Chapter 10
Chapter 10
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 10
Chapter Title: Entering District 6
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The next morning.
Having shaken off some of our fatigue, we immediately began rummaging through the inside of the hideout.
Normally, we would have just left, but we had heard some things.
“Hahaha! It’s been so long since we’ve had such a huge haul...!”
These guys had been thrilled about their earnings, hadn’t they?
We might as well take everything we can strip from them.
No guilt since they were plunderers anyway.
“Wow... all this from plundering?”
Kayla let out an exclamation of admiration as she dug through a large sack.
The sack was filled to the brim with all sorts of items...
‘Regeneration potions and a hundred silver coins. ...What, there’s even an artifact? Where the hell did they steal something like this?’
Even a newly booted nouveau riche chased to District 7 couldn’t have looted this much.
Even to my eyes, there were plenty of useful things.
“Take this.”
I picked out only the items useful to me and handed the rest over to Kayla.
“You’re giving me all this?”
She looked shocked at the generous share she’d received.
But this was a thorough division—I’d cherry-picked everything useless to me.
‘Where am I supposed to use a Mana Sensitivity Ring? I can’t raise my sensitivity any higher.’
The same went for the one-use consumable ‘Instant Awakening Agent.’
With my soul imprint allowing awakening, I had no need for it.
What I really needed was stuff like this.
“Heh heh heh...”
“What’s with this guy?”
I couldn’t stop grinning.
It wasn’t surprising— I hadn’t expected to get something already listed in my build this soon.
I looked down at the silver bracelet on my wrist.
‘Bracelet of Holy Oil.’
Its official name: [Bracelet of Holy Oil].
It looked ordinary, but this bracelet was infused with holy oil—essentially the same effect as holy water.
The wearer absorbs this holy oil over time, gradually increasing their Holy Power stat.
Holy Power was a counter stat that maximized effectiveness against demons.
In [Devil Fantasy], it was an absolutely essential stat you couldn’t skip.
‘My previous character had around 500.’
Fully absorbing the bracelet’s holy oil would raise the Holy Power stat by 5.
It was still a long way from my previous character’s Holy Power, but for now, this was more than enough.
The sheer fact that I could raise Holy Power this early was a massive merit.
And besides...
‘I can infuse Holy Power into my magic.’
Unlike other classes that used Holy Power to protect their bodies, mages could infuse it into their spells.
In simple terms, the higher your Holy Power, the higher your attack power.
That was why mages outdid other classes in offensive power.
‘Sigh... why did I level a swordsman character? I should’ve started with a mage from the beginning...’
If I had, I might’ve cleared the game and quit ages ago.
And I wouldn’t have been dragged into this world.
A pang of regret hit me, but I brushed it aside quickly.
What mattered was the future.
‘Anyway, great haul.’
Besides the Bracelet of Holy Oil, I’d snagged a few other good items.
For starters, a round [Wood Shield] and [Leather Armor] to patch up my lacking defense.
And not an item per se, but leather boots that fit perfectly.
This was more than enough to get me through the early game.
“Huhi! Huhihihit! I’m rich now.”
Beside me, Kayla cackled like a madwoman.
‘Hey, when did you stop teasing me for grinning?’
I got it, though.
They might be useless to me, but plenty were useful to Kayla.
‘A Mana Sensitivity Ring alone is pretty rare for a mage.’
Kayla’s ‘Enlightenment’ still wasn’t fully stable.
She couldn’t visually detect faint mana flows.
Because of that, when practicing transformation magic, I’d often have to draw in mana she couldn’t see.
But with that ring, she wouldn’t need my help anymore.
‘She’ll be way stronger next time I see her.’
Kayla growing as a future companion was obviously a good thing.
I felt a quiet anticipation.
Just how far would she grow?
“This is good enough.”
With all the farming done, we stood at the hideout’s front gate.
Kayla suddenly remembered something and asked.
“Hey, what’s your name anyway?”
“My name?”
Come to think of it, I hadn’t told her.
After a brief moment of thought, I gave her my real name.
No need to hide it.
“Yoo Han.”
“Yoo Han...? Hmm, unusual name.”
She responded with a puzzled look but soon accepted it and said her goodbyes.
“Alright, Yoo Han, let’s split here. I’m heading that way.”
Kayla pointed in the direction opposite District 6.
I nodded slightly, our eyes meeting—and something felt off.
Her gaze burned with competitive fire for some reason...
With a voice full of resolve, she declared.
“Look forward to it. Next time we meet, you won’t be able to look down on me.”
“...When did I ever look down on you?”
“Anyway, that’s how it is.”
Dismissing it as unimportant, she turned away.
Her back receded into the distance.
Nothing like when we’d first met in that underground prison.
Seeing that, I couldn’t help but chuckle.
“Getting stronger, huh...”
What she’d said could be seen as a challenge to me.
But far from anxious...
I was looking forward to it.
“...My standards aren’t low.”
Challenges like this were always welcome.
People grow more through repeated failures, after all.
Feeling unexpectedly lighthearted, I turned away as well.
***
Still broad daylight.
I scouted the terrain as quickly as possible and found my way.
There was a reason for all the haste.
‘Slack off and run into a demon? That’d be a pain.’
Demons were mostly active at night.
That’s why walking the streets in broad daylight like now was relatively safe.
Lower chance of encountering demons, and good visibility secured.
‘Though daylight doesn’t guarantee no demons.’
This was a world brutal enough to warrant phrases like “swarming with demons”—you couldn’t let your guard down anywhere, anytime.
Especially kin like the Redhead operated day and night without exception.
Still, with some magic under my belt now, I’d handle most issues fine.
No harm in hurrying.
“But the terrain feels a bit different from what I remember...?”
I had memorized District 7’s layout and major landmarks.
Yet it felt different from those memories.
Like a previously unknown alley appearing, or relatively clean buildings now dilapidated and abandoned.
“...Come to think of it, the plunderers’ hideout too.”
If my memory was right, there was no plunderer hideout that size in District 7.
And it even had spatial expansion magic, hadn’t it?
No way I’d forget a place like that.
Each little discrepancy stirred unease, but racking my brain yielded no answers.
“Whatever, I’ll figure it out later.”
So I just kept the memories in mind and pressed on.
About two hours later.
“Huff, huff...”
My stamina was drained.
“I’m seriously gonna die like this...”
How frail was this pathetic body? It couldn’t even handle two hours of nonstop walking.
My breath came in gasps, legs trembling.
Of course, it wasn’t just walking that wore me out.
“As expected of District 7...”
District 7 was infamous for endless suspicion, betrayal, and schemes.
True to its reputation, a few beggars who spotted my exhaustion tried to mug me for my stuff.
Seemed there were plenty of organized plunderers like the hideout crew.
That meant frequent use of electric transformation magic to reinforce my body.
Imbuing mana with attributes and wrapping it around myself consumed extra stamina.
“But hey, I made it.”
Catching my breath, I looked ahead.
An endless wall stretched out.
It felt like staring at the Great Wall.
My gaze went to the massive hole in its center, and beyond.
Hard to believe it was just one wall away—the other side was far cleaner and more developed.
“...District 6.”
It’d only been about ten days, but it felt like forever.
Guess that meant I’d been through a lot.
Time is relative, after all.
“Let’s go.”
Shaking off the thoughts, I strode forward confidently.
Massive guards in iron armor stood duty beneath the Great Wall-like barrier, but it was no issue.
I had a fat pouch of gold coins swiped from the hideout’s vault tied to my belt.
One guard spotted me and scowled.
“Huh? What’s this, a beggar? Think you can loiter here?”
Clank!
The heavy sound of his step was intimidating on its own.
Ignoring it, I held out the pouch from my belt.
“Let me in, please.”
As I spoke, I lightly shook the pouch.
Jingle jangle!
A pleasing sound rang out.
The guard glanced at the pouch, his eyes narrowing.
“Got some gold coins in there?”
“Of course.”
An enormous amount, in fact.
Enough that a mere District 6 guard couldn’t refuse!
“...For real?”
“Yes.”
The guard took the gold coins, and I flashed a relaxed smile.
“Can I go in now?”
But.
“...Hah, look at this guy. So damn brazen.”
Instead of the expected grin, the guard’s face twisted viciously.
Jingle!
He tossed the pouch back at me without a second thought and continued.
“Think that 100-year-old bribe trick still works? Damn beggars...”
“...Pardon?”
My expression control slipped for a moment.
My mind flooded with questions.
‘100 years ago...?’
What the hell did that mean?
‘It’s not like the money’s short...’
Was bribery a relic of a century past?
In the game I knew, it happened all the time.
Even so, this much gold should be a free pass, right?
I couldn’t make sense of it, but the guard wasn’t waiting for me to.
“Seize this bastard now!”
Snap! Rustle rustle!
Disciplined soldiers.
A dozen guards surged forward at his shout, encircling me in a ring.
In that split-second instinct of danger.
Irritation surged.
“...Haa, nothing goes right.”
Whoooosh!
My mana, now moving like an extension of my body, condensed in an instant.
-Magic calculation ability maximized.
At the same time, calculations completed even faster, conjuring the image.
The image: crackling electricity.
Then attribute infusion, wrapping it around my body to reinforce it.
Crackle crackle!
Yellow electricity flared from my toes upward.
Electric transformation magic.
Only then did the guards’ rat-like stares shift.
“M-Magic...?”
“This beggar’s a mage...?”
“Yeah, a mage.”
As I replied, I quickly scanned for openings.
Plan was to kick off the ground and break their encirclement.
“Everyone, draw swords—!”
“R-Reinforcements... call reinforcements!”
Shing! Shing! Shing!
The guards drew their blades in perfect unison.
Frustration boiled inside.
God, they really don’t get it.
“I said I’m a mage?”
What can you even do to me?
This brutal world wouldn’t idly spectate my leisure.
But.
No crisis thrown my way could ever stop me.