I see your code (201)
One-eyed, who got out of the party, immediately started looking for a shabby bar. This is because information about the back alley organization was usually obtained from such places.
Not long after that, he found a suitable shop and sat down, wiping his sweat like a worker who had just finished work.
“Master! A beer here!”
“Yes!”
A man with a grim look came out quickly and put the beer mug down on the table. One-eyed grabbed the man who was about to leave and said,
“Let me ask you something for a moment. I have some errands to run. Where can I go?”
“… … errand? Were you a foreigner?”
“I’m not a foreigner, but it’s my first time coming to the western section here.”
The store owner snorted at those words.
“What is the first time in the western section? You look like a foreigner.”
“… … Why did you think so?”
The one-eyed man’s attitude was a bit bewildered. From his appearance to his actions, he didn’t make any mistakes.
The owner looked at the one-eyed bewildered expression and clicked his tongue.
“Why do you think so? To think that there is still a back alley organization in Layton is proof that you are an outsider.”
“… … There is no back alley organization in Layton, you mean?”
One-eyed couldn’t believe it.
Because such a city did not exist in his world. Where there is light, there is also darkness. No matter how prosperous the place, it was only natural that there were people living in the shade.
“Rather than having no organization at all… … At least not what you think it is.”
“What does that mean?”
“Most of them work within legal boundaries. It’s like making barely strong alcohol, or transporting fallen drunken people home and getting paid for the hard work.”
“… … .”
What kind of criminal organization is that? Aren’t you more like a model citizen?
The one-eyed froze for a moment, then finally opened her mouth again.
“I heard that there is an organization called vigilantes here, but the punishment they give is very strong, don’t they? Seeing the backstreets buy so much.”
“But also… … Rather, it is thanks to the Holy Son who opened the way for us to live.”
again saint. The One-Eyed had already heard about Ryan dozens of times in less than a day after arriving in Layton.
“Are you paving the way for me? Did you even allow a crime?”
“no. Crimes are punished with certainty, but he encouraged them to use their spare powers for relatively legitimate purposes. For example… … .”
The owner of the store, who was annoyed at first, sat across from me with an excited face and continued explaining.
“If you make and sell drugs, you get 20 silver, and if you make and sell alcohol, you get 15 silver. So what would you choose here?”
“Yeah, of course, they’ll make and sell alcohol.”
There is nothing to ask. Individual conscience and morals aside, the former is captured and the latter is not.
If you can only get 5 silver benefits against the risk, of course it would be better to do something legal.
“That’s right. The saint did not root out crime blindly. You knew it would just create another organization.”
“… … I don’t quite understand. The theory sounds plausible, but you can’t make fifteen silver by selling alcohol instead of drugs, right?”
Usually, if the income you can get from drugs is 20 silver, it is normal for alcohol to be around 5 silver. And no one can survive on that money. Naturally, you will engage in illegal activities.
But even with such a reasonable question, the shopkeeper just smiled and pointed to the beer mug.
“Have a drink. How does it taste?”
“… … Suddenly at this time?”
“Drink it and you will know.”
At the attitude of the owner who was too confident, he gulped down the beer while one eye twitched. And immediately I opened my eyes.
“This… … .”
“Is it delicious?”
The owner grinned.
“It can’t even compare to other towns’ pig urine beer. That’s because it’s a real bastard that costs 50 coopers a cup.”
“… … 50 cooper? Couldn’t the common people buy and eat such luxury items?”
For 50 coopers, you can even cut meat in a decent restaurant. No matter how delicious it is, it is too much for a glass of beer.
“It’s possible in Layton. Do you know how many merchants are flocking to this city these days thanks to the Lian Chamber of Commerce? Now even those who don’t have much money can afford to buy and eat this tidy. So even if we do business legally, we can make a living.”
“… … So all the back alley organizations have turned around?”
“right. To be honest, I was one of them, and I opened this bar a year ago. It would be better to make beer safely than to shoot dangerously in the back alleys. Even the Black Knights are scary.”
… … black knight? What’s that creepy name?
I wanted to ask, but I couldn’t because the owner left to deal with the new guest.
In any case, it was clear that there was no further information to be obtained here.
He drank the beer with a bitter face.
‘It’s delicious, but it’s terribly delicious… … .’
* * *
The one-eyed girl who left the store did not give up until the end. No matter how good things get, there are always those who fall behind. Although the number had decreased, it was clear that they existed more secretly thanks to that.
It was almost a wishful thought, but with a lot of hard work he was able to get an interview with the one remaining criminal gang.
“This is the first time an outsider has seen us. okay. How urgent is it that you have suffered so much? Murder? kidnap?”
“It’s simple. Just give me a little rumor.”
“rumor?”
The man with the big scar burst out laughing.
“I wonder if a request from an outsider who found us for the first time spreads rumors. Interesting. But I’m sorry about this.”
“Why?”
“Because we don’t take on such trivial requests.”
The scarred man shrugged.
“The fact that you found us means that you have some understanding of the Layton situation now, right?”
“… … It’s hard to find criminal gangs, even if you look for them after washing your eyes. They say that if you don’t do this, you can eat and live.”
“That’s it too, but the biggest reason is because of the Black Knight.”
black knight. That word came up again.
“What the hell is that black knight? It’s not a kid’s joke name… … .”
“Well, I admit that the name is a bit scruffy, but if you look at it in reality, those words will fit easily.”
The man smiled and continued.
“It is one of the armed forces of the security forces, and its capabilities are beyond imagination. At first, I could see that he was working roughly… … I suddenly changed my mind about what happened a year ago and in a week disbanded all the big organizations.”
One-eyed widened her eyes.
“one week? Is that possible? How on earth is the public security force gathered only by ordinary people? … .”
“Who said it was an ordinary person?”
“… … Are you talking about knights?”
Even once asked, One-Eyed didn’t believe it at all. Because knight-grade power is very valuable. And his self-esteem was proportionally higher.
Even in Argon, where that law is strict, it was extremely rare for a knight to belong to the police force.
“right. I don’t know exactly what level it is… … Even if dozens of people rushed in, they cleaned it up like a mosquito.”
“It’s really… … It’s hard to believe.”
Scar-nam smiled once again at the stunned one-eyed words.
“What can I do about something that has already happened? No matter how affordable it is, if it hadn’t been for such circumstances, would the organization have been destroyed to this extent?”
“… … That too.”
It’s hard to believe that knights are just trying to catch criminals, but… … One eye immediately agreed. Because it wasn’t important now.
“Anyway, I now understand why you said you don’t accept frivolous work. It’s dangerous just to step out, so you don’t want to make a small request, right?”
“I know you well. Rumors spread around 50 gold at most.”
“What if the amount is much greater than that? Will you change your mind?”
“If the amount changes, of course, your mind will also change.”
The scarred man smiled and leaned against the table.
“So how much are you going to give? 70 gold? 80 gold? To be honest, it’s a bit lacking, but depending on the content, there’s nothing you can’t get… … .”
“500 gold.”
For a moment, the scarred man’s body, leaning against the desk, twisted.
“… … How much?”
“It was 500 gold. Just be aware that this is the amount I am offering with real bloody vomit.”
“Yeah, that’s right. I’m also wondering if you were a bastard Hogu who doesn’t know the market price… … .”
He murmured, barely regaining consciousness, and opened his mouth with a bright expression. It’s been a long time since I’ve seen a big fish, so I’m feeling better.
“With that amount of money, tomorrow, we can spread the word that King Argon was actually gay all over the continent. Do you want it?”
“I’m a little drawn to that, too, but I want to commission the other side.”
“What?”
“Lian.”
As soon as the words were finished, the scar-man’s body stiffened. It is an unbelievable change for someone who joked about the king of a country as well. One eye added quickly.
“I know it’s hard. That’s why I offered 500 gold.”
“… … once you ask Are the rumors you’re trying to spread good or bad?”
“Pretending to be good from the front, the truth is, behind the scenes, there are rumors that they are trafficking orphanage children… … It’s the bad one.”
For a moment, he was taken aback by the man’s serious attitude, but one-eyed didn’t even think that he would refuse.
Because 500 gold to spread just one rumor was a huge exorbitant price. It’s not a joke, but the rumor that the king is really gay will be able to spread the word on the continent.
However, despite such a one-eyed expectation, Scar Nam stood up without any sign of hesitation.
“get out.”
“What, what?”
“Get out, you bastard Horo.”
One-eyed was perplexed at the sudden declaration of termination of the contract. No matter how much I thought about it, it was an offer with no reason to refuse. To make sure that 300 gold would be enough, didn’t they even raise it to 500 gold?
“Why are you doing this? If you’re thinking of trying to increase the cost of your commission, it’s just that it’s all my fortune… … .”
“I’m not looking to go, I’m not testing, so get out! Get out!”
“Why are you doing this?! For 500 gold, he said he is confident that he will spread rumors even to the king!”
One-eyed screamed in shame.
Backstreet life for 20 years. Even though he was an ordinary person with that experience, he rose to a high-ranking position in Calpheon, but this was the first time in a situation like this.
“Here in Layton, the saint is inviolable. It’s more than a king. Okay? The bastard is trying to ruin someone’s business… … .”
“Come on, wait a minute. I’ll try to be a little more flexible with the money… … .”
“One thousand gold, ten thousand gold, go out!”
This time, it didn’t end with just words. Two black shadows popped out of the darkness, flashed him and threw him outside.
One-eyed was so absurd that he didn’t say anything and looked at the closed door.
‘What the hell is this… … .’
* * *