44
Chapter 44
[You have purchased a total of 450 items from the Black Market, including Slaves, the Corrupted Holy Sword, the Elf's Eye, and Artifacts.]
[220,000 Gold and 240,000 Silver will be charged.]
[......You are short 220,000 Empire Gold Coins and 240,000 Empire Silver Coins. Payment of the charged amount cannot be confirmed.]
[You have violated the rules of the Black Market.]
[You have incurred the hostility of the Black Market's owner.]
[GAME OVER. You have been killed by the enraged Asel.]
[...Error occurred.]
[Unable to confirm the triggering of the forced defeat event. A bad ending has not occurred.]
[Cannot find the character Asel, Son of the Archmage.]
[Cannot find the Child's Corpse A, B, C, D, E objects.]
[Error Details: Asel has died for an unknown reason. The Slaves held captive by Asel have survived for an unknown reason.]
[...Unable to correct the error.]
[Child's Corpse A, B, C, D, E and 25 Nameless Slaves have become your companions.]
[Special Event Triggered!]
[Your companion is experiencing an awakening event.]
[The Hyper-sense trait possessed by Child's Corpse C evolves into Mind's Eye.]
[Child's Corpse C's Mind's Eye trait has reached Future Sight due to a certain trigger.]
[An impossible feat.]
[The possibility of Mind's Eye evolving into Eye that Peeks at All Creation (Legendary) has been unlocked.]
[The distortion of fate is at an immeasurable level.]
[System Overload.]
[Warning! Advising the user.]
[Please stop twisting fate any further and accept the predetermined destiny.]
*****
Rubia had gotten excited all on her own and bolted from her seat.
I stayed behind, leisurely savoring premium tea and toast with sweet jam, but my expression soured.
It was only natural.
Because bizarre text was suddenly floating right before my eyes.
'This nonsense again.'
Until now, the Status Window had mocked me in very creative ways.
Spamming dozens of messages in less than 0.1 seconds so I couldn't even read them was the prime example.
'Is this seriously trying to make fun of me?'
I filed a complaint, asking it to slow down, and this time, the Status Window actually granted my request.
[■■ ■ ■■ ■■■ ■■■ ■■■ ■■■■, ■■■ ■■■ ■■■■■■■.]
The text was so corrupted it was impossible to read, but at least it had appeared slowly as I requested.
I was able to admire that square quite leisurely.
Uniform and angular, it was a rather pleasing square.
"Haa......."
A sigh escaped me naturally.
I was finally enjoying a leisurely meal, too.
For some reason, this thing seemed to hate seeing me in a good mood.
Why was it doing this to me?
'Not being helpful, I could accept.'
It had been like that from the start.
It wasn't particularly surprising at this point.
But this went beyond being unhelpful—it was straight-up trolling.
What did I even do wrong to deserve this?
This was sabotage on a whole other level.
I ended up having a staring contest with that square for a good while before giving up and dismissing the message from my sight.
I was filled with the urge to demand a refund right then and there, but there was no way that would work.
'Go ahead and mess with me all you want. I'm doing fine without this crap anyway, and I'll keep doing fine.'
In the end, coping was the only answer.
Erasing that useless Status Window from my mind, I savored the fragrant Black Tea once more.
Maybe it was because it was expensive.
Even my mind felt at ease.
I couldn't fathom how Rubia could leave without even finishing half of something this good.
'Come to think of it. What is Rubia doing right now?'
The thought crossed my mind naturally.
It must have been about thirty minutes since Rubia left.
All she had to do was ask the kids if they wanted to participate—why was she dragging it out like this?
It was completely incomprehensible.
****
Rubia was on the verge of losing her mind.
At first, she had only meant to scare them.
She wanted to prevent the kids from dying by joining a revolutionary organization without understanding the dangers.
But somehow, it had escalated into putting the kids through an initiation test.
And now Rubia had ended up giving them the bizarre task of blocking flying swords.
And what was worse... the kids had actually succeeded.
An Artifact.
They had blocked such a powerful Artifact right in front of her and passed the test.
They even flashed confident smiles and declared their victory.
Spouting prideful lines like, 'This is our resolve!'
Seeing that situation... her brain just couldn't keep up.
'Were they not normal Slaves?'
And why were there several kids who could already handle Mana?
And what was up with that brown-haired girl?
She was pretty sure the Leader had said that girl was blind. How did she look blind in any way?
She wasn't just seeing well; she was acting like she could see the future.
No, putting that aside.
She couldn't comprehend this level of desperation from these kids.
Was the Leader genuinely emitting some kind of drug-like substance? She was seriously starting to suspect it.
They hadn't even been with the Leader for a few hours.
Yet in that short time, they had all become Fanatics.
'Don't tell me everyone who gets involved with the Leader ends up like that? This isn't going to happen again, is it?'
An ominous premonition washed over her.
A dreadful feeling that those Fanatics would endlessly multiply, leaving her as the only awkward one out.
"Unnie?"
What pulled Rubia out of her grim imagination was the brown-haired girl's question.
Rubia quickly gathered her wits and met the girl's gaze once more.
White eyes.
Her pupils were trembling erratically.
I guess a kid is still a kid.
She had declared victory so proudly just moments ago, but now she looked a bit nervous.
"Did we... pass the test?"
The girl hesitated and stammered for a long while before finally asking Rubia that.
Naturally, the stares of dozens of kids instantly focused on Rubia. Everyone was waiting for her answer.
Rubia's head started spinning again.
'W-What am I supposed to do now?'
Somehow, she had become the crazy bitch swinging swords at kids and declaring she would put them through a trial.
What if she told them the truth right now?
What if she confessed that she was actually such a weakling she'd lose an arm-wrestling match against them?
Leaving aside the sheer embarrassment... there was another problem.
Rubia was the one who had to lead these kids from now on.
Who in their right mind would trust and follow a moron who pulled such bizarre stunts just because she got swept up in the moment?
No one would trust her and follow her instructions.
Given that she was in a position where she had to manage these kids from now on, it was something she absolutely had to avoid.
In the end, there was only one choice left for Rubia.
"It's going to be a tough road."
Rubia said, making her voice sound as heavy and dignified as possible.
While it might have been a fitting line for an Executive of a revolutionary organization shaking the Empire, it was a rather embarrassing thing for someone nearing her thirties to say.
"To change this world, you have no choice but to make an enemy of the world itself."
Her fingers and toes curled in cringe.
However, she couldn't just stop now.
"Still, are you prepared to walk this path?"
The atmosphere instantly grew heavy.
But no one backed down.
Everyone nodded, each steeling their own resolve.
They declared they were ready to lay down their lives for Black Fang.
"Alright, then......."
With those words, Rubia walked toward the children.
The black robe she had worn to sleep last night because she was too exhausted fluttered dramatically.
"As the Third Claw of Black Fang, I accept you into our ranks."
She didn't even know what the Third Claw was supposed to be.
Calling it the Fang of Black Fang would just sound weird, so she had simply made it up on the spot.
She could feel the children gazing at her with admiration.
......It was a guarantee that her blanket wouldn't survive tonight. It would probably be kicked hundreds of times.
However, she was a professional.
She couldn't stop her act just because she was embarrassed.
"I've rambled on enough, but...."
Rubia looked back at the children.
Suppressing the blush of shame creeping up her face with superhuman patience.
"Well, I just want to say I look forward to working with you all!"
Saying that, Rubia flashed a bright smile.
The children's expressions instantly brightened up.
And so, by sacrificing the lifespan of her blanket, Rubia somehow managed to maintain her dignity.
Looking at the excited children, Rubia desperately swallowed her tears.
A high-ranking Executive Noona with an unexpected charm—strict at times, but also sweet and caring.
The fact that she had come up with and acted out such a concept all by herself at her age...
She prayed desperately that no one would ever find out.