Chapter 116: An Introduction in the Abyss
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 116: An Introduction in the Abyss
"Haaah."
I let out a deep sigh. That alone was enough to draw the attention of everyone in the classroom.
This wasn't like Tyr's natural charisma.
The opponent's gaze and gestures, their interests and curiosities. Even the very thoughts running through their minds.
It was a technique to captivate an audience by reading and calculating every single one of those things. A kind of misdirection.
"I suppose I have no choice. For all your sakes, I shall reveal my true identity."
I struck a solemn pose, covering my face with my hand. My downcast eyes peeked through the gaps between my fingers.
I didn't reveal everything. Only what was necessary. I'd let them fill in the rest themselves.
Now then, shall I read their thoughts?
'Finally decided to come clean? Good, spit it out! I want to graduate from this Abyss already!'
The Regressor, expectant.
'Identity? Hah, he was probably dragged here just like me! We're all trapped anyway, what's the point of digging into identities? Boy, for all the power you possess, you're not very bold!'
The Undying, indifferent.
'...This is a problem. I still don't understand what's what. Even if I want to know more about Hu, will I even be able to comprehend his words...?!'
Tyr... what is this? What should I call it? A generation gap?
"Woof..."
When did you get here?
In any case, everyone who needed to hear this was gathered, so I suppose it was time to speak.
"Now then, I am..."
Tap.
As I spoke, I pulled my hand from my pocket.
In my casually extended hand was a deck of cards. I instantly split it into five packets, fanned them out like a spring, and snapped them back together in a single motion.
Then, I brought my hands together and spoke with heartfelt, pathetic sincerity.
"A petty criminal who got caught for cheating at cards... I'm serious."
"Hey, you! Still playing games!"
"I swear on the Sky God, Mother Earth, and my own soul. If that's not enough, I'll even stake the mother I've never met. How about that? Is that proof enough for you?"
"Of course not! A cardsharp?"
"No, just look. This sleight of hand isn't ordinary, is it?"
I showed the Regressor the 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 of Diamonds in order. Then, with a flick and a shake of my hand, they had somehow changed into the same numbers, but of Spades.
'What? He changed the suits?'
Even the Regressor had missed my movement for a moment. Her suspicion, which had been directed at me, momentarily shifted to the cards.
'Seven Colored Eyes, second color: the Imperious Gaze of Amber!'
The Regressor's eyes briefly glowed orange. I was so dumbfounded I stopped the trick.
Hey, using the Seven Colored Eyes to figure out a magic trick is cheating.
I'd performed the trick to divert her attention, but I'd better not do any more magic in front of her. She'll see right through all my secrets.
'They didn't change. They were stuck together from the start, two cards back-to-back! To think he could fool my eyes, even for an instant!'
I was proud of the recognition, but still, no more magic. For a magician, the trick is everything.
I fanned out the doubled-up cards and continued my explanation.
"However, I'm no ordinary petty criminal."
When I flipped the fanned cards over, the Spades had now become Clubs. It was a simple switch, swapping them with cards hidden in my palm as I flipped them, but this trick was surprising enough to make everyone sitting down straighten their posture.
'Wait, what's the trick? Seven Colored Eyes, fourth color: the Piercing Sight of Jade!'
Nope!
Before she could expose the trick, I flipped the teacher's desk and scattered the cards everywhere. The desk went tumbling with a loud crash. While a startled Azzy looked around, I pretended to throw the cards but actually gathered them up, tapping them into a neat deck.
"A legendary gambler, famous in the back alleys of the Military State. A player who has been defeated but never lost. A one-way street for stakes. A magician at the card table. That is my true identity."
I'd wrapped myself in grandiose titles, but in the end, they all meant one thing.
"...A gambler?"
"Summarizing it so simply is a little harsh, but yes, that's part of who I am! A back-alley magician who reads minds, catches opponents off guard, and dazzles them with elegant sleight of hand. I am Hughes!"
I took a step back, mimed tipping a non-existent hat, and spread my other hand in a gentle bow. It would have been an ordinary greeting.
If not for the white deck of cards that cascaded from my left hand to my right like a slide, freezing perfectly in place.
In my hands, the cards were one and fifty-two, an individual and a collective, an orchestra in harmony where each card could flutter away like a dove.
My audience was only three, but I showed off my dexterity and left them all spellbound.
Finishing my little performance, I snapped my fingers and spoke.
"So? Are you starting to believe me now?"
Even after watching my all-out performance, the Regressor was still half in doubt.
"A gambler? Not an assassin or something like that?"
"That's right."
"Lies! The skill you used to take care of the colonel was clean enough to be an assassin's. And you're telling me you've never killed anyone?"
"Uh..."
Ah, I needed to correct her on that point.
I scratched my chin vaguely and answered.
"Look. There's something you're misunderstanding. I was arrested for cheating at cards, you see? So, I was, in fact, brought in for a petty crime."
"So I've heard."
"And have you ever heard the saying? It's not a crime if you don't get caught."
"I have, but... wait. Don't tell me..."
Understanding dawned on her face. She pointed at me, horrified.
"You've killed people, but since you were never caught, you're not a murderer...?"
"Correct! Ahaha. I'm embarrassed you guessed so easily."
As I gave her an awkward smile, the Regressor shot to her feet and yelled.
"This is nothing to be embarrassed about! You've killed people! How is that a petty criminal?!"
"I wasn't arrested for a felony, so I'm a petty criminal. Oh, and don't get the wrong idea. I usually don't kill them with my own hands."
"That's even worse!"
Groaning, the Regressor clutched her head. Still, with some of her questions answered, she muttered.
"So, in short, the Military State tried to catch a cardsharp and accidentally nabbed a big shot like you?"
"I'm no big shot. I'm just a simple gambler. It's just that when the stakes get high, a lot of people try to settle things with blades instead of cards... so I learned a little self-defense."
"Self-defense, my ass. More like assassination techniques."
"You make me sound like a villain, but I'm a decent person! I usually stroll through the back alleys, bringing smiles to the faces of sad children!"
"I'd be surprised if you didn't make them cry..."
Watching the Regressor mutter blankly, I maintained my smile and breathed an inward sigh of relief.
Good. I've cleared a major hurdle.
"Then, you impersonating a warden at the beginning was..."
"Who reveals their true identity right from the start? Though I admit, I didn't expect a blade to come flying at me."
"How did you parry Chun-aeng?"
"I'm used to surprise attacks like that. Still, hitting the flat of the blade was half luck. My card-flicking skills really paid off."
"And you seeing through my camouflage."
"To be honest, I didn't see through your camouflage. I saw through your personality, Shei-ssi. You're an open book, you know?"
"Kh!"
Taking advantage of the moment she was struck speechless, I sighed and muttered with melancholic eyes.
"Hmph. Still, offing people isn't something to be proud of, so I kept it hidden... but now it's all come out. I can't help it. One can only try to forget the past, not erase it."
On the outside, I played the part of a criminal who wanted to deny his past. In doing so, I gave a plausible reason for having hidden my identity until now.
As I lamented, Tyr carefully comforted me.
"Don't blame yourself, Hu. All who survive stand upon a pile of corpses. I do not care how many you have killed."
I appreciate it, but hearing that from someone who's killed over ten thousand people feels strange. Like I'm being acknowledged by a much greater criminal.
"What's the big deal! It's nothing to brag about, but I've torn two people to pieces myself! Stop whining and let's just get along!"
The Undying was just plain scary. How can you tear a person apart like paper? If I get on his bad side, will he tear me up too?
The Regressor, having more or less accepted my story, suddenly asked as if something had just occurred to her.
"Then, how did you know so much about the Abyss?"
"I just pieced it together from things I'd heard here and there, plus information I found after arriving. Petty criminals like us imagine things like that when we're bored. What the structure of Tantalus is like, how one might escape."
"...Which means you knew you were a big enough shot to be dragged to Tantalus."
"Hey! I told you I'm not! If you keep calling me a big shot, you'll jinx it!"
The atmosphere was much more relaxed than before. The Regressor was sufficiently satisfied with my answer.
'A big shot who got caught by a stroke of bad luck. That explains enough.'
Suspicion is an inefficient emotion. It takes a tremendous amount of energy to maintain that sharp tension.
That's why the Regressor, who had been on high alert until now, wanted to let her guard down after this attack. She had demanded an explanation from me, and though it wasn't perfect, she forced herself to be satisfied.
'However, the one thing I still don't understand is, about Tyrkanzyaka...'
To stop the conversation from heading in an even stranger direction, I changed the subject.
"Anyway, I'm more curious about you, Shei-ssi."
"Huh? Me?"
"Yes. I was genuinely captured, but you infiltrated this place on purpose, didn't you? You have all sorts of treasures, and someone is even coming to rescue you later."
I sat on the overturned desk and said pointedly.
"Aren't you the real big shot here, Shei-ssi? I've never heard of a swordsman as young and strong as you."
"A big shot? Heh."
The Regressor chuckled and replied nonchalantly.
"A big shot, yes. I suppose you could call me that."
"And you even said a priestess of Mother Earth is coming to get you."
"She's not exactly a comrade. Just an acquaintance. But how did you know she was a priestess of Mother Earth?"
Her question no longer carried any real suspicion.
Looks like I can relax for the rest of our time here.
Good, very good.
Feeling much more at ease myself, I replied.
"You said she's someone who can destroy the Abyss, right? Considering the origin of the Abyss, it would be stranger not to know."
"The origin of the Abyss...? It's the land cursed by Mother Earth, isn't it?"
"Everyone knows that. I'm talking about why Mother Earth cursed it."
The Regressor still looked puzzled.
Don't tell me you came all this way without even knowing that? I looked at the Regressor and slapped my forehead.