Where Is Nilly (3)
The stranger plopped down right in front of the counter. The bartender, who had been wiping a glass, blinked. The odd sight of a bucket with a hole in it worn like a helmet. Thanks to the neon lights, it almost looked like some kind of bizarre floor lamp. “...Already had one before coming here?”
“This is my first order today.”
“Sir, if you want to order, you need to look the bartender in the face.”
“I am looking at you right now.”
A laugh echoed from inside the bucket helmet. A vein popped on the elf’s forehead as he set down the dishes. “Fine, we’ll call it that. So what’ll it be?”
“Everyone out except the owner.”
Instead of saying no such drink existed, the elf in the tailcoat waved his hand around. The people who had looked like customers rose in orderly ranks like soldiers. They shot Nathan a glare before vanishing into the alley outside the shop. Nathan was moved by their willing cooperation. It showed a level of refinement he could never expect from the usual street thugs who charged in swinging. Maybe they could even have a mutually beneficial conversation. That thought lasted until ten more elves in the same uniform came pouring out of the back staff room.
“What to do. This is a popular establishment, so we have multiple managers.”
Behind the smirking bartender, the long-eared elves drew fish knives that gleamed with a cold blue light. “We were planning to come find you anyway. You charging in alone like this—got to admire the guts. Shame you won’t live long enough to enjoy it.”
“So I’ll be sashimi on your table today?”
“No, you’re just a short-lived Sapiens anyway.”
The underlings burst into laughter all at once. Posity, the bartender and kidnapping squad leader, congratulated himself. Anyone in the upper ranks of an organization needed to know how to dominate with words like this… A few minutes later, Posity retracted that thought. There was no need to say something that would smash the face of the one who gave birth to him. A few minutes later, his jawbone was pressed against his Adam’s apple as his face slammed into the bar, and he drifted off into a sweet dream. Of course, only after he had confessed everything Nathan needed to know.
“Ricam, was it?”
“....Hah… jaaat…”
“Got it.”
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“Hik-! Hieeeek-!”
“You’ll trip if you keep that up-!”
Even though the other was an enemy, Nathan’s warning was sincere. The elf named Ricam, who had been running while gasping for breath, soon slipped in the mud and went down with a spectacular crash. Nathan grimaced. “Oof, that’s gotta hurt.”
Not a single lamp meant to light the passage was intact. Water leaked from the ceiling where necessary repairs had been postponed for hundreds of years. As a result, the sewer tunnel was covered in thick layers of mud and puddles. So under normal circumstances, the fugitive might have listened to the advice to slow down. But when someone was chasing with the blood of the unfortunate smeared all over both fists, well…
Clutching his knees that had lost all feeling, Ricam ran again. Nathan sighed and was about to give chase when he thought of a simpler method. He took off the bucket and hurled it at the elf. The bucket traced an arc and made an uncomfortable landing. The spinning rim met the skull. Thunk.
“Agh-!”
Ricam became one with the thick layer of grime once more. The fugitive lay sprawled on the ground without moving until Nathan carefully approached, at which point he finally woke. “...What? Why am I lying down?”
“You must have been tired, boss. Living in a sunless dump like this would make anyone’s body weak.”
“Who the hell are you. Stop with the bullshit and get me up—”
Ricam’s eyes met Nathan’s. Dozens of regrets flashed across the elf’s face as the venom drained away in an instant. It was supposed to be a safe job. Damn it, he should have sensed something was off. No wonder they paid so much extra. His miserable expression probably meant something like that.
Nathan apologized in a serious tone. “I was aiming for your back, but it didn’t work out. Did it leave a bump on your head?”
The kidnapping organization’s executive sank into a miserable rage. If he was going to say that, he shouldn’t have thrown it in the first place. When told that the bucket-wearing lunatic had beaten up the lookouts, he said nothing. Because he was not some bottom-rung trash. He also paid little attention to the report that the action leader who had been preparing revenge had instead been laid out flat. If the man had feared the consequences, he wouldn’t have talked at all. So when Nathan knocked on the hideout door, Ricam was genuinely surprised.
“Damn it, a Sapiens from the news is trying to kill me. I’d rather a giant alligator from the sewers dragged me away… Which bastard sold me out? Posity?”
“Nah, his mouth was smashed. He did his job properly. Mind if I ask first? Three days ago. The cold metal box. Remember? Where did you move it?”
Ricam clenched his teeth. In this place, it was better to die than become a traitor. There were plenty of vermin at Ricam’s level in this filthy sewer. The reason he had been able to become the core of the kidnapping and trafficking ring was because he spoke less than his competitors. He had not been chosen for being tight-lipped. He had simply survived by keeping his mouth shut.
“I have nothing to say to you, so kill me. I, Ricam, lived a dirty and fishy life, but I have no regrets! But remember one thing. Now that you’ve stirred things up like this, the entire underworld will be after your ass wherever you go!”
There seemed to be a slight misunderstanding. Nathan smiled affably and told him that the Changeling had already explained almost everything. He already knew where to go and who to meet, so Ricam only needed to fill in the minor details.
“Changeling? That freak that mimics appearances?”
The elf who had identified himself as Ricam frowned. “That bastard dies and comes back to life. What the hell did you do to make him sell out a client’s information?”
Nathan told him what he had done. Ricam nodded as if he understood. Then, without hesitation, he spilled everything.
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Bending, striking, tripping, breaking, kicking, ramming. By Nathan’s standards, it was not violence. It was far milder than his father’s “teachings” and much lighter than the “body games” of the Lionwing Knights. Therefore, it was nothing more than a conversational technique to draw out the main points. Rumors of his unique method of dialogue spread quickly, and the sewer residents realized there was no profit in trying to bite him. Those who encountered Nathan became increasingly cooperative.
Even while trying to maintain dignity, they all had a youthful air about their faces that made seriousness ill-fitting. The way their pointed ears trembled whenever they got angry was rather playful. Maybe they were all just simple jokers at heart. Nathan felt a warm glow at the locals’ kind hospitality. Benny had said this was a den of mindless cannibals and ruffians, but it seemed there had been a misunderstanding. Compared to the cults on the surface, the gangsters here were closer to tourist guides. They did not offer living sacrifices to become Children of the Stars, nor did they collect brains for offerings and turn the remaining entrails into golems.
“Smells more like people than I expected. Nice.”
“...Do you really think so, surface-dweller?”
“Half joking, but honestly, the kids are gentler than I thought.”
Nathan, facing the seated guests, grinned. The faces of the group blocking his path for the first time in a while twisted. Of course, there was nothing in the sewer residence that could lift one’s spirits. It was a place far from leisure. Bones and corpses floating here and there in the ditches. Moisture that seemed ready to grow mold on skin. Residents like stray dogs always ready to leap out and tear off flesh at the scent of the weak’s blood.
What Nathan was doing was no joke either. He was currently dealing with a human trafficking organization. Professional kidnappers who had received Nilly from the Changeling and delivered her to her brother. But the unexpected harvest was far too great. To think the head of that organization was that guy. The one he had been waiting to meet again. Neither the dampness of the water nor the stench of the tunnels could dampen his boiling mood. Nathan was in the best of spirits right now.
“So, you didn’t bring this many people just to have a picnic. What are you going to do?”
The ones he met this time were fairly well armed. About twenty of them wore mismatched plate armor they had apparently picked up somewhere. The long swords in all their hands gleamed quite stylishly… Yet Nathan felt no tension. Oh dear, they don’t know anything. You shouldn’t stick a sword tip into mud like that.
The largest of the long-eared group growled with all his might. He seemed to be the leader. “Don’t think you’re walking out of here alive. I’ll personally take your breath away.”
Nathan nodded calmly while biting off the last piece of bread in his hand. He was still sitting on the bottom step. “Do it.”
But none of the elves charged. Sweat dripped from the hands gripping their weapons. Meanwhile, Nathan pulled another loaf from the backpack at his side. The smell of ham and flour wafted gently through the grime. With each bite, there was the sticky sound of cream and the burst of vegetable moisture. Factory-grown cheap vegetables crunched deliciously between his molars. The gang members, dragged out without even eating, swallowed their saliva. Even after he finished the second loaf, Nathan had not a single wound on his body.
Nathan roughly wiped his mouth and said, “Do it. Please. I’m sitting here completely defenseless, begging you to fight.”
Ruffians usually despised cowards and spat. However, they became infinitely enraged at an opponent who did not even fear them and charged without thinking. Apparently, long ears were no exception. Nathan’s attitude had clearly offended them. Their faces flushed red as they stepped forward. Their blood-engorged ears trembled comically. It was exactly as Nathan intended.
But the scene that unfolded next was not what Nathan had expected at all.
“How ugly, kids. It’s troublesome when several of you gang up on one person.”
Two strands of chains flew from the darkness. They tightened from both sides. Three or four long-eared elves who could not even react were swept up and bound. The wide-eyed elves screamed a breath later and were dragged into the darkness. Sparks flew as the brass and cement floor was scraped. “And that kid is seventeen. For an Eleim, that’s barely learned to walk. Do you always go all out against seventeen-year-olds?”
Thud. Thud. Two pairs of echoing footsteps. Nathan’s eyes widened. He recognized the weight of those footsteps. “Right, Hodrick?”
Whoosh. A snort answered in place of words. Under the flickering lamp light, Kilika and Hodrick Niko appeared.
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“Why are you two here…?”
Kilika, who had flinched when their eyes met, waved her hand awkwardly. “Uh… It’s been a few days. Well, we came to help.”
“So why are you here?”
Kilika said with a face full of pride, “Because I’m from here. I know these sewers like the back of my—”
“...Not that. Why are you here?”
Kilika pressed her lips together and fell silent. Hodrick shook his head. It was a meaningless gesture. The leader who had brought the gang widened his eyes. “Hodrick and Kilika? The twin cannibals?”
When Nathan gave him another questioning look, embarrassment crossed Kilika’s face. “...That was over a hundred years ago. And it only happened once! Just once!”
“Yeah. Just once. When we went to collect a debt, you bit off and swallowed the fingers I reached out to grab your hair.”
The leader growled and raised his hand. He was missing his middle finger to his pinky. They had not been cut in the middle. The third joint from the base was gone. “Whoa. So that was you! Long time no see? The back alleys really are small, huh?”
A triumphant smile spread across Kilika’s face. Back then she had barely escaped without seeing the end, but now she had the skill to send off plenty of mediocre opponents. But it was not only Kilika who had changed.
“I’ve been waiting for the day I’d meet you, preparing something special. Since sewer rats always return to the sewers. You two who ran off to the arena still haven’t seen the true face of this hellhole.”
The big man’s voice twisted. When he loosened his armor straps and threw them to the ground, the subordinates nearby hurriedly stepped back. Even those who were too slow got caught. Black tentacles shot out and struck their heads. [It’s been a while since I’ve done this. It’s inconvenient because it takes a long time to return to normal afterward.]
Crack. Crunch. Following the gradually increasing height of the opponent’s head, Nathan and the twins had to tilt their heads back uncomfortably. The exposed gaps between crimson bones and flesh were cruelly revealed. Instead of the blood that should have spurted, a deep green light rippled. The tentacles that rose through the back swayed like smoke. The skeleton twisted and bent grotesquely. Yet the creature only laughed as if it felt no pain. It must have lived as a host for quite a long time. [The time has come to repay an old debt. You will be devoured in the deep and terrifying sewers today.]
The whispering voice gradually turned into a sob. Two more pitch-black arms shot out from the sides. A thick third leg sprouted from the tailbone and stepped on the ground. When it lowered its head as if its breath had stopped, tentacles burst out messily from its maw. Kiiiii. Giiii. A groan that was no longer even speech. The Child of the Stars revealed itself.
“Ah...”
Come to think of it, if there was a Changeling, there was no reason there wouldn’t be other monsters from the Abyss. Nathan scratched the back of his neck awkwardly. “Cancel the tourist guide. At this rate, it’s not much different from the cults down below.”
Nathan suddenly felt something touch his knee. It was a subordinate elf who had recoiled in shock. Nathan felt a twinge of pity for the trembling, terrified elf. So he stood up abruptly and stomped on his face. The elf whose head hit the floor could no longer feel fear. Nathan decided to borrow the weapon of the elf who had embarked on an adventure beyond consciousness.
“Whoa. Pretty thin.”
Blade width three centimeters. Weight a little over one kilogram. It felt like the iron was peeling. Still sharp though. It would not do against heavily armored opponents, but it was still a usable weapon against long-eared folk who had Abyss monsters implanted in their bodies.
“Well, gotta use what’s available.”
The monster chewing on tentacles with a smile now turned its back on Nathan and headed toward the siblings. The fight had changed from a duel to a battle against a giant beast. It would not be an easy opponent. The twins slowly retreated while exchanging glances. Kilika swung her chains to build centrifugal force. To cut off an attack if the creature struck from a distance. Hodrick gripped his long-handled axe, ready to counter if it charged.
“Hodrick. If things look bad, run out and go to Benny. I’ve only told that girl one thing. If I ever die and don’t come back, tell her where I buried the gold bars to pay for the hospital bills—”
Hodrick removed one hand from the axe handle and slapped Kilika’s mouth with a smack. Kilika, whose vision briefly blurred, predictably lost her temper. “Ow, shit. Just add it to your mouth surgery fund—”
Another slap. Smack. Kilika gave up on persuading him. Since she now wanted to beat up her younger brother, it seemed she absolutely had to survive together. The twins gripped their weapons and prepared for the final battle. The monster mocked their resolve and rambled on. Its speech was unclear as it chewed on tentacles. [Today the legend of the back alleys ends. From now on, it’s not you but me who is the king of this alley, the right arm of Ulukabo—]
The twins’ pupils widened. Their gazes were not on the monster, but behind its neck. Nathan had stepped on the tentacles growing from its back and leaped up. The blade burst out through the monster’s forehead. A moment later, realizing what had happened, the creature screamed instead of dying and slammed its body against the wall. Enduring the violent vibration by gripping the tentacles, Nathan reached out to Hodrick. “Here, the axe-!”
Without a moment’s hesitation, Hodrick obeyed. Nathan caught the thrown axe handle and brought it down with all his strength. Crack. Crack. Only two strikes. “They say two strikes are enough, so it’s called a guillotine.”
The monster, now one skull lighter, shriveled like a balloon and collapsed to the ground. Nathan lightly hopped down from its body. “Showing your back. No matter how depressed you are, that’s an extreme choice.”
The twins blinked. The severed head had flown far away and stuck to the wall. Watching the remains slowly slide down the wall into the ditch, Kilika muttered blankly, “You… were you going easy on us quite a bit when we fought?”