Chapter 182
Chapter 182
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: penny
Chapter: 182
Chapter Title: On the Way to Sampoh (6)
-----------------------------------------------------------------
* * *
***
Right after the man who appeared to be the mercenary captain collapsed like a puppet with its strings cut, the Saintess raised her revolver and blew on the barrel.
"Came to buy some goods and end up seeing all sorts of sights."
Yeomyeong nodded in agreement. At the same time, he scanned the surroundings of the campsite and clenched his fist.
Soon, the spell activated, and the dozens of mercenaries caught in telekinetic magic began thrashing about in unison.
"Guhk, guhk!"
"S-spare me..."
"Kuh, kuhk."
He had no intention of killing them, so Yeomyeong just applied pressure to their necks—precisely, their carotid arteries.
About ten seconds later.
When Yeomyeong released the spell and tossed the mercenaries to the ground, not a single one remained conscious.
"What about the ones running away?"
The Saintess asked, peering into the darkness beyond the campsite. As she said, rustling sounds of retreat came from that direction.
The sounds of the surviving superhuman mercenaries fleeing.
Focusing mana in his ears allowed him to pick up more precise information.
They weren't fast, but they were fleeing in different directions with all their might—roughly four or five of them.
'Troublesome.'
The moment Yeomyeong gathered mana in his calves to pursue them.
Flutter flutter. The sound of wings flapping reached him.
Turning at the familiar sound, he saw a large crow chasing after the fleeing men.
It was Corvus. Though he hadn't given her any specific orders, Yeomyeong chased the ones fleeing in the opposite direction from her.
"I'll clean up here!"
Leaving the Saintess's voice behind, Yeomyeong and Corvus dashed off for a moment.
BOOM!!
Explosions that shook the dark forest rang out one after another.
'Corpse Explosion again?'
The Saintess glanced in the direction Yeomyeong had vanished, then shook her head.
How many times had he taken a Corpse Explosion hit so far? Worry about what?
With that thought, she dusted off her clothes and began cleaning up the campsite.
Dragging away corpses with grunts, tying up the unconscious mercenaries, wandering tent to tent to heal the passed-out merchants, adding firewood to the bonfire...
By the time she finished tidying up.
Yeomyeong returned from the darkness. The ones he'd chased had all self-destructed, leaving his clothes soaked in blood.
"Did you find anything?"
She asked just in case, and instead of answering, Yeomyeong pulled something from his pocket and tossed it to the Saintess. She caught it reflexively, and her eyepatch twitched.
"...A smartphone?"
"More precisely, a rugged phone."
Rugged phone. It referred to a military-grade smartphone enhanced for security and durability.
It was odd enough that a mercenary beyond the dimensional gate used a military smartphone, but a rugged one?
"Why carry this in a place with no signal...?"
"Check the back."
The Saintess did as told and examined the back of the rugged phone.
Engraved there was...
"...What the hell is this?"
A symbol of seven stems blooming like a flower atop a round circle.
It looked familiar, but no matter how hard she searched her memory, nothing exact came to mind.
And then, Corvus, who had returned to the campsite unnoticed, landed beside the Saintess and opened her beak.
"It's the symbol of the French Foreign Legion."
"...Foreign Legion?"
Looking again, the seven stems blooming over the circle did resemble the fleur-de-lis, France's national flower.
French Foreign Legion? Was there a former Legionnaire among the mercenaries?
But more than that, how did Yeomyeong recognize it at a glance? He didn't have combat experience like Corvus.
Wasn't he exempt from service?
As the Saintess's doubts deepened, Yeomyeong added an explanation.
"The exact name of that symbol is the Seven Flame Grenades. It's not something usually engraved on military gear..."
To find it here, on a mercenary twisted by mana.
Of course, it could just be smuggled goods he bought, or maybe he was a discharged Legionnaire.
But if, by any chance, these guys were part of a Foreign Legion secretly planted by France beyond the dimensional gate?
"...Should we kill them all to seal their lips?"
No sooner had Yeomyeong uttered the chilling words than Tindamel, just regaining consciousness, flinched and trembled.
It was understandable. Yeomyeong, drenched in blood and talking casually about mass murder, looked terrifying to anyone.
Tindamel rose from his seat and crept toward the Saintess.
But contrary to his expectations, she wasn't welcoming.
She spun her drawn revolver deftly and said,
"You seem to know me. Mind introducing yourself?"
Her voice held no hostility, but no warmth either. Tindamel swallowed hard.
"M-my name is Tindamel. I base myself in the small city of Baktran, traveling between the south and center to make a living as a merchant."
"..."
"Uh, well... I've made generous donations to the Holy Kingdom. I've even attended your ceremonies a few times."
The Saintess stopped spinning the gun and stared piercingly at Tindamel.
Was it because her eyes were covered by the eyepatch? He couldn't tell what she was thinking.
In contrast, Tindamel felt like his innermost thoughts were being read. Unable to bear it, he averted his gaze.
A brief silence.
As Tindamel fidgeted, rolling his eyes, and embers from the bonfire floated toward the moonlight.
Yeomyeong spoke.
"The Awakening Potion. Where'd you get it?"
"..."
Only then did Tindamel realize why the Saintess was so cold.
How could she be pleased with a merchant carrying a potion only necromancers could make?
Half indignant, half terrified, he replied.
"I-I've never dealt with necromancers! I swear on Ulsubati in the heavens!"
"...Then why were you carrying an Awakening Potion?"
"I-it was forced on me by threats! Please believe me! I really..."
Before his rambling could drag on, Yeomyeong cut him off.
"No excuses. Just the point. Who forced you to transport the potion?"
"Th-that was..."
Tindamel couldn't answer immediately.
He glanced back and forth between Yeomyeong, the Saintess, and the pile of mercenaries dumped like luggage in one corner of the campsite before taking a deep breath.
A moment later, he spoke in a resolved tone.
"The ones who forced me to transport the potion... were La Cosa Nostra."
Tindamel trembled just saying the name, as if it terrified him.
The Saintess and Corvus wore expressions of "What's that?" while Yeomyeong...
Frowned sharply.
"Mafia?"
***
"Uweeeek."
After vomiting her guts out for a while, Neti could finally breathe only once her stomach was empty.
"Haa... I'm alive."
As she straightened up, her sister, who had been patting her back, handed her a water bottle. Neti gulped it down eagerly.
Over the bottle, she saw her sister's face mixed with worry and amusement.
By the time Neti emptied the bottle, Seti spoke.
"So, how was riding on a dragon's back?"
"..."
Neti pouted, clutching the water bottle tightly.
She couldn't say in front of the dragon, "I nearly puked from motion sickness and cold so many times. Dragons have the worst ride comfort, and I won't get on one again even if you pay me."
The only reason she hadn't vomited until landing was because she was a mage.
If the mana suppressing her stomach had run out before touchdown?
She would've been the first human to make buckwheat pancakes on a dragon's back.
...Anyway, that was that, and the ride was appreciated. Regaining her composure, Neti bowed toward the dragon.
"...Thank you for the ride."
The resting dragon snorted flames.
[A human more polite than the Saintess. I gladly accept your thanks.]
"..."
How the hell did the Saintess manage that...?
Neti swallowed the question on the tip of her tongue and turned toward the direction where Yeomyeong and the Saintess had gone.
"Where's brother-in-law? He still not back?"
"Who knows, fighting some weirdos again?"
Her sister said it like it was no big deal. There were gunshots and what sounded like small explosions—didn't she worry?
'Wonder if she'll lose her man like this.'
Neti eyed her sister worriedly, and Seti shrugged.
"If you're that worried, wanna go check?"
She was more worried about her sister than brother-in-law, but Neti nodded without pointing it out.
As the two headed to the campsite, the dragon followed, saying it preferred places with fire.
Thud thud. After the dragon's footsteps echoed through the night forest for a bit.
The campsite the two girls and dragon arrived at was lively, contrary to expectations.
Corvus exchanging drinks with shady-looking merchants somewhere.
The Saintess showing off revolver tricks in front of workers, earning applause.
And dozens of mercenaries tightly bound and abandoned in a corner.
"...What the?"
As Neti looked around in bewilderment, a merchant spotted them—precisely, the dragon—and scurried over.
"Ah, you've arrived! I was just about to send someone."
The merchant ordered a worker as if he'd been waiting, then led the two to a table by the bonfire.
The table held fruit preserved in sugar, bread, and wine—an elaborate spread. The merchant grinned widely as he filled their glasses.
"We owe your group a huge debt. This food is all on us as thanks—don't worry about the cost, eat up."
As Neti happily lifted her wine glass, Seti smacked the back of her hand.
"...No drinking."
Ignoring her sister's grumbling, Seti addressed the merchant.
"Um, Mr. Merchant?"
"My name is Tindamel, miss."
"Yes, Tindamel. Where's the man who came with us? I don't see him."
"Ah, that gentleman is..."
Tindamel trailed off, glancing at a tent. Steam wafted from its entrance.
He's in there? Seti stood immediately.
"Thanks for telling me."
"Wait, miss! He's right now...!"
Ignoring Tindamel's protests, Seti headed to the tent. And the moment she entered.
"..."
"..."
She locked eyes with Yeomyeong, who had just finished bathing and was drying his naked body with a towel.
Brief eye contact, followed by slightly longer silence.
Before Yeomyeong could speak, Seti backed out of the tent.
Ah.
Realizing what she'd done, Seti covered her face with both palms.
Waves of embarrassment, awkwardness, and joy crashed through her mind, then receded.
Finally, what filled her heart was shamelessness.
No need to be embarrassed. Right, it's not like it's the first time anyway...
As her thoughts reached there, Yeomyeong—now dressed—emerged from the tent.
"Seti? What're you doing?"
"..."
Seeing his face froze her thoughts. It was unavoidable.
No matter how harsh her life had been, she was still a delicate girl.
Should I apologize? Or compliment him?
As deranged options popped into her head, Yeomyeong took her hand.
"Got something important to talk about. Wanna chat for a sec?"
"Y-yeah..."
Led by Yeomyeong's hand, she arrived at the table where Neti sat.
"Brother-in-law, what magic did you pull?"
Neti, who had been picking at the hard bread, asked abruptly. Her gaze was on Seti's slightly flushed face.
"Magic?"
"No, sister's face..."
Neti stopped there. Her sister was glaring daggers.
"...It's nothing."
Yeomyeong smirked watching the sisters' skit. He sat beside Seti and spoke.
"First, I'll explain what happened here."
True to his preference for summaries, his explanation was concise.
Mercenary band, twisted mana, merchant, Awakening Potion, and... La Cosa Nostra.
"...What's that?"
Seti's fine brows furrowed at the sudden Italian. But instead of Yeomyeong, Neti answered.
"Mafia."
"...What?"
"The American mafia organization descended from the Sicilian Cosa Nostra alliance. History-wise, it's over a hundred years old."
Seti looked at Yeomyeong as if to confirm, and he nodded.
"You know your stuff. How?"
Neti couldn't say it was from a famous romance novel, so she brushed it off as common knowledge.
As Seti's expression turned odd at suddenly being the ignorant one, Yeomyeong added,
"Additionally, they've been desperate to expand business beyond the dimensional gate since the '90s."
"So?"
"They've set up big in the Gemini Autonomous District. Enough to threaten local merchants into smuggling Awakening Potions."
"..."
Seti propped her chin, thinking. Gemini Autonomous District, new identities, mafia, dimensional gate city.
"...You're not thinking of helping the merchants attack the mafia, are you?"
"That could be one way."
"..."
"If there's a simple way, I'll take it. No need to dirty our hands—just deliver an Awakening Potion to the US, and the mafia crumbles."
That made sense. If word got out that a mere crime group was colluding with necromancers... the US wouldn't sit idle.
Seti chewed fruit, weighing options in her mind.
Ultimately, the group wanted fake IDs and safe return to Earth.
With overwhelming cards like Yeomyeong and Corvus, using the mafia might not be bad...
As her thoughts reached there.
An unfamiliar voice came from across Seti—precisely, beside Neti.
"I don't recommend tangling with the mafia. Dumb bastards full of pride, they'll pester you without knowing their place."
"..."
"Of course, if you're killing them all, no issue."
He was a man cloaked in a robe.
Neither Neti, Seti, nor Yeomyeong had sensed his presence—when or how he'd appeared.
"...Who are you."
Yeomyeong asked, drawing up mana. The robed man poured wine into Yeomyeong's and his own glasses instead of answering.
Splash splash. Only after both were full did he speak.
"Caymus. Decent for California wine. Pricey for a trader to carry... Guess that merchant's truly grateful to you. Or trying to impress the Saintess. Either way, no reason to refuse the drink, right?"
"..."
Yeomyeong debated pulling his sword from inventory but saw the sisters frozen and just took the glass.
The next moment, the mana pressing the table vanished.
Seti and Neti gasped like drowning victims breaking the surface.
Neti's panting breaths, Seti's gritted teeth.
The man leisurely sipped his wine. Yeomyeong glared silently until the man's glass emptied, then asked.
"I'll ask again. Who are you?"
"The one who evades the Dragon's Eye, fools the Crossroads Seeker's senses, and reaches your front... Ah, not human? Anyway, that kind of person."
Playing twenty questions, he refilled his glass and kept talking.
"What else... America's Calamity, Chile's Destroyer, World Tree's Avenger, Last Red, Forest Dwellers' Slaughterer, Red Cloud, Angry Horse, Crouched Bull... And tons of other nicknames."
"..."
Only then did Yeomyeong and Seti realize who the man was.
"You... no way?"
Finally, the man removed his hood.
Neti couldn't hide her shock at the revealed face. Seti tightly pursed her lips, staring.
Hair bleached bone-white, skin browned like autumn leaves, face covered in countless scars.
But most striking were the long ears, several times a human's length.
"Demerond Ip Marx..."
Leader of the World Tree Revolutionary Corps, the terrorist who plunged Earth into terror.
And Miridis's father stood before them.
* * *