Chapter 113

"Good day, big boss!!"

Someone called out to Woojin as he left the mansion and headed back toward the royal castle. The man bowed deeply, his friendly face breaking into a smile that narrowed his eyes to slits.

"My name is Ed. Boss Peron told me to attend to you, big boss. It's a pleasure!"

"... Enough with the big boss. Call me Khan."

"But you're the one Boss Peron serves. Then... would you mind if I called you Master?"

Woojin nodded, seeing no particular reason to refuse that much.

"You said you wanted to use the black market... May I ask what you're selling?" Ed asked as he walked briskly.

"This."

Woojin handed him the hallucinogen.

"Is this... Black Juice?"

Ed looked at him in surprise, clearly not having expected it.

"Is that what they call it? Probably. It's a hallucinogen made from malfran leaves."

"How did you... get hold of this? It's been causing quite a stir on the black market lately."

"Why?"

"The effects are incredible. They say it's five times stronger than anything that's come out before."

"... Really?"

Woojin glanced at the Black Juice he had made.

'This one's even stronger.'

It would definitely cause an uproar once it hit the black market.

"Yes. It sells like wildfire whenever it goes up for auction. They really can't keep up with demand. But..."

As Ed spoke, the look in his eyes changed slightly.

"Don't get the wrong idea. I'm not a supplier. I'm doing this because I want to find whoever makes it."

"Oh, ah...! I'm sorry."

Ed hastily bowed his head at Woojin's words.

"That was rude of me. I'd heard Boss Peron had gotten out of this kind of business..."

"This kind?"

"Yes. He was based in the Dark Forest, so of course he never manufactured drugs... Anyway, he's cut all ties with the shady side of things."

"Really?"

His words left Woojin feeling quietly pleased.

'Looks like he's doing well after all.'

"Yes. Actually, the boss was a little worried about introducing me to you. He's washed his hands of it, but we still take assassination and extermination contracts."

"... Really?"

"Of course, we don't target players like we used to. We're registered with the Adventurers' Association and mostly take quests posted there," Ed hastily added.

As he said, the Adventurers' Association offered more than just hunting quests. There were also quests involving NPCs, such as tracking down wanted criminals. Quite a few players were working as bounty hunters, too.

"I'm not against all PK. What I objected to was killing people who hadn't done anything wrong, like you did in the Dark Forest."

"Yes. I'll keep that in mind."

Ed nodded.

"But following Boss Peron to the central continent hasn't been as easy as we expected. Our goal was to build the best assassination clan we could."

"Why?"

"Our reputation is still too low to get any decent contracts."

"Hmm."

"And the established assassination clans are fiercely territorial... When we came to the central continent, we promised the boss we'd gather information for him on everything happening across the continent."

"Haha."

Woojin couldn't help chuckling at that. Gathering information—that was exactly what he had said when he first brought Peron over to his side.

"Which clan is the most famous in that line of work?"

"Among player clans, it's a clan called Blue Dog... But the most famous organization in this business on the central continent is unquestionably the Squall Ring."

"The Squall Ring?"

Woojin tilted his head slightly at the familiar name.

'Oh, right.'

He wondered where he had heard it, then remembered it had been on Charlson's list of diplomatic rewards back in Hundred Flowers Valley.

[List of Associations Currently Available for Diplomacy]

1. Basilisk Trading Group.

2. Squall Ring.

3. Queen Leather Workshop.

'Come to think of it, I still haven't chosen an association.'

"Is the Squall Ring really that impressive?"

"Oh, absolutely. It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say they have information on eighty percent of all incidents on the central continent."

"Hmm."

"The black market we're heading to is under their control, too."

"Really?"

Woojin nodded.

"Yes. But they're vicious bastards... You'll have to be careful in there."

Ed warned him earnestly, but hearing the name Squall Ring had actually seemed to put Woojin at ease.

"Don't worry. We might be able to settle this much more easily than I thought."

THUD.

Before they knew it, the two had reached an old graveyard inside the outer city walls.

"Night crow."

The gravekeeper standing before the locked gate glanced at Ed as he spoke.

"Swamp frog."

When Ed gave the password, the gravekeeper opened the iron-barred gate without another word.

"You must leave before dawn."

Woojin walked into the graveyard with Ed.

* * *

"Ed of the Blan Clan."

Apparently, they were still using the name of the clan Peron had founded, even though Peron himself was no longer there. Seeing that, Woojin thought Peron's former followers were rather loyal.

'Well, they went through all sorts of hardships to get to the central continent...'

In a sense, there might not be another clan as tightly knit as theirs.

"Go to Room 34."

Beneath the graveyard, tiny rooms stood packed together in rows, like a budget boardinghouse. Auctions were being held in each one.

CLICK.

When they entered the room marked 34, a man with black cloth covering his face greeted them.

"Place the items you wish to auction in here," he told Woojin, opening the door of a large cabinet.

"How would you like to handle it? You can leave them here and simply collect the proceeds, or conduct the auction yourself."

"You can do it yourself? That's different from the Dark Forest."

"Yes. In the Dark Forest, the auction items have to be smuggled, so there are separate auctioneers. Here, though, the items can be delivered immediately."

Ed pointed to a box beside the cabinet that resembled a mailbox.

"Once the auction ends, you put the item in here, and the bidder receives it immediately. That's how the system works."

"Convenient. Then could I also talk to the people participating in the auction?"

"Hmm... Yes. The auction itself takes place through chat anyway, so it should be possible as long as the conversation isn't too long."

CLATTER.

Woojin placed four [Black Juices] in the cabinet.

"You handle the auction. Don't put them all up at once. Sell them one at a time. When you put up the fourth and final one, start at twice the winning bid for the third."

"... Twice? That would make the starting price astronomical."

"Doesn't matter. Tell them it costs twice as much because the recipe is included."

'The bidders will check the effects as soon as they receive the items. And once they realize it's a far superior hallucinogen...'

Those bastards would do anything to obtain the recipe.

"But the recipe has to be handed over in person. Tell them it's to prevent it from being resold elsewhere."

"Understood."

"Let me know when the auction's over."

"You aren't going to watch it yourself?"

"No. Someone might run once the auction results come out."

Woojin left the graveyard. Night had fallen before he knew it.

It was the perfect time for a conversation.

* * *

"Then take good care of His Majesty. Contact me immediately if anything happens."

"Yes, understood."

The servants bowed deeply at Hansen's instructions.

"I'm exhausted..."

He headed toward his lodgings outside the royal castle. After being tied to the castle all day since dawn, this was the only time he could leave and rest.

"You work hard. I've been waiting quite a while."

"...!!"

It happened just as he was about to open the door to the building. A voice sounded behind him.

"W-who...!!"

"Quiet. You'd better not make any noise."

Feeling a sharp point against his back, Hansen involuntarily gulped.

"... How did you get in?"

"The gate guards were out of their minds, just like your king. I don't know the details, but it looked like that would make smuggling things in pretty easy."

"I don't know what you're talking about..."

Woojin emerged from the darkness.

"Still, it's not as if I had an easy time getting in."

There was a freshly healed wound on his wrist. He had injured himself to activate [Black Guardian].

"So I hope you'll make it worth the trouble."

"How dare you...!! This is the royal castle!"

"And?"

SHUNK!!!

"Ghh... Mmmph!! Mmph!!!"

Woojin clamped a hand over Hansen's mouth from behind and pushed his sword in a little. Hansen thrashed in pain.

"In a place already riddled with drugs, is anyone going to come save you? You should know better than anyone."

"P-please spare me!!!"

"Tell me. Were you the one who put the alchemists in touch with the Kingdom of Esten?"

"... I... I..."

Woojin pressed the sword against Hansen's back a little harder.

"Aagh! I'll talk!! They paid me, saying all I had to do was arrange a meeting with His Majesty. That really was all!!"

"You knew they used drugs, didn't you?"

"Uh... Well..."

Hansen's face grew even paler. That was enough.

"Why didn't you report it? Were you planning to take over the kingdom with them?"

"No!! O-of course not!!"

"Then why did you ask whether the alchemists were safe? Weren't you trying to find out whether they were alive?"

"I-I was afraid."

"What?"

"After those men arrived, His Majesty and the ministers changed. Yes, they were all under the influence of drugs."

He shook his head and cried out.

"It wasn't something someone like me could stop. And attacking another kingdom... I truly knew nothing about that!"

As though his legs had given out, he sank to the ground, bracing his hands against the floor as he cried,

"It was only when you arrived that I finally realized something had gone wrong."

"And?"

"When you spoke about the Great Forest, I realized you'd already dealt with the alchemists there. I thought that if I frightened you with the prospect of a diplomatic incident, you might leave... That's why I said it."

"That's idiotic. Did you think a mere steward's words would sway someone who came to see the king?"

"... I'm sorry."

"What about the claim that they fled? Is it true you really didn't know? The king needed their drugs. He wouldn't have simply let them leave."

"I-it's true that they fled suddenly. Thinking back, I believe they were already planning their escape before this happened."

"Why?"

"They kept saying strange things... Something about an experiment failing... And that all hell would soon break loose in the Great Forest..."

'All hell would break loose in the Great Forest?'

Could they have meant the Human Golem in the laboratory? It had been impressive, but not enough to cause that much chaos.

'Is there... something else left?'

In the end, he would have to find the alchemists to uncover their true intentions.

"One last question. Are they Outlanders?"

"Y-yes."

'As I thought...'

It was just as he had expected.

"Their names?"

"That... I don't know either."

Hansen cried out, trembling and unable even to turn his head.

"Master, I don't see anything unusual."

After examining Hansen with Focused Eyes, Setsuna spoke quietly to Woojin. If Hansen had been connected to them, he might have had an alchemy-related Trait.

'If they're players, they might be a clan.'

Woojin recalled the [Alchemist's Bracelet] he had recovered in the Great Forest.

'Could I use that to track them down?'

DING.

Just then, a Message arrived.

[Master, the bidder has contacted me. Looks like we're in luck! They say they're in the Kingdom of Esten and can meet right away.]

[Really?]

It wasn't luck. They were simply still hiding somewhere nearby.

[Good. Tell them I'll hand over the recipe in person. Let's have them meet us on the western outskirts.]

[Understood!!]

"Hansen, you're coming with me."

"What...? M-me?"