Chapter 98: Acquiring Weapons - 14
Chapter 98: Acquiring Weapons - 14
Asira examined the dagger and asked grimly.
"This is a Grade 2 dagger. Where did it come from?"
"The explanation for that is a bit complicated...."
"I see. Is it a sensitive matter?"
Asira stood and spoke to Yura.
"I'll have to leave you alone for a moment, Yura. I'll finish this as quickly as I can and return to your side, so try not to hold it against me too much."
"I'm fine, Asira...."
Yura looked at Jiha with an uneasy expression.
She was worried that what had happened between her and Jiha might be discovered by Asira.
Jiha turned around nonchalantly.
"Then let's step out onto the balcony."
Jiha led the way, and Asira and Kamain followed.
Asira explained.
"Kamain is my friend and a loyal knight, so you can trust him."
"......."
Jiha just gave a thin smile.
It was clearly Kamain who had leaked the guard patrol information to the gnolls, yet Asira didn't seem to suspect him in the slightest.
Kamain was straining to conceal his agitation.
"First, would you return that blade?"
"......That's a difficult request. I'm a Common."
Asira didn't mince words and cut him off sharply.
"Commons are only permitted weapons up to Grade 3. From Grade 2 and above, possession is prohibited. I'm not going to punish you without cause, but first...."
"It's not mine."
Asira looked puzzled at Jiha's words.
Seeing Kamain, standing behind her, grow even more flustered, Jiha laughed.
"That's something Enril Woniak acquired after dealing with a situation."
"......Dealing with?"
The rest of the story was something Enril would handle and get straight.
Jiha had already given her that instruction before coming to the banquet hall.
"It seems some gnolls snuck into the barracks. I don't know their objective, but it couldn't have been good, so Enril dealt with them quietly. She wants this kept under wraps for now."
"Was it instigated by Purple?"
Jiha shook his head.
"We'll have to investigate, but we don't want to make a hasty announcement. It hasn't been long since Enril made an agreement with Leticia, a Purple Unique. If a barracks raid is discovered again in this situation, the barely suppressed threat of war could flare up once more."
"......Hmm."
Asira considered this and nodded.
"A wise judgment. I agree."
"Furthermore, the gnolls didn't just walk in. It seems they bypassed the guard patrol routes and got in without a sound."
"......Meaning there was an information leak?"
Asira was startled, and Kamain's face stiffened.
'It's now certain that bastard and the gnolls are connected. If I prod a bit more, I can easily crush him. And while I'm at it, I can deal with this Unique too.'
Sketching out his plan, Jiha smoothly continued the story.
"So, Enril thinks she needs to secretly investigate who leaked the internal information and under whose orders those gnolls were acting. She asked me to relay this story."
"Yes, that's the correct course of action."
It was all a lie from Jiha, but Asira believed him without a doubt.
If you trust the source, you don't doubt the information they give you.
Since Jiha invoked Enril's name, Asira believed everything.
'Just like she believes she has no luck with men....'
A wry thought crossed Jiha's mind, but Asira tilted her head.
"But why would Enril convey such an important story through you? This is a security matter."
"You might already know, but I'm a bit unusual for a Common. I earn money by occasionally assisting Enril with various tasks she orders. I have a lot of expenses here and there...."
These words were a ploy to put Kamain at ease.
By speaking this way, Kamain would conclude that the gnolls had stupidly gotten caught by Enril and ruined the job.
'And Kamain still doesn't know that I subdued the gnolls in the entertainment district. That means Kamain gave the gnolls the guard information but hasn't met them face-to-face yet to exchange details.'
If Kamain heard the full story from the gnolls, he would suspect Jiha, but that didn't matter.
By that time, Jiha would have finished his business.
"Ah, I see. So you've become Enril's confidant?"
Asira accepted that explanation readily.
She looked Jiha up and down again and nodded.
"You seem to have the kind of resourcefulness that Enril would select for. By any chance, have you considered becoming a Rare Grade?"
"......What?"
Jiha frowned at the completely unexpected proposal.
"I heard you possess Mana. One who possesses Mana is a Rare Grade. It's simply unheard of for a Common to have Mana, so it's not that illogical. If you desire it, I will petition Lady Cheonho and absolutely have you made a Rare Grade."
"......."
Kamain's face contorted.
He was showing more emotion than when Jiha had casually shown the dagger and bluffed.
Jealousy.
Jiha didn't miss it and let out a dry laugh.
"In exchange for becoming your knight?"
"I always desire those with clear sight and upright conduct. If you wish, would you stand by my side, rebuke me should I stray down a wrong path, and be a lantern so that I do not lose the righteous way?"
Asira reached out her hand to Jiha and earnestly requested.
"......."
Every word was so sincere that even Jiha couldn't answer right away.
Honest emotion has power.
Jiha now acknowledged that Asira truly pursues a righteous path and has the correct will to treat even Common slaves sincerely and work together.
"I'll decline......."
Jiha shook his head.
Asira looked regretful for a moment, then offered a faint smile.
"No, thinking about it, I was too thoughtless. If you're already following Enril, my urging you like this could be seen as disloyalty. But separately from this, I will still advise Lady Cheonho so that you can become a Rare Grade."
"No, I'll decline that too."
As Jiha repeatedly refused, Asira had an expression of disbelief.
Jiha changed the subject.
"We're getting off track. Right now is the time to tighten security in the barracks and discreetly investigate the gnolls' identity. Enril is seeking your cooperation."
"About that......."
Asira thought for a moment and then nodded.
"I was only going to tell Enril this, but since you're her direct subordinate, you'll need to know to move forward. The truth is, I heard from Lady Cheonho that a large quantity of Grade 2 weapons has been circulated in Waris, and I came to investigate whether it was true. Since it appears to be real, I now need to investigate the circumstances."
"And after the investigation?"
"If it's ours, we'll recover it. If it belongs to Purple, we should return it."
"......."
Not even Yura would say something like this.
Jiha looked at Asira, wondering if she was serious, but she just asked in return.
"We can't take what belongs to others, can we?"
"......What kind of neighborhood demon are you?"
At Jiha's remark, Kamain cut in.
"You've gone too far with your insolence, Common."
"No, this isn't new to me. I've heard it plenty."
Asira actually laughed.
"It's true that I am a demon, possessing an evil nature, but I have no intention of following it. I am Asira Hellrunner, someone who walks the path I believe is right. I simply strive to fight without shame and live without shame."
"......I see."
Jiha nodded and then held out his hand.
"Anyway, that's Enril's acquisition. I'll return it, so hand it over."
Asira gave it back willingly without much suspicion.
"If we talk too long, others will think it's strange. I understand your meaning, so let's begin the investigation quietly tomorrow. Kamain and I will also help wholeheartedly."
"Right, let's do that......"
"Have a good night, Jiha."
Asira said this with a smile and went back inside first.
Kamain remained and glared coldly at Jiha.
'Ready to throw off your knight's mask now?'
Since he looked down on Jiha as a shallow creature obsessed with money and women, his emotions were easily displayed.
"......You're overstepping far too much, Common."
"I just occasionally help Enril with things to earn money. It's a light side job."
"If you don't know your place, you won't live long."
Thoroughly offended, Kamain spat the words out and left.
It seemed he was extremely displeased that his plan had gone awry.
"......Right. It's just as I thought."
Jiha gained certainty.
It was indeed Kamain who had given the internal information to the gnolls.
But the attack targeting Jiha wasn't under Kamain's orders; it was the gnolls acting on their own judgment.
The gnolls and Kamain were in a cooperative relationship, but they weren't one body.
"A lack of communication, an absence of contact, brings tragedy in situations like this...."
Kamain would now try to contact the gnolls and adjust the plan.
If he grabbed that opportunity, the matter would be cleanly resolved.
"While I crush that idiot, in the process, I'll get my hands on all the weapons......."
If the Commons armed themselves with Mana weapons, they would possess a power that couldn't be ignored.
Jiha himself would likely become stronger as well.
Having organized his thoughts, Jiha called Uben outside the banquet hall.
"Since the gnolls are dead, have the guys store the bodies in the morgue... and from now on, don't take your eyes off Kamain's movements. Watch him whether he goes to the bathroom or the bathhouse. This is the top priority."
"I'll give firm orders."
"Good, and......"
After a moment's thought, Jiha added an order.
"I'll write a letter, so send a fast kid to the entertainment district. Just have them say I told them to deliver it to Deadheart."
"You've planted someone there too. Understood."
Uben only now realized that Jiha had gotten his hands on Iroha's information network.
Jiha didn't tell even his advisor Uben everything about his power base, organizational situation, or the means to achieve his goals.
The fewer who know a secret, the better.
'If I tell Iroha to monitor the contact between the gnolls and Kamain, information should come in. Kamain will be itching to make contact with the gnolls. Starting tomorrow, under the pretense of an investigation, I'll keep provoking Kamain so he makes a mistake on his own, and that's it.'
Kamain would desperately try to hide his collusion with the gnolls.
That would only end up tightening the noose around his neck.
Then, deal with both the gnolls and Kamain, and seize all the weapons.
'And while I'm at it, if things go well, I could even tame Asira and have her make a false report to the Legend....'
Jiha paused in thought and frowned.
"Boss?"
"......."
What if the first Unique Jiha had met was Asira?
If that fair and just woman had been his supervisor, maybe Jiha would have turned out differently—influenced by her, living more righteously.......
"The world isn't righteous."
Jiha muttered.
"Domination and subjugation, the cold logic of power rules the world. How prettily you wrap it up is all that decides the shape of society."
"What's this all of a sudden...."
"Nothing. Forget it."
Jiha hardened his resolve.
Having met her in person, Asira was upright and beautiful.
Even Jiha couldn't deny the assessment that she was noble.
But that beauty belonged solely to her.
She alone could be clean and beautiful, but her followers couldn't all be noble.
"Because people don't live righteously...."
After writing the letter for Uben and wrapping up the task, Jiha finally moved his feet.
Toward Lijin's room.