SSS-Class Revival Hunter - Chapter 21

WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: ZERO_SUGAR

Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried

◈ SSS-Class Revival Hunter ◈

Chapter 21: A Moment of Leisure with a Cup of Coffee (3)

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-Sir! This player has a straight. Fold.

"I fold."

-Ah. Sir, that player is bluffing with just one pair. How pathetic. Just call and crush them.

"Call."

-Aha, you and they have the same hand, both with two pairs. But your two pairs are higher. Oh, this is going to be fun. Let's see who drops out first, Sir!

"Raise."

-Wow, this player is aiming for a full house? Don't worry, Sir. I just peeked under the table and checked their cards. They won't make a full house even at the end. Trust me and let's go for it!

"All-in."

About thirty hands of poker had been played.

"......"

The man opposite me, Viper, was trembling. The one-eyed Hunter's face was turning red and blue in rage.

"Damn it! This is a scam!"

Viper sprang to his feet. Boom! The table shook. As though they had expected this, the other Hunters raised their coffee cups in unison, averting the disaster of spilled coffee. Hmm. Impressive timing.

"It doesn't make sense! We've played over thirty hands, and this guy hasn't lost once. Bluffing doesn't work on him. He has to be using some shitty passive skill or something! It's cheating! Cheating!"

"Do you have any evidence?"

I sipped my hot chocolate, which had now turned into a bland chocolate latte. It had its own charm.

"Maybe I'm simply good at poker. Accusing me without proof is unfair. Please try to think better of me, senior."

"Is this guy really registered as an F-rank Hunter!?"

Viper shouted, looking around.

"How is this guy F-rank? I'd sooner believe those bastards at the Association took a bribe and lied for him. A slippery bastard like him has to be at least B-rank!"

"Wow. How did you know I'm not F-rank?"

"That's right! I knew it...”

"Actually, I just advanced to E-rank yesterday. I've been too busy conquering the 10th floor to report it to the Hunter Association."

"......"

I smiled.

"Thank you for thinking so highly of me. By the way, Clan Master, you're out of chips, aren't you?"

"Ugh..."

Viper turned his back and walked away with a defeated stride, joining the other eliminated players in the spectator area.

"Welcome, Master of the Celestial Martial Clan!"

The first to be eliminated, the Heretic Inquisitor, greeted him with a bright smile.

"I thought it was about time for the Master of the Celestial Martial Clan to be eliminated, so I ordered another espresso! There's no need to decline. Enjoy as much as you like."

"I hate espresso..."

"Yes! I know. You should overcome your pickiness!"

"Damn religious nut..."

In the end, only three Hunters remained in the game: me, the Black Witch from Black Dragon, and surprisingly, Paladin.

"Umm."

Paladin looked down at her cards, furrowing her brow.

The deputy guild leader of the Vigilante Corps, she was renowned for being righteous and fair. The Vigilante Corps had been founded to maintain public order in Babylon, the city on the tower's first floor. In terms of the outside world, the Hunter before me was comparable to the head of the national police. They even said she had donated her entire fortune to an orphanage because she had no personal greed.

"I'm out."

Paladin sighed and laid her cards down.

"I thought I had a good poker face. Kim Gong-Ja, do you possess a mind-reading skill?"

"Who knows? Maybe mind-reading, maybe clairvoyance. Take a guess."

"…The young ones these days are really something."

Paladin gave a wry smile, nodded at me, and joined the others in the spectator area.

"Hey! How can you give up so easily, you fool!"

Viper, already seated among the eliminated, snapped at her. The area around his mouth was dirty, apparently because he had spilled some espresso.

"Shouldn't you cling on like a hunting dog? Are we just going to let this trickster get away?"

"Calling a new hero a trickster. That's harsh."

"Can't you see he's blatantly using his skills!?"

Paladin shrugged.

"I knew it from the start."

"What? Really?"

"Of course. It would've been strange not to know. Did you think a rookie would propose a poker game based purely on luck without any preparation? Proposing the game itself was a declaration that 'I have the confidence to beat you without getting caught using skills.' We accepted that challenge."

Viper's mouth hung open.

"Was that it?"

"Master of the Celestial Martial Clan... Devoting yourself to martial arts is fine, but use your head once in a while too."

Paladin looked at him with pity.

"From the beginning, this game was risk-free for us. Winning would be a windfall, of course. But even if we lose… Didn't the rookie say he would join all our guilds? That's also a decent outcome."

"But, but… Our pride! How can we treat a green youngster as our equal...?”

"Does pride feed you?"

Viper turned mute.

"Espresso does! Now, Master of the Celestial Martial Clan, finish yours!"

"Damn it…"

Ultimately, the last to remain were the 2nd-ranked Hunter, the Black Witch, and me.

"......"

The Witch gazed at her cards before speaking.

"What a relief."

"What do you mean?"

"You seem to be a reasonable human after all."

The Witch bet chips. Raise. She was provoking me.

"I'm from Ukraine. Or rather, from a place that used to be Ukraine. I've been a wanderer since I lost my family in a civil war. As you know, whether in the tower or the outside world, it's tough for a woman to survive alone."

"That's true."

I willingly accepted her challenge. Reraise. I increased the bet.

"......"

After a moment's hesitation, the Witch tapped the table twice. Tap. Tap. A sign of accepting the duel. The Countess, who had volunteered to be the dealer after being eliminated, laid out the cards.

"What are you trying to say?"

I pretended to ponder, stroking my chin.

"Those who entered the tower, especially the first generation, it's harder to find someone without a story. I'm just a plain orphan."

My card hand was One Pair.

"…This tower is like my homeland."

The Witch's hand was a Flush.

"The tower doesn't ask about origins. Or rather, we've made it so. It doesn't matter that I'm from Ukraine, Viper is from China, and you're from Korea... In our tower, that doesn't matter."

"Is that so?"

"Yes. Thanks to the tower's grace, we can understand each other's words. Here, we are all equal challengers... at least more so than in the outside world."

If the game continued as is, I would lose.

But I confidently raised the bet again.

"People in the outside world treat this place like a trash can."

"Roses can bloom even in a trash heap."

The Witch firmly signaled a call.

"Kim Gong-Ja, the moment the sky clock hits [00:00:00], the media will flood with articles about you. A completely different life will begin. I hope you handle it wisely."

"That sounds good."

Another card flipped on the table.

"I love getting attention. I want people to praise me, look up to me, envy me. I'm serious. That's all there is to me."

My hand had changed to Two Pair.

"…You're frank. Quite the opposite of the Sword Saint."

The Witch's hand remained a Flush.

I was still at a disadvantage, but I went all-in.

"......"

"I'm confident."

I looked directly at the Witch, detaching my gaze from the cards.

"I might as well tell you all now. I don't just want your respect because I conquered the 10th floor. I plan to conquer the 20th, 30th, 40th, 50th, all the way up to the 100th floor. No matter how long it takes, I will conquer the tower."

"......"

"I understand you all cherish the tower. I respect that. I have no intention of needlessly fighting with you. However, I will consider you all as my rivals."

Who will be the first to conquer the tower?

Who will be praised as the greatest hero?

To be remembered, to be praised, to be envied and resented. To erect a monumental achievement that everyone would look up to.

"I want to see the world beyond the tower."

Thus, I will ascend the tower.

"I don't have time to worry about things like war refugees or food shortages, honestly. If you need my name to solve these problems, use it. Just support my climb up the tower."

That feeling of conquering the 10th floor today, the sensation of being at the top, I wanted to feel it again. I had only tasted it once, but I already seemed addicted to that feeling.

It was just that incredible!

"Ha..."

After a moment of silence, the Witch sighed.

"I was wrong. You're not the opposite of the Sword Saint; you're exactly the same."

The Witch pushed all her chips forward with both hands. All-in.

"A compliment?"

"No, it's an insult. Greedy people."

The final card was turned.

Her hand was still a Flush.

My hand... a Full House.

"Turns out it is a compliment."

I grinned.

"Thank you."

I had won.

"As promised, I look forward to being treated equally with you all."

"Can we expect you to carry the duties as much as you enjoy the rights?"

"Isn't a Hunter's duty to ascend the tower? Don't worry. I'll continue to fulfill my duties as a hunter."

"Pretty slippery for a rookie..."

The Witch smirked.

-Yeah. If there were a skill called [Slickness], Zombie here would have reached S-rank in it.

"…Are you really going back to calling me a zombie right after the game?"

-Of course, you zombie bastard! To hell with calling you "Sir"!

The Sword Emperor excitedly flew around.

-Zombie! Zombie! Zombie bastard! Ah, I never knew being unable to call a zombie a zombie could be so heartbreaking! Never again will I make a bet with that slippery bastard!

"Disgraceful…"

How could the so-called Sword Emperor be so disgraceful?

I shook my head inwardly and stood up.

"Leaving already?"

"Yes. The 11th floor will open soon. I need to prepare to not fall behind others."

"How can you prepare when you don't even know what the 11th floor holds?"

Hmm.

'Giving a little hint here wouldn't hurt.'

Now that I've been promised equal treatment, creating a bit of a debt would make future endeavors smoother.

I gathered my thoughts and spoke up.

"Role-playing."

"Huh?"

"The theme from the 11th to the 20th floor is role-playing."

Every Hunter, including the Witch, looked at me with blazing eyes. Naturally, even the smallest hint could let someone surge ahead of the others. The information I was giving them was worth a fortune.

"The reward for clearing the 10th floor included this hint."

Of course, it was a lie.

I hadn't received my reward for conquering the 10th floor yet. The reward would be given when the sky clock hit 00:00:00. But I already knew what was going to happen.

Knowledge of the future. There was no reason not to use it.

"That's all I know."

"…Thanks for sharing the information."

The Witch nodded.

"I'll repay this debt later."

Those were promising words.

After sleeping soundly at my lodging, I went out to the plaza.

The city was in a festive mood, celebrating the first conquering of the 10th floor in years. Some bars were giving away free beer, and some talented individuals performed songs in the square.

"But who really conquered the 10th floor?"

The only lingering question among the people.

"There's still no official announcement..."

"I heard the guild masters gathered in one place."

"Did you see the video denying it was the Sword Saint? He seemed genuinely upset, insisting it wasn't him."

"Then who is it?"

Murmurs filled the air.

I held back my laughter.

'I'm right here.'

I was standing right in the middle of the festive crowd.

[00:02:09]

A full day had nearly passed since the 10th floor was conquered, and the numbers on the sky clock were steadily ticking down, however slowly. Some Hunters held mugs of free beer, while others whispered about the unknown conqueror as they gazed up at the sky, like people in the outside world awaiting the New Year.

[00:00:10]

"Ten!"

Unprompted, Hunters began counting down as the clock reached ten seconds.

[00:00:09]

"Nine!"

[00:00:08]

"Eight!"

The plaza echoed with countless Hunters shouting together. Seven, six, five... It was not New Year's, but every face held the expectation that a new era was about to begin.

[00:00:04]

"Four!"

I checked the media on my smartphone.

Apparently the embargo was still being properly observed, because I could not find any articles about me yet.

[00:00:03]

"Three!"

That's when articles began appearing on the media sites operated by Babylon. Maybe they were eager to get the scoop even a second earlier.

[00:00:02]

"Two!"

I browsed the articles.

-[Breaking] The Hunter who cleared the 10th floor is an unknown E-rank rookie!

-[Breaking] Real name Kim Gong-Ja, a Korean...