Chapter 333: The Black Market (6)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 333: The Black Market (6)
Anyway, this damn body is the problem.
The moment I hear a name like Invidia, the first things that pop into my head are graphics cards and video games.
No matter how crazy that guy is, there’s no way he’d be discussing games in a clandestine place like this.
As I sorted through my thoughts, the conversation in the next room continued.
“From now on, if there is anything you desire, please do not hesitate to command them.”
“…Anything?”
A faint, sticky quality clung to his words, as if the offer had piqued his interest.
No way.
“Yes. It would not matter even if you desired that child’s body. Isn’t that right, Michelle?”
“Hehe… Of course. Brother, you are more than worthy of such a privilege.”
…Are you serious?
It seemed there was a woman among the four people who had entered in armor.
And that lunatic Son Si-woo must have felt a flicker of lust for her, even if just for a moment.
Michelle… The name sounds foreign.
Is she pretty?
“If you wish it, Brother, I can cast off all of this right here and now.”
Her voice was sultry, meant to seduce.
Clank. Clank.
The sound of metal scraping came from the heavy armor.
Was she going to approach him and tempt him with her body?
Just as I was focusing intently on the sounds from the next room…
“First, we should catch the little rat eavesdropping on us, shouldn’t we?”
Huh.
Don’t tell me I was caught…
CRASH—!
“Whoa!”
The words had barely registered before a glistening black arm smashed through the thick wall.
Looking closely, I saw it wasn’t human skin, but a black-painted gauntlet and vambrace.
“…Looks like I really was caught.”
How did they know?
As I stood there dumbfounded, I heard several voices from beyond the crumbling wall.
“M-Michelle, what is the meaning of this!”
“Forgive me, Father. There was a rat in the next room.”
“What…! You mean there’s an intruder in this church?”
“Unfortunately, it seems so.”
“Q-Quickly, catch him! Quickly! You must catch him!”
They seemed desperate to get me.
Well, I suppose after I overheard their entire secret conversation, they’d naturally want to catch and kill me.
The dead tell no tales, after all.
And that would be doubly true when the person they were talking to was none other than the national Hunter, Son Si-woo.
As stone dust filled the air, I launched myself forward, smashing through the door in front of me.
A moment later, the door to the adjacent room burst open.
A hulking figure, armed from head to toe in black armor, saw me and shouted.
“All units, on alert—!”
Ouch, my ears.
Did he swallow a megaphone?
Why is his voice so loud?
A chilling warning poured out from behind the helmet covering his face, his eyes glinting within.
“It would be wise to surrender quietly.”
I pulled the mask covering the lower half of my face up higher, just in case, and asked back.
“If I surrender peacefully, will you let me live?”
“No.”
The giant shook his head.
Seriously? Then why the hell would you tell me to surrender?
He then continued.
“If you’re caught now, at least you won’t die a painful death.”
“……”
Is this guy insane?
If I’m going to die whether I’m caught this way or that way, why would I ever surrender peacefully?
“In that case, I’ll just run.”
“…So you refuse the cup of welcome and choose the cup of punishment instead.”
“The welcome cup is death, and the punishment cup is death. If you were me, would you meekly drink the welcome cup?”
I pointed a finger at my head and continued.
“Think before you speak, my foolish friend.”
“……”
The wavelength of the mana flowing from him changed abruptly.
Looks like I pissed him off.
If I poked him a few more times, he’d probably charge at me like an angry bull.
But that thought was fleeting.
WHOOSH—!
A presence that had been stealthily creeping toward me from the side suddenly swung something.
“Yikes.”
The moment I jerked my head back, the massive weight on the end of a mace whistled past my face.
Contrary to her sultry voice from before, she uses a pretty vicious weapon.
Is this what they call a surprising charm?
“Tch…!”
I heard a click of the tongue, a sign of frustration at the failed attack.
Her voice is quite nice.
I bet if I took off her armor… no, her helmet, I’d find a very captivating face underneath.
“Hmph!”
While I was distracted for a moment after dodging, the giant charged, leading with his shoulder.
A dazzling speed that didn’t match his bulky frame at all.
If that thing hit me, I’d be seriously injured for sure.
Of course, that’s only if it hit me.
「Shield.」
A translucent curtain of mana unfolded before my eyes.
It was a basic common magic that any mage should be able to use.
Of course, it wasn’t just an ordinary shield.
I had engraved a bumpy pattern onto the surface of the thin, translucent barrier and filled the indentations with air.
Right.
Just like the embossing often used on expensive toilet paper.
THWUMP—!
As the charging man hit the thin barrier, its surface rippled violently.
“……!”
But it didn’t break.
The bumpy surface had absorbed the impact the moment his shoulder made contact.
Considering my opponent was a powerhouse of at least A-rank or higher, this was a brilliant success.
I wanted to send my thanks to Jeong-hee for helping me invent this spell.
While cleaning up the room that had been wrecked by our lovemaking, she had chided me.
She said we were so rough that water got everywhere, and the cost of paper towels was getting too high.
She’d said it would be better to buy cheaper 2-ply instead of the expensive 3-ply for cleaning up.
At the time, I had just unleashed all my sexual desire and was in a brief state of post-nut clarity.
Her simple words made me unconsciously focus on the shape of the paper towels, and I had a new realization.
Ah, if I structure a defensive barrier in that shape, it might not be good for everything, but it would be effective against blunt weapons!
The result was a resounding success.
“What are you doing! How can that body of yours not break through a single shield?!”
Michelle berated the giant who was blocked by my shield.
Then she swung her mace at me.
WHOOSH!
The weight tore through the air with a rough sound.
I already told you.
「Shield.」
Blunt weapons won’t work.
THUD.
The immense force behind the heavy weapon was buried in the thin barrier and vanished in vain.
While the two paladins were stopped by a single shield…
Clank, clank!
More footsteps echoed from the next room.
It seemed the ones guarding the priest and Son Si-woo were joining the fray.
“Hmm.”
I can handle two of them somehow.
Even three… it would be a close call, but I don’t think I’d lose.
“But four is cheating.”
To be precise, the giant in front of me and the woman named Michelle were roughly upper-mid A-rank.
The other armored figure now walking out was no different.
The problem was the one behind them.
The last one to appear.
The concentration of mana emanating from his body—slightly taller than the woman, Michelle, but a bit small for a man—was incomparably denser than the others.
That level is… not quite S-rank, but he’s likely at the very top of A-rank.
A level where you could see the potential to reach S-rank at any time, depending on his efforts.
His appearance solidified my decision.
Yep, let’s bounce.
Clap, clap—!
With a couple of claps, I drew the scattered gazes of my opponents toward me.
“Okay everyone, say cheese.”
I made a V-sign with my fingers and closed my eyes.
Then, I focused the light-attribute mana I had been secretly gathering and instantly detonated it.
「Flashbang.」
FLASH—!
“Kugh…!”
“Aargh!”
“M-My eyes…!”
Screams of varying pitches erupted.
When I gently opened my eyes, I could see them clutching their helmets within the lingering afterimage of the light.
Good.
If I escape right now in this gap…?
SWISH!
A sharp sound cut through the air, and I reflexively turned my head to the side.
Something shot toward me like a predator and grazed my shoulder.
Pshk!
A dark line of blood was drawn beneath my torn clothes.
THWACK!
The object that had grazed my shoulder embedded itself in the wall at the end of the hallway.
It was a sword, glinting with an obviously extraordinary sharpness.
When I turned my head, the person I had marked as the main threat was standing with one hand on his head, the other arm outstretched.
“Stop… right there…!” he growled out.
His fighting spirit was quite admirable.
To think he could throw a sword so accurately in my direction even while his vision was momentarily blinded.
If I had let my guard down for even a second, my head might have been pierced.
“Hoo…”
He’s quite tempting.
If we fought one-on-one, it would be a thrilling battle.
I barely suppressed the fighting spirit that was surging within me for the first time in a while.
Hold back.
Not now.
The priority is to get out of here before the priests, who have started to swarm from all directions, arrive.
Of course, just leaving feels a bit plain.
It’s only polite to leave a little gift behind.
I rapidly gathered mana, converted it to the lightning attribute, and condensed it at the tip of my left index finger.
Crackle!
Sizzle!
Sparks flew wildly.
It was inevitable, as I was forcibly holding onto lightning-attribute mana that refused to stay in one place.
When its size, which had been as large as a human head, shrank to the size of a tennis ball, I hit my limit.
“…This is as far as it goes.”
If I had my way, I’d want to shrink it down to the size of a 500-won coin, but that seems impossible for now.
It’s an incomplete spell, but this should be enough for a parting greeting.
I opened a tiny channel in the condensed lightning mana.
「Lightning Pierce.」
The ill-fated spell, which I had wanted to make into a single bullet but couldn't, drew a single streak of light in the air.
KRRRZZZZZZT!
The flash of light, racing violently along a pre-drawn line, headed for the one responsible for drawing my blood.
“……!”
Did he sense the unusual energy?
Just before the magnificent streak of light reached his body…
The armor encasing him erupted with black light.
KABOOM—!
An enormous explosion followed.
Through the violently swirling dust cloud, I saw him sprawled flat on his back.
Seeing him knocked over, the impact must have been quite severe, but he didn't seem to have any major injuries.
No, perhaps he wasn't completely unscathed.
The two eyes staring at me were not just brimming with killing intent; they were thick with it, clinging to my ankles.
His pride must have been seriously wounded.
Seeing him like that makes me want to play around with him a bit more, but…
“An attack!”
“There was a loud noise from over there!”
The priests, having pinpointed the direction from the earlier roar, were now rushing this way.
It was really time to go.
With a cheerful gesture, I waved at him.
“See you next time.”
With those final words, I immediately smashed through the hallway wall and landed in the garden.
Getting out of the church wasn't very difficult.
Just like when I came in, all I had to do was dismantle the magic circle and hop over the high wall.
After that, I immediately ducked into a deserted alley and cast an invisibility spell.
“Where did he go?!”
“He couldn’t have gotten out yet!”
“Search the entire upper floor, comb through every inch if you have to!”
I leisurely passed through the gaps between the priests who poured out of the church and began to tear the upper floor apart.
Soon, I arrived before the massive gate.
Beep!
[Authentication complete.]
Grrr-r-r-umble…!
Easily bypassing the security of the terminal they so firmly believed in, I stepped with a relaxed gait into the darkness leading to the middle floor, bringing my escape to a close.