The Villain is Too Good at Sniping

94. Hunting (3)

Late at night, Silvia Refferd carefully climbed the stairs.

She had forgotten to deliver a document before the pre-hunt briefing tomorrow, so she had to come out.

However, time was a problem.

It was already close to midnight, and even the bars that stayed open late were starting to receive their last orders. The proud Elysium nightlife was gradually losing its luster.

“Are you not sleeping yet?”

Rebecca, who often stayed up late, wouldn’t have fallen asleep yet even though it was late.

It’s a bother, but there’s an urgent matter that can’t be helped.

Rebecca’s manager was needed, and the news had to be quickly delivered to the exhibition hall side as well.

Silvia Leifer checked her watch and connected to the student council community while climbing the stairs.

“Not yet…”

Rebecca’s name showed “online” with a green light next to it, which was a relief.

Silvia rushed up the stairs to room 505. She was about to knock when…

“?”

A sound similar to a murmur came from the other side of the closed door. Silvia held her hand still, her ear bent to listen.

“Footsteps…?”

She faintly heard footsteps and the sound of utensils being washed in the sink from inside.

The problem was that the faint footsteps didn’t seem to be just one person. There were at least two.

It was unlikely that someone would be walking around and washing dishes, so it was probably two people.

“Uh…?”

As Silvia tilted her head, a scene from earlier that day flashed through her mind.

-Did you have a comfortable week after leaving Arsen?

-No, I don’t think so. I think it was the opposite.

The image of Cion Elleonhart sitting with Rebecca.

“Maybe…”

The two were sitting in the same place, and they were together until they parted ways with Rebecca.

Maybe it’s the same inside…

As Silvia thought this, she pushed open the door and rushed in.

“No way. No way. No way.”

Many thoughts crossed her mind. From Cion’s cold conversation when she contacted him first, a suspicion had formed.

She pretended not to know and headed towards the stairs. She wanted to ask him directly through her watch, but she couldn’t muster the courage.

However, the more she thought about it, the more she recalled Rebecca’s gentle treatment of Cion, and her suspicion turned into conviction.

The conviction that the two might have a special relationship.

“Could it be…?”

Silvia’s face turned bright red.

***

This is a story that took place just a few minutes after the Eliseum defense army arrived at the scene.

“So, it’s Arsen’s student city.”

“Yes.”

“You happened to encounter a chimera, not a monster, and defeated it.”

“It just happened that way.”

A soldier wearing a modernized robe swallowed hard, looking at the half-destroyed Doppleganger.

This being, which resembled a person, had no bones or internal organs.

In the place where its heart should be, a partially destroyed golem core lay scattered.

Although it was hard to admit, it was clear that the chimera that escaped from the tower was defeated by an outsider’s hand, not the Eliseum defense army’s. That much was certain.

I thought my words alone wouldn’t be enough as evidence, but a magician from the Red Magic Tower stepped forward and testified about what had happened until then.

A person who looked exactly like me appeared, emitting an eerie light and trying to devour me.

However, it was clear that the same content was written in an article published by Bloody Arc. Thanks to that, even though an outsider had caused a commotion, the disturbance quickly subsided.

It’s originally like this in this neighborhood, and it’s clear that I had a hand in it.

“Doppelganger… I never thought it really existed.”

“That’s just a scary story, made to intimidate the newbies.”

“Look, it’s clearly made by the Magic Tower. I don’t know who made it, but it’s real.”

Among the murmurs of the urgently dispatched soldiers, the soldier who blocked my path scratched the back of his head.

“Anyway, I’ll report it to the higher-ups.”

“Thank you.”

Only then did the wand-like object that had been pointed at me disappear. To be precise, it was a gun that resembled a wand, and upon closer inspection, it looked like a sword.

After a brief investigation, I was finally free. As a student of Arsen, who raises Hunters, I didn’t have any problems.

Rebecca also finished her investigation around the same time and walked out comfortably.

“Is the investigation over?”

“…I didn’t receive an investigation.”

“What?”

My head instinctively turned around at that moment.

“Does Grandel’s people need a reason to defeat monsters?”

Only then did I remember a forgotten setting.

Grandel is blocking the monsters coming from the north. It’s similar to the Hunter Association, but slightly different. Perhaps it’s more special.

Unlike the Hunter Association, which officially reports and dispatches, Grandel has a monster-slaying license issued directly by the emperor. It’s a recognition of their convenience and achievements.

Since the north is a place where people can’t live and monsters frequently appear, it’s impossible to report every time. Incidents like the Gate are just a part of daily life in the north.

The Doppelganger is not a monster, but if left alone, it would have become something even more terrifying.

Considering Rebecca is from Grandel and a student of Arsen, there are too many factors to consider.

In the end, Rebecca didn’t receive an investigation. Only I did. Thanks to Rebecca’s noble background…

“Then, can I ask why you said you’d take care of it yourself?”

As we were about to return to the dorm, Rebecca spoke up.

“…It’s nothing. There’s nothing grand to say about it.”

“I thought you were worried about me.”

“Are you disappointed now?”

“No.”

Rebecca didn’t say anything, but silently walked forward, looking ahead.

“I guess I was worried, since something bad happened.”

Before the distance between us grew too far, I caught up to Rebecca’s side. Our walking speed seemed to have slowed down a bit.

“It’s not like I wouldn’t have been able to handle it even if I had encountered it, but there’s always a possibility. It’s not good to bring up Rebecca’s bad memories again.”

Again-

“I couldn’t tolerate the existence that follows people like that.”

We soon arrived at the dormitory. Rebecca stopped in front of the door, not opening it, and turned her head slightly to look at me.

“In conclusion, it’s just that I thought I should take care of it myself, that’s all.”

“Is that really it?”

“I told you, there’s no grand reason for it.”

This time, Rebecca opened the door without hesitation.

It was unclear what Rebecca was thinking, but she didn’t say anything beyond what she had already revealed.

Until they reached room 505, there was a brief, awkward silence. But it wasn’t an unbearable atmosphere. They simply didn’t have anything to say, so they didn’t.

[Achievement Unlocked: Fighting Against Oneself]

◇ Reward – Magic +100

***

The next morning, sunlight streamed through the window.

Since they had caught the doppelganger, there was no reason for them to stay in the same room. Rebecca might have thought so, but they didn’t have time to discuss it.

Both of them collapsed onto their beds, exhausted, as soon as they arrived at their dorm.

When Sion woke up, he immediately checked the Eliseum News Journal. The aftermath of the doppelganger incident from the previous night was prominently displayed.

[Unveiling the Truth About the Doppelganger Rumors]

[Midnight Doppelganger Discovery, Defeated by Arsen’s Student…]

[The Rumored ‘Doppelganger’ Proven to Exist…]

He thought there would be around ten articles, but there were more than double that number.

Especially Bloody Ark, which added three more articles with the same content. Just like in the original, Bloody Ark would shed its reputation as a tabloid newspaper with this opportunity.

“…The repercussions were more severe than I thought.”

Sion cut his thoughts short and gazed at the steam-covered window.

Rebecca had set up a barrier, so he couldn’t see inside, but she hadn’t come out for over 40 minutes.

……

At the same time, beyond the barrier.

Rebecca, who was being splashed with hot water, wiped the steam-covered mirror.

Her reflection in the mirror was unfamiliar. Her lips were trembling strangely.

It wasn’t just her lips; her eyes were the same. She couldn’t bear to look at her reflection in the mirror.

She had many thoughts. Too many, it felt like her head would explode.

Sion’s words from the previous night kept echoing in her mind.

– I’ll catch that doppelganger.

– Why are you trying to do it alone?

– It’s safer if I do it, so I told you to stay back.

Sion Esperanza had told her to rest, but she couldn’t just stand by and watch.

The teachings she had received since childhood, to eliminate evil, were still etched in her mind. Eliminating evil was already her duty.

Not just as Rebecca of Grande, but as herself, that much remained unchanged.

– I couldn’t accept an existence that followed others like that.

– The conclusion is that I had to catch it myself, that’s all.

The words she heard the previous night seemed to be replaying endlessly.

Sion had spoken vaguely, saying he couldn’t accept it, but…

Looking at Sion’s behavior until now, it was clear that there was a reason for it.

A certain reason that she couldn’t reveal to anyone.

From noble mtl dot com

When her body was taken over by her sister, Rebecca remembered seeing Sion’s figure faintly reflected on the surface of the water.

Even when Iana unnie took over her body and pretended to be herself, Sion was furious and shouted at her.

“Get out of that body!”

Her appearance was too different from when she had torn off her bracelet and declared her withdrawal—

…Creepy.

Rebecca was still spraying water with the showerhead. She picked up a towel and forcibly cut off the rising thoughts.

“…You’re confusing me.”

Meanwhile, Sion on the other side of the boundary was sitting idly, staring at her watch.