Chapter 95

Chapter 95

To Gibrante!

Had I made a tiny miscalculation?

Despite how out of breath I was feeling, I reined in my exhaustion and kept my feet moving.

Because if I stopped even for a moment, Karl Zayed's attack might hit my back and smash me flat.

Just then,

Pshng.

"Yikes!"

Something flew by from behind and almost grazed my earlobe.

Apparently, the rest of the pursuers had also caught up with me.

I was worried. Should I use my abilities or not?

Leo's ability, which I was mimicking at the moment, consumed stamina at a formidable rate. I could pour in a burst of speed, but it wouldnt be sustainable.

Not to mention that I had to keep some fuel in the tank in case I got dragged into an unexpected fight.

Let's be patient for now.'

Id had it much easier when Leo alone was after me.

I still had enough energy then, and Leo had to carry Tanya, since he himself didnt have a guides eyes.

But Karl Zayd was a different beast.

Covering myself with the goblin silver screen didnt block his vision, and he was absolutely tireless.

Even though goblins popped up here and there pretending to be me to grab everybodys attention

"Where are you hiding you ant!"

He could never be lured away from my trail.

Messing with a bastard who had all the characteristics of a guide and a decipherer at the same time, mightve been a miscalculation.

But the silver lining in all this was that

"There you are!"

Crackackack!

"Some kind of flying bug?"

"Squatjaws mine! Shove off unless you want to taste some lightning!"

"Go away."

"Didnt you hear me? I. Came. First!"

"I could get rid of you first, if you insist."

Leo promptly intervened whenever there was an emergency.

After I caught Karl Zayed's attention, Leo dropped Tanya somewhere and began following our trail, which was fortunate for me. He was really quite helpful in how he was getting in his competitors way and dragging things out.

But, of course,

"Good! Squatjaw, just wait a bit! The winner here will face you!"

"You can run first if you want. Ill follow after I clean up this messy-haired bug."

"What? Bug?! You bastard! Youre the bug!"

"Alright, then the loser is the bug."

This wasnt the scene that I wanted.

"Huff"

This was already the third time these two were having a stand-off.

I sighed softly and looked at Karl Zayed, whod decided to confront Leo instead of chasing after me.

And then,

"Fine; Leo, Karl, you two have fun. Ill leave first."

I began to slowly walk away, trying my best to pretend that I didnt care in the least.

But of course, deep down, I just wanted them to stop and chase after me.

Why couldnt I leave the two here, you ask?

Simple. Things would inevitably get dragged out, everybody would focus on the two of them, and my plan would naturally collapse.

The readers might be very much in favour of them having a fight here. No, they definitely were. Although this wasnt the place for some kind of ultimate showdown, a quick bout? The readers, fans of shounen battle manga as they were, would lap it right up.

Not just the readers either. All the inhabitants of this world were fighting enthusiasts. By deliberate design.

Hell, even I wanted to see them throw hands.

But that was why it was such a threat.

In a situation like mine, I really had to guard against something like that happening.

Fights were exciting. A fight breaking out somewhere could snatch away the spotlight in an eyeblink.

Even more so when it was a fight between famous named characters.

For example, what if Gronyan, the current holder of the leading point of view by the authors grace, got involved in a fight with Karl Zayed? The spotlight would naturally shift there, and the readers would also enjoy the show without complaint. Even if the plot development smelled fishy because Id already left with the Ramirez.

Well, itll still be fun to watch.'

And therefore, dangerous.

Of course, this was unlikely to happen right away. I didn't know how Gronyan's character was set, but Id probably be gone by then.

Anyway, to sum it up, the current interest in me and the Ramirez was transient, and could be snuffed out any moment.

So I had to hurry up and finish this chapter before my worries could become reality.

The problem was,

"Dont shorten my name. My name is Karl Zayed, not Karl. And it's obvious where you're going, anyway. Since I know where youll end up, why should I care if you get a little head start?"

These two bastards werent listening to me.

"Eh? Really? Wheres he going?"

"I dont know what his plan is, but that guys trying to get the attention of all the strong people right now. This place is filled with blowhards, but therere still three useful ones if you count."

"Three?"

"Me, that guy, and that giant who came in with a bunch of flunkeys recently the one that looks like a bandit. You arent included, crackle-bug."

"What!? Are you looking down on me right now?!"

"You cheeky bastard. Do you think youre strong? It's not that you don't have talent, but your vessel isnt big enough to fit on this stage. Go and drink some more milk."

Haah'

I felt like sighing at the sight.

The one being lectured the crackle-bug, was the world's strongest talent as officially recognized by the author himself.

This would one day become a piece of black history. The villain would acknowledge the protagonist and become a fan favourite.

Not only that,

"Yeah? Thats all you have to say!?"

Provocation like that made a real fight a certainty.

So I rushed in before the pissed off Leo could attack Karl Zayed.

"Hey, hey! Stop that! From my point of view, you two arent much different, you know? What I mean is, don't fight over such little things."

"What?"

"What?"

"And you, you were on the money. That's right, I'm thinking of meeting up with that big bloke in black. You guys can play around here if you want, but me? I'm going to go fight him and decide who owns this treasure. So, goodbye!"

I immediately turned back and started running.

Were they going to take the bait or not?

This was the best lure I could throw right now. To tell them that I was going to fight.

Please take the bait, take the bait'

And then,

" Youre in luck, crackle-bug. I don't have the time to play with you right now."

"Tch, that's my line! Shove off, dont block my way!"

Fortunately, the two idiots, lured in by the thought of me fighting somebody strong, again started chasing me.

"Whoo"

I let out a sigh, but the future was looking grim.

Like Karl Zayed had said, I was now in a situation where I had to find Gronyan right away. Only then could I get out of this Clone City and bring this chapter to a close.

The problem was that he was living on the top of the mountain just opposite the northern entrance. After arriving here, surprisingly, hed ignored all the lavish lodgings and gone straight into the mountains.

Of course, I didnt fear getting lost along the way since I was very familiar with the mountain itself the goblins had also stayed there but the distance and the direction were troubling.

He was called the Assassin King, so how fast did that make him, exactly?

Ah itll work out somehow.'

And, well, I wasn't completely out of options either.

While I was forcing my feet to move, lost in thought

Suddenly,

Tiling.

The leading point of view of the chapter has changed.

The main character of the chapter is now Gronyan'.

A message arrived notifying the change of main character.

"Huh?"

It was now Gronyan who held the leading point of now.

At that moment,

Huh? Wait a minute.

Hmm.'

This was a bit of a problem.

Since my destination was already in reach, I couldnt leave, and I couldnt drag the time anymore either.

There was no point in declaring that Id be leaving the city right away. Without the leading point of view present, the readers would be left in the dark, so I couldnt execute my chapter ending operation'.

Besides, there were two monsters right here who were quite incensed due to the long chase.

"Are you thinking of leaving this city? Do you really think its up to you to decide that?"

"Squatjaw! Let's stop here and have a fair match! Give me the treasure!"

Of course, I didn't respond to them.

Instead, I looked around eagerly. Although I did say there was nothing I could think of to waste any more time

But, well, there was one thing.

The goblins.

How about I try hiding among them?'

The problem was that this might leave behind a pitiful victim or two.

Id originally decided to keep the goblins out of harms way.

No, that's not it. Some other way, some other way'

At that moment, while I was floundering without any ideas

Thoom.

The very air around me began to shake.

From a deep, heavy sound.

In an instant, everyone's heads turned to the epicenter of that ripple of noise.

There stood a man of great stature, dressed completely in black.

Gronyan.

Finally, the long-awaited guest of honour had arrived.

He began to trudge forward, meeting the gazes centred on him one by one.

His aura was so intimidating that even Karl Zayed and Leo were watching him with their mouths shut.

Gronyan walked up to me and slowly spoke.

"I heard you want to fight me to decide the owner of the treasure."

"Oh, you heard?"

" You should learn some manners, you insolent bastard."

"Oh? Are you the type who thinks the social order depends on looks and manners?"

" What?"

Anyway, good job coming here.

I glanced around.

The scene was exactly what Id hoped for.

A huge crowd, a buzz of excitement, and the eyes already full of anticipation.

"Wait, excuse me. I have something to say."

I walked right up to the front of the exit and turned back to face the onlookers.

Then, I shouted loudly to the audience.

"Im Squatjaw Hiro, and I have the treasure, Ramirez! Perhaps everybody here has already heard two pieces of news. That Im leaving this city, and that Im fighting to decide the ownership of the treasure."

Fortunately, no one stopped me.

Id wondered what would happen if that Gronyan had attacked me mid-announcement.

So I peacefully continued my speech.

"Im sorry, but one of the two is a lie. You all know by now that goblins are habitual liars, dont you?"

Suddenly, murmurs began to fill the surroundings.

Maybe it was a reaction like, Hey, whats he talking about?'

I continued without hesitation.

"What could be the lie? Do you think maybe I'll pass this on to someone else?"

I took the Ramirez out of my sleeve and shook it once.

The murmurs began to turn louder and louder.

But still, nobody rushed over or attacked me.

To be honest, Id thought someone might lose patience at this juncture, but luckily they were all pretty calm. Maybe they thought I wouldnt be able to escape no matter what tricks I pulled.

"Ill be going, so follow me. Im going north."

I took a step back, behind the dividing line that separated the city from the outside, and slowly covered myself top to bottom with the goblin silver screen Id prepared in advance.

Rustle.

This was the end.

All according to plan.

Of course, Karl Zayed or Gronyan wouldnt find it funny, since they could still sense me just fine. I wondered what their reactions would be.

But I was here, directing the last scene of the chapter, to inflame the readers curiosity. To simplify the authors choices.

Of course, I didn't know if hed agree or not.

But if you don't finish the chapter even after all this, you should be disqualified as an author.'

I counted the seconds while shivering a little.

One, two, three, four

Please! Please!'

And finally,

Tiling.

[Chapter 28 The Battle for Ramirezs Treasure (1) has ended]

[Hiro's character evaluation has been updated]

[Liar' has been added to the characteristics]

[The support of many readers followed]

The chapter ended.

"Huff! Yeah! Yeah, as it should!"

I could finally relax my breathing.

Finished. It was a success.

That was then.

"Are you done joking?"

Gronyan was slowly approaching. And Karl Zayed and Leo were followed behind.

"If you say you're running away why are you standing still?"

Of course, just because the chapter was over didnt mean everything was over.

The chapter was over, but the gathered characters didnt simply vanish.

But,

"Well, did you know? The store opens only after the chapter ends."

They weren't a threat to me anymore.

" What?"

I opened the character shop window.

It's been a while since I used this.'

And then,

Do you want to purchase [Go straight to the chapter progress area] x 1?

I bought one of my favourite starter products.

Id already told Chinuavi, Cocoa, and Haka to come and find me later.

Well, they should be fine.'

Please tell us where you are going. Currently, there are a total of five chapters that are open for movement.

Perhaps the authors newly minted preceding plot had gotten twisted, but that didnt mean all the later chapters had been affected.

In other words, even if I wasnt sure what would happen in Buckingham', I could still go to Gibrante'.

I took a look at the monsters' standing in front of me.

Gronyan, Karl Zayed, Leo and countless others behind them.

I was a little curious as to how these guys would end this situation and follow up.

But of course,

I can hear all about it later.'

I didnt have any idea about watching it firsthand.

I gently took off the silver screen and greeted them with a smile.

"Then Ill leave first. To Gibrante!"

A pure white light came out of the hologram and embraced me.

Editor's Notes:

None for this chapter.

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