NOVEL WEB Chapter 69
What should I even say to that guy? Should I just kill him? But then I’d be facing a disaster myself, wouldn’t I? A million thoughts raced through my mind in that brief moment.
No, more importantly, why the heck is that guy even here? He was just keeping his spot a moment ago…!
“…Blanca? Is that person… an enemy?”
“Ah, no! Not an enemy, so don’t even think about attacking! This person is… um…”
I panicked and tried to cover it up, but I couldn’t think of how to introduce them at all.
My brain felt like a balloon that had just inflated, and I couldn’t come up with any thoughts. Boss of the Liberator? Not a chance.
If I say family, it contradicts what I said to Minho. And friends? I feel like even that guy wouldn’t buy it.
I couldn’t even refer to them as a friendly uncle; that would feel too awkward on my part.
Even though I forced myself to calm down by releasing some sedatives, still no ideas popped into my head.
Jinhyeon, puzzled by my state, asked why I couldn’t simply state who they were if they weren’t an enemy, while slowly revealing animosity toward that person.
That guy.
“Sorry for the late introduction. This is Ortolang. Ah, you probably don’t understand from just that. I suppose I should say he’s the… um, the boss of Blanca?”
“Boss?”
“Yeah. He’s the boss of the ‘pharmaceutical company’ Blanca mentioned to you guys. He was just discussing some business with Blanca.”
“He was talking about luck and stuff, though.”
“…Blanca, really?”
Jinhyeon still looked a bit skeptical, glancing at that person and then asking me.
Ah. So you remembered. When I was preparing for the Sports Festival in a suit, I used to visit that person’s hotel room daily to relieve some stress.
Every time, I would tell them about what had been happening and my friendships, and apparently, they listened to every word.
“…Guess there’s no more to hide. Yeah. This person is the boss.”
Once Jinhyeon agreed with me, he dropped his hostility. But he still stared at that person in confusion, as if he had no idea what was going on.
“But it’s strange. Back then, it seemed like things weren’t that good between you…”
“Looks like you hid it again despite saying it was okay to reveal, huh, Blanca?”
That person placed a kind hand on my shoulder and looked at me warmly. “It’s okay to say. Hiding.”
What did I tell the others back then? Ain. Not using it. Coming to catch me.
With my mind racing like crazy, I scrambled to come up with a response.
“…How do I say this? If I say that Ain is working at the pharmaceutical company, the sales might drop drastically.”
After finally grasping that person’s intention and aligning my words accordingly, Jinhyeon seemed to be completely confused.
“Blanca. Can you tell that kid why you thought that?”
“…Yeah. Jinhyeon, this is just between us. Got it?”
“Uh, yeah.”
“Phew… Where do I even start… So, you know I was saved by Justitia, right?”
As I started, I fabricated a nonexistent past once again.
“Even though there was support from Justitia… who would take care of a girl named Ain without parents?”
Jinhyeon looked uncomfortable with the dark story but stayed and listened to my narrative.
“So, I grew up facing all sorts of discrimination and contempt, which made me seriously hate being born as Ain. Then, around middle school, I met the boss.”
“I remember the day I first met Blanca. She was walking down the street all battered with wounds I couldn’t even pinpoint, and for some reason, it really caught my attention that day.”
“Such a… past…”
That person added some context to my story at intervals, making it impossible for Jinhyeon to doubt.
“I met someone who didn’t care about me being Ain and just looked at me. If the boss hadn’t been there, I’m sure I would have gone astray.”
I didn’t mention which pharmaceutical company it was, not wanting to trouble that person.
Once I finished speaking, that person added one last line.
“I was worried if a kid lacking self-esteem could make friends, but look, you even made a friend who worries about you. What a relief.”
“Well… I thought the boss you mentioned was a bad person… but surprisingly, they’re a good one.”
“It’s like having a father figure for me. Ah, but don’t tell the others. I don’t want my presence to decrease the company’s profits.”
“Got it, Blanca.”
Even as I smiled internally at how we were still judging good and evil, I went down the stairs with Jinhyeon.
As soon as we arrived at the Player Waiting Room, I saw Minho, who had effortlessly crushed Asad and was chatting with Seolhwa.
“Blanca. And Jinhyeon too. Did you two discuss anything?”
Jinhyeon was about to speak without a thought, but as I tapped his knee with my tail, he snapped back to reality and claimed it wasn’t anything.
“So, what was all that serious talk about?”
“Nothing much; Seolhwa was just saying that the tournament might turn into a deathmatch between the A class.”
“Not exactly wrong. With the most A class members left in both the Hunter and Hero classes, it makes sense.”
Yeonhwa appeared out of nowhere, grabbing Jinhyeon’s hand.
Not that I intended to snatch it away.
“B-but still, let’s not go easy on each other. We’re all seriously aiming for the top.”
“That’s a given, Lapiz.”
Both Minho and Jinhyeon were fired up, but I couldn’t muster the same enthusiasm.
– – – –
In the round of 32, my opponent was Lionel Morgan.
“Cat, it’s nice to see you again!”
Still riding high from our hostage rescue training, he flashed a triumphant smile and threw a punch at me.
I wasn’t too thrilled about it, but I couldn’t decipher what was amusing him.
I tried to dodge lightly and jab at his torso with my tail, but for some reason, I didn’t even leave a scratch.
This is some serious shape-shifting; it’s incredibly sturdy.
“Sorry. I’m not really in the mood to fight today. I’ll finish this quickly.”
But that was also the limitation of the shape-shifter.
If the shape-shifted body possesses no real abilities, it’s just sturdy and strong.
From a chemical standpoint, the shape-shifting and Ain races had inherent weaknesses.
“Ha! You’re going to use that euphoria, right? Sorry, but it won’t work on me anymore!”
Despite that, Morgan strutted in with an air of confidence, swinging his front paw as he babbled on about his plans.
“I found out that euphoria is a substance called Nepetalactone! And it reacts only to olfactory cells!”
So, as long as I breathe through my mouth, I won’t be affected… he boasted boldly.
Should I call that stupid or naive? That smugness left me momentarily speechless.
“Oh, really.”
That’s what you think. I dodged again and dove into his space, covering his face with my palm.
Then, I released sleep gas with a hiss.
That was the end. After a few moments of rambling and stumbling for several seconds, Morgan collapsed flat on the ground, completely out cold.
Afterwards, to show I truly had his life in my hands, I lightly scratched his thick neck with my claws, drawing blood.
Finally, the referee declared my victory.
Poor Morgan; it seems he has such terrible luck. Even if he had slightly less strength, if he had some drug resistance, I would not have won so easily.
Moreover, he only meets me in fights with strange luck; perhaps the unluckiest one here is actually him.
That just goes to show, the one considered unlucky by that person is me.
“B-BL Blanca… y-you’re really strong…”
“I’m not strong; it’s just that the human species is weak.”
Responding to Lapiz, who stood in the hallway, I encouraged her to do her best since she was up next.
“Yeah! I’ll do my best! I want to face Blanca properly!”
Lapiz spoke clearly and confidently without hesitating.
But… whether she can achieve her dream remains somewhat questionable.
Because her opponent was none other than Im Changwon.