episode_0060

‘… no way.’

Ian found Vivian waiting patiently.

A no-cast talent that everyone can’t help but covet.

But I soon shook that thought away.

‘No casting is an ability that only exists in theory. I only know this because I heard about it from the magic tower owner in the second episode, but there is no way a criminal organization would know about it. Even if word of your talent spread, no one would believe it.’

‘It makes even less sense if they said they were targeting Vivian because they knew about her talent. It’s impossible with these weaklings, and they probably wouldn’t have made such a pointless conversation like before.’

Gordon’s encounter with Vivian can be dismissed as pure coincidence.

Isn’t it rare for people to become obsessed with women like that?

‘Realistically, the possibility of targeting Vivian’s talent approaches 0%. It would be reasonable to judge that it was just a bunch of idiots doing something stupid.’

But that doesn’t mean you can rest assured.

The fact that a criminal organization has entered Superbia is itself a very big problem.

‘This is Supevia, which is carefully managed by the empire as it is the place where the hero system begins.’

That means it has good public safety.

Although this is relative to other regions, at least it is difficult for professional criminal organizations to form or break into Superbia.

‘How did they take the risk to expand their sphere of influence to Spevia?’

The Liberal League does not touch anything that may cause loss or risk to them as much as possible.

These are people whose profit and loss calculations are as thorough as those at the top.

‘To begin with, these guys aren’t very active around Superbia… .’

The top values of the Liberal Alliance are safety and guaranteed profits.

Why such a cautious group took risks.

no. The question needs to be changed.

They are not risk takers.

So, this means that the risks that should exist have been greatly reduced or eliminated.

‘If someone guaranteed safety in Superbia or promised a reasonable level of profit… . ‘Who could do that?’

Emperor.

Destroy it right away.

Those competing for the throne within the imperial family.

Destroy this too.

Although the Liberal League is a large criminal group, it is not big enough to join hands with the imperial family.

gendarmerie.

Captain Wolfgang is a man of integrity even though he has a dirty temper.

The same goes for the characters below them.

In the first place, the military police only hire people who will devote themselves to the empire, so this is also a failure.

‘The remaining two groups have a high possibility.’

The remnants of the Anti-Imperial Coalition, which planned a rebellion but collapsed due to Ian’s tip-off.

Or the main axis of the Holy Unification National Plan.

The two groups that Ian disbanded dream of overthrow again and join hands with a criminal organization.

Most likely.

‘Almost all members of the Anti-Imperial Coalition were executed, but they were not the mainstay of the Holy Unification National Plan. At first, Seonghwang was part of the main axis, so those involved could not be punished.’

Didn’t you hear at McDerlin Abbey that one of the main figures, Bertolt Schulz, was gathering power again?

‘Although the Anti-Imperial Coalition is small, there will be remnants… . They may have joined forces with a criminal organization to join forces. It would be of great value just to share things like city tax sources, inter-city trade details, and material storage locations… .’

… In any case, it is just a baseless speculation.

Nothing is certain.

‘There is too little information.’

Ian also didn’t have much information about the criminal organization.

During the second round, I spent most of my time focusing on my own growth and hunting demons, so I had no choice but to be ignorant about human criminal organizations.

That was all I could find out right now.

After this, it will have to be left to the military police.

‘It’s not the kind of thing I’d get involved in, but it wouldn’t hurt to keep an eye on it. I’ll have to ask the military police to share any information they get.’

After organizing his thoughts, Ian decided to settle this situation first.

Vivian is still waiting patiently over there.

There was also one man left who fell down on his knees.

Ian asked the back of his head.

“Did you know that this friend is a liberal?”

People belonging to the Liberal Alliance are called ‘liberals.’

In the meantime, Ian looked at the bodies of this man and the rest of the unconscious people.

Gordon was the only one with a mark.

“… … .”

“I knew. Did you think the organization would help you if something happened? Consumables like this?”

The man had no answer, perhaps realizing that his thoughts were short-lived.

“He’s about D+ level, so he must have been trustworthy to do such low-level things. There are few heroes like him here.”

“… … .”

There wasn’t a single mistake.

The man’s head fell into the dirt out of shame.

“Where should I go?”

“… Yes?”

“You, like your friends, need to fix one thing. Did you really try to stay sane by yourself without any sense of loyalty?”

“Ah… . that… .”

No matter how hard you think, there is no way out.

He said resignedly.

“With your left hand… .”

“Are you right-handed?”

“Yes… .”

Ian broke his right hand.

“Ahh! I thought it was my left hand… . Gen.”

Ian didn’t listen anymore and tapped the back of his head, knocking him out.

“If anyone hears it, they’ll think I’m going to kill you.”

Ian took out a hunting dagger from his pocket and began dismantling it.

*

“Vivian, that’s enough.”

“Yes, yes… . Um, what happened… ?”

“Hmm… . It’s not a very nice sight.”

Behind Vivian’s back, the four of them could be seen in their miserable state.

Vivian swallowed her saliva at Ian’s words.

“I didn’t do anything serious. I just took off all my clothes.”

“… What?”

“I took off my underwear, made everyone hug me, and tied them up. Those things will look very interesting when they wake up tomorrow morning.”

What Ian dismantled were their clothes.

I confirmed my identity with my warrior’s license and reported it to the guards here, so the military police would take care of collecting it.

“… Phew!”

“Ugh, you can’t look at it though. It looks really ugly.”

“Oh, I’m not watching! lol… .”

Vivian, who was grinning, quickly became sullen.

“I’m sorry… . because of me… .”

“Did Vivian do something wrong?”

“Uh… . That’s not true… .”

“Is that so? So you don’t have to apologize.”

“Hehe… .”

“But it’s still good. Because the magic that didn’t work was successful.”

“Hehe, that’s right.”

Vivian smiled brightly as she recalled the moment of success.

The next thing I noticed was something strange.

“… yes? uh? Were you watching?”

Ian shrugged his shoulders.

“Ugh… . I wanted to give you a surprise… .”

Vivian pouted her lips and grumbled.

“I was already so surprised by Vivian, I don’t think I should be more surprised here.”

“Neeh? Is there anything that surprised me?”

“Why not? He was successful in transforming the magic composition, had a high level of suitability for the artifact, and after clearing two dungeons, he trained autonomously and learned magic that he was not good at.”

“… … .”

“This happened in just one day? If you’re not surprised, that’s strange. I’m worried about what else they’ll show me next and surprise me, but I’m also a bit excited… .”

“Ahh, I understand… !”

Vivian seemed embarrassed to be listening, stamping her feet and making a fuss.

“Then let’s go in now. It’s unpleasant to keep looking at those.”

“Ugh, that’s right.”

“If you’re curious, you can take a look. Instead, I cannot take responsibility for what is memorable.”

“I won’t watch it!”

Vivian followed Ian, who was half a step ahead, back into the dorm.

The whole way, Vivian didn’t even feel like looking back.

I just kept looking at Ian.

Keep going, keep going.

*

“For now, let’s go in and rest for today… .”

“Yes? Ah, actually, I have some concerns… .”

“Hmm… .”

It’s important to listen to your concerns, but taking a break is just as important.

This is especially true today since I completed two dungeons in a row and even trained alone.

Ian hesitated for a moment, then Vivian spoke urgently.

“You said I was your top priority, right?”

“… Then I have nothing to say.”

“And everyone is probably still asleep, so I might wake them up for no reason… .”

That was true.

Some time has passed since Kati reported.

It was a time when not only Kati but also others were asleep.

Ian had no choice but to bring Vivian into the room.

*

Eastern part of the continent, County of Fiorene.

In a hidden parlor of a castle, two men were sitting facing each other.

It was a luxurious space decorated with gorgeous red carpets and golden chandeliers.

A man said.

He was a young nobleman wearing a luxurious, embroidered suit.

“Have you been to the place I told you about?”

Meanwhile, sitting across from him was a rough-looking man wearing leather armor and a hooded cloak.

“I heard it through a report. It’s still too early to be active in Superbia, but the outer cities are suitable for work.”

“Someone gave me this information, so that’s it. I assure you that if you only use the points and routes I have given you, your safety and profits will be guaranteed.”

The nobleman spoke as if he were boasting.

Although it was quite arrogant, the man did not deny it because it was true.

The nobleman spoke again.

“Have you still not found Bertholdt?”

“Yes. It’s not easy to track him down because he’s so quick.”

“Damn… . How did the name become public at MacDerlin Abbey? But what else is there to throw out right away? Anyway, this is why you shouldn’t trust religious people.”

Although he was the one who proposed a temporary alliance first, the nobleman blamed Bertolt.

The man wasn’t particularly interested in the contradictory response.

“I need to catch it quickly… . Even if he was caught by Lazuri and told everything… , Ugh, that’s terrible.”

The man brought up another topic.

“Is this place okay? I heard that the Count is holding a duel competition soon. Aren’t there going to be a lot of people? The Count doesn’t even know that you are a remnant of the Anti-Imperial Coalition.”

“Hmph. Would I be able to tell that to that thin-eared, soft-spoken Count? Still, I can’t help it. Since the Count has already been talking about the competition here and there, it would be even more suspicious if he said he would not hold the competition now.”

“Hmm.”

It wasn’t that the man didn’t know that.

It was simply a question asked to see how far this young nobleman could think.

“But there is also good news.”

“If it’s good news?”

“Beatrice sent a message.”

“Ho? That Beatrice?”

“Yes, that Beatrice. Last time I talked to him, he said he wasn’t interested, but for some reason he said he wanted to talk about the mercenary business. Very actively.”

“You probably don’t know that it’s actually a plan to recruit private soldiers for the Anti-Imperial Coalition.”

“Tsk tsk tsk tsk. yes. A rebellion supported by the hero of the century, isn’t it exciting?”

Aaron Somerset, one of the leading figures of the Anti-Imperial Coalition who was executed.

His son, Henry Somerset, a remnant of the Anti-Imperial Coalition, laughed evilly.

He also gave Beatrice and Kylie a large sum of money in Badenberg last time.

“Even if something is revealed, there is still room to avoid it. We’re going to be the first party, so who can treat us carelessly?”

The man just grinned and flattered her.

It was a rebellion or something, but the man wasn’t really interested.

All that needed to be done was to exchange the transaction value that each party agreed to in a fair manner.

The role of his organization is to provide manpower and equipment to the nobles of the Anti-Imperial Alliance, whose power as well as power itself has diminished, and to deliver news from all over the continent.

Instead, the organization makes money by hearing about valuable information that only the nobles know.

So whether their rebellion succeeds or not.

All they have to do is ensure their safety and make a profit.

He was ready to step out at any time.

However, there was one thing I was curious about.

“Rather than that, it is the first party… . Was the manager there a man named Ian?”

“That’s right. I heard you were kicked out recently.”

“If a duel competition is held, could he come here?”

“Hmm… . If you’re throwing a party again, yes. Wouldn’t you wonder if there is any talent among those participating in the competition? Why do we know each other?”

“… You can say that. That man owes me a personal debt.”

The man tightens and tightens his hand on the table menacingly.

The mark below the wrist was clearly visible in the light.

A tattoo with an ‘X’ drawn in the center of a circle.

Unusually, all of the ends of the X were outside the circle.

“Huh. You owe me something?”

In the past, a man who stole a special artifact in the form of a special elf and ring.

Not only that, he is an arsonist who murdered all of the gang members and business partner executives present at the scene and then burned the scene down.

On that day, as much as 20% of the organization’s total capital and manpower disappeared.

If it weren’t for that incident, it would have been possible to look down at Henry instead of facing him as equals.

“By the way, I heard that Ian was also a former warrior. Are you confident?”

“At any rate, he is a guy named Philip who is acting like a scarecrow after he retires from the scene. Considering he retired at a young age, he must be a worthless guy.”

“Ha! but. Your skills are at the level of a B-class hero, but compared to you, who are even at the bottom of the A-class hero, they are insignificant. Even if you’re unlucky, you’re a good friend, aren’t you? If I had stayed with the first party, they would have protected me.”

The man had been aiming for that Ian the whole time.

Although there was an emotional desire for revenge against those who messed with his organization, there were also calculated reasons.

If you do not respond strongly to external attacks, you are likely to be looked down on by other organizations.

Even within an organization, discipline is bound to be shaken.

Therefore, even if it meant taking risks, I planned to find Ian and kill him.

At first, I didn’t know who did it because it wasn’t easy to trace.

I later found out their true identity after the monsters called the First Hero Party appeared, and they were beings that the man could not handle.

But now Ian has been kicked out of them.

There is even a chance that they will come to this area where they are hiding.

“… I’m looking forward to meeting you.”

The man doesn’t even know exactly who Ian is.

I don’t even know why.

However, even if it is belated, the organization’s revenge must be completed.

For safety and survival.

In fact, after that incident, the internal order of the organization was greatly shaken and externally suffered a major blow.

I still haven’t completely escaped the influence of that time.

Even now, you have to finish the work with your own hands.

Edgar, the representative of the Liberal League, pledged so.

*

Kati left the room late at night.

Vivian hasn’t returned yet.

Ian went to pick him up, so there shouldn’t be any problem.

If there was a serious problem, Ian would have made it known with the Ring of Subordination.

Still, I wanted to check just in case.

He came in early and may have fallen asleep in Ian’s room, so he didn’t send a telepathic message through the Ring of Subordination.

All you have to do is check for signs outside the door.

The moment I secretly put my ear to the door.

-I fell in love.

Inside, someone said so.

“… … .”

Kati froze in place.