Chapter 31
Chapter 31
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 31
Chapter Title: 10. You Did All This Alone? (3)
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"Kyarrk?!"
Heads were popping up one after another between the shelves.
They turned toward me.
Rushed at me.
"Kraaaak! Kyaaaak!"
Crash, rumble! The display goods toppled over.
The floor grew chaotic.
I gripped my sword with both hands, a smile on my face.
A smile?
Was I laughing?
Me?
Ha.
Now I was almost enjoying it.
"Come at me, you fucking bastards."
Several of them barreled toward me, toppling the displays.
Acceleration
[Auto-cast]
The ones swarming around me.
At a glance, more than ten of them.
I leaped in with all my might, thrusting my sword.
Thwooooong—
Splat! Splat! Splat!
I took a step back.
Blood droplets rippled and jiggled.
The human beasts flailed about like they'd been tossed into a jar of jelly.
"—Kr-roaak!"
Acceleration
[Auto-cast]
Three of them with heads pierced, spewing blood front and back, starting to topple.
I stepped toward the human beasts right beside them.
Pulled back my sword.
Thrust!
Splat! Splat! Splat!
The front line was cleared.
I moved forward immediately, slipping to the side.
Blood splattered onto my face and body in heavy drops.
"—Kya-rub!"
Acceleration
[Auto-cast]
The human beasts charging murderously at the empty space where I'd been.
The corpses collapsing in death.
I raised my sword, moved sideways, and thrust out.
Splat!
Squelch, splat!
Squelch, splat!
"Hup."
I pulled the sword free.
I passed by the dead one, still clawing at the air with its grotesque face, unaware it was already a corpse.
The world moved.
"—Kr-rub!"
Acceleration
[Auto-cast]
A human beast with arms outstretched as if to sweep razors and shaving foam off the shelves, rumbling forward, glaring not at me but off to the side.
I raised my sword.
Splat!
Ducked past it and thrust at the one reaching out from beyond the shelf.
Upward.
Splat!
Pierced from cheek to crown, then yanked down hard to pull free.
"Hup."
The blood droplets clung together, forming beads that slowly splattered out.
None left.
I stood at the edge of the shelf, watching the corpses as I waited.
"—Kr-roaring!"
Eleven of them.
Eleven corpses came charging, leaped, and crashed into a heap in the corner of the mart.
Blood sprayed everywhere.
It splattered my face, the back of my head, my clothes—all of it.
Ugh, fuck.
Everything's great, but can't something be done about all this blood?
I wiped my cheek with the back of my hand and scanned the surroundings.
...Looks like that's all.
No, just in case.
I've gotta make sure.
If any are hiding somewhere, I need to drag them all out and wipe them clean.
I took a deep breath.
...What should I yell?
Something caught my eye.
"Vegetables at bomb sale prices!"
I bellowed it out, the mart echoing loudly.
If anyone's hiding anywhere, no way they didn't hear that.
...Silence.
I waited a bit longer.
Hmm...
No sounds at all.
Just to be safe, let's circle around once.
I checked every nook and cranny: the long aisle of shelves to the left, the vegetable corner to the right, past the butcher section.
Pretty spacious.
Took about five minutes to look everywhere.
I peered into every spot big enough for a person.
Even accounting for the off-chance, this place is 99% safe.
"...Good."
I nodded and headed toward the entrance, rounding the toilet paper and tissue corner.
"......Huh."
Right past the toilet paper was the diaper section.
...Hmm...
Someone asked me to grab diapers.
I picked up a bulky pack of diapers and walked past the shelves toward the checkout counter.
Up ahead, eleven corpses lay piled in a heap.
"...Hmm..."
Blood dripped from the sword.
I walked to the corpses and wiped the blade on their waists and backs.
Gotta take care of the sword.
Only two of them.
...Ah.
Suddenly, a good idea hit me.
Dual-wield starting tomorrow...?
...Nah.
I'm right-handed, fuck. Not sure if I could aim properly for the head with my left, or even pierce a skull one-handed.
Better stick to what's reliable.
With that thought, diaper pack in hand, I strolled out the mart entrance.
The piled corpses made walking a pain in the ass, fuck.
"Hoo..."
How many accelerations did I use?
One, two...
Oh, four?
Still five more to go.
Not bad.
"...Ah."
A sound from the side!
I froze and turned.
No idea what my eyes looked like.
I gripped the sword so hard my palm heated up.
...Weird outfits, six of them!
"Ov-over there."
Ac...cel...eration?!!
Acceleration didn't trigger.
What the hell.
That voice I just heard—was it human speech?
A woman's voice...?
Human beasts talking...?
...No.
Not human beasts.
Six figures standing by the streetlamp in front of the mart, bathed in morning sunlight.
None baring teeth or claws.
......What.
"...Humans?"
The words slipped out.
Humans.
It felt perfectly natural saying it.
But weird after the fact.
Having to ask if things with heads, arms, legs, eyes, noses, mouths are human.
One of the six—a ponytail woman—rolled forward a step.
...Rolled?
Her movement was odd.
Looking at her legs, she was wearing something.
...Inline skates.
What the fuck are these guys?
The woman spoke.
"Ah, um... We saw you in there from outside. Last night too. How... how do you move like that?"
...Huh?
What was she asking...?
How do you move... like... that...?
...They saw me using acceleration and instantly killing them.
I've killed human beasts in front of people with acceleration several times.
In front of Ye-eun and So-eun.
But they were too terrified to process anything as strange.
...That big burly dude.
The old thugs—I killed them right in front of his eyes.
His face went pale white, trembling in fear, those eyes.
I'd felt he was overreacting a bit, but that was why.
...How do I look to people when I accelerate and move?
Suddenly curious.
That scary?
Ah.
Not the time to wonder that.
I looked at the woman, then the people behind her.
Now it registered.
Since I'd assumed they were human beasts, I'd only seen them as vague shapes.
Inline skates, knee pads, elbow pads, gloves—and two had teardrop helmets.
"...Who are you people?"
The woman said,
"...Ah, we're members of the Speedsters inline skate club."
Inline skate club?
Inline...
All six on inline skates.
Pretty cool.
Never tried them.
Fast, huh?
...That's how they survived.
Three men, three women...
The women looked shocked, the men stunned and tense, staring at me.
Didn't seem that old.
...No idea what these guys are about.
"...So, you got business with me?"
"Ah, actually..."
The woman started to say something, but a tall man behind her cut in abruptly.
"You, where are your buddies? No way you took all these out alone. Right?"
All these alone?
...Hmm...
How many did I kill?
Roughly over forty, I think.
I looked at the man and said,
"I killed them all."
"...Impossible."
The women gasped, breaths quickening.
"Y-you did all this alone? By yourself?"
One of the women behind asked, her face full of shock.
Fuck, why do they keep asking the same damn thing.
What are these people, grilling me with useless questions.
I just nodded, no reply.
The six exchanged glances, unable to hide their astonishment. They alternated looks between me and the corpses behind, letting out endless gasps.
"How did you kill so many alone?"
...Ah, fuck, getting annoying.
"Swordmaster."
Believe it or not, fuck.
I said that, then looked at the ponytail woman who'd stepped forward and added,
"So, what do you want to say."
You guys are annoying, fuck.
Rolling up on inline skates in a line, asking pointless shit, what the hell.
The woman said,
"Ah, actually... We've been holding out the last few days by raiding a convenience store up ahead. But with six of us, food ran out fast. We still have drinks and booze, but..."
"So?"
Pretty curt.
The woman flinched.
She glanced at the mart and said,
"W-we know you... cleared out those things, but if it's okay, could we maybe take some stuff we need too...?"
Hmm...
I glanced at the six in front of me and the mart.
The woman continued,
"We'll help with whatever we can. Could we share it together?"
Hmm...
The mart...
Plenty inside, sure.
Honestly, how much food and supplies are in there doesn't matter much to me.
What matters is clearing out the swarming bastards inside.
I shrugged and said,
"Sure, just clear the corpses inside. Do whatever with them."
The six inline club members brightened up and nodded.
Only then did I sheathe the sword I'd been holding.
Shing—click.
"Anything else?"
I half-turned and asked.
The ponytail woman smiled and said,
"No, thank you. We'll sort out the mart. Thanks."
"Yeah."
I left the six behind and strolled off.
Ah, right.
Turned back for one more thing.
"Try to leave the diapers alone."
The woman looked surprised, then laughed.
"Ah, we don't need diapers... Got it. Thanks."
...That look in her eyes...
Does she think I'm some dad with kids?
...Whatever, fuck.
Too annoying to explain.
Diaper pack in hand, I headed back to the boarding house at a leisurely pace.
Rolling sounds from behind—probably hauling corpses away from the door.
Can't get through the door on skates.
Too many piled up.
They'll clean it themselves since they need to.
Hmm...
Anyway... marts...
Where else are there packed ones?
Apartment complexes, and...
...Big box mart...
...Nice.
Next target: the big mart.
Clear the path to the hardware store first.