Chapter 33
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 33
Chapter Title: The Reward for Beating the Boss with the Heroine is Sweet
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'Where...?'
Erina Esnatia.
What she saw was Kim Si-woo, holding her tight and escaping without abandoning her.
'...!'
His body was ragged all over, as if it had been sliced up.
His face was caked in blood.
At a glance, he looked to have suffered severe injuries.
'Why....'
Erina Esnatia couldn't wrap her head around it.
This was a life-or-death situation. Sure, Kim Si-woo had tricked her, but given how she'd treated him, he had no reason to risk his neck protecting her.
No one could possibly beat that opponent in that scenario.
She'd thought he'd run.
That she'd been abandoned by fate, that it was her end.
But Kim Si-woo had stood there.
And he'd pulled it off.
Denying the very fate she'd believed in.
Accomplishing the impossible.
The moment a crack formed in the world she'd trusted.
Huu... huu...
Sweat dripping from exhaustion, breathing ragged, yet holding her like he wouldn't let go for anything—Kim Si-woo.
He wasn't the prince of destiny she'd dreamed of.
His looks and skills fell far short.
But.
'Up close, he looks kinda hand-some.'
The moment love-tinted glasses slipped over Erina Esnatia's eyes.
'SHIT!!!! What the hell am I thinking?! Snap out of it! Erina Esnatia! What against this con artist...!'
But Erina Esnatia's heart pounded away, as if refusing to hide her feelings.
Huu... huu...
'What did this girl eat to be so damn heavy?!'
Carrying her on my back was killing my waist, so I scooped her up in front.
That was even worse.
Afraid I'd drop her if I wasn't careful, I clutched her tight and walked.
'Can't I just ditch her?'
She'd crawl back once she woke up.
'...Nah.'
Each step made my head spin.
Still, the path after clearing [Temple of Fate] had no monsters or traps.
'I'll make it, barely.'
If I could just hold onto my sanity.
'Distance-wise, about an hour ahead.'
The weight I felt.
Already tall, with a glamorous figure—made her feel even heavier.
Carry this for an hour?
Ditch her for sure.
Only after lugging her a good while did the dead end come into view.
"Haa... haa..."
Arrived!
Good job, me!
Erina Esnatia—I'd debated ditching her 300,000 times in my head, but I made it.
As I approached the dead-end wall, a voice echoed in my mind.
[Those who do not bow to fate......]
The echo after conquering the Temple of Fate.
Some macro thing.
"Cut the crap and open the damn door..."
As I neared the dead end, the sturdy cave wall crumbled like dust.
Light.
Light!
-Thud!
Limit reached.
No more.
I gently dropped Erina Esnatia to the ground.
-Drag drag drag
Then dragged her toward the exit glowing with light.
A crowd of students, academy hunters, and professors waited there.
Yeah, barely made it back alive.
Some welcome's in order...
"Kyaaaaah!"
"Murder! It's a murder!!!"
"What horrific thing is this?!"
"I told you!! That guy's face is evil!!"
"How can it be this gruesome...?!"
?
What the.
A bunch of burly hunters struck threatening poses, approaching cautiously.
"Kim Si-woo, surrender! What is this heinous act?!"
"Me...?!"
Why me?
Only then could I see myself objectively.
Blood-caked body.
Erina Esnatia's clothes soaked from contact with me.
Dragging her left a blatant trail of blood on the ground.
...
"This isn't what it looks like. This is my blood, okay?"
"Surrender quietly, Kim Si-woo!!"
This is bullshit.
Listen to me.
Then someone pierced through the approaching hunters, barking in a loud voice.
"Dan...dangerous!"
"Ah, dangerous my ass! Move!"
Lee Dok-sa?
Why's she here...
"Si-woo student, you okay?!"
"Yes, I'm fine."
She checked my condition, then turned to the hunters behind.
"Hey, you came to rescue from a dungeon collapse—why arrest a student?!"
"But that student..."
"No, anomalous mana detected means they obviously fought monsters and got hurt. Gonna do this right?"
Lee Dok-sa glared sharply, and the two hunters backed off.
"Instructor, how'd you..."
No description in [Awakening to SSS Hunter Academy] of her showing up right after collapse.
Came specifically because of me?
"You know I handle a lot. Si-woo student? Heard it involved you, so I volunteered for search ops."
Lee Dok-sa said that, then ordered the hunters.
"Both look badly injured—move them first. Investigation after."
Yeah, I need a break.
Vision faded amid the students' whispers.
"Heard the investigators say those two took down the dungeon boss?"
"What? This is a training dungeon."
"Then explain the sudden collapse? They measured C-grade or higher boss mana!"
"So the foreign exchange student did it?"
"Even so, she's a D-grade tank. Couldn't solo it."
"Then what'd that 1st-year do? He's dead last."
"Hey... just a rumor, but they say that 1st-year's with Heukdan."
"Heukdan... that secret group?"
Heukdan.
The heaven above heaven.
A secret organization above clans and laws.
Even nations and major clans couldn't touch it.
Just rumors floating around.
"You buy that crap?"
"Why not? Cool—hiding power, infiltrating the academy as Heukdan member."
"Then why infiltrate?"
"Beats me."
"...Drop it."
"Just saying the rumor exists. Guy's weirdly well-connected."
Among 2nd-years who loved conspiracies, Kim Si-woo's image was twisting oddly.
"So neither knows what happened?"
"Obviously?! An academy incident and you're grilling me?!"
Erina Esnatia snapping at the investigator.
Internal incidents handled by academy's own investigation team.
They had better skills and gear than most agencies—no issue.
"Calm down. Not suspecting—just procedure. You too, student?"
"I have no idea. Got to the destination, dungeon collapsed suddenly..."
"Hm... so a monster appeared right after?"
"Yes! How many times do I say?! K-investigation? Our KIMCH... Si-woo's hurt!"
Fuming Erina Esnatia.
Makes sense—first class after arriving and it's this mess.
She's holding back, relatively.
No clue why she's dragging me in.
"First on scene, we guessed at least C-grade boss inside. Claiming you took it down means thorough check."
Investigator didn't look suspicious.
Probably genuinely puzzled.
Measurements aren't absolute—I truly don't know why [Cursed by Fate] appeared.
Just cooperate fully.
'Issue is if Erina saw my skills.'
Unlike plan, [Cursed by Fate] forced me to spam skills openly.
Didn't care to survive, but she might've been lucid.
'Can play it as mana exhaustion hallucination.'
Empty Skillbook hides my skills from academy detection anyway.
"Well, from your accounts, unidentified monster—high-end E-grade boss at most. Even so, your combo couldn't..."
Then Erina Esnatia said something unexpected.
"Without Si-woo Kim, I'd be dead. Watched the end—he fought an insane battle with just one skill."
...?
Why's she lying?
"Ah... one skill, yeah. Impressive."
Her tone said she didn't buy it.
Figures she'd did most—D-grade near C.
Makes sense.
But Lee Dok-sa and Professor Sin So-ah behind had different looks.
Lee Dok-sa eyed me like she knew I'd done something.
Sin So-ah smiled from behind, convinced about me.
"Alright. You're free to go. Good work. Support funds and conquest rewards later."
Obviously.
Us being questioned was victim-side inquiry.
Unlike Inferno, no reason to suspect victims—straight victim report.
Proper apology and rewards!
We'll claim them.
As investigation wrapped and we left, Erina Esnatia said to me.
"One skill. More convenient for YOU, right?"
...?
She saw?
"Just a little thank-you."
She said, hiding her smiling mouth with her hand.
'...Things got weirdly tangled?'