Chapter 99: The Day Before the Storm (1)

Chapter 99: The Day Before
the Storm (1)

A
low shout drew the attention of the marauding mob at the inn door in
my direction.

In
my head, I labeled them as enemies, not guests.

There
were three of them, a drunken female dwarf, a human and a dark elf
sobering them up.

They
wore no armor, but each had his own personal weapon.

The
dwarf wears gauntlets on her fists, and the human has a dagger
strapped to each thigh while the dark elf carries a wooden staff.

‘Elven
mage.’

This
was the one to watch out for.

I
remembered Ellie’s spell against the boss minotaur earlier, a spell
of immense power.

Not
all elves would be as good as she was, but it never hurt to be
careful.

[Nuer
Erencia LV45]

[◆
298th Puppet’s Curse]

‘She’s
got more potential than Grumpy.’

I
instinctively opened the status window and saw a curse I hadn’t seen
in a long time.

The
dwarf and human also have puppet curses, but at the beginning of
level 30, and their curse was in the thousands.

The
dark elf named Nuer, on the other hand, was nr. 298, the highest
number I’ve ever seen.

And
according to my big data, nine times out of ten people with that
curse are either outlaws or reformed explorers.

It
meant that there were a lot of guys with such bad personalities that
they would cause trouble in front of a bar that hadn’t even opened
yet.

“What
the fuck, bitch? You fucking whore, you fucking whore.”

“Hey,
stop.”

The
human woman halted the dwarf, who was about to take a step forward
with a heavy hand.

Her
eyes, glistening with lust, were locked on me in my suit.

“Don’t
you think it’s too much of a waste to just beat the crap out of
him? Couldn’t we have some fun?”

“Fuck
fun. It’s more fun to laugh at your lives than it is to watch you
stinking drunken bitches in front of someone else’s store, so get the
fuck out of my way when I’m trying to be polite. Fucking assholes.”

“⋯What?”

The
human woman’s face changed at my fact-filled words.

A
6:4 mix of lust and anger.

“If
you were sober, you’d go home and get some sleep, but why are you
hanging out in front of someone else’s store? Don’t you have a home
to go back to?”

“That’s
a bit of a mouthful. What do you care if we’re here or not?”

“Because
I work here.”

The
dwarf shouted at me.

“How
dare you, an employee, talk shit in front of guests!”

“Why
are you even a customer? We accept breastfeeding bitches and drunk
bitches who want to f**k on the table, but we don’t accept assholes
like you who talk shit in public. Get the fuck out of here.”

Diana
agreed. Even without those assholes, she still had plenty of
customers.

“What
the hell, what’s going on?”

“There
were some bitches making a fuss outside the cozy winter night inn
earlier, and Mr. Staff found them.”

“Who’s
Mr. Staff?”

“The
guy in the helmet over there. Oh, shit. His suit looks so ugly…This
is it for today.”

The
harsh words were enough to attract the attention of pedestrians and
bystanders on the street.

The
combination of three armed women and an unarmed man in a suit drew
even more attention.

“Mr.
Staff, he’s a man, isn’t he in danger?”

“I
don’t know. Someone said he’s an explorer. He must be a low-level
explorer.”

“It’s
a bit ominous to see drunk bitches armed⋯Shouldn’t
we call the guards?”

“Someone
already went. But it’s a long way to the guards, so I don’t know if
they’ll be here soon.”

Someone
had already noticed the commotion and went to call the guards.

It
was a good situation. Working at Diana’s tavern had been rewarding,
as the people who came and went were familiar.

“A
low-level explorer? What does he think he’s doing? If he gets bitten
by a monster, he won’t be able to move and will just fall asleep.
How dare he be so presumptuous⋯!”

A
drunken dwarf stomped away, sneering at the idea of a low-level
explorer.

“Enough.”

The
dark elf Nuer blocked the dwarf’s path with her staff.

“Moderation,
you’ve attracted too much attention. Let’s turn back.”

The
dwarf glared at Nuer.

“Eared.
You’re quite snobby for a wizard.”

“Just
because the boss treats you well doesn’t mean we have to treat you
like a prize, so behave yourself.”

The
dwarf and human snarled at Nuer.

‘What,
weren’t they on the same side?’

I
stared at them, dumbfounded by the sudden infighting.

From
their conversation, it seemed that the dwarves and humans had a boss
they served, and that Nuer was someone the boss gave special
treatment to.

“Do
as you please, but there’s nothing good about your rowdy behavior in
front of this inn, and we wouldn’t be in this mess if you hadn’t said
you were going to drink more.”

“⋯Tsk.”

“⋯Huh.
I see.”

The
dwarf and human woman clicked their tongues at Nuer’s words.

“What
luck. Kak-tap!”

The
dwarf spat a thick phlegm on the inn door.

“Consider
yourself lucky, male. You almost became a pussy rug slave and barely
survived.”

“Let’s
do this some other time, I’ll be nice to you. Phew.”

They
giggled and walked past me.

I
laughed out loud at their brazenness.

“What
do you guys think you’re doing, just walking by with a straight
face?”

“What?”

The
words echoed through the eerily quiet streets, causing the dwarf and
human to look back at me with blank expressions.

Nuer,
the dark elf, sighed and scratched her forehead.

I
ignored her and continued.

“I
didn’t expect reparations. But isn’t it human decency to at least
apologize?”

At
my words, the dwarf and human looked at each other.

“⋯Reparations?
Apology? Kahahahahak!”

At
my obvious comment, the dwarf and human laughed out loud for a long
time, as if a seizure button had been pushed.

I
laughed, too, because it was so familiar.

“It’s
kind of ridiculous, isn’t it, that you guys think it’s okay to do
this and not apologize. Hahahahahahahahaha!!!”

Hahahahahahaha!!!

The
three’s laughter echoed through the quiet street.

Hahahahahahahahaha!!!

Hahahahahahahahahahaha!!!

“You
bastard-”

[Blessing
of the Time of Judgment]

After
a short silence, time passed slowly.

In
the near-stasis of time, I stared at the dwarf’s outstretched fist.

The
gauntlet wrapped around her fist was transforming, radiating magic.
It was an artifact.

But
it was meaningless information. Attacks are only meaningful if they
land.

My
reach was much longer than the short dwarf’s.

[Invest
three free points in Strength?]

[Invest
three free points in Agility?]

Enraged,
I meant it.

The
world went back to normal.

“Pinched,
eh?”

The
dwarf’s face was in my grasp.

I
could see the dwarf’s face in slow motion as it realized the
situation and turned into a look of horror.

It
immediately grabbed the dwarf’s face and slammed it to the ground.

“Koooooow!

“Kahaaaak!”

The
dwarf screamed and coughed up a mouthful of blood.

“Ugh!
What the hell!”

“Kehek!”

The
people around fled, confused by the sudden battle.

The
thick sandy dust rose even higher with their movements, obstructing
their vision.

I
immediately activated my perception.

My
vision was blocked by my helmet, but I could see the world around me
as if it were in the palm of my hand.

A
blast from behind.

The
one with the dagger leapt into the air and tried to bring it down
with her weight.

I
reached my arm behind my back and grabbed the hand that held the
dagger.

“Uh,
how did you know-”

“Aaaaahhhhhhhh!”

I
spun around, snapped her arm, and grabbed the defenseless creature by
the throat.

“Get
off me, get off me, get off me!”

She
pounded on my arm with her fists and legs, but I continued to hold
her in midair.

“⋯gulp,
gulp⋯”

Eventually,
the frothing at the mouth sagged.

I
threw her onto the dwarf’s stomach, which was stuck in the dirt and
looked at the dark elf, who hadn’t done anything until now.

“Kghhhh!”

Her
supposed allies were down, and the dark elf, Nuer, was clapping me on
the back in admiration.

“Awww,
that’s refreshing. I never thought it would be so hard to be in the
company of such inferior people. They’re outlaws, anyway, and they’re
stupid. I’ve told them a couple times not to do it, but they won’t
listen.”

“⋯?”

The
sudden change in tone confused me for a moment.

Level
45. My body, which had been prepared for a battle with an opponent
who was almost as strong as Nate Elin, went limp for a moment.

“What
the hell, I thought you were going to fight too?”

“No?
What mage would get into melee with a warrior your size without
preparation, and why should I fight? I was trying to stop them.”

That’s
true. But⋯
hmm.

Nuer,
the dark elf, looked at the two of them on the ground, cleared her
throat, and spoke to me.

“Sigh.
It’s a shame to let the contribution go to waste, but⋯
what the hell. They’re on the Explorers Alliance wanted list, so
I’m sure you’ll get credit if you let the guards take care of them.”

“⋯Wait
a minute. What are you doing, a bitch, aren’t you an outlaw?”

Outlaws
don’t abandon their side so easily.

Paradoxically,
a captured ally might give away all of their information.

But
Noir’s tone was one of contempt for the outlaw.

“Me?
Hmph.”

She
hesitated for a moment, then swayed her hips.

She
gestured to the explorer’s badge tucked into her pants.

Not
a low-level explorer’s badge, made of wood, but a mid-level
explorer’s badge, made of silver.

It
was stamped with the seal of a reformed explorer.

***

“Oh,
and drink this. It’s a healing potion. It’s a small price to pay for
the repairs.”

The
self-proclaimed reformed explorer tossed me a water bottle and a coin
pouch, then blended into the crowd and disappeared.

I
didn’t drink the potion, as my injuries were minimal and I felt
strangely reluctant to use it.

The
pouch contained eight silver coins, enough to pay for a door and some
food.

As
I dusted off my clothes, I thought about Nuer the Dark Elf.

The
words of the stunned dwarf and human were troubling, and there was
too much behavior that didn’t add up to a simple reformed explorer.

‘Could
she be a spy or something?’

Like
a dark hero infiltrating a villainous organization and taking it down
from within?

“Eh.
It’s a fucking bumper crop.”

Suddenly,
my mind was racing.

I
shook my head and focused on the situation in front of me.

Only
when the guards arrived did things calm down a bit.

“Sorry
for the trouble. This is what we should have done, but we didn’t.”

The
platoon leader of the security platoon apologized in a sincere tone,
her face pale.

Maybe
it’s because I’m wearing a suit, but somehow I feel like I’m being
treated better than usual.

“It’s
okay, I heard you give credit for catching the idiots.”

“Ah,
yes, we’re offering two points of credit for every wanted outlaw you
capture. Here are two-point contribution documents.
You can take it to the Explorers’ Alliance.”

The
platoon leader handed me the contribution papers. They didn’t look
like Gurmimi and Reichem-class outlaws.

Two
plus two equals four.

With
the 10 points from the last trip to the Labyrinth, I’m 16 points away
from being promoted to Intermediate Explorer.

“And
that helmet⋯
are you, by any chance, Mr. Balkan?”

I
was slightly surprised to see the guard platoon leader call my name
out of the blue.

“How
do you know my name?”

“Most
people who drink around here know it, and your name has been
mentioned as an explorer of note lately. More than that, I have a
question for you.”

The
guard platoon leader eyed me warily.

From
what I’d picked up in the tavern, a guard platoon leader was a pretty
elite position.

There
was no reason for her to be so low-key unless she was asking for a
favor, but she opened her mouth cautiously.

“Do
you by any chance remember a woman named Talian who was the target of
your last outlaw capture request?”

I
can’t remember her.

Her
real name is Reichem, illusionist and outlaw of Clan Blues.

Professor
Arpo’s ten-year teaching assistant, a crazed graduate student who was
eventually corrupted.

I
caught her in the Labyrinth after she went on a rampage with Gurmimi,
an official of the Blues Clan.

“Yes.
Is there something wrong?”

“I’m
interrogating her for information, and she won’t open her mouth to
tell me anything but repeatedly asks me to bring her ‘a tall,
muscular male explorer wearing a helmet’ ⋯
and you’re the only one who matches her description, so I asked.”

“Are
you saying she’s looking for me?”

I
scratched my head.

‘There’s
no reason for that crazy grad student to be looking for me?’

“Yes.
That’s why I need you to come to the guard post
as soon as possible. I’ll give you a reward-”

-pop.

The
sound seemed strangely loud in the distance.

Naturally,
my head snapped in the direction of the sound.

Diana
dropped her shopping bag and stared blankly in my direction.

“⋯Balkan?”

Diana’s
gaze flicked to the mess around the inn, to the trampled food, to the
captured outlaws, to me, sitting on the dirt floor, talking to the
guard platoon leader.

Through
her bleary eyes, her amber pupils trembled with anxiety.