

Near a stall about ten paces away.
A butcher who had been trimming meat suddenly raised his voice in the middle of a conversation with a customer.
Perhaps he had been stuck minding the shop and hadn’t heard any news from outside, for his eyes were wide with shock.

“Are you saying the condemned man escaped in all that chaos? What happened to that wretched Ailander criminal, then?”
“Well, he couldn’t have escaped, could he? They cut off his limbs and gouged out his eyes already. Unless he crawled underground like a worm, I doubt he got far.”

The customer went on, his tone dripping with mockery.

“…Ah! No more holes for them to hide in, then. That filthy Underground City has been wiped clean, after all.”

The shopkeeper and the customer exchanged a glance, then broke into roaring laughter.
On the counter lay chunks of meat, the limbs hacked off and cut into pieces.
Neatly sliced and laid out for display…

A sudden unease crept over me, and I looked toward Ailin.

“….”

Her pupils had dilated.
Her breath came quick and ragged, her eyes glistening with a feverish sheen.
Those lavender eyes, once so clear, had clouded into something murky and dull, like a demon’s, and they were fixed on the man before her.

Ding!

[Ailin’s new trait, 【Intermittent Madness (-)】, is about to bloom!]

Her silver arm slowly reached toward the Iron Wood Sword.

—————
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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