Chapter 506: Clan Establishment
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 506: Clan Establishment
As I entered the hotel lobby with Lucifer, our party members greeted us warmly.
Sister Serin hugged Lucifer tightly, tears streaming down her face, while Wi Ryeong-ah examined her body from head to toe like a doctor.
Even Yoo Ah-rin, with a rare look of concern, kept circling Lucifer like a kitten.
As if annoyed by all the attention, Lucifer shook the three of them off and walked straight toward the elevator.
But, not to be outdone, the party members trailed right after him.
“Lucy! Aren’t you hungry? I heard there’s a delicious restaurant near the hotel. Why don’t we all go together?”
“You were in that cell for nearly half a day. Aren’t you tired? This hotel has a pretty famous aesthetic salon. How about we stop by before dinner?”
“…Are you okay?”
“Ugh, give me a break. Stop clinging to me.”
Lucifer tried her best to shake them off, but she finally surrendered to the fierce offensive led by the aggressive Lee Serin, supported by Wi Ryeong-ah and Yoo Ah-rin.
“…Do whatever you want.”
In the end, Lucifer’s eyes were vacant as she was dragged away by the three of them to the hotel’s aesthetic salon.
Watching them from behind, I let out a small laugh and left the hotel.
I slipped into an alley to avoid any onlookers, then kicked off a wall and climbed to the roof.
The buildings in Barcelont were generally too tall to scale in a single leap, and since I had chosen a particularly high one, I had no choice but to climb in stages.
In any case, once I reached the roof, the entire cityscape unfolded before me.
My gaze settled on Barcelont Castle.
I had left the punishment of the scoundrel who tried to lay a hand on my women to the Lord, but that alone wasn't quite satisfying.
So, I was going to go see his ugly mug for myself.
This would also serve as a warning to the Lord.
Now that I had revealed myself as an unaffiliated player, I couldn't rule out the possibility that he might pretend to accept my proposal while pulling some tricks behind my back.
The most likely scenario was hiring assassins.
Or he could ask for help from a large clan he has ties with.
My opponent was the Esror family, the rulers of the 10th floor, who boasted power even greater than the Astrein Family.
They were not an enemy to be taken lightly.
Therefore, I needed to take measures to ensure he wouldn't get any funny ideas.
He probably assigned additional guards to his son the moment I left the mansion.
It was obvious.
I would have done the same.
But what would the Lord think if I boldly appeared before his son, even with the increased security?
Nine times out of ten, he'd think I was a complete lunatic.
And in this world, crazy bastards are the scariest. You never know what they'll do.
Besides, even if his son lived a miserable life as a one-armed impotent, it would be better than finding him as a cold corpse. He wouldn't dare procrastinate and delay the punishment.
Damn, this city is ridiculously huge.
I knew that Arcana alone was two or three times the size of Seoul, but Barcelont looked several times larger than that.
The city was bustling with an enormous crowd.
Finding a specific person among so many was practically impossible, but thankfully, I had received a sample of the scoundrel's blood that Lucifer had kept.
She said it was blood from when she broke his nose, right?
Anyway, by extracting the traces of magic power from the blood, it was possible to locate someone I'd never even met.
Of course, my magic detection couldn't cover the entire city at once, but if I kept at it without giving up, I was confident I could find him before the day was over.
Fwoosh-!!
Closing my eyes, I focused my mind and expanded the range of my magic detection to its absolute limit.
I sensed the magic power of every living being within a several-kilometer radius, then filtered them through mental calculations, excluding insects and animals, as well as children, the elderly, and women.
But with so many people, my brain slowly began to overheat during the process.
I had naturally assumed the bastard was hiding in Barcelont Castle. That's why I'd started my search near the hotel, which was close to it.
However, contrary to my expectations, he wasn't in the castle.
…Tsk. And here I thought this would be easy.
Just as I was about to move to the next point, I cast my magic detection toward a specific building on a hunch.
And I succeeded in finding him.
It was the security building where Lucifer had been held captive.
“Ha.”
A dry laugh escaped me.
It was absurd.
He should be hiding deep in an underground bunker, yet here he was. Did he think I was a pushover?
I immediately crossed the city and headed for the security building.
And there, I witnessed a rather amusing sight.
“Are you crazy?! Who gave you permission to let her go?!”
“I-I’m sorry!”
A noble who looked every bit the scoundrel was kicking the shins of a guard old enough to be his father while spewing curses.
Several knights, who appeared to be his escorts, stood behind him, but not one of them tried to stop the scoundrel.
“B-But the person who visited had the Lord’s official seal…”
“What kind of bullshit is that?!”
For a commotion happening in the middle of the city, surprisingly few people were paying attention.
Most passersby merely glanced over before hurrying on their way.
Well, getting involved with a noble would only lead to trouble. Unless you have powerful backing, avoiding them is the wisest course of action.
Besides, that punk was a scoundrel so famous that everyone in Barcelont knew of him.
As the saying goes, you don't avoid shit because you're scared of it, but because it's filthy. Anyone with a shred of common sense would pass by without a second glance.
“Huh? What the hell are you looking at?! Is this a show for you?!”
But I was a crazy bastard, so that didn't apply to me.
“Wasn't it? You look like a clown. I thought this was a circus act.”
“…What?”
The punk stared at me with a dumbfounded expression.
It seemed this was the first time anyone had ever picked a fight with him.
Moreover, the wounds from Lucifer's beating hadn't fully healed, and his face was bruised blue and swollen in several places. He really did look just like a clown.
The longer I looked at his dazed mug, the harder it became to suppress my killing intent.
Some might say I was overreacting.
He didn't actually succeed in laying a hand on my women; it was just an attempt.
They'd be right.
“…Haha, to think I'd live to see the day a psycho picks a fight with me.”
But just as things in life don't always follow logic, this was simply a case of me being in a foul mood.
To a third party, I might look like a horny mad dog chasing after every woman in sight, but in my own way, I was sincere with my women.
That's why my emotional reaction when someone messed with them was bound to be that much more intense.
“You fucker, do you not know who I am?”
“I do.”
“And you're still running your mouth with your head held high?”
At that moment, the punk burst out laughing like a madman.
Honestly, it was a little fascinating.
He didn't seem to consider for a moment that someone openly provoking a noble like me might be a player from a large clan.
His head must have been filled with rocks.
“Break that bastard’s arms and legs and drag him to me. Now.”
His expression suddenly turned serious as he gave the order to his knights.
But unlike the brainless scoundrel, the knights had at least a bit of sense and were clearly hesitant.
“What are you doing?!”
Displeased by their hesitation, the scoundrel screamed and kicked them.
Not that it would hurt much through their armor.
…Should I just kill him?
I quietly placed my hand on the hilt of the sword at my waist.
It went without saying that if I killed him here, the situation would spiral out of control.
Not only would it lead to an all-out war with the Esror family, but I'd also be hounded day and night by assassins hired by the Lord.
And that wasn't all.
All my activities on the 10th floor would be restricted, and my ties with the Astrein Family might be severed.
To anyone, the losses overwhelmingly outweighed the gains.
But there was one way to escape all that trouble.
I just have to become stronger than I am now.
I just needed to become so strong that I wouldn't even bat an eye if the Esror family and all their allied clans came after me.
To others, it might look like an act of madness, but to me, it held significant meaning.
If word of this got out, then as long as they valued their lives, no one would dare to mess with my women again.
After a brief moment of deliberation, my mind was made up.
Just as I was about to draw my sword—
“Sir Hyun-woo.”
A knight stepped between me and the scoundrel.
His face was familiar.
“…The Lord’s personal guard?”
“Yes, that is correct.”
It was the guard of the Lord of Barcelont, the one I had knocked out in the office.
“Sir Katinan! Perfect timing! This bastard insulted me—”
“Young Master.”
“…Huh?”
“Shut up.”
“…”
As the taciturn, middle-aged man revealed his intimidating presence with a grim expression, the scoundrel’s face filled with fear, and he clamped his mouth shut.
The knight then turned to me and continued in a polite tone.
“Did you not make a promise with the Lord? Please, stand down.”
“And if I don't? Will you draw your sword?”
As I released my killing intent and took a stance, the knight's expression became quite serious.
“…A knight protects his lord. His lord's family are also those I must protect.”
Even though he must have known there was an insurmountable gap in our skills, he didn't back down an inch.
Faced with his sharp demeanor, which suggested he would draw his sword at any moment, I frowned and removed my hand from my hilt.
“…Tell the Lord that promises are built on mutual respect.”
“I will keep that in mind.”
With those words, I turned and left.
On second thought, there was no need to kill him right now.
I'll go and kill him after his wrist and cock have been cut off and he's living in misery.
Whoever it was, if they touched my women, they'd better be prepared to pay the price.
˙
˙
˙
The next morning.
A rumor spread throughout the city that the third son of the Esror family, seeking to repent for his past sins, had cut off his own right wrist and genitals.
*
When I passed the 9th floor's test and ascended to the 10th, a Highest-ranking God of unknown identity had contacted me.
I had spoken directly with Ishtar and Gabriel before, but this time was different.
The true words used by a being of a higher order could shatter a person's mind just by being heard.
It was as good as a declaration of hostility.
But for some reason, I was fine.
My brain had sustained some damage, but it was at a level where it could heal on its own.
I couldn't understand it at all, but I just decided to let it go.
And the fact that no one had helped me, even when a Constellation tried to cripple me—I decided to let that go too.
In the first place, I didn't trust any Constellation except Lucifer.
More than that, my questions about the identity of the Dating App grew.
But for now, there was nothing I could find out.
All I could do was focus on the task at hand, just as I always had.
Tiring—
「Would you like to establish a clan?」
「Requirement: 10,000 WP」
「Y/N」
「Y」
There were two conditions to establish a clan.
One was to clear the 10th floor.
The other was to pay 10,000 WP.
Tiring—
「Please decide on a clan name.」
「----」
As the screen appeared before me, Sister Serin tugged on my collar.
“Hyun-woo, what are you going to name the clan?”
I gave her a small smile.
“I’ve already decided.”
「‘Rykard’」
“Rykard…? What does that mean?”
“It’s a secret.”
The blasphemous serpent that devours gods.
It was the name of a boss from a game I had played at a friend's house in high school.
And it was a name that held my wish to one day achieve Lucifer's revenge with her.
Tiring—
[Would you like to end matching?]
[Y/N]
[Y]