A City That Looked Too Normal
Wow, that had been a near miss.
Contrary to Kael’s prejudice, Nox was, at least on the surface, a surprisingly decent city.
Compared with the capital, it was missing plenty of things, but that was only natural. Still, this much was more than enough to earn it a passing grade.
This place actually looks livable.
More importantly, it looked like somewhere a person could genuinely live.
In Kael’s mind, Nox had been nothing but a slum where the streets were packed with vagrants and beatings, murders, and arson broke out every other day—a city of pure barbarism.
Jack, the smaller of the two guards Kael had beaten up, scratched the back of his head.
"Oh, well, there used to be times like that, sure..."
"But after the Iron Thorn crew started handling public order, that kind of thing vanished completely."
"So what exactly did they do?"
"At first they just let people off with a warning. But the second time? No mercy. The instant they catch you... well, it’s this."
Jack dragged a finger across his throat.
In other words, if they caught you, you died.
"Well, that’s hardly funny."
Kael felt exactly the same as Balmung. So the work that should have been done by the guards was being handled by gangsters instead.
Effective, though.
Fear was the fastest tool in this world. Guards had discipline and rules. Those bastards didn’t.
What a load of crap.
Honestly, it annoyed him to no end.
He was the guard captain here—the commander—and yet these punks were playing neighborhood boss on their own turf?
If he hadn’t come here, maybe he could have let it slide. But now that he was in Nox, there was no way he’d tolerate it anymore.
Now what do I do?
Kael looked down at the two subordinates whose faces were already swollen beyond recognition.
Tomy and Jack. Both of them had rat-like faces.
Kael had promptly nicknamed them Big Rat and Little Rat.
This is a problem. A serious one.
They looked like the very definition of useless. There was no way Kael could handle a city this big on his own. He’d need to borrow a cat’s paw, at least.
Looks like there’s only one guy for it.
The man with the dead-fish eyes.
Luke.
He had to bring that bastard over.
There was no other answer.
"Um, how much longer are we supposed to stay like this?"
"Shut up. Can’t you see I’m thinking?"
"...Yes, sir."
The startled Big Rat, Tomy, lowered his head. He’d been kneeling so long that his legs had gone numb, and he was ready to die.
How the hell did I end up getting caught by some lunatic like this...
He’d really picked the worst possible master to offend. Though, to be fair, Tomy and Jack had been the ones who started it in the first place—and by now that fact had been buried under a mountain of fear.
"Stand up."
"...Huh?"
"Are you deaf? I said get up."
At Kael’s frown, the two men shot to their feet in a panic.
"Big Rat, and Little Rat."
"...Y-yes?"
"From now on, there’s something you’re going to do for me."
"W-we are?"
"Why? Got a problem with that?"
Kael’s eyes narrowed. Tomy and Jack shook their heads so hard they nearly snapped their necks. Goosebumps broke out all over them.
Kael rested a hand on each of their shoulders and curled the corners of his mouth.
"You’ve all been getting shoved around from one side to the other... must’ve been rough, huh?"
Kael spoke in a warm voice.
All at once, a terrible premonition washed over them.
"I-it's not like it’s been that rough..."
"Quiet. From now on, you don’t have to worry about a thing. I’m here now. You trust me, right?"
Kael’s smile widened.
Tomy and Jack trembled violently, shaking with fear and unease.
Thud!
"...Huuah."
Luke slammed his drinking glass down hard.
The liquor was hitting him. His pupils, which had shown no trace of life, had gone even hazier.
It felt as if fog had settled inside his head. When he got completely drunk, even the darker thoughts blurred at the edges.
Luke knew very well that what he was doing was a form of escape from reality.
But so what if he escaped reality for a little while?
The other patrons in the tavern were looking at him with strange expressions.
"...He’s at it again."
"Just leave him. It’s only been one or two days, right?"
"Fair enough."
Luke was something of a local celebrity in Nox. On the surface, he looked like a common drunk, but the moment he drew his blade, he became a different man.
The story of how he had taken down ten criminals in an instant was widely known in Nox.
"No matter how I look at it, that sounds made up. Isn’t it just a rumor?"
"Hey, he’ll hear you. Keep your voice down."
"So what if he hears? Look at him—he’s just gulping down booze."
Still, there was always someone who doubted what everyone else took for granted.
A bald, musclebound man snorted.
He spoke loudly, as if he wanted Luke to hear him, but Luke didn’t react at all. He only kept drinking in silence.
"So if we take out just that guy, we can get into Iron Thorn or Bipolar?"
"...What a crazy idiot."
"Thanks for the compliment. Besides, are there even any sane people left in Nox?"
The bald man grinned and got to his feet before walking over to Luke.
"Hey, drunkard."
"..."
Even when he was clearly being picked on, Luke gave no answer.
Assuming Luke was scared stiff, the man grew even more smug.
"So it really was a lie, huh? Hm? What could a loser like you possibly—"
"...Haa."
With a sigh full of irritation, Luke seized the man by the throat.
Crack!
The attack came so suddenly that the man didn’t even have time to dodge, and before he knew it, his throat was in Luke’s grip.
At once, the boisterous tavern fell silent.
"Why do people have to be such a pain in the ass...?"
The man struggled and tried to pry Luke’s hand away, but Luke didn’t budge an inch.
The difference in their builds was obvious. Luke was lean, while the bald man was solidly muscled.
At a glance, just the size of his forearms made it look as if he should be able to shake Luke off with ease.
"G-guh... ngh..."
Reality wasn’t so kind. No matter how much force the man put into it, Luke’s hand never moved.
In the end, the bald man’s eyes rolled back as he hit his limit. The moment foam started spilling from his mouth, Luke threw him aside with an annoyed look.
Crash!
For a body that looked so slight, Luke had an absurd amount of strength. The unconscious bald man went flying like a toy.
The instant his body went slack—
Bang!
—the tavern door was kicked open roughly from the outside.
A man came in, booting the door aside with his foot.
He wore a guard’s uniform, but the crooked curl of his mouth and the sharp gleam in his eyes made him look less like a guard and more like a thug.
"...What is it now?"
Kael frowned at the unconscious bald man.
But he quickly lost interest and looked around.
"Ah, there you are."
Kael spotted Luke, gave a little nod, and started walking over.
The customers watching him began to murmur. No matter how many oddballs Nox attracted, it was rare for this much commotion to happen back to back.
Kael swaggered into the tavern, and just from the way he carried himself, he looked every inch the hooligan.
"A beer."
"...You’re a stranger?"
"Until a moment ago. Now I guess I’m a Nox man."
"...If you’re planning to settle here, you should be careful. Plenty of people don’t make it out alive after acting like that around here."
"Wow, you’re even worried about me? I’m touched."
The tavern owner frowned and handed him a wooden mug of beer.
"Hm. Still not great."
Kael grimaced after taking a sip.
Warm beer never sat right with him. It was bad enough that it was lukewarm, but it was also sour and watery to begin with.
"...Do people usually say that to a man’s face?"
"Ah, sorry."
At Kael’s shameless reply, the owner stared at him in disbelief.
Clutching the mug, Kael strode over to Luke.
"How do you even drink this stuff?"
"...What brings you here?"
"What, I can’t come?"
Kael grinned.
Luke’s brow furrowed. He hadn’t expected to be picked on again so soon.
His patience was nearing its limit.
"...I don’t know what you want, but if you keep acting like that in this city, you won’t live long enough to regret it."
"Haha. Seems like the people here are nice. Everyone’s so worried about me."
"Do I look like I’m worried about you?"
"Aren’t you?"
"...Did you come here to start trouble?"
"Not really. I just wanted to talk. Why do you look like death warmed over?"
"Handle your own business and mind your damn tongue."
Luke’s voice grew sharper and sharper.
And yet the smile on Kael’s face never disappeared.
He had already expected this reaction.
"Come on, you think I’d let a subordinate rot after becoming the guard captain?"
"Captain...?"
Luke’s expression turned ice-cold.
"Are you seriously trying to play captain right now?"
"I’m not playing captain. I am the captain."
"...Hah. That’s funny."
"Glad you think so. A lousy life ought to have at least one funny thing in it, right?"
"...What?"
Luke’s expression hardened.
Kael curled his lips into a grin.
"What, did that hit a nerve? It’s not exactly wrong."
"...You’d better watch that mouth of yours."
"No thanks. What’s wrong with calling trash trash?"
Kael’s provocation kept climbing.
The air around them froze.
The other patrons in the tavern naturally shut their mouths and focused on the exchange between the two of them.
"You think that pathetic rank of yours will keep your life safe?" Luke said coldly.
"What, do I look like I’m leaning on my rank?" Kael snorted.
"If it bothers you that much, why don’t we strip off the insignia and settle this properly?"
Luke stared at Kael for a moment, then got to his feet.
He was done being toyed with by cheap provocation and childish banter.
He turned to leave the tavern, and just as he reached the door—
"You backed down, idiot."
Those few words stopped him cold.
Luke turned back and stared at Kael.
He wore the same blank expression, but the atmosphere had changed.
"...You sure you won’t regret this?"
"Why would I regret it? I’m obviously going to win."
"Fine. Then let’s move somewhere else."
Kael rose to follow him.
The people in the tavern strained their ears, listening to every word of their exchange.
The most entertaining things in the world were watching a fight and watching a fire. And this was a fight involving Luke, one of Nox’s most famous figures.
How could anything more interesting possibly happen?
That thing from earlier hadn’t even been worthy of being called a fight.
It was just some fool who didn’t know his place getting handed his ass.
As soon as Kael and Luke left the tavern, the others started talking.
"What is this? What’s going on?"
"How should I know? Hey, are we going to watch?"
"Why would you even ask something that obvious? Of course we’re going."
And so they all streamed out of the tavern together.
What they saw was unbelievable.
It had only been a moment.
They had thought the fight hadn’t even started yet.
But it was already over.
And the result was completely beyond their expectations.
Luke was on one knee, one hand braced against the ground.
Kael stood over him with a flat, unreadable face.
Luke, one of the strongest men in Nox, had been defeated by a newly appointed rookie guard captain.
...What the hell just happened?
Violent shock rippled through Luke’s pupils. He couldn’t even begin to understand what had just occurred.
As for Kael—
Man, that was close.
He was busy calming his wildly beating heart.