Chapter 27: The Scrutiny of Lucia

“Reverend Sister! This young lady was only fighting with those men because she was protecting me!”

The Front desk lady stepped in front of Lucia, passionately defending Lovelenica.

“Those men were the first to hurl vulgar insults at the young lady, and they even intended to cause a disturbance here. She only intervened to protect me!”

“The young lady was certainly not the one who started the fight!”

‘Ha, how laughable. What does it matter who started it? Lucia must have sensed something amiss about me, which is why she’s here to investigate.’

‘Bring it on, then. Let me truly witness the protagonist’s power… Hmm? Wait, why did you actually put down your weapon?’

Upon hearing the Front desk lady’s fervent defense of Lovelenica, Lovelenica herself found it pointless, yet Lucia, standing opposite, truly lowered her gunblade.

Lucia then immediately aimed her gunblade at Scar-face, who was still sprawled on the ground.

“Tell me, what exactly transpired here!”

The Front desk lady’s statement prompted Lucia to re-evaluate the genesis of the brawl; if Lovelenica had indeed attacked Scar-face and his companions purely in defense of the Front desk lady, the circumstances would be dramatically different.

“No, no, that’s not how it was, Reverend Sister! I had no intention of causing any trouble whatsoever; it was this little… this young lady who suddenly attacked! Look! My hand is shattered, and one of my brothers is dead!”

Scar-face continued to wallow on the ground, appealing for Lucia’s pity. He nearly let slip a derogatory term for Lovelenica, almost calling her a ‘little b*tch,’ but managed to catch himself just in time. However, he once again claimed his unconscious companion was dead.

“Nonsense! It was plainly you who first insulted that young lady, and then you intended to lay hands on us!”

Another Front desk lady, who had witnessed the entire incident, approached and angrily refuted Scar-face’s claims.

Moments before, Scar-face had seized the Front desk lady by her collar, lifting her off her feet, his fist, large as a sandbag, poised to strike her face. Had Lovelenica not intervened to save her, the Front desk lady’s face would undoubtedly have been disfigured.

“Bullshit! I never intended to cause trouble! If you don’t believe me, ask the other demon hunters around here!”

Noticing another Front desk lady stepping forward to speak on Lovelenica’s behalf, Scar-face immediately grew agitated, the facade of a helpless victim he had maintained moments ago beginning to crumble.

He glanced at the surrounding demon hunters, hoping they would corroborate his story. While these hunters weren’t part of his personal squad, he recognized a few faces; they had shared drinks on several occasions.

Lucia’s gaze, sharp and cold, swept across the other demon hunters.

“Tell me, what transpired here?”

“No, I… I don’t know, Reverend Sister. I was just collecting my mission reward; I had no idea what was happening…”

“I was in the restroom just now, so I didn’t see a thing!”

“Me neither… I wasn’t paying attention…”

Each of the demon hunters stammered, afraid to speak, for they, too, had joined the ranks of those mocking Lovelenica moments earlier. When Scar-face had lifted the Front desk lady, some had even jeered and applauded.

Who wouldn’t enjoy such a spectacle?

Yet, unexpectedly, Lovelenica had suddenly erupted in a burst of violence, not only shattering one of Scar-face’s hands but also making a mockery of his entire group. Now, no one dared to underestimate her.

And now, a church nun, a figure rarely seen within the Demon Hunter Guild, had unexpectedly appeared, coincidentally witnessing the skirmish between Lovelenica and Scar-face.

When confronted by the nun’s interrogation, Lovelenica had even dared to point her gun directly at the Sister without a word, a revelation that made all the demon hunters realize Lovelenica was a force to be reckoned with.

Consequently, even though Scar-face was also a demon hunter, no one dared to speak up on his behalf. What if their words were misconstrued, and a gun barrel ended up pointed at their own foreheads? And what if the nun’s investigation uncovered their false testimony, leading to their own implication?

It was better to avoid trouble than to invite it; at this moment, feigning ignorance seemed the wisest course.

Witnessing the cowardly demeanor of the other demon hunters, Scar-face was instantly enraged, wanting nothing more than to unleash a torrent of curses.

Lovelenica, on the other hand, felt a pang of confusion. She had not anticipated Lucia truly putting down her weapon, and then proceeding to gather statements from those around them, seemingly investigating the full circumstances of the recent altercation.

‘Could it be… Lucia wasn’t actually here to investigate me because she’d discovered something amiss?’

‘Then why would Lucia be at the Demon Hunter Guild at all?’

‘Lovelenica recalled that in the original plot, Lucia rarely frequented such establishments.’

After a brief assessment of the immediate situation, Lovelenica likewise holstered her weapon and approached Lucia.

The Front desk lady was explaining the full sequence of events to Lucia. As Lucia listened to the insulting remarks made by Scar-face’s group, and their acts of ambush and ganging up, her delicate brows furrowed in a tight knot.

Lovelenica, now standing before Lucia, affirmed the Front desk lady’s account once she had finished speaking.

“It’s exactly as this older sister explained. Their mockery of me was one thing, but simply because she wanted to escort me out first, delaying them for a moment, they intended to lay hands on her. I couldn’t stand idly by, so I attacked.”

“You little b*tch! Die!”

Scar-face, attempting his old trick once more, lunged to ambush Lovelenica while she was speaking. He had evidently decided to abandon all pretense and go all out; even if he were to be apprehended, he was determined to kill the ‘little b*tch’ before him first.

A silver dagger, seen only for a fleeting moment, flew straight towards Lovelenica’s back.

This time, however, Lovelenica showed no inclination to dodge whatsoever.

Clang—