At the End of Revenge, There You Are ~The Scum Who Killed My Beloved, Prepare Yourselves! I Will Drag You All to Hell... Wait, What? Why Are the Heroine and the Demoness Coming After Me, a Woman!?(GL) - Chapter 3

By the time I came to my senses, the surroundings had already turned dark.

…2 a.m.…

After returning home, I must have fallen asleep while trying to suppress my sorrow, wrapped in the same blanket that had covered both Yuzuha and me just a few days ago.

Even at a time like this… I can still sleep, huh?

Was that child’s presence in my life really so insignificant?

I don’t know…

She was my former best friend, someone I was once close to.
And yet, it turns out she had harbored strong feelings for me all along.

She sought me out, depended on me, and then… she did something unbelievable.

And the next morning, she asked with a worried look, “You didn’t hate it, did you?”

That girl, who was overwhelmed with sadness and anxiety after losing her sister…

I put my own feelings on hold. But if I had to define them, they were either like or love.

What I was sure of, however, was that she was important to me—without a doubt.

We were supposed to meet again next Saturday.

And yet, just like that, she died.

In such a horrific state.

I need to find out what really happened.

If someone was responsible for this… I will never forgive them.

I will make them pay.

That was the only thought running through my mind when I came back.

Clutching the blanket tightly…

But…

But still…

Even if I get revenge, she won’t come back.

That realization hit me like a ton of bricks.

Am I… sad?

No… It feels like something else entirely.

It’s as if something inside me has vanished.

Ah… I see now.

She’s gone.

Even though we had spent so much time apart, the time we did share was just as long.

Those moments… they painted my memories.

So colorful. So vivid. So precious.

And now, that color has faded.

At that moment, I let out a deep breath.

As if with that breath, even the burning emotions inside me were slipping away.

The shock was far greater than I had expected… I must have blacked out from it.

Now that I understand it wasn’t just exhaustion, my willpower is slowly returning.

I won’t waste my time thinking, What should I do?

I refuse to stand still.

I don’t know if I can keep living while carrying this sense of loss.

But for now, I’ll set that thought aside.

The first thing I need to do is uncover the truth behind her death.

That’s the only thing that matters right now.

Everything starts from there.

I will never forgive them.

As soon as I made that decision, my mind started working again.

I’m quitting the Guild.

But before that, I’ll investigate everything I can from the inside.

A guild has no place for someone seeking revenge, after all.

Besides, if they find out, that cigarette-reeking boss of mine will definitely try to stop me.

Continuing the investigation will be tricky… The report has probably already been submitted, and my department’s role in the case is over.

“Shinomiya, forget it. Focus on the next job.”

That’s exactly what they’ll tell me.

What should I do…?

There’s barely anyone in the Guild who truly cares about the explorers.

…That’s it!

I’ll ask Gen-san for advice.

He used to be an explorer himself, and he values loyalty and honor.

I know he’ll hear me out.

And with his experience, he might even know something useful.

Alright. I should get some rest.

Once the sun rises, I’ll act.

I’ve made up my mind.

Wait for me, Yuzuha.

The next morning, I forced myself to remain composed as I arrived at the Guild office.

I thought I had my expression under control, but I must not have, because Section Chief Kimura gave me a weirdly sympathetic look and said,

“You sure you’re okay? You can take the day off if you need to.”

…Huh? What’s up with you?

Did you suddenly forget all the workplace harassment you’ve put me through?

Because I sure haven’t.

Not a single bit.

Oh? You think I’d let that slide?

“Shinomiya, got a moment?”

It was almost too convenient that Gen-san had approached me at just the right time.

I followed his broad back into the conference room.

“Hanashiro Yuzuha…”

“Yes…”

As soon as we entered, Gen-san shut the door and locked it.

For a brief moment, an absurd thought crossed my mind—What if he attacks me? Not that I really believed it, but still…

His expression wasn’t its usual stern one. It was heavy, somber.

Now that I think about it, Gen-san had been involved in the investigation too. He was the one who took the statement from the party’s leader.

Back then, I was too overwhelmed with grief and loss to process anything. I barely spoke to anyone while compiling the report, let alone paid attention to where the information was coming from.

“Can you forget about it?”

“No, I can’t.”

I knew he was asking out of concern, but my answer came instantly, without a second thought.

Forget? That’s impossible.

But… why would he ask that?

“I see… You were friends?”

“We were best friends… back in school.”

“I see… That must have been hard.”

“Yes…”

Gen-san was one of the rare few in the Guild who actually took the deaths and injuries of explorers seriously. Maybe because he was a former explorer himself?

I had seen him before, comforting grieving families and lovers left behind.

For a guy who looks like a bear… he had a surprisingly kind side.

Of course, his fighting style was as brutal as they came. Back when I first joined the Guild, he knocked me flat on my back more times than I could count during training.

Even though he had retired due to an injury, he was still strong enough to dominate any rookie in combat.

But that was his way of training with love.

Thanks to him, I could hold my own in a fight, which was why I was tasked with dungeon investigations in the first place.

“The report has already been accepted. You won’t be able to investigate any further.”

“So, they ruled it as an accident? Just bad luck that she encountered a high-ranking monster?”

“Yeah.”

“And the leader who abandoned her?”

“Yeah.”

“They left a healer behind… as if she were nothing more than a sacrifice?”

Just thinking about it made my bl00d boil.

“Even so, the dungeon is a place of personal responsibility. If the leader, Ogino, had encountered a monster he could have defeated, that’d be another story. But since he testified that there was no chance of winning, there’s nothing we can do.”

“What about the recorded footage?”

“There isn’t any.”

“And that doesn’t raise any suspicions?”

“…”

“Or is it that someone doesn’t want us to see it? Why?”

“…That’s why I asked if you could forget about it.”

“Of course, I can’t!”

Isn’t this the same as admitting there’s something fishy going on?

There’s no way I can accept this.

No way I can let it go.

My decision to leave the Guild only became more resolute.

I nearly lost my temper for a moment, but then I saw Gen-san’s eyes—they were kind.

…Was he telling me this on purpose?

Had he already figured out that I wasn’t going to let this go?

“There were rumors that Ogino had been pursuing Hanashiro romantically. She rejected him. Did that lead to her being left for dead? I doubt it was that direct… but I wouldn’t be surprised if that’s why no one tried to save her.”

…What?

My mind went blank.

“If that were all, I’d have dropped this. But what bothers me is that they won’t even allow a proper investigation. The Guild isn’t some beacon of justice, but we don’t just throw explorers away like trash either. That… I cannot tolerate.”

Gen-san’s face twisted in frustration as he forced the words out.

“That being said, there’s not much I can do beyond giving you a bit of information… Sorry.”

He… pursued her?

And yet, he still dragged her into a dungeon she didn’t want to enter.

Then they encountered a demon… and he abandoned her?

A cold sensation spread through my throat as I inhaled sharply.

My fingers clenched into fists beneath the table, trembling ever so slightly.

…Don’t fvck with me.

I barely kept the rage from consuming me.

If someone had truly orchestrated Yuzuha’s death… I will never forgive them.

But right now, I still don’t know anything for sure.

I need to investigate. I need to uncover the truth.

And no matter what I find…

I will never forget Yuzuha.