The SSS-rank Guide Doesn't Need Saving

She made her way toward him, a plan already brewing in her head as she pulled out one needle from her hair. It silvered under the light before it vanished within her clenched hand.

Styx was completely enthralled by the courtesans, throwing his head back and laughing as if he hadn’t let loose in an entire year.

"What is this?"

Aisha heard the courtesan on his right ask him a question, her finger tracing the bracelet Styx wore. Aisha’s eyes were instantly drawn to it.

Anger rose within her faster than she could hold it in. The bracelet was something she had seen on Zenick before they parted ways. It could’ve been a replica as well. But Aisha knew that the bracelet was the same one that she had given him in her memory. And that was before Zenick had left for another star system.

He had told her in his messages how much he adored it, so much that he didn’t dare take it off even when he took a shower. Zenick treated it like a trophy he had received from a prestigious award.

But that bracelet had ended up in someone else’s hand.

Aisha felt her spiritual beast close now. Nibbles had somehow grabbed onto her pants and crawled into her pocket. The inside of her pocket felt heavier than it was just now. Nibbles had dumped the storage bag it had swallowed inside its body. The weapons the guards did not find on her person were now within her reach.

There were only a couple of steps between her and Styx. He had no idea that a predator was stalking its way toward him.

Five more steps.

Four steps.

Three...

A soundless flick of her hand shot the needle toward the back of Styx’s neck, accurately piercing through his skin and hitting the nerve in his upper neck.

There were only two steps between them. The woman was still eagerly admiring the bracelet wrapped around his wrist, asking him how much it was.

But Styx couldn’t answer. His limbs and torso couldn’t move, not when the nerve in his upper neck had been blocked. His eyes helplessly turned left and right to get the courtesans’ attention, but they were distracted by the expensive bracelet.

"Hng..."

A groan slipped past his lips as he tried to call for help. His mouth felt entirely stiff, forcing him to fight through the paralysis just to squeeze out a few strained words.

When the courtesans finally caught on the sound, they raised their eyes to look at him.

But then—

"Excuse me, ladies."

The two courtesans shifted their attention behind Styx, where an unfamiliar woman with a scarf covering the lower half of her face leaned casually against the back of his chair.

"I shall borrow this man from you."

Aisha looked at one of them.

"Who are you?" One courtesan with a voluptuous body frowned in displeasure.

Just as she was about to tell her to leave them alone, Aisha produced a small pouch of money. She told them, "Ten thousand star credits. Leave, and you can take it with you."

The two courtesans frowned, but one was far more perceptive than her companion. The thin courtesan snatched the pouch and peeked inside, a sharp gasp slipping past her lips when she discovered exactly ten thousand credits nestled within!

Holding the pouch of money, the thin courtesan happily smiled at Aisha. "We’ll leave him to you then."

"Wait—"

"Let’s go."

The voluptuous courtesan was dragged by her thin co-worker. Once they were gone from the hall, she asked, "Why did you do that?"

The thin courtesan laughed. "Why not? We got money for free, and we don’t have to roll in the sheets with him!"

The other courtesan frowned. "But—"

"Come on, it’s not the first time some man got caught by their lover." The thin courtesan winked. "Besides, it’s better to take her money than have our hair grabbed, right?"

Upon hearing this, the other courtesan finally let the matter go and hurriedly split the money with her.

Back inside the hall, Aisha stood behind Styx and placed her hand over his shoulder. His body jolted under her touch. Her palm touched his bare skin as she whispered into his ear.

"Where is Zenick?"

The power pulsed from her skin into his, the sudden rush nearly causing her to lose control. Fortunately, she resisted the madness clawing within her and quickly reined it back in.

Aisha looked at Styx and pulled the needle she had stabbed into his neck.

Soon after she did that, Styx’s mouth opened mechanically to answer her question. His voice was rough and slow.

"I don’t know."

Aisha frowned. "You have his bracelet. Where did you get it from? Are you the only one who has his belongings?"

She felt the flow of power rock through her, spilling through her hand again.

Styx’s eyes widened as feeling flooded back into his limbs. He started to turn, desperate to see who was behind him, when a sudden, warm sensation came from his shoulder.

Again, his mouth moved without him meaning to. It spilled what he had wanted to keep a secret and bury with him to his grave.

"From the captain. He was unconscious, so I took the bracelet. The others took his other belongings."

Aisha’s eyes hardened. She had already compelled him to tell her where Zenick was. Styx answered that he didn’t know. There was no way it could have been a lie with her power flowing into him. But what she could not understand was his second answer.

Weren’t his crewmates the ones who took him? Was there someone else involved then?

The moment the warmth vanished, Styx scrambled to his feet. His chair tumbled to the floor with a loud crash, drawing sharp glances from the surrounding crowd.

He instantly tried to attack the person who had ambushed him. But Aisha did not evade, but caught his fist.

With their skin touching, her power flowed into him again.

"Take me to your room."

There were more eyes on them now. It would be unwise for her to continue this here.

If Styx actually knew where Zenick was, interrogating him right here would be the fastest option. She could leave after getting the answer she needed before he could recognize her and alert the others. But she didn’t think Styx did not know where her older brother was or where he had been taken.

She had no reason to doubt him. Aisha had used her ability on him, ensuring he would be forced to speak nothing but the truth.

There was another reason why she had to take him somewhere else.

Aisha lowered her gaze to her trembling hand, realizing that this power was not without repercussion.

She hadn’t felt the strain before, likely because she had only drawn upon it in small amounts. But using it repeatedly was bound to trigger severe side effects.

Worse still, she had already pushed her limits by unleashing it three times in rapid succession.

Fortunately, it was only her hand trembling for now. But there was no telling what damage she might inflict on herself if she continued using it in the future.

Theon’s information had already confirmed that Styx and Marlon spent the night here. Seeing that they hadn’t left, they had likely booked a room to stretch their stay for a few more days before leaving.

Styx led her up the stairs to the second floor and down a long hallway. To their right stood a row of private rooms, while the left offered a sweeping view of the main hall below, where guests drank at their tables and courtesans danced on the stage.

Aisha was about to look away, uninterested in the spectacle below, when a sudden prickling feeling struck her. She was too familiar with this kind of sensation. It was the same feeling that gripped her in her previous world whenever a mutated human locked onto her.

A hunter, or a predator, had found her.

Instinctively, she darted her eyes toward the threat.

A curse nearly slipped from her lips when a pair of crimson eyes caught her gaze.

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