Dark Fantasy: Super Coward Mode

Chapter 14

Knowing each other’s pasts unintentionally seemed to ease the previously tense atmosphere.

“Why on earth did you bring the Outcast God in your pocket? Are you insane? No, you must already be insane. What will the Knights say? Thank goodness they only took our weapons and didn’t check your body!”

Agartha was flailing about, claiming that this was the sixteenth time a chill shot down a Thief’s spine.

Isn’t that quite a lot, though?

Honestly, I have no words, but I also feel a bit wronged and didn’t want to lose out to Agartha, so I retorted.

“Did I expect this to happen to me?”

“But still! I opened up about my family matters to lighten the mood, and now I feel completely betrayed! Seriously, were you really involved with an Outsider?”

“I keep telling you I wasn’t!”

Ah, the battle of wills.

The Outcast God, who had been watching the two of us argue from my pocket, seemed to shrink in on itself.

The Hunter, observing the scene, spoke up.

“It’s not that you were lucky not to have your possessions checked; it’s that they simply didn’t check. The closer you get to the hearth, the harder it becomes for Outsiders to approach.”

The Hunter, who had lost their double-barrel shotgun, pulled out a hidden BB gun bullet to show me and Agartha.

Seeing them gesture as if to say, ‘Get rid of that!’ made me chuckle.

“The flames burning in that hearth possess power strong enough to not just weaken the Outsider’s abilities but can fully incapacitate them. That’s why the Knights don’t even consider the possibility of Outsiders breaching this place. Outsiders typically avoid showing up in the outer areas or launching mental attacks from a distance.”

Surely, if Outsiders were constantly manifesting in this territory like Watchers, people would be unable to roam around outside like this.

Could it mean those Outsiders are so powerful that they can ignore even that situation?

But why is the Outcast God okay despite being so close to those flames?

Is there something different about them?

Looking down at the Outcast God, who was curled up in my pocket, it glanced up at me with a warm expression.

“Are you comfortable, at least?”

Whether it heard my mumblings or not, the Outcast God merely smiled brightly.

Is this just the effect of the Super Coward Mode, or does the Outcast God have some exceptional trait?

I was frustrated not knowing, but I figured it couldn’t be all that bad.

Agartha seemed to have learned something new.

“Truthfully, it’s my first time hearing of anyone being caught by the Knights in connection to an Outsider. I didn’t know that!”

“This kind of incident is definitely not a common occurrence.”

For some reason, Agartha clapped his hands and smiled as if that piece of news delighted him.

“Wow, then we’re super lucky, right? Such an uncommon thing happened to us!”

“Isn’t it more accurate to say we just had really bad luck?”

“Mr. Tanton, thinking so negatively is exactly why you seem to enjoy things like Outsiders.”

What does that even have to do with it?

“Without a key and stuck firmly to your hands, you seem quite confident.”

Ignoring my gaze, Agartha pulled on the blue tape binding her hands.

It seemed she was feeling a lack of confidence as a Thief against this puzzle that couldn’t be solved by humans.

Maybe that’s why she was unnecessarily poking at me and the Hunter to get some reactions.

“When do you think we can escape? I just got my arms and legs free a little while ago. My hands are yearning for freedom!”

“If you just keep that mouth of yours shut, half the discomfort would probably be resolved.”

“Oh, come on! I’m bored! If I stop talking, it gets too quiet!”

“Not my concern.”

“Shut up! Shut up! Shut up! Shut up!”

“...I’ll kill you.”

“Go ahead and try! You can’t kill me, right? You’re all tied up!”

While sticking out her tongue and being overly cheeky, Agartha dodged the Hunter’s grabbing hand with impressive reflexes, but ultimately got caught due to the cramped confines of the Detention Center.

“No, that’s not what I meant to do...”

“Say that one more time.”

“De-hee?”

Like a piece of luggage being treated as such, Agartha groaned in agony as he was dragged across the floor by the blue tape the Hunter had pulled.

It hadn’t even been a full minute since the Hunter silenced him.

As I chuckled quietly at the amusing scene, footsteps began to echo from a distance.

Agartha and the Hunter both closed their mouths, and as the footsteps grew closer, I recognized who it was.

The Bear Plushie, the Deputy Director.

Still with his brows furrowed, he looked down at us and quietly unlocked the iron door before swinging it open.

Seeing Agartha and the Hunter still on edge and frozen, the Deputy Director sighed and said:

“Come out. I have somewhere to take you.”

#

“Do not gaze into the flames. It is disrespectful to the Princess.”

Where the Deputy Director had brought us was none other than the underground communication room.

Even in this confined space, flames were still flickering, reportedly connected to the hearth.

As I stood quietly observing the magical yet dark and murky scene, the Deputy Director suddenly knelt and paid respect to the flames.

“Transport of the criminals has been completed.”

I couldn’t help but admire the Hunter’s eloquence, which had been silent until now. Who knew he could argue so logically?

Agartha cautiously chimed in as well.

“Y-Yeah! And I heard this too! There were articles who committed crimes bad enough to end up in the underground prison, yet they were released just because they had a history of defeating Outsiders!”

Wow. That’s hard to argue against.

To my eyes, the Deputy Director was clearly losing this verbal battle. Yet, there was no sign of anger on his face. In fact, he seemed calm, as if carefully choosing his words.

Wait, how much more impressive is he planning to be in his rebuttal?

As they say, watching a fight is the most entertaining thing – I almost wanted to grab some popcorn and enjoy the show.

Finally, the Deputy Director spoke up...

“You say you defeated the Outsider? No, no... let’s phrase that correctly.”

Ah, hold on a second.

“Your accomplishment was merely sending it away.”

Oh.

Suddenly, that was pretty dismal.

He wasn’t just dismissing it with an ‘it didn’t happen!’ was he?

Looking at the Deputy Director with a deflated expression, he continued calmly.

“It’s true that we offer special treatment to those who defeat an Outsider. But what good does it do to hide that fact?”

“Is it true that this group can only make wild claims?”

“No, more like...”

The Deputy Director, with a sudden gesture, pointed to the ground.

“Isn’t it simple to prove it? By defeating an Outsider one more time.”

At his words, the Hunter’s face shone with excitement, while despair flickered across Agartha’s face.

“What kind of ridiculousness is that...!”

“That’s not a bad suggestion.”

“What?! Are you out of your mind?!”

Agartha grabbed the Hunter by the shoulder in disbelief.

But the Hunter paid no mind to Agartha and maintained eye contact with the Deputy Director.

“If that’s all it takes to prove it, then I’m all for it.”

“Hah, there’s that pride of yours. A Hunter’s pride, isn’t it? It’s ugly, but you are a necessary talent for the Princess. Alright, I hereby commit.”

The Deputy Director drew a plastic sword, raised it to the sky, and slammed it into the ground as he shouted.

“If you successfully vanquish the Outsider, all your sins will be absolved, and you will be officially inducted into our Knights. Additionally, Hunter, you would be granted the freedom to act as you wish.”

“I swear this by the name Maren Burstian.”

With such a ludicrous proposal on the table, Agartha and I could only stare in shock, while the Hunter raised an eyebrow in skepticism.

“Using your real name, not a pseudonym, huh?”

“Do you think we’re afraid of curses from Outsiders? We are the Knights who hunt Outsiders.”

“With that kind of pride...”

The Deputy Director’s gaze shifted toward Agartha and me.

“Do you have any objections? You’re not obliged to follow this reckless guy.”

Losing to an Outsider in battle means...

Death.

With the sound of crackling flames, silence enveloped us.

What we were doing was essentially weighing our lives against our positions.

The Hunter’s gaze turned back to me.

This time, it wasn’t the same meaningful look from before.

It was almost one filled with certainty, a demand to showcase my capabilities once more.

If it’s the Hunter, I guess he can take the lone wolf route.

But I can’t do that.

The Watcher was just lucky.

Still...

I don’t have confidence in capturing an Outsider, but I don’t want to be manipulated by them either.

...Let’s trust in my super coward mode.

After all, to survive in this world, I need to endure against the Outsiders too.

Let’s open that Knight route!

“There’s a saying that one should uphold their loyalty until the end.”

With my eyes filled with resolve, Agartha subtly chimed in.

“I’ll join too. Since both of you are doing it, I can’t fall behind. So we’re doing this together, right? Yes?”

“Nope, you’ll be taking the test separately. As it happens, there are three Outsiders you need to deal with.”

“What?”

“We will inform you of the Outsiders you need to deal with, starting from the one who appears from the meteorite near Rondan’s outskirts, capturing people with its bizarre light...”

“Cancel, cancel, cancel!”

“A Knight doesn’t speak out of both sides of their mouth.”

Agartha let out a fearful squeak, her face darkening considerably, which was quite a sight.