Chapter 422
Chapter 422
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 19
Chapter Title: Hide-and-Seek (3)
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****
What comes to mind when you think of a ‘back alley’?
Obviously, a dank, shadowy path crawling with criminals.
So what about Wigen’s back alleys—the most tangled mess in the city, so complex and shadowy they rival the infamous Great Labyrinth dungeon of Mutant Lord Harihareah in the old Xer Empire? The place is such a nightmare that the missing persons task force is the busiest unit around.
Pang! Paaang!
“Damn it, charge! Charge him! There’s only one of them!”
“Shut up and hold your positions! Don’t rush in—form a fire net! No knight can dodge every shot in an alley this narrow!”
The answer: an overwhelming horde of criminals who’ve grown into a full-blown armed force after safely leveling up in these labyrinthine alleys.
‘This is on par with the city’s regular army, isn’t it?’
Hyde stuck out his tongue at the sight of local thugs bundled in layers, perfectly surrounding the intersection and laying down suppressive fire.
Right after leaving the visitor-friendly ‘Yellow Path’ with Pablo, they ran into a two-man robbery duo.
Just as he was about to break a few limbs and leave them there, a properly armed five-man crew showed up—somehow tipped off.
After dealing with them, now it was fifteen trained combat specialists waiting with traps, snipers, and cover.
‘That skinny one’s the commander.’
Hyde cautiously extended his blade beyond the alley wall to scout.
In the barrage of mana bolts, he spotted the shooters. Three criminals who’d charged first and died cleanly by his hand, and the lanky commander steadying the shaken group while maintaining the fire net.
‘The spots of the dead guys are empty. Hole in the fire net.’
‘Ceiling, right wall, mana traps right in front of the shooters. Look at these bastards—they’ve left some paths open on purpose as traps.’
‘And that thing coming up behind the commander... a train flamethrower? No escape in a narrow alley.’
Scratching his head at the tricky situation, Hyde spoke to Pablo, who was flattened behind him.
“Hmm. Pablo? Can you scoot back further from there?”
“Are you kidding me? With mana rounds flying like that, how am I supposed to move? That’s why I said I didn’t want to guide you! I got dragged into this! That’s why I begged you at the alley entrance—give the thugs their toll money!”
“Those bastards wanted my sword and gun. You know how long I’d have to roll in mushroom caves to save up enough to buy these barehanded? About a week—enough time for new mushrooms to sprout from my nose and ears.”
“Still better than losing your life!”
“Tch.”
Suppress with gunfire to pin the enemy, then finish with an inescapable flamethrower in the tight alley. Simple, effective plan.
Of course, if he were the type to die to a fire net like this, his bones would be rotting in soft earth somewhere by now. Hyde could survive, but civilian Pablo would turn to charcoal along with his fancy clothes—no doubt about it.
Just a few steps from the flamethrower’s range now.
Suuuuck— haaaa.
“...No choice.”
Hyde sighed deeply and reached into his coat.
Dozens of pockets sewn by hand into his clothes and cloak lining. After rummaging, he pulled out a fingernail-sized steel bead—the cheapest of the bunch inside.
Relatively cheap, that is. This specialty from the mining city of Powdrak, five cities away, the original goblin magitech weapon ‘Silver Tickle,’ wasn’t something you could buy just because you wanted to.
Just remembering the crabby goblin artisan and the soft-earth ruins expedition he’d traded twenty of these tiny silver beads for made his teeth chatter.
Click!
Pressing a spot with his fingernail triggered it. The compacted silver wires loosened, revealing the mana crystal core. Crafted by Keruzaru, the artisan who wouldn’t sell to anyone he didn’t like.
Simple to use: smash the soft metal blob to break the inhibitor, then toss the activated Silver Tickle at the enemy—
Whish—
.
.
.
.
.
Chaaaaararak—!
“Gaaah!”
“My arm! My aaaarm!”
The tightly packed metal wires exploded outward, slicing everything nearby to ribbons.
Similar to thrown mana explosives in purpose, but perfect for confined spaces where blasts might collapse the walls. Barely any noise for a area weapon, and immune to anti-magic inhibitors.
Downside was lower lethality than explosives, but—
“This is plenty for now.”
More than enough to shatter the shooters’ rigid fire net.
Hyde drew the rifle from his back and thrust it out into the now-silent alley.
Some clutched sliced arms and faces in agony; others pushed through, the flamethrower guy stepping forward tough-like.
Perfect position, perfect angle.
Bang!
One shot. Straight to the flamethrower’s fuel tank. Hyde immediately tucked Pablo under his arm and leaped backward.
Chiiiiiik—!
“Wha-what the hell is that?!”
“Let go! Someone get this th—!”
“Don’t come closer, you idiots—!”
KABOOOM!
Green flames from the volatile fuel—mana crystals, alchemy catalysts all mixed—erupted, filling the narrow alley.
“Man, what a waste. If I’d salvaged that fuel tank, or even just the buried mana traps, I’d have today’s haul.”
“Y-you’re thinking about that now? Half a step slower and those flames would’ve swallowed us whole! Mana-mixed fuel doesn’t go out without an anti-mana stone! We almost died!”
“Half a step? That’s plenty of margin.”
“That half step was the line between life and death!!!”
Pablo patted his pounding chest, glaring at the man grumbling about missed loot despite cheating death.
“What?”
“...”
“No witnesses left. No one’s gonna recognize our faces and cause trouble.”
“...”
“Fine, fine. I’ll hook you up proper. Get you in on drinks with the ‘Dynamite Lady’ engineers, set up interviews with other train folks I know. How’s that? Fair pay for your trouble—”
“Hyde. Who the hell are you?”
Pablo knew Wigen’s underbelly well—and exactly who those guys Hyde had wiped out were.
‘Guys trafficking mana crystal and alchemy catalyst-mixed drugs.’
Not cheap hallucinogenic mushrooms, but the real deal—combat stims too. They raked in massive cash, so their crew was top-tier.
Built to handle knight-level extermination squads from the city.
‘Smuggling controlled train heavy weapons on top of proper guns! And if I’m not wrong, that skinny one was an earth mage!’
Wigen was earth mage central, so Pablo knew the feel.
It matched the pressure from construction sites citywide. Even Pablo, out of sight, could barely breathe—yet Hyde, the direct target, carried him and sprinted at insane speed like it was nothing!
‘I thought he was just some discarded knight fanatic from a noble house, riding trains he pays for himself!’
“I’m really nothing special.”
“Quit lying! You demolished Wigen’s drug lords—even the city guard has trouble with them!”
Hyde scratched his head under the newsboy’s gaze, now sharp and different from morning.
“Truth. I get aura, sense it, even internalized it—but can’t manifest it outward. Just a half-baked Aura Knight patching firepower gaps with gadgets.”
He flashed the pocket-lined inside of his cloak and sighed.
“Great against average joes, but useless against mutants that shrug off heavy weapons.”
Decent in human fights, but against mid-tier-plus mutants with stupid durability? No better than engineers.
People mocked him:
‘Half-baked Aura Knight specialized in human hunting.’
“...Let’s go. That fire’s not dying anytime soon. Gotta circle to another alley.”
“Y-yes!”
Hyde sighed gut-wrenchingly.
Expensive item blown,
Nothing looted from hard-won kills,
And his half-assed aura weakness laid bare.
‘...If I find it. If I find that, can I become a proper Aura Knight?’
Aura was self-manifestation, they said.
So his warped aura meant some broken part deep in his self.
[....Find it.]
[--- Find it....]
The voice sharpened in his mind; Hyde shook his head hard.
First things first—the task at hand.
Complicated? Tackle one by one. Methodically.
His spirit, tempered traveling soft earth, swept away the creeping cloud without trace.
As Hyde followed the excited Pablo into another alley, his head was filled only with plans to recoup today’s losses.
****
“Hyde. No last name means commoner, right? Where from?”
“Frontier outpost a month’s train ride from here.”
“Family? Only child? You handle sword and gun great—dad teach you? Or some master?”
“No family—Church of Light orphanage. Sword from old holy knight at the temple. Gun? Always could. Got better with practice.”
“Orphanage... so Hyde’s not your real name? Baptismal name! Light’s three churches—which? Sun? Lantern? Ah, Saint Order! Crazy folks, but full of battle priests!”
“Believe all three. Hey, we on the right path? Feels like thirty minutes already.”
“All three... split Light Churches, all of ’em... Don’t worry about the path! Detoured from that alley, but we’re almost there!”
Pablo scribbled furiously, thrilled, as he led on.
‘Definitely weird! Something special about him!’
Post-fight, Pablo was convinced: Hyde exceeded his initial hopes.
Impressive? Maybe not. But definitely odd.
=========
‘Bored on the way? Let’s do an interview?’
‘Y-yeah... Hyde’s an Aura Knight, right? Gotta be folks interested?’
‘Hmm...’
‘P-pay! Engineer interview rates! Boss said treat you like a reporter while serving you—’
‘Name’s Hyde. Nicknames galore, but Pathfinder’s the tag. Weird how a no-talent guy gets jobs done, always finds side paths. Good with guns, swords, magitech~’
‘Uh, y-yeah...’
=========
First off, huge cheapskate. Decent skills mean good income, yet he begged like a starving beggar.
=========
‘Hyde. No qualms about this stuff?’
‘This? Interview?’
‘Yeah. Engineers need cash for armor plates, magitech guns, mana-fuel trains guzzling like water. Shard Knights bid auctions for pricy shards. But Aura Knights? Nobles shower ’em with gold—no need for interviews. Exposure’s a risk, honestly.’
‘Yeah... but I’d love interviews.’
‘Huh? Why?’
‘Dunno. Feels good—faceless crowds knowing me.’
‘...Attention whore?’
Smack!
‘Not enjoying attention... just. Getting close to people’s like that. Learn each other, lower guards bit by bit. Get so close, you burp and fart freely.’
‘Heh. Philosophy there.’
‘Just from wandering, meeting folks. How guarded people are. Even friendly road acquaintances—deep down, massive walls. Ignorance breeds caution; knowledge brings closeness.’
‘Ahem. Wanderer’s wisdom...’
‘Living like this, maybe someday meet someone to share true selves with. No facade. Like mind-reading—no guard at all. Even blood family? Nah.’
‘Hmm. Attention junkie dreamer... Tough-minded Aura Knights are usually—’
Smack! Smack!
‘Ow! Gaaah!’
=========
Loved exposing himself—personal stories too.
Hoping for someone to read and accept his inner self. Lonely type, maybe.
“You said you believe all three—Sun Order, Lantern Order, Saint Order. Reason?”
“Eh... just? They were one Church of Light once. Same canon. Orphanage vibe’s familiar—no orders followed.”
“Baptismal name?”
“Eh... don’t remember.”
“Huh?”
“Weird, right? Child prodigy rumors since kid. But zero recall of childhood name.”
“That’s... odd.”
“Yeah, felt off. Never sounded like me. But ‘Hyde’? Dream-echoed a ton—more natural than my name. So I stuck with it.”
Light believers everywhere, but all three? First.
Same root, split over a century ago on ideology. Post-East-West Empire War and dragon vein mega-blast, distrust of ‘god who didn’t help’ cracked it. Hiding saint’s death and top-heavy structure didn’t help—shattered into three.
Worship same god, yet bloody clashes now. Believing all three? Nothing normal about him.
Scratch-scratch—
Tiny print grew on the board; harder to grasp the man.
Newsboy Pablo wanted to spread this odd Aura Knight’s tale—as requested. Weird, but entertaining enough.
‘Article on him—how to write?’
‘What tag? One clean line? Dreamy Wanderknight? Nah, cliché. Something special...’
“Hey, Pablo.”
“Special... perfect intro...”
“...Waaah!”
“Gyaah! What?! Ambush? Robbers? Draft?”
“Spacing out like that. Look ahead—we’re here.”
Lost in article fantasies, Pablo jumped at the shout.
Long way back, yet arrived.
“Y-yeah. Spot on. Made it.”
“Damn, houses jammed like that? Tunnels? Roof-crawling?”
“Dunno. Heard from local newsboy—never been in. Better than Trackside Village, he said. Inside walls, anyway.”
“...Those aren’t legal citizens, right?”
“Nope. Dwarf earth mages shaped Wigen into a ‘rock city’ for themselves—became true labyrinth. Knights get lost, collapse. How track every nook? Criminals, refugees flood blind spots, settle. This? One such refugee pocket.”
The ‘village’ ahead felt exactly that.
Windows and doors crammed into rock crevices willy-nilly.
If those were houses, about ten households—a hidden hamlet in the city.
“Lordric refugee, immigrated 1-2 years ago. Tied to big incident preferred. Only place I know for your target.”
“Where are we?”
“Refugee camp. Old Lordric domain escapees hiding in Wigen. Old enough—if that ‘Warlord’ operated there, someone’ll know.”
“Sounds good. Real good.”
“...Warning: step into sight, they’ll shoot. Hidden life—paranoid as hell. Sneaking for interrogation? Hardest part.”
Pablo warned politely, but wasn’t worried. Refugees with rusty arcashooters and blades? Couldn’t handle the Hyde who crushed Wigen’s drug lords.
‘Not good folk anyway.’
Non-citizens meant crooks or shady types. Recalling Hyde’s ruthless hands earlier—not tough.
“Alright.”
“Huh? Wait, Hyde! What’re you—”
Up!
He’d guided obscure paths—until Hyde raised his arm high.
As panicked Pablo yanked him back, Hyde inhaled deep.
『Helllloooo everyooooone—!』
Kaaaa—
Kaaaa—
Aaa—
Aa—
A—
.
.
.
.
『Hyde here—got questions!』
Hereee—
Here—
Heee—
Ee—
.
.
.
.
His voice boomed through the narrow passage and camp, echoing.
Clang!
Clack-clack! Click!
Shing!
Rumble!
Windows flew open in response—barreled with rusty guns.
“Th-they’re marked for execution if found! Why the crazy shout...? They’ll kill us to keep secrets!”
“Wait. I got a plan.”
“If wrong?! If they just open fire!!!’
“Murder-happy types? I’ll sleep fine killing ’em guilt-free. Otherwise, we talk. Win either way.”
Refugee camp. Hidden dwellers. Walls and safety given, but light cost money—harsh life.
“Thing they can’t refuse.”
“Nothing works! Lives on line! In shattered continent, safe spot beats cash—common sense!”
“Hey—watch. It’ll work.”
Bribing hostile strangers? Rookie move.
Pros hit fundamentals.
Hyde pulled a hefty pouch from his pocket-lined cloak.
‘Item’s nothing special.’
But Lordric refugees? Couldn’t ignore it, he was sure.
****