The Raven Dark Hero 97

Chapter 97 : The Real Harm

TL:SummerPeanut

Author’s Note:

It's been a while. I'm sorry for being very late!

“Takahiko? It's rare to see you rush to me so early.”

Usually, Takahiko rarely rushed to the aid of Kouki no matter where he is fighting. Reason being he believed that there was no chance that Kouki would even be in danger but it was a little surprising to Kouki that Takahiko had come rushing this time and he’s even out of breath.

“Isn’t it obvious just from seeing my state? Because I came running. And you can start introducing me to the guy next to you since he looks like he's confused.”

As he was about to reply to Kouki, Takahiko shifted his gaze to Kazur.

“Ahh……”

When Kouki looked back at Kazur, he definitely had a troubled expression on his face. He seemed to be wondering if it was okay to tell him that he was a Revived Hunter.

“Takahiko is one of the few partners who know that I'm a Revived Hunter. You can rest assured.”

Then Kazur……

“I see. My name is Kazur. I'm a survivor of the Revived Hunters that manifested amongst the experimental subjects under Strohm who escaped two years ago.”

Takahiko's expression hardened when he heard that Kazur was a survivor of the Revived Hunters. Why did he rush to Kouki this time? It was because he had a bad feeling about it. The first thing that came to mind was the secret that he had not told Kouki.

“Revived Hunter’s……”

“That's what I'm talking about. It seems that Kazur had been getting information about every single thing that was going on at the institute so that one day he could take revenge on Strohm. So he came to see me after I destroyed the institute.”

Kouki felt it would be troublesome to tell everything so he didn't say that Kazur had come to kill Kouki at first.

“……I see. But, How did Kazur-san know that Kouki is a Revived Hunter?”

“……Mm, I suppose it’s because we're both Revived Hunters. I was convinced when I saw Kouki use multiple gifts when he fought Exideth and Chimera.”

Although Kazur had been able to find out what was going on in the laboratory, his ability was not accurate enough to see the battle in detail. So it was only a short while ago that Kazur found out that Kouki was also a Revived Hunter but he followed Kouki's example and told a small lie to save time for the explanation.

Takahiko believed him easily because there was nothing suspicious in the conversation between Kouki and Kazur, but that was not the problem. The question was whether or not Kazur had already told him the secret that he had been keeping from Kouki.

“You're quite fluent in Japanese by the way…… oh well. Kazur-San, have you told Kouki about the harm of not killing those who have killed him yet?”

Takahiko asked Kazur a question that was straightforward, but as barely not letting Kouki find out his intentions. But instead, Kouki tried to answer the question.

“He’s fluent with the language. And we were just about to get to that point……”

Ignoring Kouki's reply, Takahiko's eyes glowed gold.

……But he couldn't get any information out of Kazur.

(What? No way, it got resisted!?)

In order to resist the God's Eye, you have to be aware that it is an ability to read minds. Even though he didn't know that, he was able to resist the God's Eye.

“……Look at how surprised you are…… You have bad taste. To think you're trying to look into mind of people you met for the first time. If it wasn't for you being Kouki's partner, you'd be in for a world of hurt……”

“Takahiko~ You, stop activating the God's Eye on everyone. I'm sorry, Kazur."

"It's just a hobby of his. No offense. ……by the way, how were you able to resist it the first time you saw it? ……Could it be, a gift?”

“No, I was drilled in the knowledge of all kinds of gifts in the lab. One of them was the gift of reading people's minds and the activation conditions were similar and when I responded…”[1]

Kouki soothed Kazur. It was probably a good thing if he hadn't been found out up until now but being able to read someone's mind would have been a very disgusting thing to do. In fact, Kazur stared at Takahiko with eyes full of suspicion.

However, Takahiko was more surprised that his God’s Eye was resisted despite the fact that the other party had never seen it before.

“……No way, you were able to resist my gift with just some knowledge?”

“The moment your eyes lit up, I thought, ‘What if...?’”

Kazur grinned at him but his gaze on Takahiko was the still same, full of suspicion.

(Oh man……I've lost my credibility. I don't know if he’ll even answer my honest questions anymore.)

Amidst the delicate atmosphere, Kouki made a proposal to Takahiko.

“Hey, Takahiko. Shouldn't we ask Kazur to join Kuroyume?”

“Eh? ……That’s, you mean letting him enter Kuroyume?”

Kazur joining Kuroyume……. Takahiko had already lost Kazur's trust and with the secret he had been hiding, it was an impossible proposition for him.

(……As a fellow Revived Hunter, I'm sure that Kazur will be a good friend to Kouki. But he will definitely tell Kouki the information I've been hiding. And at that time, he will definitely be on Kouki's side……)

Takahiko thought for a moment and then shook his head.

“……I'm sorry to tell you this, but I can't make that decision on my own. We are in sensitive period right now, we need to ask the boss first.”

“I'll convince him. Boss surely knows how much the Revived Hunters can do for the organization, won’t he? I've done my fair share of work, and this Kazur has more gifts than I have.”

While Kouki possessed many gifts that are mainly specialized in combat, Kazur has various gifts, to begin with. Just like what the person said himself, he had obtained multiple gifts from mind-reading type gifts and other types. So he will be a great asset to the organization.

Takahiko knew that too. Even so, he couldn't just admit it outright.

“I'm not saying he can't. I'll talk to the boss when I get back to Japan. In the meantime, I want you to wait here in Germany.”

He understood what Takahiko was trying to say, but still, Kouki was not convinced.

“Then why don't we just take him to Japan? The boss would never say no.”

“I agree but let's still go through the steps. Kazur is also related to Core, who is probably the main suspect in this kidnapping case. If the press gets wind of this, it could be a problem for the organization……”

“……You, what are you hiding since a while ago?”

Kazur suddenly interrupted the conversation between Kouki and Takahiko. His eyes showed that he was sure that Takahiko was hiding something from him.

“Wha-, what are you saying?”

“I can't read other people's thoughts with my gift like you can, but I can detect some emotions through facial expressions and voice. What you're feeling right now is……the sense of urgency to hide something……Is that it?”

Takahiko had never imagined that he, who had read countless people's minds, would become the one being read.

“Hiding something? ……Takahiko, what is it that you want to hide?”

“……Ergh……”

Takahiko swallowed down his words; thinking that he couldn't hide it anymore now that Kazur was there.

(If Kouki finds out the secret……no matter how I see it, I don't see a good future for us. I knew it, I can't say it!)

Kazur cornered Takahiko to the limit with his stubborn attitude.

“……You were wondering earlier about the downside of Revived Hunter not killing the killer? ……Does Kouki know about the downside?”

Takahiko's expression changed from impatience. He knew that if he didn't do anything, Kouki would surely find out about his secret.

Takahiko decided to take a gamble.

“Wa-, wait!  It's true that there are parts about Revived Hunter that I haven't told Kouki yet. But that's because I decided that I shouldn't tell him yet!”

Takahiko gave his reasons for not being honest. But Kouki was speechless when he heard that there was a secret he was keeping from him. And Kazur did not remain silent.

“That's a very selfish thing to say. You're not a Revived Hunter, are you? As a Revived Hunter, Kouki has the right to know and you have no right to hide that information from him.”

“I know! I get it, ok! But, even still, it's better that he doesn't know about it now!”

Takahiko may look carefree most of the time, but he's actually the calmest guy in the room. This Takahiko was raising his voice in a way unusual from him.

Seeing this scene, Kouki realized that the hidden secret was definitely something detrimental to him.

“As I said, that's not for you to decide. Our gift, the Revived Hunter, has a number of downsides that can kill you if you don't know about them. That's the secret you're hiding, isn't it?”

Kazur had completely lost faith in Takahiko. So he could only see him as a man who was detrimental to Kouki.

“If you still refuse to tell him, then I'll do it myself. Kouki is the only comrade I've ever had. No matter how much of a partner you are, if you're going to interfere……I'll shut you up with force”

A deadly energy flowed out of Kazur. The aura was so strong that Takahiko could tell at once that Kazur is very strong.

Takahiko and Kazur stared eye to eye at their spot. Both of them have something they can’t forgo. There was a tingling tension between them……but Kouki broke the atmosphere.

“Hey, Takahiko. If you don't want to tell me, then it must be really bad for me, right? No, that secret probably wouldn’t just affect me, it affects everyone around me, doesn't it?”

As Kouki's words got to the heart of the matter, Takahiko fell silent.

“You've never been wrong in any critical situation before, so you're probably not wrong this time either. But I still want to know. I want to know the secret of my Revived Hunter.”

With that, Kouki put his hand on Takahiko's shoulder and looked at Kazur.

“Kazur, maybe you see Takahiko as a liar…… No, he's definitely one I guess? But I'm buddies with him because he's this kind of guy. If he's hiding a secret, it's definitely something I'd rather not hear. So please forgive him.”

“……I see. I have no choice. Then, right here and now, he will tell you the secret he has been keeping. That's the deal.”

Takahiko……as if he had given up, opened his mouth…….

“……I, yesterday, I told you that if the Revived Hunters don't go on…… I mean, if you don't die, you'll eventually go insane, right?”

“Yeah. That’s why the problem is that I can't die even if I want to....... Isn't that right?”

“……You don't have to die to salvage your condition. The other condition…… in other words, you'll have to kill the person who killed you...no exception. That's, the real condition……”

Takahiko's words were very slurred and difficult to understand, even more so considering that he was an eloquent man by nature. But even so, Kouki realized why he had refused to reveal this secret to him.

“……I see. Indeed……Maybe I didn't want to know about this……”

Kouki gave a bitter smile. Seeing Kouki like that, Takahiko……

“To me, you're my only best friend and my most important partner. But for me, Boss is the one who gave me a purpose in life, he's like a father to me. I couldn't just pick one or the other!”

Takahiko was hiding a secret. The secret that Takahiko has been hiding is that the condition to stop the gradual loss of sensation and ego is not that the Revived Hunter must be activated but rather he needs to kill the person who killed him.

In other words, if Kouki didn't kill Kiryu, he would eventually become an empty shell.

However, thanks to Takahiko, who seemed to be more seriously troubled than he was, he was able to accept the information without being too agitated.

In addition to that, he was aware of his murderous intent every time he saw Kiryu, which was why he had been keeping his distance from him lately. Thus everything somehow made sense to him.

Above all…… Takahiko must have worried himself to death for his sake. When he thought about it, he was strangely able to come to decision on what action he should take.

“I understand. Boss is a man I look up to. I understand what you're going through. I'm sorry. For making you so worried.”

“Kouki…… You……”

“Kazur. Is there nothing I can do about this?”

“……So far, the only way to solve this problem is to kill the person that killed you. Are you saying that you don't want to kill that person even if it means giving up your own life?”

Kouki nodded silently. Kazur was about to press Kouki to change his mind but stopped when he saw his expression.

Kouki told Takahiko with a look of determination on his face.

“I……will retire from Kuroyume.. I'll never show my face in front of boss again.”

Somewhere in the back of his mind, Takahiko had expected that Kouki would say that when he found out about this but he lifted his head up when he heard those words.

“Retire from Kuroyume…… then, you're not going to kill boss?”

“Yeah. I won’t.”

Kouki spoke so matter-of-factly that Kazur couldn't keep quiet.

“What are you saying? You're going to lose your ego, you know? In a way, you're as good as dead, do you get it!?”

“I guess. Still, I can't kill the boss. He's the one who gave me a place to live.”

For Kouki that manifested gift and promptly antagonized a huge entity, the NDF, Kuroyume was the only place where he could live. The person who gave him that place was Kiryu.

When he thought about whether he wanted to live even if he had to kill Kiryu, he came to a decision. He decided that going to such lengths to survive was not the course of action forgivable to the remaining meager sense of justice within him.

“I'm afraid of losing my ego, to be honest, but I can't die even if I wanted to because of White’s curse. What should I do……? If there's a place that's absolutely inescapable, that would be convenient…… GUH!?”

Takahiko punched Kouki who began to ponder with difficult face.

“WHAT BULLSHITS ARE YOU SPEWING ABOUT!? You, do you even know what you're getting yourself into…… Do you even get what the fuck you are saying right now!?”

“……that hurts. We don't have a choice, do we? Are you saying that I should just kill boss? You don't want to do that, do you? It's best if I disappear. Takahiko, you're contradicting yourself right now, you know?"

“I know…… I know that but still, it made me angry to see you talking like you'd throw away your life so easily!”

Kouki looked at the always calm Takahiko showing his emotions in a rare way as if he were someone else. Probably for his own sake.

Even at a time like this, Kouki can still remain calm. Kouki didn't realize that this was the downside of the Revived Hunter acting up. Not killing the person that killed him, thus gradually causing him to lose his emotions.

“……Don't give up so easily! Someday, I'll find a way to……Hmm?”

At that moment, the emergency email notification sounded on Kouki and Takahiko's Kuroyume terminals.

“Shit, what is it, during this time……”

“It's an emergency text. We can't just ignore it, can we?”

Takahiko clicked his tongue and looked at the terminal. He immediately looked up and made eye contact with Kouki, who had also checked the terminal.

The content of the mail is……

『The Sendai branch of Kuroyume was destroyed in an attack by ‘Kagerou’. Return immediately.』

……That was the message.

Author’s Note:

Tip: As will be explained in the next article, Kagerou is a rival organization to Kuroyume.

I'm sorry for the delay in the update, but I will be taking a break for a while again. I'll give you more details in the activity report, but I've also decided to delay the release of the book by about a month, so please check out the activity report if you'd like to know more about that.m(__)m

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TL’s note:

1. I know you guys gonna ask then why didn’t Strohm resist it. I have no idea.