Kays Translations

Chapter 57: The Hunt of the Demi-god

Naturally, there is a reason why Lute committed what is commonly referred to as a criminal act.

The first is to move to a less popular location. Enemy operatives also never move in public places.

It was essential to move to an unpopular place both to encourage the opponent to take action and for Lute himself to move. To justify this, he dared to carry out a dark deed.

Second, to give the other party an excuse to intervene. Even if it is in an unseen place, it is unknown whether the opponent will move. Therefore, I gave it the most obvious justification of ‘justice’.

Justice, especially in accordance with the law, is an extremely powerful weapon. The treasured sword, which sometimes affirms even violence, shines brightly enough to make those in the darkest positions make bold choices.

The third is to deprive the opponent of his judgment. A duke’s escort attacks the object of his escort. That is, of course, a tremendous ugliness. If this fact could be exposed in the light of day, it would be a tremendous accomplishment for the operation.

People lack judgment when faced with a major accomplishment. This is especially true on the part of intelligence agents, who are likely to recognize that they are on their own asses.

In a situation where the lords and the imperial army are snooping around the trading company that is their nest, and when the stage is so imminent that they will finally ride directly to the company. It would not be surprising if they moved to retrieve it as a potent souvenir.

“Hurry up and let go of that girl! I’m calling the guards!!”

──And here is the result of such an aim. A man with a familiar face was yelling to prevent Lute’s barbaric actions.

“Who the hell are you? Get out of here. I’m in the middle of something.”

“Mmm! Mmm!!”

“T-, there’s no reason to overlook it! She obviously hates it!”

On the surface it looks depressing. But inside, he was smiling ferociously.

Lute doesn’t know the name of the man screaming. But he knows that face. The man he had just checked out, a gray man as close to black as possible.

Considering the circumstances, he was probably one of the agents of the Republic state. Based on the characteristics of his appearance, I matched him in my brain with someone who was in Landvald’s dossier, and there was also a corresponding person. …… Well, I have no proof, so I’ll put that aside.

All we need now is the fact that the other party has intervened.

“Annoying. What’s the use of saying that?. I don’t care if she likes it or not, I’m doing it.”

“Mmmm!? Mmmm!!”

“What are you saying with your mouth? Release that girl quickly!!”

“Shut up! I’ll slash you, you son of a bitch!!”

I yelled at the man while placing one hand on the hilt of the sword.

No matter how you look at it, his appearance is that of a thug, and it doesn’t make you feel that he has deadly intentions hidden at all.

“If you are permitted to wear a sword, you must be in the position of the government! What is such a person doing!? Don’t you have any pride!?”

“You’re a really annoying bastard. I’m going to kill you for real.”

Lose the decency. Lose your intelligence. Lower your reputation to the third level. In proportion as you do so, they will lower their guard. They will assume that you are an easy scum to deal with.

The man in front of you is more than 90% likely to have judged it to be a trap and chosen to intervene on that basis.

That’s why it increases the possibility of “what if”. Shadow your thoughts. The slightest hesitation becomes deadly poison.

“It’s about the whole thing. Why did you bother chasing me all the way to this place? What the hell are you doing? Don’t tell me you want me to mix with you? You’re a creepy old man. Go to a whorehouse or something.”

“No! A girl around the same age as my child is being attacked! Adults are supposed to try to help!!”

“I’m not interested in such beautiful things!! Don’t you understand that you should stay out of this before you get hurt?”

Gradually put more and more heat into your words. Make it seem as if you are in the heat of an argument.

The consciousness is directed at you. The more obvious it is, the more it makes you think there is a gap.

“There’s even a sword here!? In this situation, you’re proudly acting as an ally of justice!! Even the protagonist of a story–“

──At that moment, I heard a small thump from behind me.

He tries to turn around as quickly as possible, but Lute realizes that he still won’t make it in time. It is not even possible to turn around completely. The sight that moved to the edge of his vision was all he needed to realize this.

There was a man with a knife in his hand. Another person who had been following Lute until just now. He was clad in white phosphorescence and was swinging a deadly blade at Natra with tremendous speed.

“──That’s right. If you’re proud of yourself as a divine soldier, you’ll go for it, even if it’s a trap.”

──And the enemy freezes. A step like a flash of light. The gleam of a deadly blade shining silvery white. All of it is trapped in the ice of concepts faster than it makes sense.

“”Stupid ……!?”

The man lets out a startle mixed with a scream. It was as if he was confessing to being an accomplice, but even so, it must have slipped out.

“I was completely caught off guard. No, you thought it wouldn’t be a problem even if everything was a trap. You were just trying to get a good look at the situation…That’s right. If I have power comparable to a tactical class magician, I will do the same.”

Lute laughed at that reaction. He sarcastically said it was natural.

A tactical class magician. A strong man who single-handedly determines the course of the battlefield. Heroes who are truly the strongest of mankind, except for a bug in the world called demi-god status.

Its power is great. He will overcome all obstacles and lead his allies to victory. He will mow down many soldiers and pave the way.

“That’s why it’s easy to read. I knew that if I led them on like this, they would surely come on board. The more confident they are in their strength, the more they will resort to it in the end. They will try to smash you head-on, regardless of whether it’s a trap or not.”

Let me restate. If it’s a place that’s not popular, even the laggards will not hesitate to move.

If there is an easy-to-understand excuse, people will try to take advantage of it.

If great achievements are rolling in front of you, you will be blinded by greed. If you are under pressure, it is even more so.

──But that is not the end of the story. The viciousness of the demi-god, who once played a trick on even the empire, cannot be contained in that level of viciousness.

“Nonsense. It is foolish to try to rely on force in the lap of a more powerful monster. This outcome is inevitable.”

At the same time as those words, Lute’s appearance changed.

Hair blue. His eyes are blue. And he wears a fearsome supremacy.

The figure that deviates from the framework of a living being is that of a transcendent being called a demi-god, as spoken of in this world.

“W-that figure is…!? You’re that ice god!!”

“That’s right. Now you understand. You’ve all reached your dead end.”

“All of this was in the palm of your hand!!”

The man, or rather the Republic agent, grunted. They understood that they were completely backed into a corner.

From the beginning, they knew the whole thing was a trap. Everything from their visit to the Triston Trading Company to the assault that took place in this alleyway.

The initial rough relationship was to avoid unnecessary razzmatazz through conversation. And to make them feel comfortable when they move on to the assault.

They also read the purpose of what followed. Ninety-nine percent of the time, they knew they were being invited. They knew that we had an unspoken intention of calling.

He then took advantage of the invitation. He decided that with the power of the divine soldier, a powerful card, he would be able to break through the elaborate trap.

“I never thought that the existence of the divine soldiers had already been exposed…!!”

─ ─ Without realizing that it was Lute’s true aim to make him think that way.

In conclusion, everything about Natra is fake. The poisons scattered about are only the essence to add thickness to the fakery.

What was truly important was not to let people think that there was a demi-god here. If anything, the three bottom moves I had just made were closer to the real hit.

With the divine soldiers, there would be no problem. Once he was able to convince them of this, Lute’s goal was achieved.

Because they were determined and chose to take a hard-line approach. Because that much trust had been placed in the divine army.

“The cause of your defeat. You misread my personality.”

A new imperial guardian who holds the title of Grand Duke actively participates as a decoy to hunt spies, and does not hesitate to execute even third-tier moves from dishonorable crimes.

No, before that, he often wandered around the city hiding his identity, and in the process, he discovered the hidden divine soldiers.

It would be a fine play by Lute, but at least if they had read through Lute’s character, they might have been aware of it regarding the exposure of the divine soldier.

There’s probably one reason why it didn’t work. It was because they thought of Lute’s reported unrestrainedness based on his position as a “nobleman’.

“Now then. That’s the end of the chatter. Well then, you dog of the Republic state who can’t even wait properly. It’s time for you to go to bed in your cold kennel.”

“wait……!!”

With these words as his last, the man was trapped in a prison of ice, cursing his own bad behavior.

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