Chapter 94
Chapter 94
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Translator: crow
Chapter Title: Buyer (2)
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Kadogan, having packed all her belongings, headed straight to where her younger brother Lagan was.
The shop named 'Liquor in the Left Hand', located in the back-alley pleasure district, was one of the businesses managed by Gadum. It offered a variety of services to nobles and merchants.
Lagan and the other White Scale Tribe members were in charge of managing the surrounding area centered around Liquor in the Left Hand.
"Ah, Kadogan! You're here."
The guard, a savage who had clearly drunk deeply from the city's waters and was scowling at the entrance, broke into a bright smile and bowed his head to her.
"Is Lagan here?"
"He's currently entertaining a guest from Gadum. Huh? Kadogan?"
Kadogan made her way to the VIP room located deepest in the shop.
"Hey! You can stop sending them in now—huh?"
The boisterous man—Lagan—recognized her.
He was seated with an obese middle-aged man, each with a companion on their side. They were entertaining an out-of-town merchant recommended by Gadum.
"What brings you here?"
He showed both delight and puzzlement at her arrival.
Normally, even when he repeatedly invited her to visit his shop, she had firmly declined.
She had said alcohol was a means to approach the gods and should only be drunk during rituals—
"I don't know what it is, but handle it later. As you can see, I'm busy right now."
Lagan waved his hand dismissively.
At that moment, the merchant beside him scanned Kadogan up and down.
"Lagan. What's that girl's name?"
"Huh? What is it? You like her or something?"
"It's my first time seeing a savage up close, but she looks surprisingly—gurk!"
Lagan grabbed the merchant by the throat and stood up.
The obese man's body, rivaling two merchants in size, floated lightly into the air.
"You pig bastard. How dare you treat my sister like a whore?"
"Gurk—s-sorry...! I, I didn't realize—"
Despite the merchant's pleas, his face slowly turned purple.
Lagan truly intended to kill him, and the merchant was horrified by the realization.
'You crazy savage bastard, I'm your boss's guest...!'
Kadogan let out a scolding sigh at the sight.
"Lagan."
"..."
Then Lagan grinned and released his grip.
"You're lucky my sister is forgiving."
"G-guhk—cough! Th-thank you...! Thank you!"
"Don't thank me—apologize to my sister. Is your head just for show?"
"S-sorry, miss...! I didn't realize—"
"I get it, so take those guys and get out."
"Y-yes...! Hey, let's go!"
The merchant hurriedly gathered his people and retreated from the room.
Lagan, who had already undone his shirt to heat up the mood, looked dismayed now that he was alone in the room with his sister.
"Kadogan. Can't you see I'm working? What's this about? Why are you acting so recklessly? This isn't like you."
"Pack up the kids and go right now."
"Huh?"
"We've been in Bondales too long. It's time to leave."
Instead of answering, Lagan chugged an entire bottle of the shop's premium liquor.
Half the bottle vanished in one gulp, but he remained composed, though his face soured with dissatisfaction.
"City booze is harsh, but it doesn't even feel like you're drinking it."
"Lagan."
"Still, I like the liquor here. I've gotten used to it now. The guys seem accustomed to it too. Kadogan."
Lagan looked at his sister with an expression heavy with fatigue.
"What happened this time? Why are you making such a fuss?"
"Gadum messed with the wrong person this time."
"Ha, is that it? Again?"
Gadum often demanded 'soul stepping' on powerful figures or strong individuals.
Kadogan would occasionally voice intermittent unease about it.
"It's not 'again'—this time it's really different."
"Sure, sure it is."
Lagan let out a scoff.
Just a few days ago, she had shown anxiety after using soul stepping on 'three big shots'.
Lagan had easily 'resolved' Kadogan's anxieties before, and he assumed this time would be no different.
Kadogan scowled at Lagan's relaxed attitude, which fully revealed his thoughts.
"You gonna keep acting like that?"
"I'm thinking about it. How to reassure my scaredy-cat sister."
Kadogan's patience reached its limit.
She stormed out of the room.
Lagan hurriedly stood and followed her.
"Hey, where are you going!"
"If you're not coming, I'll take the kids and go alone."
"Argh, you're driving me crazy! Kadogan! Fine! I get it—so let's do this! For now, let's try what we did before."
"It's a waste of time."
"Come on! Even if it's a waste, we have to try! If it turns out to be a real waste like you say, I'll follow your lead without complaint. Got it!?"
"..."
Kadogan reluctantly nodded.
With that, Lagan gathered his most trusted subordinates.
A significant portion of the forces under Councilor Gadum—savage mercenaries—assembled in one place.
"Ugh, right when things are busy. Fine. Now I have to see what you saw for myself."
The basement, which had seemed desolate when Kadogan was alone, became cramped and stifling with Lagan and seven other savages inside.
They stepped onto the new soul-stepping ritual circle Kadogan had drawn.
"Lagan, this again?"
"Yeah. Who else is gonna soothe Kadogan's worries if not us?"
Lagan's subordinates chuckled but said nothing more.
Responding poorly to Lagan's jokes about his sister could lead to trouble.
For instance, he had been exiled from the tribe after crippling the chief's son for insulting his sister.
Lagan's hot-blooded and belligerent nature had earned him the moniker 'Battle Maniac'.
Tales of how even Gadum couldn't stop him once he got riled up were infamous throughout Bondales.
"We don't have time for this..."
Kadogan muttered discontentedly but asked them if they were ready.
They were about to enter the mental world Kadogan had created and participate in the soul stepping.
And engage in a fierce battle within it.
This was how White Scale Tribe warriors prepared for combat.
They stole glimpses of their enemies' karma through soul stepping and conquered it.
Believing that if they had achieved it, they could too.
"By the way, what did you see this time?"
"Beats me—she wouldn't even tell me."
Kadogan smirked mischievously at their chatter.
The soul stepping activated.
"N-necromancer...!"
A moment later.
The warriors unwittingly stepped back from the horde of encroaching undead.
Kadogan smirked triumphantly at their pathetic display.
"Now you're getting it?"
But her smile didn't last.
"Necromancer, huh? Sounds fun. Everyone, battle positions!"
Lagan, his face now flushed with battle lust, stepped in front of the necromancer.
"...!"
"Battle positions!"
At Lagan's command, the disrupted morale steadied instantly.
They formed ranks and engaged the necromancer.
Surprisingly, the battle was evenly matched.
A necromancer's horrific power depends on how many deaths they command.
In that regard, the one they faced was practically newborn.
Still terrifying in its own right—but
Its power fell short of embodying the full meaning of 'necromancer'.
"We did it!!!"
"We defeated the necromancer!!!"
The necromancer's form dispersed.
Lagan's savage warriors had succeeded in slaying it.
Of course.
Exorcising a necromancer that couldn't be destroyed by normal means was possible here—
In the mental world Kadogan had created and ruled.
Separately—
Since this mental world was made for soul stepping, it proved one fact.
That Lagan's group had the power to overcome this 'karma'.
Just like the target of this soul stepping.
We did what he did.
And we've got Gadum behind us.
So no need to fear him excessively.
Lagan smiled at his sister with that meaning.
His face still flushed from unresolved battle excitement.
"...That's not all."
"Good. I was just getting warmed up."
The world flipped in an instant.
The black mist and yin energy that had blanketed everything cleared—
Revealing a shallow pond.
Under the moonlight, exquisite blue lotuses bloomed across the pond.
Like half-open eyes, the half-bloomed flowers stirred an inexplicable impatience in the viewer.
A woman stood amid the lotuses.
"~"
Lagan whistled.
The other savage warriors' eyes gleamed too.
The woman's indigo bob hair absorbed the moonlight, emitting a blue sheen.
Her aloof aura blended naturally with the serene pondscape.
The traces of training visible over her perfectly fitted leather armor,
Her form evoked a mysterious beast, stirring the savages' conquest desires.
Subordinate Dorek approached the woman.
Lagan smirked as he watched.
Until the woman vanished from sight abruptly.
She had closed the distance to Dorek in an instant.
"G-gack—gack—"
Dorek gurgled.
The woman's hand gripped his throat.
No—pierced it.
She withdrew her hand from his neck.
Torn flesh, muscle, and shattered bone should have resisted, but it came out smoothly.
Her hand, emerging from Dorek back into the world, held parts that had supported his neck.
She toyed with them like clay, savoring the texture.
Devoid of neck support, Dorek's body collapsed.
An unreal form of death, even to savages who had seen all kinds.
All in the blink Lagan had lost sight of her.
The joy and thrill of victory over the necromancer had vanished without a trace.
"...Fun."
Lagan grinned ear to ear. A smile brimming with battle lust.
He hurled the hand axe in his left hand with all his might.
—Whoosh!
The savage's axe traced a vicious arc at ferocious speed.
An unpredictable trajectory, impossible reaction time.
The woman casually swung her hand at it.
The axe, clearly aimed at her, veered off course.
Even accelerating—
Thunk!
The sound came from near Lagan.
His thrown axe had returned, embedding in subordinate Damus's forehead.
Ignoring the falling man, Lagan charged the woman.
Her figure vanished again, but Lagan, fully focused, didn't miss it.
Their swords clashed.
Light.
Lagan felt her sword thus and smiled.
Thinking he could punish the arrogant bitch.
A sadistic grin spread across the battle maniac's face.
As he pressed down on her with his sword, Lagan said,
"You're stronger than you loo—grrrk."
His words lost form midway.
Lagan realized too late.
She held her sword with one hand.
Her left-hand sword had pierced his left eye.
The power in Lagan's sword weakened.
She leaned her face toward him, sword still locked.
"Haa..."
She sighed ecstatically at Lagan's pained, bewildered expression.
Lagan was a battle maniac.
Once riled, he was a mad dog blind to all—that reputation trailed him like a tail.
"..."
Even he couldn't comprehend what this woman felt.
In battle—
No, in slaughter—what emotion was this?
"Wh-what—"
"Lagan!"
Kadogan urgently shouted his name.
His wound had already neatly healed.
Lagan remembered this was Kadogan's created world.
With her help, they could defeat the monster.
They had forgotten their original purpose.
Their minds were thoroughly ensnared by the woman.
Lagan calmly retreated and reformed ranks with his comrades.
The same formation that felled the necromancer.
The savages' frantic movements contrasted the woman's leisure.
She stepped forward with flowing grace.
As if the world aided her motions.
Despite this being Kadogan's world.
In an instant, she slipped through their formation gaps, standing at its center.
Foolish.
Surrounding herself with enemies.
Yet she smiled delightedly, as if desiring it.
Before they could fully grasp her elusive footwork, she acted.
A single sword swing.
A line of blood sprayed.
Behind that arc, she was already in her next motion.
And during that, onto another.
The savages' perceptions couldn't keep up.
When her sequence ended—
"Gurk!"
"Argh!"
They belatedly, simultaneously felt the sword strikes and collapsed.
Only Lagan barely endured, standing in place—but soon realized his mistake.
He should have fallen too.
If he didn't want to be toyed with by the monster.
With each step and swing of the monster, Lagan's body deviated further from human form.
At first, she avoided vitals to keep him alive.
"Lagan!"
But at some point, she realized no matter how she stabbed or slashed, he wouldn't die.
"Haa... haa..."
The monster's breathing quickened.
That emotion poured into her sword.
It was no longer battle or slaughter.
Butchery. Her blade carved his flesh like a slaughterer's on livestock, mercilessly mangling him.
"Wh-what the hell is that..."
The shaman's body trembled uncontrollably at the gore unfolding before her.
Was that truly human?
What human could wield such power?
Unleash such killing intent?
"Ka—Ka—"
Lagan desperately called his sister's name through mangled jaw and throat.
This world's master was Kadogan.
Yet she couldn't control the monster.
"Lagan!"
The savage who craved battle was gone.
He begged the monster for mercy.
Sought Kadogan's aid.
Any longer, and Lagan's mind would suffer.
Kadogan tried to end the soul stepping immediately.
"Gack!"
An axe flew, embedding in Kadogan's neck at that moment.
Pain paralyzed her thoughts.
In her blurring vision, she saw the grinning monster.
'Impossible...'
It was a remnant of 'karma'. A phantasm born of the past.
Yet it was encroaching on the mental world Kadogan created.
How high must the original's tier be? How strong its ego?
The savages couldn't even fathom.
They merely writhed in agony.
Then.
"...!"
The monster's gaze shot out.
At its end stood a man.
His neat features and youthful look mismatched the slaughter scene.
The monster closed the gap with the same eerie footwork that toyed with the savages.
And attacked without hesitation.
Like with the savages, denying his dignity inhumanely.
As the monster's body neared him.
"KyaAAAAH!!!"
The monster screamed. Its form crumbled.
The man seized the defenseless monster's neck.
Then, its body transformed into a single sword.
"..."
The man took the sword and vanished from the scene.
"Ah... ah..."
The savages couldn't process the surreal sight.
Freed from the monster, their consciousness flickered.
"Huuuuh...!"
Gasping sounds erupted one after another in the basement.
"..."
Lagan.
He panted blankly for a while.
Then turned his gaze to his sister.
"..."
"..."
They exchanged nods.
"This was sent to me?"
The next morning.
Rishir unpacked the unidentified bundle left at the mansion's front and checked its contents.
[To Rishir]