Episode 69
Translator: RaidenTL
Episode 69
He shot his arm out, unable to control his panting breath. He gripped the woman’s wrist tightly and asked with unfocused eyes.
“...What?”
“This way.”
No answer came. She was simply staring at the entrance of the most dilapidated building. Lightly ignoring Cain’s impatient words, she whispered.
“Let’s go.”
Without waiting for a reply, she pulled him along. He was the one holding her hand, yet he was the one being pulled. Without even getting an answer, Cain was dragged inside the building.
It was the oldest, most run-down inn, with an entrance so narrow they had to stoop to get inside. To top it off, the owner who should have been greeting guests was drooling in his sleep.
The woman who had thrown his mind into such disarray looked infuriatingly composed. While he was lost in confusion, she moved with an easy gait, as if she knew every path.
“...”
No, perhaps she wasn't just wandering aimlessly. She would occasionally stop as if in thought. Cain stared blankly at Elysia as she deliberated for a long while whether or not to go up the second-floor stairs, then lowered his gaze.
The rusty front door creaked in the wind. The woman was so focused on her intuition that she didn't seem to hear the grating noise, and Cain was so focused on her.
What did she mean by that? He wanted to make those lips speak.
“...One more floor up.”
After climbing another flight of stairs, Elysia was now torn between the right and left hallways. After pacing back and forth between them, she bit her lip and declared.
“Right.”
Dry dust stirred beneath their feet as they walked unhesitatingly down the right corridor. Elysia, who had been pacing in front of five doors, passed three of them without a second glance and stopped before the remaining two.
Standing there blankly, like a wind-up doll that had run down, she ruffled her hair and muttered.
“Hmm... I don’t know from here.”
She had come this far relying solely on her intuition, simply walking toward the place that sent a chill down her spine. In other words, it was just a gut feeling.
But Elysia knew just how accurate her intuition was. In the early stages of the game, when cases weren't so complicated, she had even identified culprits using nothing but this ‘Beast's Intuition,’ without bothering to collect evidence.
As Elysia stared intently at the two doors before her, her vision suddenly tilted. Cain had abruptly shoved her against the wall, and she furrowed her brow. The man's ragged breaths were unusually hot.
“What is it?”
“Tell me what you said earlier.”
What did I say? No, did I even say anything to this guy? When she moved based on intuition like this, she often didn't know what words came out of her mouth. Anyway, where does this bastard get off grabbing someone like this?
She lifted her head in annoyance and froze when she met Cain’s red eyes, which looked as if something inside him had snapped.
What’s with him all of a sudden?
The perpetually relaxed smile on Cain’s face was completely shattered, just like when he had first found her. His bloodshot eyes darted around wildly, demanding an answer.
“How did you know? What... what do you know?”
♥ SYSTEM: ‘Cain Ror’ feels ‘Anxiety’ at your words. ♥
♥ SYSTEM: ‘Cain Ror’ feels ‘Anger’ at your words. ♥
♥ SYSTEM: ‘Cain Ror’ feels ‘Contempt’ at your words. ♥
Her head felt like it was about to split from the incessant sound of the status windows popping up, and her captured wrist ached. The man’s pale, distorted face let out irregular breaths, as if something were choking him.
“Are you crazy? Let go.”
Grabbing the hand that was crushing her wrist, she wracked her brain. A careless word I let slip...
“That you weren’t exactly a pampered young master?”
The man gritted his teeth at her uncertain guess.
♥ SYSTEM: ‘Cain Ror’ feels ‘Hatred’ at your words. ♥
She was dumbfounded. He’s making this much of a scene over that one little thing? Her body moved before her mind could. Twisting his wrist to free herself, Elysia kicked Cain in the stomach.
He stumbled back, losing his balance, and looked up at her with bloodshot eyes. Elysia raised her hands and sighed, then growled.
“You don't seem to understand something, but I don’t have time for this. Calm down. If you can’t, then get the hell out of my way.”
“I asked if you saw.”
“Saw what? You’ve got quite a diverse repertoire of bullshit.”
Hearing Elysia’s irritated voice, Cain seemed to snap out of it and lifted his head. She had allowed him to tag along thinking he wouldn't be a hindrance, but this sudden outburst was honestly getting annoying.
She kept fiddling with the gun in her pocket, then let out a deep sigh and crouched down in front of him to meet his eyes. It was probably more morally sound to talk him down than to just knock him out.
“I get like this sometimes. When I’m too focused, I can’t see anything else and just start spouting nonsense. I know, my personality is pretty trash, right? So I’ll apologize. I’m sorry.”
The wildly trembling red eyes gradually regained their calm. Noticing that his trembling fingertips had steadied, Elysia continued.
“Seeing you get so sensitive and worked up, you must have some private business you don’t want exposed. I only thought that because you didn't seem fazed by these filthy streets or this dusty inn, so just let it go. Got it?”
♥ SYSTEM: ‘Cain Ror’ feels ‘Relief’ at your words. ♥
Spotting the faint shimmer of tears in Cain’s eyes, Elysia quickly turned her head to pretend she hadn't seen, then bluntly said what she’d wanted to say all along.
“...If you want to die, keep acting up.”
♥ SYSTEM: ‘Cain Ror’ feels ‘Bewilderment’ at your words. ♥
Truthfully, that last part was what she really wanted to say. Where does he get off causing a scene at what's supposed to be a solemn crime scene? Elysia raised her eyebrows, her gaze asking: Got it? If you’re going to throw a fit, then get lost.
She grabbed his arm and pulled him to his feet, then resumed pacing in front of the two doors she had left for last. She placed her hand on the white door on the right, then pulled back, debating whether to knock on the beige door on the left...
Damn it, she was getting nowhere. She scratched the back of her head in frustration.
It was a 50/50 chance anyway. Should I just pick one and open it? Closing her eyes, she focused on her senses again. The direction that felt vaguely unsettling, the one that felt like opening it would screw everything up...
She opened her eyes. A smirk spread across her lips as she thought.
Screw it, I'll just open one.
The moment she decisively reached for the right doorknob, Cain opened a small door leading to a cleaning supply closet and shoved her inside.
“Oof! Has he lost his mind? What the hell? Have you decided you want to die?”
Ignoring Elysia’s protests, Cain silently closed the closet door, leaving just a tiny crack, and peered outside. Caught off guard, she nearly got hit by a falling mop handle and was about to lunge at him with a curse when she heard voices.
“Do we have to check every single one? A guest could have checked in! Ha, seriously.”
“The entire floor was rented out. That means no regular guests should be here. We have to check, just in case.”
“Damn it, what a pain in this heat.”
No wonder there were no signs of life from any of the rooms on this floor. It seemed someone had intentionally kept the entire floor empty.
Instantly forgetting how close she was to Cain, she pushed herself off the wall she’d been leaning against and strained to hear their conversation.
Her shallow breaths, taken to avoid being discovered, brushed against Cain’s neck. His red eyes, which had been far too indifferent for someone being pursued, wavered at the sound.
At that moment, a status window appeared outside Elysia’s line of sight.
♥ SYSTEM: ‘Cain Ror’s’ Favorability +100 | Current Favorability LV.MAX | error;notfound ♥
♥ warning: Please log out of the game ♥
♥ warning: Please initialize the game via the reset button ♥
♥ warning: Please initialize the game ♥
Cain glanced down at the woman in his arms. He wanted to touch the downy hair on her tense, flushed cheek to see how it felt. Her eyes, shining brightly beneath long lashes, were so focused on the outside that she hadn't even noticed the status window.
Cain swiped his hand as if shooing away an annoying fly, dismissing all the warning windows, and muttered.
“So noisy.”
Hearing his murmur, Elysia flinched and shot him a reproachful look. Deciding he must have been referring to the people outside, she turned her gaze back to the door.
In reality, Cain couldn't care less what bullshit they were spouting outside. He was simply admiring the woman’s cheek.
“Hey, let’s just do a quick check and get out of here!”
“He told us to check thoroughly so there are no problems.”
“You frustrating bastard.”
The sound of heavy footsteps grew closer. Closing her eyes, Elysia focused all her senses on her hearing and quickly sketched a silhouette of the person in her mind.
Judging by the depth of his voice and his manner of speaking, he’s a man in his late twenties to early thirties. The sound of his footsteps echoes all the way here, so he must be large.
The distance from the central staircase to the innermost part of the right hallway is about 23 meters. And that man crossed half the hallway in just twelve steps. That means his stride is...
SYSTEM: Approximately 90cm.
A 90cm stride, which means...
‘He has to be at least 190cm tall.’
“He was an incredibly tall gentleman. Taller than this man standing next to me.”
A chill ran down her spine, but at the same time, it was as thrilling as spotting prey. Elysia was about to smile and look outside when she finally noticed the man staring down at her and scowled.
She snatched him by the collar, brought her lips to his ear, and whispered.
“What is it?”
“...”
“What's with that look on your face? What is it now? Ugh... Just stay still, will you? Huh?”
“We’re going to get caught.”
“What?”
What is he talking about? We’re hidden perfectly. A wave of anxiety washed over her. The man with the gruff voice was getting closer.
Cain shut the slightly ajar door completely, pulling them deeper into the cramped space. Elysia, who ended up in a position that was almost an embrace, felt a sense of foreboding. Alarm bells went off in her head.
Wait a minute, don’t tell me this is...
♥ !Sudden! ‘Route Change’ Event:
‘Let’s Pretend to Be Lovers for a Moment’ event has occurred! ((っ´ω`)♥(´ω`⊂ ))
Are you being chased? Don’t worry!
This place you’ve stumbled into with ‘Cain Ror’ is an inn where countless lovers meet in secret >_0
Overcome the crisis by ‘acting like lovers with a Capture Target’~! And at the same time, fall deeper in love~! ♥
“...I knew it was too quiet for too long, you son of a bitch...”
Muttering the curse under her breath, Elysia found Cain’s eyes staring at her from right in front of her nose and almost screamed.
Fortunately, she managed to keep her mouth shut because he clamped a hand over it. The palm covering her lips smelled of wood.
Cain’s hand gently brushed against her cheek as he watched her with an unreadable expression.
Then, seeing the look of shock on Elysia’s wide-eyed face, he smiled and whispered in a sly voice.
“You have to be still. We’ll get caught, you know?”
He was too close. She flinched and tried to turn, knocking over a stack of empty water buckets. The footsteps in the hallway stopped. She could feel the two men freeze and exchange a silent, questioning glance.
“I think I heard something.”
“It’s from in there.”
With a sharp gasp, Elysia clutched her pistol and held her breath. Just as the doorknob began to turn, Cain hesitated for a moment before whispering in her ear.
“I’ll apologize in advance.”
“For wha—Ack!”
He suddenly pinched her arm. It hurt so much that tears welled in her eyes. She let out a yelp and slapped a hand over her own mouth in surprise, only for him to pinch the back of that hand, too.
Has he lost his mind? Meeting her silver-gray gaze, which stared at him as if he were a madman, Cain put on a teasing voice. As if intending to be heard, he didn't even bother to lower his voice.
“Does it hurt?”
“Of course it hurts—Ah! Mmph!”
“Yes, I’m sorry. Haa... But who told you to be so pretty, hmm?”
“There are people outside, you psycho! Ah, ack!”
As if performing for the men outside, Cain kicked over a line of mops, sending them clattering to the floor, and glanced outside. The doorknob, which had been halfway turned, returned to its horizontal position.
One of the two men, who had stepped back looking dumbfounded, muttered.
“Kids these days... Should I call them brazen? Good grief...”