Chapter 19
There are these bastards called sewer rats. It's not a self-proclaimed title, obviously—it's a derogatory nickname slapped on them by everyone else. What they do is simple. When a gate opens, they sneak in without a care for their lives. They ransack the homes of civilians who evacuated, set fires or trash the places to make it look like monster work, then bolt. To put it bluntly, they're just petty thieves. If they get hurt by monsters while pulling this shit? They blame the heroes for not evacuating civilians properly and throw a fit. That's bad enough already—these are lowlife scum—but their real charm lies in their flexibility. They can morph from petty thieves into armed robbers or even serial killers at the drop of a hat.
Get caught mid-theft by a witness? Boom, instant career change to murderer. They exploit the fact that no one can investigate every single casualty in a monster-ravaged gate. Rumor has it one sewer rat even butchered a whole family next door when a gate popped up nearby—the ones he'd always hated. Monsters would wreck the evidence anyway, so he got away clean. I only know the setup; their inner workings were never detailed. The original story's protagonist was busy facing far deadlier foes, so these small-fry mobs never crossed paths with him.
But apparently, our Joo Hyowon had connections to these assholes. If it were someone else's problem, I'd ignore it. But now? It's my problem.
"It's a rare juicy opportunity after so long. How often do you get advance notice on a gate opening this quick? With full prep, it's not just ten times the usual haul—we're talking dozens of times more cash. A golden chance!"
The leader sewer rat tried tempting me with the vulgar lure of money. As if I gave a damn. The world's gone to hell—think paper bills will buy you food?
"Cut the bullshit and spit it out. How'd you know? A gate opening a week from now."
Detecting a gate before it opens is possible. But a full week in advance? That's pushing it. Even if it were feasible, small-time sewer rats like these couldn't pull it off. And they even nailed the exact location. No way was I letting this slide.
"You think I'd tell you that? We have trade secrets too, you know. Especially not to some academy hero candidate."
Listen to this prick. His tone reeks of "deny you're with the academy, and maybe I'll talk." I gave the most reasonable response.
"I'll report you."
For reference, at this point in the original story, crimes like this outside gates are handled by the police special forces. Inside a qi-rich gate, technicians might hold an edge over them. But outside? You'd be begging for death. And I mean actual death.
"Report us? What for, you gonna snitch on upstanding citizens? Got proof we're up to no good?"
The leader shrugged with a face like this was boring as hell. Fair enough—no hard evidence. My word as an academy cadet might carry weight, but it wouldn't spark an investigation on its own.
"This got lame fast, Joo Hyowon. Since when'd you turn into such a goody-two-shoes? Academy enrollment got you thinking you're a real hero? Remember what you are. A hero of justice? Nah. You're a vengeful ghost, an executioner. Why pretend to be good?"
He wasn't wrong. The original Joo Hyowon lived for one thing: slaughtering the monster that killed her parents. That drive led her to fuck the protagonist to boost her power, aiming to take on stronger beasts. Until her chronic weak pussy gave out...
But that's her story. Not mine.
"I'm in the academy now, and I'm gonna be a hero. It's the surest way to achieve my goals. Your little gang has no future."
"...Hmph."
The other sewer rats' vibes shifted ominously. Guess my words bruised their fragile egos. Trash like them always get touchy about "face." The disrespectful atmosphere had me gearing up for a fight. Outside a gate, I'm weaker too. Guns would be risky. But none? Get ready to eat fists.
"Tch. Fine. If you're gonna be like that, whatever. Persuasion failed. Get lost."
"Huh?"
Quitting just like that? My fist was cocked for a preemptive strike—now it felt silly.
"What's your angle?"
"Angle? What angle? I tried convincing you, you said no. Deal's off. I don't beg girls who say no. Scram."
Now he waved me off like I'd bored him, clearing a path. "That damn Vivian bitch is the problem. She fills a dumb girl's head with nonsense, and now she can't tell right from wrong."
What would original Hyowon have done hearing that? No clue, but I moved on to avoid pointless conflict. No point grilling them—they wouldn't spill easily. Time to review and practice an original-story technique instead.
"...Huuuuuh."
I used Emit Qi to draw out a long strand from my body. The key is keeping it tethered, not fully severing it. I sent that qi toward the sewer rats, then intercepted the returning flow and analyzed it with Sense Qi.
Basically, real-time remote listening. Everything's qi, including sound vibrations. It demands razor-sharp focus and qi control—plus, anyone qi-sensitive would notice. But these petty thug idiots? No chance.
Their voices came through, noisy and distorted but clear enough.
"Tch, arrogant bitch. Used to go berserk at the sight of monsters, and now academy uniform's got her thinking she's a hero."
"Right, boss? Honestly, wasn't she more dangerous than us lowlifes? And now she acts all clean."
"...Forget it. Thought she'd be full of resentment even after enrolling, so I tried recruiting. But she's adapted just fine, huh?"
"...So what now, boss? Is Joo Hyowon a target too?"
"Don't be stupid. Fight that psycho inside a gate? She'd rampage without a care for collateral. Stay far away. Our targets are just easy academy freshmen. Got it?"
...Easy academy freshmen. Targets?
"Everyone knows the drill, right? Gate opens in a week. Spot any academy first-years inside and kill 'em. One hundred million per head, as promised."
"Jackpot! Even real heroes are killable with ambushes, and they're paying that for first-years?"
"...Isn't it suspicious? Return's too high for the risk."
"So you wanna pass?"
"N-no, not like that..."
"Exactly—huge payoff for low risk. Pure honey pot gig. Worry about nothing. Think of the marks: first-years. Chump change to fund a hundred mil."
"Sure, but... still risky, right?"
"Gate inside'll be chaos. Who'll notice a few dead freshmen?"
"But the academy'll notice—and those kids grow up to be heroes. Ruining that means future..."
"Quit fretting over bullshit! Who cares about weaklings dying? World won't end."
......
Couldn't get the full picture from this alone. But I had the essentials. Someone commissioned these rats to slaughter academy first-years. Probably leaked the gate's time and place too. They approached me, a first-year, but ditched the idea when I wasn't cooperative.
And one possibility hit me.
No way... Was Ayumi's death these bastards' doing?