Ch.91I Wanted to Apologize Before I Died

The Kitsune Family – The ballroom attack part occurred exactly 10 minutes after entering the map.

The culprits behind this incident were from a fallen hunter family in Japan.

Unlike themselves, they resented the Kitsune family who still maintained their wealth and power even in the 21st century, after the abolition of the class system and the completion of the industrial revolution.

According to the setting, various monsters were sealed beneath the Kitsune family mansion.

They disguised their terrorist act as an accident by creating a dimensional gate in the same way monsters normally appear through gates.

‘Well, they were caught not long after.’

Unfortunately, the fallen nobles who caused this incident never appeared in the original work.

That’s because by the time the truth behind the incident was revealed, they had all been executed.

Therefore, it was impossible to skip the attack part itself, and I planned to end this catastrophe as quickly as possible once it began.

So I was about to move to the location I had in mind when…

“Sister Kurumi.”

“…Asuna?”

“Asuna?!”

A very familiar name came from Princess Kurumi’s lips.

Kitsune Asuna.

When I heard the name of one of the main heroines of “Hunter’s Blood,” I turned my head in surprise.

Behind us stood a noble young lady with a gentle, persimmon-like elegance, maintaining her dignity just as I had seen her in the game graphics.

“Could I talk to you for a moment?”

“…With me?”

“Yes. I’d prefer somewhere private.”

Asuna glanced at me and Yoo Sihyeon, as if we were in the way.

But before we could even step aside in surprise…

“Speak here.”

“…!”

“And don’t give my people those looks, Asuna.”

Princess Kurumi firmly stood as our shield.

“P-Princess…!”

Sihyeon was clearly touched at being called “my people.”

“Ahem…”

Since I knew Asuna from the original work, I was curious about what she would say, so I just avoided eye contact while perking up my ears.

‘I know Asuna becomes a heroine in the Japan route of the original work, but ends up brutally killed like Riverine from the Villain’s Troupe route… What kind of relationship did she have with Princess Kurumi?’

“Nothing to say? Then I’d appreciate it if you’d step aside so my people aren’t uncomfortable.”

“…! O-Okay! I’ll just speak here then!”

Kurumi had always viewed Asuna more favorably compared to her other siblings.

After all, she was a child who at least did nothing and simply stood by while others bullied her.

However, she wasn’t as close to Kurumi as Shinwoo or Sihyeon who were right beside her now, so for Asuna’s own sake, she wanted a quick answer.

And then…

“Sister Kurumi. You know about the upcoming family head selection ceremony, right?”

“…!”

Asuna reluctantly began discussing family matters in front of outsiders.

“Are you planning to participate?”

“…I don’t know.”

“I’m going to participate.”

“?! …What?”

“This family head selection will only have Brother Katsuo and me participating. I came to ask if you’re also entering the fight.”

“Asuna… do you understand what that means?”

A one-on-one duel to the death with her eldest brother Katsuo for the position of family head.

It meant a deadly competition that would only end when one of them died.

“I know. If I lose this selection, I’ll be killed along with everyone in the household except for my child, once I give birth to an heir.”

“You… do you think you can defeat Brother Katsuo?”

“No.”

“What…”

“But I have no choice. Only by showing my resolve this way can I end the cursed legacy of the Kitsune family.”

“What, what are you talking about… Asuna…”

This was content I already knew from the original work.

However, hearing it directly from the person herself was shocking even for me.

“I’ll fight Brother Katsuo with all my strength. But if I lose, I plan to die right there and then. Even if I have to commit seppuku.”

“You, what?! What are you saying?”

Princess Kurumi grabbed Asuna’s collar.

But her younger sister’s amethyst-like eyes only shone with the resolve of someone prepared to die.

“Sister… I’m sorry I couldn’t protect you when we were young.”

“…What?”

“Back then, I had no power. I couldn’t do anything when family members persecuted you. But now it’s different. I’ve been recognized as a direct descendant and earned the right to participate in the family head ceremony.”

“Asuna…!”

“I want to show them. I want to show those damn cousin elders who casually chat while watching young adults fight to the death.”

Asuna was raising death flags, just like in the original work.

“That we are not their puppets. That there are things more important than the family’s future. I’ll show them with my life.”

“Asuna, you…”

Just as Asuna said now.

In the original “Hunter’s Blood,” Asuna refused her fate as the next broodmare and took her own life at the family head ceremony.

Even if you took the Asuna route, you would only spend the night before with her as the player.

The ending never changed.

The next family head, Kitsune Katsuo, who had no intention of killing her, was deeply shocked and disappeared.

The family elders, also known as the family’s backbone, had no choice but to temporarily place Princess Sakura, who was better than the talentless second son, in the position of acting family head.

‘They probably didn’t know then…’

They couldn’t have known what madness Princess Sakura would commit as she realized her inadequacy as family head and became increasingly obsessed with others’ evaluations.

In a way, that became the foundation for the Amaterasu rampage incident that would occur later in the original work.

“I wanted to see you to apologize one last time before I die.”

“……”

“And I also came to ask you not to participate in this family head ceremony. I want my death to possibly end the evil customs of the Kitsune family.”

“……”

“Of course, my insignificant life alone won’t be enough for that… but at least I want you to live happily as an ordinary woman, not as a member of the family. That’s what I wanted to say.”

“Asuna, I…”

But perhaps we were too focused on their conversation.

Flicker.

“Huh?”

“A blackout? At this timing?”

Darkness suddenly descended over the entire ballroom.

I immediately realized that the first episode of the Kitsune family was beginning.

“…They’re coming.”

Flicker.

When the lights came back on.

As expected, monsters howling like ballroom guests had appeared all around us.

“M-Monsters?”

“Monsters?!”

“…! Asuna, Miss Sihyeon. Please hurry and evacuate everyone.”

The ballroom quickly turned into a scene of screams, just like in the original work.

However, Kurumi, with her professional hunter-level skills, acted immediately without hesitation.

“Come forth, Inari.”

Responding to her command, a fox monster the size of a house emerged from the shadows.

“Grrrr…”

“So this is one of the Kitsune family’s four guardian monsters I’ve only heard about…!”

“Inari! Split your body immediately and protect the people.”

“Grrrk!”

Following its master’s orders, Inari instantly divided its body into dozens of parts, each becoming the size of an ordinary fox, and began hunting down the monsters that were attacking humans.

Crunch!

Crack!

Slash! Slash!

“Amazing… That monster must be at least Danger Level A. And she’s not showing any signs of fatigue while using it!”

“No time to be amazed. Asuna, summon your monster too and protect the people.”

“Y-Yes! Got it, sister.”

Meanwhile, Kurumi gave clear instructions to her younger sister, who was too shocked due to her lack of practical experience.

“Come forth! Tengen!”

Following her sister’s instructions, Asuna immediately summoned her contracted monster from her shadow.

Tengen.

A Danger Level B+ monster that resembled a samurai from Japan’s Warring States period.

It looked like a dead warrior who couldn’t pass on to the afterlife and had wrapped its entire body in bandages to somehow remain alive in its corpse state—a rather grotesque monster.

It only looked humanoid.

It couldn’t communicate or even make sounds, truly like a ghost.

“Tengen. Fight while protecting the people.”

But its combat ability was undeniable.

Upon hearing Asuna’s command, the ghost samurai immediately drew its sword and began slicing through the surrounding monsters.

Of course, there were several monsters that couldn’t be cut in half so easily.

“Monsters~ Look at me~♥”

But we had a hunter born with the charm attribute.

Condition Hunter Yoo Sihyeon.

“Die for me~♥ Die for me~!♥”

The monsters that met her gaze became love-struck and followed her commands, allowing Tengen to cut down the remaining monsters.

“Oh. A Condition Hunter? I seem to have unintentionally incurred a debt.”

“Fufu. Then Princess, instead of talking about dying, come shoot an advertisement for our company later! I’ll consider that debt repaid!”

“That’s… something to think about.”

Thanks to them, most of the monsters rampaging through the ballroom seemed to have been defeated.

More precisely, the first wave of monsters from what would be a total of five cycles.

Flicker.

“Huh?”

“Another blackout?”

As the number of monsters decreased, after another blackout…

Flicker.

“Grrrr!”

“Kaaagak!”

Another group of monsters was summoned.

“Again?!”

“Tch…!”

“Both of you, stay alert!”

All three could feel that these monsters were not only greater in number but also stronger in quality than the first wave.

And then…

“Ugh?!”

“…! Asuna!”

Unable to keep up with the increasing speed of the monsters, Asuna took a hit and collapsed to the ground.

Flicker.

“…Huh?”

Before she could even hear her sister’s scream, another blackout occurred.

The third cycle.

Flicker.

When the lights came back on, she was already surrounded by monsters.

“Asuna!!”

“Sister Kurumi…”

Should she call Tengen back?

But Tengen was already focused on protecting people at quite a distance from her.

That meant it would be too late even if she called it back.

“Am I going to die?”

Well, when she was young, she had justified her inaction and simply watched all the family’s injustices as if there was nothing she could do.

In a way, such an end seemed fitting for a “villainess” like her.

And above all, she had managed to properly apologize to Sister Kurumi at the end.

“……”

Accepting the death that was right before her eyes, Asuna closed her eyes to the monsters rushing at her from all directions.

The pain would only be momentary.

She thought she would soon be at peace.

But instead of peace…

Bang!

She wasn’t overwhelmed by pain either.

“Grrrr…”

“…Huh?”

Because when she opened her eyes again, in front of her stood a jet-black monster, covered in blood, that had annihilated all the surrounding monsters—like a knight who had come to save a princess.