14
I killed the Demon King. It was a mistake.
Chapter 14
The next day, Caesar began seriously looking for a house.
The real estate agent was a gentleman with a mustache so shiny it looked oiled.
With his round features and friendly smile, he reminded Caesar of a Pringles can.
"Nice to meet you! I'm Andrew! It's truly an honor to serve Sir Caesar, the Axe of Homigraph."
The nickname ‘Axe of Homigraph’ was one that newspaper reporters had started using.
It seems the reporters here, like those in the other world, enjoy giving sensational nicknames.
Speaking of which, the Axe of Homigraph.
I don't know who came up with it, but I quite like it.
It might not be very knightly, but it sounds damn strong.
"I understand you were interested in the Clearbay and Windburrow areas, is that correct?"
"That's right."
"You've done your research well. Both places are unparalleled for enjoying coffee and cigarettes while looking at the cool riverside. The neighbors are also very friendly. Shall we go right away?"
Andrew gestured, and the coachman pulled the carriage.
"Oh, by the way, I heard from Branch Manager Ramsky that you wanted a house with a yard where you could do personal training, is that correct?"
"That's right. I'd also like to maintain personal privacy."
"Then Clearbay would be better. Windburrow is nice too, but many houses there have low fences and are quite open. Windburrow - as the name suggests, it has a nice cool breeze, though."
Pringle... No, Andrew was quite the chatterbox.
He talked non-stop as if he had a motor in his mouth.
"Have you heard about this? They say the crime rate has decreased by 5% since Sir Caesar came to Homigraph."
"If you're interested in morning newspaper delivery, I recommend 'Sunday' and 'Tea Time'. They're newspapers that have been around since Homigraph was created, so they have history and tradition. They're also highly reliable."
"Where are you thinking of getting furniture from? I know a furniture dealer, I'll introduce you."
It felt like having an FM radio turned on.
It was at that level where if you're lost in thought and there's something worth catching, it seeps into your ears.
Andrew seemed to know his chatter was at a radio level, as he kept talking enthusiastically even without much response from Caesar.
By the time Andrew had taken two sips of water, they arrived at the first house.
"This is a two-story house originally built for 8-9 person households. The original owner moved to Gold Mile Province a month ago, so they're not here."
"Is there a reason they moved?"
"I believe they went back to their hometown because their business wasn't doing well."
"Hmm. Is that so?"
Caesar looked around the house first.
As Andrew said, the fence was about a head taller than Caesar.
While it looked a bit stuffy with everything closed off, it seemed like it would definitely ensure privacy.
The yard was unmaintained with weeds growing and seemingly inhabited by stray cats, but it was quite spacious and didn't look bad for personal training.
"Let me look around the house."
Caesar used psychometry here and there.
Psychometry doesn't just give you the information you want if you use it carelessly.
It only manifests when you strongly recall the subject, time point, and related people you're looking for.
Of course, there are other characteristics like the further back in time you're trying to observe, the harder it is, and the closer to the present, the less concentration it requires...
For the sake of time, I'll skip the more detailed explanation.
What Caesar primarily looked into was mafia-related content.
There was no reaction when he touched the outer walls or the main gate.
It seemed that at least gangsters or mafia members hadn't been climbing over the fence.
Now he went inside the house.
Apart from a musty smell from being left empty for a while, there wasn't any particular problem with the house.
Caesar grabbed the doorknob of what used to be the study.
-Damn it, there's nothing we can do here!
-What on earth are the police doing?
-What a waste of taxes!
-Those damn Big Foot bastards.
'Big Foot?'
Caesar asked Andrew.
"Do you know what Big Foot is?"
Andrew's expression stiffened slightly at the mention of Big Foot.
"It's a mafia that deals in alcohol and tea throughout Homigraph... They're not good people."
"What do you mean?"
"Originally, they were just neighborhood thugs 10 years ago. But after the demon world war broke out and public safety deteriorated, they monopolized the supply of alcohol and tea throughout Homigraph."
"In just 3 years? Is that possible?"
"They... Are said to have connections with people in high places."
I can roughly guess what that means.
It probably means they've been bribing officials so they can cause trouble without consequences.
"What are the police doing?"
"Haha... You know, don't you? It's embarrassing for me to say it myself."
Right.
In other words, they're living as blind men with open eyes.
Plus, they're taking bribes.
What a romantic neighborhood.
"Ah, anyway, do you like this house? It's an excellent property. The rooms are big and spacious. It's also on sale at a low price due to urgent circumstances."
"Let's look at some other places first."
"Ah, yes!"
Caesar visited seven more places after that.
Some houses had people living in them, and some were already vacated.
But they all had something in common - they were business owners who had either closed their businesses and moved elsewhere or were planning to do so due to the collusion between criminal organizations and corrupt officials.
Caesar had some conversations with the business owners.
"It's hard to even open a normal store in this area. If you go to the Line area, you have to pay monthly fees to the gangsters who control that area, and if you come into the Core, corrupt cops extort money from you."
"Don't even think about selling water. Even if you want to open a simple tea house, it's impossible to purchase without going through Big Foot Trading Company. The quality is poor and skimming off the top is common."
"Homigraph will soon be devoured by the mafia. Those guys are expanding their influence from the Line into the Core. I don't know what the council members are thinking by leaving those bastards alone."
Caesar concluded.
"So in the end, it's the rotten civic consciousness that's ruining all of Homigraph."
"Haha..."
"How many of these famous mafias are there?"
Andrew wiped his cold sweat and said:
"This is something I shouldn't speak carelessly about..."
"Don't worry. I won't tell anyone I heard it from you."
"...There are five in total. The Bloody Gold Family, the Anchor Family, the Wings Family, the Clown Family, and lastly, the Big Foot Family."
Caesar looked at the gently flowing river and said:
"That's a relief."
"...Pardon?"
"It's good to know there are five more skulls left to crack."
"A-are you thinking of messing with those guys? That's really not a good idea." Andrew was so flustered that he sputtered as he spoke. "They're not small fries like the Kelvin Brothers. They're no different from huge corporations with connections to higher-ups."
"I guess these days mafias are called businessmen? They're just thugs who deserve to die for harassing innocent people."
"But..."
"Muhahahahaha!"
When Caesar suddenly burst into laughter, Andrew flinched.
"I was wondering how to make money, but there are so many opportunities here. I guess Homigraph really is a city of opportunity."
"Haha..."
Andrew decided to give up on persuading Caesar.
It didn't seem like he was the type to listen anyway.
He just decided to be a doll that laughed along whenever Caesar laughed.
Like a professional.
"How much was that first house we saw?"
"That was... 2.5 million Del."
"Good. With some renovations and furniture, it'll cost about 3 million Del. Not bad."
"Shall we make a contract for that one?"
"Yeah. But not now, my representative will take care of it when they arrive. More importantly, do you also deal with commercial buildings?"
Andrew's eyes sparkled. "Of course! Actually, commercial properties are my specialty! Do you have any particular area in mind?"
"I'm thinking of acquiring an existing high-end tea house or bar."
"We have plenty of those! Those damn mafia bastards... Ah, I mean..."
"Right. You mean the owners are giving up because those skull-cracking bastards are interfering."
"...GG?"
"It means they're giving up."
"Ah, I see."
Caesar clenched his fist.
"A great opportunity has arisen to make money and modestly realize my dream. Very good. Very good indeed."
Andrew couldn't understand Caesar's way of thinking at all.
"Muhahahahaha!"
That vicious smile too...
"Muhahaha..."
But Andrew laughed loudly along with Caesar's mood.
Because Andrew is a professional.
***
Now that he had seen the house, Caesar's task was to focus on personal training until Harrison arrived.
From morning to evening, he would go up to the rooftop to practice 'Noisy Silence', and then sleep when night fell.
Had there ever been a time in Caesar's life when he could engage in personal training so comfortably?
Since falling into this damned world, he hadn't invested more than a day at a time for training.
During the demon realm war, he was too busy surviving to even think about personal training.
'So these knight fellows have been doing this for 10 years?'
But why were they all so shabby?
Of course, it's true that Barre had received an enormous amount of elixirs at the time.
But even taking that into account, the other knights were disappointingly weak.
At least the Red Shield Knights of the Redfield family or the Dawn Knights, one of the Emperor's direct knight orders, were decent, but the others were not at all.
How could they be so weak when they trained all day?
It's hard to understand.
...Could it be that I'm a genius?
Anyway, as days passed, Monday arrived - the day he had promised to meet Professor Smir.
Caesar rode in a carriage pulled by Dino towards Sapientia.
"Aren't you taking Mr. Finn with you?"
"Finn's busy. Let's leave him out of this."
When Caesar visited to remove his bandages as his gunshot wound to the stomach had healed, Finn's hospital was crowded.
Rumors had spread that Caesar had immediately rushed to Finn's hospital when he was injured.
Thinking about it made his stomach ache again slightly.
Shouldn't that guy Finn pay me royalties?
He made a mental note to definitely extract something from him later, one way or another.
As soon as they arrived at the Valentine Magic Tower, Caesar got out.
"Just hang around. I'll be back soon."
"Understood."
Caesar passed through the security check immediately and headed to Professor Smir's lab.
'This place hasn't changed.'
It's dirty and smelly.
He doubted if a proper elixir could be made in such a place.
Just then, Professor Smir came floating through the air like a cloud.
"You're here?"
"I have a question, may I ask?"
"Speak."
"Why do you float around in the sky like a cloud?"
"My lower body is paralyzed."
"Oh."
He had no idea there was such a painful story behind it.
Perhaps that's why he wasn't called to the demon realm war.
Being an excellent alchemist probably played a part too.
"No need for that expression. It happened so long ago, I don't even feel anything about it anymore. Anyway, take this."
Caesar received a set of 10 silver syringes.
"This is the first batch. I'll give you the second batch in a month. Until then, inject one directly into your veins every three days. Don't get impatient and inject two in one day, or your body might undergo strange transformations due to overload. Make sure to leave at least a three-day interval."
"Didn't you say you'd do an allergy test? How is the elixir ready already?"
"After examining your body tissues, I found it unnecessary." Smir said with a yawn. "Your body is very interesting. It's more like a slime than a human."
"A slime?"
"Slimes can perfectly digest anything, be it poison, herbs, or magic. In other words, there's no rejection reaction."
"Oh"
"That's probably why you're still alive after consuming so much magic grass. A large amount of magic grass components were detected in your blood."
Smir is right.
There are still unabsorbed magic grass components circulating in my blood vessels.
It's impossible to push all the effects of magic grass into the body at once, so I'm slowly incorporating it.
I think I'll probably absorb it all within half a year.
"Perhaps..."
"If you're going to say you want to stick needles in my body, I refuse."
"Examining your body could greatly help advance life extension technology for humanity."
"Then I'll donate it to you when I'm old and about to die."
"I wonder if I'll live that long."
That's what you're aiming for, you bastard.
No matter how I look at it, I'll probably live longer than you.
"Anyway, I've received it well. By the way, what are the effects of this elixir?"
"It rapidly increases the durability of skin, muscles, and bones. I thought you'd need that since you're the tanker type."
"Good. Then is the second batch the same?"
"That's the plan."
"Can we modify it a bit? This time, I'd like to focus on increasing aura sensitivity and reflexes."
Smir frowned. "Wouldn't increasing muscle and skin strength be better for a tank type?"
"That has clear limitations, you see. I'm aiming for the best. I need to mix in some technique type too. Let's call it a hybrid!"
Smir looked at Caesar as if he couldn't believe what he was hearing.
"Chase two rabbits and you might lose both. No, you might die."
"Then I'll just have to take more elixirs to prevent that. Drugs have the power to make the impossible possible."
Smir's eyes changed subtly. "I rather like that statement. I was actually curious about the limits of your drug tolerance."
"You're not playing around with my body, are you?"
"If you want to reach your goal, you'll have to accept a bit of my 'playing around'."
High risk, high return, is that what he means?
How romantic.
"Alright. I accept."
"Then I'll manufacture the second batch after examining your tissue following the consumption of the first batch. Come back in a month."
Caesar and Smir shook hands.
Caesar simultaneously used psychometry.
-This guy might be able to find a way to postpone my death.
-Honestly, I'm curious. What are this guy's limits?
-I can't let such a precious test subject slip away.
-What should I add? For sensory ability, insect venom might be...
This guy seems to be thinking something dangerous... But it should be fine, right?