I Am a Villain, So What?-Chapter 115: Aftermath [2]

"...We’re withdrawing," Tony rasped, his voice sounding like gravel grinding together. "There’s nothing more to gain here."

I tilted my head, putting on my best mask of innocent confusion.

"Nothing more to gain? Captain, what about the Conquest Token? The loot?"

Tony stopped. He looked at me, his eyes dead.

"Do I have to spell it out for you to understand, you useless baggage?" he spat. "It means someone else beat us to it. The Boss Room was empty. Pack your things."

"What? No way!"

I gasped, covering my mouth in mock horror.

"Who would do such a thing? Who could possibly be faster than the elite Iron Fangs?"

"..."

As I delivered my Oscar-worthy performance, the way Alicia looked at me evolved. It went from ’You are evil’ to ’You are literal trash.’

In contrast, Tony just glared at me with annoyance and waved his hand dismissively.

"Shut up. Just get moving."

He didn’t suspect me. Not for a second.

To him, it was impossible. A first-year Academy cadet and a maid? Taking down an Area Guardian? It was more likely that a dragon flew in and ate it.

’Perfect.’

That ’perception’ was my greatest shield.

I sighed and checked my watch again.

’Check one complete. Now for check two.’

Until the World Event manifested... there were exactly ten seconds left.

"Let’s go," Tony grumbled, leading his limping team toward the exit. "I’m going to find out which guild stole our kill and I’m going to burn their—"

VMMMMMM.

The air suddenly screamed.

Space wavered abruptly in front of the subjugation team. It wasn’t a monster spawning. It was a tear in reality.

A vertical line of white light appeared, widening into a swirling vortex.

[Spatial Transfer Gate]

The eyes of everyone who saw it widened.

"Group Spatial Transfer? Inside the Tower?"

"Who the hell are they...?"

Murmurs of fear ripped through the Iron Fangs.

Inside a Tower, space was locked. Teleport scrolls didn’t work. Return stones didn’t work. The only entity capable of forcing a gate open inside a Dungeon was...

The Hunter Association.

Men in black tactical uniforms poured out of the gate. They moved with military precision, surrounding us in seconds. On their chests was the golden emblem of the Scale and Sword.

"The Association...?" Tony stepped back, pale. "Why on earth are they here?"

"Is something big happening?"

"There was a huge vibration a little while ago," one of his subordinates whispered. "Maybe the Tower is collapsing?"

A man with silver hair and a sharp, bureaucratic face stepped forward from the formation. He adjusted his glasses, scanning the group cold ly.

Inspector Graves.

"Inspector from the Central Hunter Association," he announced, his voice amplified by magic. "We are responding to a localized Mana Calamity Event."

He looked at Tony.

"Are you the Subjugation Team registered to this floor?"

The voice was clearly not friendly. It was the voice of a man looking for someone to blame.

Tony swallowed hard. No matter how tough the Iron Fangs were, the Hunter Association was the law. They managed the licenses, the banks, and the deepest, darkest jails in the Empire.

"W-We think there’s been some mistake, Inspector," Tony stammered, putting on an awkward, ingratiating smile that looked terrified on his scarred face. "We were just surveying! We barely made it to the top. Someone else dealt with the Area Guardian first, so it was a complete bust for us. We didn’t touch anything!"

Inspector Graves smirked. It wasn’t a nice smile. It was the smile of a wolf looking at a limping sheep.

"Is that so?"

"Yes! So I don’t know who you’re looking for, but we are just victims here—"

"Restrain them."

"No, what?! Wait—!"

"I said restrain them!"

Before Tony could finish his protest, the black-clad Association personnel moved.

Thud. Click.

In the blink of an eye, the entire subjugation team was forced to the ground, mana-suppression cuffs locking onto their wrists.

Alicia and I were also forced to our knees. Alicia flinched, her hand instinctively moving toward her weapon, but I caught her gaze instantly.

’Stay still.’

’...’

Seeing her obediently kneel, I lowered my head, playing the part of the terrified civilian.

Inspector Graves looked down at Tony, who was struggling against the boot on his back, and spoke with a stern expression.

"An enormous mana reaction just occurred in this vicinity," Graves announced, his voice amplified by magic. "If it had been left alone, a Mana Calamity capable of blowing away the entire 18th Floor would have occurred. And the Association’s Observation Department speculates that the main cause was ’tampering’ by the humans who entered the Area Guardian’s region."

Well, he was right.

However, the impending explosion was a natural part of the Hidden Quest progression. But the Association, in their bureaucracy, had defined it as a negligent terrorist activity.

In other words: Mr. Tony and his subordinates were being framed for a crime they didn’t even know how to commit.

The reason Tony was desperately making excuses was probably because he realized his career was flashing before his eyes.

"But we didn’t do anything...!" Tony screamed, spit flying from his mouth.

"We’ll hear about that slowly during the interrogation," Graves sneered, kicking Tony in the ribs. "Besides, it seems you just lied. Didn’t you?"

"W-What?"

"The only Hunters who entered this floor today were your team. And someone definitely killed the Area Guardian and took the Conquest Token. If not you, then who the hell was it?"

Graves pointed at Tony’s battered armor.

"Judging by your state, it looks like you just came from a hell of a battle. You fought the Guardian, triggered the mechanism, looted the Core, and tried to run before it blew up. Am I wrong?"

"Th-that’s...! That was the minions! The stairs!"

’It was the two porters right there!’

That was probably what he wanted to scream. But who would believe him?

As I thought that to myself and let out a purely internal smirk, the Inspector gestured to his men.

"Gag them. Throw them into the portal."

The agents grabbed the ashen-faced Tony and his team.

Well. The other side of that portal was the Association’s Interrogation Room. A place famous for leaving a deep, lasting impression on the guests who visited.

’...Boss? Aren’t we in big trouble?!’ Alicia projected her panic at me. ’They’re taking us too!’

’I told you to stay still.’

As an agent grabbed my shoulder to haul me up, he paused.

"...Cadet?"

The agent’s gaze was fixed on the ID card pinned to my vest. It wasn’t the standard Hunter License. It was platinum-edged with the Royal Crest.

[Imperial Academy - Student ID]

The agent froze.

It was almost unheard of for a first-year cadet to participate in a high-ranking subjugation team without an instructor present. The Academy protected its students fiercely. Arresting one without cause was a political minefield.

"Inspector. There seems to be a problem."

"...What now?" Graves asked, annoyed.

"There seems to be an Academy Cadet here. And... he is just a first-year."

"What?" Graves turned around, his eyebrows shooting up. "What is a kid doing in a place like this?"

As the Inspector walked over, I immediately opened my mouth at the perfect timing. I let my voice tremble just enough.

"Sir... we just wanted to experience real battle."

I looked up at him with wide, innocent eyes.

"We joined as porters for the Iron Fangs to learn. But... we wanted to quit. When we saw how dangerous it was, we tried to leave. But they... they forced us to stay."

"What?" Graves’ expression darkened. "Forced you?"

"What kind of bullshit are you—MPH! MMMMPH!"

Tony, currently gagged, thrashed violently, his eyes bulging.

I ignored him and reached into my pocket with a shaking hand.

"I... I was scared, so I recorded it. Just in case something happened to us."

I pulled out a small, blue Audio Crystal. It was an item I had been carrying since I joined this party, recording every nasty thing Tony said.

Click.

I played it.

"Useless freeloaders are only useful when used as meat shields like this!"

"I said go, didn’t I? Are you deaf? If you don’t like it, I’ll file a report for insubordination!"

"You guys stay outside and guard the luggage. You useless pieces of shit. If the supplies are missing, I’m docking your pay!"

The silence that followed was deafening.

As the faces of the subjugation team turned the color of ash, Inspector Graves’ face grew grim. The other Association agents looked at Tony with pure disgust.

"...Come to think of it, I’ve heard of this," Graves muttered, his voice cold as ice. "There’s a piece of trash in the Hunting Alliance who repeatedly forces novices and cadets into deadly situations to use as bait. His name was... Tony, was it?"

"MMMMPH! MMMM!" (Translation: No! It’s a misunderstanding!)

Graves didn’t even look at him.

"Illegal coercion of a minor. Endangerment of an Academy Cadet. And causing a Mana Calamity."

Graves waved his hand dismissively.

"Get this trash out of my sight. We’ll listen to his excuses in a holding cell."

With those words, Tony and his subordinates were thrown unceremoniously into the portal. Their fate was sealed.

Inspector Graves turned to me and Alicia, his expression softening into sympathy.

"You really went through a lot," he said, helping me stand up. "I’m sorry for almost arresting you. I didn’t know you were victims."

"No... we should be the ones thanking you, Inspector," I said, bowing politely. "We were saved thanks to you. Otherwise, we really might have died here."

"..."

Alicia stood up next to me. Her gaze was indescribable. She looked at the portal where Tony had vanished, then at my pitiful face. She looked like she wanted to scream, ’He’s the villain! Arrest him!’ but she wisely kept her mouth shut.

"W-Wait! Inspector! Inspector!"

While Alicia and I were enveloped in such a heartwarming atmosphere, someone from the Association’s technical team shouted in a desperate voice.

Graves turned around, annoyed again.

"What is it? You look like you’ve seen the end of the world."

The technician pointed at the sky of the Prismatic Plains.

"The Mana Readings! They aren’t going down! They’re shifting! Something else is coming!"

Well, Inspector.

That joke about the end of the world? It seems to have some bite to it.

I let out an inward smirk.

Yes.