The Merchant's Agony
Swish! A trajectory cut through the air. The sword in Chloe's hand sliced the empty space with elegant precision. A perfect arc traced a flawless circle, smooth as a painter's brushstroke across canvas. The line left its permanent mark upon the world. A blue streak followed that path, touching the bald merchant's arm in the blink of an eye.
The bald merchant, realizing it far too late, stared at the spot where the line had connected. "Huh?"
The distance between Chloe and the merchant was so great that even a full-grown man hurling an object with all his strength might not reach it. Had that false sense of safety made him careless? Even though he knew those who wielded magic were anything but ordinary, the ingrained assumption of "distance" had created a tiny, fatal opening in his defenses.
Slaaaaaash!
"...Huh?"
The bald merchant's arm was severed cleanly from shoulder to elbow. It dropped as easily as a knife slicing through cake. The fallen limb twitched on the ground, fingers curling as if still trying to function. The bald merchant stared at it with a vacant, stupid expression, then looked down at the stump below his shoulder.
Drip. Drip.
Blood fell in steady droplets. Only then did realization hit. From the perfectly severed shoulder, a fountain of blood erupted. Twitching pink muscle fibers reacted to exposed nerves, and the smoothly cut white bone gleamed beneath.
The delayed recognition of what had just happened transformed the bald merchant's face. Terror flooded his features, and he screamed.
"Aaaaaaaaaaaagh!"
The pain that bleached his mind white echoed through the quiet alley as his scream reverberated off the walls. Chloe began walking toward him, sword still in hand. In the dark alley where the bald merchant's cries rang out, she approached slowly, deliberately.
"You're noisy."
Swish!
She moved as if swatting a flying insect. Chloe's hand vanished again. Another black line carved through the air. The blue streak followed its path, slicing the world and leaving its mark. The moment it touched the merchant's other arm, that limb too sprayed blood as it was severed.
Slaaaaaash!
"Grrrrrrk!"
Blood erupted like a geyser. The bald merchant's eyes rolled back, and the sound tearing from his throat could barely be called a scream anymore. He collapsed to the ground, writhing like a worm, drenched in the blood gushing from both stumps. The noises he made no longer sounded human.
Chloe continued her slow approach, watching him coldly.
"Oh dear. He's going to die at this rate."
She regarded the man whose eyes had rolled back, whose only movements were faint twitches, with icy detachment. Raising her sword, she let blue magic power flow from her body into the blade. She was still learning healing arts, but...
Even so.
Muttering to herself, Chloe channeled her magic into the sword until it glowed blue, then drove it straight into the bald merchant's shoulder.
Stab!
"Grrrrk!"
The merchant reacted with a weak scream to the fresh pain, but a closer look revealed the blood flow from his severed arms slowing. The pain itself did not vanish. On the contrary, as the wound healed, the extreme agony threatened to steal his consciousness—only for the healing magic to forcibly drag his fading mind back to awareness.
The bald merchant could not escape the punishment Chloe had prepared. He was forced to regain his senses.
"Glurk... gluuuurk...!"
"I got too angry and cut him immediately, but fortunately he didn't die from shock."
Simply cutting him twice wasn't enough to quench her rage. Chloe watched with cold eyes as the pathetic worm slowly regained awareness.
"Ugh, cough! How...!"
"What are you even trying to say?"
Thud!
Her steel-reinforced boot crushed into the bald merchant's face.
"Uuuuuurgh!"
His face shattered under the impact of Chloe's shoe. Yet even as it broke, the magic flowing through the sword in his shoulder slowly restored it.
"S-Spare... cough!"
"Who said I was going to kill you? Look, I'm healing you right now, aren't I?"
She twisted the sword deeper into his shoulder. No blood welled from the wound—because the magic healed it the instant the blade penetrated.
"S-Spare me...! Please, spare me!"
"I already told you I'm not going to kill you."
Ignoring his pleas, Chloe pulled the sword free from his shoulder.
"Uuuuurgh!"
The merchant writhed like a worm again as fresh pain flared from the wound. Chloe paid it no mind. After confirming through basic healing that he wouldn't die, she slashed across his chest with her blade.
Slaaaaash!
"Grrrk!"
She could have cut only the clothing without touching skin, but since she was doing it anyway, Chloe sliced the skin as well—thinly, painfully—before turning her attention to the small box inside his coat.
On the surface it looked like an ordinary blue gem, but Chloe's eyes perceived the turbulent magic power swirling within. A Magic Stone. And one the size of an adult man's fist. High-grade. The exact quality would require further examination, but even at a glance it appeared to be premium. The power sealed inside it had been contained so it wouldn't leak. The seal was so sophisticated that the magic could only be sensed at this close range. And the strength of that magic...
"Noble rank. At least the power of someone holding a title..."
Chloe's eyebrows twitched. No matter how she considered it, this was not something the owner of a mere slave trading company should possess.
A Magic Stone. A mysterious mineral capable of storing magic power. Its applications were incredibly varied—so varied that it was dangerous. In some cases, it was hazardous enough that rulers of nations or territories managed them personally. Though such high-quality stones rarely appeared on the open market. Smaller fragments, known as magic crystals, could be obtained by wealthy merchants or frequently used by adventurers.
But this was different. An object of this caliber. It was absolutely not something an ordinary merchant should be carrying. Chloe's expression darkened.
The magic power emanating from the stone was clearly that of a high-ranking noble.
"Count...? Marquis level? It can't be Duke or royal class..."
Even comparing it to the magic signatures of other nobles she knew, nothing specific came to mind. Which meant it wasn't from the southern region. Could it belong to a noble from Gryutus? Had he stolen it and fled? With a stone of this quality, such greed would be understandable—and worth risking one's life to escape with.
However, her master, Leoric Franz, had mentioned there was something even more important and heavily sealed than this Magic Stone. That meant this wasn't the reason they had come from Gryutus. Of course, secretly bringing such an item in was itself a crime worthy of execution. If this had been the capital, it could easily have been called treason.
Chloe's gaze shifted from the Magic Stone resting on the bald merchant's chest to his face. A face twisted in terror. Eyes flooded with fear. Looking at him, her voice emerged cold as ice.
"Where did you get this?"
"H-Hiiik...!"
At the sound of her voice, the bald merchant's face—already drenched in tears, snot, saliva, sweat, and blood—contorted horribly. Without arms, rolling on the ground, he couldn't form proper words. Seeing him so terrified he couldn't even speak, Chloe stomped on his face again.
Crunch!
"Where did you get it? What else are you hiding? What was your destination?"
"S-Spare me...!"
Is he unable to understand what I'm saying?
The merchant kept repeating only "spare me." Chloe suppressed the irritation rising in her chest and sighed. At this rate, getting proper answers would be difficult. She wasn't without the desire to torment him further, but the priority now was to bring this group's leader before her master.
Having decided, Chloe resolved to take the bald merchant back immediately.
"...Should I cut his legs too? He'd be lighter to carry."
"H-Hiiiiiiik!"
Her gaze regarded him as nothing more than baggage. When the bald merchant recoiled in utter terror, Chloe gave a small chuckle. Strengthening her body with magic power, she grabbed his leg, preparing to drag him.
"Before that, I should deal with the seal on this Magic Stone..."
It was a dangerous object that could explode at any moment. Even if safe for now, carrying it through the city was too risky. The moment Chloe reached out to retrieve the stone—
Kiiiiing!
Light began pouring from the Magic Stone.