Chapter 20
Chapter 20
Hunt, who had crossed over in the meantime, grabbed the umbrella this time. He gripped it so hard. The moment the umbrella ribs bent, my heart sank.
"Don't break it! This was difficult to make!"
I couldn't pull it out roughly for fear of it breaking, nor could I abandon this rare item for which materials were hard to find.
More importantly, with my boots worn out now, how would I escape if I abandoned this?
"Let go of it!"
"If you surrender peacefully to arrest."
"Ha, would I be crazy enough to give my life for an umbrella?"
"Then abandon it and leave."
"……."
"Aren't you leaving?"
"……Let go of it!"
Hunt, who now knew the umbrella was my weakness, persistently targeted the umbrella, not me.
'Should I just kick it away like last time?'
I glanced down, and there was no way I could. If I were kicked from the steep rooftop, a fall from the 5th floor would be certain.
'Ah, damn it… what else is in my Inventory?'
It was while I was struggling with Hunt, racking my brain for a way to escape.
Clang!
The side window suddenly burst open, and Chase poked his head out.
Just when I thought it was one disaster after another, something in Chase's outstretched hand glinted in the moonlight.
It was a handgun.
'Right! I can't give my life for an umbrella!'
As I let go of the umbrella to dodge, the tip of the handgun spat fire.
Bang!
"No!"
But Hunt let go of the umbrella first. He pushed me back and leaped in front of the muzzle.
Without a moment's hesitation.
Thud.
"Ugh……."
I couldn't believe my eyes as Hunt collapsed in front of me.
'...Is he protecting me right now?'
Hunt tried to get up but fell back down weakly. Then he didn't move again.
"Gasp, no."
As strength drained from his limbs and his body began to slide down, I finally snapped out of it and chased after him, grabbing Hunt's hand.
"Aaaargh!"
But Hunt was an adult man, and moreover, someone who looked like he could easily bench press 500 pounds at the gym.
Unable to bear Hunt's weight, I slid down the rooftop with him.
Scrape, scrape.
I slid down, scraping the roof tiles, which were layered like flat fish scales, with my feet and hips. I barely stopped when my feet caught on the edge of the roof.
"Phew… That was close."
But the real trouble could still happen. I had stopped on the roof, but Hunt was dangling below.
Looking down at the dark, unlit space beneath me, my own vision began to darken. I had seen what was down there on the way into the mansion earlier.
Dry, withered old trees. And strangely shaped statues.
'Some of them looked like they were holding spears?'
The thought that Hunt could be impaled if he fell like this made my vision truly darken.
"Ugh… Please…."
I strained, trying to pull Hunt up, and shouted.
"Snap out of it!"
I couldn't see where he was shot in the dark, but seeing him grip my hand tightly, he hadn't completely lost consciousness.
"Ha, hey! There's a limit to being the people's shield! Why would you sacrifice your life for a thief?"
If Chase had just been allowed to shoot, he would have caught me easily. Then I would have been done with the scolding from above and walked a path paved with promotions and honors.
But he gave that up and risked his life? What a foolish man.
"Ugh, my arm's going to come off."
Hunt couldn't be pulled up at all. He had lost consciousness, and his body felt even heavier.
Even with my Level 9 Stamina, it was too much. If I raised it to Level 10, my strength would be immense, but I lacked skill points. So…
"Don't just stand there, come and help me now!"
I shouted at Chase, who stood frozen with a panicked look, aiming his gun at me.
"If you shoot me, Hunt dies too."
Even with my warning, that guy looked like he was hesitating whether to shoot or not.
Given that Hunt jumped in without agreement, he must have used his firearm without authorization. This was grounds for disciplinary action.
But shooting a police officer with an unauthorized firearm? That would be a major incident, enough to get him fired.
To lessen the disciplinary action, he would have to catch me by any means necessary.
So, he might be leaning towards catching me, abandoning the dying Hunt.
I was a fool to expect help from someone like him.
"Don't forget, if I die, the Scarlet Queen's Heart will be lost forever."
After threatening Chase so he couldn't kill me, I shouted towards another window where the officers pursuing me might be.
"Inspector Hunt has been shot! Someone come and help, gasp!"
At that moment, Hunt's hand slipped from my grasp.
"No!"
My body moved faster than my mind. I threw myself towards Hunt, who was falling.
I barely managed to snatch Hunt's arm while simultaneously opening the umbrella with my other hand.
Fwoosh!
As the umbrella opened, my body was briefly pulled upward, but that was it.
The umbrella couldn't bear the weight of two people. We began to fall again.
'Ahhh… At least the umbrella will slow our fall, so the injuries won't be as bad?'
…As if mocking that thought, the umbrella ribs suddenly flipped inside out. It was clearly damaged by Hunt.
"Aaaargh!"
We began to fall at high speed. Our bodies flipped over in an instant due to the weight. It looked like we were going to plummet headfirst.
Startled, I let go of Hunt without thinking, and a large hand wrapped around my waist and head. Held by Hunt, I felt bewildered.
'Why is he covering my head? He should be covering his own head to protect it! Wait! Did he regain consciousness? But… Aagh!'
The confusion didn't last long.
Thump!
It was because my body sank into the ground.
'Thwack!' not 'Thump'?
I had crashed into the ground, but my body and mind were intact. I only felt a slight sting where I collided with Hunt's body, but it didn't hurt.
'How is this possible?'
As I looked up into the darkness, bewildered.
Click.
Click?
I felt cold metal on my wrists.
"Got you."
Hunt's voice whispered in my ear, perfectly fine. Only then did I realize.
'This was all a staged trap too?'
Before I could feel the anger of being deceived, a barrage of messages flooded in.
[Mission Failed! 300,000 Notoriety Points deducted.]
No…
[You have been arrested. Entering the Bad Ending Route.]
No!
[As the mission failed, the Master of Disguise skill and Facial Recognition Disorder effect will be suspended.]
Nooooooo!
As the effect disappeared…
Flash!
A spotlight turned on, illuminating my surroundings as brightly as day. At that moment, I made eye contact with Hunt, who was lying beneath me and looking up.
"……You."
I had seen Hunt almost every day for two years. This was the first time I had seen such a shocked expression on his face.
"Claire Kent?"
The Thieving Crow Trapped in a Cage!
Below the headline of the arrest on the newspaper's front page, a large illustration of a cage drawn over a picture of the Thieving Crow was prominently displayed.
Despite being a photograph, the Thieving Crow's face was not visible.
This was not because it was obscured by the iron bars, but because the Police Bureau had only released a photo with the face covered from the start.
The Thieving Crow, who broke into the Hoplist mansion last night, was arrested by Inspector Raven Hunt, head of the Eden City Police Department Special Investigation Unit…
In the article below, she was still referred to as the Thieving Crow. This was because the Police Bureau had not released her name.
The police, who usually reveal the identity and face of notorious wanted criminals immediately, were keeping the culprit completely hidden.
This highly unusual behavior gave birth to conspiracy theories within just one day.
The Thieving Crow's identity is… you'll get hurt if you know?
"The Thieving Crow is Gemma Steel!"
An old woman shouted the answer at the newspaper.
