Chapter 109
Come to think of it, the fighting style just now was also somewhat...
I examined the face of the self-proclaimed sheriff in front of me.
...She's not in my memory.
But somehow she felt familiar so I wasn’t sure.
As I tilted my head, the self-proclaimed sheriff hardened her expression and opened her mouth, "...I'd like to ask you the same."
"..."
"...Who are you?"
At the question of who I was, I smiled slightly and put my hand inside my clothes.
What I then took out was...
Flutter.
"A hired thug who came to demolish this village."
It was the demolition order for Peace Town.
When I waved it in front of the self-proclaimed sheriff's eyes, there was a reaction from the villagers surrounding us.
"C-Claire! That bastard smashed our stores and threatened us to leave this village!"
It seemed the self-proclaimed sheriff's name was Claire.
Claire.
It was a common name.
But I didn’t think there was anyone named Claire among those I knew.
"C-Claire! Teach those bastards a lesson!"
"Sheriff! Please drive away these thugs!"
While I was examining Claire's face for a moment, the residents of Peace Town shouted, encouraging a fight.
Swish—
Hearing the villagers' cries, Claire took her stance again as if planning to charge.
A revolver in her left hand and a fist in her right.
Although she was holding a gun... she didn’t seem to intend to kill me.
If someone on our side died, it would give Lloyd Railroad Company a reason to intervene in the village more heavily.
And I had no intention of killing her either because of the company's orders.
We both needed to subdue the other without killing.
It was more work than just shooting to kill.
What a bother...
Feeling the job becoming increasingly troublesome...
Swish.
Like the self-proclaimed sheriff Claire, I held a revolver in my left hand and a fist in my right.
And then...
Whoosh—!
"...!"
I charged first before she could reload.
I have 5 bullets left without reloading, so Claire has 2 bullets left.
As I leaped, she habitually raised her gun.
Bang—!
Still a fierce firing speed.
I, who had plenty of bullets...
Bang.
Shot back to counteract it.
Seeing the trick of blocking a bullet with a bullet, she flinched again.
And then, seeming to want to save her last bullet, instead of pulling the trigger, she raised her fist and charged at me.
At this, I changed tactics...
Click.
This time, I raised my gun first.
Bang bang—!
Two bullets fired cleanly.
Since I didn't intend to kill her, my targets were also her arms and legs.
"Damn it—!"
Claire quickly twisted her body as soon as I pulled the trigger.
She seemed to be trying to dodge the bullets like I did earlier.
But...
Thwack—! Thud—!
"...Kugh."
That wasn’t something just anyone could do.
It was impossible for an ordinary person to see and dodge bullets.
It was only possible for me because I was plastered with all sorts of cheat traits.
Claire was hit in the arm and leg as I aimed.
Stagger.
No matter how tough she was, she couldn't be unaffected after being shot.
Claire lost her balance after being shot, and...
Thwack—!
Taking that opportunity, I struck her throat with a straight punch.
"...Guhuck!"
Thud.
Claire collapsed right there.
Her eyes were closed, seeming to have fainted from being hit in a vital spot.
"Ah..."
"..."
As Peace Town's self-proclaimed sheriff fell, hope immediately disappeared from the villagers' eyes.
After confirming that Claire had fainted, I turned towards the villagers who had blank expressions.
And raising my gun...
Bang bang bang—!!
"Kyaaaaaaah!!"
I fired into the air.
Thinking I might shoot at them, the villagers in front immediately fell backwards.
Crash bang—!
That caused a chain reaction like dominoes, and the scene quickly became chaotic.
Even amidst this, people's gazes were focused solely on me.
At this, I maintained my smile and warned the villagers, "Everyone. Please vacate the village as soon as possible."
"..."
"If not, you'll soon end up like the sheriff over there."
Swish—
At the end of my pointing finger was Claire, lying unconscious and bleeding pitifully.
"...Hiik."
"...Kugh, damn it."
"Huuu..."
Although she wasn't dead, it was enough to shock them, as some people sobbed with despairing expressions.
"Well then, think about it carefully. I'll see you again tomorrow."
After finishing my words, I nodded to the gunslingers whose physical condition was okay.
"Ah...! Yes...!"
Understanding my gaze, they supported Vogue's group who had been shot and lifted them up.
It was absolutely impossible for me to demolish the village alone.
No matter how useless they were, I definitely needed the other gunslingers.
If we left those shot by Claire like this, they probably wouldn’t be able to get up for a long time.
We needed to treat them quickly.
I first moved Vogue's group to the saloon, which was our lodging.
"W-what is this...!"
"Owner. Bring me a fork for now."
There was no way a doctor would be in such a small village.
Fortunately, we had stocked basic medical supplies in case of emergencies.
I laid Vogue's group on the table and brought disinfectant and bandages from the room.
And then with the fork I received from the saloon owner...
Squeeze.
"Kuuuu."
I removed the bullets lodged in their wounds.
Ting.
"The bullets are out, so please disinfect and wrap bandages."
"Ah, understood."
The disinfection and bandaging were left to the other gunslingers.
In this way, we were able to finish treatment quickly.
Since Claire had aimed for arms and legs instead of vital points, there didn't seem to be any major problems.
They should be able to move again from tomorrow at the earliest.
"T-thanks, Youngest. Damn that bitch..."
"You were taken down by that self-proclaimed sheriff, right?"
"...Yeah. Until last time she only used her fists without drawing her gun, but for some reason she shot at us like a madwoman as soon as she saw us."
It seemed that self-proclaimed sheriff Claire had a deep affection for the village.
She probably couldn't contain her anger seeing Vogue's group ruining the village and drew her gun.
...Then is she a native of this village?
But why do her face... and each of her actions somehow feel familiar?
She also seemed somewhat surprised when she saw me, and...
Could it be...?
I considered a possible possibility for a moment but then shook my head.
There's no way a TKK member would be in this small village.
It was too big of a leap to suspect she was a TKK member just because she was surprised to see me.
But her skills were good enough to think that way.
TKK was an organization that operated strictly with a small elite force.
The skills that self-proclaimed sheriff Claire just showed... were excellent enough to remind me of a TKK executor.
I did shoot her arms and legs, but if she has a deep affection for the village, she'd probably ignore those wounds and try to stop us somehow.
This is troublesome.... Maybe I should have...
Killed her before she becomes a hindrance.
There wasn’t much left until I went home.
What couldn’t I do at this point?
The company said not to kill people, but one person might not be a problem.
At this, I couldn't help but fall into serious contemplation.
***
"Uuugh..."
"Oh, Claire? Are you conscious?"
The place where Claire regained consciousness was the village chief's house.
When she opened her eyes, many women were nursing her.
For a moment forgetting what had happened to her, Claire muttered and asked, "What is this…?"
"Don't you remember, Claire? You were shot by that crazy thug bastard...!"
"Ah..."
Ah right, I was shot...
Certainly in the arm and leg... wait...
Claire suddenly had an uneasy thought and jumped up.
And then...
"Why, why...! Why did you undress me without permission!"
As she ominously expected, her clothes had been removed.
The women around were surprised by Claire's intense reaction.
"...Huh? That's... because you were shot, Claire, so to treat you..."
"...Uh."
To be considerate of her, there were only women here.
Why is she making such a fuss about being undressed by other women?
While the women were tilting their heads, Claire hurriedly put on her clothes and got up.
Stagger.
"...Ugh."
"C-Claire. Don't push yourself...!"
"I'm fine... this much is..."
Although she couldn't say she was in good condition after being shot in the arm and leg, Claire somehow got up and walked outside.
"Why don't you just rest here…? Where are you going?"
"...Home. I'm more comfortable at home."
"I-I see...."
As Claire, who was always kind to the villagers, showed an urgent appearance, the women could only nod.
Claire trudged home, leaving behind the worried village women.
Fortunately, Claire's house wasn't far from the village chief's house.
"Phew...."
Only after arriving at her house could Claire sit down with relief.
"That was close..."
If “that” had been discovered... the villagers would no longer look at her favorably.
Claire sighed in relief and sat comfortably in a chair.
And when she closed her eyes...
Bang—!
"...!"
The image of the hired thug who had just shot her came to mind.
His face was certainly one Claire had never seen before.
But...
Have we met before?
That playful yet gentle voice.
And the shooting skills like a trick of blocking bullets with bullets.
As far as Claire knew, only one person in this world was capable of that.
...Could it be?
Claire considered a possible possibility for a moment but then shook her head.
"'That person' couldn't be in this small village..."
Recalling that person tormented her with vivid memories like a nightmare even though she wasn't asleep.
Leah, there's something you need to do. For the organization.
Once, she believed that person cared for and loved all members.
She also believed that serving the organization was for everyone's benefit.
But after being thoroughly abandoned by that person...
After learning that the many terrible things she had committed for the organization were merely his means of making money...
She abandoned the name Leah and started living as Claire.
Scratch.
Claire instinctively scratched her back.
In the place the village women hadn't checked while undressing Claire...
A “K” tattoo was clearly written.
The tattoo that was once the proudest thing in the world now felt like a great sin she must bear.
How many lives had she taken on the organization's orders until now?
Protecting this small, peaceful village probably wouldn’t be enough to be forgiven for her sins.
But...
Acting as the sheriff of Peace Town was the only thing that gave her comfort.
"I will protect it no matter what..."
At this, she vowed alone to stop all threats to the village in order to protect that small salvation.