Unwanted Reward (1)

"There's no way a spirit like you even exists."

"Ghk—ghk! Gaaah!"

Smack. Smack. SMACK!

"S-stop! Wh—what!? I am a king!! I received a spirit's name, which makes me your superior!!"

"So what."

SMACK!

"How dare you!! You were the one who gave me that dogshit name Dark of Darkness in the first place!!"

"So what."

"Ow! Aaagh! What kind of bastard are you!!"

I was in the middle of enthusiastically swinging my fists, physically airing every last grievance I had about that name, when—

"Eugene."

"Yeah?"

"Um, I've been wondering since earlier."

Yuria had wandered over to ask.

"What's that black ball-looking kid?"

Her faintly glowing golden eyes locked onto Dark of Darkness with unnerving precision.

"Are you, like, raising it?"

"Holy shit that scared me, what even—"

I played dumb and pulled my hands off him.

In the original story, Dark and Yuria only met after she had already lost everything. The plot had gone so far off the rails that I wasn't as hung up on the future as I'd been at the start — but still.

Yuria plus Dark equaled Mid-Boss Yuria, and that was enough to make me a little nervous.

Then again, they do make a hell of a combo.

On top of that, the current Dark knew the original story. He'd be a massive asset to her.

I opened and closed my mouth, then asked,

"What do you wanna do?"

Dark looked from Yuria to me and back again, then answered in a slightly troubled voice.

"……It would appear the time is not yet ripe. I shall take my leave for now."

Having said that, he shot into the air before I could even grab him.

"H-huh? He's flying away?"

"What, did you want him?"

"Eehh? How would I even take something that big……?"

He's not even that big.

"He's kinda like Gastly from Pokémon. Easy to carry around."

"Gox?"

"Never mind. It's a thing."

I gave Yuria a smile, then flicked my gaze past her shoulder.

"Hey. You got something to say?"

He was staring at me in the most uncomfortable way. Ian tapped the ground with his toe and muttered,

"Finally looking this way, are you."

"Ugh. So annoying."

Why was he talking like a dating-sim heroine?

Ian looked at me and let out a snort of laughter.

"Still a terrible personality, I see."

"Whatever. You done wrapping things up?"

"Wrapping things up? I even had a meal."

Oh, I see.

I nearly got my throat cut by the 4th Apostle, and Dark of Darkness almost made my entire body explode — but His Majesty the King of the Underworld here enjoyed a lovely meal.

"I'm so pissed."

"Hmm? What was that?"

"Nothing. So. How's it looking?"

Ian's expression darkened a little.

"That son of a bitch Dexter pulled more stupid shit than I expected. If we'd been even a little later, the entire underworld might've had to file for bankruptcy."

He wasn't wrong.

In the original, Dexter ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠extorted money under every pretext imaginable, killed the owners, and swallowed their businesses whole. He didn't even bother managing them, so they all went under. He stuffed his own pockets so thoroughly that even the Salvation Cult eventually abandoned him.

I asked, pretending I didn't know.

"Is it that bad?"

If they were in such rough shape they couldn't get back on their feet, I was planning to snag a few lucky breaks and drop them in his lap. But Ian shook his head.

"I said 'might have,' didn't I."

"Easy, then."

"……You really are an idiot."

"Excuse me?"

"It's nothing. Take a look at this."

Ian pulled a ledger from his coat and started explaining, pointing at each entry one by one.

"Now, look here first."

"Skip."

"……?"

"Skip skip skip."

I mash-tapped his cheek like a skip button, but—

"……Stop fooling around and pay attention."

"Huh. It's not working."

Unfortunately, the skip failed.

Well, even if I went to the dorms right now, I wouldn't be able to see Rania anyway.

If she wouldn't come out, I'd have to kidnap her, and for that I'd have to wait until 10 AM, when the dorm security shifted.

So I've got about two hours to kill.

Might as well get a handle on the situation first, then move.

…So, to summarize.

"Dexter pulled a ton of bullshit, but there was even more money in the warehouse than he stole? Almost certainly funded by the Ramis family, and it looks like there's someone else behind them?"

"That's right."

"You've been distributing it all night, and things'll be back to normal in a few days? The Shadow King's warehouse is empty, but that can be fixed by working?"

"Excellent summary."

Eugene let out a sigh without meaning to.

"Did you really need to spend forty minutes walking me through the ledger for that?"

"Ah……, well."

"You trying to piss me off?"

"Wow……, this is…?"

Eugene was the one who should've been frustrated, but Ian scratched his head like he couldn't understand at all.

"Haa……. Listen, Eugene. Can you truly not grasp what I'm trying to say? That ledger I showed you. Five thousand names written in it. Five thousand."

"I saw it. I know."

"Then do you also know this? Those people. Every last one of them would have died if not for you."

He added, his expression grave,

"Do you understand now? People who should have withered away under tyranny are alive again, all because of one person."

The words were simple, but the content wouldn't have been out of place as a passage from a hero's epic.

But Eugene—

"Skip skip skip."

—didn't seem interested in the slightest.

The wrinkles on Ian's face carved themselves even deeper.

How did I end up owing a debt of gratitude to a lunatic like this…….

He was still trying to figure out how to explain the debt he owed, and how to repay it, when—

"Oh right, old man, you wanna die?"

"Huh?"

"Ah, my bad. Let me rephrase."

Eugene cleared his throat and explained.

"You died from your condition worsening after a bloody battle with Dexter. The current Shadow King isn't Ian — it's someone whose identity is hidden."

If the 1st Apostle caught wind that Ian was alive, he'd definitely send the remaining Apostles.

But if Ian and Dexter both died, and a third party showed up as the new king of the Backstreets?

At the very least, the Salvation Cult wouldn't set foot in the underworld for a while.

This much explanation should be enough, right?

Eugene looked at Ian with that thought in his eyes, and Ian nodded with an equally grave expression.

"We'll hold a funeral soon."

"Make sure you invite me. I wanna eat something good."

"Will do."

Ian let out a sigh.

"And now I owe you yet another debt."

"Debt, my ass. It's really not a big deal, so don't go clinging to me trying to repay it."

"But……."

"Aaaah! Done! Stop!"

Faced with Eugene's stubborn refusal, Ian's mouth finally closed.

"Finally worked. Skip."

Eugene smiled at him, then turned toward Yuria.

"Alright, see you too, Yuria."

"Ah……."

Yuria felt disappointed without meaning to.

Huh?

She couldn't even tell why. But if he was just going to leave like this—

Then why did he say something like that?

"Yuria?"

"I'm listening!!"

"Uh, okay. S-sorry."

"Ah! I wasn't mad, you just startled me!!"

Eugene nodded with a dead-serious expression.

"I'm not hanging out with Yuria. She's scary."

"No……!! I'm really sorry……."

"I'm kidding, kidding. Anyway, I'm actually leaving, so I'll see you on exam day next week."

With that, he turned his back.

"Ah, Eugene!"

A flustered Yuria shouted without thinking.

"I'll come pick you up that day!! Where do you live?!"

Eugene answered brightly.

"I don't have a house?"

More precisely, he had one. He just didn't know where it was.

Meanwhile, Yuria—

"…You had it hard too, just like me."

Delighted by the unexpected common ground, she clasped her hands together tightly.

Anyway, Eugene.

"So I'll come pick you up."

"H-huh!? Y-you're coming to pick me up?!"

"Yeah, see you then too, old man!"

"S-sure."

As always, he sucked the soul right out of everyone and left without a shred of hesitation.

"……It's like we've been put under a spell. Can't think straight."

"Tell me about it."

Ian watched Eugene disappear into the distance and muttered without meaning to.

"That kid. Does he not realize how incredible what he just did was?"

"Nah. No way."

A somewhat calmer Yuria pulled a piece of candy from her pocket and popped it in her mouth.

"He's just pretending he doesn't know."

Downplaying it like it was nothing, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠just in case they'd feel burdened. That meant he was deep — not just in his actions, but in his heart.

Having pieced it all together, Yuria looked at Ian with a little grin.

"You'll figure it all out eventually too, Grandpa."

Their eyes met, and Yuria burst out laughing without meaning to.

"What, you already knew everything?"

"Knew? Knew what?"

Yuria's eyes curved into a gentle smile.

"Eugene. That guy. He's a fake idiot."

"Pfft. Heh heh heh……."

Ian laughed along with her.

The truth was, Ian—

—had been watching from the very moment he'd met Eugene to deliver his report. He'd watched the entire time he spoke to Eugene, and the entire time Eugene spoke. What kind of heart he'd had when he helped them. What he'd been thinking when he saved Yuria.

It was a bad habit he'd picked up from decades in the underworld. And that was exactly why he could see it so clearly.

The genuine heart hidden behind Eugene's snide remarks.

What a ridiculous guy.

To think that deeply at his age.

They laughed together for who knows how long, until Ian called her name with a warm smile.

"Yuria."

"Yeah, Grandpa."

"You've found yourself a good friend."

They laughed for a good while longer, then he patted her head and muttered quietly.

"Yuria."

"Yeah, Grandpa."

Ian chewed on the words for a while, then his eyes lit up as if he'd made up his mind.

"It's Eugene after all. That kid."

"Huh? What about Eugene?"

I was heading toward where I could sense Dark's presence, having left the entrance of the underworld, when—

"……Why am I suddenly irritated?"

I had a bad feeling about something. The same kind of dread I'd felt hearing words like these:

…Is Ian gonna make me do something.

Well, the current underworld was as precarious as a startup.

Once I save Vulkan and get through the Rank Assessment Exam, things should ease up a bit.

I'll help out then, I guess.

"There's no way he'd have the gall to dump something hard on me, right?"

Anyway, right now I needed to rendezvous with Dark again and go see Rania.

"This should be close enough, right?"

Having arrived near the dorm where Rania was staying, I put my left hand to my forehead, spread the other in a dramatic pose, and muttered in a small voice.

The next moment.

Ssshhh.

Dark appeared, billowing Black Mist.

"Don't say that kind of thing like you're posing."

"Even a chuunibyou wants to be loved."

"……Your bullshit has increased in the short time I was gone."

Anyway, after reuniting with Dark like that, we put our heads together for the next plan.

"So? What do you intend to do from here, Death of Death."

"Don't call me that."

"Eugene, do you have no conscience?"

"Quiet. Meeting in session."

"Confirmed: you don't."

"Don't go dropping the subject like that."

We bickered for a bit, but maybe it was because we were literally putting our heads together — physically.

"Hey, your breath is warm and it's disgusting. Can you talk without that damned head of yours attached?"

"You're one to talk. Turn off that shitty Black Mist first."

"Hah! Black Mist is the pride of the spirits of evil. If you wish, I shall bestow it upon you as well."

"Don't need it."

"Already did."

"Augh."

Today's lesson.

Putting your heads together for real only makes things more unpleasant. Efficiency: down.

"Whatever. What's Black Mist even do?"

"Style."

"Yrrgh. Thnks."

"Don't mention it."

I was ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠holding down the rising irritation when Dark added with a chuckle.

"A parting gift."