80 – Do You Want to Die? Do You Want to Be a Dog?
“It wasn’t exactly a plan… but was what I did justified?”
As if sensing the meaning of affirmation on my face, the people who had been rolling on the ground let out a collective gasp.
“This… this was all planned from the beginning?”
“It… it can’t be. Did we move like pawns in his palm?”
“All of the Debiatan organization at the mercy of just one person?”
As I watched the words pouring out as if they were stamped on a board.
Kiiik-.
An ominous sound echoed. When I looked up, I saw Chandelier shaking. It looked like it could fall any moment.
“Ugh! If I stay like this, we might all die…!”
Driven by urgency, I took quick steps towards the inside of the room, and the people sitting on the floor trembled and crawled back. They looked up at me with sweaty and anxious faces.
“I have to stay as calm as possible… Yes, let’s smile.”
***
When the boss of the Debiatan organization, Atan, saw the assassin’s charming smile, a chill ran down his spine and his body trembled.
“We were just playing in the palm of his hand…”
When did it all start? How far did his plan go?
Even if I tried to figure it out, I couldn’t possibly gauge it. The crimson sword in his hand flickered ominously, as if it would immediately take their lives.
The bodies piled up behind him seemed to show their future.
“He wasn’t just a hunting dog.”
With a height that looked about 16 years old and a young-looking face, he seemed like a gentle child who listened well, judging by his slightly downturned eyes.
Perhaps I was deceived by such appearance.
“That’s a monster… the monster of Nest. That guy must be the real owner of Nest.”
The man who seemed to have swallowed a snake inside him was no subordinate of a small organization like Nest. So, it was right to think that he was the actual owner and the one known as the boss at present was just a figurehead.
Deviatan was different in terms of size from other organizations. It was only natural that all information in Cardisian would reach Deviatan’s ears.
But no one knew. That such a monster existed in Nest!
How much power must one have to be able to hide everything about oneself? Atan’s pupils became increasingly filled with fear as time went on.
“Why did he do such a thing? To destroy the Deviatan organization?”
No, that’s not it. If that man had tried to wipe out the Deviatan organization, it would have already crumbled and ceased to exist.
Various thoughts crossed Atan’s mind when Lian opened his mouth.
“You must be curious as to why this happened. Well, to put it simply, it’s because the Deviatan side threatened me.”
“….!”
The word ‘dare’ resounded in Atan’s mind. Lian didn’t say such words, but that’s how it sounded to him.
“The solution is simple. Just don’t threaten me.”
Lian’s words were meant to stop the operation of the authority, but to others, it sounded completely different.
“A-Are we being told to bow our heads and enter?”
“Glug, was all of this prepared for Leviathan to swallow?”
No one believed Lian’s words at face value. The phrase “do not threaten” was synonymous with “become a non-threatening existence.”
In the battle between organizations, how could one avoid being a threat? Alliance? Treaty?
In this place rampant with betrayal, those words were all useless. To completely eliminate the threat, one must annihilate or swallow the opposing organization.
Therefore, Lian’s words sounded to them like, “If you don’t want to die, shut up and come under my command like loyal dogs.”
At the mention of devouring the entire Leviathan organization, the executives and boss turned into ice.
“At this rate, we might really fall apart….”
Lian took another step forward, glancing at the ceiling. Then, they crawled back further on the floor. Lian smiled even more softly, as if to say, “Don’t be on guard.” The faces of the executives and boss grew even paler.
“We don’t have time. It’s not that difficult.”
As their defeat was already predetermined, the executives and boss trembled at the words, quickly positioning themselves under Lian.
Humiliation and fear swelled in their minds. As they couldn’t come up with an answer.
Creak, creak…
The chandelier shook roughly, as if it could fall at any moment. Lian looked at the ceiling and spoke.
From Noble mtl dot com
“…We’ll discuss the answer later, but for now, get out of there—”
Just as they were about to say “immediately.”
Crack!
The ceiling completely collapsed, and Chandelier began to fall. The executives and boss stared at Chandelier with widened eyes.
“Ugh… That’s why I said to hurry!”
Lian swiftly transformed their sword into a long, spear-like shape and sent it flying in an instant.
Clang!
A window blade pierced through the chain hole that held the chandelier in place. The part connecting the blade and the handle protruded, causing the chain to get caught on the window.
Crash!
As the blade struck the ceiling, the chandelier came to a halt in the middle. The chandelier, hanging down as far as the length of the blade, swayed precariously in front of the officer and the boss.
“aaah!”
“Ehehehehek!”
The officers, who regained their senses belatedly, cowered on the floor and fled from beneath the chandelier. Even those who had wet their pants could be seen intermittently.
It wasn’t an overly terrifying incident that made one’s pants wet, but due to the comedic filter, their bodies showed an exaggerated reaction. Lian, who quickly noticed this, looked at them with a sympathetic gaze and said:
“I told you. I said to say that you won’t threaten us.”
The frightened individuals trembled and looked at Lian.
“If you don’t give an answer quickly, incidents like this will continue.”
Although there was a sense of empathy filled with concern for them, the words that came out were nothing but a sinister threat.
“Well, I’m not that much of a pushover. If you keep threatening us, well…”
Lian lightly nodded and reached out towards the ceiling. Then, the blade lightly returned to Lian’s hand.
Clang! Clang!
As the blade was removed, the chandelier fell to the floor. Glass and metal shards flew in all directions. Amidst the beautiful glimmer, the officers and the boss felt a distant fear.
“Well, if you want to live, just think that I won’t threaten you anymore. Got it?”
Since Lian couldn’t stay here indefinitely, after showing them a solution, he turned around and left without any lingering attachments.
“Ugh, ugh…”
“Eh-heh…”
Only after Lian left did fearful groans, soaked in fear, echo throughout the place. Atan, with a pale face twisted in disgust, staggered to his feet.
“Damn it, damn it!”
Atan couldn’t hide his anger at the fact that it was in the hands of that brat. No, he couldn’t help but be angry. Otherwise, it felt like he would be swallowed up by fear.
“I have to tell them. The fact that there is a giant black figure behind Nest.”
And so, the nickname “Nest’s hunting dog” evolved into “Nest’s black figure”!
It was an unfair situation for Lian, who had tried to help those who threatened him, but he didn’t find out about it until much later.
***
Deviathan, engulfed in chaos, left its land and headed for the land of the western Nest.
He didn’t forget to raid the homes of fallen sorcerers and slave traders along the way. Having done it in the arena, it was not difficult for him to gather all sorts of items.
He had brought a hefty purse with him, all the way to the west…
“Hmm… I wonder where Noah is?”
He knew he was in the northwest, but he didn’t know exactly where. After a moment of contemplation, he decided to just ask.
“Excuse me, do you know where the Nest organization is?”
“What, why are you asking me that?”
The person was taken aback, but suddenly became kind when Silver took out a coin and handed it over.
“If you go straight ahead and turn right, you’ll see a restaurant called Nest. It’s operated by the Nest organization, so you can go in that direction.”
“Thank you.”
Indeed, there was nothing that couldn’t be solved with money.
***
“Heh, hehehehe… delicious smell..”
As they approached the building with the sign that read Nest Restaurant, a delicious smell wafted through the air. Jes’s eyes widened and he continuously swallowed his saliva. His tail wagged wildly, and his robe fluttered.
“Would he be having a meal before we meet?”
With that thought in mind, I headed into the restaurant.
“Welcome!”
The store clerk was younger than I had expected. Maybe 12? 13? He looked like a young child. It wasn’t strange to think of young children as excellent workers in this cruel world, but… I could only see young children in the kitchen, where the cooking was still in progress.
“Um… Is this okay?”
With a bewildered look in my eyes, I was guided to an empty table. The restaurant was packed with customers, just as the enticing smell had suggested.
“One more serving of the braised meat here!”
“And here too!”
“When will the beer be served?!”
With so many rough people around, the place was as noisy as a marketplace. Seeing even the somewhat dangerous-looking individuals having a meal made me worry.
“Isn’t it too dangerous?”
Even in a normal restaurant, it would be worrisome to serve in such a hostile atmosphere, let alone with young children doing the serving.
Just as I was concerned, someone suddenly spat out a curse.
“When the hell are you coming out?! How many times do I have to ask?!”
“Hey, you! It hasn’t even been a minute since you placed your order! There are many tables waiting, so shut your mouth!”
“What?!”
As tension grew, as if someone could pull out a knife at any moment, the gazes of people around turned towards them.
“Oh no… I should intervene.”
With that thought in mind, just as I was about to get up from my seat, something flew out from the kitchen.
“Oh!”
A fairly familiar form of a book unfolded with a rustle.
[Which punk is causing trouble without fear?]
Noah’s master, Juliana, appeared.