Chapter 77
Chapter 77
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 77
Chapter Title: Return
A strange tension hung in the air as the trio returned to their room.
The three of them crammed tightly onto the first-floor bunk. Crow sat on the far left, Creep lay stretched out lengthwise in the middle, and Lily huddled in the corner.
Crow and Lily exchanged glances, their eyes clashing with unease—or perhaps anticipation.
In the meantime, Creep lay there with a beaming smile, her head pillowed on Crow's thigh. She seemed to be thoroughly enjoying the firm, springy feel of his leg as she stroked it.
"What the hell is going on...?"
Crow asked Lily cautiously, lighting a cigarette. Since it was Lily who'd spent time with Creep, not him, he figured she might know something.
"I have no idea. Maybe she's coming back to her senses."
But Lily just shook her head and offered her own guess.
Whether that was true or not, Crow had no way to know. He was in a position where he had no choice but to trust this precious woman's words.
"...Yeah?"
Of course, that didn't entirely quell the suspicion and anxiety bubbling up in a corner of his mind.
No matter how broken and shattered Crow might be,
his mind still retained its former sharpness.
"Got it. Yeah..."
He sensed some kind of connection between Lily and Creep. Crow didn't miss that faint undercurrent, that subtle clue.
"...Lily, be careful. Even if it's just the two of you from now on, if anything feels off, run away immediately."
Even so, the reason he worried about Lily was simple:
She was the only thing left to him.
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Wherever Crow went, Lily and Creep always followed,
but the reverse wasn't true. When Lily and Creep went to shower or use the bathroom together, Crow would simply wait in the room, smoking.
"..."
And that was the only time he could steal a moment alone.
Lily immediately placed her hand on Creep's head and closed her eyes. A soft lavender glow seeped from her fingertips, enveloping Creep's head.
Then—
Lily yanked her hand back and stumbled away.
She could feel that Creep had regained her sanity. An unbearable malice and intense glee surged up her arm like pins and needles.
"Huh?"
Even in that moment, Creep tilted her head like a child. But that nauseating act no longer fooled Lily.
"...Enough with the act. I've already seen through it."
"Oh."
Only then did Creep drop her smile and look up at Lily. Her pitch-black eyes, brimming with curiosity, met Lily's red ones without flinching.
"You still have your ability, huh? Impressive. A cheat-level power straight out of some kid's comic..."
"As you probably know, I'm the one who healed you, and I'm the one trying to help you."
"Doesn't mean I have to thank you."
Creep stretched languidly, rolling her shoulders. Her physique was far too superior to simply call her a serial killer, making her all the more dangerous.
"How long have you been sane?"
"Who knows? Maybe since yesterday, after you healed me?"
"...I let my guard down too much."
And on top of that, her mental state was utterly unpredictable.
"So what's with pretending to be a kid even after regaining your sanity?"
"It's fun~"
Creep was a walking bomb of a woman.
"Anyway, enough of that! Let me think why you're helping me. Why help me, hmm..."
"..."
"Ah! Got it. Scardi's being too lukewarm, and you're getting impatient, right?"
No, actually,
it wasn't her height or muscles—it was her astonishing deductive skills that posed the greatest threat.
"Because you want Crow to pity you more. But what's this? Scardi's being nicer than expected and even looking after me? That's not good."
The reason Lily had been healing Creep bit by bit, even knowing that,
was...
"...So, this is what I'll do. I'll secretly use my hidden ability to heal Creep little by little and put her to use. Even if she figures out my whole plan, she'll just rampage like a maniac and go after me and Crow-oppa. If I step up myself to provoke Scardi and start a riot, it'll look bad to Oppa. So I need to use Creep to make her cause trouble... Right?"
It matched Creep's deduction perfectly.
To be precise, Lily was a bit flustered because Creep had recovered her sanity faster than expected,
but in any case, things were proceeding according to Lily's plan.
So what was Creep's response to seeing through it all?
"Whoa, this is gonna be fucking fun. Let's start right now!"
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Sudden explosive bangs and heavy thuds echoed from inside the bathroom. Inmates playing cards and Scardi's crew smoking—all eyes turned toward the commotion as they tried to figure out what was happening.
Bang!
But before anyone could peek inside, Lily's body flew out like a ragdoll.
"Agh..."
Lily groaned in genuine pain for the first time in ages, vomiting blood. Her stomach and face had taken such brutal hits that her head spun.
Yet she couldn't use her ability. The day Crow found out she'd smuggled it in here, everything they'd built would crumble.
She had only one choice:
Take whatever Creep dished out, feeling her bones crack and flesh tear.
"Eh? Uwaugh?"
From afar, Duksun came waddling over to check on Lily, but
the sight of Creep emerging from the bathroom sent a sharp warning jolt through her brain.
"Ah... Ahem! Hem! Uh-hmm! Ugh, must've eaten something bad for breakfast..."
So Duksun abruptly changed course, clutching her stomach as she made her exit.
No one here would help Lily.
"...Rin, hold off for now. Let's watch the situation."
"Yes."
Even Scardi, standing at a distance, was too busy assessing the scene. She racked her brain, pondering what this meant and what ripples a sane Creep might cause.
"What is that girl Lily hiding?"
From Scardi's perspective, it was a baffling situation. Creep, who'd become a retard from severe head trauma, suddenly snapping back to sanity after just a few days.
Things were veering far from Scardi's expectations.
And this surely meant
something Scardi didn't know was accelerating the flow of events.
The cause was undoubtedly Lily.
She needed to eliminate or expel Lily quickly.
Before something bigger erupted.
"Hmm-hmm~"
Creep strolled lightly, grinding her feet into the drab gray floor like asphalt. Monopolizing everyone's stares and attention in the common area didn't feel half bad.
One and all, shocked expressions.
Her old crew who'd betrayed and beaten her right after her injury,
Scardi's group enjoying their peaceful days,
even Lily, who'd orchestrated all this—
all froze, unable to hide their tension amid the storm raging bigger than anticipated.
"Ah, why act like it hurts so much! You trying to get me thrown in solitary again? It was just a prank—what's the big deal~"
She skipped over, hoisted her right leg up to her waist,
and slammed it straight into Lily's gut as she lay sprawled on the floor.
"Kehak-!"
The sight and sound were so brutal that some winced. Others trembled, fearing the violence might turn on them next.
The impact lifted Lily's body briefly into the air. She contorted her face, spewing saliva and blood.
It was worlds apart from a beating by petty crooks.
This was
raw, intense force that could kill Lily any second.
"Ah, sisters!"
After gleefully pummeling Lily, Creep grinned and approached her old crew. Despite their numbers advantage, their legs gave out—they crumpled or backed away, groveling before her.
"W-Wait a sec! Big Sis...! You're finally back to normal! W-We waited so long...!"
"Yeah...! Really...!"
But for an exiled leader to reclaim her throne,
she needed to reimprint fear and pain on every single member.
"Aww, thanks everyone. To celebrate our reunion, how about a fist bump for old times' sake?"
So she brutally grabbed their wrists,
and hammered her fist down from above.
Crack!
Even as bones shattered on both sides,
Creep just cackled with laughter.
"Aaaah! S-Sis! Sis! Hold on!"
"Make a fist! It's been ages—don't even return the greeting?"
They clenched their fists through tears,
and bone and muscle collided, splintering finely.
Of course, the small fry's hands broke first.
Creep kept gripping wrists with her bruising knuckles, doling out fist bumps nonstop.
"Agh! Aaak! Ack...! S-Sis...!"
She gave an especially fierce reunion to Duksun's roommate, who'd been playing boss with the remnants.
Some fingers already twisted grotesquely,
skin and veins burst, blood soaking everywhere—yet
Creep didn't stop until the end.
"Whew-!"
Only when everyone's right hands were useless did Creep end the joyful reunion and casually shake out her own.
Now, her next task was
"Boss, don't call the guards~! I got hurt too, so it's mutual assault. See my fist? If you report this, we'll all go solitary and Wing C will be a ghost town..."
A light greeting to Scardi and Rin after so long,
and
"Alright, you're coming with me."
yanking Lily's pink hair hard and dragging her limp body away.
Even as Lily squirmed from the awful scalp pull,
Creep dragged her small frame across the floor toward Crow's room without pause.
"Honey!"
Through the tiny window there,
she made a heart with her fingers at Crow, who was suppressing withdrawal with a smoke.
Thud.
The moment he saw Creep, he dropped his cigarette.
Soon the door opened,
and Lily—who'd already taken plenty of hits—was hurled into the far corner.
"L-Lily...!"
Crow jumped down from the bunk to check on her, but
"Nah, forget it. I'll play with her myself. Don't worry about it."
Creep ignored him, locked the door, and sweetly embraced Crow after so long.
"Let's play just us for now."
Surprisingly gentle,
it felt like lovers reuniting after ages, a tender hug.
"Hah, huff..."
Of course, Crow tensed and breathed raggedly in her arms,
but Creep never hit or tormented him.
She just held him quietly, stroking his hair, enjoying the peaceful time.
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The Changing situation
end.