Strange Grief Wants to Retire ~ The Weakest Hunter's Hero Dream - Chapter 259

Chapter 259 Winners and Losers
Part 1
　The end came abruptly. The great tremor, which felt as if heaven and earth were turned upside down, stopped abruptly.

　The arena was in a terrible state. No matter how sturdy the arena was, it could not withstand the violent tremor that occurred at the end.
　The ceiling had collapsed and everywhere was covered in debris. Murina was curled up near a chair.

　However, Radrick ignored them and immediately shouted.

“The key is broken, catch him!” (Radrick)

　Weapon-type Relics are generally quite sturdy. The Key of the Earth is no exception and boasts tremendous strength, not even a scratch could be made even when struck with a greatsword.

　To think, the 『Key of the Earth』 could be shattered――The National Research Institute of Relics, which has inspected the literature in detail, has not reported anything of such at all, but I suppose that too much power comes at a price.

　For the Empire――No, for the world, this is a fortunate story.
　Until now, as a kind of resistance, the Empire has not been able to choose to destroy the Relic, but since it was targeted by the “Fox (Kitsune)”――And the “Fox (Kitsune)” was crazy enough to fully release the Relic without hesitation the destruction of the key was an urgent matter, even if the situation were to be resolved. If it was destroyed under these circumstances, the other nobles would agree with what happened.

　The fox mask man, who had been desperately fighting with 《Infinite Variety (Senpen Banka)》 for the key, stood up and wobbled greatly.
　You could not say that only a small amount of blood was flowing from his mouth. He was clearly seriously wounded. I do not know the cause, but it was probably the result of the tug-of-war with 《Infinite Variety (Senpen Banka)》.

　It is said that high-ranking “Fox (Kitsune)” members surpass even high-level Hunters. However, this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

　His terrible plan has been completely thwarted. He was also exhausted.

　The Imperial Guards followed Radrick’s order and rushed into the battlefield.

　《Infinite Variety (Senpen Banka)》 stood up unsteadily. The blood he is covered in is probably blood from the fox mask man, but his movements clearly showed his fatigue.

　No――Although it could not be completely suppressed, he resisted the Key of the Earth. It was a feat far beyond Level 8.

　His posture collapsed, and 《Infinite Variety (Senpen Banka)》 fell to his knees and pressed his forehead.

　I guess he is at his limit. We cannot lose a hero here. We have to save him at all costs.

　Holding his chest, the fox mask man looked down at 《Infinite Variety (Senpen Banka)》 who was on his knees.

　His plan failed. The Key of the Earth was released, but the destruction was minimal.
　It isn’t like he couldn’t understand that fact, but to think he would not choose to flee even though he is seriously injured, what a terrifying obsession he has.

　However, 《Infinite Variety (Senpen Banka)》 is not alone. There are many skilled people here as spectators.

　That is why the destruction caused by the Key of the Earth was only this small.
　Then Radrick took a deep breath and yelled as if to let out his fury.

“Capture this bandit at all cost!! Whoever captures him will receive any reward desired!” (Radrick)

§　§　§

　I was set up. By the time I understood this, it was already too late.

　I managed to suppress the Key of the Earth. I guess I just barely made it in time. But otherwise――The situation was extremely bad.

　No――It is probably fortuitous that it ended only at that Level. The Key of the Earth is originally not something that can be suppressed by humans.

　Although his head was *kurakura* dizzy from losing too much blood, the Boss was able to assess the situation accurately.
　My body is heavy. My wounds are deep. It has been a long time since I have felt this much pain or have been humiliated to this degree.

　The sounds sound distant. The screams and everything else sounded filtered. I understood that I needed to be vigilant, but I no longer had enough strength to do so.

　What entered the Boss’s field of vision was an unsteady 《Infinite Variety (Senpen Banka)》.

　Finally, I can see the full picture of the plan 《Infinite Variety (Senpen Banka)》 was following.

　Even though he didn’t use his strength to suppress the Key of the Earth as the Boss did, 《Infinite Variety (Senpen Banka)》 wobbled greatly and fell to his knees.

　At his appearance which seemed so natural, the Boss was laughing naturally.

“Fufufu………… Ahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha!!” (Kitsune’s Boss)

　What a frightening man. What a terrifying man. You cannot describe him with such a clichéd word like “Divine Strategist”.

　This man’s strategy was too dangerous. Moreover, the success rate was never high. If even a single button had been pressed incorrectly, 《Infinite Variety (Senpen Banka)》 would not have been able to avoid being branded as a traitor, and the possibility of the world being destroyed was by no means small.

　It was the kind of strategy that even if someone had come up with it, people would have rejected it without even considering it.
　Ordinary people would never notice it and it is the same for the “Nine-Tails Shadow Fox (Kyubi no Kage Kitsune)”, a secret organization. No, it is highly likely that even the members of the organization won’t believe it.

　This is nothing like a conspiracy. The idea in itself is crazy.

　The Key of the Earth was shattered. The second key has not been discovered yet.

　The operation failed completely. Nevertheless, only the “Fox (Kitsune)” is suspected of having fully released the Key of the Earth.

　Originally, the plan was to use the Key of the Earth, make people aware of some of its horrors, and then use it as a weapon to interfere with other countries.

　However, he had gone too far. Since we were considered to be able to easily play the card that would destroy the world, they would surely come to kill us without any regard for themselves.

　Even those who have been secretly siding with us will change their minds. It will not be the same as before.

　In addition, we don’t have any deterrence anymore. The weapon of destruction has been shattered.

　Impossible. It was impossible.