Chapter 94: Hunter Pierre
Chapter 94: Hunter Pierre
The basement of Odilon’s mansion, which had absolutely never been used as a torture chamber.
A dog beastman sat in the chair placed in the center, his arms and legs bound, casting a half-lidded gaze toward me.
“How is the back of your head?”
As I sat down in the soft, high-class young master’s chair Rosalia had brought, I asked the question. Pierre shook his head slightly.
“It still stings a little. But a sudden strike always becomes a powerful spice that makes the heart race.”
“Indeed. A shock that comes completely unexpectedly always makes the chest tingle.”
“So you know that exhilarating feeling as well.”
For a moment we stared into each other’s eyes, then almost simultaneously spoke.
“You seem to understand a thing or two. Just like me.”
“It seems we are rather similar types.”
《The two of you really do seem to share similar mental conditions….》
“Just in case, let me say this. Even if you pretend to be having a conversation and attempt a surprise attack, you should abandon the idea. I’ve already blocked the activation of Mysteries.”
The mystical poison of the Crimson Death Rose, the Fresh Companion of Rosalia.
Only a minuscule amount could be produced, making it impractical for real combat, but it was extremely useful for suppressing captured enemies like this.
“I had no intention of doing that anyway.”
Pierre stared absentmindedly at the ceiling.
“I enjoy being ambushed, but I do not wish to be the one carrying it out. Otherwise we could not fight under equal conditions.”
“So that’s why you appeared openly instead of attacking while we were sleeping?”
“Correct. The others wanted to wait until the night grew darker, but I led them out with a perfectly reasonable excuse.”
Crackle!
Sue’je sent a thought: “Pretty one, it seems you two would get along very well.”
The conversation truly was proceeding surprisingly smoothly.
Of course, given our respective positions, we could never become friendly.
“Even if you attacked at night, the result wouldn’t have changed. I don’t sleep much.”
I continued speaking while drinking Abel’s special tea.
“Negotiation. Let’s begin. What exactly do you want?”
Pierre frowned slightly at the fragrant scent and turned his head a little.
“I will hand over all the ‘garbage outlaws’ of the Silent Alliance to you. You offer them as living sacrifices. A proposal beneficial to both of us.”
《Question: isn’t that a proposal beneficial only to you…?》
It might sound that way at first.
But in reality it was different.
It truly was a plan where both sides could benefit.
That is—if the dog beastman before me had inherited the same disposition as Hunter Pierre, the character I once personally controlled.
“I roughly understand what you mean, but I want clarification. What exactly are ‘garbage outlaws’?”
“There is no hidden meaning. I mean literal garbage.”
Pierre’s tail, bound to the back leg of the chair, twitched violently.
“I can tolerate outlaws who lack skill. If I see earnestness, I would even be willing to teach them. But…”
His jaw trembled.
Hatred filled both eyes.
“Outlaws with excellent ability who only hunt weak expeditions where it is safe. Those creatures disgust me beyond measure.”
A thin beastlike sound escaped between his bared sharp teeth.
“An outlaw shines only when he raids strong explorers. Yet these cowards search only for weaker prey because they fear losing their lives! I cannot tolerate such disgrace.”
Pierre’s entire body trembled.
His face overflowed with murderous intent.
Rage.
The dog beastman hunter burned with fury toward outlaws who refused to raid boldly.
《Why do only insane individuals gather around you? Or are you attracting them yourself…?》
I dismissed the text and spoke.
“So you intend to eliminate all those pathetic outlaws within the Silent Alliance and leave only the brave and spirited ones.”
“Exactly. Since they are being eliminated anyway, if you offer them as living sacrifices, the result will satisfy both of us.”
“…Indeed. It’s an offer that is difficult to refuse.”
Free sacrifices delivered directly to my door?
Such an opportunity was rare.
After all, living as a model cultist made it difficult to perform offering rituals freely.
“There is just one problem.”
However, there was a fatal flaw preventing me from accepting immediately.
“If we do that, the Boss who formed the Silent Alliance will target both of us.”
“That is likely. But what exactly is this Boss?”
“Oh, you don’t know?”
“I’m still a low-ranking member of the Hyena Guild. I’ve accomplished a few great feats recently, so the guild master is giving me full support, but I don’t know who sits above the alliance. I never cared to know.”
The Boss’s identity was a top-secret known only to guild-master-level figures, so it was natural he didn’t know.
They did not know.
I did.
That placed me one step above in negotiations.
I took a sip of tea and tapped my finger lightly.
“Then I won’t reveal who that person is yet. You understand.”
“A reasonable choice.”
“What I can say is this: the Boss would never tolerate impurities like you within the alliance. Naturally, I would also become a target.”
Because I was the one who eliminated the Black Sword Guild Master.
And Rosalia, acting under Odilon’s orders, was the one who killed most of the Black Sword Guild’s outlaws. If the truth became known, the young master would also be targeted.
“An unexpected obstacle…”
Pierre murmured calmly, then looked at me again.
“That makes it even better. Plans that expect everything to go smoothly are foolish and pathetic. My opinion remains unchanged.”
“….”
I quietly watched the orange eyes of the dog beastman, whose bound tail was slowly wagging.
Then I clapped my hands loudly.
“Very well. Let’s proceed with the plan.”
I had found it.
A partner for my heart that transcended enemy and ally.
Pierre was not an outlaw to kill explorers and steal expensive items or money.
His purpose was the act of raiding itself.
Even if the target was a poor explorer with nothing to steal, if they possessed respectable level and Mystery combinations, he would gladly choose them as prey.
In other words, he was a hunter who loved the moment of risking life against another.
More precisely, that was how I used to be.
Back when he existed only as a character.
But the real Pierre seemed no different.
After all, his ultimate goal was identical to the dream I held when I was a 9,000-hour newbie.
“One day I want to raid one of the Twelve Heroes inside a labyrinth.”
Pierre forced down Abel’s special tea that I held to his mouth and raised the corner of his lips.
“I do not need the fame of defeating one of the Twelve Heroes. Even if I die during the raid, that is fine. As long as I can claim the final judgment victory.”
“A respectable ambition.”
He was fundamentally different from those petty fools who attacked innocent expeditions merely to become rich.
Perhaps because he was like a child I created myself.
“And your goal is to conquer the Nightmare Dungeon?”
“Compared to you, that’s a rather cliché goal.”
“Not at all. It is a worthy objective. Though the probability of success may be slightly higher on my side.”
At this moment, both of us were chasing dreams that were utterly unrealistic.
Fantasy.
Absurd delusion.
For now.
But in one or two years, they might become wishes that could almost be grasped in reality rather than only in dreams.
“Then let us organize the terms of cooperation.”
With Full-Moon Slayer, I cut the rope binding Pierre’s left leg.
“My goal is to completely neutralize the Silent Alliance. You wish to eliminate the garbage outlaws inside the alliance. At the very least, our direction aligns.”
Snap.
I freed his right arm.
“From now on, we will cooperate until all the garbage outlaws are eliminated and the Boss of the Silent Alliance abandons retaliation.”
“Would it not be faster to simply kill the Boss?”
As I cut the rope binding his left leg, I shook my head.
“You tried to casually probe for the Boss’s identity with that question. It won’t work.”
“Hm. You saw through it immediately.”
“Even so, by setting ‘abandonment’ instead of death as the condition, I believe I’ve given enough clues.”
“I understand that.”
Finally, I freed his left arm and stepped back.
“Let us cooperate well—at least while our alliance lasts.”
“Of course.”
We slowly shook hands.
Cultist Kar and Beastman Breeder Pierre.
Thus the so-called Kar–Pierre Alliance was formed.
Of course, our ending would never be pleasant.
In the final moment we would face each other again inside a labyrinth—an explorer and an outlaw seeking each other’s lives.
“I finally feel alive.”
Pierre removed the remaining bindings himself and stood slowly, extending his right hand.
A communication magic tattoo was engraved on his palm.
It was extremely cheap and allowed the Tome Devouring Magic Tower to rake in enormous profit.
“Contact me here.”
Inside the ear-shaped tattoo was a ten-character code of letters and numbers.
A kind of phone number.
Memorizing it allowed communication anytime through Magic Tower communication tools.
“I will return now and testify that you are the one who destroyed the Black Sword Guild.”
“But the Boss of the Silent Alliance will not act based on testimony alone.”
“So that is why the guild master kept complaining…”
“The Black Sword Guild Master’s weapon should still be somewhere in this mansion. I’ll have it placed in the guild’s former hideout. You may retrieve it there.”
Our first operation would begin after the upcoming Guild War ended.
The Boss of the Silent Alliance was the type who acted only after exhaustively verifying evidence and testimony.
“Until we meet again, try not to get killed by another outlaw.”
“And you, Pierre, try not to get caught while raiding.”
After exchanging friendly farewells, Pierre departed.
Crackle!
The Exalted One praised me again for such excellent religious devotion today.
Apparently watching only my face the whole time.
“So it’s finished?”
When I returned after seeing him off, Bartimir waved from the dining room.
“What did you talk about with that dog?”
“We decided on a temporary alliance.”
“I figured it would end that way…”
“You expected it?”
“The moment I first saw him, I felt like we’d get along. Like I wanted to start a conversation with him.”
Considering the two of them were practically siblings born by my own hand, that feeling was natural.
“But I don’t want to join hands with him. He’s just an outlaw.”
“It’s only a temporary alliance. The opponent is not ordinary.”
The Boss of the Silent Alliance was far from an easy enemy.
A villain just beneath the level of the Six Apostles.
Even if I hadn’t interfered with the Black Sword Guild Master, we would have crossed paths eventually.
“Please trust me for now. Someday we’ll meet as enemies inside a labyrinth seeking each other’s lives, but he is a beastman worth cooperating with.”
“…That sounds cool.”
Bartimir laughed and approached, placing an arm over my shoulder.
“The Guild War is coming soon, right? Mom, do we need to prepare anything else?”
Guild War.
Along with the Silent Alliance, it was another troublesome issue.
If the Gray Wolf Guild failed to win, conquering the Nightmare Dungeon would become extremely difficult.
But who was I?
A cultist more confident than anyone when it came to causing—or preventing—serious incidents.
“There is.”
I said.
“Mysteries perfectly optimized for the Guild War.”
“Do we really need that?”
“Of course.”
I removed Bartimir’s arm from my shoulder and placed my hand on his instead.
“We’ll prepare thoroughly. Because we intend to win overwhelmingly.”