Chapter 89
Chapter 89
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 89
Chapter Title: Persuasion
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Crow, Orca,
Lily, Deoksoon,
Scardi, Rin.
Six people had gathered in one place.
It was quite the peculiar standoff.
The five women scanned everyone around them except for him, one by one. No one could act rashly. Especially not in a place where everyone's interests and schemes clashed—it demanded utmost caution.
The biggest thing occupying their minds was, naturally, Crow's appearance. As if he'd returned to his old self, Crow stood firmly on both feet, radiating intense killing intent and battle fervor.
Lily, in particular, wavered at the sight. This variable hadn't been part of any of her plans up to now.
Why had Crow oppa
of all times, in this situation,
regained his sanity at this exact moment? Lily couldn't understand it.
His hands were still trembling unstably,
and he was suffering from the drug's side effects,
yet Crow refused to collapse, standing tall and rigid.
"Damn it...! Everyone, freeze!"
Orca was the first to act.
She held up both palms toward Crow and Lily, steadying her breath. The only immediate threats were the two siblings.
"Crow, reinforcements from the Association are on the way. The riot will be quelled within two hours. Surrender peacefully. I'll use my authority to minimize your punishment. Trust me! I'm trying to help you!"
Crow hesitated for a moment as he eyed Orca's hand aimed at Lily. But he didn't let go of the medical scissors or the jagged fluorescent light tube in his grip.
"Get your hand away from Lily."
He still saw her as someone he needed to protect. He still treated that repulsive girl with the red eyes like his little sister.
Orca vowed to correct this man's misguided perception.
"Get my hand away? Crow, that's a monster."
The information Orca had
allowed her to vaguely infer Lily's behind-the-scenes machinations.
"This is your doing, isn't it, Lily? You hid your ability to get in here. Otherwise, Creep going wild makes no sense. You unleashed Creep with your power."
For an instant, Crow's and Lily's eyes shook simultaneously. Things were heading in a bad direction.
"You even took a hostage. Clever bitch. I never liked you from the start. I knew you'd cause trouble eventually."
"Huh...?"
Deoksoon, whose wrist Lily had grabbed, unwittingly found herself labeled a hostage, but Orca's interrogation pressed on regardless.
"You infiltrated to get Crow out, right? I don't know what tricks you used, but things won't go according to your plan."
"..."
It probably wasn't Orca's intention,
but her accusations had instead cornered Lily completely.
Just moments ago, Crow had been plotting how to deal with Orca to protect Lily. Now, he was turning to Lily, demanding an answer.
"O-Oppa...! That's not it...!"
The swift situational judgment of the two who had advanced a couple of steps only worsened the situation.
"I can explain everything. First, we need to get out of here...!"
Lily took a small step toward Crow and Orca.
Orca backpedaled to widen the distance from Lily, while Crow twisted his body slightly to fully face Lily and Deoksoon.
"Yes. I still have my ability."
"What...?"
Very cautiously,
one step at a time,
Lily approached Crow, succinctly revealing some truths.
"Yes...! But I didn't mean to deceive you, Oppa. I did it to save you. I was waiting for a chance to escape more reliably. Oppa, now's the time. If not now, there won't be another chance...!"
Under the noisy red lighting, Crow looked confused. Just the fact that Lily still had her ability led him to too many conclusions.
But Lily pressed closer urgently, clinging to him like she was hugging him, her voice choked with sobs as she continued.
"I-I was going to tell you too, Oppa. But to execute the plan properly, I had to keep it secret from you. You know what I mean, Oppa. If even a hint of suspicion arose, the plan could fail. Oppa, just like you... taught me..."
How many people truly knew the reality of Lily's ability?
The ability Lily was publicly known for was [High-Output Energy Manipulation and Emission]. It was an undeniably alluring and flashy power.
Like the night sky over a pitch-black meadow devoid of starlight,
the [energy] she emitted was mesmerizingly beautiful.
But Crow and a select few humans knew Lily's ability precisely.
Lily manipulated the reality around her.
In simple terms,
she defied the laws of the universe.
"..."
Thus, Crow plunged into deep anguish.
Crow looked down at Lily, who clung to him with teary eyes. His bewildered mind replayed and ruminated on every little gesture and expression Lily had made up until now.
The duel with Orca, already in progress, didn't continue.
Orca had also withdrawn her ability for the moment, joining the flow of the situation.
All she had to do
was stall until the Association's reinforcements arrived.
So she could quietly read the mood, step back, and observe.
"Crow, you'd better be careful."
Instead, Scardi now interjected into the conversation. She disrupted Lily's persuasion as the girl clung desperately to Crow.
"I know you care for that girl. But you need to face reality properly."
Lily's eyes peered over Crow's shoulder. Her red eyes glared at Scardi, but Scardi ignored it and pressed on.
"That girl is the one who got you thrown in here."
"Don't talk nonsense! Oppa, you're not believing a woman like that, are you...?"
Lily shrieked in a sharp, indignant voice, then hugged Crow tightly again, her upward gaze filled with desperation.
"That woman fed you those disgusting drugs. I saw it. With my ability...!"
"..."
Not just appealing with tears, Lily turned the arrow aimed at her back on Scardi, exposing her crimes.
"Everything wrong with your body is that woman's fault. Are you going to believe someone like her? Oppa, we need to get out now... Please believe me and come with me..."
"Crow, that girl has already deceived you. Want proof?"
In the narrow corridor,
the two women in front of and behind Crow brandished their weapons openly.
"The drugs aren't the point. The point is that this girl got you sent to prison."
"Don't listen. Oppa, look at me. Oppa! Don't pay attention to a villain like that."
Unlike Lily's frantic voice, Orca's and Crow's gazes began shifting toward Scardi.
Crow, to learn the full truth of the incident,
Orca, furious upon realizing Scardi had swapped the drugs, shot her a piercing glare.
"...Keep going."
"Oppa...!"
"Yeah, you know my ability too. Rin can't lie to me. Rin, answer my question."
Rin stepped forward. With her neat bangs and straight black hair as her striking features, she stared straight at Scardi, preparing her response.
"As soon as we heard about Crow, we started intervening on our own. Right?"
"Yes, that's correct."
Not many questions were needed.
Under the conditions of the enforced contract, Rin answered only with simple, clear [truth].
"How many died in the process?"
"Three. Two on Lily's tailing mission, and one handling witness elimination for evidence destruction."
Lily's tear-filled expression rapidly hardened. She revealed an opaque emotion hard to call human as she stared at Scardi and Rin.
"...You think you can pin this on me with that kind of ability? You're the ones who framed Oppa. Sticking to facts doesn't change anything. You'll just twist partial truths slyly anyway. I did my best to get Oppa out again. Unlike disgusting villains like you!"
Her voice was sharp, like a scream of rage.
Then she reverted to the sobbing girl, burying her face in Crow's chest and pleading.
"Oppaa... I'm on your side, more than anyone. Don't let people like that control you anymore."
"Crow, snap out of it. You know that girl better than I do. She's dangerous."
But convincing Crow wasn't easy. Lily sensed his gaunt cheek trembling faintly.
Scardi was precisely targeting the wavering in Crow's heart.
"Yeah, I intervened partly because I couldn't pass up the opportunity. That's true. I wanted revenge on you, but I wanted you just as much."
She had undoubtedly committed evil acts.
But in this situation, there was an even more crucial issue than Scardi's crimes.
"So I can say it more clearly. Lily framed you. We found out while trying to destroy evidence on our end. She deceived you and destroyed the evidence."
Between Lily in his arms,
Scardi whispering from behind,
and Orca glancing at her watch beside him,
Crow stared into empty space with weary eyes.
What was truth,
what was lies,
and even if he figured it out properly, what action should he take...
Crow's head throbbed like it would split.
Amid truths too heavy to bear,
he even thought it might be better if it all just ended,
but—
Krunch—!
A bizarrely loud sound rang out, followed by a flash of light.
The ice encircling the outside shattered.
In its place, a beam of light pierced intensely, descending like arrows.
"Entry successful. All units, hold position."
The sound of a helicopter came from above.
Clear lighting beamed down through the hole in the ceiling.
Justice's and Crow's gazes met.
In the long, narrow corridor,
all seven gathered.
"...Seal escape routes. A-Team, B-Team, enter through the main gate. I'll go from above, A-Team and B-Team from the first floor. Suppress the riot."
08:58:06 AM.
Justice joins the fray.
Krunch—!
Then came the bursting sounds.
The prison building began to shake simultaneously.
"Argh! This floor's ridiculously hard... Huh?"
08:58:15 AM.
Creep joins the fray, heading to the rooftop in search of an escape.
All eight,
converging in the medical office corridor, now collapsing due to cracks forming above and below.