Chapter 198

Chapter 198

Episode 198: “Fragments of the Past” “Sorry, it must have been a bit frustrating, right?”I sit in front of Keir, tidying my hair. But it’s useless. Hair stained with thick semen is not simply tidied up by being groomed with the hands. Moreover, while tidying up, I got some semen on my hands. “…Um.”There is hardly a place to clean.” Reluctantly, I stick out my tongue and lick the semen off my hands to clean them. I can’t wipe this on Kair’s clothes. …It is indeed a bit fishy. As I was licking my tongue and licking my hands, Kayrin let out a hollow laugh and spoke to me. “…You’re still the same. You.”What is it?””Aren’t you angry?” After being treated like that by those guys?”Well.” There shouldn’t really be a reason to get angry. Burning with a soldering iron hurt a bit, but the rest doesn’t matter. I respond to Keir with a slight smile. “I understand what you’re saying, but I don’t care about that.” You know, right?” “….”Perhaps, that guy knows it best.” As I said that, Kayle nodded heavily. Was it a somewhat heavy topic? Seeing the silent Keir, I change the subject. He points to the ugly burn scar on his lower abdomen and smiles slyly. “How does it look, does it look really bad?””It’s still a burn that hasn’t completely subsided, but it’s bearable.” It’s not like I’m dying, so this is nothing. As much as you want…It’s not that much, but I can endure it a few times. “…No.”That’s a relief.” There is value in patience.” “…Is it really Laila?”Yes, that’s right.” Aren’t you glad it’s a country? Your girlfriend…”I try to speak but then stop.” Maybe by now, she might be with Aiden. Keir probably knows that she receives guests, but it’s a different story to actually speak about it. “…It’s fine.”Then, that is.”..Is it magic?”Of course, it’s not magic.” Such intricate changes cannot be made with magic. However, from the perspective of those who do not know magic, it is natural for all miracles to be lumped together as magic. Without needing to argue back and forth, I simply answer. It’s similar.” “….I see.In response to my answer, Kayle nods with a bitter smile. “How did Jess find it?””Are you interrogating me right now?”” “…If you don’t want to speak, you don’t have to answer. I’m just asking out of curiosity.”Of course, it’s not that I don’t want to talk.” I sit down quietly in front of Keir. Although I am not wearing any clothes, there is no reason to dress in front of that guy anyway. I went to the exhibition hall.” “…I knew it was her.”My friend said that I resemble them.”” “….”Since you’re not saying anything, I guess I was right.” It was a bit unexpected. You didn’t actually hate me as much as I thought, did you?”Until the day I left the Lakers, Kayle had tormented me.” It’s to the extent that I can’t say it’s an action done instead of being mean to the girl I like. From my perspective, I had no reason to dislike him since I did not perceive violence as violence, but from Kair’s perspective, it is a bit different. In response to my question, Kayle gives a bitter smile and answers. “…I hated it.”Well, then.” Well, it can’t be helped.”Feeling a bit embarrassed, I scratch my cheek and respond.” Of course, I don’t feel any particular ill feelings. Lila.”Huh?”” “…Why are you helping me?”I wonder if that was what I was curious about.” To Keir, who asks as if in pain, I give a bitter smile. “Well.”…It’s a simple reason. Because we were friends when we were young. For that reason alone, I can help as much as this. It doesn’t matter if he tormented and hated me. It wasn’t because he was evil that he hated me. The environment we were in just twisted us like that. Kayle was not strong enough to endure that environment, while I was strong enough to endure it. That’s all there is. So, I don’t care. Ultimately, the right to judge Keir’s actions belongs to me. There is no room for a third party to intervene in that judgment, and the same goes for Kaer, who committed that act. However, it’s a bit difficult to say that directly. “…Let’s just say.”That is.”.. Ah, it’s for a reason that suits you.”Kair laughs as if it’s absurd.” And in response to that smile, I also smile back. Well, anyway. It seems that the consolation has been sufficient. // Although we finally had some time alone together, unfortunately, we couldn’t leave the prison right away. “How long are you going to be stuck here?”” “…They said they would hand it over to the family.”Oh.”..”Truth.” It is a familiar name. At that time, did Keir mention it in the underground waterway? Hearing that, the current situation became clear. Why he is tied up here, and why the members of the Lockard family are looking for Jess. That day, I killed all of my subordinates, including Kood. Even the Juki that Keir had only kept in the underground waterway. I had no choice but to kill them because I felt they would expose my identity. “….Was it because of me?”Well, I guess it was just bad luck.””Kair seems to say it lightly, but no matter how you look at it, the phrase ‘unlucky’ doesn’t suit him.” The reason he is being held here is clearly because of my actions. …However, I think for a moment and then respond. Well, let’s consider it a good thing..” “…What?”So we can just consider that there was no mistake between us, right?””That’s absurd.” It won’t be easy to brush off what happened between us like that. Kair also makes a look of disbelief as if he knows it too, but I firmly tell him. Honestly, I hope you don’t feel sorry for me or anything like that. Receiving apologies like that is a bit bothersome.” “….”She looks outside with a judgmental gaze.” The door is locked, but I can easily break through this door. The problem is the members of the dark organization outside. Those I encounter will kill me, but I hope to avoid them as much as possible. Thinking that way, I put on the clothes I had taken off. It’s a bit uncomfortable, but since it’s not convenient to wash up right now, there’s nothing I can do. After changing clothes, I listened intently towards the door,

-Step, step.

Tap tap. Tap. The sound of footsteps heading this way can be heard. “…Damn.”Why?””Someone is coming.”Hearing the approaching footsteps, I let out a sigh. After having had my fill of sexual assault and branding on the stomach, what other nonsense are they trying to come up with? “You are more popular than I thought?”” Lila.”The moment I speak with a hint of annoyance, Kayre calls my name.” “Why?”” “…Just leave. I don’t mind being left alone.” “….”If you say that, do you really think I would throw it away?” Of course, I have no reason to abandon and leave Keir. If I was going to abandon and leave from the beginning, I wouldn’t have come here to suffer like this. If necessary, I could kill the one approaching now and escape with Keir. The plan is to quietly extract Keir, but the word ‘quietly’ is merely a process, not the goal. If it doesn’t work, I was determined to cause a commotion to get him out.

-Squish, squish.

The sound of footsteps was gradually getting closer. It was clear that the purpose was the room where Keir and I were staying. What should I do? I pondered internally and ultimately chose to endure a little longer. I don’t know what the other party will do, but if you don’t know, it’s not too late to decide after seeing it. “…Keir.” “….”Stay still.” No matter what I go through.Kair did not answer. Just looking at me with a complicated gaze. However, I think you would have understood the meaning of that statement. //

-Squeak.

A thick door opens, and someone reveals themselves from beyond. “….That face is familiar. The eyebrows are straight and the nose appears sharp. The soft wrinkles on the face and the graying hair show the passage of time, while the short scars etched on the cheeks are intimidating. It was a familiar face. I know the name of the man who revealed himself alone. Locked. A man who has long ruled as a pillar in the dark side of the Lakers. However, a life born in the shadows of the city, living underground where light does not reach, is more suited to the expression of mere survival rather than dominance. In the end, he is just one of the pawns in the grasp of Count Lantain. “….”In that face, which feels both familiar and unfamiliar, I close my mouth and make a determined expression.” However, the rocker does not even glance at me and walks towards Keir. And then, they utter words that cannot be understood. “Do you regret it a little now?”” “….Kair does not answer. There is no response, and it’s hard to understand what kind of conversation you want to have. And now there is something even more important. The revealed rocker was alone. It is rare for the boss of the underworld to walk alone, but if this place is perfectly his territory, he can walk alone as much as he wants. “…She will stay by your side until you leave. This is my little gift.” “….I ignore the noise coming from behind and unfold my strategy. Even if it sounds like an important conversation, it’s just the meaningless nonsense of bottom-dwelling lives. No matter how much of a boss Rockard is in the underworld, he is ultimately just the leader of a small organization within the city. He wouldn’t be able to know anything about the ethereal hub, so it must not be important. “However, she will never come to you for a hug again.” And unlike you, I won’t have the chance to leave this place.”Was that what I was thinking?” I listen to the conversation without much interest and place my ear on the ground. Through the ability to hear sounds resonating from the ground, I listen to the footsteps coming from this underground prison. “…What is going to happen to her?”Well, do you want to know?”” “….”So, I was trying to listen for footsteps.” “Perhaps, I will end up tattooing one mark on my body each day.” If I’m in the mood, I might ask you once. Where do you want to brand her body?” “….”Hehe, right.” You can still love each other. I believe that someday this hardship will pass. But how long can that last?” 어, Um. I’m not interested, but I guess I’ll listen to it anyway. “….”First of all, the sound of footsteps cannot be heard.” But the absence of sound does not mean that no one is there. The opponent who may be sitting still or not moving at all is difficult to detect with keen observation. “…Is there no way you can save her?”I didn’t know, but it seems that Keir can act quite well.” Let’s take a subtle look; the guy was looking up at the locker with a serious expression. “Huh, are you now asking to be saved?””Indeed, they are worthy of being my disciple.” Behind where Lockard cannot see, I subtly raise my thumb to praise Kaer. “Well done.”』 “….Please.”Kayle looked at me with a strange expression and twitched her lips, but interestingly, Rocker seemed not to notice that expression and replied.” “…Sure, it wouldn’t be bad for you to decide her fate.”The word decision.”..”How about sending the security team on a business trip?” Just as there was a seat available….”Are you going to overlook it to that extent?” It seems still worth living. As I was lost in idle thoughts, pressing my ear to the ground and trying to hear the sounds resonating from outside,..What are you doing right now?”The voice of Rockard sounds as if he is incredulous.” When I casually lifted my head, I found that Rocker was already looking at me with his head turned. “….The expression on that face clearly shows disbelief. In a situation where I am talking about something important, did they think I was just messing around? It is not that I cannot understand. The woman who had just been humiliated like a rag was lying on the ground with one ear pressed against it, so it would be understandable to have such thoughts. But it’s not a waste of time.

I’d roughly figured out the locations of the gang members in the underground passage. Of course, it wasn’t immediately useful information. Now was the time to yield. “…I’m sorry. I can’t seem to stand up properly…” “Hmph.” I pretended to stumble, adjusted my posture, and spouted some nonsense. Lockerd sighed, seemingly dumbfounded. …But, couldn’t that happen? I internally cursed him as narrow-minded, but Lockerd leisurely approached the still-hot brazier. “…It seems you need a bit more education.” What he picked up was a red-hot branding iron. …Seriously, all I did was eavesdrop a little. I felt a bit wronged, but what could I do? He was the boss, and I was the subordinate. “Ah…” I looked up at Lockerd, feigning fear. He wore a cruel smile and said, “Yes, the face will do nicely.” …What? I thought it would be my back or thigh at most. Had I underestimated him? While I was panicking at the unexpected target, Keir, who was behind me, desperately shouted, “Boss! No!” …He sounded so desperate, it was almost as if he was worried about Lockerd, not me. But Lockerd, with the stubbornness of an underworld boss, ignored Keir and declared to me, “Stay still. Unless you want your whole face branded.” “…” Of course, I couldn’t stay still. Not the face. Not because my pretty face would be ruined, but because it could mess up the plan. Burns leave scars even after transformation, and they’re hard to cover. I didn’t know what Aiden’s plans were for the future, but it was better to cause a little commotion than to have a burn on my face. …In the end, I had no choice. Then. “…I was wrong.” I immediately corrected my posture and knelt before Lockerd. “…Hmph.” Lockerd wore a faint sneer. Did he think I was finally realizing the gravity of the situation? Of course, this wouldn’t change his mind. He was an underworld boss, after all. He wouldn’t listen even if I begged for forgiveness. …But, that’s where he’s wrong. I wasn’t kneeling to beg him. Therefore.

-Thump!

From my kneeling position, I powerfully launched myself upwards. Propelled by the spring-like force, my body shot into the air in an instant. In the wildly rushing view, Lockerd’s face came into view, not yet comprehending the situation. “…Huh?” And in that fleeting moment before he could even register shock,

-Thwack.

Propelled by momentum, I immediately kicked Lockerd in the temple. // [Author’s Notes] I’ve been changing the writing order a bit, so I’ve been spacing out a lot in between… I’d like to upload two chapters at a time if I could, but it’s surprisingly difficult… Lyla Kick.