Why Is Everyone in This Dating Sim Trying to Kill Me?!

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Translator: Vine

Chapter Title: Perfect Timing (1)

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Ryu Jinju's eyes widened at the black-clad figure in the dog mask who had suddenly appeared before her, then her face twisted as she gritted her teeth.

"You said you had nothing personal against me...?"

"Yeah, well. Not yet."

"...Just who the hell are you?"

"Huh?"

"...What did you do with all the staff?"

"Hmm, they're probably sleeping soundly."

"Put them to sleep, huh... Is that so. So that's it..."

Ha... Hahahaha!!!!!

Ryu Jinju burst into hearty laughter.

But the meaning behind it was closer to a hollow despair.

'Right, the operation had already begun. It was already too late.'

The informant who had risked their life to tell her the truth about the Hunter Bureau.

They must have noticed something strange going on and desperately tried to get the information to her.

But all of this was already in the palm of her opponent's hand.

'The informant was already being watched. That's why they tracked the package the informant sent and came here...'

The basis for this assumption was solid.

Otherwise, this suspicious fellow wouldn't have appeared as if on cue the moment she received the information.

"So, who is it?"

"Huh?"

The dog mask, with its tongue sticking out, tilted its head to the side.

"Who's behind you? Is it Kim Jiwon?"

"Kim Jiwon? Ah, the Hunter Bureau Director. That person! Hmm, I don't really know them? I just know the name."

Hah.

Ryu Jinju let out a hollow laugh at the utterly nonchalant voice.

'Trying to deny it...? Your true intentions are painfully obvious.'

The situation was dire.

All her subordinates had been dealt with, and the fact that this guy appeared here meant that Kim Jiwon must have been privy to the entire situation.

However, if she could catch this guy, there might still be a chance.

'He dealt with all my subordinates through a sneak attack, then showed himself to me. Could he possibly have wanted to see my reaction?'

She didn't know where this assassin had been trained, but he was making a mistake now.

'He's just a man, after all. And from his voice, he sounds quite young.'

Right, there was no reason for her to lose.

"Let's stop talking and fight. I don't exactly have time to spare either."

A glance.

Jin Yuha spoke, seeing the fox mask move behind Ryu Jinju, busily gathering papers.

*

As Jin Yuha appeared and stood in confrontation with Ryu Jinju, engaging in conversation.

Ma-in Slayer Unit 5, the woman in the fox mask, managed to erase her presence, move behind Ryu Jinju, and secure the papers she had been looking at.

She immediately moved to the empty space in the ceiling and handed the stack of papers to Baek Seolhee.

"Leader, these are the things Ryu Jinju was just looking at."

Baek Seolhee took the papers.

Currently, a bulldog mask with round eyeholes was placed over her face.

"Hmm..."

Flap—

Flap—

Baek Seolhee began to examine the ledgers Ryu Jinju had been looking at, turning them page by page.

"Leader, but can our youngest handle that guy?"

The fox mask glanced down below, her voice tinged with worry.

"He's not the youngest."

Baek Seolhee, still fixated on the documents, cut her off dismissively.

"No, Ryu Jinju isn't someone to be underestimated. It seems like even a new member would have trouble dealing with her... Shouldn't we help him now?"

Rustle.

Baek Seolhee raised her head and looked at the fox mask.

"You think my disciple can't handle a mere person like that?"

Baek Seolhee's eyes behind the bulldog mask grew unpleasantly cold.

At this, the fox mask waved her hands in a fluster.

"Oh, no. No, that's not what I meant... It's just, don't we have limited time right now? It's good to check on the youngest's skills, but we can do that later, and if we delay too much, it'll be difficult to move on to the next stage..."

"Time will be fine. The Hunter Bureau won't have time to worry about this place. The timing was absolutely perfect."

Baek Seolhee chuckled, flapping the manipulated list of corrupt ledgers.

"...Timing? What do you mean?"

"You'll see. And who said my disciple would take a long time against that person?"

"Well, the youngest is still a first-year..."

"He's not the youngest."

Thud. Thud.

Baek Seolhee, who had instantly finished checking all the information, tidied the stack of papers and glanced down below.

"He's my disciple."

*

Swoosh—

Ryu Jinju grabbed the handle of the large greatsword leaning beside her and pointed it towards Jin Yuha.

A ridiculously large greatsword, as tall as a person.

A bulky woman holding it, facing a man holding only a single thin sword.

A strange standoff settled in the office, filled with a suffocating tension.

It was Ryu Jinju who first broke the silence.

WOOSH—!

CRACK!

Her sword struck the ceiling, shattering it, and extended straight down from above.

If this were a normal sparring match, Ryu Jinju would have yielded the first move.

After all, she was the Head of the Gate Field Management Department, affiliated with the Hunter Bureau.

Her reputation and pride were too high to give her best against a seemingly delicate man.

However, time was of the essence now, and there was no need to extend such courtesies to a suspicious, masked individual.

The long, ridiculously large greatsword shattered the ceiling.

Despite its size, the unleashed blade descended towards Jin Yuha's face in the blink of an eye.

Just as that overwhelming mass seemed to bear down, threatening to crush Jin Yuha's head whole.

Jin Yuha's Moonlight moved.

CLANG—!!

Jin Yuha swung his blue sword, deflecting the charging greatsword to the side.

But the sword he held was so thin it seemed as though it would have no effect whatsoever.

And as feared, Jin Yuha's sword merely slightly altered the greatsword's trajectory;

Ryu Jinju's sword still rapidly closed the distance to Jin Yuha without slowing down.

The anomaly occurred then.

CLANG!

CLANG! CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!!!!

Short, sharp sounds rang out in quick succession,

and simultaneously, the incoming sword strike twisted diagonally.

CRASHHHHH—!!!

A deafening explosion that shook the ground.

Ryu Jinju's sword dug deep into the floor, creating a long gash.

However, only a few strands of Jin Yuha's hair were cut; his body remained without a single scratch.

"...!"

Just a simple exchange of first moves.

But those watching in hiding couldn't help but widen their eyes.

"...Wow, what was that?!"

"Crazy, the new guy... The youngest is going to get a pecking order established as soon as he joins, isn't he?"

"Clearly, Ryu Jinju seems stronger, but... he's deflecting it with speed and frequency..."

"What Leader always said about being worse than a first-year academy student was true."

"...We need to train the kids harder."

Exclamations of admiration whispered from various directions.

These were all Ma-in Slayer members, elites who had gone through Baek Seolhee's hellish training.

Therefore, they possessed the insight to evaluate how clean Jin Yuha's sword path was just now, and how high-level the method he used to parry it was.

Among them, the woman in the squirrel mask stammered in a timid voice.

"...But, even so, wouldn't it be hard to win...?"

Then the other animal masks also nodded in agreement, responding with skeptical voices.

"Winning is difficult. Even if it's possible."

"Hmm, if he aims for the opening well, he might be able to defeat her with luck..."

"But it'll still take quite some time, won't it?"

"Hmm, just watch."

Baek Seolhee dismissed their worries in a calm voice,

and the Ma-in Slayer members adjusted their postures, resuming their observation of the two's battle.

As her first attack returned without effect, Ryu Jinju bit her lip and swung her sword once more.

WOOSH—!

CLANG! CLANG! CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!

This time, too, five attacks met her single sword strike, parrying it.

At the sight, Ryu Jinju inwardly gasped in admiration.

'He has skill... His sword is chillingly precise, his posture flexible, and his sword path is clean, making his sword speed fast.'

It was praise almost bordering on adulation for her opponent.

But that was all.

The difference was still clear.

She swung her sword once, whereas her opponent swung it five times.

'Is he going to keep responding like this...'

Ryu Jinju's lips curled up.

'I've won.'

Though the match hadn't concluded yet, she was certain.

A man's body couldn't sustain this indefinitely.

Ultimately, she would have the advantage in stamina and strength.

In other words, the efficiency was different.

Wishing to end the battle quickly, Ryu Jinju drew even more mana, channeling it into the tip of her sword.

WOOSH—!!

CRACKLE!!!

The horizontally swung sword shattered office furniture as it swept towards her opponent.

Her opponent again met the attack with overlapping sword strikes.

CLANG! CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!!!

Suddenly, Ryu Jinju's brow furrowed.

Something felt off, different from before.

And soon, she realized the nature of that strange feeling.

It was the number of parrying sword strikes.

'One... decreased?'

The clang of metal, which had previously sounded five times, had now reduced to four.

Ryu Jinju dismissed it as a coincidence, amplifying her mana even further and channeling it into the sword tip.

"HAAAAAH!!"

With a battle cry, profound mana imbued the sword tip, launching towards her opponent.

A powerful strike, as if to cleave her opponent's body in half.

However.

WOOSH—

CLANG—! CLANG! CLANG!

Three metallic clangs rang out.

"...What the hell."

WOOSH—!

CLANG! CLANG!

Two metallic clangs rang out.

"How..."

WOOSH—!

CLANG!!!!

Now, only a single metallic clang rang out.

And the large greatsword came to a complete stop before the thin sword.

Silence descended.

"..."

Soon, all composure vanished from Ryu Jinju's face.

As if seeing the incomprehensible.

Her eyes, filled with dread, stared at her opponent.

"...How can this be?"