Chapter 107
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 107
Chapter Title: What to Do with This Bomb?
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Was it because she sensed the raw menace laced into his voice?
Yuna Kyung, perched atop Rimon's head, froze stiff and held her silence.
She knew all too well that if she mouthed off to him when he was in this kind of mood, a few stern forehead flicks wouldn't cut it.
"His Majesty the Wang family head probably had no intention of slighting the Sword Duke. The torture chamber falls under my purview, so he likely figured it had nothing to do with you."
Whether out of ignorance about Rimon,
or simply because she was wired differently,
Li Chingwei responded calmly even in the face of his open displeasure.
To her, Rimon said coldly,
"If he wasn't ignoring me, then he was ignoring you."
"Well..."
"And since you're my fiancée, looking down on you is the same as looking down on me."
"Ah, yes."
Caught off guard by the unexpected words,
Yuna Kyung's beak dropped wide open as she watched Li Chingwei's cheeks flush a delicate pink, forgetting whatever she'd been about to say.
But Rimon paid no mind to her reaction.
He merely scowled and shot back,
"So? Did you decide to take that bastard into your torture chamber?"
"I was just about to ask you about that."
"Ask who?"
"You, of course, Sword Duke."
"...Tell that Wang fellow whether you're going to take his bastard and handle the torturing yourselves?"
"Yes."
For a moment, Rimon eyed her warily as she bobbed her head eagerly, smiling brightly like she was asking about his favorite lunch special.
Forgetting his earlier anger, he asked suspiciously,
"Why ask me? I'm not in charge of that creepy facility."
"But you are in charge of Hotel Leviathan's security and defenses. And it was you who warned us that the monster is dangerous."
"True, but..."
Li Chingwei tilted her head at Rimon's ambiguous expression as he trailed off.
"Is something bothering you?"
"It's not that it bothers me exactly—it's just weird. I used to run around trying to save the poor souls you people were torturing, and now I'm the one deciding their fate."
Rimon scratched his cheek.
But Li Chingwei remained unfazed.
"We don't torture the innocent so carelessly anymore."
"Regardless of guilt or innocence, the very act of taking commissions to torture people for others—that's where the problem starts, don't you think?"
"It's fine. Our torture chamber is in extraterritorial space."
"It's not a legal issue; it's a matter of decency."
"Decency is something you only pull out when it's convenient."
"...Ah, right."
Rimon clicked his tongue.
The Black Dragon Clan, schemers and plotters by nature.
He realized anew how ridiculous it was to lecture their princess on decency.
"So, what should we do?"
Unaware or uncaring of his thoughts,
Li Chingwei asked with her usual beaming smile, and Rimon answered without hesitation.
"Turn it down."
"Does His Majesty the Wang family head's attitude rub you the wrong way? Dragging the monster here by force and then asking us to do the torturing?"
"That's part of it, sure. But there's no need to willingly take on a dangerous bomb like that again."
Li Chingwei and Yuna Kyung exchanged odd glances.
Sensing the shift with his Sword Master instincts, Rimon narrowed his eyes.
"Why the suspicious looks?"
"Oh, no, it's not suspicious."
[It's just... it's been a while since I've seen the team leader treat anyone as this dangerous.]
Yuna Kyung cocked her head.
Even during her PAB days, dismissing high-level players as a joke was par for the course.
Rimon had smashed even the Infinite Monarch.
Yet here he was, wary of a Liberation Brigade high exec who was "merely" duke-rank—and already half-crippled with a severed arm—like Ryu Gangcheol.
It felt downright strange.
Rimon smirked at her.
"Na-kyung, you know the type, right?"
[What type?]
"The ones who preach debate but just insist they're right in every conversation."
[Yeah, I know. More common than you'd think.]
"Right? Now add in swinging fists at the slightest pushback?"
[Oof, that'd make them hard to get along with.]
"And what if they lose the fight because they suck, but claim moral victory since their logic was flawless and you only won by 'violence,' strutting around all proud?"
[...At that point, I'd rather not deal with them at all.]
"Exactly. That's how I feel."
[Ahh?]
Yuna Kyung wore a vaguely understanding expression.
To elaborate,
Li Chingwei summed it up neatly.
"In short, fools are more exhausting to deal with than geniuses?"
"Because you never know what a fool might do. Especially a crazy one."
Be it an absolute ruler,
a grand duke tantamount to a king,
or a duke with rare skills—
they were all just humans who'd die to a sword. Not real threats.
So of course he'd be more wary of lunatics than monarchs, Rimon argued. Yuna Kyung's beak fell open.
[Wow, that's awfully arrogant and obnoxious... but true, so I can't argue.]
"I'm pretty great, aren't I?"
[Urk!]
Rimon flicked Yuna Kyung's forehead with his finger, then turned back to Li Chingwei.
"Anyway, reject that bastard outright. Especially since they want access to your torture chamber."
The torture chamber was part of Hotel Leviathan.
Meaning they'd have to bring Ryu Gangcheol back inside to torture him.
To Rimon—who saw the man as a shit bomb too volatile to even touch—that was utterly unacceptable.
"Rejecting it is the way to go, then."
"What, you think otherwise?"
"No, your will is my will, Sword Duke."
Rimon's decision was paramount.
Her own opinion didn't matter.
She replied calmly, then pulled out a document with a slightly troubled look.
"But flat-out refusing puts us in a tricky spot."
The single official letter Li Chingwei proffered.
More precisely, the familiar seal stamped on it made Rimon furrow his brow.
"The elders?"
"Yes, an official request."
"So now even if you want to refuse, it's hard to."
"For official matters, the elders could approve access to the torture chamber. We could oppose it, but..."
Li Chingwei let out a soft sigh.
Rimon clicked his tongue at the sight that would make any man's heart flutter.
"You're handing those elders—who we had pinned down with their weaknesses—a perfect excuse?"
"If I oppose using the torture chamber, they'll accuse me of losing all judgment because of you."
They hadn't opposed before only because of their leverage.
Deep down, the elders resented Rimon's marriage to Li Chingwei—and the loss of the clan's wealth and power in the process.
Ignore this request?
They'd pounce like wolves on fresh meat, claiming she was letting personal bias taint official duties just to spite Rimon.
"Tch, shoulda wiped out those elder bastards back then."
"Then the Black Dragon Clan would be in even worse shape. They were major pillars supporting the clan back in the day."
"The 'back in the day' qualifier means they're entrenched now and useless, right?"
"Publicly executing them would tank morale and loyalty among the others—they'd think loyal service leads to being discarded later."
"Hm, fair point."
Yuna Kyung looked puzzled.
Listening quietly, something nagged at her.
[Um, Princess sis? Why does 'publicly' get added to the reasons we can't dispose of your elders?]
"Want to hear why?"
[...No, on second thought, better not.]
Yuna Kyung averted her eyes from Li Chingwei's knowing smile.
She wasn't so oblivious as to miss why Li Chingwei rattled off excuses but never once asked to spare the elders.
As Yuna Kyung swallowed dryly at the Seven Dragon Society's ruthlessness, Rimon stroked his chin.
"What to do with this bomb..."
"Who knows."
Torture chamber felt iffy; ignoring the elders' letter meant hassle later.
A true dilemma. Watching the two ponder, Yuna Kyung muttered softly,
[Must be tough. If it were a real bomb, just call a high-level player with the right skill and be done.]
"Hm?"
"Ah?"
Rimon and Li Chingwei shared intrigued looks.
Yuna Kyung blinked at them.
[Did I say something weird?]
"Nah, you did great. Gave me a good idea."
"Yeah, we were overcomplicating it."
[...???]
Ignoring Yuna Kyung's baffled expression,
Rimon grinned.
He turned to Li Chingwei with a meaningful gaze.
"Princess. That spy you bought off in the Shanghai Wang family—high-ranking enough?"
"High enough to access all secrets."
"Hm, perfect then."
"The family head's cautious, so no guarantees, but pair it with external surveillance and reverse espionage won't be an issue."
"Good. Relay any intel to me."
Li Chingwei blinked in surprise.
"Handling it personally?"
"Might as well do it right."
She nodded once at his sinister smile, then asked as if struck by a thought.
"While we're at it, how about preparing Plan B?"
"Like Na-kyung said?"
"Yes. No guarantee the leftover bombs won't cause trouble."
"Doesn't bother me... but you sure? Outsiders involved—plenty will whine about it later."
"Do I, your fiancée, need to care about that chatter?"
"Fair enough."
Rimon chuckled.
Her smile alone told him she'd prepared countermeasures.
"Alright, I'll handle that side too. The guy's skills are subpar, but he's reliable enough for guard duty—Kimchit-guk level, anyway."
"Yes, spend freely—money's no object."
Like lovers planning a date,
they chatted amiably. Yuna Kyung grumbled with a pout.
[You two lovebirds. Great you're getting along, but could you explain it so this dumb bird gets it?]
"Hee hee hee. Not even married yet and already lovebirds? You're too kind."
[...]
"No need to overthink."
Yuna Kyung froze as Li Chingwei flashed a thumbs-up with a bright smile.
Rimon explained leisurely,
"You said it yourself: If it were a real bomb, call a high-level player with the right skill."
[So?]
"How do normal folks handle bombs without high-level players?"
[Uh...]
Sudden realization hit.
Yuna Kyung's beak gaped wide as she stiffened.
Seeing it, Rimon continued coldly with a chill smile.
"A guy who butchered people like toys must be prepared for no human treatment himself."