Chapter 59: To Marzen (4)
Even the sunset connecting day and night vanished, and complete darkness arrived.
That meant it was time for the stalwarts of Marzen, reborn from the Eddy Family into the ‘Eddy Mercenary Corps’, to exert their power.
Indeed, whenever Harang’s group passed, the street merchants greeted them without exception.
It couldn't be helped.
They were more reliable than even the city guard.
‘And yet… they couldn’t prevent the Boss’ kidnapping.’
Pale thought, following behind Harang.
The situation was extremely bad.
Eddy was originally strong, but he became much stronger after enduring hellish training under Harang.
His aura amount, which had barely reached Expert level, had increased significantly, and his swordsmanship had developed to the point where he could defeat a direct descendant of Portville; no one would have considered him a mere gangster.
Daereon was beyond question.
He had been a complete mid-level Expert since joining the group and had become even more seasoned through continuous many-against-one spars.
He possessed skills that even the main forces of a decent Swordsmanship Guild couldn't take lightly, so he was someone they never worried about even when he occasionally passed out drunk on the street…….
Those two.
The two strongest members of the Eddy Mercenary Corps, excluding Harang, had been kidnapped without a sound.
And that too, not in some other place, but in Marzen’s own front yard.
‘This is dangerous. Perhaps even more so than when we had a dispute with the Portville Swordsmanship Family……!’
Pale looked at Harang, who was walking at a fast pace at the very front.
It wasn't that he didn't trust him.
He was the strongest man he had ever seen, and still a mysterious figure whose limits were unknown.
However, that didn't mean he thought he was a perfect being capable of solving everything alone.
After all, wasn't he also human?
‘Individuals skilled enough to kidnap Experts of Eddy and Daereon’s caliber from their base, without a sound.’
To deal with such individuals, it was right for their side to also confront them with all their strength.
Pale, having finished his thoughts, called out to Harang and carefully suggested gathering the entire Eddy Mercenary Corps to move.
However.
“Pale.”
“Yes, Boss.”
“I’m sorry, but please don’t talk to me right now.”
“…….”
“I apologize once again. My head is aching a bit.”
Harang’s reaction, so different from usual, flustered Pale.
Certainly, today’s Boss was too strange.
He was a person who was always expressionless, with no emotional fluctuations, to the point where he often thought, ‘Is he a doll?’, but now, his emotions were so clearly revealed that even a dull person could tell at a glance.
He was grateful for that.
But it was also frightening.
Facing the anger of a person who had never once gotten angry, Pale found even taking a step as burdensome as a mouse frozen before a snake.
“Glen.”
“Yes, Bro… Boss.”
“You don’t follow. Tell the others the current situation and have them gather together. Something might come up where we need to move. Of course, don’t move first.”
“……Yes.”
Pale spoke in a whisper, and Glen also replied in a low voice before disappearing into an alley.
He didn't worry about a boy being alone on a dark street.
There would be no one in Marzen bold enough to mess with that kid.
What worried him was only Boss Eddy and Daereon.
And Boss Harang, who was showing a completely different side than ever before.
With such thoughts in their hearts, Pale and the Fist brothers quietly followed behind Harang.
‘……What’s wrong with me.’
It wasn't just the Eddy Mercenary Corps that felt something was off.
Harang too had realized early on that his condition was not normal.
Why was that?
Why was his chest so tight, and his head so hot?
Because someone he knew was in danger?
But this wasn't the first time.
It was a similar situation when Daereon came looking for Eddy and Pale, but at that time, he had been calm and composed.
Rather, he had been in a state where his curiosity about whether he could find a clue about the village was much greater.
Then, was it a different reason?
Was it because others had been harmed because of him? Was he feeling this way due to guilt because an unrelated person had suffered due to something related to him?
“…….”
I don’t know.
It was similar, but it wasn't the answer.
He couldn't continue his thoughts any further.
The constantly boiling irritation and anger were blocking Harang’s deliberations.
Hoo, letting out a low sigh through his teeth, he blew away all distracting thoughts and muttered inwardly.
‘First, save them, then think.’
Thus, a little time passed.
Finally, Harang’s group, having reached a point 3km from Marzen’s west gate, stopped for a moment.
The content of the note was true.
A truly dilapidated hut was looking down on them from atop a hill.
Harang, confirming this, nodded and started walking again, and Pale and the others followed him with hardened faces.
It was then.
Kkiiik-!
The door, making an unpleasant sound from lack of oiling, opened, and three individuals who appeared to be attendants came out.
Pale’s eyes widened.
The feeling, as if looking at well-trained soldiers, made him uneasy.
However, the truly dangerous being was someone else; it was the man who came out last.
Red hair.
Red eyes.
A towering height that seemed to exceed 2 meters, and steel armor that made his physique look even more solid.
And the black rose emblem drawn on it.
Pale realized the man’s identity.
And at the same time, goosebumps spread all over his body.
‘No!’
He wasn't the only one who grasped the situation.
Even the ignorant and narrow-minded Iron Fist and Bloody Fist brothers knew what the black rose meant, and knew the identity of the red-haired, red-eyed man.
Nevertheless, the fact that they didn't retreat was commendable, but that was all.
Fighting spirit?
There was no way such a thing remained.
Courage?
This too was the same.
Because he was the boss they had served their entire lives, because it was Eddy who had saved their lives countless times, they were barely managing to stand their ground; if it had been an unrelated person, they would have fled with their tails between their legs long ago.
Of course.
“Are you the one who left this note?”
Harang didn't know him.
No, he wasn't even interested in the first place.
Such things didn't even enter his consideration.
He took a step forward.
And, said in a low voice.
“Are Eddy and Daereon alive?”
“……Hoho.”
The red-haired, red-eyed knight let out a dry laugh.
It was the same for the attendants behind him.
Though it didn't burst out audibly, their twitching lips were clearly mocking Harang.
Harang paid no heed.
Harang, who had calmed his anger for a moment, asked again.
“Eddy, and Daereon… are they alive?”
“Before I answer that question.”
“…….”
“It seems it would be in order to tell you why you are dying today. Hmm… You seem to be Harang. Black hair, black eyes, clothes you favor are black… It’s certain. Hey, he looks like him, right?”
“Yes, sir.”
“Yes, sir.”
“He matches the sketch.”
“Good. First, I shall praise you for not running away even after facing me, Dukan Iter, the sword of Elder Kilkearn.”
“…….”
Harang remained silent.
Pale, watching him from behind, felt something strange about the atmosphere, and it was the same for the Iron Fist and Bloody Fist brothers.
He couldn't understand why.
He absolutely couldn't understand why, but strangely, he felt his fear of the red-haired, red-eyed knight diminishing.
The problem was, something far more terrifying than that was felt emanating from Harang’s back.
“First, your crime is……”
However, it seemed that was just a delusion of the three.
Or perhaps because the distance was too great for him to feel it, the red-haired, red-eyed knight, who prided himself as Kilkearn’s sword, continued speaking.
The content wasn't very complicated.
That Harang had mercilessly slaughtered the Carlson Mercenary Corps, which had been dispatched to check the Barjean Merchant Guild.
That, as a result, a snag had occurred in Viscount Kilkearn’s financial plans.
Therefore, to hold him accountable for that crime, Dukan Iter, the Viscount Elder’s strongest sword, had personally moved.
Lastly…….
“The two you are so desperately looking for are inside the hut.”
“…….”
“Don’t you believe me? Well, fine. I commend you for standing proudly before me without being servile, so I’ll let you die with a peaceful mind. Hey, bring them out!”
“Yes!”
“Yes!”
No sooner had Dukan Iter finished speaking than two attendants entered the hut.
A moment later, they dragged out two bloodied figures.
Cheolpudeok!
Cheolpeodeok!
The two, with their hands tied behind their backs, fell roughly to the ground.
As Harang’s expression darkened watching this, Dukan Iter burst into a hearty laugh and spoke.
“I heard they were gangsters, but they were surprisingly loyal, unlike their kind. Seeing as they didn’t spill your whereabouts until the end. Foolish fellows, it was information we could have found out easily even without them.”
“Hahahaha!”
“Puheup, puheuhaha!”
“Haha, hahaha!”
No sooner had his words ended than the three attendants burst into laughter.
Dukan Iter, seeing this, mocked Harang’s group with even louder laughter, and thus, the voices of the four men made the hilltop boisterous for a long time.
Of course, they didn't stay like that forever.
Ttuk. As if by agreement, they stopped laughing simultaneously.
And widened their eyes.
As if they had only been joking until now, an enormous presence erupted from the red-haired, red-eyed knight.
Woooooooong……!
He raised his sword.
A greatsword over 1.5 meters long; a magnificent Aura Sword, large enough to cover its entire long and wide surface, rose majestically in the darkness.
It wasn't incomplete.
The grayish-white, completed aura shone more brilliantly than any star in the night sky, exuding a sharp killing intent towards Harang.
“…….”
However, Harang’s gaze was not fixed on Dukan Iter’s sword.
It was solely focused on Daereon, who was collapsed and unconscious in a wretched state.
And on Eddy, who was similarly covered in blood, collapsed, and mouthing the words ‘run away’ while looking at him.
Ppaajik
“Huh. Look at this fellow?”
Dukan Iter didn't like it.
The young man in his twenties, who dared to look away while facing him, who hadn't shown any sign of fear since arriving at this place, was subtly grating on his pride.
And he concluded that the most fatal punishment for such a fellow was to cut down the being he cherished most.
It was when his sword, tinged with a sneer, flew towards Eddy’s neck.
Wooooong!
Shhwaeaek-!
“Hut!”
An Aura Sword blooming with a tremendous resonance!
And immediately after, a longsword thrown at a terrifying speed!
The knight, confirming this, hastily leaned his torso back with an urgent expression.
He didn't dare think of parrying it.
He judged that if he did, his body would be split in two along with the sword, and that saved him.
However.
Teop
“……?”
The sound of something being caught, coming from behind.
Dukan Iter’s gaze, tilted backward, quickly followed it, and soon his expression changed to one of astonishment, as if he had seen something unbelievable.
Harang, who had arrived faster than the sword, had caught the sword he himself had thrown and was looking down at him.
“N-no……!”
Seogeok-!
Before Dukan Iter’s words could finish.
Harang’s sword, descending without mercy, slit his throat.
Hooooong-!
Subsequently, the sword, swung horizontally in a wide arc, split the bodies of the three attendants standing behind him in half.
“…….”
“…….”
“…….”
About 2 seconds.
It was the time it took for Harang to resolve the entire situation.
And it was too short a time for Pale and the others to come to their senses.
They forcibly wracked their unresponsive brains to grasp reality and soon reached a single conclusion.
‘Boss Harang is invincible.’
That, indeed, was the unchanging truth.