Chapter 93: The Handle Won't Listen (2)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 93: The Handle Won't Listen (2)
"Are you pouting~? Even your pouting face is cute~ Oh, look at you."
On the way back to the entrance after clearing C-1, Anna poked my cheek with her finger, acting coy.
"Are you mad~? Your angry face looks so pitiful~ Oh, you poor thing."
On the other side, Elly poked my other cheek and giggled.
We had cleared C-1 without much trouble, but the expressions of our teammates as they headed back were grim. Even during training, they had been angry with Anna when she transformed into a devil, and now they glared at her for being just as disobedient in a real battle.
However, she didn't care about the stares of others. Since the "Angel" Anna would do all the apologizing later anyway, the "Devil" Anna acted exactly as she pleased. Once the transformation wore off, Anna would bow her head and shout, "I am sorry!" in her awkward Korean. It was a cycle that had repeated several times during training.
Anyone with experience in social life knows that if someone makes a mistake and you joke about it with a smile, you should actually be on high alert. That joke is a veiled warning; if the same mistake happens again, there will be no mercy.
Devil Anna missed that chance. The reason I didn't order her to deactivate her Demonization was to teach her a proper lesson. Though, even if I had ordered it, Devil Anna likely wouldn't have complied.
As the entrance came into view, I stopped and looked at Anna with a smile.
"Hey, do you think my words are a joke?"
"Hehe—even your angry face is cute. Are you going to punish me? How? Are you going to spank me? Here, hit me right here."
Anna turned around and stuck her butt out, asking to be hit.
Yoon A-young and Lee Yu-na were scowling, but Kwon Ye-jin, who knew just how terrifying I could be when truly angry, avoided my gaze and looked on nervously.
"Terminate communications and withdraw all drones."
"...Understood."
Ryu Ji-hye replied in a heavy voice and deactivated all the drones. As the drones entered the cases left at the entrance, the cases closed automatically with a beep. Kwon Ye-jin, sensing the atmosphere, tugged on Yoon A-young and Lee Yu-na’s sleeves.
"Quickly, let's pack up and go."
"Huh? Is that what's important right now?"
"No, this isn't the time for that. Just come on, hurry."
Kwon Ye-jin whispered urgently as she dragged Lee Yu-na away. The two of them were pulled along, not knowing what was happening.
"A brat who's useless for anything but stats is acting pretty bold, aren't you?"
"...Hah? Who was the one who caught the boss? You would've struggled so much without me, wouldn't you?"
Perhaps my words had pricked her pride, as Anna looked at me with a mocking smirk.
"Do you really think you're strong?"
"Uh—at least stronger than the trash here, right? Don't take it too hard. You've got a cute face, so that's enough for you."
Watching her laugh while patting my cheek, I slotted a magazine into my submachine gun. Hearing the click, Anna looked down at the gun and let out a wide, tearing grin.
"Are you saying you want to fight me?"
"I need to show you who's on top so you'll snap out of it."
"Really? I'm not very good at holding back, you know."
"Bullets don't exactly come out gently, either."
As the air grew thick with the intent to fight, Yoon A-young and Lee Yu-na reached for their weapons and glared at Anna.
"Kwon Ye-jin, give me the weapons in the blue box and all three of you go outside to report the clear. I'll be out in an hour."
"But Yeon-woo..."
"I believe I gave an order. Do I need to repeat myself?"
"Let's go, let's just go. Senior, you too, hurry."
Kwon Ye-jin pulled a shotgun and magazines from the box, handed them to me, and dragged the other two away.
"See you in an hour~ Oh, I'll turn your leader into a proper male for you. Even if he comes out looking a mess with a lewd face, try to understand."
Yoon A-young flinched at Anna's words, but after meeting my eyes, she turned away without a word. She had sensed this situation coming since we entered the dungeon and had been conserving my mana. She knew that even if Anna was strong, I wouldn't challenge her without a chance of winning.
Trusting me, Yoon A-young left. Lee Yu-na hesitated for a moment before checking her watch.
"One hour, Yeon-woo."
Lee Yu-na spoke firmly, as if she would come back in the second that time passed, and then stepped outside. Since they had even taken the drone cases with them, no one would be coming here for the next hour.
Anna, seemingly excited by the situation, hugged her heaving chest and licked her lips with her tongue.
"Noona will be gentle with you, don't worry."
Shaking her silky black hair, Anna wore a devious smile. She wasn't even thinking about a "battle" anymore.
The Angel and the Devil shared memories. She knew exactly what abilities I had and what my stats were. But it was a bit insulting that she was looking down on me even after seeing how I provided support during training.
As Anna stood there smiling at me, her hand moved. Simultaneously, I stepped back and unleashed a hail of bullets at her.
Rat-tat-tat-tat—!
The heavy sound of rapid fire echoed as bullets rained down on her body. She didn't seem to care, only using her forearms to shield her face as she charged.
Heroes, like monsters, possess mana. That meant they could also deploy the same mana barriers that monsters used, making it difficult to deal damage with ordinary firearms. The difference was that maintaining a mana barrier required consuming one's own mana, so it couldn't be kept up indefinitely. This was why the military often used attrition tactics when facing villains without heroes—using gunfire and firepower to constantly drain their mana until they collapsed from exhaustion.
But my bullets were mana rounds. Even if the mana contained in each bullet was meager, they slowly pierced her mana barrier, accumulating damage.
"That stings a bit."
Ignoring the gunfire, she closed the distance and swung a hand with sharpened claws.
Clang—!
I raised the kukri I had tucked into my waist to block her, then slammed my elbow into her defenseless jaw. Her head snapped back, and she stumbled two steps away, staring at me with surprised eyes.
"What? Did you think I couldn't handle close-quarters combat?"
That was my specialty to begin with.
When I smirked, her brow furrowed. Her eyes, now filled with killing intent, locked onto me. This was likely the first time she had felt murderous intent while being fully conscious. Until now, she had attacked indiscriminately while losing her mind, but now she was glaring at me with the intent to kill while perfectly sane.
So what if she had the highest stats among us? It didn't matter. Heroes hunt monsters. Monsters always had higher stats than us, and heroes dealt with them through endlessly refined martial arts and experience.
"Just because you've inflated your stats doesn't mean you're B-rank, kid."
"You...!!"
She lunged at me again, but I easily deflected her fierce claws and drove my knee into her abdomen.
"Ow—she's damn sturdy."
My knee throbbed more than the damage I had dealt. However, the clean counterattack seemed to have dealt a serious blow to her pride, as Anna began to attack me frantically.
Rat-tat-tat-tat—!
Firing mana rounds at point-blank range increased the impact penetrating her mana barrier. Grimacing as she rolled her shoulder which had been pummeled by bullets, Anna reached out to grab me even as her posture crumbled.
But if I were to be caught by such an obvious attack, I might as well quit being a hero. I stepped in closer, grabbed the inside of her arm, and threw her.
With a splat, she face-planted into the swamp. She stood up abruptly, looking irritated.
"Kurva!"
I didn't know what it meant, but it was definitely a curse. Spouting a string of curses in her native tongue in her excitement, Anna rushed at me, covered in mud.
I pointed my gun down and fired into the swamp where she was standing.
Phut! Phut! Phut!
The bullets sank into the swamp with muffled sounds, and magic activated, causing the mud to harden. Being high-statted, she managed to kick off and lunge at me before it fully solidified.
"No learning ability at all."
I lightly dodged her beast-like pounce once more, drove a fist into her wide-open solar plexus, and backed away.
Splat!
As she tumbled grandly into the swamp, I fired more bullets around her. This time, instead of hardening it, I increased the mud's viscosity. I wished she would realize why I had chosen the 'Acrid Swamp' by now.
If I were to face her head-on in a plain sparring arena, it wouldn't be such a one-sided game. But she was standing in a hindering swamp, while I was standing on solid ground created atop the mud. That alone gave me a massive advantage.
I peppered her with mana rounds as she roughly swiped away the mud that was clinging to her like slime.
"#^#&@$%^!! Kurva!"
I couldn't understand a word, but the word 'Kurva' was very clear. I'd have to look that up later.
When she lunged in a rage, I fired explosive rounds into the sticky swamp, creating a wave of mud.
"Yaaaah!"
Anna emerged through the thick mud, but I was already there to meet her, driving a fist straight into her face. Her head snapped back helplessly as she was sent flying, but my hand hurt just as much.
"Ow, her stats are so ignorantly high that my hand is killing me."
I cast healing magic on my throbbing hand and watched as Anna stood up once more.
"What are you? Did you fake your stats?"
"No, you saw them yesterday, didn't you? My average is 37. That's well below the average for a C-rank hero."
It was a lower stat than Kwon Ye-jin before she grew using boosters. This damn body of mine.
"I think Angel Anna is stronger. Where did you throw away all your experience and training? Does transforming not only change your personality but lower your IQ too?"
"You piece of..."
Anna gritted her teeth and tried to approach me, but the highly viscous mud hindered her steps. Having fired magic rounds repeatedly, the mud was now clinging to her body like thick dough.
"You cowardly bastard! Once I get out of here, you're dead."
"Talk after you actually get out."
I crouched down and planted a bullet into her forehead.
"Agh! You son of a bitch! When I catch you, I won't let you go even if you cry and beg!"
I fired at her noisy mouth as well. She was shielding herself with a thick mana barrier, so it didn't deal damage, but as a bullet entered her mouth while she was speaking, she coughed and spat it out.
"This is getting boring. Shall we end it?"
"Bullshit, you're dead."
She released mana in all directions, blowing away all the mud. A spherical void was momentarily created around her before the sticky mud rushed back in, and Anna didn't miss that moment to leap out and lunge at me.
Barely dodging her vicious claws, I retreated, and she followed up with a relentless assault, sensing she had the momentum. I deflected her hands several times with my kukri, then discarded the submachine gun and drew an automatic shotgun.
First, one shot to the knee.
Boom—!
Despite being hit by a slug round accompanied by a loud roar, the furious Anna ignored it and kept coming. Just how thick was she layering her mana barrier that she didn't even flinch?
Envious of her stats, I ducked to avoid a hand aimed at my face and fired another shot into her abdomen.
Boom—!
Still taking no damage, she grabbed my kukri with her hand. I had infused the kukri with mana too; if she could just grab it like a wooden stick, what did that make me?
Boom—!
I fed a slug round into the elbow of the arm holding the kukri, but she still showed no sign of being pushed back and pulled on the weapon. Knowing I would lose a contest of strength, I let go. She threw the kukri far away and attacked me again.
Boom—!
I fired another shot into her other knee, but it still didn't seem to do a thing, and Anna slammed a fist into my stomach.
"Urgh..."
I tried to block it with the automatic shotgun, but it was smashed instantly, and I was sent skidding back four or five meters before dropping to one knee in pain.
"That hurts like hell."
"Are you done with your little tricks? I'll start by breaking your arms."
"Are those spots where you were hit by the slugs okay?"
"I didn't even feel a tickle."
"Hmm—do you know why heroes don't use guns?"
"You're still acting smug in this situation?"
With a cruel smirk, Anna approached me. She looked like she might actually tear me apart, she was so angry. As the battle began, Elly, who had been staying far away, landed on the crown of my head and began transferring mana to me.
"Bullets have a small surface area to hold mana. But the ones I just fired were very thick lead rounds. Think of them as solid iron pipes."
"I told you, I didn't even feel a tick—"
Have you realized it yet? I infused them with much more mana, so why didn't they even tickle? That's because a different spell was placed on them.
As I snapped my fingers, magic circles manifested from the spots where the slug rounds had hit. White liquid poured out from the magic circles on her knees, elbows, and abdomen, then instantly hardened, seizing her joints.
"What is this?!"
She tried to scratch at the hardened liquid with her claws, but it only left faint marks, remaining otherwise intact. I slowly stood up while healing my aching abdomen and approached her. She tried to attack me, but with her joints frozen, she couldn't move properly and fell forward into the swamp.
Before she could drown, I grabbed the back of her head, lifted her face, and met her eyes. Anna tried a quick surprise attack, but the awkward strike didn't connect. After subduing her, I spoke.
"It's time for a fun lesson."