[It’s a shame… If I were the main body, maybe I could have had a better fight, a longer duel…]
This body is not the main body but rather a created substitute, a doll.
Of course, it’s ambiguous to say it’s at 100% power.
And it’s not like the main body is in good condition either.
Lilybet’s main body had been embedded in the heart of Green City for so long, unable to move, maintaining the city with pipes and wires all over her.
“What’s the point in fighting like that? And if you’re disappointed, we can do it again later?”
[….again…?]
“We can end here for now, but next time we can do it as the main body, right?”
[……..]
Can I really do that?
And Lilybet opened her eyes.
It wasn’t just Doll Lilybet.
The heart of Green City, which had been closed off until now, was starting to awaken, feeling the connection to the machine faintly fading.
Shia knelt on one knee and waved her hand towards Lilybet’s main body.
“……”
[……]
“Hello, Lilybet. It’s our first time meeting like this, right?”
[Th-That, yes…]
“….I see….”
The main body Lilybet didn’t have a translation module, so her archaic English pronunciation was heard perfectly by Shia.
“Ha, huff…”
“Careful. Careful. You’re cute like a baby.”
Like a newly born child, her arms and legs were trembling, which was quite adorable.
Maybe because the Grasshopper Chef regularly fed her, her body wasn’t skeletal or had exposed ribs.
On the contrary, the main body Lilybet and Doll Lilybet looked healthy and robust with no apparent difference.
“Alright, shall we get up?”
Shia smiled gently and reached out her hand to Lilybet, whose shoulder was dislocated.
Doll Lilybet already couldn’t move.
So, what Shia needed to do was simple.
Hold the newly reborn Lilybet’s hand like a mother.
“I already know, but since it’s our first time meeting the original queen…”
“……for the first time, huh….”
“Should we greet each other first?”
We first met on the Hunter Train, but the human Lilybet is here for the first time, right?
“Hello, my Lilybet?”
“….Oh…..My…..”
Thwang!!!
There are quite a few hunters who use firearms.
But among those hunters, there aren’t many who use sniper rifles.
Monsters are generally large. To deal significant damage to such monsters, it’s better to use close-range weapons with rapid-fire and destructive power and bullets that can contain mana rather than long-range sniper shots.
Still, if there is a hunter who uses a sniper rifle, it’s either of two things:
They are totally immersed in the sniper concept of their abilities.
Or, they have trained their skills to kill people from a distance rather than killing monsters.
Screeech…!
“…..!”
Before the sound echoed, Shia hugged Lilybet to protect her, catching the incoming Griden armorpiercer with her bare hands.
After awakening from the real world for so long, Lilybet trembled from the sudden shock and remained still in Shia’s embrace.
‘This was definitely an intent to kill Lilybet.’
While solid, it was coated with a virus and lethal mana meant to kill.
No matter how strong the abilities, the recently awakened main body of Lilybet was akin to a newborn baby.
If she had been hit by a Griden armorpiercer that contained deadly mana and viruses, she wouldn’t have made it out alive.
“Ah, ah… Is this… assassination…?”
Even high-ranking hunters are ultimately human, and the risk of losing their life due to assassination or ambush is quite real.
[Why did you stop it, Hunter Isia?]
‘Ah, I knew you’d say that.’
Shia laughed lightly upon hearing the voice echo in the underground cavern.
It was the voice of the messenger from [Promise’s Finger] who had commissioned her.
While she didn’t know the details, it seemed they viewed Lilybet as the source of Green City and planned to kill her outright.
Otherwise, they wouldn’t have attempted to snipe now, when Lilybet was at her weakest and most vulnerable.
‘The shooter isn’t here.’
Perhaps they possessed an awakening ability that allowed them to shoot targets across dimensions and distances.
Of course, if they used it multiple times, it would be impossible. Now that they had been discovered, it wouldn’t work on Lilybet again.
But it made her feel very uneasy.
Are they trying to use me to assassinate Lilybet?
Ah, that feels really dirty.
[There’s no shooter here as you suspect, Hunter Isia.]
They probably can’t read my thoughts. It seems there is an awakened one over there with tracking or eavesdropping abilities.
Perhaps the messenger’s power is related to that.
Sigh, I wondered why they would just hand over the fragment of the demon king, but they probably had ulterior motives.
[B-but I don’t understand. To destroy Green City, Elizaveta Lilybet Rose must die. Her actions show she is almost a traitor. She has created a dungeon for monsters, reviving them as humanity. If we don’t kill her here…]
“I have no intention of trying to make you understand.”
[Excuse me?]
“I already said it. I agree with protecting peace for humanity and this world called Earth, but I will not agree to kill Lilybet.”
“…I, S, ia…”
[That’s absurd.]
“So what if it is? I’m a freaking saint.”
You guys seem to know Lilybet is the heart of Green City, but you never told me, did you?
You do know that this is illegal under the request contract, right?
[We acknowledge that there was information we omitted. But that’s because it seemed like you had a close relationship with the traitorous Lilybet….]
“Can you use the term traitor so casually?”
[…….]
With those words, even the messenger fell silent.
Calling Lilybet a traitor is something only their group would use.
If they did so outside, they might get sued by the British royal family.
The standard for traitors is pretty strict.
Especially on Earth.
Lilybet’s actions could be deemed traitorous since she created a dungeon for monsters, but she didn’t attack humans or engage in subversive activities.
Very few people knew the truth about Lilybet’s existence. There was no solid evidence that she’d betrayed and killed humans.
Of course, for the radical political group [Promise’s Finger], advocating for human and hunter supremacy, thinking Lilybet should die would not be unusual.
Especially among the Hunter Train. It is quite normal for someone to die in a dungeon, so they likely planned to bury Lilybet in this Hunter Train supposed to be natural.
[…Hunter Isia, let me give you one last warning and advice. If you do not want to kill Lilybet yourself, just leave her there and get out.]
At those words, Shia burst into laughter.
“I have no intention of killing her or leaving her.”
[Then that’s unfortunate… ]
“Here it is!”
“This must be the heart of Green City…!”
Suddenly, from afar, a monstrous roar echoed.
It was the voice of the orcs.
Now that they mention it, aside from Promise’s Finger, it’s said that the Hunter Association has collaborated with the Orc mafia in the long term to eliminate Green City.
The orcs must be sensing something amiss in the underground cavern where Lilybet’s main body is located, and were rushing over here.
[Hunter Isia, we have no intention of harming you. Please leave at once. If you don’t, you may miss the chance now while Lilybet is vulnerable and immobile.]
“So? Go ahead, keep talking.”
[The fragment of the demon king handed to you is already counted. It will soon explode, and Green City will be permanently sealed.]
Shia pulled out the fragment of the demon king she had been keeping safely in her possession.
Why it was devoid of any ego seems to indicate that it had been modified into a weapon.
It looked like it would soon cause a massive explosion, pulsing with enormous energy like a bomb.
Surely, one explosion would not end it.
If the fragment exploded, it would use Green City as kindling, allowing flames to burn continuously and unquenchably.
“Are you planning to blow this up without closing the gate? If you trigger the fragment without any precautions, the fire would not only spread into Green City but would reach beyond the gate?”
[A certain amount of sacrifice is deemed necessary, according to higher judgment.]
“What a great utilitarian stance.”
[Regrettably, Hunter Isia, we will consider your request as null.]
Shia’s expression turned icy.
“I found it!”
“I am the ruler of Green City!”
“The Orc mafia seems to be surprisingly quick on their toes?”
[We fed the orcs information through the association. We hinted that the underground has been breached and that they could kill the ruler of Green City if they went there, and the entire Orc mafia came running.]
In the meantime, Grakshar’s mafia orcs jumped down from the waterway, quickly surrounding Shia and Lilybet from all sides.
[It seems that Grakshar’s Orc mafia is not on your side, either. Grakshar originally aimed to challenge the dominance of Green City. They would not view Lilybet, the ruler of Green City, favorably.]
As expected of a mafia, they were wielding glinting firearms.
They seemed to have come fully prepared.
[Hunter Isia, please just turn a blind eye. Green City must disappear for the sake of humanity.]
“But like I said from the beginning, while I agree to protect peace and the Earth, things won’t go the way you want.”
[What are you going to do now, Hunter Isia? Are you going to turn your back on humanity?]
“Your thinking is very extreme. Are you kids so unable to think beyond black and white?”
[Even if you say that, we will proceed with our planned actions.]
As the orc mafia drew closer, the pulsation of the demon king’s fragment in Shia’s arms grew faster.
“…Isia, Hunter… stop it. Already… eyes are watching… You do not need to protect me. I’ll manage… Ugh!?”
Ignoring Lilybet’s words, Shia lifted her up in a princess carry.
The wires that were embedded in Lilybet’s body fell away or were drawn to her, but Shia paid no mind.
“Shhh.”
“Ah…….”
Ah, this is cheating…
The day I killed the monsters.
And the day I became one.
The day I looked up at the mountain of corpses, drenched in blood.
I thought I died that day.
It was a long and painful time.
Even if I had only been suffering and in pain by my own doing… I still found it hard.
I am so grateful to you right now.
I don’t know where to pour this emotion.
Even a hundred… a thousand thanks wouldn’t be enough.
Sometimes that indeed is true.
I feel like just existing is a gigantic responsibility and obligation.
Being the eighth king of the Windsor royal family does that. Being an S-class hunter who must protect humanity does too, and being the queen of this sewer that never reached paradise.
Although I messed up a lot…
Those are both my duties and responsibilities it is entirely my choice.
Even in death, I wouldn’t run away from my obligations.
But you…
You… haha.
So thank you.
Thanks to you, I can hold all of that in my heart.
“If…..not for today…”
You have given me another choice…
“If not for you….”
Ah, I can see it now.
You’re not a saint; you’re a FOX, aren’t you?
If intentional, that’s terrifying. If unintentional, that’s even more terrifying.
Hahaha…!
“I would never ha….”
I would never have known LOVE at all….
I. You.
I. I really like you!
