Chapter 186

Chapter 186

186: Trick and Treat // -Thud, thud. As I quietly followed the man, I glanced around. ‘Could it be…’ I had a hunch, and it seemed I was right. The man’s footsteps were leading me to a place other than the Lockard Family’s hideout, which I remembered. And that direction was none other than a place etched in my memory. ‘…The sewers?’ The Reikers sewers. The city’s sewers, where all the sewage gathered, were a hotbed of crime and the perfect place to dispose of bodies. The sound of flowing water muffled any escaping screams, and the rats and slimes breeding within the sewers devoured all traces left behind. Of course, it wasn’t just murder that happened here. When I was constantly tormented by the Lockard Family, I was often gang-raped here. “…Is this the right way?” “Yeah, it is.” I asked, feigning anxiety, and the man nodded, as if annoyed. “….” Could he be planning to kill me? That was unlikely. Even though murder was frequent in the slums, most of it was motivated by money and valuables. Killing me now, without any apparent reason, didn’t quite fit the pattern. ‘Is he just planning to rape me?’ That was the most likely scenario. And it was likely to be a gang rape, not just one person. Perhaps the man’s companions were waiting for us in the sewers. …Was he the type to share something delicious? He could have kept me all to himself, but he was willing to share with his companions, so he might be a man of loyalty. Or perhaps he was taking me to the sewers to silence me after the gang rape. After considering several possibilities, I sighed inwardly. ‘Oh well….’ It seemed like a wild goose chase after all. I thought there was something about him that might connect him to Keir, but was he just a rapist with a knack for improvisation? I considered knocking him out and looking for other gang members, but I couldn’t shake off the lingering hope. “Come on, follow me.” “….” While I was lost in thought, the man and I had arrived at the entrance to the sewers. -Gurgle, gurgle. The sound of water echoing from the pitch-black darkness felt ominous. Would any woman willingly walk into that ominous abyss? Of course, I would. But it wouldn’t do to just walk in, would it? “Um…this place…” “Ahem.” I pretended to be scared, putting on a rather convincing act, and the man made a stern sound before grabbing my wrist and pulling me along. I could easily shake him off if I wanted to, but I pretended to be helplessly dragged along. “Ah…!” “No need to be alarmed. It’s dark inside, and you might get hurt if you fall. That’s why I’m holding on to you.” Anyone who fell for that would be an idiot. And I played the part of an idiot. “Oh, thank you. I didn’t realize…” “It’s okay. It’s understandable to be suspicious.” Of course, you’d be an idiot if you weren’t suspicious. As I was thinking how pathetic this gang member was for not realizing that, he asked me again. “By the way, what’s your relationship with that Keir guy?” “We were friends a long time ago. Before I left the city…we used to hang out a lot.” “…Is that so?” In reality, we didn’t just hang out a lot, we were always together. Of course, as we got older, we started being together in a different way. “What’s your name?” “Lila. Lila Freeman.” “Lila…a pretty name.” It seemed the man in front of me didn’t recognize me. If so, he wasn’t a member of the Lockard Family. The thought that he was just a perverted creep was growing in my mind, but I couldn’t be sure. There was always a chance of something else. Torn between possibilities, I followed the nameless man. “Oops, be careful coming down.” “Ah…thank you.” -Thud, thud. In the darkness, I was dragged along by the man, my wrist held in his grip. But the man’s hand seemed less like it was helping me and more like it was preventing me from escaping. “….” It seemed I had to prepare myself to take off my clothes. // Inside the dimly lit sewers, the man carried a torch as he walked. -Thud, thud. How long had we been walking? “…Huh?” Suddenly, I noticed a light seeping out from the distance. The man muttered to himself as he saw it. “We’re here.” “….” Light seeping out from inside the sewers. It was obvious what it was. In this place, beyond the reach of the guard’s eyes, underworld gang members would occasionally gather for drinking parties. Sometimes they would bring women too, and I remembered being dragged here quite often. Rather than being dragged here often, it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say I was a regular. No prostitute was ever dragged here as willingly as I was. “Yo-” Could Keir really be here? As I watched the man greet someone in a friendly manner, I briefly had hope, but that hope was soon shattered. “Kood? What are you doing here…what’s this?” “…A woman?” I scanned the faces of the men gathered in the room around the bonfire and had no choice but to nod to myself once again. Among the men sitting around the burning bonfire, there wasn’t a single familiar face. It seemed like there was no escaping the gang rape. “Kood, what brings you here, brother?” “What else? I just wanted to see if you guys were having fun.” Had they already started drinking? They had piled up bottles and wooden cups in one corner, and they were roasting a skinned rat over the bonfire. …I wonder if they’ll give me one? As I recalled distant memories from the savory aroma wafting through the air, I asked the man called Kood. “…Um…why am I here…?” “Why else? We called you here to have fun with us.” “Wait a minute, that’s not what you said! What about Keir?” It was probably a lie. Even though I had a rough idea of what was going on, I still pretended to be an innocent woman as I asked. Of course, I didn’t expect an answer, but, “…Keir?” The gathered men tilted their heads at the name that came out of my mouth. “Yes, yes…” Huh. Could they know him? The way they looked somewhat uncomfortable didn’t seem like they were hearing an unfamiliar name. In particular, the man sitting closest to the bonfire gave me a meaningful look. “…Kood. Who is that woman?” “She’s Keir’s childhood friend from a long time ago. It seems they parted ways when she left the city as a child…” As I listened to the conversation, I felt relieved. I wasn’t wrong. These people were related to Keir. The only problem was that the relationship didn’t seem to be in a good way. “Hoo…is that so?” A cruel smile was etched on the face of the man who asked the question. Along with that, the gazes of the men sitting around the bonfire were filled with lust. “Uh….” Their gazes, scanning my exposed face and the body hidden by the robe, were filled with anticipation for what was to come. As a woman, it was impossible not to know about the greedy gazes of men, so I looked around at the gathered men with a hardened expression. “…Are you…deceiving me right now?” Of course, it was an act. Besides, I wasn’t deceived, I came here on purpose. As if understanding my feelings, the man called Kood answered me. “Ah, we’re not deceiving you.” “…Huh?” “You want to see Keir, right? Just wait a little bit. We’ll call him soon.” Ah. Could it be. “Instead, you’ll have to play with us for a while, miss.” “….” From Kood’s words, I could understand the situation. These people had a bad relationship with Keir, and they were trying to use me to lure him out. And as a bonus, they were planning to play with me until Keir arrived. “…P-please, stay away…” What should I do? Even as I acted, I pondered inwardly. If possible, I wanted to greet my long-lost hometown friend in a decent state, but on the other hand, I couldn’t be sure how Keir would think of me. He probably hadn’t changed from before. I could have hope that he had, but it was hard to be sure. Perhaps Keir wouldn’t be happy to see me even if he did see me. Even if he was happy, it would only be the joy of having a useful fucktoy return. Of course, it wouldn’t be bad to meet him like that, but it was also true that I wanted a slightly better form of meeting. …If I showed him that I had been gang-raped by these men, would his reaction be a little different? Could I elicit even a speck of pity that might remain in his heart? -Shwing. While I was wavering inwardly, Kood pulled out a dagger from his waist. “You better stay still. We want to let you go nicely too.” Kood said quietly, holding the sharp blade to my neck. Taking out a dagger first while saying he would let me go nicely was indeed a gangster-like attitude. “…What are you going to do to me?” “We’re just going to have some fun together. You know, the thing that men and women always do? Ah, but there are six of us, so you’re going to have a hard time, miss.” “….” “Hey, don’t glare at me like that. I told you not to trust people easily, right? Think of it as learning something new.” Was he thinking that I was glaring at him? Kood showed off his skills by waving the sharp dagger around and gave a cruel smile. “Heh heh.” “You’re too much, brother…” Behind him, five men giggled and laughed. They looked at me as if I was completely their prey. And Kood pointed to one of them and ordered. “Hey, Juki.” “Yes?” “Go and call Keir.” “…Me?” “You’re the youngest, aren’t you?” The one who answered Kood was the youngest-looking of the men sitting by the bonfire. He looked to be about sixteen years old and had a face reminiscent of Keir in the past. “What if I die doing that?” “What are you talking about, dying? If you go in and say this woman’s name, they’ll let you in.” It was a simple thought. What if I lied? But it didn’t seem like Kood had considered that possibility. “What’s her name?” “Lila…was it Riley?” “Lila. Lila Freeman.” “Right, Lila.” When I said it nonchalantly, Kood nodded. Seeing that, I felt a little disappointed. ….A woman who’s about to be gang-raped is answering so calmly, doesn’t he find that strange? “Go and tell him. We have this bitch, so if you don’t want to see her head cut off, come alone.” “…Are you going to cut off my head?” “Miss, don’t take it too seriously. We’re just joking.” Was that what he called a joke? I was dumbfounded, but Kood and the boy named Juki were having a serious conversation. “Okay, then…” “Ah, and before you deliver the message, call some of our guys. We’ll need some numbers to take down that Keir bastard.” “Yes, sir.” As I listened to their conversation, I nodded. “….” Normally, I should have said something like, ‘You deceived me!’ or ‘No! Don’t hurt Keir!’ in an aggrieved tone, but it was too much trouble to act that hard. Once I adopted a persona, I had to stick with it throughout the entire gang rape. Instead, I made up my mind inwardly. ‘Okay, let’s keep it simple.’ Aiden had asked me not to cause a commotion, but a few gang members dying in the slums was nothing out of the ordinary in Reikers. Simply put, I decided to respect their choice. If they noticed something strange about me, I would kill them all and wait for Keir. But if they didn’t notice anything strange about me…

“So, milady, care to play with us?” “…Yes, sure…” “Heh heh, good. I like that you’re so compliant.” …What else can I do? They don’t even suspect anything when I talk like this, so I might as well just go along with it. As long as they don’t start asking weird questions or grilling me, I just need to shut up and take it. I don’t know what Keir will think of me when he sees me like this. Even if I were perfectly fine, I wouldn’t know what’s in his heart. ‘…Sigh.’ I sigh inwardly at the clueless gang members, but I allow the approaching men to touch me. …Really, isn’t “living because you’re stupid” a saying that applies to situations like this? // [Author’s Notes] I’m sorry for being late. I thought I was going on a trip, but it turned out to be a labor trip. I will resume regular updates from today.