A Tacit Demilitarized Zone
After securing permission to stay from Sheriff Wilhelm, the very first thing the two did was head to a nearby inn and book a room. There was no telling how many days they would have to spend in Junk Town, so they needed a base of operations to rest up and plot their next move.
Junk Town was essentially a den of thieves where all sorts of lowlifes huddled together, meaning public order was practically nonexistent. Ironically, however, this made established inns some of the safest places in town. Any idiot foolish enough to rob a guest would find themselves staring down the barrel of the innkeeper's loaded weapon. Furthermore, for reasons unknown, the locals held a strict taboo against conducting "business" in public establishments. If anyone was caught pulling a stunt in an inn, they wouldn't just face the owner; they would be surrounded by a mob of furious townspeople and beaten to a bloody pulp. It was, in essence, a tacitly agreed-upon demilitarized zone.
"Yaaawn..." Once inside the room, Falco pulled back the hood she had been wearing all day and let out a long, weary yawn.
"Tired?" Yohan asked.
"Yeah. Honestly, the second my head hits the pillow, I'm out."
Truth be told, Yohan was exhausted too. It seemed that becoming the Apostle of a goddess didn't exempt him from basic human biology.
"By the way, didn't your ears hurt? You had that hood pulled down tight all day." Yohan asked, voicing a curiosity he'd harbored for a while. Falco shook her head.
"Not at all. I can move them like this, see?" She gave her pointed ears a little twitch. Yohan nodded in satisfaction, his long-held suspicion that elves could control their ears like radar dishes finally confirmed.
Flash! "So, what is our next course of action?" The Unnamed Goddess materialized, shedding her invisible spiritual form. She drifted over to Falco and playfully tapped one of the elf's twitching ears.
"Well, we got the list of bastards we need to hunt down," Yohan said. "Now we need to question the victims and squeeze out every bit of info we can."
"And then we track their escape route and slaughter the whole lot of them," Falco added, picking up where Yohan left off. Her pronunciation was perfectly clear, but her heavy eyelids suggested she was already half-asleep.
"Indeed. That is precisely what we must do." The Goddess grinned, clearly delighted by Falco's bloodthirsty resolve. Falco, on the other hand, tilted her head in mild confusion at the deity's enthusiastic response.
"A righteous vengeance is the very act of restoring fallen justice!" the Goddess declared pompously.
"Ooh," Falco murmured, impressed.
"We shall hunt down those who betrayed their comrades and drench the earth with their blood! For the wicked must face a judgment befitting their sins!" The Goddess delivered a speech remarkably similar to the one she had given Yohan not long ago. Falco's eyes sparkled with pure admiration.
I forgot for a second because of everything going on, but these two are on the exact same wavelength when it comes to the weirdest things. Yohan scratched his head as he watched the elf and the deity exchange sinister, matching grins. He couldn't help but wonder if he had accidentally awakened some ancient, malevolent deity that had been sealed away for committing unspeakable atrocities.
"Anyway, let's call it a night and start fresh tomorrow."
"Is that truly wise?" the Goddess asked, turning to him.
"What do you mean?"
"They have already plundered the townspeople and fled. Would it not be wiser to hasten our pursuit, even by a fraction?" Ah, so that was her concern. Her point was valid, so Yohan gave a slight nod.
"Normally, yeah. But this time, it doesn't matter. There are only so many places they can go to liquidate stolen goods."
"Ah! I see." The Goddess clapped her hands together, instantly catching his drift.
"This was the closest settlement to our starting point, but it's not the only town in the wilderness."
"Which means they will inevitably seek to peddle their ill-gotten gains in one of the neighboring towns."
"Exactly."
"But what if they have already sold the goods and moved on?" the Goddess pressed, her anxiety showing. Her very survival depended on the success of this mission, though to be fair, Yohan's livelihood was on the line too.
"Besides... there's really no need to rush this."
"And why is that?"
"You saw the sheriff, right? Knowing that guy, if this were a truly urgent matter, he would've ridden out himself, dragged them back, and chopped their heads off by now." This was the primary reason Yohan was so relaxed. The Goddess, however, didn't seem entirely convinced, her gaze silently demanding a more thorough explanation.
"I'm going to sleep first. I've hit my limit," Falco mumbled, rubbing her half-closed eyes just as Yohan was about to elaborate.
"Yeah, go ahead."
"Yes, rest well, child." With the Goddess's blessing, Falco collapsed onto the creaky wooden bed. Within ten seconds, her breathing evened out into a deep sleep.
"She endured much trial today. It is only natural that she should succumb to slumber so quickly," the Goddess murmured softly.
"Must be nice. I'm practically dead on my feet too," Yohan grumbled under his breath, though he wasn't genuinely complaining.
"Anyway, back to what I was saying. That giant wall of muscle we met earlier? He's no ordinary human."
"Is he powerful?"
"Calling him 'strong' is an understatement. Frankly, if the entire town banded together to fight him, they'd still lose." Sheriff Wilhelm of Junk Town. He was a man whose martial prowess perfectly matched his intimidating physique. Though the locals referred to him as the "Sheriff," he held no official legal authority. Junk Town wasn't a recognized settlement, and it certainly didn't pay taxes to whatever kingdom nominally claimed the wasteland. The title was merely a sign of respect, born of his terrifying strength and his self-appointed duty to maintain a semblance of order.
"Rumor has it he's a certified Sword Master from the heart of the continent." The Goddess tilted her head. "And what, pray tell, is a Sword Master?"
"Uh... basically, it's a title reserved for the absolute best of the best among swordsmen." In this world, a Sword Master didn't wield magical sword qi or flashy auras. They were simply monsters who had pushed their physical limits and swordsmanship to the absolute peak, achieving superhuman strength through sheer, brutal training.
"Anyway, God knows why a legendary warrior like him ended up in a dump like this, but the point is that Wilhelm keeps the peace here entirely on his own." Junk Town operated on a primitive system of justice. If you were caught robbing a shop red-handed, the mob would beat you half to death. But if you managed to slip away successfully, no one was going to waste their breath chasing you down to enforce the law. Just like this time.
"Ah, I comprehend. It is not an issue grave enough to warrant his personal intervention. That is what you meant."
"Exactly. Remember that explosion when we first walked into town? To him, this theft is just another Tuesday. It's not worth his personal time." While they had taken on this task to prove their innocence, it was actually a massive favor from Wilhelm. By giving them a "mission," he had provided them with a perfect excuse to stay in Junk Town despite their association with the grave robbers, and even granted them permission to question the locals. Best of all, he hadn't set a deadline.
"Still, we can't just sit around scratching our bellies forever."
"Indeed. We must at least maintain the appearance of diligence. Besides, apprehending and punishing thieves is a noble pursuit of justice, is it not?"
"Well, there's that, and..." And Wilhelm is too decent of a guy to be stuck babysitting a lawless dump like this. I'd like to lighten his load a bit. Yohan almost said it aloud.
"Ah, whatever. I'm too tired for this. I'm going to sleep." He swallowed the sentimental thought and flopped onto the bed.
The next day. Yohan had initially worried that the locals might slam their doors in their faces if they realized they were former grave robbers.
"Yeah, that's him! Huge guy, totally bald! He acted all quiet and polite, then suddenly cleaned us out and bolted!" Fortunately, the residents of Junk Town were incredibly cooperative. It seemed the grave robbers had pulled off a massive heist for their final score, leaving a trail of furious victims in their wake. In fact, the owner of the very inn they were staying at was one of the casualties.
"That muscle-bound pig... er, I mean, the Sheriff, had basically given up on catching them. So having you guys step up to hunt them down is a godsend."
"Still, robbing an active business in this town is a pretty bold move."
"They were pros, I'll give 'em that. The second I turned my back, they snatched only the most expensive items and vanished." The innkeeper shook his head in bitter frustration.
"I bet," Yohan muttered.
"So you're really going to catch them, right? Honestly, I've already written off my stolen goods—they've probably sold them off by now anyway—but I want those bastards caught."
"Don't worry. I've got a bit of a personal score to settle with them myself."
It wasn't just a "bit" of a score, and it certainly wasn't a debt. They had literally tried to murder him. If anything, Yohan's grudge ran far deeper than any of the townspeople's.
Yohan and Falco spent the rest of the day roaming the town, gathering testimonies from the various victims. Once they had compiled enough information, they returned to their room and immediately began packing their bags.
"Alright, the pieces are coming together."
"It's not going to be an easy job, though," Falco noted.
"Yeah."
The grave robbers had put their professional skills to work, systematically looting Junk Town of its most portable valuables before slipping away. From purging their own deadweight to executing a massive heist in a town they usually tried to stay on good terms with...
"No matter how you look at it, those bastards..."
"...were pulling one last big score before abandoning their operations in this region entirely," Falco finished. Yohan nodded in agreement. This wasn't just a rogue job pulled by a few greedy thieves. This was a coordinated, large-scale operation orchestrated by the leadership of the very grave-robbing syndicate Yohan and Falco had belonged to.
—So, believing there was nothing left to plunder in these lands, they decided to betray even their acquaintances on their way out? the Goddess's voice echoed in Yohan's mind. Yohan nodded.
"Exactly."
—Then where shall we go now? The place you mentioned yesterday?
"Yeah. We're heading to the city. It'll blow your mind." Not a lawless slum like Junk Town, but a proper city with actual laws, administration, and a functioning guard force. And, more importantly... the headquarters of the massive criminal syndicate that pulled the strings of the grave-robbing crew Yohan had worked for.
"This is turning into a much bigger deal than I thought," Falco remarked, having listened quietly to Yohan's side of the conversation. Yohan nodded.
"Maybe. But we'll be fine. Things are different now."
Hehehe. The Goddess's smug chuckle echoed in his mind. She wasn't wrong. Yohan now possessed the strength to beat ordinary thugs to a pulp with a single punch. He closed his eyes, trying to focus on the divine power flowing through his veins.
"..." Unfortunately, concentrating didn't magically trigger some dramatic sensation. Well, whatever. She did say my power would grow as I spread her name and gather more believers.
"Ready to go?" Yohan asked, slinging his bag over his shoulder.
"Yeah." Falco nodded. With their gear packed, the two stepped out of the inn room and into the unknown.