Volume 1 Chapter 9.1
Murderous Intent and Silence, Things
Disappearing in the Flames Part 1
Translator : PolterGlast
"What are you
spacing out for, run!"
Nina finally came to
her senses when her arm was grabbed, and she fled as fast as she could from the
oncoming presence of death, with Jin, who had become desperate while pulling
her hand.
"What's wrong,
Nina!? Was your power a lie? Why must you run away so desperately?"
Bennett was no longer
in his right mind.
Once they were caught,
it would be over. The two of them would be burned to death by those horrid
monsters.
"Nina, at least
you have to escape."
Jin pushed Nina away.
As expected, the three
monsters rushed toward Jin, not even bothering to pay attention to Nina.
Jin, the mastermind
behind all this, surely lacked physical exercise. Sure enough, the distance
between Jin and the monsters was getting closer and closer.
A total defeat, he
thought.
Even though the two of
them had devised a plan and even pulled out a trump card such as Method Acting,
Bennett was far ahead of them.
His psychic ability
could no longer be stopped.
Not only do they not
know the true conditions for activation, but they do not even know the limits
of his abilities. Perhaps there are more than just three <Executioner of
Immolation> that can be summoned.
When Bennett snapped
his fingers again, the flames surrounding the three puppets suddenly increased
in intensity. Soon, the flames intertwined with each other and became one huge
fireball.
"No, stop!"
No matter how hard she
strained her voice, it would never reach the emotionless monsters.
Desperate pleas are
futile. Tragedy always lays waste to everything without regard to human
emotion.
A fireball so large
that it engulfed a large tree expanded at once,
A giant-like arm shot
out from within it,
the trees planted at
equal intervals were violently set ablaze,
while scorching the
surrounding air with extremely high temperatures,
the flames, so
mercilessly burning,
engulfed Jin's entire
body as he jumped into the shade of the trees.
"............ No
way."
In a fraction of a
second that the huge burning arm had swept past, the hardwood tree in which Jin
sought shelter had been completely charred.
Jin, who was hiding
behind it, was no longer ──.
"...... It's a
lie, right?"
Nina prayed before the
sight of the irreversible end.
"Tell me it's a
lie, like you always do,....... Laugh at me with that spiteful look on your
face while you make fun of me. We're going to fool the world together, aren't
we? Don't you dare die on me now, I won't let you get away with it!"
The despairing silence
corroded her heart mercilessly.
He was killed. Jin
Kirihara was killed.
Her one and only
accomplice in the world.
The first person in
this cruel world whom she could truly trust.
The most unbearable
fact was that she was not putting on an act right now.
"Ahahahahahaha~!
That feels so good. By the way, why do you find this incineration of such an
insignificant trash so painful?"
"...... Screw
you!"
"A~a, don't look
at me like that. I killed him in the heat of the moment, you see. ......"
With a smile like a
broken doll, Bennett summoned another one of his <Executioner of
Immolation>.
His eyes seemed to be
hollow and devoid of light. They were the same kind of demons as his brothers
in the <White Knights>, the kind of demons who think nothing of killing.
What will
happen to me now?
By thinking about it
as if it was someone else's problem, Nina managed to prevent a mental
breakdown.
"Then Nina, shall
we go back to the dormitory together?"
"......What are
you-?"
"We'll have a
<duel> of course! I have a spare copy of the pledge form in my dormitory.
I have to deprive you of the memory of me killing Jin Kirihara."
"I would
never-......!"
"Have you
forgotten about the C-rank guys I've been eliminating so far? They refused to
sign at first, too. But after a little intimidation with my <Executioner>
...... I don't need to tell you the rest of the story, right?"
"...... Don't you
know what I can do? If you piss me off, you're nothing."
"Haha, your
acting is starting to wane, you know? I already know that you are not the
monster everyone says you are."
Before Nina knew it,
she was surrounded by four puppets, and there was nothing left for her but
despair.
"Then again, the
headmaster sure is a villain for creating such a memory-sealing system. Thanks
to it, I have yet to receive any punishment."
The unbearably high
temperature and fear made her feel like she was going to lose consciousness at
every second.
"Come, let's
hurry back to the dormitory and sign. ......Oh, you can rest assured. I'm not
going to burn a woman like you to death, either. I'm telling you the
truth."
Bennett patted her on
the head in a gesture like he would do to his dog.
A psycho who finds
ecstasy in dominating everything by force.
Nina has no strength
left to even point out such a fact.
"Ah, right. Since
your memory is going to be erased anyway, I'll be pardoned for whatever I do to
you now, won't I?"
Bennett said this in a
tone as if he had come up with a fun game, and sent instructions to the fire puppets.
The four of them
worked in tandem and approached to surround Nina.
"Ah ...... stop,
stay away.'
In this situation, all
hope had long since perished, and all that was left was the fear of not wanting
to be burned alive.
Nina desperately ran
away, almost falling down several times due to her trembling knees.
The loud laughter of
Bennett, excited by the sight of the pitiful figure, stuck to her eardrums. The
blazing monsters blocked her way, limiting the direction of her movement. Nina
had long since realized that she was being led to the student dormitory, but
there was nothing she could do about it.
If I was going
to experience this kind of fear, if I was going to be so devastated by this
loss, I shouldn't have trusted anyone.
If only I had
kept moving forward alone in a world without light, I wouldn't have had to
experience anything like this. No matter what punishment awaited me after I was
exposed for lying, I would simply accept it as something inevitable.
It was wrong
of me to believe in such things as hope.
Nina resented her own
weakness for having no choice but to put her trust in such an ambiguous thing.
"Oh, you poor
thing, you're trembling so badly. But don't worry. No matter how frightening it
is, it will all be forgotten in a few hours."
Maybe Bennett is
right.
Once I forget
everything, I can go back to square one.
Father would never
forgive me for dropping out of the academy so quickly. So, I would be banished
from the Stingray family and would have to spend the rest of my life in seclusion
somewhere far away, in a poor environment.
Still, isn't that far
better than living with this bitterness?
It is much better than
being crushed by the weight of what I have lost.
"It's time to go
to the dorms, Nina. Let's enjoy ourselves to the fullest. Until I get tired of
you."
The moment the door to
the dormitory appeared in the distance, Nina was swallowed up from the inside
by the swell of her uncontrollable emotions.
─No.
I don't like this. I
don't want to forget about Jin.
Even if the pain would
come back to haunt me every time I remembered him, there is no way I could ever
forget the days I fought alongside him.
He was the only person
in the world who could be my accomplice, whom I could trust with all my heart.
If he were to
disappear from my memory as well, I would lose the comfort of my heart. I would
also lose the reason to believe that I, such a person, could still be alive.
With each step she
took, Nina felt something precious slipping away.
◆
Bennett didn't feel
the slightest bit of emotion toward Nina, who was running away in fear, nor
toward the scenery of the approaching dormitory, nor toward the witness who was
following behind him as it flew above the ground.
He had always been
able to use his unique abilities to get things done as he wished, and his days
at the school all seemed to be a predetermined series of events. There is
nothing more tedious than a game in which the outcome is obvious from the
beginning.
This <Duel> was
no different.
He had made no special
effort, except for hiding a secret plan, and yet he was able to eliminate the
annoying Jin Kirihara.
Bennett pondered his
future life at the school.
Having defeated Nina,
one of the students exempted from the entrance exam, Bennett will definitely
stand out from his peers.
First, he will use his
fame to expand the scale of the competition.
Right now, there are
still only a few C-rank students, but in a couple of months, there will be more
participants of higher rank. At that time, he can finally move into the phase
of having them pay points in exchange for participation fees.
Once he has
established a system that allows him to earn points without having to do
anything, there will be no one who can compete with Bennett anymore.
He is also considering
bringing in a few of the more promising members of the fighting club as close
aides. If he gives them something in return, such as occasional hunting prey,
they will surely become obedient subordinates.
Once everything is in
place, the next step is to crush the other entrance exam exemption groups
besides himself.
Aside from Nina
Stingray, who was a mere facade, he would need to secure enough troops to fight
against the other powerful students. Instead of being in a rush, he must
formulate a plan over the long span of three years.
However, he must first
have fun with the trembling girl in front of him.
Without the
memory-sealing measures implemented by the headmaster, it would have been
absolutely impossible for him to hurt the daughter of the Stingray family. He
felt his brain's marrow go sweetly numb just thinking about how he was going to
cook the girl who had been so far protected by a powerful force.
"...... No more.
Please just stop."
The muttering, which
probably leaked out unconsciously, was slightly audible.
Nina is not a fool.
She should have known that such a plea would be meaningless.
She fell to the ground
and was driven to the point where she had to cling to something meaningless.
"Why do you have
to be afraid? You'll forget everything anyway."
Daring to mobilize all
the gentleness in her, Bennett smiled at her.
He knew from
experience that this expression was the most efficient way to strike fear into
someone's heart.
"I will never
forgive you. Just imagine what would happen if you make an enemy out of the
Stingray family......"
The sadistic side of
him was being stimulated even more.
"You should have
understood by now. You'll forget everything. Even your anger toward me. How are
you going to snitch on me?"
When he was nearing
the end of his patience, he finally arrived at the front of the dormitory.
To the current
Bennett, the plain wooden door seemed like a gateway to paradise.
Since it was weekends,
there might not be many students left, but right now he didn't want to run into
anyone. He didn't want anyone to tarnish his blissful moment.
He turned the doorknob
and opened the door toward him.
He held the door and
urged Nina to enter, but she did not respond at all.
Perhaps frozen by the
fear that had become so tangible, she remained motionless as she turned her
head toward the entrance.
"Come, hurry up
and get in. Your fate won't change anyway."
There was no need to
wear the mask of a gentleman anymore.
Bennett forced Nina to
her feet, kicked her in the back, and forced her to jump into the dormitory.
Then he closed the door and slowly followed.
There, he finally
turned his attention to the entrance.
─Bennett instantly realized.
Nina was frozen, not
because fear had taken over her.
She was simply stunned
by the bizarre scene that unfolded before her.
About 20 students had
gathered at the entrance.
Their faces were
familiar. They were the participants of the <tournament> hosted by
Bennett. Emma Licorice, Jin's only remaining collaborator, was also there.
Most puzzling of all,
they all looked at Bennett with hostile eyes.
"............Ha?"
What does this
mean?
Why are there
so many students here on the weekend?
In the first
place, no one was here when we left the dorm a while ago.
And why are
they glaring at me?
He hurriedly turned to
look at Nina, but she was just as puzzled as he was.
Her gaze was
completely dazed, and it was clear that she was so confused that she couldn't
take a step forward until someone provided her with an answer.
In other words, Nina
was not involved in this situation at all.
If so, then
who?
On whose
orders were they brought together here?
"Bennett-san
...... is this true?"
Someone threw several
photos at Bennett's feet.
He felt his feet
becoming unsteady, as if he were on a board stretched over water. The mere act
of bending down to pick up the photos seemed terribly difficult at the moment.
He somehow managed to
pick up the photos and inspected them one by one.
─What was captured in the three photos was the most
intense hell.
Two boys were being
chased by a blazing fire puppet.
The screams that were
supposed to be trapped inside the photos were heard beyond the dimensional
barrier.
The figure laughing
while holding his stomach on the other side of the picture was undoubtedly
Bennett himself.
".........Who?"
Bennett glared at all
the students gathered at the entrance.
Who took these
photos?
I don't recall
letting anyone escape. Anyone who knew who was responsible for the C-rank hunt
should have been expelled from the academy.
Who the hell
is ──.
"The scam is
ninety percent successful once you've planted an assumption in their
minds."
The crowd split in
two, and the figure hiding in the back emerged.
Eyes the color of the
deepest part of the night, and an eerie smile that did not reveal his true
motives. A being foreign to everything in this country, including the color of
his skin - Jin Kirihara - is walking toward Bennett.
His clothes and skin
were stained with soot, and he had a fresh burn on his left shoulder, but no
matter how one interpreted it, he did not appear to be a dead man.
How did he
gather all these people?
When were
these photos taken?
No, in the
first place, how is this guy ...... still alive?
Various questions come
flooding in like a wave, making it impossible to maintain a calm mind.
The only thing he knew
was that everything up till now had been nothing but a farce.
In other words, the
<duel> had no meaning whatsoever.
Jin did not have a
shred of hope that he would win.
His real objective was
to create this situation.
"You lost,
Bennett. This is what happens when you fail to understand the board you're
supposed to be playing on."
◆
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