Chapter 62: Tessing Underground Auction (5)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 62: Tessing Underground Auction (5)
‘No, then who the hell was that kid? Was he really from the Viment Special Task Force?’
Jet ran, his two-year-old son sleeping soundly in his arms. Fortunately, the child didn't wake up before they reached the pier.
‘Damn it, what a mess… I was finally about to establish myself as a proper informant in Akin.’
He had to leave behind the grand dreams he'd harbored and everything he'd built.
‘To think I’d end up a fugitive like this…’
Even as he stepped onto the ship, he agonized over whether trusting the mysterious boy had been the right choice.
It didn't take long for him to realize he'd had no other choice.
Once on deck, Jet searched his pockets with a dazed expression. He pulled out a handful of items: a heavy solid gold necklace, rings, and gold pieces the size of beans.
—Use this for travel expenses while you're on the run. Feed your son well.
Those were Jin’s last words to him. After using and deceiving him the whole time, why would Jin give him such things? It was a question Jet couldn't begin to comprehend.
‘Sigh, let’s just head to Viment for now and wait for news.’
Jet’s heart was heavy with gloom.
* * *
Crash!
At the sound of the door being smashed open, the gang members inside the auction house sprang to their feet. Alu entered, his breath coming in ragged, furious gasps.
“Where is that scamming bastard!”
“Huh? Boss, who are you talking about?”
“Veradin Zipple! That brat who impersonated Veradin Zipple! Bring him to me this instant! I’ll skin him alive myself…!”
“I-Impersonated? Boss, surely you don’t mean…”
The subordinates reflexively glanced at one another. Did you know? No, I hadn't a clue. Their eyes all said the same thing.
“Boss, th-they’ve already left. It’s been a little less than an hour.”
Watching them, Alu felt like he was going to explode with rage. Slap! Slap! His palms, thick as iron pots, struck the cheeks of his subordinates one after another.
“What the hell were you idiots doing, huh? You let them go? You just let them walk away?”
But Boss, you were fooled too.
No gang member was brave enough to say it. When Alu was in a rage like this, staying quiet was the best policy.
Finally, one subordinate who usually claimed to be Alu's right-hand man mustered some courage.
“Boss, they… they took all the ledgers and records, too. They didn't really touch the merchandise, though.”
Alu felt a sharp pain in the back of his neck as his vision turned yellow. He wanted to kill all these incompetent fools right then and there, but catching the impostor came first.
“Prepare a pursuit, immediately. We’ll catch those bastards before sunrise.”
* * *
Meanwhile, Jin had already sent anonymous reports to three locations via magic mail.
The reports were destined for the Viment Imperial Family, the Zipple Main House, and a local newsletter in Akin.
If he had simply sent a report claiming ‘Tessing is a group of bad people,’ none of the three organizations would have batted an eye.
However, along with the report, he had enclosed the slave registry for Viment, the transaction ledgers for Zipple, and the customer list for the newsletter.
‘Viment can't ignore a slave registry that includes many of its own citizens, and Zipple won't let Tessing off the hook now that they know their transaction records detail the sale of high-value ancient magic tomes.’
The newsletter that received the customer list would also raise a fuss. Most newsletters in Akin were bribed by Tessing, but the one Jin sent the report to was an outlet that had stubbornly exposed their misdeeds even in his previous life.
Once each authority verified the reports—which would take two days at most—it would be over. Tessing was now destined to be dismantled and fade into history.
Nevertheless, Jin had not yet left Akin. He, along with his companions, was currently waiting for Alu on the outskirts of the city.
He needed to confirm for himself whether the man truly had a connection to the Runcandels.
“Kid, are you really bothered by what that Jet guy said? Would your siblings really associate with bottom-tier thugs in a place like this?”
“I agree, Young Master. They should at least have some standards.”
“The Tessing organization itself isn't much, but Alu is still a 7-star warrior. He might have been someone famous in the past.”
Jin didn't know much about Alu’s past, other than the fact that he had been running Tessing and corroding Akin for some time.
“Hmm, well. I should at least leave him a thank-you note before we go. The man did give me a masterpiece as a gift, not to mention Chenmi's Magic Tome. I was actually startled when I saw that on your finger after we left the auction house.”
According to Murakan, the true name of the ring artifact was not the ‘Demon King’s Helmet,’ but the ‘Rune of Mul-ta.’
It was an item created thousands of years ago by a demon named Mul-ta to protect his lover, who fought in wars every day.
The added bonus was learning the secret history that this lover was none other than the first emperor of Viment.
“Anyway, it’s a haul I can't believe we got from some back-alley thugs' den. Once this is all over, let’s start by deciphering and learning Chenmi’s Magic Tome.”
Jin had intentionally left a trail to make it easy for Alu to track them. All the three of them had to do was sit and wait.
After about two hours, a group of Tessing members finally found the trio sitting around a campfire.
“It’s them! Inform the Boss!”
Bang!
A subordinate fired a signal flare. However, they couldn't bring themselves to attack Jin's group. Even if he was an impostor, he had displayed 5-star magic right before their eyes.
A strange standoff ensued.
Jin's group, having no intention of running, stared blankly at the gang members, who in turn simply waited for reinforcements.
“Murakan.”
“Yeah?”
“I want to try fighting Alu one-on-one.”
“You're asking for a lot lately. So, you want me to handle the small fry?”
“Exactly.”
“Ugh, what a pain…”
While Murakan grumbled, Alu arrived. He looked as if he had run the entire way, his body glistening with sweat. The hundred or so subordinates standing behind him were in the same state.
As thugs often do, the gang members who had been wary just a moment ago were now emboldened by their numbers.
“You… you… I’ll tear you apart! What are you all doing? Attack!”
“Stay back and protect Strawberry Pie for a bit.”
The charging Tessing members were split roughly in half between mages and warriors. The mages chanted spells from a distance, while the warriors rushed in, wielding all sorts of weapons.
In contrast, Murakan was completely bare-handed. He wore only a thin shirt and didn't even have a dagger.
Crack!
“Gah!”
Even so, the first strike belonged to Murakan. He crushed the jaw of the man in the lead with his elbow, then dove into the crowd like a flash of lightning.
They weren't a highly trained formation of elite knights, nor was each one an exceptional warrior. Every time Murakan swung a fist from the center of the crowd, a man either died or was knocked unconscious.
To Alu and his subordinates, he looked like a peerless martial artist.
The mages who had finished chanting couldn't cast their spells recklessly. Their skills were too poor to target Murakan's speed, and their allies were packed too tightly around him.
“You idiots! Don't aim for him, aim for the brat in the back!”
At Alu’s shout, the mages belatedly changed their targets. Watching this, Jin couldn't help but scoff.
“Fire!”
As the lead mage shouted, the mages raised their staves in unison.
“Gilly, get behind me.”
Whoosh!
The spell they chose for their volley was the 3-star ice-type magic, Ice Spike. Nearly fifty ice spikes converged on a single point, swarming toward Jin.
But unfortunately for them…
‘I don’t even need to block this.’
Thanks to the Beast Demon King Orgal’s Pendant, Jin was virtually immune to magic below 5-star.
Clatter, shatter…!
The ice spikes broke apart before they could even touch Jin. All the unregistered mages of Tessing could do was blink in shock.
“Wh-what are those things…?”
“Aaaargh!”
“Ugh!”
The fight on Murakan's side was already nearing its end. Fifty or a hundred, small fry were still small fry, and a Black Dragon was still a Black Dragon—even one past his prime.
Five minutes into the battle, the Tessing members were already losing their will to fight. The reason this group, which once held an entire city in its grasp, was being so helplessly defeated wasn't just because Jin's party was powerful.
From the moment the pursuit began, right after Jin was revealed as an impostor, the more skilled members had already fled to save themselves.
They had realized that ‘Alu was finished.’ Zipple had turned a blind eye to their rampages until now, but there was no way they would leave Tessing alone after finding out they had been played by an impostor.
It was a wise choice, as a report was certain to reach Zipple by morning.
By now, Alu must have sensed it too. As of today, he was doomed.
“Puhahaha.”
Alu let out a hollow laugh, his sword glowing with a white Aura.
“It seems you aren't just ordinary scammers.”
Slash!
Suddenly turning, Alu began striking down the mages standing beside him. The mages couldn't escape their crazed boss, and most died on the spot. Mages who hadn't even reached 5-star couldn't possibly dodge the Sword Energy of a 7-star warrior catching them by surprise.
“B-Boss, why are you doing th—aaagh!”
“Aaaaah!”
Alu slaughtered his subordinates with a stoic expression. True to his epithet, ‘Spider-Hand,’ his strikes were inescapable, and not a single subordinate managed to get away.
“You, who sent you? Who hired you, huh?”
As he spoke, Alu’s eyes were half-crazed.
“You’re going to hell soon anyway, so think whatever you like.”
“You’re right… but.”
Swish!
‘Fast!’
A burst of Sword Energy, fired as a surprise attack, grazed Jin’s cheek. If his reaction had been a fraction of a second slower, it would have been his neck.
“What's the matter? I don't plan on going alone. You're all coming to hell with me.”
He had merely released his Aura and begun radiating bloodlust. Furthermore, the distance between Jin and Alu was about fifty meters.
Nevertheless, Jin felt the hair on his entire body stand on end.
‘Is this truly the pressure of a 7-star warrior?’
He had met many 7-star knights in his life, but this was the first time one was intent on killing him. His throat went dry, facing the raw power of a 7-star warrior head-on.
Just as he was about to draw his sword to face him, a voice shouted from the distance.
“Looks like this guy's finally met his match. Now it's my turn to protect Strawberry Pie. Heh, do your best!”
Murakan, who had snatched Gilly and retreated far away before anyone noticed, called out.