Chapter 72

The owner of the voice looked like a gentleman.

His demeanor and attire were so refined that it felt almost out of place in the lower district.

However, Adele reacted with a crooked scowl.

“You seem to be trying to distance yourself from the bastards who attacked us. But I don’t intend to let it slide so generously.”

Adele’s massive weapon tore through the air.

The thugs standing in front shrank back from the gale-force wind the mace kicked up.

The only one who didn’t budge an inch was the newly arrived man.

For some reason, Adele, who was currently threatening them, seemed extremely angry.

“Everyone standing here right now is my prisoner. If you move even a single step… hmm, right. One minute should be enough. Within one minute, I’ll turn every single one of your kneecaps into powder.”

At that, one of the thugs stepped forward.

“Don’t make me laugh! A girl like you—!”

Before the man could finish his sentence, his throat began to spew something other than words.

In an instant, the gentleman’s dagger had slit the thug’s throat.

—Splatter!

Blood poured out.

The man collapsed into the pool of his own making.

—Thud.

The stench of blood immediately hit my nose.

I caught my breath.

A real person dying… it was the first time I had ever seen it.

The gentleman spoke.

“That young lady can actually do it. If you don’t want to die by her hand instead of mine, you’d better keep your mouths shut.”

Adele shrugged her shoulders.

“You look like someone who can be reasoned with. Tell me. Give me a reason why I shouldn’t break your kneecaps. Oh, and no ‘distancing yourself.’ I heard what you said earlier, so I know very well these men are under your control.”

“Haha. I guess I’ve lost one card.”

“Exactly, you should have kept a tighter leash on your underlings.”

“You’re right. But it’s not like a dogcatcher can only choose to raise well-behaved dogs. Please forgive me.”

“Like I said, I told you to give me a reason why I should forgive you.”

At that, the man’s gaze shifted from Adele to me.

“Wouldn’t a walking guide be more useful than a crawling one?”

I suppressed a wave of nausea and supported the man’s words.

“Let’s follow him, Adele.”

“This man… his heart is pitch black.”

“All men harbor dark intentions to some degree. I’m the same way. Let’s just turn a blind eye and move on.”

“But…”

I placed a hand on Adele’s shoulder.

“Please, Adele.”

“…”

Adele reluctantly retracted her mace.

The man bowed his head to me.

“Truly, thank you. This way then, Young Lord.”

Saying that, the man pushed the thugs to the side of the alley.

They looked reluctant but followed his orders obediently.

We began to head deeper into the alleys, following the man’s lead.

I asked the man.

“Were you the one who sent the invitation?”

He replied as he walked.

“Invitation? Ah… you mean that fellow. That was an invitation sent by Mr. Malik. Although, I was the one who suggested the method.”

I see.

Thanks to that, we were completely fooled into tailing him.

I didn’t even realize that we were the ones being followed in reverse.

‘He seems like quite a clever fellow.’

“What’s your name?”

“Please call me Bard.”

“Bard. You seem to know who I am.”

“Of course. I am well aware of the feats the Young Lord has achieved since ending his long silence.”

The man continued.

“It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that every citizen of Denabi owes their life to the Young Lord. Naturally, that includes the people of the lower district as well.”

“For someone who says that, you seemed quite intent on handling me rather roughly.”

“That was all just the uprising of the lower district trash… ah, you did say ‘distancing’ was forbidden. Haha.”

There was a strangely unsettling quality to the man’s laughter.

“I understand you have many questions. However, the knowledge I possess is meager. Mr. Malik will be able to answer everything.”

It was essentially a declaration of the end of the conversation.

I asked Adele openly.

“Adele, is Bard telling the truth?”

Adele also answered me just as openly.

“Hmm… well, he’s not someone to be trusted. But I think you can believe what he just said.”

“Hahaha…”

Bard let out another chuckle.

Before long, we emerged from the alley. It seemed he had only been using a shortcut; our destination wasn’t located within the backstreets themselves.

Suddenly, Bard turned a corner.

He walked into a plain, ordinary building right by the roadside.

The door had even been open from the start.

The building was quite spacious.

The interior was crowded with people.

I was wary of them for a moment, but I soon realized.

They were ordinary citizens of the lower district.

I stood still for a moment and watched what they were doing.

“Where are you from?”

“67th Street.”

“Your business?”

“I think the sewer pipe is clogged. Everyone in that neighborhood uses it as an underground passage…”

“Understood. Find Lisa in the building next door.”

The conversations that followed were all of a similar nature.

Complaints about public facilities being broken and difficult to use.

Reports of drunks sprawled out on the street.

It was all trivial, mundane stuff.

It was like a conversation between a counter clerk and a petitioner.

‘Is this a community center or what…?’

I had come here with the mindset of storming a den of evil.

But the scene I encountered was incredibly humble.

Then Bard called out to me.

“Young Lord. This way.”

“Ah. I kept you waiting. Sorr—”

No.

I almost apologized.

I steeled my resolve once more and followed Bard up the stairs.

Adele followed close by my side and whispered.

“We’ve come to a more interesting place than I thought.”

“…”

If unpredictability is the core of excitement, then this place was certainly interesting.

However, within the bounds of common sense, I couldn’t think of a place more boring than this.

‘Either way, she has an excessively easygoing way of thinking for someone who just stormed the enemy’s base…’

Whether it was a curse or a blessing.

‘Won’t a completely new sight unfold on the upper floor?’

…That expectation was ruthlessly crushed.

As I passed through the hallway, I peeked through the open doors.

A thick sense of déjà vu.

I almost made a mistake.

Isn’t this the Chief Administrator’s office in Denabi Castle?

All I could see through the cracks in the second-floor doors were people dedicated to paperwork.

I soon realized what I would encounter at the end of the hallway.

Bard knocked on the door at the very end.

-Knock, knock.

“It’s Bard.”

-Come in.

As the voice drifted from behind the door, Bard opened it cautiously.

The scene that unfolded inside was just as humble as the rest. A man wearing a monocle, a desk and chair, piles of paperwork, and the gray wall of the adjacent building filling the view outside the window.

“Are you Malik?”

“Yeah. I’m Malik.”

He replied while rubbing the bridge of his nose as if exhausted. His manner of speaking was incredibly casual, almost unbefitting of his age.

“So, you’re Alejandro’s third son. I’ve heard a lot about you. Especially lately.”

“I could say the same, Mr. Malik. Or… should I call you the Ruler of the Lower District?”

“Ruler of the Lower District! Ah, what an enchanting ring to it.”

He buried himself in his chair, letting out a sound that was somewhere between a sigh and an exclamation of admiration.

“But I’m neither the explicit nor the practical ruler of the lower district. The ‘management’ I provide is closer to that of a general manager than a sovereign’s ‘rule’.”

“Are you saying the lower district has a different master?”

“Of course.”

“Who is it?”

“Who else?”

With the expression of a mischievous child, he pointed at me.

“Alejandro, of course.”

Was he joking or being serious? There was always the option of asking Adele, but I chose a different path.

“I want to speak with you alone.”

Malik gave an immediate answer.

“Get out, Bard.”

Bard retreated behind the door without a word. Malik’s gaze then shifted to Adele.

“And what about your lady?”

I turned back to Adele.

“Could you wait outside for a moment?”

“Their lives are in my hands anyway. We can do whatever we want.”

At that moment, Malik spoke up.

“There are three upper district citizens in the building next door. I also have three subordinates who will shove a knife into their throats the instant I give the order.”

What…?

It felt like the air had been kicked out of my lungs. I barely managed to choke out the words.

“Adele…!”

But Adele didn’t answer. I turned to look at her. She stood frozen, her mace still aimed at Bard beyond the doorway.

“Tell me! Is he lying?”

“That’s…”

Adele scowled, staring intensely at Malik. However, she couldn’t seem to produce an answer. Instead, Malik himself stepped in.

“It was a joke. Do I really look like the kind of person who would do something that heinous?”

“…”

What is wrong with this guy…? Is he actually insane?

I swallowed hard.

“…I heard from Mr. Izack. That you’re someone capable of doing anything.”

“Right. And I’m sure he told you I might also do nothing at all. Isn’t that just how people are?”

He spoke as if it were a trivial matter.

“Anyway, I don’t do things like that. It’s not my style.”

He pointed toward Adele.

“But I’d appreciate it if the lady would step out. You’re an Emperor’s Hunter, aren’t you? An outsider. This is a conversation about Denabi. You don’t have the right to hear it.”

Adele shoved the mace she was aiming at Bard even closer to him.

“This is what decides my ‘right’.”

It was a satisfying comeback. But…

‘I don’t want this.’

“Adele.”

“I’m not leaving. I have no intention of leaving you alone with a suspicious fellow like this. And I…”

I held up my index finger in front of her.

“One wish.”

“Hmm?”

“I’ll grant you one thing—anything you want. So… please.”

“…”

Agony coiled across her face. She asked, “Is a wish to increase the number of wishes to a hundred out of the question…?”

“Just one! But I’ll do whatever you ask, as long as it’s within my power.”

“Ugh…”

—Mmmmmm…

She let out a groan of contemplation before putting her mace away. Then, she grabbed my hand.

“It’s a promise.”

She hooked her pinky with mine, stamped her thumb against mine to seal the deal, and walked behind the door.

-Thud.

The door closed. From the other side, Adele’s voice rang out.

-If anything happens, I’m seriously going to kill everyone.

-Haha.

Bard’s troubled laughter followed. After that, the noise behind the door finally ceased. Only then could I look back at Malik.

Malik was suppressing a laugh.

“Impressive. How did you manage to charm an Emperor’s Hunter?”

Even if you ask me that… I don’t really know either?

“Well, I suppose Beatrice was a princess of a nation, even if it was a defeated one. Maybe talent in that field runs in your family. Anyway, sit down.”

“…”

I pulled out the chair Malik had pointed to and sat.

“It seems you know a lot about my family.”

“Well, sure. I’ve known Alejandro for quite a long time.”

“What is your relationship with my father?”

“Friends.”

“Friends? Does that mean you were comrades-in-arms during the war? Like Mr. Izack?”

“No, it’s a bit different.”

“If it’s different…”

“Did you hear that a rebellion broke out in Denabi during the war? Since you’re his son, you should at least know that much, right?”

‘A rebellion…?’

This is literally the first time I’m hearing this.

He spoke as if he found my reaction amusing.

“I was in cahoots with that pack of traitors.”

No, wait…

‘That’s a bit more than just being “different” from a comrade-in-arms, isn’t it?!’