Take This
Take this.
If a little shit has no manners, turn your head and look at the parents.
More often than not, kids with rotten personalities either got no home education at all, or got the absolute worst kind of it. So take a look at Amir here. He wasn't born a psycho. From the time he was a clueless little brat, Amir simply grew up based on what he saw and learned. And looking at the Amir we have now, we can make a pretty solid guess—what kind of home education he received, and how thoroughly he got put through the wringer under a pair of absolute trash parents.
Just as people expected, Amir received a shitty upbringing and grew up into a shitty person. A father who spent his days brawling and eventually got killed by some mercenary. A mother who sold her body in the brothels just to raise her son alone. How was a kid supposed to grow up right in an environment like that? Anyway, for those reasons, Amir evolved into a complete piece of shit.
So Amir himself isn't at fault. If there's any sin, it lies with the parents. For instance, any parental insults aimed at Amir are perfectly justified. You're not insulting him—you're insulting his worthless parents. The unfairly treated Amir should actually be agreeing with those insults. It's only natural.
But why, then?
"What... did you just say?"
Amir was radiating murderous intent so thick it looked like he might twist Evan's neck right then and there. Evan scratched his head at the question, then answered slowly.
"I said your mom's hot. It's a compliment."
"..."
"Oh, and come to think of it, I almost forgot. I had something to give you too."
Evan rummaged through his pocket. The people around stared at him like he was a madman for being so casually nonchalant in this situation. Amir said nothing, just glared at Evan with fierce eyes. Soon, Evan pulled something out of his pocket.
"Here it is. Take it."
"...What is this?"
A thumb stuck between two fingers. The shape was reminiscent of a nipple. No point hiding it—Evan said exactly what he'd been thinking.
"What else? It's your mom's nipple. I must've sucked too hard and it came off. But our son Amir's old enough not to need breast milk anymore, right? No need to be too sad."
Amir momentarily doubted his ears. The clean-mouthed Evan who never swore. The idea that he would deliver a parental insult this deliciously was absolutely impossible. And that wasn't all. The remarks Evan had made earlier weren't just mere verbal insults. They were far more shocking and thought-provoking than that. Still reeling from the shock, Amir slowly burst into laughter.
"...Pfft. Have you lost your mind?"
"Huh? Oh, right. Amy has inverted nipples, doesn't she?"
Evan slightly pulled back the thumb he'd been holding. He stuck out just a fingernail's worth and continued.
"Here, take this. That's Amy's nipple. The one just now was Luna's."
"Wh-what? You son of a bitch!"
Luna was Gale's older sister. His only remaining blood relative.
"Mm-hmm. But our son Amir. If you've seen your dad, you should greet him. Why are you just standing there blankly? Come on, say hello to your new dad."
"You've really gone insane?"
"Insane? Ahem! Tsk! No matter how manners-less you are, cursing from the first meeting? Tsk tsk, they say no parent can beat their child..."
Evan added a few solemn-toned words. Only then could Amir organize his chaotic thoughts.
"Evan? Don't you think the intensity of this joke is a bit too high?"
"Evan? Haha, look at this guy. Still doesn't recognize his own father."
He wanted to kill him right now. If he could, he would have torn that detestable face to shreds ten times over. But there were too many eyes watching. Moreover, acting on emotion would be walking right into the trap Evan had dug.
"Look at this crazy bastard?!"
"Gale? Stop."
Knowing the full story, Amir first pushed the excited Gale back. Then, swallowing his fluster with a fake cough, he spoke to Evan.
"Hoo. Let's stop the jokes there."
Yeah, Evan must have heard the rumors that his mother was a whore, and spat out these lies for revenge. Amir decided to think that way.
"I have no intention of playing along with your tune, Evan. And you shouldn't casually make such low-quality jokes."
"It wasn't low quality. Among the women I've seen, she was top-tier."
At the sudden sex-drip mixed parental insult, Gale let out a hollow laugh. Was this really the Evan he knew? Holding that doubt, he secretly checked on Amir.
"...Haa, fuck."
A rough curse spilled from Amir's mouth. He suppressed his murderous intent as much as possible and mustered the last shred of composure.
"Evan? I know full well what intention you have in trying to deceive me with those lies. But stop it now. This is truly the final warning."
"Mole on the left thigh."
"...What?"
"Amy has a mole on her left thigh. Two moles connected in a straight line, right?"
What this statement proved was clear. With irrefutable evidence, denial was no longer possible. Right after, Amir began to reveal his true feelings.
"Gale."
"...Yeah."
Shing!
Amir drew his sword from its sheath as he continued.
"I guess it can't be helped. Let's kill him."
"Hoo, I knew you'd say that. You held out pretty well."
Gale had been gripping a dagger for a while now. Of course, they had no intention of killing him. Even if he was a discarded child, Evan was still a noble's son. Killing him would cause all sorts of trouble. So they planned to just rough him up a little. And for them, "a little" meant about one arm. At the very least, they'd need to take three fingers to be satisfied.
"Come to think of it, Luna also had a mole next to her belly button. Oh, and Luna's been tying her hair up lately. Trying to hide the hickey on the back of her neck, maybe?"
"...Keh heh heh. You're really dead. Repeat after me: I'm dead."
Now even three fingers wouldn't satisfy him. Even if it meant killing him, he'd tear off both arms. Gale was about to charge at Evan with open murderous intent when—
"W-wait! Why are you suddenly doing this?!"
Judy and the party members blocked the way. Gale roughly shoved Judy's shoulder out of the way to clear a path.
"Kyaa!"
"Get lost, you bitch!"
"What the hell is this?! If you bastards come at us like that, we won't just stand by either!"
"E-Evan! Hide behind us!"
They didn't know the exact circumstances. But they clearly knew these guys were trying to kill Evan.
"Judy? Would you mind stepping aside while I'm still being nice?"
"Amir! Calm down first! Let's solve this with talking!"
"Haa. Now every Tom, Dick, and Harry is getting on my nerves."
Amir's gang who had been drinking at the back tables. Before they knew it, they had surrounded Evan.
"Evan. Would you care to repeat what you just said?"
"Which part? That your mom's hot? Or the inverted nipples?"
"...I think I'll just kill you."
Thud.
Amir took a step closer. He deliberately addressed Evan's party members.
"Would you ladies mind stepping out of this?"
"W-what are you talking about! Evan is our comrade!"
"Hmm. Is that so? But what a shame. If you ladies come out like that, we won't be able to keep that promise either."
""...!""
The resolve to protect Evan became meaningless. The women who had been ready to fight just moments ago now showed hesitation at Amir's single remark.
"Th-that wasn't part of the deal!"
"Th-that's right! You clearly said you'd accept us!"
"Then would you mind clearing the way quickly? I don't want to break a promise either."
They didn't completely step aside. Of course, that didn't mean they engaged in combat with Amir's gang either.
"Mmm~ How pitiful, Evan. Even your former party members don't seem to have any intention of protecting you?"
Just standing there like stone statues doing nothing, the party members showed only the bare minimum of camaraderie. Evan spoke with a laugh mixed in.
"You guys are swarming like crazy. For a second I thought you were a pack of dogs I was raising. What? Want a bone?"
"Hey, do you not grasp the situation? There's no one here to help you, you know? You've gone completely insane if you're set on dying."
"Go through what I've been through. A person can't help but go insane."
"Ahaha. Let's see how long you can keep acting relaxed."
Amir grinned and jerked his chin at the guild members. The men each gripped their weapons. A hair-trigger situation where blood could fly at any moment. Evan's women just chewed their lips as they watched the scene.
"You're dead! You fucking bastard!"
Gale was about to thrust his dagger at Evan. At that moment, a man kicked Gale in the back of the knee, disabling him. At the sudden kick, Gale fell in an ugly sprawl.
"Guh! You fucker! Who the hell are you guys?!"
"We're trying to drink, and you're being too damn noisy. If you want to cause a ruckus, why don't you head over to the underground fighting arena."
"Ha! Hey Gadel, you wanna die too?"
"Kill me? Failing to grasp the situation—same as always, past or present. Who's the one about to die here?"
Gale moved the hand holding his weapon to threaten Gadel. Even so, Gadel didn't back down. Just like at the start, he glared at Amir and Gale with a confident gaze.
"Amir. You know we've put up with a lot, right?"
"...Haha. Saying things that could cause misunderstandings? Who's the one who's been putting up with whom?"
"So what are you going to do about it? Planning a big brawl?"
Gale shot Amir a look. A signal that if he just said the word, they'd dunk these guys right away. At that, Amir turned his gaze and looked around.
...This is bad.
Everyone inside who had been drinking was standing up. Their hands were on their gear, as if announcing they would join the fight.
Did that bastard plan even this far?
Lately, Evan's meetings with the local mercenaries had been frequent. At first he thought it was nothing. But looking at it now, Evan had recruited the mercenaries in his own way and built a force.
"Keh. Nothing's going my way."
Had that Evan drawn the picture knowing it would come to this? He thought he was a fool who didn't know how the world worked, but he was more thorough than expected.
"Gilbert is one thing, but can you handle Gadel? He's got four dependents alone, right?"
"When have you ever worried about me. And right now, you should be worrying about your own situation first."
Saying that, Gadel sent a look to the people around. About twenty mercenaries. All of them treated as veterans. In contrast, Amir's gang was five, and even those were bottom-rung lackeys considered small fry in the guild.
"...Tsk."
"We have no intention of letting a ruckus break out here. If blood splatters on our drinks, you bastards aren't going to take responsibility, are you?"
"..."
Amir flipped a coin in his head. Then the conclusion came out.
"Hmm. Then shall we change locations? Evan? Would you mind coming with us for a moment?"
"That won't work either. Evan promised to buy us drinks, you see."
Gilbert backed up Gadel's words.
"Mm-hmm. That's right. Isn't that so, friends?"
The mercenaries all nodded at once. Of course no such promise existed, but there was no way mercenaries would turn down free drinks.
"Tsk..."
"These bastards have all gone crazy as a group!"
"Hey Amir. What are you going to do?"
Defeated in momentum before even fighting. If a battle broke out, the outcome was as clear as day. In the end, Amir decided to yield one step.
"...The drinks have gone bad."
"..."
"Haha. Looks like this isn't a situation for drinking."
Amir looked at his subordinates. He was smiling softly, but somehow it was an awkward smile.
"...Kids, let's go."
"Hoo. Yes..."
"Ha. Those fucking bastards...!"
Amir led the way out. Gale and the subordinates followed behind.
"Oh, by the way."
Just before opening the door and leaving, Amir spoke to Evan.
"Be careful on the night roads. I think Evan knows best what kind of things might happen."
"Don't worry. I'm in Amy's arms every night. No need to wander the streets at night."
"...Alright. We'll see."
After that, with Gale sending a murderous glare as the end, the commotion was settled for now. Once their figures completely disappeared, the atmosphere at the scene settled.
"Hmm. Managed to get through without seeing blood. Good."
In the silent quiet, Gadel opened his mouth.
"Don't say thanks. I'm planning to settle it with free drinks anyway."
"I had no intention of thanking you, and no intention of buying drinks either."
Gadel chuckled faintly and put an arm around Evan's shoulder.
"But you've got guts. Evan, I didn't know you were a man with this much backbone."
"What did I even do. I couldn't even fight."
"Haha. Look at this friend. Too much humility is unsightly. It's fine to swagger a bit in times like this. There are important eyes watching nearby, after all."
Gadel casually tossed a glance at Evan's party members. At Gadel's gaze that seemed to be urging them, the women who had been fidgeting also started to move.
"Lovers' quarrels are all like that. I hope you make up soon."
The quick-witted Gadel cleared the space. The party members took his place.
"E-Evan. Are you okay?"
"What on earth happened..."
Judy and Chloe each threw out a word.
"But was that true? Really with those loose women in the back alleys..."
"Evan-nim, you weren't originally that kind of man..."
Illinet and Cecilia also threw out a few questions. At those words, Evan let out a sigh. After consecutive sighs, he opened his mouth.
"So, what was it you wanted to say to me."
They were probably thinking of leaving the party. If that thought was correct, Evan would accept without any regrets.