Vendetta - 3

The boss of a once-thriving gang paid the price for picking the wrong fight and ended up as pulp. I wasn't sure if autopsies or DNA analysis even existed in this world, but this mess would make identification a nightmare. That could only work in my favor. The investigation was going to be a colossal headache.

"How about it, babe? Like what you see?"

"Yeah, I love it. ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Makes me want to summon Morvanel right this second."

"So what do we do with the remaining women?"

"No need to leave witnesses alive."

If Kathleen hadn't pulled that stunt, I might've kept them around for the harem parties. But I'm not merciful enough to spare traitors. I could never understand it. In those damn otaku comics, why do protagonists always let the backstabbing bastards who tried to kill them live? No matter how pretty or stacked they are, a woman who stabs you in the back doesn't get to walk away. A bad dark elf belongs in a gas chamber or on the receiving end of a white phosphorus round. Rest in peace, Kathleen—hope the spider friends enjoyed their meal. As for Ulk's corpse, he'll have to piece himself back together in hell. Like some patchwork golem!

Anyway, the revenge went off without a hitch, and my pockets were now heavy. The Nero Colpo gang had stashed loot all over their hideout, and every last bit of it had found its way into my hands thanks to my spider friends. With this cash, I could fix up Solaris and still have plenty left to burn on gacha rolls.

After all that chaos, where the hell were the guards and the authorities? The clever consigliere had led the spider legion straight to the city walls and drawn every soldier's aggro. In other words, the law had bigger problems than our little vendetta. That's what the scholars call "making a racket in the east to strike in the west."

The spider legion's invasion threw the city into pandemonium. In the middle of all that, it wouldn't have been strange if a gang or two got wiped out. Thanks to the distraction, Tirga, Lati, the temporarily allied Morvanel, and I slipped out of the city without any trouble. Even if they were criminals, we couldn't exactly stick around after committing a full-blown massacre.

"Great. Summon Solaris. And move us inside."

Even after repairing that ridiculously expensive ironclad airship, I still had money to spare. Tonight, I'd enjoy some leisure aboard my flying hotel. What? Solaris was no different from those flashy but useless maritime hotel ships sunk in the Pacific War? Don't compare my SSR summon to scrap metal that only looks good on the outside. It just had a bit of bad luck, that's all.

"Glad to see you're safe, Commander."

"Been a while, Captain. You holding up all right?"

"Thanks to your concern, I'm in one piece. I was really surprised back then. Never expected to run into currents that strong."

"How's the atmosphere and weather around here?"

"No worries, sir. The air here is perfectly fine for flight."

I'd have to avoid aerial travel in the northern regions and stick to the ground instead. Still, riding Solaris again after so long felt fresh. Morvanel took one look at the facilities and nodded in approval. "Fitting for the boss."

After downing all that liquor earlier, I had no appetite. What I really wanted was a hot shower and a soft bed. "We'll have to save the airship tour for later, babe."

"Already time to go? Might as well test my luck while I'm at it. With the money we got from the gang, I could summon Morvanel on the spot."

"Heh, I appreciate the thought, but it's not time for me to stay by your side yet. If another chance for revenge comes up, I'll join you properly then."

With those ominous words, Morvanel stole a surprise kiss. Tirga flew into a rage, but Morvanel just winked with her spider eyes and vanished into the darkness.

Another chance for revenge? Did Morvanel have some kind of future sight? Or was it just a woman's intuition? Either way, I needed to lie low for a while. I'd made plenty of money already—no need to get greedy. As I'd mentioned before, nothing short of a winged dragon could reach these heights, so I didn't have to worry about uninvited guests. The downside was the obscene fuel and maintenance costs. Then again, there was that Provecti the dwarf gave me. Maybe I should use that instead? It lacked combat functions and wasn't as luxurious as Solaris, but it was faster and cheaper to run.

Oh, right—speaking of the dwarf, I remembered the quest he'd asked for. "Captain, how long to Sanctuarium from here?"

"Let's see… about two days."

"Perfect. Set course for Sanctuarium."

"Understood, Commander."

Time to wash up. Watching all that blood and gore had left my mental state feeling filthy. I needed purification. ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠It should've been nauseating, but thanks to the tarot's side effects, my mind had twisted in a strange way and I felt nothing. No nightmares tonight—just a good night's sleep.

"M-Master."

"What's wrong, Tirga?"

"I'm really sorry. I couldn't help at all today. But… I'm also a little jealous. There was another strong woman by your side. I should be enough by myself."

"Well, everything worked out in the end, right? Let's just move past it. Besides, someone had to protect our cute Lati."

"H-Huh? Me? I'm not that weak, Boss."

Lati blushed, her ears twitching adorably. Rabbit beastmen usually had shorter ears than people imagined, which only made her cuter. I spread my arms and pulled both Tirga and Lati into a hug. These two were the only ones I could truly rely on. More precisely, my summons and Lati.

"Let's go wash up."

"Master, be ready after your bath. You're not sleeping tonight."

"Trying to kill your master? What a naughty summon. Time for punishment."

"Are we doing it with three people again today, Boss?"

Meanwhile, the city Marquelon's group had left behind was in chaos as it tried to clean up the mess. Monster incursions happened occasionally, but an organized monster army attacking the city was unprecedented. These creatures weren't ordinary monsters—they were intelligent, cunning, and moved like humans. They were grotesque hybrids of spiders and humans, so horrifying that even the most hardened soldiers found themselves praying at the sight. They weren't simple undead either. Undead wouldn't have been able to set foot in the Holy Empire in the first place. The spider legion had brazenly scaled the walls, toyed with the soldiers, and then retreated in perfect order without leaving a trace.

The enraged city lord summoned his retainers under the guise of a meeting and began assigning blame. "What the hell happened here?! What were the knights doing that allowed monsters into this holy city?!"

"M-My deepest apologies, my lord."

"We have no excuse."

"Oh, is the Lord testing us? Not long ago, our empire's strongest knight order was annihilated while trying to subdue a band of ruffians. Ah, this is all because of our lack of faith."

Even amid the crisis, the lord clasped his hands ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠and began praying. As expected of a lord in the Holy Empire, his devotion was absolute. But the disaster didn't end there. The Nero Colpo gang had maintained a certain order in the underworld, but with all of them dead, that order collapsed. Without the large gang enforcing control, the city's security deteriorated. As the saying went, when the lion disappears, the foxes play king. Smaller gangs that had once operated under strict discipline now roamed the streets freely, and pickpockets multiplied. Knights and lower nobles who had once taken bribes from the gang now extorted citizens directly. Having tasted the sweet money, there was no going ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠back. Yet the city lord, lost in his faith, paid no attention to these problems.

Word of the spider legion's invasion spread like wildfire through the empire. The news reached not only the northern revolutionary forces but also Fridica, the Führer of the Silvareich Empire.

"A mysterious monster army invaded the Holy Empire?"

"Yes, Führer. It seems the empire is being suspected of orchestrating the incident."

"Please. Our great empire isn't so idle as to pull something like that. But who could have done it?"

"Do you remember the report from a few days ago? The one about the Holy Empire's elite knight order being wiped out by someone."

"Don't tell me you're suggesting the same person is behind both incidents?"

"It's only speculation. Our security bureau is already investigating. We'll report back once we have results."

"Very well. You may go."

"Heil Fridica."

The elf from the security bureau saluted and left the Führer's office. She suddenly recalled a document she'd received and quickly unfolded it. It contained information about a male human who had greatly aided their conquests and served as a role model for the guard. According to the report, he wielded the power of lightning and traveled with a giant of unimaginable strength. The guards who had fought alongside him unanimously insisted that this human mercenary be brought into the empire's service as soon as possible.

"Marquelon… An interesting human. I'm starting to want him very much."

Fridica's blue eyes lingered on Marquelon's portrait. Such excellent talent couldn't be allowed to fall into the hands of another faction or nation. She contacted the security bureau and ordered them to prioritize tracking and recruiting Marquelon.