Ch.17Reversal After Reversal

“Can’t we work something out?”

“…What are you going to do about this, Jonathan?”

‘Got it!’

The moment the bald, fat man I was speaking to looked at Jonathan and asked him, I inwardly cheered.

Since Jonathan had been leading the conversation so far, the chances of him being the leader of this trio were very high. Taking advantage of this, I deliberately urged the bald man holding the shotgun to make a decision, and as I intended, he turned to Jonathan for his opinion. I had only hoped to divert his attention to another outlaw for even a moment, but I never expected him to fall for it so perfectly.

The talk about wanting to become an outlaw, the argument with Seti, and the brief opening created when they looked away—even with all that groundwork laid, I didn’t think I could successfully launch a preemptive attack against three men with just a quick draw. Therefore, I was targeting only one person: the bald, fat man with the “shotgun,” who would be at a decisive disadvantage if we fired at each other from this distance.

Of course, the other two would shoot at me as I suddenly drew my gun, but I had something I was counting on for that.

‘Yes, this is the feeling!’

My “skill” that activated when I dodged Strike Falcon’s surprise attack was a remarkable ability that informed me of the distance and direction of approaching dangers as if inputting them directly into my brain.

However, recalling that it didn’t activate when I was looking at Strike Falcon, I suspected that my danger detection skill only worked for targets I wasn’t looking at or that were outside my field of vision. To utilize this characteristic, I deliberately turned my head to look at the bald man while making Jonathan and the other man fall outside my field of vision.

The moment the bald man turned his head and I drew my gun with a quick draw, I was certain my hypothesis about the danger detection skill was correct. With a sensation of time slowing down, I began to feel exactly where Jonathan’s and the burn-scarred man’s revolvers were aiming, as if needles were being pressed against those spots.

Although white magic bullets are slower than gunpowder bullets, they’re still not slow enough to see and dodge. However, if you know the exact trajectory of incoming bullets, it’s not impossible to twist your body while drawing and firing to narrowly avoid the areas your enemies are targeting. As proof of this:

‘Ta-ta-tang!’

‘Bang!’

‘Bang! Bang!’

Six gunshots rang out.

The first three were my fanning shots following the quick draw. To ensure the most threatening weapon—the shotgun—was definitely dropped, I hit the bald man’s hands twice and the falling shotgun once to send it flying away.

The next shot was from the burn-scarred man standing next to Jonathan firing his revolver at me, and the final shots were me hitting Jonathan and the burn-scarred man’s right hands after dodging the bullet.

It was surprising that Jonathan didn’t react at all. Perhaps, as the leader of the three, he was more seriously concerned about the risk of becoming a Desperado than the others, and that’s why he hesitated to fire until the end.

Having successfully turned the situation around in an instant, I was about to point my gun at Jonathan and urge him to surrender when suddenly, he pulled out a knife hidden behind his back and charged at me. But that knife never reached my body.

‘Thwack!’

“Aaaaargh!!”

“Jonathan!”

Seti, who had somehow drawn the spear from her back, swung it and completely severed Jonathan’s left hand that was holding the knife. Looking down at Jonathan, who was writhing in pain and screaming, Seti slowly raised her spear with both hands.

“Wait, Seti, there’s no need to kill him.”

“…Understood.”

“You two would be better off not moving either. An outlaw killing me would make them a Desperado, but me killing outlaws wouldn’t matter, right?”

“Guh… that’s certainly true… if we were all outlaws.”

“What?”

Jonathan, who had barely managed to stop the bleeding by bunching up his shirt and catching his breath, gave an unpleasant smile and slowly raised his bloodied right hand to take something out of his shirt pocket, showing it to me proudly. It was unmistakably a Frontier License card.

“Didn’t you say it yourself? That I was casually drinking in Oxville. Have you ever thought about why that was possible?”

“…Don’t tell me you…”

“That’s right. I am a legitimate citizen with a Frontier License. You didn’t expect this, did you?”

“Why would a legitimate citizen conspire with outlaws to do something like this? Even if there’s profit, the risk is too great.”

I don’t know how much he was promised to help with the slave trafficking crime targeting Seti, but while selling information about us might make sense, there was no merit in accompanying them to the kidnapping scene and participating in the crime. If anything went wrong, Jonathan would instantly become a criminal, and even if things went well, there was no guarantee the outlaws would pay what they promised.

“You’re right. It’s too dangerous for a legitimate citizen to get this deeply involved in outlaws’ business. But what if I was a comrade of the outlaws from the beginning?”

“A comrade of… outlaws?”

“Didn’t you say it earlier? That even outlaws need to enter the city somehow because of the black magic, and asked me to tell you how. It’s not just black magic. Food, supplies, gun maintenance, camping equipment… outlaws need all sorts of things. What do you think is the most reliable and safe way to obtain them?”

“…Someone in the gang remains a citizen instead of becoming an outlaw. Is that it?”

“Correct. And they can’t leave just anyone behind as a citizen—that might lead to betrayal—so a high-ranking member takes on the role of supplier. Even if the members operating outside get arrested, as long as the executive remains safe, rebuilding the organization becomes easier.”

In other words, Jonathan was a person with a fairly high position within the outlaw organization. The reason he didn’t fire during the earlier shootout wasn’t because of the risk of becoming a Desperado, but because as an executive and supplier with important responsibilities, he needed to avoid recklessly firing his gun and losing his license.

“Now let me ask you a question. What do you think will happen to you two from now on?”

“What are you talking about?”

“…Ah!”

Seti’s expression suddenly changed as she pointed her spear at Jonathan. I didn’t understand what was happening at first, but when I realized the situation between us and Jonathan, a chill ran down my spine.

Jonathan hadn’t fired a single shot at me or Seti. But I had shot Jonathan’s right hand to make him drop his gun, and Seti had severed his left hand as he charged with a knife.

“Seems like you’re finally catching on. A hostile native girl who attacked and maimed an innocent pioneer?”

“Ah, aah…”

“…It doesn’t matter. You planned to enslave this child, you threatened me with a gun first, and above all, you confessed with your own mouth that you’re an executive in an outlaw organization. Our actions will be recognized as self-defense.”

“Slavery? Executive? Strange words you’re using. Where’s the evidence for that?”

“What?”

“All I see here is a peddler who makes money selling goods to outlaws, his two outlaw customers, and a vicious male-female duo who tried to kill them all to steal their money and goods.”

It seems Jonathan’s gang had prepared a scenario in case the attack failed, to frame us and prevent any negative impact on Jonathan’s Frontier License. He truly is a cunning and calculating man.

“If they examine each person’s gun, it’s easy to determine whether it’s been fired recently. And the only person holding a weapon capable of cutting off my hand is that beastfolk girl, so there’s clear evidence. But what about you? Slave trading? Being threatened first? Where’s the evidence to prove that?”

“You bastard…”

“Getting upset now won’t change the situation. Between our two stories, determining which is true is the sheriff’s job.”

“That’s right. That’s for me to decide.”

Just as the situation was becoming desperate, a voice that would completely turn things around came from the side.

All five of us turned our heads to see a man with a silver star badge on his chest, sporting an impressive mustache and a 2:8 side-parted hairstyle, with Jessica following behind him.

“I’m Edward McDougal, Sheriff of Oxville. I’m arresting you three on charges of illegal slave trading and gang activity.”

“Sheriff? How did you get here…”

“Hmm. William J. Kim, was it? Thank you for your trouble. I’ll give you the details when we return to Oxville. The cat-folk young lady is welcome too.”

My first battle against other people, which nearly shattered Seti’s dreams by a hair’s breadth, somehow ended in victory.