188. Illegal Martial Arts Competition (1)
Oliver took a taxi to Area X.
Until just yesterday, he had been living in a mansion on a stone mountain, but Merlin unilaterally kicked Oliver out because he was busy with a lot of preparations to enter the tower.
It was a bit disappointing to leave the mansion with the library, but that didn’t disappoint.
I’ve read all the books I really needed, and I’ve picked up a few books on the way out.
It wasn’t my intention, but I decided to think positively as much as possible and sort things out as Dave. It was important to have a balance in life.
“Who is this? Are you a better solver who cut off contact while working out diligently?”
A voice that is harsh, exaggerated, but pleasant rather than unpleasant.
As I turned my head in the direction of the sound, I saw Dinklage, the gym leader, standing among the giants with a small but bigger attitude than anyone else.
He approached Oliver and asked.
“Are you out to exercise again?”
Dinklage came over drinking his special health supplement drink.
I don’t know if it was thanks to the supplement, but his muscles were more developed.
It didn’t get bigger, but it felt stronger. In fact, his vitality had increased more than before.
“hello? Chief. You seem to be in good health.”
“Do you think you’re just getting healthier?!”
Dinklage said, ripping her skin off and showing off her muscles. He showed a strong sense of pride in his muscles.
“I have grown stronger, and this explosive presence is proof of that… Ask again. Are you here to exercise?”
In order to coordinate the schedule related to the tower, Oliver focused on commissioning a fixer for several days, and as a result, he did not appear at the gym, which he judged to be of relatively low value.
Dinklage was furious about whether exercise was a joke, but what he couldn’t do was unavoidable.
After discussing the situation and saying that he would continue to pay the dues, he finally understood.
‘Well, work comes first! cancer!!’
Rather, he said he would wait for Oliver to come back to the gym, but that didn’t seem to be the case.
The feeling of being very happy to see Oliver is proof of that.
Unfortunately, Oliver had to disappoint his expectations again.
“Yes, I came to exercise today. But I think it will be difficult to go to the gym regularly in the future.”
“Oh, damn it. why? I’ve heard that the work of a fixer is running out, but the more you do, the more you have to take care of your body.”
“That is correct. However, there are personal circumstances.”
“Personal matters? . . . , is it important?”
Dinklage asked cautiously, throwing off his ugliness for a moment.
This was characteristic of this person.
Showing off his muscles, shouting, and being full of thugs, he acted like a thug more than anyone else, but he knew how to be considerate of others and listen to stories when needed.
In fact, many members, including Joe, spoke to him and asked for advice when they needed help.
maybe it’s normal He was a kind of businessman, supplying players to illegal martial arts competitions in Zone X.
“Yeah, I can’t tell you the details, but it’s important to me.”
“Well, then, I can’t help it……. But no discount. It’s the members’ fault that the number of appearances has decreased.”
“I know. That’s why I’m trying to pay my dues a few months in advance.”
Oliver pulled a thin bundle of money from his pocket. It was only the thickness of a fingernail, but considering that the bills were expensive, it was by no means a penny.
Especially in Zone X.
Upon receiving the clean bundle of banknotes, Dinklage sniffed it ecstatically and said:
“Did I say I love you?”
“uh····. no.”
“Remember me from now on. I love you.”
Dinklage said so and put the money in his arms.
“Well then, shall we count up to the days we can’t come out and watch a hard workout? First of all, George from the back.”
Oliver nodded and took off his jacket so he could work out.
There was no heating in the gym, and there was no equipment to protect against the cold, so I could feel the cold, but I didn’t care.
“But, Chief. Can I ask where Joe is? I was usually here, but I can’t see it.”
Oliver looked around and asked.
“article? I didn’t come out because I had a game today. Martial arts match…. why? Are you interested?”
Dinklage asked with a smirk.
***
When the exercise was over, the sky darkened.
Oliver wiped himself with a wet towel after exercise.
It was right after the workout, so it was a little uncomfortable to move due to muscle pain, but Oliver changed clothes instead of resting and finished getting ready to go out.
“Are you ready?”
Dinklage asked, wearing a long fur-lined coat.
As the short man wore a long coat, the rest was dragged to the floor like a cloak, but his dignified attitude and muscles combined looked like a fashion piece.
“Yes. Ready.”
“I rolled quite a bit, but it holds up well. After all, good people have good reasons.”
“Thank you for the compliment.”
“It’s not empty. I don’t know how to say things like that… i go out You guys clean up.”
After yelling at the gym staff, Dinklage took Oliver and walked into Area X.
“Okay, do you know anything about martial arts matches here?”
“I only know what I’ve heard from Joe. It’s the least profitable business in Zone X.”
Dinklage ha! under! laughed
“It’s not wrong. That’s right, it’s a little bit of a lucrative business in this fucking town. Of course, illegal martial arts in this city is not that great.”
That was true. Just outside of Zone J, there were several small-scale illegal martial arts arenas, as did other zones.
“But in terms of size, Zone X is the largest.”
Confidence, not bluff. Oliver asked why.
“reason? there’s nothing wrong with it Because it’s the most fun. No matter how crazy this city may look, there is a minimum line. In other areas controlled by the police to some extent, even illegal martial arts cannot cross a certain line.”
“Does that mean it’s not Zone X?”
“It’s quick to see for yourself. Come here.”
Passing the street sign called ＜X-Center＞ called the center of Zone X, I saw a crossroad of huge buildings.
It was very outdated, and some of it was still under construction.
It reminded me of an anecdote I heard from Sam of the twin pistols in the past.
During the development of the district, the corruption of the city councilor was revealed and he was dismissed, and after that, terrorism and accidents occurred one after another, and the development naturally stopped and the situation behind the X district was…
Originally, it was said that they were trying to create a decent industrial zone, but when I saw the large building in the center of the zone, it didn’t seem like a lie.
However, more than half of the buildings stopped during construction, creating an eul-like atmosphere.
“There is no match here. Come this way.”
Dinklage suddenly fell into the back alley.
It was a narrow but well-maintained back alley, and not long after entering the back alley, I was faced with an iron fence. Inside the iron cage, there was a thing like a back door.
Dinklage searched the corner of the wall and pressed the buzzer.
The couple – a small ringing tone.
A bald, fat man came out of the back door.
“What the hell kind of bastard! . . . Dinklage?”
The fat man, who had frowned harshly, released his expression in an instant. No, I even greeted them politely.
“What are you doing here?”
“Why did you come to the martial arts arena? I’m here to watch the fight.”
“No, then you have to come through the front door. Why are you coming through the staff-only aisle?”
“It’s crowded and the courts are constantly being trampled on.”
Dinklage said, grabbing his coat and waving it. It certainly seemed like it would get in the way of walking in crowded places.
“Oh·····. Still, you can’t come this way.”
The fat man grumbled in embarrassment, but he walked over and opened the iron window.
Dinklage comforted him.
“sorry. sorry. We didn’t originally plan to come, but suddenly a visitor came and wanted to take a look.”
Dinklage pointed his thumb at Oliver behind his back.
The fat man narrowed his eyes and looked at Oliver, then said to Dinklage again.
“Anyway, this is the only time. No matter how many players you bring, you can’t abuse the staff passage like this.”
“okay. okay. When you come to the gym later, I’ll give you a workout, so stop.”
“I hate sports.”
The fat man led Dinklage through the back door.
There were quite a few gangs waiting in the staff waiting room.
They had an ax in the trench club common in the back alleys, as well as a gun, which is relatively rare in poor District X.
Evidence that you care a lot about security.
Dinklage greeted them casually and took Oliver outside.
As I went out, I saw a hallway circling around a lot of people, and I heard cheers mixed with shouts from somewhere.
“Can you hear this exhilarating shout? This is the most profitable martial arts business in Area X. Several communities in this area are working together to operate it, so keep that in mind as this is common sense.”
“Community?”
It was a strange word, so Oliver asked. I thought it was run by a gang, but it’s a community.
“Well····. Did you see the police on the way?”
“no.”
“It has to be. This neighborhood is half abandoned by the city. So the poor who couldn’t get out of here felt the need to protect themselves. From thieves, robbers, and murderers… So the neighbors who live nearby got together. We call it community.”
“ah·····.”
“Now it’s like half a gang. Everyone who lives in Area X is directly or indirectly affiliated with the community.”
Well······. It was definitely an understandable story.
If you want to live in a town with no security, you will have no choice but to arm yourself.
While we were talking, we passed the hallway and climbed the stairs to arrive at a space.
Enough of a hundred people were roaring and looking at a stadium.
Above the arena, a muscular man with ragged masks all over his face and a bearded man were fighting each other.
However, he wasn’t just fighting, he was wearing something on his hand.
“With chains……. glue?”
Oliver tilted his head and mumbled.
“Actually, you put glue on your fist and then you put shards of broken glass on it. That’s why Zone X is more popular than other martial arts matches. People bet more money when they see blood.”
In fact, on one side of the stadium, a lot of money was flowing in and out of the gambling board hosting the gambling.
Taken from n̲o̲b̲l̲e̲m̲t̲l̲.̲c̲o̲m̲
Not only that, but some were relaying the game somewhere with the black magic item ‘Watcher’s Eye’.“We partner with some gangs to share matches outside of Zone X. It makes a lot of money.”
“Then why do you live here?”
Dinklage asked back to an outrageous question.
“yes? what?”
“It’s that community. With that amount of money, I think we can establish a place outside of Zone X.”
Oliver was really curious and asked. It made sense to live in Zone X because of money, and to create a community because of it.
But the moment I saw that money, the story changed. With that kind of money, I could get out of Zone X and live a different life.
It was in contrast to living here inevitably.
“Ah, there are so many mouths to share. Even if it looks like a lot of money, it’s not much if you split it up.”
“But there will be some who will benefit greatly, and some of them have amassed considerable fortunes, don’t they?”
Oliver asked about his experiences in the back alleys. When a business is successful, there are people who make a lot of money.
Dinklage could not respond, pondered for a moment, then answered seriously.
“Because I have saved enough money and fortune to not have to leave here anymore. It’s an ironic case.”
“I don’t understand, do you?”
“As I saw on my way here, the yangbans who run this stadium put a lot of strain on their necks in this neighborhood in their own way. With money and power, there is no more reason to leave. Conversely, ask At best, you can spread your shoulders here, but if you leave, what can you do next? factory worker? General store owner?”
Oliver couldn’t think of a proper answer.
“That’s how people live. Life is more difficult when you leave here, so what’s the reason for leaving? Isn’t that how you continue to work as a solver?”
“Me?”
“okay. If you had known your name as a solver, you would have made quite a bit of money, so why do you keep working as a solver risky? It’s hard to change the way people used to live. Especially when you eat well and live well with it.”
like·····. It was a pretty interesting story.
It seemed like the right thing to say.
Of course, it wasn’t just because of Oliver’s job as a solver…
‘·····No. can you assert Is there any reason to stick with this method?’
Oliver doubted himself and fell into his own head. At that moment, I bumped into someone in the crowd.
“this! sorry.”
The man, who seemed to have bumped into him, dropped the ticket and apologized, and Oliver also apologized and bowed to pick up the ticket.
In the process, the people who bumped into Oliver could see each other’s faces, and at the same time made a silly sound.
“uh?”
“yes?”
He was the chubby man of the Gray Market Warlock who made the Grateful Pouch-Big Mouse.