Chapter 505: Just Deserts
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 505: Just Deserts
The moment I heard what Lee Serin said, I knew it had finally happened.
No matter how much power she'd lost, the fact that Lucifer's true nature was that of a Constellation would never change.
One of the highest-ranking gods who looked down upon humans from the lofty heavens.
I didn't need to explain just how insignificant humans must seem to her.
Like children who crush ants to death without a shred of guilt, finding it amusing, humans were nothing more and nothing less than ants to the Constellations.
Of course, just as there are people who feel revulsion or disgust at the act of killing ants, not all Constellations treated humans like toys.
Constellations of the good alignment, like Gabriel, were a prime example.
But even so, an ant was still just an ant.
If an ant crawled up your leg or clung to you and bit, how many people would really tolerate it and leave it be?
“So, what exactly happened?”
As I followed Lee Serin toward the security station, I worried about just how many people Lucifer might have killed and opened my mouth to ask.
“...We were waiting for you at the terminal early this morning when some men approached us. That kind of thing is pretty common, so we were going to ignore it... but the problem was, one of them was a noble.”
“A noble?”
“Yeah, he said it himself—that he was the third son of the Eslore family.”
“The Eslore family... aren't they the ruling family of Barcelont?”
Eslore.
They were the head of the 10th Floor's nobility and a family that could be considered the de facto rulers of the floor.
“There were about five of them, and that third son guy tried to grab my hand.”
“...What?”
“Ah, nothing happened, so you don't have to worry. Arin helped me before he could.”
CRACK—
I barely suppressed my murderous intent and relaxed my expression.
I almost ran straight to the lord's castle.
“The problem is, he then took an interest in Arin and suddenly said he'd take her as his concubine... Ah, Lucy told me not to mention that—”
“Nuna.”
“...Huh?”
Rumble—
At that moment, the ground trembled faintly, and the passersby began to murmur.
But I didn't notice any of it.
“That story... could you tell me in more detail?”
*
Getting involved with the nobles of the 10th Floor was never part of my plan. Forging a connection with the Astrein family was more than enough.
However, I always accounted for variables, so I had already gathered some general information on the 10th Floor's nobles.
Thanks to that, I knew who the noble Lee Serin was talking about.
Raydoric Bashar Eslore.
The third son of the current lord of Barcelont, he was the illegitimate child of the lord and a noble lady.
Their connection might have ended as a one-night fling, but the lord, who genuinely loved the noble lady, willingly decided to accept them both when he learned of her pregnancy.
However, the woman passed away in an unforeseen accident, leaving Raydoric alone at a young age. The lord took care of his son with the utmost devotion, raising him with love.
But contrary to the lord's wishes, Raydoric grew more and more crooked with age, eventually gaining infamy as a scoundrel of the century, to the point where there was no one on the 10th Floor who didn't know his name.
A scoundrel son born to a wise and brilliant lord.
It was a situation that brought the saying 'a tiger father has a dog son' to mind, but the truth was a little different.
‘I wonder if the lord even knew that the noble lady was a slut who enjoyed having sex with nobles she met at parties. No, I should assume he knew and accepted her anyway.’
It wasn't a matter of 'a tiger father having a dog son' in the first place; the bastard had simply inherited a strong dose of his mother's blood.
Anyway, that was the story I'd heard from an informant on the 9th Floor.
Of course, whether that noble bastard acted like a scoundrel or not had nothing to do with me.
That was true until exactly thirty minutes ago.
But now, the situation had changed.
-Arin was about to draw her sword, and Ryeong-ah barely managed to stop her. But then the bastard started hitting on Ryeong-ah, too. I wanted to beat the hell out of him, but since he was a noble, I tried to resolve it with words. He must have been drunk, though, because he was impossible to talk to. Arin looked like she was going to draw her sword any second, their guards were trying to surround us... It was complete chaos.
-...So?
-And then, bam! Lucy stepped forward without a word and sent them flying, you know?
-...
She was rambling a bit, but I had no trouble understanding the gist of it.
At the same time, a headache started brewing in the back of my mind.
For the record, the charge against Lucifer was assault on a nobleman.
‘...I didn't think I'd end up killing a noble as soon as I arrived on the 10th Floor.’
Not only did he hit on my women while I was away, but after getting beaten like a dog on a hot summer day by Lucifer, he had the audacity to turn the tables and have the security force arrest her.
It should go without saying, but I had no intention of resolving this with words.
“...So you've come to me? To prove your lover's innocence and secure her release?”
“Of course not. If that was all I wanted, I would have gone straight to the security station, not the lord's castle.”
I murmured softly to the old man with dull blond hair sitting across from me.
Barteon Kzarvel Eslore.
The Lord of Barcelont and the head of the Eslore family.
And also Raydoric's father.
“Then why on earth did you not only trespass in my office but also knock out my guard knight? Are you here for revenge?”
In a corner of the office, a man in armor lay collapsed.
He was the lord's guard.
For the record, I didn't kill him. I just hit a pressure point to put him to sleep for a while.
“Haha, of course not. A busy lord such as yourself can't possibly be expected to watch over your son's every single move, can you?”
No, a lord would probably know even how many times his son goes to the bathroom in a day.
Noticing the thorns in my words, the lord's brow furrowed slightly.
I gave the lord a mocking smile.
“For the record, I don't enjoy making the wrong person bleed.”
“...”
“Therefore, I've come to take Prince Raydoric's head.”
In that instant, the air in the office grew incomparably colder.
Rage flickered in the lord's eyes for a moment, but he quickly suppressed his emotions.
He seemed to know full well that getting angry in this situation would be of no help.
It was the seasoned judgment and self-control befitting a lord.
“...So you insist on crossing the line. State your affiliation at once.”
“Why? Are you planning to beg for mercy if I belong to a large clan?”
And if you determine I have no backing, you'll try to dispose of me.
Some people are mistaken, but the nobles of the lower floors aren't as strong as their reputation suggests.
Often, they couldn't even match a mid-sized clan from the middle floors.
Compared to the large clans, they were practically minor border states, so the nobles always tried to build amicable relationships with them.
Grit—
Hearing my taunt, the lord glared at me as if he wanted to kill me, looking like he could barely contain his surging emotions.
But I just shrugged and let out a smirk.
“I'm unaffiliated. I plan on establishing a clan soon, though.”
“I see now you're just a madman.”
“Didn't you know that a madman is the scariest thing in the world?”
“Why do you think I haven't called the guards?”
“Because you think you'd die by my hand before they arrived?”
In that instant, the murderous intent I had unknowingly suppressed in a corner of my heart suddenly reared its head.
Tam was protesting that he was hungry.
The lord, who took the full force of my killing intent, flinched and shuddered, but then immediately straightened his posture as if nothing had happened.
“...It is because, as a parent, I feel a sense of responsibility for my child's wrongdoings.”
“Bullshit.”
“You bastard, you dare...!!!”
“If you felt responsible, you should have cut off his dick first. From what I've heard, he'd have a criminal record of at least thirty offenses.”
“...”
The lord said nothing.
Because what I said was an undeniable fact.
“Did you think I was asking for your permission?”
“...What?”
“I did a little investigating. Your son often stays out all night. On top of that, he's always out drinking his days away... As his parent, you must be worried sick.”
The lord's face turned pale before I even finished speaking.
Not only had I broken through the tight security and magical barriers to invade his castle, but I had also subdued his guard knight in an instant.
It was clear enough for a newborn to see that I was no ordinary player, and for such a person to be after his son's life meant only one thing.
“...Why are you going this far? I heard he didn't even lay a finger on your lover—”
“Right now.”
CRUNCH—
I stared straight into the lord's eyes.
“Are you being serious?”
A voice colder than ever before escaped my lips.
The lord's lips twitched in silence for a moment before he carefully continued.
“...It was a slip of the tongue.”
“Even without this incident, the karma your son has accumulated has long since crossed the line. Even if it weren't me, he seems destined to die a miserable death away from home.”
“...”
As the heavy silence continued, I rested my chin on my hand and stared intently at the lord, quietly applying pressure.
For the record, my use of formal speech with him wasn't out of respect, but a final safety measure to barely keep my own emotions in check.
The lord, who looked conflicted, hesitated for a long time before reluctantly opening his mouth.
“Huu... What do you want me to do?”
Clack—
I took a dagger from my inventory and placed it on the table.
“With this, cut off your son's right hand and his dick. Then I'll be cool about it and forget this ever happened.”
“...”
“Let me tell you in advance, don't start whining. I don't like listening to an old man's complaints. Besides, you know better than anyone that there are more than a few people who have shed tears of blood because of that bastard. Compared to that, this is a cheap price to pay.”
With that, I stood up from my seat.
But the lord couldn't take his eyes off the dagger. It was obvious he was torn between two choices.
Whether to obediently accept my proposal.
Or to try and kill me by any means necessary.
Either way was fine with me, but personally, I hoped he would choose the former. I wanted to avoid unnecessary bloodshed if possible.
“Well then, I'll be taking my leave.”
As I was about to leave the office through the terrace, I spotted a small seal on the lord's desk.
Seeing it, I stamped the seal firmly on a piece of scrap paper.
“I'm not going to use it for anything strange, so you don't have to worry.”
*
“Halt, halt. State your identity and purpose.”
After leaving the lord's castle, I headed straight for the building where the security force was stationed.
I quietly took out the piece of scrap paper and showed it to the guards, who were watching me with wary eyes.
“Th-That's...?!”
“The lord's official seal...?!”
Clack—
The moment they confirmed the seal, the guards' expressions changed instantly. They immediately stood at attention and saluted.
“O-Our deepest apologies, sir!!”
“Right, carry on.”
With the expression of a division commander making a surprise visit to his troops, I patted the guards' shoulders and headed straight down to the prison.
And there, I found Lucifer.
CRUNCH—
I casually grabbed the iron bars and tore them out, then stepped into the cell, took Lucifer in my arms, and walked out quietly.
Afterward, I left without being stopped by anyone and immediately leaped toward the hotel where the other girls were waiting.
Whoosh—
I crossed the city quickly, leaping from building to building.
The city itself was at a high altitude, so clouds obscured the view, but that gave it a certain charm.
I gazed at Lucifer, who hadn't said a word since we left the prison.
“Why did you do it?”
“...What.”
“You didn't have to let them arrest you. Why didn't you just let loose and smash everything?”
WHAM!!
“Ack?!”
In that moment, Lucifer's fierce fist slammed into my shoulder.
“Do I look like a woman who only knows violence?”
“...You know that's not what I meant.”
“I don't.”
“Are you pouting?”
“I am not.”
Her voice was clearly full of pout, and I chuckled quietly.
“Then today, how about another nude walk—”
POW!!