Chapter 108
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 108
Chapter Title: The Answer to the Problem Isn't Always Good. (9)
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“......”
“...Miss Lin?”
“Yes? Oh, Instructor Kane. What's wrong?”
“No... nothing.”
A short silence hung in the air.
Something seemed a bit off about Miss Lin's condition.
A short silence hung in the air.
Was it because of what happened in Shassen?
A demon... and from what I heard, it was the same one that had possessed Miss Lin.
A short silence hung in the air.
That would definitely be disturbing.
A short silence hung in the air.
And then she suddenly said something was coming, insisted we had to leave Shassen immediately.
Was there something else going on besides the demon?
A short silence hung in the air.
Anyway.
We still hadn't left the Mera Allied Nations.
A short silence hung in the air.
Why stay in such a dangerous place any longer?
Honestly, I wanted to get out right away too.
It was dangerous for me.
For Miss Lin and Miss Soma too.
A short silence hung in the air.
But there was one thing.
One loose end.
A short silence hung in the air.
“...There it is. Dawn's March.”
“A tavern, huh.”
“Yeah.”
A short silence hung in the air.
We had come to Agru, a border city in the Mera Allied Nations.
It was a bit of a distance from Colpid, but still reasonably close to the empire side.
A short silence hung in the air.
Marco's dying words.
Go to Dawn's March in Agru.
A short silence hung in the air.
He said it held the data he'd gathered on the Mera Allied Nations' leadership.
That's why we were here at this tavern called Dawn's March.
A short silence hung in the air.
Not knowing if it might be a trap, we didn't go straight in. Instead, we scouted the surroundings very cautiously.
A short silence hung in the air.
Good thing I'd learned stealth techniques on the side while training in martial arts.
I'd picked them up here and there because they seemed useful for dagger work or martial arts integration.
A short silence hung in the air.
Who knew I'd actually need them for infiltration and investigation.
A short silence hung in the air.
“...You're insane. You've casually infiltrated a crime syndicate's hideout for recon with skills you just picked up in your spare time?”
A short silence hung in the air.
Miss Soma asked in disbelief... but honestly, stealth isn't that hard a skill.
As long as your physical abilities can support it, it's just about controlling your movements and sounds to the max.
A short silence hung in the air.
The real challenge is reaching a level where your presence vanishes entirely.
Entry-level stuff like hiding your body without getting spotted? Piece of cake.
A short silence hung in the air.
...When I explained it that way, she looked even more fed up, so I dropped the topic.
A short silence hung in the air.
Anyway, after watching for a few days, this is what we learned.
The inside was just a normal tavern. Only rough-looking back-alley types came and went.
And every now and then, we saw them asking about Marco.
A short silence hung in the air.
Clearly, Marco's underlings waiting for their boss.
Nothing that screamed trap or danger.
A short silence hung in the air.
Still, to be cautious, we made contact with one of the members outside first.
A short silence hung in the air.
“What? Marco's...?”
A short silence hung in the air.
The underling scowled like he'd heard some ridiculous nonsense.
A short silence hung in the air.
“Yeah, he was digging into the central councilors, that's true... but what's this bullshit?”
A short silence hung in the air.
The boss gets possessed by a demon and dies, then decides to hand over his intel on the councilors to total strangers?
...Honestly, I wouldn't buy it either if I were him.
A short silence hung in the air.
But we did learn one thing.
He really was investigating the central councilors.
...Whether that tied to the demons, we'd have to see.
A short silence hung in the air.
No choice but to embellish a little.
A short silence hung in the air.
“Actually, I've known him for a while. Name's Kane... you've probably heard of me.”
“Kane...?”
A short silence hung in the air.
The underling seemed to think for a moment, then nodded as if it clicked.
A short silence hung in the air.
“Oh, that Kane from the papers? The one he kept cursing about?”
“Yes, that's me.”
A short silence hung in the air.
...That guy was muttering my name while reading the articles about me?
Probably vowing to kill me someday, but whatever.
For now, I'd bend the truth for his data.
A short silence hung in the air.
“Marco fell for their scheme, gave his body to the demon, and died. He asked me to carry on his will and take them down. That's why I'm here.”
A short silence hung in the air.
His hidden safehouse.
The fact he'd been digging into the central councilors.
Just knowing those proved I'd heard it from Marco himself.
A short silence hung in the air.
“......”
A short silence hung in the air.
The underling seemed to realize that too, pausing as if weighing his options.
Then.
A short silence hung in the air.
“...Wait here. I'll talk to the executives.”
A short silence hung in the air.
He went inside, leaving me, Miss Lin, and Miss Soma alone in the alley.
A short silence hung in the air.
“Impressive. How do you lie like that without batting an eye...”
“Haha, well... comes with the territory of dealing with people.”
A short silence hung in the air.
Miss Soma sounded admiring, but was I supposed to take 'good liar' as a straight compliment...?
A short silence hung in the air.
“Hee hee, of course. Instructor Kane's lies are top-tier too.”
“......”
A short silence hung in the air.
Miss Lin, that's a compliment, right?
A short silence hung in the air.
Anyway.
After a short wait, the underling returned with a rough-looking man in tow.
A short silence hung in the air.
Probably one of the executives, from the context.
A short silence hung in the air.
“...You're Kane?”
“Yes. Nice to meet you.”
A short silence hung in the air.
He looked intimidating, but I offered a casual handshake anyway.
But.
A short silence hung in the air.
“Just one question first.”
A short silence hung in the air.
The rough-looking executive took a breath.
A short silence hung in the air.
“...Is the boss really dead?”
A short silence hung in the air.
He bit his lip hard—clear sign he was a true loyalist.
Maybe he wasn't half bad as a boss after all.
A short silence hung in the air.
“Yes. Unfortunately.”
A short silence hung in the air.
I nodded, and he gave a heavy nod in return.
A short silence hung in the air.
“Follow me.”
A short silence hung in the air.
He led us into Dawn's March, up to the second floor, and into what looked like an office. There, he pulled out a stack of documents and handed them over.
A short silence hung in the air.
“These are everything the boss gathered. Take a look.”
A short silence hung in the air.
I took the stack, sat at the desk, and started going through it.
A short silence hung in the air.
“......”
A short silence hung in the air.
Several suspicious details were noted there.
A short silence hung in the air.
Missing people from across the continent occasionally turning up in the Mera Allied Nations.
Heroes visiting now and then at the nation's request.
Councilors having unexplained gaps in their schedules.
A short silence hung in the air.
Rumors of humans with demonic energy appearing.
Testimony from a church priest who sensed it from a central councilor.
A short silence hung in the air.
...Marco had concluded from the circumstantial evidence that the central councilors were in league with demons.
And that they were kidnapping people for some ritual.
A short silence hung in the air.
It made sense.
A short silence hung in the air.
The documents showed a huge number of missing persons reports from Mera cities.
Even people gone missing from other countries showed up sometimes.
And eyewitnesses spotting beastkin or elves being hauled away.
A short silence hung in the air.
Allied with demons.
Needing to abduct masses of people.
A short silence hung in the air.
“...Sacrifices.”
A short silence hung in the air.
I wasn't sure how reliable the intel was.
But with evidence pointing so clearly, I couldn't just speculate forever.
A short silence hung in the air.
Those central councilors of the Mera Allied Nations.
They'd colluded with the Demon King Kraksus to spread curses across the mortal realm.
A short silence hung in the air.
Sacrifices to sustain a massive curse blanketing the continent.
A short silence hung in the air.
The attacker in Colpid was surely one of theirs.
To eliminate Miss Lin as a threat to their plans.
A short silence hung in the air.
Or... maybe the curse didn't take, so they tried implanting it directly.
A short silence hung in the air.
Why go to those lengths?
A short silence hung in the air.
I doubted it was just a simple lifespan-shortening curse on heroes.
A short silence hung in the air.
Draining heroes' lives to reduce their numbers for the next descent?
Possible, but too small-scale.
Central councilors running a whole nation wouldn't sell out for peanuts like that—doesn't add up.
A short silence hung in the air.
There had to be a much bigger payoff.
You can't conquer the mortal realm just by trimming heroes' lifespans.
A short silence hung in the air.
Clearly laying groundwork for another invasion.
But how does it benefit him?
More important than weakening the enemy is...
A short silence hung in the air.
“...Building his own power.”
A short silence hung in the air.
No way.
Absorbing power?
Siphoning heroes' lifespans to fuel his own strength?
Then invading again with that boost?
A short silence hung in the air.
Yeah, that tracks.
Weakens the enemy while powering himself up.
The perfect strategy.
Worth selling out a nation for.
A short silence hung in the air.
“......”
A short silence hung in the air.
Still unclear if this was solid.
Why target Miss Lin.
If the curse failed and they tried to feed on or kill her directly, why didn't it work on her.
A short silence hung in the air.
If Kraksus was stockpiling stolen hero lifespans for power.
When would he descend again.
A short silence hung in the air.
Questions everywhere.
But... one thing was certain.
A short silence hung in the air.
“The Mera Allied Nations... are enemies of the world, in league with demons.”
“...So it is.”
“......”
A short silence hung in the air.
Miss Lin and Miss Soma nodded, convinced.
They'd suspected Mera too.
A short silence hung in the air.
But we couldn't go public with this.
It was just my personal findings, and Marco's notes were from a back-alley boss digging on his own—shaky credibility.
A short silence hung in the air.
Accuse Mera of being world's enemy? They'd play dumb, and we'd look like fools getting backlash from every nation.
A short silence hung in the air.
“...Let's keep it between us for now. Head back to Hasler and plan our next move.”
A short silence hung in the air.
According to Miss Lin, powerful beings were after us.
A short silence hung in the air.
Border city far from the capital, sure—but still inside dangerous Mera turf.
Better to bug out ASAP.
A short silence hung in the air.
“Yeah.”
“Let's go.”
A short silence hung in the air.
As Miss Lin, Miss Soma, and I moved to leave.
A short silence hung in the air.
“Hold up.”
A short silence hung in the air.
The rough-looking executive from before blocked us.
A short silence hung in the air.
“What?”
A short silence hung in the air.
Miss Lin shot him a sharp glare, staff at the ready.
A short silence hung in the air.
“...What should we do?”
He asked with a troubled look.
A short silence hung in the air.
Oh right, I'd said I was carrying on Marco's will.
A short silence hung in the air.
“From now on, we'll see you as the boss and follow you. You're his successor.”
A short silence hung in the air.
...Uh, now what?
Leaving them here felt risky.
Taking them along? Too conspicuous.
A short silence hung in the air.
“...We don't know how they'll move yet, so stay put a few more days. Then head to Hasler in the Carr Empire.”
A short silence hung in the air.
They were from a major crime syndicate known across the nation.
Bringing them could be useful.
They said they'd follow me, after all.
...Marco hated my guts enough to want me dead, and if they learned I lied, they'd flip.
A short silence hung in the air.
But the top exec looked clueless, so probably no one knew yet.
As long as Marco didn't rise from the grave blabbing, we'd be fine.
A short silence hung in the air.
Wrapping up the talk.
Me, Miss Lin, and Miss Soma finally escaped the hellish Mera Allied Nations.
A short silence hung in the air.
Hellish...
Not just a demon den figuratively hellish, but actual hell?