The Scent That Betrayed
"Ah, shit······."
Thud. Jin, who had barely been standing by leaning against the wall, collapsed while clutching her side. It hurt. It hurt so damn much. She hadn't expected the pain to be this raw and visceral. After breaking out in a cold sweat for a long while, she finally managed to breathe properly again. She never thought a ruptured kidney would feel like she was dying.
"Ha······ This is fucked."
A hollow laugh escaped her. Schluss had always recognized her. No matter how much she altered her body, he knew it was her. As if he could smell her. Of course, even dousing herself in perfume to mask the scent hadn't worked. That meant he wasn't tracking her by scent or traces at all—he possessed some kind of ability to recognize her directly.
To counter that, she'd used a piece of her own body. Her body could transform into any shape, even parts that had been separated from her. As long as she infused them with mana and kept them alive, she could control them at will. She'd torn out her kidney and attached it to her attendant, making the unconscious girl act as her. It had been a resounding success. He'd been completely fooled into thinking his attendant was her.
"I had him. If I'd just pushed a little harder······."
She could have made him kill her. She could have forced the man who loved his attendant so much to end her life with his own hands. She could have watched him weep helplessly, his eyes empty with despair. She could have heard his voice crack as he screamed······.
"How did he figure it out······."
He'd suddenly pulled a handkerchief from his pocket. She had no memory of putting one there. She couldn't understand why it had been inside. But one thing was certain—she had lost. Lost badly.
She would have felt less bitter if she'd at least inflicted permanent damage on his attendant. Still, it was a small mercy that she hadn't touched a single hair on the girl's head. If she had, Schluss would have hunted her down until the day he died······.
At least she could still claim this had all been an unavoidable job she'd taken on as a Crow. Then Schluss would keep using her as one of his Crows, even while secretly hating her. She was competent, after all.
"Total failure. I completely screwed it up."
—Disqualify Schluss Heinkel from the midterm exam.
The request itself had succeeded. But every other objective had failed. Even after pouring out all her mana and losing a kidney, she hadn't achieved the goal of driving Schluss Heinkel into despair. It had been her chance to drag him into the abyss.
"Ah······ Or maybe not?"
Perhaps the opportunity still remained. Despair grew larger when someone had more to lose. Yes. When Schluss Heinkel had obtained everything. When he was at his happiest. That was when she would strike again. To deliver an even deeper despair. As punishment for a shadow-dweller daring to reach for the light······.
"Uhehe······ Ugh······ Hehehe······!"
A sound that could have been laughter or sobbing echoed through the air.
Honestly, I was a little disappointed. Even if she was barely conscious, I'd hoped my name—Schlus's name—would come first.
"Oppa?"
"······."
But that had been greedy. Hurtlocker was the one who had saved young Emilia and raised her as his little sister. Thinking a few months of bleak cohabitation could overwrite years of that bond had been far too presumptuous. So I understood. In a moment of crisis, of course she'd call for Hurtlocker first. It was bitter, but I understood.
"Ahu······."
Emilia leaned against me, as if she had no strength left. Without a word, I pulled her into my arms and held her. It was fine if she mistook me for her brother right now. If it could give her even a little comfort and reassurance.
Of course, once she came to her senses, she'd realize she'd mistaken me for Hurtlocker and be mortified. But that didn't matter. Not at all. Really.
"You're not surprised anymore?"
"······?"
"So I can keep calling you that?"
A weak voice whispered right by my ear. I heard every word, but understanding them was another matter entirely. What was she even saying?
"Schlus oppa."
"What······"
"Oppa. Oppa. Oppa. Hehe······."
Emilia's arms gently wrapped around my waist. Those trembling arms, which looked like they'd fall away at the slightest touch, clung to me as if refusing to let go.
"You gave me permission, right? It's okay to call you oppa."
"······."
"Then try calling me too. Emilia. Okay?"
"I never gave permission."
"Aah······ Seriously. Why the formal speech? You're ruining the mood."
"······."
She sounded a little annoyed. It was definitely strange. Emilia, who was younger and my attendant, spoke casually to me, yet I kept using formal speech. It felt awkward······ but the words wouldn't come out.
"Hurry up. You think I'm not embarrassed? Calling you Schlus oppa······."
She seemed to stumble slightly every time she said "oppa," as if she were shy. Was this an act too? Of course it was. It had to be. Otherwise······
"I'll keep calling you that. Over and over. Until you start calling me back affectionately."
"That won't······"
"Oppa. Oppa. Schlus oppa. Schlus oppa. Uhehe······."
Emilia kept calling my name before suddenly burying her face in my shoulder with a cute laugh. She'd reached her limit of embarrassment.
"Still, the first time is the hardest. You said it gets easier the more you do it. I have to keep practicing. Right? Or are you planning to stay all stiff even while I'm calling you like this?"
"······."
"Then I'll be upset. I worked up all this courage. Are you going to keep being a coward?"
A coward? Fine. Crossing this river meant there was no going back. I wouldn't be able to see Emilia as mere text anymore, as a piece I could discard if necessary. If I died······ Fuck. One experience like that with Marie had been enough.
"Coward."
"······."
"Loser."
"······."
"A pervert who can't say anything even when a much younger woman insults him like this. A coward with no courage to respond. Socially awkward. Someone who charms people without realizing it, but can't do anything when they actually approach."
"That's enough······."
Even jokes had their limits. I grabbed Emilia's shoulders and pulled her away. She seemed to have recovered her strength already. She should be able to stand on her own now.
"Eeh?"
"······!"
The moment I let go, her legs gave out and she started to collapse, so I caught her again. She'd been acting so confident that I'd thought her strength had returned, but apparently all her energy had gone straight to her mouth.
"Be quiet. Who are you calling a coward?"
"Uwa. Uwaa······. You spoke. Casually."
"Have you never heard someone speak casually before?"
"I've never heard Schlus oppa do it······. You're always so formal even though you don't really fit in. This suits you much better."
Sorry for always being so awkwardly formal.
"Should I just speak casually from now on?"
"No. Don't. Keep using formal speech outside."
"What? Why."
"Because I want to be the only one who sees this side of you. I want to be the only one who knows Schlus oppa like this. I don't want anyone else to find out."
"······."
What a ridiculous reason. Was she allowed to break character this badly? Her personality had changed way too much. Was she deliberately giving herself away so I'd notice? No, that couldn't be it. Or had I looked like such a pushover that I'd fall for this kind of act?
"I don't have anyone else to speak casually with anyway."
I decided to play along. To act oblivious. That way, I could stay with Emilia a little longer. She was the kind of woman who might stab me at any moment, but the thought of parting with her felt strangely lonely. That was all.
"What do you mean, no one else? There's the Saintess."
"Iris?"
"Yeah. You're close with the Saintess, aren't you, oppa······. You even joke around with her."
"It's just a business relationship."
"Business?"
"Yeah. We're just pretending to be close."
In other words, we were forcing friendliness to ease the tension. Iris was already hard to read on a normal day, and every time we met the atmosphere grew so heavy that if we started growling at each other like we wanted to tear one another apart, it would drain an enormous amount of mental energy.
"I see······. That's a relief. So it's really just me. I'm the only one for you, oppa······."
Something about that line felt off.
"But how did you know?"
"Know what."
"That I was inside. That you were messing with me from the beginning······"
"That wasn't it. I really was fooled."
"Then how?"
"I saw your handkerchief. The one with your mana on it. You always carry that faint trace of mana around, so if you weren't right next to it, the mana on the handkerchief would have disappeared long ago."
"I-I see······. My mana. You remembered it······."
"······."
Of course. How could I forget? The entire house was filled with traces of your mana. Every meal, every piece of furniture, every piece of laundry carried your scent. How could I possibly forget?
"Let's go now."
"Yeah······."
Before the atmosphere could grow any stranger, I stood up. If we didn't start moving soon, we'd be late for the midterm.
'If I catch you, you're dead, you crazy bitch.'
And I resolved that the moment I saw Jin again, I'd kill her. Crows really couldn't be trusted. Anyone strong enough to stand in my way needed to be crushed underfoot.
"Found······!"
Hurtlocker turned the corner into the plaza, following the noise, his eyes wide as he started to shout before clamping his mouth shut. Emilia sat collapsed on the ground. Schluss Heinkel stood in front of her. And that bastard······
"Huu······."
"Are you coming back to your senses?"
He pulled the staggering Emilia into a tight embrace. Hurtlocker felt his blood boil. He'd never felt such violent rage before. He wanted nothing more than to rush out and smash Schluss's skull in.
"Oppa?"
"······."
Yeah. Oppa was here. Just give me a second to beat the shit out of that bastard and I'll be right back. As Hurtlocker thought this and prepared to step forward—
"Schlus oppa."
"What······"
"Oppa. Oppa. Oppa. Hehe······."
Emilia's bright smile took his breath away. His little sister was smiling. With the happiest expression in the world. Smiling as if she had everything she could ever want. That wasn't an act. Hurtlocker, who had been with her for years since childhood, could see it. That habit she had when she couldn't hide her emotions. He'd seen those reddened ears.
"······."
Hurtlocker clenched his fists and stepped back. Even without amplification magic, he could hear everything. Emilia whispering to Schluss Heinkel. That sweet voice. A voice with not a trace of acting—100% genuine.
"······."
He shook his head. He'd never seen Emilia like this before. He'd never seen her so girlish. That wasn't Emilia. That wasn't the cute Emilia he knew.
Hurtlocker lowered his head and turned away.
"······Damn it."
With a sigh, he walked away with heavy steps. He couldn't bear to watch any longer. His blood had already gone completely cold.
"Can you walk?"
"No. Doesn't look like it. Carry me."
"······."
Emilia reached out her arms and leaned into me. I flicked her forehead to push her away and turned my back to her.
"What is this."
"Piggyback."
"Aww, why. Just carry me properly."
"Why are you suddenly regressing to a toddler? Stop complaining and get on."
"Tch······."
I hoisted Emilia onto my back. When I moved my hands, they brushed against the sheath on her thigh, but I pretended not to notice. Since I had to avoid the garter belt area, my hands inevitably ended up near her hips.
"Pervert."
"Be quiet."
It was also more stable this way. To clear my mind, I had to mentally sing the national anthem all the way through to the fourth verse. We had enough time······ Well, not exactly plenty, but it wasn't that tight either. As long as we didn't dawdle, we'd make it.
"Ah······ I was going to buy fish and cook for you, but I lost the shopping basket."
"It's fine. You can do it next time."
"They said it'll be two months before it comes back······."
"Then eat it in two months."
"······."
Emilia silently hugged me tighter from behind. She must have been worried about falling off while I was running.
"Is this the test paper?"
Emilia, resting her chin on my shoulder, poked at my inner pocket. Come to think of it, I hadn't finished question ten. Given the time, I'd probably have to leave it blank······. Still, I should at least look at it one last time. There was a chance Emilia might solve it in this short time.
"Yeah. Can you take it out?"
"You want me to take it out? Okay. Uung······."
After struggling to lean over, Emilia managed to grab the scroll. The scroll she pulled out······
"Ah."
"Aah."
Everything except the very end had burned to ash.