Harem Streamer System: Every Crime I Broadcast Wins Me a Superheroine - Chapter 251

Chapter 251: Trapped × Freed

“Uhn…”

Emma’s painfully heavy eyelids fluttered weakly before finally parting open.

Her vision was a messy blur—brown and grainy, like the world had been painted with sandpaper.

“Nnn…”

She blinked a few times, trying to steady her sight.

“Huh?”

The first thing she saw was the rough, sandy ground beneath her feet.

And the next—

Clink.

Her arms.

She tried to move them—only for the cold, hard bite of metal cuffs to dig into her wrists. Then came the realization that there was also something thick and coarse tied across her torso that pinned her against the chair.

“… Wait—what is this—!?”

Her voice cracked. Panic set in instantly.

She tried to yank herself free, but her arms didn’t even twitch an inch.

Her body felt heavy… sluggish.

A dry cough slipped from her lips as her chest crushed.

“Ugh… why do I feel so… weak…”

She groaned under her breath, blinking hard, like she could force the dizziness out of her head.

Then came a dull voice from her left.

A flat and almost bored one.

“You’re just a bit lightheaded. Nothing serious.”

That voice—

Emma froze.

『Wait a sec… I know that voice.』

She didn’t even look up.

“But why would I be Lighthea—”

Her brain lagged a second too long.

The voice spoke again.

“Uhm, because that’s what happens when you get abducted by assassins?”

Same dull tone. Same lazy cadence.

Emma’s head jerked up, her eyes wide.

“W-, Wait a minute… that voice kinda sounds—”

“It’s me, idiot. (ー_ー゛)”

Emma immediately whipped her head to the left.

Dark Elf.

Sitting right beside her, tied to a chair too.

Same cuffs, same ropes, same half-dead look in her half-lidded crimson eyes like she’d just been rudely woken from a nap she didn’t care to finish.

“Wait—you’re here—!?”

Emma practically screamed.

Dark Elf blinked once.

“You don’t remember what happened?”

She asked, her tone so plain it made it sound like she was talking about the weather.

Emma blinked back, confused.

“N… no… I really don’t—”

“Of course you don’t remember!”

That new voice came from the other side.

It was energetic, loud, and annoyingly familiar.

“Eh?”

Emma turned her head. (¬_¬ ;;)

There she was—Gwen.

Also tied to a chair.

“Gwen!? You’re here too—!?”

Gwen groaned and leaned back like she’d already accepted her fate hours ago.

“Yep. Welcome to the party…”

She muttered with a deadpan sigh.

She looked so done.

When it came to showing emotions, Dark Elf pretty much looked the same all the time. Whether she was sad, happy, or angry—her face never really changed. No one could ever tell what she was feeling, especially not Emma.

But one look at Gwen told Emma everything.

She could see how frustrated Gwen was, and that alone made it clear—Gwen and Dark Elf had been stuck here way longer than she had.

Then it suddenly hit her.

Emma remembered all those calls from Gwen just a few days before she suddenly went completely offline.

Her eyes widened.

“Wait, so all that time you were calling—you guys were already captured?! My gosh, I didn’t—”

“That one was actually me.”

A soft, calm voice came from the shadows.

Emma’s breath hitched.

She turned toward the darker end of the room—

And there she was.

Kaede Kazama.

She was a short young woman with a small, delicate build.

Her blue eyes stood out beneath her messy pink hair, which fell to the middle of her back. She wore a dark purple kimono that looked stylishly torn in a few places, giving her a rough but cool vibe. Her katana lay across her crossed legs like an obedient pet, calm and ready.

She looked so serious.

“I was the one in possession of the phone.”

Kaede said evenly.

“It was our first plan—to lure you out so I could capture you and bring you here. But since you didn’t respond… we had to go for other alternatives.”

She lowered her head slightly.

Meanwhile, Gwen was staring daggers at Emma.

“Wait a second. You’re telling me—”

She leaned back and gasped.

“—that you ignored my calls even when we were literally being kidnapped?”

Emma blinked.

“Eh? That’s not what she said! (;ﾟДﾟ)”

Gwen wasn’t hearing it.

She closed her eyes, squeezed her face like she was in pain, and turned away dramatically.

“Hmph. That’s hurtful.”

“Ehh?!”

Emma shrieked.

“Don’t tell me you’re actually mad about that! It wasn’t even your call!”

“It was still MY phone! So there!” (￣^￣)ゞ

Gwen snapped back.

Emma’s eye twitched.

“THAT’S SO DUMB!”

“If my hands were free, I’d fold them right now!”

Gwen muttered like she was narrating her own drama.

Emma groaned as she leaned toward her.

“If I remember correctly I was handling hero business when those calls came in, okay?! How was I supposed to know it was important—WAIT!”

Her head snapped toward Kaede.

“It wasn’t even important! That was just a trap from this stupid Edo-period chick!”

Kaede blinked, a little startled, and turned toward Dark Elf as if silently asking for backup.

Dark Elf gave a lazy shrug. “Don’t look at me.”

“See? Even she agrees!” Emma exclaimed.

“I didn’t say that. (￢_￢)”

Dark Elf’s face didn’t move an inch.

“Close enough!” Emma fired back.

Gwen groaned again.

“This is why I drink energy drinks before missions…”

“Like you’ve gone on any…” Emma shot back.

“You wanna go, bitch?” Gwen glared.

“Let’s go!”

The two started bickering like they were at a sleepover instead of being tied up in a dark warehouse.

“Are you two seriously doing this right now? ಠ_ಠ”

Dark Elf muttered under her breath.

“YES──!!” (╬ಠ益ಠ)

They both yelled in unison.

Dark Elf shook her head exhaustedly.

“Unbelievable…”

She sighed and shut her eyes.

Then, finally, silence.

For the first time, Emma took a moment to actually study her surroundings.

The room smelled of old metal and dust.

Brigid was still unconscious on the far side.

Her neck was strapped with a tight black collar.

Same as Gwen. Dark Elf didn’t have one though.

Emma frowned.

『FGICs…?』

She learned about them from the Hero Agency.

But Scott also taught her a few things about them.

Collars that suppress meta-gene abilities by injecting a special chemical directly into the bloodstream.

Her eyes quietly trailed down to her own neck.

There was no collar.

A small smile tugged at the edge of her lips.

『So… she doesn’t know. The Asian chick doesn’t know I have powers. If she did, she’d have slapped one of those inhibitors on me already.』

It was that simple.

『Perfect…』

Her eyes narrowed at Kaede.

『I just need a second—an opening.』

Her heart started to race.

She could already feel a rush inside her.

『I’ll hyper-accelerate, rip through this chair, hit her with a sonic burst, and free the others—』

Then she paused.

Wait.

『If I do a sonic burst here, I’ll hit Elf and Gwen too.』

Her eyes darted around feverishly as she overanalyzed every detail and every inch of space.

『Was that on purpose?』

Her chest was aching already.

That was how hard her heart was pounding.

So many thoughts in her head.

So many ways this could go wrong.

『Did Kaede plan the seating like this?』

It got harder and harder to breathe.

『No… no, I’m overthinking it.』

Sweat slid down her cheek.

She closed her eyes and breathed deeply.

『Calm down. She doesn’t know. You’ve got this.』

She waited.

Her muscles tensed painfully.

Every nerve coiled like a spring.

Now, she was sitting there like a loaded gun.

Then—

BRAAAANG!

A phone rang.

Kaede’s eyes flicked down to the ringing device.

『NOW—!』

Emma’s body snapped into motion.

Her muscles exploded with sudden kinetic speed—

It was like a leaf breaking off a tree branch.

So instant…

But before she could even blink, before her brain could process a thought—

Cold.

A chilling, sharp edge pressed against her throat.

“H-, Huh…?”

Her entire body froze.

She couldn’t even breathe.

『No way… she moved that fast—!?』

In the corner of her vision, Kaede stood behind her.

She had a light grip on her katana as the blade glittered just below Emma’s jawline.

In her other hand—the phone.

She wasn’t even looking stressed.

Her blue eyes gleamed faintly as she murmured—

“It’s no use. Don’t try anything.”

Then she lifted the phone to her ear.

Grave was on the other end.

“Mhm. Okay. I see.”

She nodded obediently.

“Yes. I’ll bring her soon.”

She ended the call with a soft click.

The silence that followed was deafening.

Emma stared up at her, shock all over her face.

“But… but how did you—”

Kaede’s gaze was steady and unreadable.

“Because you telegraphed your breathing…”

She spoke softly, a bit kindly too.

“Next time, don’t exhale before you move.”

The blade lowered slightly.

Emma’s heart pounded like thunder in her ears.

『What the hell… just what kind of monster is she—』

For the first time since waking up, she truly felt afraid.

『Scott… where are you…?』

━ ━ ━ ━

Scott had a huge frown plastered across his face, his arms folded tightly as he stared down at the petite woman standing in front of him.

“C’mon, let’s not make a big deal out of this.”

He sounded so firm, like a commander.

“I’m gonna walk out that door, and I expect to be back home. Okay—!?”

He leaned down, just enough to make sure she could hear him clearly.

But as usual, the answer didn’t change.

Minerva puffed her cheeks out, balled her tiny fists, and took in a deep, exaggerated breath.

“I’m sorry—but NO!”

She clenched her fists even tighter, holding her breath like she was about to puff her chest out just to look more intimidating.

But to Scott, the whole thing only made her look even smaller and more adorable.

There goes the scary image of Shadow Monger.

The ruthless eater of nightmares.

He just stared down at her like she was a very noisy, very cute button.

He sighed, dragging a hand down his face.

“Look, I already told you—I seriously don’t care about the Chairman. All I wanna do is save my girlfriends and put an end to Grave.”

His tone dropped lower and sharper.

“It’d be an insult if I let him abduct people close to me and let him live another second.”

He lifted a fist and clenched it tightly.

“With the way I am now… I wanna crush him so bad.”

His eyes hardened like a vengeful soldier.

But she still didn’t budge.

She stomped once, pouting harder.

“I’m sorry, but that doesn’t change anything!”

Before Scott could even respond, Minerva rushed forward and—

Whump!

Wrapped her slender arms tightly around him.

Scott froze, blinking down at the small head pressed against his stomach. Her body was so soft and warm it made him forget what he was even mad about.

Her voice trembled a little as she spoke.

“I’ve never been the kind of hero who only saves people that deserve it… no matter what, I keep saving anyone and everyone—as long as they’re alive, as long as they’re breathing…”

She hugged him tighter as her little hands gripped the fabric of his jacket.

“So why can’t I save the one person who always saw me as a hero—!?”

Scott looked down at her.

A small, faint smile eased onto his face.

“Because… I’m also a hero.”

Soft but powerful words.

“There are people I have to put ahead of myself.”

His hand came down gently to pat her head.

“Being a hero is about sacrifice. So it’d be selfish of both of us if we just hid here instead of helping the ones who need us. It’s as simple as that.”

He didn’t need to say anything more—he could already see it in her face.

The stubbornness wavered, the desperate look in her eyes slowly fading into reluctant understanding.

Her hopeful grip loosened.

His smile grew just a little.

“So…”

He paused gently.

“Will you let me do my job?”

Minerva’s lips twisted as she puffed her cheeks out again as she looked away.

“… Fine! (ꐦ ಠ皿ಠ )”

She stepped back, turned abruptly, and plopped herself down on the floor with crossed arms.

Now, she was just staring pointlessly at a wall.

“But I’m not helping you at all!”

She declared like a spoiled brat.

Very unusual for the most feared hero.

“I don’t wanna be responsible for your death since you’re so keen on it! Hmph!”

She sat there, chin lifted proudly.

This was her trying so hard not to look hurt.

Scott tilted his head, watching her small back, and couldn’t help but chuckle under his breath.

“Thank you—”

“Hmph.”

Her pout grew louder, as if to cover up the warmth rising in her face.

Then—

A swirling black portal opened behind Scott as it rippled through the air.

He turned toward it without hesitation, but before stepping through, he looked back one last time.

And of course, Minerva was sneaking a look at him.

“ACHK—! (╬ Ò﹏Ó)”

She flinched and quickly looked away, nose up in the air again as she pretended not to care.

Scott shook his head, smiling.

“I hope you’ll let me taste your soup again…”

He said casually, giving her a sidelong glance.

Minerva didn’t respond.

“And~”

He smiled mischievously.

“I hope it’s your panties next time.”

PSSSSHHHHHH!

Steam practically exploded off the top of Minerva’s head as she jumped up like a startled cat.

“E-, Eh—!? (;ﾟДﾟ)”

Her eyes widened like saucers.

But by then—Scott was already gone.

The portal sealed with a soft whoosh, and the room fell silent again.

Minerva stood there for a few seconds, still frozen.

Then she huffed and crossed her arms again as she sat back down with her chin high.

“Hmph… jerk!” σ(￣,￣〃)

She muttered under her breath.

“I was only trying to help you…”

Her gaze fell to the floor.

“Idiot hero…”

But then another thought sprang into her mind.

“Wait, why would he want my panties? (゜-゜)…”

She sat there like a confused cat.

“Meh, some other time.” ┐( ˘ ､ ˘ )┌