The S-Rank Character Is My Alt

Chapter 5: Shin Bitnari (4)

“Please! That’s not what I came here to say! Just listen to me. In Korean, you’re supposed to hear people out until the end! Right?”

“…”

At Kang Ihyun’s words, Lude fell silent for a moment.

‘Huh, now that I think about it… did he… ever get to actually finish his sentences…?’

[Nope, our dear Nari always cuts him off halfway~ teases the Lord of Chaos.]

‘...I might’ve done that maybe…’

Feeling slightly guilty, Lude glanced at the priest and finally spoke.

“…Kang Ihyun, right?”

“Yes…”

His face showed utter injustice. Lude looked at him again, this time with a faint trace of guilt.

“...S-So what exactly is it you want to say? You should start with the main point!”

“I’m saying… I can help you, Lude! I want to help you!”

Kang Ihyun tapped his chest a few times, looking desperate. Lude blinked in surprise. That was not something he expected to hear.

“…Why?”

“Listen! Your dark power harms people’s minds, but my holy power can cancel that out. If we act together, most of your restrictions would basically disappear. So…”

“Wait, b-but why me? Aren’t you with the Sanctuary? Also we just met, you know?”

“Excuse me…”

The stage three boss, the Lady of White Roses, had drawn close. A heated argument between the rank one and rank two Hunters had suddenly broken out right in front of her. She tried to step in, but was ignored.

“Oh! You’re right… we did just meet…”

“Exactly! I’m really thrown off right now, you know?”

“I’m sorry… I just like you so much. Every time I saw you in action I wanted to support you. I guess that built a sense of closeness and I slipped…”

“…Wait. You’re really my fan?”

“Guys? There’s a monster here… hello?”

The Lady of White Roses stared blankly at the shy priest and the slightly flustered but secretly pleased Lude.

What are they doing, a blind date?

“Hunters? This is a gate. You’re not here for blind date. Hello?”

“So you weren’t here to preach, and you really meant to help?”

“Yes! If we work together, we’d both benefit. I’m such a huge fan I’ve studied every day how I could best support you!”

“And you’re telling me this here? Inside a gate?”

“I-I’m sorry. If not here, I would never have the chance to meet you. And… a-as I said, I already feel close to you…”

“Excuse me? I’m the third stage boss. Once you beat me, the true boss shows up, remember?”

“Alright, fine. I get it, but try to think of it from my shoes. If you say it like that, wouldn’t it make you feel bad? Hmm? Try to phrase it better next time. Also your effort is commendable, but I don’t cooperate with other Hunters.”

“I-I’m sorry. I must have been too hasty… But I really mean it… agh!”

Slap!

The sharp slapping sound echoed as Kang Ihyun’s head whipped to the side. He turned without being able to finish his sentence.

“When a monster talks, you’re supposed to look at her!”

The Lady of White Roses glared at him, her face flushed red and green.

“Ah, my bad. Without the hostages, you really don’t amount to much, so I forgot.”

“What the hell! I was saying something far more important than you!”

Kang Ihyun held his cheek in frustration, while Lude looked genuinely forgetful. The Lady of White Roses fumed.

“You’re looking down on me just because this is a class four gate?!”

“Mhm.”

“L-Lude! That’s too harsh, you’ll hurt her feelings…”

“Hey! Blondie, what you just said hurt even more! You bastards! I won’t forgive you!”

Her white roses turned red, and blood-colored vines burst from beneath her dress.

“Looks like she’s preparing for her ultimate.”

“S-Seems so…”

“Father, Master, look upon me! Look at these arrogant fools! Look how they trust a dim-witted being to the end!”

[Exclusive skill of the Lady of White Roses :: I Believe in You Alone.]

The vines writhing under her skin tore out, blooming white petals even wider. Blood welled where the stems broke through.

“But do not worry, Father. I will take everything you left behind! I will inherit your wish. Everything you gave…!”

The droplets of blood fell to the ground. From the open petals, red energy seeped like smoke, the very opposite of holy light, the essence of evil.

The blood soaking the floor began to swell and take form.

Horns sprouted, batlike wings spread, and soulless red eyes glared from the creatures that emerged. They looked like demons from an old painting.

“Sigh… What a hassle.”

Lude rubbed his neck, wanting nothing more than to finish quickly and go home. He looked at Kang Ihyun and spoke.

“Hey.”

“Yes?”

“You take care of this. I’ll handle the boss.”

“…What?!”

“You said you wanted to assist me. Then you should prove your skill.”

“No, that’s not what I meant… ah!! W-Where did he go?!”

Clang! Kang Ihyun blocked a demon’s spear at the last second and hurled it aside. He glanced around. Lude was gone.

“…I guess I have no choice...”

His cheeks flushed faintly. Prove his skill to be allowed to assist?

‘Does that mean… if I prove myself, he’ll work with me?’

[The Constellation, Staff of Purification, shakes its head at your delusion.]

“Then I’ll have to clear this quickly and prove it!”

Kang Ihyun drew his sword across his palm. Blood ran down, and as he brushed it along the blade, it ignited in golden flame.

[Trait :: Unquenchable Flame activates!]

His sword blazed with eternal fire. Just its presence silenced the evil aura. The Lady of White Roses countered, flaring her own red aura.

“Your flame cannot stop me. We are always beside you! In every step you take, I am hidden! At all times!”

[Trait :: Master of Good and Evil activates!]

[Holy power gathers around you.]

Golden light shimmered, like fireflies in the night. It was a beautiful sight.

“In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit…”

Kang Ihyun pulled out his cross necklace and drew the sign over his chest. The wound on his palm had already closed.

“Amen!”

[Priest basic skill :: Formula Trinitaria]

“Kyahhh!”

Light spread. The red aura vanished first from around him, then throughout the stage. The blood vines whitened, the transformed monsters reverted, and beasts clawing from the stems disappeared.

Only the Lady of White Roses and a few weakened demons remained. The air shimmered with golden light.

No monster could easily cover such power with malice again. The battle had already shifted in Kang Ihyun’s favor. And all with a single basic skill.

“Now then…”

He raised his flaming sword, his blue eyes shining with eagerness. He almost looked like a child desperate for his teacher’s approval.

“Shall we begin!”

* * *

“Good grief, what a clingy weirdo…”

[Still, he doesn’t seem like a bad guy, shrugs the Lord of Chaos.]

Lude sighed, brushing off his arm as he stepped through the spatial rift into the mansion.

‘Some golden retriever of a young master just stuck himself to me…’

This strange guy wanted to help all of a sudden… but Lude could not fathom why.

[Judging from your reaction, it seems like you do like his looks, says the Lord of Chaos with a shrug.]

“No, he has too much spirit. I prefer someone more fragile, like they might cry if I just give them the lightest insult…”

Ignoring the intrusive messages that said “What a taste you have…”, Lude walked down the grim corridor.

“Hm, anyway.”

He wiped monster blood from his cheek with his sleeve, then flicked more from his half-scissors.

Armored monsters lay slain all around. The corridor was half destroyed. Only Lude stood radiating dark power, surveying the mountain of corpses.

“Am I done here?”

[None survived nearby, nods the Lord of Chaos.]

“This is all such a pain... I have to clean these scissors every time or they’ll rust.”

He clicked his tongue and sighed. Monsters near the boss’s chamber always had higher ranks, and they swarmed him the moment he entered.

With a snap of his fingers, their dropped items flew into his inventory.

“They fall with just basic skills… yet still they dare to charge at me.”

[That’s because you’re rank one, says the Lord of Chaos while shaking head.]

Illusionists were never meant to lead the front lines as such a thing seemed impossible. They were supposed to support from the back.

But Lude, manipulating explosive dark power with delicate control through dreams and fear, was the only Illusionist in the world who could fight solo.

“Oh, but that priest… Why didn’t Kang Ihyun fall for my honey trap skill? It works on everyone regarding gender. Did he just not find me his type?”

Tastes varied, but in the face of overwhelming beauty, everyone reacted at least a little. That was why the honey trap was considered a gamble of a skill.

But Kang Ihyun had shown no reaction at all. Lude frowned and asked his constellation’s patron. A black message popped up.

[There are some who simply aren’t affected at all, says the Lord of Chaos.]

“Oh, really? Like who?”

[Wait a second, says the Lord of Chaos, preparing a powerpoint presentation.]

An image popped up in front of Lude. A blue otter mascot floated on a background crowded with crude fonts.

“…You seriously can’t design well huh.”

It looked like a nightmare group project. Lude clicked his tongue while the Lord of Chaos spammed crying emojis. He dismissed them and read.

「  Criteria for immunity to Honey Trap!

1. Someone so far from your type it’s laughable (includes devout priests!).

2. Someone already so infatuated with you they don’t care if you use it or not.

3. Someone who doesn’t value outward appearance at all.」

“That priest obviously must be the first type. No wonder it didn’t work... Good to know. Thanks.”

[Doesn’t really seem like he fits that, says the Lord of Chaos with a shrug.]

“Anyway, I’m here.”

Lude sighed, stepping past the mountain of corpses. He had reached the boss chamber.

The deepest room of the mansion, the cult leader’s bedchamber.

“Strange that the boss’s lair is a mansion and not a temple…”

But the gates were always unpredictable. He pushed open the massive door. The hinges groaned as the white door swung wide.

[You encounter the class four gate boss monster :: The White Prophet of Fate!]

The boss’s chamber slowly opened. When Lude took a step forward, he opened his eyes widely in shock.

“…What is this?”