Chapter 155 – EPISODE 155 – ROGUE MASTER (4)
“Gasp!”
Scarlet threw up blood as she was greatly thrown backwards. She was sent flying for almost a dozen meters or more before she rolled on the floor.
“Khu…kugh…”
The fallen Scarlet held her stomach that was struck by the energy of the black dragon and threw up blood again. She then stopped moving as a puddle of blood formed under her head.
“I-is she okay? She’s not dead yet, right?”
The startled Cordelia flew to Scarlet, but Jude calmly raised his hand to stop her.
Because Scarlet wouldn’t die from just that.
‘Frankly…I was a little surprised.’
She had vomited so much blood, so he had flinched at that moment.
But she wore the Red Dragon’s Armor.
It didn’t just had a strong defensive power, as it was an item that gave its wearer the regenerative ability of a dragon, so she would not have died despite throwing up a lot of blood.
And it was as Jude had expected.
Scarlet was in a state of near-death, but she was groaning and did not die.
However, ‘her not dying is enough’ was Jude’s standard and not Cordelia’s.
“Hey, hey. Are you okay? Hey? Don’t die. Don’t die.”
Cordelia unknowingly said as she let Scarlet spit out the blood left in her mouth before she laid Scarlet down.
“Se-secure the airway.”
Open the mouth and tilt her head back slightly.
And check for breathing.
‘Eueu, think, think. Cordelia. Remember, Cordelia.’
You learned first aid in cla.s.s before.
The firefighter uncle praised me for being good.
Cordelia put her hand near Scarlet’s mouth. It was weak but she could feel Scarlet’s breath.
“G-good. She’s breathing.”
Let’s skip artificial respiration.
What’s next then?
“Hey, hey. Are you awake? Hey.”
When she tapped on Scarlet’s cheek lightly, Scarlet let out a very small groan. It didn’t seem like she was completely unconscious.
Then there was only one thing left.
“”
A spell that recovers one’s health very fast.
This was actually a chance for her to get the treasures of the Rogue Master, and she had also wanted those, but that was that, and this was this.
Cordelia had no intention of killing Scarlet and taking the treasures away.
Scarlet wasn’t a villain.
If she hadn’t been possessed by the Soul Taker, she would at least not be an enemy even if she didn’t become their ally.
“Haa…haa…”
Perhaps the recovery magic worked since Scarlet’s face color improved and her breathing stabilized.
And after a minute or so.
After she had recovered enough to be able to speak, Scarlet stretched out her body instead of raising herself up.
She wiped the sweat on her forehead and said to Cordelia as if letting out a breath of relief.
“Just kill me.”
“What?”
“Just kill me.”
Scarlet had a faint smile.
She continued to talk as she faced Cordelia with empty eyes.
“I lost. I lost to you. I couldn’t even keep the Rogue Master’s honor.”
Scarlet’s eyes looked red, and tears flowed down her blood-stained cheeks.
“N-now, the honorable name of the Rogue Master will forever be dishonored by the name of Pink Bomb. I can’t bear to see that… Just kill me. Kill me.”
Rogue Master Pink Bomb.
Aaaah, Rogue Master.
Aaaah, Pink Bomb.
Father.
Grandfather.
I’m sorry.
I’m really, really sorry.
Scarlet couldn’t become the Rogue Master. I couldn’t even keep the honor of the Rogue Master.
Scarlet began to completely cry, and Cordelia felt a mix of emotions and was at a loss.
‘Fu-f*ck.’
What do I do?
What should I do?
Scarlet was saying some really extreme words, and Cordelia could understand Scarlet’s sad feelings.
Scarlet was a person who took great pride in the fact that she was a descendant of the Rogue Master.
‘Jude, Jude! What do I do?’
Cordelia looked back at Jude with a face showing her troubled thoughts.
Jude seriously pondered when she gazed at him with eyes that were asking him to do something, and he soon had a bitter smile. It was a bit cringey, but it was a good idea.
Scarlet’s personality.
Her disposition.
That was why it was the best answer he could give now.
‘Ah.’
But it was then. Before Jude could give an answer, Cordelia also looked like she came up with something in her mind.
Because she was also a rotten water of Legend of Heroes 2.
‘Hey, Jude. I’ll do what I want this time. Just this one time.’
Jude nodded at Cordelia’s gaze. Because Jude himself came up with a similar idea.
And there was one more reason.
‘Because you’re the Rogue Master.’
Cordelia was the Rogue Master and not Jude.
Cordelia nodded her head at Jude’s reply and looked at Scarlet again as she said.
“Hey, a.s.shole.”
“It’s Scarlet. And don’t bother me anymore. Just kill me.”
“Yes, Scarlet. Let’s put the killing behind us and…le-let’s compete.”
“What?”
When Scarlet opened her closed eyes to ask what Cordelia was talking about, Cordelia said with a smile.
“You’re the Rogue Master. Not the Warrior Master.”
Scarlet blinked her eyes at Cordelia’s words and soon understood it. So she couldn’t hide her surprise.
“Are you saying…”
“I have the Rogue Master’s treasure and you have the Rogue Master’s treasures too. Both of us are candidates for the Rogue Master position. So…let’s compete for the t.i.tle. The one who wins in our match will become the real Rogue Master. What kind of match it is…you should know, right?”
Scarlet’s cheeks instantly turned red when Cordelia winked and smiled. Because Cordelia’s smile revealed by the moonlight was so beautiful.
“Do you understand what I’m talking about?”
“Yeah… I-I understand.”
Scarlet unconsciously stuttered and she took several deep breaths before raising her upper body in order to stand up.
Cordelia had suggested that they should compete for the position of Rogue Master.
Then what kind of match should Rogue Masters have?
To say it directly, it was stealing.
To say it more elegantly, it was the act of unauthorized transfer of ownership.
“Do you agree?”
When Cordelia asked, Scarlet slowly nodded. But she soon added some words.
“In return, there are conditions.”
“Conditions? Hey, do you honestly think you’re in a situation where you could ask for that?”
“Listen to the end.”
“What is it?”
Cordelia questioned as her head tilted sideways, and Scarlet avoided her gaze and coughed a few times.
She blushed even more, and then put the words that Jude had expected out of her mouth.
“You won this match. Nevertheless, you gave me a chance to have an honorable showdown…so I’ll return the favor. I will make you wish come true whatever it is.”
“My wish?”
“Yes, your wish.”
“Anything?”
“I mean, that’s a bit… As long as it’s within my abilities. That…you know. Something like a job I can do.”
“Oh.”
As Cordelia clapped and smiled, Scarlet avoided her gaze again, and Jude who was watching them from a distance clenched his fist.
‘Bingo!’
As expected, she’s the same as Lucas.
Just as Lucas was obsessed with reenacting Biltwein the Hero, Scarlet was particularly obsessed with reenacting the anecdotes of the first Rogue Master.
‘Something like this also happened to the first Rogue Master.’
To be exact, it happened between the first Rogue Master and her rival, Thief Master.
Rogue Master, who was still an inexperienced thief before she called herself Rogue Master, fell into the trap of Thief Master once and was completely and helplessly defeated. But Thief Master admired the talent of Rogue Master and gave the same offer as Cordelia.
“Let’s have a match. A real match between the two of us.”
In response to Thief Master’s suggestion, Rogue Master said that she’d have the match after she had returned the favor for this incident, just like what Scarlet had now said, and Thief Master was willing to regard such Rogue Master as an honorable person.
‘And in the end, Rogue Master won and received the Wings of Speed from Thief Master… it’s a beautiful story where the two continued to be close friends afterwards.’
That was probably the reason why Scarlet’s face had turned red.
She must be really excited and happy to reenact the anecdote of that time and be in the same position as the first Rogue Master.
‘Of course, we don’t intend to follow the story until the very end.’
After all, what mattered now was Scarlet’s promise and not the match against Scarlet.
She would make any wish of Cordelia come true.
In other words, it was a very useful way to get Scarlet involved in their fight at the royal capital.
‘It’s better if we get close to her with this opportunity.’
Scarlet had become a villain all because of the Soul Taker.
If they became close from the very start and prevented her from touching the Soul Taker, she would likely remain their ally until the very end.
‘As expected of Cordelia.’
Cordelia wasn’t a calculative person like Jude.
She might have thought that Scarlet would respond that way because of Scarlet’s personality, but it was clear that Cordelia wouldn’t have thought of such conditions like that now.
But Cordelia had said that.
Because she liked the Scarlet who fought for the honor of the Rogue Master.
Because she wanted to be friends with Scarlet who had always been an enemy, rather than have to kill her once again.
‘I can’t be like that.’
It didn’t suit Jude to act so purely with such a pure heart.
“W-what do you think? About my conditions?”
Scarlet timidly asked and Cordelia looked like she was thinking for a moment before she said with her canines glistening.
“Okay, we have a deal. So let’s shake hands.”
“Eh?”
“Let’s shake hands.”
When Cordelia stretched out her hand, Scarlet held that hand and blushed again.
Because she was embarra.s.sed.
“Anyway, just go back for now. I’ll tell you what I want later. Do you know of the Blue Moon?”
“I know them.”
“What about the guild master?”
“Are you talking about Mister Suppé?”
“Yes. I’ll contact you through that uncle. Is that okay with you?”
“It’s okay.”
“Oh my, look at how well my Scarlet answers.”
Cordelia giggled and helped Scarlet up, and Scarlet said as she pouted.
“Hey, but how…how did you know my name?”
Because Jude and Cordelia had clearly called her Scarlet before she had introduced herself.
Cordelia replied to her rather sharp question with a fl.u.s.tered expression.
“Eh? Uh…that…ah! Because you walked on the path of the Rogue Master. I mean, I’ve already figured out who my rivals are.”
Cordelia said as she thumped on her chest, and the corners of Scarlet’s mouth were slightly raised.
She seemed to be quite pleased with Cordelia’s words.
‘She’s like Lucas.’
She was a bit naïve.
While Jude had a wicked smile, Scarlet shook Cordelia’s hand before she spread her Wings of Speed and flew up to a low roof.
“Hey! Pink Bomb!”
“Why, Red Hair.”
“Hey, you have pink hair.”
“Anyway, why?”
“That… Don’t make me wait too long, okay?”
“Eh… Okay. I’ll contact you as soon as possible.”
Cordelia replied with a cute giggle, and Scarlet blushed again before she spread her Wings of Speed and flew up into the night sky.
As for how Cordelia looked from behind…
Jude thought that Cordelia looked really cute than cool. She then turned towards Jude and proudly raised her hand to make a V-sign with her fingers.
“Problem solved.”
They succeeded in their theft and also made a connection with Scarlet.
Cordelia cleared her throat while looking proudly, and Jude gave her a light applause.
And two days later.
The second theft of Rogue Master Pink Bomb was now widely known throughout the royal capital.
And the carriages of Count Bayer and Count Chase arrived at the royal capital together.