Chapter 41: Seolrang (3)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 41: Seolrang (3)
Colony, the desert nation.
The Colosseum, the landmark located at the heart of the city that shared the nation's name, was always steeped in the cheers and madness of the masses, fueled by the blood spilled by fighters.
Whether a fighter was stabbed or lost their life, everything that happened within these walls was mere entertainment to the public.
But right now, the Colosseum was silent.
It wasn't that the audience was missing. On the contrary, the Colosseum was so packed it could be called a full house; even the stairways were crammed with people.
Was it because the match hadn't started yet? No, that wasn't it either.
Hundreds of fighters of various ranks were already out on the sands, the focus of the crowd's gaze.
There was only one thing that was unusual.
While hundreds of fighters were gathered on the right side of the arena, only a single man stood on the left.
To any observer, it was a blatantly lopsided fight.
However, the man standing alone on the Colosseum floor showed no sign of dissatisfaction. Instead, a sardonic smile played on his lips.
The Dark Iron gauntlets on his hands began to glow.
[Begin the match!!]
As soon as the referee’s voice echoed through the arena like a megaphone via magic, the hundreds of fighters began to charge at the man.
Some wielded swords.
Some used their fists.
Others brandished axes.
Fighters ranging from A-rank to B-rank, armed with all sorts of weapons, rushed forward to take this one man's head.
Yet, even as he faced their murderous glares, the man’s eyes were filled with deep amusement. Conversely, the eyes of the charging fighters were thick with tension.
This was because everyone present knew exactly who the man before them was.
He was one of the Babayagas of Colony.
The man who had held the title of Babayaga longer than anyone else.
Kalman Arens.
His sardonic smile widened as he took his stance.
His left foot stepped behind his right. His right hand pulled back in sync with his footing.
The muscles across his entire body tightened in an instant.
And just before the fighters reached him, Kalman unleashed his One Fist.
A punch thrown into the empty air, intended for no one—yet a punch that would reach everyone.
Kwaaaaaaaa—!!!
The moment the shockwave erupted, the hundreds of fighters swarming toward him were blown away in every direction. Simultaneously, Kalman’s figure vanished.
Crunch!
A merciless slaughter began.
Every time his dark gauntlets lashed out, the bodies of the fighters trying to recover were shattered.
Five minutes passed.
The only ones left in the silent arena were the fighters rolling on the ground and Kalman.
After a fleeting moment of silence—
““Waaaaaaaah—!!!””
As if the previous stillness had been a lie, the crowd’s frenzied cheers filled the Colosseum.
Ignoring the fighters whose heads had been crushed and hearts destroyed by his hands, the masses cheered wildly for Kalman alone.
Scanning the crowd slowly with a deep smirk, he turned and walked back into the Colosseum.
He entered a luxurious waiting room reserved only for the Babayagas.
Listening to the undying cheers of the crowd, Kalman heard a voice from behind.
“As expected, there are still plenty of fools left. To think they believed several hundred men could defeat a Babayaga.”
Kalman turned his gaze toward the source of the voice and found a man wearing a thick grin.
It was the man also known as a Babayaga, Monstrosity Malliam.
Kalman sat in a plush chair, looking at the half of Malliam’s bald head that was grotesquely distorted. Malliam continued.
“Do you know who wiped out the Blood Sand Bandits?”
“No. Did you find out?”
At Kalman’s question, Malliam answered without hesitation.
“It was Seolrang.”
“……Is that so?”
Kalman spoke after a brief silence. However, there was no particular anger in his voice.
It was merely an acknowledgment, as if he were simply saying, 'So that's how it was.'
“You don’t seem particularly angry,” Malliam noted, looking slightly puzzled.
Kalman leaned back leisurely in his chair.
“Not really. I only kept them around because they brought in a bit of pocket money. Besides, you’re going to kill her anyway, aren’t you?”
He replied with a twisted smile.
“True enough.”
“So, what’s the plan?”
As Kalman prompted him, Malliam gave a sly grin and opened his left hand.
In his palm sat a cubic, black substance.
“Ho—is that the Abyss Body? The one said to grant Status to those qualified to use it?”
Malliam nodded at Kalman, whose lips curled upward.
“Yes. With this, I’ll be able to split that arrogant beastkin’s head open.”
“That’s the best thing I’ve heard all day.”
Kalman picked up the cube from Malliam’s hand.
Staring at the cube, which was as dark as the abyss and seemed to absorb all light, he muttered with a satisfied expression.
“Finally, I can kill that bitch who’s been rummaging through Colony like it’s her own backyard.”
“I agree. I suffered some losses because of her a few days ago myself. And also—”
Malliam sighed, nodding in agreement as a hint of emotion escaped him.
Seeing this, Kalman asked, “So, when do we execute the plan?”
“At the ruins, two days from now.”
“That’s soon.”
“Isn’t sooner better? Only after she’s dead can you go back to nibbling away at the royal authority—”
“—And you can swallow the entire underworld whole?”
“Exactly.”
Confirming their mutual, unchanging intentions, Malliam smiled.
“There’s likely no chance of failure.”
“Because of the Abyss Body?”
“That too, but there are friends on that side who share our goals as well.”
With those words, Malliam added, “Ah, and if possible, deal with that noble who’s been hanging around Seolrang as soon as you see him.”
“Reason?”
“I have a small favor to ask. Besides, I heard that noble is Seolrang’s Mentor. Wouldn’t it be fun to kill him right in front of her before we finish her off?”
“Well—that does sound quite entertaining.”
With Kalman’s smiling response, Malliam bid him farewell until two days later and vanished.
“Finally……”
Sitting on a throne of greed, Kalman let a deep smile spread across his face.
* * *
About two days later.
Having rested sufficiently at the guild, Alon boarded a carriage headed for the ruins with Seolrang.
After some time had passed and they were nearing their destination, Alon watched Seolrang, who was guarding the carriage from the outside, engage in small talk with the Golden Mane Tribe members.
‘She really is different from the rumors.’
Though he had only been in Colony for about four days, Alon had already grasped Seolrang’s reputation within the city.
‘A mad dog, huh……’
Alon wore a strange expression.
Since most of the rumors described Seolrang as a "Mad Dog," he naturally felt curious.
After all, except for their very first meeting, she had never shown him that side of her.
Over the past three days, most of what he had seen was Seolrang smiling brightly and wagging her tail.
“Mentor?”
“Yes?”
Seolrang, who had stopped talking to the other beastkin, was now looking at him. Her call snapped him out of his thoughts.
“You looked like you were thinking really hard about something. What is it?”
“Oh, it’s nothing much.”
Seeing Seolrang tilt her head so far to the left he worried her neck might snap, Alon hesitated before answering.
“I was just thinking—you take good care of your guild members.”
“Of course! They’re all my family.”
“Family?”
“Yeah! They’re all my kin! You have to take care of your kin. I don’t need anyone else.”
“I see……”
“Ah, but not you, Mentor!”
Seolrang said this and then began to stare at him intently with a serious expression.
She even furrowed her brow as if grappling with a monumental dilemma.
“Mentor is…… hmm…… after family?…… No, after Yutia……?”
“Is that so?”
“Yeah. No matter how much I like you or Yutia, you aren’t blood kin……”
Seolrang reached her conclusion with a slightly apologetic look, as if she had just solved an incredibly difficult problem.
However, Alon simply shrugged his shoulders and thought to himself.
‘That’s higher than I expected.’
Behind his expressionless face, Alon was satisfied.
Considering he hadn't even had a proper conversation with her before this, let alone exchanged letters, being ranked third in her priorities was quite gratifying.
‘Hmm…… if she considers me the third most important…… that should be enough to use a "call for help" chance if things get dangerous later, right?’
As Alon concluded his thoughts with a sense of contentment, a voice called out.
“We have arrived!”
The carriage had reached the City of the Old God Kahara.
* * *
The entrance to the city known as the "City of the Old God Kahara"—at least, that was the name he knew from his time as a player—was now referred to simply as the ruins.
Stepping out of the carriage, Alon began to organize his thoughts as he walked into the dark cavern.
‘Where should I look first?’
Alon had been here several times in Psychedelia.
However, those visits were always for sub-quests to clear out bandits hiding within; he had never come here to uncover any secrets.
‘I remember a place with a lot of inscriptions, though.’
Using his in-game knowledge, he had already mentally marked a few locations to investigate thoroughly once they entered Kahara.
After walking for a while, just as Seolrang’s expression was beginning to cloud with boredom, Alon spotted a group walking ahead of them.
It didn't take long to identify them.
“Ah, Count Palatio?”
“Rian……?”
The woman approaching through the darkness, manifesting Light magic, was Rian Argulus—the daughter of the Red Tower Master whom he had met on his way to Colony—and the mages of the Red Magic Tower.
Alon was momentarily taken aback as he realized the bewildered looks of the twenty or so mages turned into surprise.
“Have you also come to explore the ruins, Count?”
“I have.”
Alon nodded at Rian’s question.
Naturally, they began to move deeper into the ruins alongside the mages of the Red Magic Tower.
After some more time had passed.
“It’s the exit.”
At the voice of Evan, who looked just as bored as Seolrang, Alon turned his gaze toward the exit.
The moment they finally stepped out—
“Wow—”
The mages, the beastkin, and even Seolrang couldn't help but let out gasps of admiration.
The sight that greeted them beyond the exit was a massive fortress nestled within a giant underground cavern.
Alon, however, had no reason to be surprised by the sight. He had seen this grand fortress several times before.
Yet, despite his usual stoicism, Alon’s eyes widened slightly more than usual.
It was because a voice—one that no one else could hear—whispered into his ear.
[You’ve finally come, Mage.]
It was a voice that only he could hear.