Ch.90The Ballroom Raid Incident

# The Beast Hunter’s Rank

The rank of monsters I could command was C-class.

The human-aversion trait characteristic of Beast Hunters was mild enough that contact with others only caused slight discomfort.

This also meant my talent as a Beast Hunter was limited to that level.

In the Kitsune Family, known as humanity’s greatest Beast Hunter clan, this was unacceptable and a source of shame.

But.

Then one day.

“Mother. Who is that child?”

“My dear. You must never become friends with that child.”

“Why not?”

“Because that child is the very embodiment of shame that shouldn’t exist in our family.”

I saw it then.

That there existed someone who was beyond a mere stain like me—someone who brought not just disgrace but actual harm to the family.

Kitsune Kurumi.

My half-sister.

Thanks to her, although I was a family disgrace, I didn’t have to be treated as one.

Because I wasn’t the last place.

So I bullied her whenever I could, desperately trying to maintain what little position I had.

“Thou, sand…?”

“Pardon?”

“Ah! T-that’s not what I… Ahem!”

World’s 10 Great Families or whatever—I just met someone who could make my direct descendants seem like mere titles.

What is this feeling?

My heart is pounding wildly, and though the person before me is human, they don’t look human at all.

If I had to compare, perhaps an angel?

No, a goddess of beauty?

Anyway, Rokyu, who fell head over heels for Sophia at first sight, could only stand there blushing, his mouth clamped shut.

“Ahem! I-I’ll be going now!”

“…? Oh, yes. Take care…”

“Ahem!”

“…young master.”

“…!! A-ahem!”

When Sophia called him “young master,” Rokyu couldn’t stop the corners of his mouth from rising. Covering his mouth with both hands, he fled the kitchen.

Meanwhile.

“Sister. Do you know that person?”

“I don’t think so? First time seeing him.”

Sophia watched as the young master from the prestigious family appeared suddenly, stammered awkwardly, then quickly ran away.

A moment later, she chuckled and said with amusement:

“Well, he doesn’t seem like a bad person at least.”

***

Evening came.

This meant the family party to welcome Princess Kurumi’s return to the country was about to begin.

And with a similar scenario, I recalled the original work’s theme dungeon—the Kitsune Family episode, specifically the ballroom attack incident part.

‘Of course, Princess Kurumi didn’t exist in the original, but just in case.’

There was a possibility that Princess Kurumi had simply been added on top of that incident.

Preparing for any contingency, I followed Princess Kurumi into the party venue.

Surprisingly, it was a Western-style ballroom—open yet decorated with magnificent chandeliers, reminiscent of a medieval European castle.

“A ballroom inside a Japanese castle. What an interesting combination.”

“This place is frequently visited by important figures from various countries. We can’t be too traditional.”

Makes sense—considering that more than half of the World’s 10 Great Families are of European origin, it’s a wise approach.

The party venue was filled with Japanese politicians and major corporate executives, as well as key figures from around the world.

Among them were some Korean figures I recognized from TV.

“Oh, Princess!”

“?!”

“You…!”

As soon as we entered the ballroom, a woman with pink pigtails came running over, waving her hand.

“It’s been a while. You remember me, right?”

“Miss Yoo Sihyeon?”

“How on earth are you here…”

“My goodness, how rude. Sir, we barely met once before, we’re practically strangers. Why are you looking at me like you’ve seen a ghost?”

Yoo Sihyeon, one of the main heroines from the original work.

I had heard from the Princess that she was with Princess Kurumi at Lotte World when Amaterasu went berserk.

However, I was simply stunned to see her appear in the Kitsune Family episode, which should have had nothing to do with her.

“For your information, my family owns Samsumg Group, one of Korea’s top 10 companies! As the only daughter of such a major corporation and someone who owes her life to Princess Kurumi, it’s only natural for me to come see her!”

Yoo Sihyeon was making a complicated explanation for simply wanting to become friends.

Still, according to what the Princess told me, it was thanks to her that the Princess was able to hold out against Amaterasu until I arrived.

“Besides, you promised to appear in our company’s advertisement with me before!”

“That was something you decided on your own…”

“Hey now! I saved your life! Shouldn’t you grant me this small favor? And it’s not like I’m asking you to work for free!”

While Yoo Sihyeon was clinging to Princess Kurumi and making a fuss.

‘I guess Mr. Lorensky isn’t coming after all?’

They say places with lots of people are generally safe.

For that reason, Mr. Lorensky, who needed to hide his identity, said he would provide security from outside the ballroom just this once.

‘Well, if he ran into Yoo Sihyeon here, his identity would be exposed immediately. A wise choice, in a way.’

And then.

“Isn’t that young lady the only daughter of the Samsumg Group?”

“I thought Princess Kurumi didn’t have any significant backing, but when did she manage to get such a powerful ally on her side?”

“By the way, did you hear that rumor from Korea?”

“Ah, you mean the rumor that all the direct descendants were defeated by Princess Kurumi?”

The once-insignificant princess had returned with an army at her back.

The key figures at the party, who had previously only shown interest in the first, second, third, and fifth direct descendants, were now murmuring about attaching themselves to this new power.

‘…Don’t tell me Yoo Sihyeon calculated all this when approaching Princess Kurumi?’

Korea’s Samsumg Group was a globally recognized corporation, after all.

This masterstroke by Yoo Sihyeon to create such a reaction…

“Pleeeease~! Don’t be like that! Do the advertisement with me~!”

“E-even if you insist like that…”

“Princess! No, sister! I saved your life! And you can’t do this small favor for me?!”

…was clearly just a coincidence.

‘Still, it’s created a nice picture, so no harm done.’

Now it was time for me to prepare for the first part of the Kitsune Family episode.

The ballroom attack incident.

***

“Brother. Look at that.”

“……”

“It seems Kurumi has gained not only ‘strength’ and ‘men’ in Korea, but ‘power’ as well.”

“……”

“Who would have thought the card we discarded would return like this…”

“……”

“Say something! Or do you want to receive the same treatment Kurumi did all these years?”

“…! N-no…”

In a secluded corner of the ballroom, far from Kurumi’s group.

Sakura was spitting bitter words with a furious expression while watching Kurumi chatting (?) amicably with Yoo Sihyeon.

Meanwhile, Rokyu was completely distracted by thoughts of Sophia.

Then.

“…What if, somehow, Kurumi becomes the next head of the Kitsune Family? What will happen to us?”

“W-what?!”

Rokyu imagined the most terrifying future that could unfold.

With that in mind, he asked Sakura, hoping against hope.

“Obviously, we’ll face retribution for everything we’ve done to her.”

His sister’s answer was, naturally, the harsh reality without a shred of hope or dream.

“Just like what our parents did to Kurumi’s parents. To thoroughly eliminate their power, they’ll kill everyone except the children needed to continue the bloodline. Starting with family and ending with servants.”

“…!”

“That’s why we surrendered to Brother Katsuo without fighting. It was obvious that if we fought a battle we couldn’t win, everyone except our children who would continue the bloodline would be killed.”

“That’s right…”

He knew it.

He knew, but as that moment drew ever closer, he wanted to confirm it again.

“Is this what they call karma?”

“Brother…?”

“No, it’s nothing. Then we need to support our eldest brother somehow to prevent Kurumi from becoming the family head.”

“Exactly. Once Brother Katsuo arrives at the ballroom, let’s gather and make a plan.”

As Sakura was trying to rally their spirits with a “Let’s go!” cheer.

“Hm? That child…”

“It’s Asuna, isn’t it? But why is she going toward Kurumi?”

The youngest sister of the Kitsune Family, wearing a rose-red kimono as vibrant as a flower, was walking toward Kurumi, who was in the middle of a conversation with Yoo Sihyeon.

The two siblings felt uneasy watching Asuna—who had declared neutrality and never supported any faction within the family—approach Kurumi.

And while some conversation was taking place between them.

Flicker.

“Huh?”

“What the?!”

Suddenly, a power outage occurred in the ballroom.

No, an abyss-like darkness masquerading as a power outage briefly enveloped the entire ballroom.

Flicker.

When the lights came back on.

“Grk, grrrk…”

“Kaaagagagagak!”

“W-what?!”

“M-monsters! Monsteeeers!!”

The Kitsune Family’s ballroom, filled with key figures from around the world, had somehow transformed into a monster cage.

“W-what is this…?!”

“Kyaaa!”

“…! Duck down now!”

After a moment of panic.

Sakura successfully shot down a pterodactyl-like monster that was flying toward the next table with a monster she had summoned.

“Brother Rokyu! Please evacuate people outside for now!”

“G-got it!”

Meanwhile, Rokyu was calmly evacuating civilians who couldn’t fight, working alongside the security guards.

‘What if these monsters aren’t just inside the ballroom? Then I need to check the kitchen area right now!’

But.

Flicker.

Once again, an abyss-like darkness fell.

Flicker.

When the lights came back on.

“U-uwaaaaah?!”

“Monsters? They got refilled already?”

Above the corpses of the monsters they had defeated, near C-class monsters had appeared again.

Even with elite security guards stationed in the ballroom, there were limits to fighting while protecting people.

Bang!

Clang!

Boom!

“B-be careful! You almost hit me!”

“S-sorry! But the distance is too close…”

“Aaaagh?! My b-bones…!”

“Damn it. Of all places to be with a monster!”

As the battle continued, casualties among civilians mounted.

There were more people to rescue than those being evacuated outside the ballroom.

‘I’d like to just sweep them all away with an area attack, but…!’

That would obviously blow away the entire ballroom along with the monsters.

Even Kurumi, who could command Amaterasu, was struggling due to these constraints. Watching this, Sakura clicked her tongue.

Flicker.

Once again, the abyss-like darkness came.

“…! Everyone, prepare yourselves!”

“More monsters are coming!”

“Damn it!”

“How many more are there?!”

Flicker.

When the lights came back on, all the tense hunters in the ballroom could see.

Monsters trembling nervously, just as tense as the hunters fighting to protect people.

And among the monster group, a jet-black humanoid monster standing with bloodied heads in both hands.

“Grrrrrr…”