Chapter 44
Bang.
"..."
"..."
A single gunshot rang out.
But this wasn't fired by me.
"Django!!"
A woman who fired into the air to draw attention is running this way.
...It was Josephine.
Josephine, swallowing her tears, ran towards Django and...
Swish.
Soon pointed her gun at me.
"...Let Django go."
Josephine's posture was quite proper, as if she had handled a gun a few times.
But...
Tremble tremble.
Her hand was shaking like an aspen leaf.
Seeing this, I sighed and said to Josephine, "You can't hit me if you shake that much, you know?"
"...!"
"It's good I don't have to follow you to the port to catch you. Miss, just put that gun down."
Josephine probably came here to save Django, but in reality, she just walked right into the jaws of the tiger.
As I wiggled my finger, Django shouted to Josephine with a face like his world had crumbled, "Josephine...!! Why did you come... why...!? If you had just abandoned me and gone to Hawaii... you could have lived the free life you wanted...!"
"How could I go alone leaving you behind... What was important to me wasn't where I went, but going together with you..."
"Josephine..."
"Django..."
"You're really kicking up a fuss."
I wasn’t like they were acting in a play, what were they doing with me in between?
But one thing I understood... was that these two's love was sincere.
Love.
Something I once wanted to do too.
Meeting someone I liked, holding hands together, going to bed together, greeting the morning together.
It was also something I could never do in this game where I was just data.
I was a clueless child who didn't know what love was.
So...
Click.
I also didn't know that love could drive one to catastrophe.
"...Hey."
"Josephine!!"
Josephine, who had been crying, thought there was only one way to overcome this situation and put the gun she was aiming at me to her own head.
Seeing this, I clicked my tongue and reached out, and she immediately shouted, "...Let Django go! If not, I'll just kill myself."
"Oh boy."
Until then, I had been thinking carelessly.
Because pulling the trigger on one’s own head wasn't an easy thing to do.
Did I not consider the possibility that if I died in this world, I might wake up in the real world?
But even I couldn't pull the trigger in the end and had been living for 17 years grudgingly.
A rich young lady who grew up pampered for over a decade shooting herself in the head.
From my perspective, it was an unthinkable thing.
So I...
Swish.
Without wasting time, I raised my gun towards Django again.
I thought if I put a bullet in Django's head, Josephine would put her gun down too.
But...
Click.
"...Let's be together in the next life."
"Josephine!"
"I love you."
Perhaps she couldn't bear to see Django die?
As I firmly raised my gun, Josephine closed her eyes with meaningful words.
And...
Swish—
"...!"
The [Best Gunslinger in the West] trait activated.
[Best Gunslinger in the West] recognized this as a duel situation.
In other words, Josephine was about to pull the trigger.
...Huh?
So I couldn't help but be flustered.
If Josephine died, everything would be over.
Not only would I not get the $10,000, but William, enraged at losing his daughter, wouldn't pay the $10,000 for killing Django either.
Therefore, my coming all the way to San Francisco would be in vain.
Swish—
So I quickly turned my gun towards Josephine and fired.
Bang—!
Crack—!
"Kyaa—!"
The bullet flew quickly and accurately knocked away the gun Josephine was holding.
Josephine, who was about to meet her death by her own hand, collapsed on the spot, and Django looked at me with surprised eyes.
It happened in an instant.
I had used the last bullet I was saving to kill Django to save Josephine instead.
***
Had I ever shot a gun to save someone?
Did I just save Josephine solely for the success of the request?
...It didn't seem so.
"...You said you were going to Hawaii. Were you planning to live there for the rest of your lives?"
"...Yes."
When I asked covering my face with my hand, Django nodded while still wearing a surprised expression.
Hawaii.
An island I had never been to, but...
When I closed my eyes, an old memory came to mind.
An old memory that became the reason why I must absolutely leave this world...
— Hawaii? Of course, I've been there! Dad and Mom went to Hawaii for their honeymoon! There, Dad... hehe...
— Honey! How can you tell the child such things!?
"..."
Finishing my reminiscence, I opened my eyes and looked at the guys collapsed behind the alley.
They were all unconscious, but still breathing.
Django must have aimed and shot deliberately.
I seemed to know the reason, but I deliberately asked Django, "...Hey."
"...Yes."
"Why did you deliberately not kill those guys and let them live?"
"..."
The expected answer flowed from Django, "...Because they're humans like me."
"..."
"...Judging by their attire, they're former slave patrollers. They didn't see me as human, but I saw them as human."
Same humans.
Until just now, it was a phrase that made my irritation rise, but...
"Phew...."
Maybe it was because of the strong cigarette I just smoked... or because I had lost a lot of blood...
In my hazy state of mind, I just sat down and said to the two, "Just go."
"...Pardon?"
"I said just go. I won't chase you anymore, so go to Hawaii or wherever, do as you please."
"..."
Confused by my sudden change, the two hesitated, and then...
"Django—!"
Josephine approached Django first and hugged him, stopping the bleeding from his collarbone that I had stabbed earlier.
Django stroked Josephine but got up quickly, perhaps thinking I might change my mind.
I didn't think of chasing the two who were hurriedly escaping.
Hiss.
I just smoked a cigarette.
"..."
Did I look pitiful like that?
Before leaving, Django left words as if advising me, "...Mr. Noah. Thank you for saving us."
"..."
"You disliked the phrase 'same humans'. But even if you deny it, the fact that we are the same humans doesn't change."
...Should I just shoot him?
Is he adding fuel to those already troubling words?
For a moment I felt the urge to reload, but I barely managed to calm myself by smoking.
Then Django continued with his final words, "...The reason Mr. Noah saved me is probably because you still have a warm heart... because you're the same human as me."
"...What are you saying."
"I hope the day you realize that comes soon."
Fucking bastard.
I saved him, and he was cursing me to live here forever?
"...Get lost already."
Still, I didn't interfere with them leaving.
Soon the two looked at me intently and then moved towards the port.
Those two would leave America like this and go to Hawaii.
They said there was no paradise where one ran away to, but I wondered how it would be for those two.
Shakespeare's play <Romeo and Juliet> had a bad ending, but...
The new story of Black-meo and White-liet had an open ending.
That was what I, the final villain and only player of this story, decided.
***
"Phew..."
"..."
Someone approached and stopped the bleeding for me as I laid smoking.
...It was Emma.
"...You let those two go?" Emma asked while pressing hard on my wound.
"I'm capricious by nature, aren't I? It just ended up that way"
"...No matter how capricious, you've never let a target go alive even once."
"..."
"Boss... you're changing too."
"...Come on, changing?"
Emma seemed to be seriously misunderstanding, so I smiled slightly and said, "Emma, do you think I gave up on the $20,000?"
"...Pardon? You let those two go alive, so of course you gave up..."
"Look at the faces of those guys collapsed over there. They're familiar guys, you should remember them too."
As I pointed to William's pursuers that Django had subdued earlier, Emma approached them and looked at their faces, surprised.
"...Boss, these men are outlaws."
"They are, right? I thought so."
"Their crimes include murder, robbery, rape... They're vicious guys who were active in Utah."
William, who even brought in outlaws to try to kill Django, must have known Django's gun skills.
That bastard William...
I thought it was suspicious that he offered such a high request fee, but he sent me here thinking I wouldn't succeed with the request from the beginning.
He probably just thought to use me as cannon fodder.
"Emma, you know? I'm an expert at collecting money."
"...I know. Boss, don't you even create money that doesn't exist from the other party and collect it?"
"...I'll collect this $20,000 somehow too."
I couldn't forgive the sin of daring to trick and use me, especially if the one who did it was a damn NPC.
I intended to collect the original request fee of $20,000 even if I had to cause trouble at William's plantation.
"Then... are we going back now?"
"Yeah, the job's done so we should go back to Justice Town."
Perhaps because this trip had been tiring, Emma's face brightened a bit at the mention of going back, but then immediately frowned looking at my body.
"...But before we go back, you need to see a doctor first. I've stopped the bleeding for now, but there are still bullets in your body, Boss. We need to treat it quickly..."
Emma must have thought my physical condition didn't look good.
She was right.
Actually, I was in so much fucking pain right now.
I was dizzy from losing a lot of blood... I just felt like dying.
But...
"Bzzt, wrong. I'm not going to a doctor."
"...Pardon? Boss! Don't be stubborn! If we don't go to a doctor quickly..."
"To be precise, I can't go."
"What do you mean..."
As Emma seemed not to understand the situation, I explained slowly, "First, I broke my promise with Luke. I caused trouble in San Francisco, so he'll be very angry."
"Ah..."
Only then did Emma's expression darken as she seemed to remember Luke, the leader of the South Brotherhood.
"Second, Billie disappeared at some point, right? She probably went to report to Luke."
"...!"
So what this meant was...
"Emma, the roles have switched now. It's our turn to run away."
"..."
"Let's try to escape to Justice Town alive."
The rulers of this city would soon be chasing us with fire in their eyes.
Five stars had appeared.
If the goal until now was to catch Django and Josephine, from now on the goal was to escape this city.
***
"...Boss, there were consecutive gunshots from the direction of the port, they say."
"..."
Luke, the mayor of San Francisco and leader of the South Brotherhood, looked towards the port where gunshots were heard through the window.
As he silently looked out the window, soon a knock was heard.
"...Boss, it's me. C-can I come in..."
"Come in."
It was Billie, who had been assigned as Noah's supervisor.
Billie had come earlier than the scheduled reporting time.
Along with the consecutive gunshots heard from the port.
Luke, who had already realized this wasn't simply a coincidence, greeted Billie with his usual expressionless face.
"Boss."
"...Billie."
Unlike the usual Luke, Billie's face was haggard.
She knelt before Luke and bowed her head deeply to the floor.
"...What have you done?"
"...I'm sorry. I failed to carry out your mission to monitor Kid. In the end, a gun got into Kid's hands, and... he's at the port now."
"..."
"...The gunshots just now were probably his too… A-all of this is my fault..."
"Enough."
If it were the usual Luke, he would have severely punished a subordinate who abandoned their mission and ran away.
But Billie was too valuable a talent to dismiss for this one incident.
Above all, hadn't Luke predicted that Billie alone wouldn't be able to handle Kid?
"...I order you to be confined indefinitely until I call for you. So go back and wait."
"...Yes."
So Luke sent Billie away and fell into thought for a moment.
No more gunshots were heard.
A gun got into his hands, so he must have achieved what he wanted.
I should have killed him as soon as we met again...
Kid.
Thinking of the damage the South Brotherhood suffered because of that guy last time, tearing him apart wouldn't be enough.
Nevertheless, he didn't think of killing Kid as soon as they met again and only put an inadequate leash on him.
Why on earth did he do that?
Tremble.
"..."
Luke forcibly stopped his shaking hand.
The reason Luke couldn't think of killing Kid even after seeing him again.
It was because of the fear ingrained in his body.
Although he always had to maintain reason as the mayor of San Francisco and leader of the South Brotherhood... he made the wrong judgment due to fear upon meeting that guy.
Let's break this shackle now.
Luke, who made his decision by gritting his teeth, called a subordinate waiting outside.
"Boss, you called?"
"...Release all the members currently on standby and catch that guy together with the San Francisco sheriff's office."
"...!"
The subordinate answered with a pale face at Luke's order, "...The brothers will be agitated just by the fact that Kid has returned."
"...Hide the fact that he's Kid."
"And if we cooperate with the sheriff's office, Pinkerton, who's already watching us, will be even more suspicious..."
"...It's fine."
What does Pinkerton matter when catching a tiger?
"Yes, I understand. Then..."
"Ah, wait."
Just as the subordinate was about to leave the mayor's office to follow Luke's order, that was when it happened.
Unlike usual, Luke stopped his subordinate and added an order, "...Come to think of it, that's not enough."
"..."
"...Send a telegram to General Eric right now. Tell him to control the outskirts of San Francisco with the State Guard."
"...!!!"
It was a truly extreme measure.
One that could end Luke's political life if it went wrong.
"Catch and kill him no matter what. No matter what happens."
That was how desperate Luke was.
[The South Will Rise Again!]
The enemies the South Brotherhood would have to face in the future were far greater than a mere gunslinger.
How could the South Brotherhood, which would someday overturn this America again, be swayed by a mere ghost of the past?
"The South Brotherhood must move forward."
In that sense, tonight would be an important night to wash away one of the South Brotherhood's long-standing humiliations.