Chapter 133
Chapter 133
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 133
Chapter Title: Chapter 20: Medicine King (1)
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Martin, Sien, and Adel headed to Allanto City.
It was a city built along the border between the north and the east, and it also bordered the Alteria Empire and other kingdoms.
Due to these geographical conditions, Allanto City had attracted crowds of people since ancient times, leading to the great development of commerce.
“If we move on our own like this, won’t the Ferdinand House lodge a complaint? Allanto City is a neutral zone like Akella City, so if any issues arise, they could find fault with us.”
“Who knows. They haven’t gotten any information on Doom at all. In that situation, I’m stepping in personally to resolve things. If anything, they should be grateful to me, right?”
Unlike the worried Adel, Martin appeared utterly relaxed.
Sien, in response, wore an incredulous expression.
“You know you’re being incredibly shameless, don’t you, Young Master?”
“I agree.”
“I’m just stating facts.”
Adel chimed in agreement with Sien, but Martin didn’t mind in the slightest.
“From what I heard on the way, the soldiers following the First Prince or First Princess are complaining of mental anguish. They can’t forget the sight of comrades who self-destructed with Doom or those killed by the enemy. Yet those people aren’t even properly condemning it, let alone devising countermeasures.”
The First Prince and First Princess had their images tarnished after their defeat in the preliminary battle.
The reason no big fuss was made about it was entirely due to his own actions.
If he hadn’t rampaged in Akella City and upstaged Teodore at the press conference, the two would likely still be getting torn apart.
“They’re incompetent, sure, but not brainless enough to nitpick my movements. Especially not the head of the Ferdinand House. So we just do what we need to do.”
“What we need to do... you mean head to the Forkts Merchant Group?”
“Yeah.”
“It’s a merchant group famous not just in the Alteria Empire but across the continent, and to think its owner was the Medicine King.”
“We never would’ve noticed without the previous family head’s investigation.”
Sien and Adel’s faces were grim as they spoke.
The Human King, another peak of the underworld, was vile for running a slave market, but at least he didn’t openly step into the light.
The Dark King had also stuck strictly to the shadows until receiving that not-quite-request from the Klaus House.
In contrast, the Medicine King not only openly ran a massive merchant group but used its distribution network to supply narcotics.
The danger level was on a whole different plane from the other underworld peaks they’d faced before.
“It’s not just about getting info on Doom—for the Empire’s sake, we need to excise this tumor.”
At Martin’s words, the two women nodded.
With their conversation concluded, the trio entered Allanto City.
Unlike their previous trips, they made no effort to hide their identities.
“Gasp!”
“That’s...!”
Everyone who recognized Martin was stunned, but the man himself paid them no mind as he strode toward the Forkts Merchant Group’s head office.
It was only natural, but the staff couldn’t hide their bewilderment at Martin’s sudden visit.
“Could I meet Gert Forkts?”
“T-The Guildmaster is currently meeting with another guest. He’s such a busy man that showing up unannounced like this means...”
“Making excuses to my face? Got some guts, or are you really that clueless? Either way, doesn’t matter.”
He could clearly sense the presence of a powerful being alone on the upper floor.
Without hesitation, Martin extended his right hand.
In that instant, the wind gathered, soon forming a whirlwind that shot up toward the ceiling.
BOOM!
The whirlwind punched through the first floor’s ceiling in a flash, then bored straight through the floors above.
It finally burst through the fourth floor when a man leaped down to where Martin’s group stood.
Thud.
He was a man with red hair and a beard, his impression rigidly stern unlike a typical merchant.
“That’s Gert Forkts. I’ve seen him in the papers several times.”
“I heard the Medicine King is one of the strongest among the underworld peaks, and he certainly seems impressive. Taking that sneak attack just now without a scratch.”
“You’re both wrong. He’s neither Gert Forkts nor the Medicine King.”
Martin denied the women’s words.
The red-haired man then opened his mouth with a puzzled look.
“It’s ridiculous to call me the Medicine King, but I am Gert Forkts, head of the Forkts Merchant Group. I may not compare to the Young Master, but I don’t think I’m so obscure that people wouldn’t recognize me.”
“Just because the face matches doesn’t make you the real deal. There are more than one or two ways to change a face. Crucially, the Medicine King is known to be an 8th Circle mage, but you’re merely 6th Circle. You’re masking your presence to avoid detection by peers, but you can’t fool my eyes.”
“Barging in is bad enough, but spewing nonsense too? I’ll make sure to complain to the Ferdinand House about today’s outrage...”
Flash!
Before the fake Medicine King could finish, he kicked off the ground.
His body vanished as if he’d used spatial translocation, reappearing behind Martin.
In sync, he thrust out his right hand with all his might.
Aimed precisely at Martin’s heart.
‘Die!’
The man desperately wished it, even wrapping his hand in an aura blade.
But unfortunately, his plan fell apart immediately.
Grab.
As Martin casually twisted his body and seized the man’s right hand.
“Reveal your identity and the truth, and I promise you a painless death. I stake my name on it.”
Martin spoke in a leisurely tone.
Of course, the man ignored it and thrust out his left hand.
But Martin caught that just as easily.
“I offered mercy, and you refused. Everything that happens from now on is your fault. So don’t blame me.”
Some people only come to their senses after a beating.
Martin thought as much and sneered at the man’s foolishness.
Unaware of Martin’s inner thoughts, the man activated his unique ability, infusing his hands with extreme heat.
He then unleashed it all at once.
BOOM!
The aura blade and heat merged into a massive explosion.
Enough to obliterate not just the merchant group’s head office but the surrounding buildings.
Thus, the man had no doubt it would deal a fatal blow to Martin, whose physical prowess was lacking.
But that belief was quickly proven a delusion.
Hum.
The flames shooting up from the explosion shrank in an instant, sucked straight into Martin’s hand.
“Th-This is impossible!”
“Even Christian Haberz of the Fire Dragon Sword couldn’t handle my flames, and you thought your lukewarm heat could threaten me?”
Martin had intel that he wielded flames.
But different types of power had limits—or so he’d thought, ignoring that fact.
Grit.
The man ground his teeth, trying to press the attack somehow, but it was already too late.
As Martin activated Distortion of All Things, the sound of bones snapping echoed from both his arms.
“Arrrgh!”
The man wailed in agony.
It wasn’t just broken bones.
His muscles, nerves—his entire insides were mangled.
But that wasn’t the end.
Using Rota Martial Arts techniques, Martin poured mana into the man’s mana circuits, triggering a series of small explosions.
“Gaaah!”
The mana circuits tore apart, and the mana core in his abdomen shattered.
Having lost everything in an instant, the man collapsed limply to the floor.
His state was no different from a corpse.
“You’d think that’d be the end of the pain, right? But the human body is a wondrous thing—it doesn’t always work that way. If you don’t want more suffering, spill everything you know.”
“K-Kill me.”
In his real voice, not the imitation, the man resisted.
It meant nothing in his near-death state.
In fact, Martin just chuckled.
“Judging by how you’re still lashing out, the others must not know the truth. Well, doesn’t matter. Keep squeezing, and the truth comes out eventually.”
Martin seized the man’s throat.
Then crushed it with a squeeze.
Afterward, he looked around at the others.
“Both of you, capture alive anyone 4th Circle or higher, or anyone with a unique ability.”
“As you command, Young Master.”
With their responses, Sien and Adel moved swiftly.
“Wonder how long it’ll take to verify the truth.”
Martin decided to wait patiently.
* * *
They captured everyone who was 4th Circle or higher or had manifested a unique ability, then squeezed them for info.
Regrettably, no one knew precise details about Doom or the Medicine King.
But they had fragments of the truth, which Martin tirelessly pieced together.
As a result, he learned that cargo trucks steadily came and went to Zeller Mountain, about 10 km from Allanto City.
Martin’s group used spatial translocation in turns to reach the destination.
A massive iron fence blocked the entire mountain entrance.
And it wasn’t an ordinary one.
Sharp barbs studded it everywhere, while high-voltage current coursed through it.
Armed with magic guns and spear-swords, the organization’s members patrolled ceaselessly.
“Isn’t being this blatant going to make people suspicious?”
“We have to assume they’ve squared things with the local landowners. At this scale, they’ve probably cut deals with the Ferdinand House too. If their higher-ups block the info, even the Ferdinand House wouldn’t know.”
“Is that even possible? The First Prince just got hit by Doom—shouldn’t Duke Ferdinand step in to check?”
“They’re already stretched thin just checking Duke Klaus. They can’t afford to worry about anything else right now.”
Neither Karl von Ferdinand nor Klaus von Werner had taken the front lines.
They knew well the other could overturn the war situation, so they only watched warily from afar, unable to act rashly.
“So we don’t need to worry about their reactions. We just gleefully smash the trash.”
“That I like.”
Sien grinned as if amused.
Adel nodded with an impassive face.
Seeing this, Martin spoke.
“Clear the path.”
“As you command, Young Master.”
The two women bowed their heads in response.
Then advanced on the fence.
“Outsiders! Kill them!”
“Wipe them out!”
Spotting the pair, the organization members quickly alerted each other and unleashed attacks.
But Sien tanked them with her body, while Adel deflected with幻影化 (phantomization? Wait, 허상화 -> illusory transformation or Phantom Shift).
The two women’s prowess was more than enough to overwhelm the guards in moments.
Shortly after.
Crash!
The torn-apart fence toppled to the ground, opening the way.
Martin ascended the mountain as if it were only natural.
At the mountainside, he could clearly see it.
Vast fields of clodel stretching out.
At the same time, he sensed it.
An 8th Circle powerhouse not far off.
“We’re in the right place.”
No need to drag this out.
He’d crush the Medicine King and seize control of the truth as he pleased.