Chapter 138
Translator: penny
Chapter: 138
Chapter Title: Black Market Purge and Duel
7
“Kill them all!”
Swinging a greatsword as big as his own body around wildly, Jarobo shouted.
It seemed like he’d built up quite a bit of stress from Rainer’s order to keep his mouth shut.
Every time he swung that greatsword, stalls in Merlinside’s black market and criminals trading in Aphrenbru got sliced apart.
This area was the heart of the heart of Merlinside.
It was no place for casual tourists to wander in, given how brazenly they traded Aphrenbru.
Sure enough, the moment we moved to crack down on Aphrenbru, they all drew their blades and charged.
Kill or be killed.
I could understand the logic, but I had no desire to join in.
The reason wasn’t anything grand.
I simply didn’t want to commit murder.
I stepped back to avoid the rampaging Jarobo.
Glancing around, I saw the other knights racking up impressive kills as well.
The twin knights, Pavel and Nevil—who looked identical except for their red and green hair—were blocking the passageway, acting as gatekeepers to prevent the criminals from fleeing.
Their serpentine chain swords looked tricky to deal with.
Barotom, who was on the shorter side but solidly built, wore only minimal armor and swung the axes gripped in both hands.
Rather than wild flailing, he precisely targeted Achilles tendons or joints to strip away his opponents’ mobility, then buried his axe into their solar plexus or nape.
It was more refined and sharp than it appeared.
Finally, Chabi, with her somewhat melancholic gaze, wielded her long lance while performing acrobatic maneuvers.
Even partially armored, her fluid movements made her hard to track with the eye.
She’d slip out of sight and thrust from a blind spot, or use her small frame to burrow into an opponent’s guard, making her quite the nuisance.
Jarobo, well, he was just berserking like a madman.
Including him, they were all pretty strong.
If they weren’t strong, Rainer—who never shut up about talent—wouldn’t have handpicked and dragged them along.
His nickname, Prince of the Heavenly Sword, wasn’t for nothing.
Rainer himself gripped a modest longsword and swung it lightly.
Surprisingly, Rainer’s swordsmanship was elegantly refined.
It was the Esterro school, passed down only to the direct royal line.
Neither slow nor fast, but striking precisely at the exact timing.
Just executing the natural with such ease made enemies collapse in sprays of blood, as if the laws of physics had broken.
Especially impressive was how upper, middle, and lower strikes all flowed from the same stance.
Essentially, every attack came from one posture.
For the opponent, it made guarding or dodging a nightmare.
If nothing else, from a martial perspective, I had to acknowledge Rainer.
It was an attack possible only with innate talent plus endless training.
Thanks to that, I had no need to step in at all.
On the contrary, now that I’d gauged Rainer and his knights’ abilities, the harvest was plenty.
I had to use this intel somehow to make Rainer lose interest in me….
“Hey, what the hell are you doing?”
Jarobo approached, suddenly scowling.
I shrugged, not getting what he meant, and he pointed at the fainted enemies at my feet.
“The prince ordered total annihilation.”
“You questioning why I didn’t kill them?”
Instead of answering, Jarobo glared at me.
I wasn’t even a knight, and I’d been dragged into this during my precious winter break.
Getting bossed around out of nowhere pissed me off.
Especially when the gripe was that I hadn’t murdered anyone.
Not worth entertaining.
“Hero my ass, you’re just a coward. Ha!”
Jarobo drummed up his own echo chamber and executed the unconscious criminals with swings of his greatsword.
Hero? I’d never gone around calling myself that.
They judge on their own terms and get disappointed on their own.
“Orders are absolute. If you can’t follow them, you don’t deserve to stand by the prince.”
Jarobo growled, closing in until his face was inches away.
With his buzzed hair and fierce features, snarling up close, it was like facing a wild bear.
More than that, I had no intention of standing by Rainer—why was he yapping about qualifications?
Sighing inwardly, Rainer approached—having neatly wiped the blood from his blade—and draped an arm over my shoulder.
“Choosing restraint over slaughter? Impressive as always. Just like the man I’ve pegged!”
Jarobo’s face stiffened at the praise.
Seeing that, my pent-up irritation leaked out, and I couldn’t help but smirk.
It wouldn’t look out of place as outright mockery, but Rainer was right beside me.
Leaving Jarobo trembling wordlessly behind, Rainer bellowed loudly.
“Mission accomplished without a hitch—let’s go grab a drink somewhere!”
8
“Great! One more round!”
Rainer laughed heartily and tilted an expensive liquor bottle.
Watching him chug what commoners couldn’t even dream of, like cheap soju, was scary.
Scarier still was how he kept pushing drinks, just like a section chief.
Of course, I’d never held a job, so no company dinners with any section chief.
Rainer was, in a way, the second son parachuted into headquarters for “social experience.”
Anyway, couldn’t refuse a prince’s offer.
Dumping it with dimensional magic might beat just holding it, though.
For now, accept but don’t drink.
“We’ll head back to Eset tomorrow.”
“Things wrapped up quicker than expected. Afternoon departure, probably.”
““All thanks to you, Rainer.””
Pavel and Nevil praised him in unison.
Thanks to them chattering away, I could skip the drink.
“What’d I do? It’s all you guys.”
“Kehahaha! True, it’s been ages since this axe got to shine!”
“Shine? More like your bald head did.”
“Yeah, wasn’t it your scalp gleaming?”
Barotom fumed, rubbing his shiny pate at the twins’ taunts.
Even in this world, baldness was fair game for mockery.
No country for balding men….
While the three bantered lively, Jarobo nursed his bottle sulkily.
Chabi quietly clutched her glass, staring only at me.
Our eyes met—hers still looking glum.
She pointed at me silently with her index finger and whispered.
“You haven’t drunk yet.”
“Oops, spaced out. Sneakier than he looks, huh?”
Rainer grinned and threw his arm around my shoulder again.
No escaping now.
Tried to play it off naturally, but… caught red-handed, dodging more would just get annoying.
“Got caught up enjoying the convo—slipped my mind.”
I chuckled lightly and downed the glass.
It was strong stuff; the alcohol burned vividly down my throat in one gulp.
Good thing Theo’s constitution was ironclad.
Otherwise, hangover hell tomorrow for sure.
“Haha! Good form!”
“Nice.”
“Yeah, hits the spot.”
“Nothing beats booze after a big score!”
Led by Rainer, everyone chimed in.
Only then did Chabi look away from me and nod.
All this praise, but… I’m not looking to buddy up, guys.
“Gonna step out a sec. Keep having fun.”
The prince rose alone, and no one followed.
Must be normal for Rainer to wander solo.
Naturally, his departure brought an awkward silence.
Would be nice if he didn’t come back and we all just fizzled out.
Filling up on fruit instead of booze, I watched Jarobo—face flushed with drink—slam his glass on the table.
“What gives you the right… to hog all the prince’s attention…?”
What the hell now.
His slurred tongue said he was properly wasted.
“Drunk?”
“What’s it to you…!”
“If you’re drunk, go crash before the hangover hits.”
From convenience store night shifts to bars, years dealing with drunks.
Digging up old memories soured my mood bad.
“Not drunk…! Come outside…!!”
“Why should I? Annoying.”
Classic drunk bullshit—ignore it, then a gauntlet smacked my face.
Glancing over, Jarobo yelled, having thrown his gauntlet at me.
“Duel! Duel! I challenge you in honor of my knightly name…!”
Knightly honor duels needed valid grounds to refuse.
Of course, I wasn’t a knight and didn’t care for honor.
Ignoring would be fine short-term, but… eventually, the backlash hits the Agrit family, not me.
That’s the cursed noble society rule.
Unfathomable by modern common sense.
Sigh….
I stood with a sigh.
Didn’t want to trouble the family.
Plus, the gauntlet triggered a bad memory of getting hit with an oden bowl last time.
Jarobo was a guard knight, but not as strong as Fay.
And drunk at nightfall? No contest.
Beat him lightly, then throw it naturally.
Lose the fight, win the game—sleep easy that way.
Out front of the tavern, we took position in a clear lot.
I drew my magic sword; Jarobo gripped his greatsword.
Chabi, as referee, silently raised her lance high then slammed it down.
Thwack!
As it hit the ground, Jarobo charged.
Like a bull, menacing—but predictable.
Booze dulled him too.
Sidestepped slightly and slammed my magic sword into his side.
Caught off-guard, he yielded his vitals limply.
Tough build, so no issue wailing freely.
Dodged his charges, pummeling until my mood lifted.
“Not bad?”
“Quick moves.”
“Hmm, twins were right. Nimble! What do you think, Chabi?”
“Movement, good.”
Judges impressed, the other knights busied evaluating me.
Ignored them all, beat Jarobo awhile longer, then sheathed.
Whew, refreshing.
Stress vented—time to lose.
Deliberately blocked his charge without dodging.
Panting theatrically, Jarobo swung wildly, hyped.
“Stamina’s your weak point!”
Well… ground dragon heart says I’ve got plenty left.
Pretended fatigue, parried till pushed back.
Dropped my sword with Fire Dragon Focus pretense, tumbling.
Momentum carried, Jarobo pinned his blade to my nape, heaving.
“I’m… stronger…!!”
Yeah, sure, you win.
Not that I care.
“I lost. That enough?”
Stood, brushed dirt off my clothes.
For perfect acting, turned wearily to pick up my sword—then it sighed audibly.
-Ugh… to think this blade stoops to such farce…. With intent, I could cleave that minnow in one stroke….
Shut it—too much hassle otherwise.
Tired today, cut me slack.
-Your theatrics worsen by the day….
9
“Not even trying at half-strength, huh?”
Seated by the tavern window, twirling his glass, Rainer smirked.
He didn’t trust others’ opinions.
Only truths he’d seen with his own eyes.
Theo Agrit’s reputation, the subtle aura of strength—all useful intel, but no reason to believe blindly.
Thus, he’d wanted to witness Theo Agrit’s true power.
Provoked loyal Jarobo into a duel, but Theo threw it.
Stamina issue maybe real, but no dimensional magic, not even proper swordplay.
Just clubbing with the sword a few times—where’s the full power there?
Drunk knights overlooked it, but not Rainer.
“Averse to the spotlight, was it….”
Info from his shadow operative.
Discreet checks showed Theo Agrit resolving major and minor incidents since spring.
Yet his name was meticulously omitted throughout.
Impossible without deliberate concealment.
Theo Agrit put serious effort into hiding himself.
“Seeing it firsthand confirms it. Didn’t expect such lengths.”
Grinning, Rainer drained his glass and licked his lips.
“The more you hide, the more curious I get.”
Privacy?
Not Rainer’s concern.
His twisted interest extended; setting down the empty glass, he whispered amid the buzz.
“Don’t like it, but looks like I’ll use that method he mentioned.”