Chapter 360
Chapter 360
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>Translator: Ryuma
>Chapter: 360
>Chapter Title: Why Did You Do That?
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A faint silence settled over the space.
“Pfft…….”
Laughter echoed from somewhere.
It didn’t take long for the conference room to fill with laughter.
“Pahaha! What did he say?”
“Hey, did I hear that right? What? A choice? Hahaha!”
Knights doubled over, clutching their sides in laughter.
Even the mages curled their lips, snickering.
It was utterly ridiculous.
What? Giving them two options? Get beaten and talk, or talk and get beaten? What kind of nonsense was this?
That was when Melond stepped forward.
“Viscount Calond, who is the young man beside you? From which family?”
“Ask him yourself. It’s rude to go through someone when the person’s right there.”
“……Hah.”
Melond let out a sigh.
“Haven’t you grasped the situation yet? Viscount Calond, this isn’t the time to act so leisurely.”
“I figured it out ages ago. But…… heh heh, what great knights they must be.”
“…….”
The laughter filling the conference room cut off abruptly.
At this point, even Melond had nothing to say.
His current mood was like…….
Aiming a sword at someone who didn’t even know what a sword was and threatening them. While explaining just how dangerous a sword could be.
Viscount Calond’s behavior was bizarre enough, but something even stranger caught his eye.
Scritch, scritch.
“Fwoo——”
A gray-haired boy casually digging in his ear, as if he were in another world entirely.
Their eyes met right then.
“Why.”
“……From which family are you the heir?”
“Why do you care about the family? Does it change anything if I’m from some great house?”
“…….”
“Anyway, haven’t I given you enough time? Need more?”
“I must’ve been wrong to think we could even talk in the first place.”
As he spoke, Melond signaled to the knights standing at the back.
It meant no more talk—time to suppress them with force. But this wasn’t what he’d intended.
He’d planned to crush their spirit and end it with words alone.
But what could he do?
The opponent didn’t grasp the gravity.
‘Then I’ll make him understand, by force if I have to.’
Clank, clank.
The atmosphere grew hostile with the sound of armor.
The knights encircled Aster and Viscount Calond, forming a wall, when Aster turned to the viscount.
“What should we do?”
“Wouldn’t it be right to keep our promise?”
In other words, beat them up.
“Right, then.”
Aster dusted off his hands, stood, and faced the knights.
He’d grown tall, but he looked small compared to the burly knights.
But that was fine.
Fights weren’t won with size.
“Haha, you gonna try fighting us now?”
“Stay back. You’ll get hurt bad. Stay still, and I’ll end it quick.”
A thunderous crash rang out right then.
Craaaash—!
“……Guhk!”
Thud!
Something shot forward like an arrow and slammed into the wall.
Everyone knew it was a knight without being told, but only the knight himself and his comrades blinked in confusion, unable to process it.
“……?”
“What the…….”
A chill silence descended on the conference room again.
Amid it, Aster dusted his hands and cracked his neck side to side. Crack, crack. The sound of bones echoed.
“You guys are the ones who made me the thug here. You know that, right?”
The knights drew their swords right after.
Shing! Shiiiing!
No need for talk.
Only the language of fists mattered.
“Charge!”
With someone’s shout, the battle began.
* * *
“…….”
Melond couldn’t believe the scene unfolding before him.
Crunch, pow! Clang!
Relentless impact sounds rang out nonstop. Armor crumpled, bones snapped. Swords slashed through the air with whooshes, but it happened rarely.
Knights toppled before they could even swing properly.
“Eek…… guk!”
“Guh……!”
Agonized groans filled the air.
“Uweeeek——!”
Someone spewed red blood.
Melond stared blankly before snapping to and whirling around.
“Why are you just standing……!”
He froze mid-reprimand to the motionless mages.
“Guhk, ugh…….”
“Guk, guk.”
The mages clutched their throats, faces red, writhing as if strangled by something invisible. Melond couldn’t comprehend this either.
“Wh-what the hell?”
It felt unreal.
Up front, knights collapsed with shrill screams, one after another. In the back, mages choked and thrashed in pain.
And the source of it all was probably……
……that gray-haired boy.
With things like this, the soldiers in the rear just froze solid.
They were seasoned troops who’d fought monsters spilling from the Arapurkin Mountains, but unknown terror still made them cower.
At least they weren’t fleeing.
How much time passed like that?
Slap! Slap!
“What’s this? Not getting up anymore?”
Aster shoved a limp knight aside and turned his gaze.
It landed on Melond.
Melond instinctively stepped back.
“Hey, where you going? Come here.”
Beckon, beckon.
Melond wanted to bolt from the room right then, but his body wouldn’t obey.
It wasn’t fear.
Some inexplicable force bound him. Then the change hit.
“Wh-what……!”
His body yanked forward.
Melond yelped in shock at the sudden pull. Followed by a sharp smack as his cheek burned.
“Melond.”
“…….”
“Melond. Not answering?”
Smack!
Melond rubbed his stinging cheek and stammered.
“Sp-speak.”
“Why did you do it.”
“……Wh-what…….”
“Why try to scam good people? Huh? What’s your plan? Spill it. You’ll get hit less if you do.”
“Th-that’s…… I don’t know what you mean. What did I even do?”
“Huh?”
Aster let out a disbelieving laugh. But Melond pressed on, sounding genuinely wronged.
“I was just introducing a great opportunity. Arranging a meeting for a development site struggling because the passage is blocked…….”
Aster gasped right then.
“Wow…… guy opens his mouth and lies just pour out?”
“I’m really being wronged…… guk!”
Aster slapped Melond’s screaming face hard again, then swept back his fallen hair.
“What’s your goal? Huh? Just say that, quick. What big secret is it that you’re hiding? Huh?”
Crack, craaack—
Aster’s grip crushed Melond’s shoulder with a tearing sound.
“Aaagh! Aaaaagh!”
“Spill it quick. Huh?”
Melond thought: Stay like this, and this mage might really pulverize or rip his shoulder off.
“I-I’ll talk! I’ll talk!”
“Good, that’s more like it. Spill.”
“It’s…….”
Melond stammered on.
His mind was a jumble; he barely knew what he was saying.
What the hell was happening? What kind of identity let this guy do this?
But despite the chaos in his head, his mouth spilled everything it needed to. It didn’t take long for Aster to learn Melond’s plan.
When it all ended.
“What great opportunity my ass. Escort contract, passage contract—bullshit. This bastard’s pure evil, right? Planning to screw us all over and ride high alone.”
“N-no, that’s not…….”
“No my ass, it is. Enough.”
Aster dismissed Melond’s excuses and turned to Viscount Calond.
“What do you think?”
“Total scumbag.”
“No, what do you think of this situation? Anything weird?”
“Weird…… yeah, one thing. The plan doesn’t account for any risks at all.”
“Right?”
Aster thought the same. Melond’s scheme seemed plausible at first glance, but ignored all fallout.
After this, how’d he handle the investors in Sites 1 and 3?
‘Well, he figures he’s got solid backing…….’
Who could back him against both sites’ investors?
To guarantee safety after such a bold move, he’d need serious status.
‘Whatever, we’ll dig into that later.’
Aster turned and looked at one side.
“……Ugh.”
The head of Site 3, Eitzpf Merchant Group leader, groaned involuntarily under his gaze. He felt the same terror at the unbelievable sight.
“You’re the head of Site 3?”
“……Y-yes.”
Eitzpf swallowed hard. More tense than when Melond barged in with knights.
Nothing said that guy wasn’t behind what Melond tried.
“You okay?”
“F-fine.”
“You look pretty shocked. Viscount Calond, why not reassure him? Huh? He’d feel better with you, the one he’s been talking to, right?”
Eitzpf’s eyes flickered at Aster’s unexpectedly considerate words.
But Viscount Calond got the point.
‘Definitely telling me to fleece him clean.’
Reassure meant sweet-talk and strip him proper. And……
“Melond Merchant Group leader looks shocked too. How about we three talk alone?”
“Heh heh, sure.”
Calond nodded with a smile.
“Come on, mercenaries. Let’s step out. Huh? Don’t wanna? Want me to make you?”
“W-we’ll go.”
“And while we’re at it, help clear those knights over there. Move, mercenaries.”
Aster grabbed the fallen knights with the mercenaries and headed out.
Creak, click.
The conference room door shut.
“Now, Melond Merchant Group leader, sit. Eitzpf Merchant Group leader, why so far? Scoot closer.”
Viscount Calond smiled and sat them beside him.
The board was set.
All that remained was claiming the spoils.
* * *
Aster plopped down in front of the conference room door, guarding the space.
“Hands up proper, both of you.”
“Y-yes, sir…….”
“R-raising them.”
The two middle-aged men jolted straight at Aster’s word. Didn’t know their names.
All Aster knew: they were underlings of some Arapurkin noble house.
Spies he’d caught fleeing after sensing something off. A couple whacks to the head tamed them.
Anyway.
Aster scratched his ear and glanced back.
“How long till it’s done?”
Felt like forever, but the talk dragged on.
He’d cast a barrier to block sound, so he couldn’t hear inside either—frustrating as hell.
That’s when the door opened, and Viscount Calond emerged.
“Ah, here you are. Sorry, talk ran long. But those guys…….”
“Noble house goons.”
“Ahem.”
Viscount Calond glanced at the two underlings, then changed expression.
“Better move somewhere else to talk.”
“Didn’t go well?”
“How to put it…… hm. End result? We got what we wanted. Eitzpf and Melond seem plenty satisfied.”
“But?”
“Problem is…… hm, lend an ear.”
“……?”
Aster tilted his head curiously but offered his ear obediently.
“Seems we found who’s backing Site 2.”
“Who?”
Some big shot that he whispers?
As Aster eyed him puzzled, Calond continued, and he understood why.
It was a big deal.
“From what I can guess, the Second Prince.”